Rodman's absence from training is nothing new, even if it is the finals, people would not find it strange.
Coach Phil Jackson always silently accepted Rodman's indulgence and freedom. The Bulls gave Rodman enough freedom and space, and his teammates never complained about why he didn't have to participate in training. The reason why he has the privilege is that
It probably has something to do with his style of play. He doesn't need to practice defending, and he can't practice shooting.
He is already 35 years old, why should he strengthen his offense at this time? He has already made progress if he can, and he will not wait until today.
When they heard that Jordan had a fever, the SuperSonics players were very happy and thought it was great news. If Jordan did not perform well, the Bulls would definitely lose.
Yang Jian reminded: "Guys, this is a tiebreaker. We are playing away from home, so why should we underestimate the enemy? How do you know that Jordan really has a fever and is not a smoke bomb deliberately released by his opponent?"
Kemp asked: "What smoke bomb?"
Yang Jian laughed and said: "It's true that he has a fever, but it's true that he inspires the morale of the whole team. If it is revealed before the game that he played with a fever and illness, but he plays well during the game, his teammates will definitely be inspired, and the fans will also
He will cheer harder for the home team. If he wins, he will be a legend. If he doesn't play well, he will be forgiven for losing because he has a fever."
Kemp was stunned for a moment and his eyes widened. "Holy shit, is Jordan so insidious?"
"This is a wild guess on my part, but if we underestimate the opponent because of this and feel that we will win the Bulls, it will be a good thing for them." Yang Jian said loudly: "We have to fight for every ball in this game. Now is not the time to be happy.
Regardless of whether Jordan has a fever or not, we will beat him to death."
The teammates all laughed and put away their thoughts of underestimating the enemy. Yang Jian was right. Regardless of whether Jordan had a fever or not, they had to "fight to death" and kill him while he was sick. Otherwise? Are they going to kill Jordan's men?
Show mercy?
Yang Jian didn't know if Jordan really had a fever, because this was Chicago, not Salt Lake City. But he knew that even if Jordan had a fever, he couldn't take it lightly, otherwise he would pay the price.
In a parallel world, in the Battle of Tianwangshan in the fifth game of the 1997 Finals, Jordan had a fever and dehydration and insisted on playing. It is a very famous game in NBA history.
Auerbach once said, "What is home field advantage? The sewers in the visiting team's locker room are always blocked, and the air conditioner is always blocked." And Jordan had a fever after eating takeaway before the fifth game, which inevitably made people doubt the Jazz.
Is it taking advantage of the "home field advantage"?
In the documentary "The Last Dance," Jordan, his trainers, and teammates all stated that it wasn't the flu at all, but actual food poisoning.
According to the documentary, the Bulls were staying at the Marriott Hotel in Salt Lake City at that time. Jordan was hungry around 10 p.m., and there was only one pizza shop open at the time, so he ordered a pizza. As a result, he found that there were 5 people at the door to deliver one.
Pizza. You know, the bridge builder Dazna only found four people when he hired people to send him back to the country of waves.
After Jordan ate pizza, he started vomiting and having diarrhea at 2:30 in the morning. According to Jordan's trainer, when Jordan called him, he found Jordan curled up like a ball and shaking.
Jordan suffered from food poisoning and basically spent the whole night curled up in bed, hooked up to an intravenous drip, and did not participate in pre-game training. People around him told Jordan to take a break, but he still insisted on playing.
As a result, Jordan played 44 minutes and scored 38 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals and 1 block. His shooting percentage exceeded 50%, helping the team win the crucial Tianwangshan battle 90-88. In the end, Jordan collapsed from exhaustion.
He fell into Pippen's arms and became...the reason why Pippen spat on him.
Pippen: "Why didn't anyone mention that I had a herniated disc in my waist during the game? I also had serious injuries. Now I want to ask you whether playing with a cold is more serious or is playing with a herniated disc worthy of praise?"
In short, Jordan's willpower is amazing. Yang Jian thinks that Jordan's fever is a variable and he may perform amazingly.
He had to win today, and he didn't want to become a classic background. He didn't want to hear the system prompt after the game, saying that he had witnessed the history of "Jordan played better than usual when he had a fever."
The TV5 commentator also introduced Jordan's story, thinking it was major good news for the SuperSonics.
Sun Zhengping said: "Yang Jian's health is definitely fine. He has not been injured this season, not even minor injuries."
Zhang Liji smiled and said: "His health is his greatest asset. Today we are likely to witness a miracle happen."
