At eight o'clock, half an hour before the game, both sides announced their starting lineups.
Pacers: Ewing, Dale Davis, Derek McKay, Reggie Miller, Best
Suns: Wang Tiejun, Rasheed Wallace, Robert Horry, Kidd, Kevin Johnson
Hu Weidong was not included in the twelve-man roster, but sat in the audience while a group of domestic media reporters were interviewing him.
In the CCTV live broadcast, Zhang Li laughed and said: "Tie Jun joked that Hu Weidong might have a chance to play tonight, but no, Weidong was not included in the twelve-man roster. Now he is sitting in the audience wearing a suit."
Su Qun asked excitedly: "Director Zhang, there are so many good prospects in Lao K's summer camp. After two more years of training, more people should have the opportunity to play in the NBA, right? By the way, do you think there will be more in the future?"
Don’t you want to come and play in the NBA?”
"well!"
At this time, in the domestic capital, Wang Fei, the head coach of the 81st team, sighed, Su Qun, Su Qun, has the 81st team ever offended you? If you say Hu Weidong, say Hu Weidong. Why are you mentioning the big brother? Isn't this a fight? It's nerve-wracking.
!
At half past eight, the game officially started.
Lao Wang was lazy, Rasheed Wallace and Ewing jumped the ball, and the Suns attacked.
Larry Brown's team has a tenet, I would rather not score than let you score.
If there is one more thing, it is that the defense must be based on tactics, and you can use whatever you want on the offensive end.
Therefore, from the beginning, the Suns had to face a very high defensive intensity. The two sides first started an offensive and defensive war of attrition on the outside.
The Pacers switched defense, with Reggie Miller switching to guard Kidd.
But at this time, the advantages of the Suns' dual-control tactics are revealed. Kidd is definitely a first-class point guard now, and the Lightning's current state is definitely first-class. With two first-class point guards joining forces, let alone the Pacers' perimeter defense.
With such intensity, even the Bulls can't even think of limiting the Suns' outside perimeter.
When Reggie Miller was pressing forward, Kidd saw that Old K had not yet completed his position, so he suddenly transferred the ball to Lightning. When Lightning received the ball, Old Wang happened to be close to the basket, and he caught the ball and moved it inside.
As soon as he stuffed it, the ball went straight through the gap in an instant.
"Bang!"
The next moment, Lao Wang caught the ball, then leaned back, knocked Ewing away with a fierce back arch, then stepped sideways, dunked with one hand, and smashed the ball into the basket.
"..."
Hu Weidong was about to cheer when he suddenly realized that he was now a Pacers player and was sitting behind the Pacers bench. He could only shut his mouth in embarrassment.
"King Kong, you can't resist me, and it's useless to go around. You can't defend me anyway. How should you defend me? I actually have a headache for you!" Lao Wang sprayed after he succeeded.
If you talk trash, just have fun.
"Shut up!"
King Kong glared angrily, and Ewing gave Lao Wang a hard look.
Well, Lao Wang kept his mouth shut. Facing Ewing, who never talks trash, it would be very embarrassing for him to do stand-up comedy alone.
Zhang Lili analyzed: "The current starting lineup of the Suns is similar to the last season, the season when they won the championship in 1994/95. It has a strong ability to open up, and the Tiejun still has a lot of chances to play singles in the low post."
Su Qun said: "Wilkins is better off as a substitute. With him on the court, K's chances of being double-teamed greatly increase."
"Beep!"
Reggie Miller turned around to get the ball and was closely guarded by Kidd. He dribbled the ball and took a step back to face the basket. He suddenly took off and shot. At the same time, he raised his right leg forward and inserted it between Kidd's legs. After the ball was released, he was
Kidd fell to the ground, the two fell together, and then the whistle sounded.
The ball was missed, but the referee gave Kidd a defensive foul and Reggie Miller made three free throws.
"Shh!"
American West Arena gave Reggie Miller huge boos, and he spread his hands with an innocent look on his face.
"Damn it, what are you pretending to be? Who doesn't know you are drawing a foul?" A fan sitting in the front row stood up and shouted at Miller.
Reggie Miller shrugged and didn't bother to pay attention to the angry fans.
He dared to provoke all the Knicks fans in Madison Square Garden. In the 1993 playoffs, he even jumped on the scorer's table and insulted all the home fans with the most filthy words. But he did not dare to provoke the Suns fans too much here.
Because he was afraid that Lao K would cause trouble for him.
In today's league, no one dares to act arrogantly at American Arena, just like the Palace of Auburn Hills in the 1980s.
"King Kong, I can't reach the big mouth outside. It only makes you look good. You have to be more patient." Lao Wang said to Ewing.
"Old K, don't mess around. This is just a regular season game. We won't meet in the finals. There is no need to fight to the death. The ones who are cheaper then will be the postman and Michael and O'Neal."
No matter how silent Ewing was, he still had to say a few words at this time. If he really offended Old K, he would be the first to suffer.
"You're right. Then tell that bastard with the big mouth to stop stretching his bird's legs. It's okay to cause fouls. If you hurt my people because of this, I will never be polite to you." Lao Wang said.
Ewing nodded helplessly and went to chat with Reggie Miller.
"Reggie, don't listen to Larry. There is no need for us to fight the Suns. Don't anger that bastard K."
"Don't worry, I know what's going on."
Next, Reggie Miller didn't use his trick again.
In this game, the paper strength of the two sides was close, but the Pacers performed better and finally won the victory. The Suns were in poor condition, ending their winning streak.
The team has experienced 17 consecutive victories, and is a little tired mentally and under a lot of pressure. The coaching staff has no requirement to win this home court, so the players are playing a little relaxed.
With 17 wins and 1 loss, the Suns still have the best record in the league.
Next, the regular season continues.
Hu Weidong finally made the twelve-man roster after two games, but had no chance to play.
CCTV broadcast a Pacers game live, and Hu Weidong was not seen playing until the last minute. CCTV's willingness to broadcast the game was greatly reduced.
It wasn't until late December that Hu Weidong had his first chance to make his debut. He played five minutes in garbage time, made 1 of 2 shots, and scored 2 points and 1 rebound.
This was a good start, and then he began to slowly enter Larry Brown's rotation, at least he would not sit on the bench forever.
For the Suns, Wilkins has not returned yet, and Horry is injured again. He was sidelined for two weeks. They lost to the Jazz on the 16th, their second loss of the season.
Due to continuous injuries, the playing time of other outside players began to increase, and a chain reaction began to occur. Due to the increased playing time, the Lightning relapsed and had to rest for two games. Fortunately, it was not serious.
In addition, the situation inside is not bad, Rasheed Wallace is not injured, and the two veterans do not have much playing time. The situation is not bad, the inside is better than the outside.
But it can be predicted that injuries will continue to occur, which is something that no team can avoid.
The Suns then lost another back-to-back game. By Christmas, they had 23 wins and 3 losses, still ranking first in the league.
Teams like the Bulls also suffered some injuries, which affected their results.
On the 24th, the Suns arrived in New York, and the league arranged a Christmas game for the Suns to challenge the Knicks away from home.
In the evening, when Wang Tiejun went to the New York branch, he received good news from China. Liu Yumin called and Team 81 relented.
This is good news, and he might even have a chance to participate in the 1997 draft.
"Brother Tieshu, please check O'Neal's consumption records for me."
When he arrived at the martial arts gym, he checked this thing and wanted to know about O'Neal's situation.
"It's not bad, Tie Jun. This O'Neill consumes much more than before. He eats chicken often, and uses medicinal oil and medicinal oil every day."
Wang Tieshu knew without looking that he was paying attention to Wang Tiejun's opponent.
"He is very rich and has invested in many businesses." Lao Wang said with a smile.
The night of the 25th, game day.
At 7:30, both sides announced the starting lineup.
Suns: Wang Tiejun, Rasheed Wallace, Hancock, Kidd, Kevin Johnson
Knicks: O'Neal, Oakley, John Wallace, Alan Houston, Chris Childs
The game was broadcast live on TNT and narrated by Bill Walton and Buzz Felton.
Bill Walton said: "The Knicks' record has declined recently, currently 20 wins and 6 losses, and has fallen behind the Bulls and Pacers.
The reasons for the decline are: first, there are shortcomings in the lineup itself. The third position is a rookie this year, which is a bit reluctant to play the main force, and the strength of the first position is average. The second is injuries."
Felton said: "The Knicks' team building strategy is still about internal and external core, and they have great expectations for Alan Houston.
After Houston reached the Knicks, he lived up to the team's expectations for him. After O'Neal attracted defense in the low post, he got a lot of space on the outside. His current data is 33 minutes per game and 21 points.
I took 17 shots and the hit rate was 46%, which is quite efficient."
Bill Walton said: "O'Neal currently averages 38 minutes per game, 27 points, 12.5 rebounds, and a shooting percentage of 55%. There is a certain gap between these data and Old K. The main reason is that he is not as scary as Old K in terms of physical fitness, so everyone
The investment cannot be as large as that of Lao K.”
Felton smiled and said: "Old K's physical fitness is really strong, very powerful, with a giant beast-shaped body, he can still maintain such a strong physical condition, he is a real physical monster.
I remember that he had physical problems during his rookie season, but he never had any physical problems in the following seasons.
And in the following years, his physical fitness became better and better. In addition to offense, he invested more and more in other aspects, which is not comparable to O'Neal."
Bill Walton nodded and said: "Physical fitness is the most important foundation. With good physical reserves, it can enable athletes to maintain stable efficiency and continuous performance in long games and long seasons.
contribution.
O'Neal is more talented than Old K, but I have to say that in terms of physical talent, he is not as good as Old K, and this also limits his performance."