Sun Zhengping said: "The ratings of the last game broke the single-game record in the history of the NBA Finals. I estimate that today's ratings will reach a new high."
Zhang Lili said: "In the history of the NBA, there has never been a more intense finals than this one. Yang Jian felt good during the warm-up. Today is the decisive battle. I hope he can put up good numbers."
SuperSonics starting lineup: Payton, Yang Jian, Schrempf, Kemp, P.J. Brown.
Bulls starting lineup: Ron Harper, Jordan, Pippen, Rodman, Luke Longley.
Kemp won the jump ball and the game began.
Payton dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, played a pick-and-roll with Kemp in the middle and went to the right. At this time, his teammates opened up on the left side, and Payton had a chance for a mismatch singles on the weak side.
Harper seemed tired after playing 38 minutes and was unable to get around the screen in time to pursue the defense. Rodman's help blocked Payton's breakthrough route. Upon seeing this, Payton passed the ball to the center, and Kemp made an empty cut to get the ball.
Drive to the basket.
At the same time, under the cover of PJ Brown, Yang Jian cut to the basket from the left and suddenly started to get rid of Jordan.
Kemp attracted Longley to cover up the defense and passed the ball to Yang Jian. Yang Jian took the ball and jumped from the left to the right. He half-turned back to look at the moon and dunked the ball with one hand and scored! 2-0.
Zhang Lili shouted: "Beautiful, Yang Jian started with a dunk, assisted by Kemp."
Sun Zhengping said: "Jordan did not follow the ball, and the situation was indeed very favorable to the SuperSonics."
When the Bulls attacked, Longley helped Jordan run and catch the ball without the ball. Jordan turned and faced the frame and forced a breakthrough. He entered the penalty area from the middle for a layup, but missed due to interference from Payton and Kemp.
Rodman grabbed an offensive rebound and immediately jumped to shoot a second attack after landing. Yang Jian sneaked in from behind and blocked the ball with one hand. Kemp picked up the basketball and the referee signaled that it was a good ball. The game continued.
In the SuperSonics position battle, Yang Jian ran up the line from the right, Kemp made a screen, and Payton passed the ball. Yang Jian took the ball and changed direction to the center without pausing. As soon as Jordan chased him out, Yang Jian reached his goal
Side of body.
In the game where Yang Jian had the most assists, he played like this, relying on speed to force a breakthrough. This was a matter of luck. If Jordan bypassed the screen and was on the other side, he would rush up and pass. If he ran into Jordan's arms
It's okay, just keep your center of gravity and pass the ball again.
The advantage of Yang Jian's play is that it is clean and does not stick to the ball. Jordan chased it from the outside and did not get stuck in the middle. He passed by him in one step.
Yang Jian drove to the basket and attracted Longley to cover up the defense, and passed the ball to P.J. Brown on the left baseline. Brown was very accurate in training today, and his touch remained until the evening, and he hit the mid-range shot after receiving the ball. 4 to 0.
When the Bulls attacked, Harper dribbled the ball across half court and passed the ball. Yang Jian followed him to the baseline. The defensive end was very easy.
At this time, many Bulls fans also felt a little dissatisfied with Harper. He could not let Yang Jian consume his energy on the defensive end.
After passing the ball several times, Jordan broke through and was double-teamed and passed the ball to Rodman. The latter was left open on the baseline and could not pass the ball directly to Langley. Langley received the ball and turned around too slowly to shoot. Due to Kemp's interference, he missed the ball.
Out, PJ Brown grabbed the rebound.
PJ Brown passed the ball to Payton to launch a counterattack, and Yang Jian quickly came down and received the pass halfway across the right side.
Jordan returned to defense very actively and quickly ran to the three-point line. Yang Jian was on the right side at 70 degrees and one meter outside the three-point line and suddenly made a shot. Jordan retreated a little back, and if he pounced again, he would only interfere with the shot and not be able to block it.
Yang Jian shot very resolutely and hit a three-pointer against the defense, 7-0!
After scoring the goal, Yang Jian roared angrily and had a good shooting touch at the beginning.
Zhang Lili said excitedly: "The SuperSonics started the game against the visitors, with Yang Jian scoring two goals and one assist."
Sun Zhengping said: "If the fight continues like this, the SuperSonics will definitely win."
Zhang Lijia smiled and said: "Whether it's because of the fever or not, Jordan's speed today is slower than when he played on the field. He has no problem against other players, but he can't keep up against Yang Jian."