In the CCTV live broadcast, Zhang Lili analyzed: "Now the Suns' second position is still not good, and Kidd and Kevin Johnson can only play dual-control tactics. The Lightning basically performs the duties of shooting guard.
And because he is not tall enough, there is actually no way to play shooting guard. When he was playing at the first position, he could score 20 points this season, but now his scoring average has dropped to 17 points per game, and his shooting percentage has also dropped.
Some, that's why."
Su Qun nodded and said: "If we continue to play dual control tactics, maybe the record will be affected, right?"
Zhang Liyi nodded and said: "That's for sure. After all, the Lightning is not a shooting guard. His ability without the ball is not very strong. He must have the ball in his hands, so this tactic is not sustainable. This tactic can only be used in the regular season.
A dozen, playoff games are absolutely not feasible.
So I think the Suns should change their lineup as soon as possible and let Kobe take over. Anyway, the coaching staff has determined that what is needed is Kobe's defense. After half a season of training, the defense will definitely be able to go up to a higher level, and it may be useful in the playoffs.
.
You see, the Knicks put rookies at the third position to play the main team, and the record is still good. If they use a few main players, the Suns may have more injuries."
At eight o'clock, the game starts.
"Old K, why don't you jump the ball?" Seeing Rasheed Wallace standing in front of him, O'Neal shouted in confusion.
"Save your efforts, this is my job," Lao Wang said casually.
O'Neal was stunned and couldn't help but look back at Oakley.
"What are you looking at?"
Oakley stared angrily, who is whose younger brother? Do you still want me to jump the ball?
O'Neal smiled coquettishly and lamented in his heart, when can I truly become the boss of this team?
He wanted to find some face with Rasheed Wallace, and said: "Boy, are you K's younger brother? You..."
Rasheed Wallace, who had a bad temper, directly interrupted O'Neal's words, blew his beard and glared: "I am not Lao K's younger brother, am I still your younger brother? Are you qualified to be my boss?"
O'Neal was stunned. Damn it, can anyone spray me now?
"Haha..." Lao Wang and others laughed.
"Beep!"
The referee, who was standing in the middle with the ball, quickly blew his whistle and glared to both sides. He said, "You don't want to play anymore. You're here to chat, right?"
"Crack!"
O'Neal got angry and took the ball away first, and the Knicks attacked.
"The Suns will definitely not double-team O'Neal, and there will not be many opportunities to get open shots from the outside. I bet that Alan Houston's shooting percentage will not be very high when facing Kidd's defense today." Bill Walton said at this time.
"Bang!"
The next moment, under Kidd's defense, Alan Houston missed a jump shot.
Wang Tiejun protected the backcourt rebound and the Suns attacked.
Zhang Li said with a smile: "This is Kidd's third season. His rookie contract is very long, 9 years. He should stay with the Suns for a long time unless he takes the initiative to trade.
Although his career is not long, he has shown many things, such as assists, rebounds and defense.
As a point guard, not to mention assists, his rebounding ability is very strong. As a point guard, he can even defend from the 1st position to the 4th position. His physical fitness is very good, very tough, and he is not tall.
Whether it's a loss, whether it's a shooting or breakthrough outside line, he can guard it."
Lao Wang came to the low post on the left wing and was blocked from the paint area by O'Neal.
"Shark, how big are you?" He noticed that O'Neal was a little fatter than during the Olympics, and couldn't help asking curiously.
"135." O'Neal said angrily.
"Did you miss ten kilograms?" Lao Wang reminded.
"None of your business." O'Neal said angrily.
At this time, Kidd passed the ball down, and Lao Wang started to play O'Neal in isolation.
"The two giant beasts are facing off for the first time since the introduction of Law K. Let's see who is stronger." Su Qun shouted excitedly.
"In a one-on-one duel, with Rasheed Wallace, it will be very difficult for the opponent's weak side to help defend." Zhang Li said with a smile.
"Arch your back!" Su Qun suddenly shouted loudly.
Wang Tiejun caught the ball and sat back on his butt.
Through this action, he made O'Neal's chest leave his back, establishing the spatial foundation for the subsequent use of the Iron Mountain Back Strike.
At the same time, through the contact between the hips and O'Neal, you can feel the state of the defender's body. If O'Neal retreats or makes a hard top, you can feel it through the feedback of the reaction force.
"Hardtop!"
At this moment, he made a judgment.
The next moment, his iron mountain started to move.
His thick and powerful back arched back instantly, exerting force so quickly that even if O'Neal wanted to retreat, it would be too late.
"Crack!"
His back hit O'Neill's chest hard, making a loud and heavy sound.
"Well!"
The shark groaned in his throat, feeling his whole body shaken by the impact, as if his body was about to be uprooted.
But his tonnage is too big. After the Olympic Games, his tonnage has skyrocketed from 140 kilograms last season to 5 kilograms or more. In addition, the increase this time is fat, which has a full force-reducing effect. Under his full defense,
Wang Tiejun really couldn't knock him, he only moved his feet slightly and retreated less than half a foot.