Chapter 688 [High salary and low energy, low salary and high energy]
At the beginning of May, the league announced the selection of the best players last month.
Shaq O'Neal was elected the Western Conference Player of the Month, breaking Yang Jian's monopoly. In April's regular season, the SuperSonics and Lakers both lost two games, and the judges were tired of it and gave the award to O'Neal.
The winner of the Eastern Conference Monthly Award is Allen Iverson, whose personal data is better than Vince Carter.
The system mall was refreshed this month, and Yang Jian didn't buy anything. They were all unnecessary or uneconomical items. There were some props that he could hit milestone data and draw out in a lottery after the game, so there was no need to buy them.
In the first game against the Mavericks in the second round, Yang Jian once again showed his strong defensive ability.
He faced off against Michael Finley, but Finley was not up to par. Finley played 32 minutes and made 7 of 18 shots, 0 of 3 three-pointers, and 3 of 4 free throws. He scored 17 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists, and made a field goal.
The rate is only 38.9%.
Who is Yang Jian's entanglement with? With his league-leading speed and first-class confrontation ability, no outside player can push him away and force a breakthrough. It is also difficult for opponents to defeat him with technology. His reaction speed and lateral movement speed are both excellent.
It's top notch.
Therefore, if Finley wants to face Yang Jian's defensive scoring, the only option left is to rely on his height advantage to shoot jumpers. Finley is 201cm tall, but Yang Jian has a wingspan of 210cm and is the league's best in jumping, which can seriously interfere with shooting.
Finley is still the nominal boss of the Mavericks and the only player to be selected as an All-Star. Today he has lost face and feels powerless in this series.
Nash was even more powerless against Payton. He played 28 minutes and made 0 of 4 shots, 0 of 1 three-pointers, 2 of 2 free throws, and scored 2 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists.
Nowitzki was also guarded by Mason. He played 28 minutes and made 3 of 13 shots, 0 of 3 three-pointers, and 3 of 4 free throws. He only scored 9 points and 7 rebounds.
Yang Jian also played 32 minutes, and Finley was there. He made 15 of 22 shots, 5 of 10 three-pointers, 7 of 8 free throws, and scored 42 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals.
He led five SuperSonics players to score in double figures and beat the Mavericks 117-78.
The Mavericks only scored 11 points in the third quarter and were defeated by a wave. If it weren't for substitute point guard Howard Eisley's eye-catching performance of 11 points in the garbage time at the end of the quarter, the Mavericks might have lost by 50 points.
The Mavericks' starting center in the regular season, Sean Bradley, was completely unavailable and was targeted as soon as he came on. Yang Jian and Mobley would play without the ball, find cover and run, and Bradley would defend.
If they don't go out, they catch the ball on the outside and throw it away.
Bradley can't even guard against the Sonics' counterattack. After coming on the court, he is a complete liability on the defensive end. On the offensive end, he can't beat Brad Miller in isolation. He will be resisted and has no shooting range.
Since entering the league in 1993, this was Bradley's first time playing in the playoffs, and he lost his confidence.
However, if Bradley does not play, the Mavericks' task of protecting backcourt rebounds will almost entirely fall on Nowitzki and Juwan Howard.
Howard is too soft, strong in offense and weak in defense, and rebounding has never been his strong point. He was at his peak when he debuted with the Wizards, averaging 8.4 rebounds per game, and has never reached that level since. In the regular season, he averaged 36.8 minutes per game, only
Grabbed 7.1 rebounds.
Moreover, Howard's offense is not very strong. He mainly relies on jump shots to score, and he cannot beat Rashard Lewis. He is a player who trades high shots for data, and has no bright spots except mid-range shots.
After joining the Mavericks, Howard's mid-range shooting percentage was only average, which was very embarrassing.
Because Howard's contract is as big as Yang Jian's, but his strength is not as good as that of SuperSonics youngster Lewis. He is also a tall and lanky forward who can shoot three-pointers, and his shooting percentage is very high.
The Mavericks management is now eager to trade Juwan Howard in exchange for a center who can defend. But this is difficult, everyone knows that Howard is overpaid and incompetent.
Interestingly, among the players who signed billion-dollar contracts in those years, Juwan Howard, Alonzo Mourning, Shawn Kemp and others are all useless, and O'Neal has also been suppressed. This makes Yang Jian's 7 years
The 105 million contract seems to be a great value. Many people think that this salary is not worthy of his strength. He is still a representative of low salary and high ability.
The SuperSonics defeated the Mavericks in one game and lost their temper. The difference in strength was so great that even a ball blind person could see it.
According to media reports, some experts believe that the Sonics in the playoffs are completely different from the regular season. In the regular season, Yang Jian often took the lead in laziness on the defensive end, which led many people to forget how terrible he was. Entering the playoffs, Sonics players
On the defensive end, the attention was very focused, with Yang Jian taking the lead in defense.
There was no suspense in the second game. The SuperSonics won 108-83, and the Mavericks just held on for a while longer.
Yang Jian played 38 minutes, making 14 of 22 shots, 4 of 9 three-pointers, 8 of 8 free throws, and scored 40 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists and 3 steals.
"Big bamboo pole" Bradley shortened his playing time, and Yang Jian grabbed 6 offensive rebounds. Yang Jian was the rebounder of the two teams, and Mason also grabbed 11.
The shooting percentage of the Mavericks players was also too low to watch. Finley and Yang Jian faced each other throughout the game, and they were blocked on 8 of 24 shots, 2 of 3 three-pointers, and 6 of 7 free throws. They scored 24 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals.
There were 5 turnovers left.
Nowitzki was blocked by Mason, making 4 of 13 shots, 0 of 3 three-pointers, 11 of 12 free throws, scoring 19 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4 fouls.
Mason has figured out Nowitzki's characteristics. No matter whether Nowitzki is playing center or power forward, Mason is the one guarding him. Mason is more mobile than Nowitzki and constantly looks for physical confrontations to disrupt his shooting.
Rhythm.
At this time, Nowitzki had not yet mastered the unique skill of "Golden Rooster Independence". He was afraid that such a muscular man over two meters tall and a noose-style defense would not be able to turn around.
In garbage time, Howard Eisley and Bradley scored a lot of points, and finally did not lose more than 30 points.
After the two games, the important awards for the regular season were announced again.
The butterfly effect affected the selection of the best rookie. This season's best rookie was won by Clippers forward Darius Miles. He played 81 games, averaging 12.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1 steal in 27.8 minutes per game.
1.5 blocks, shooting rate 50.5%.
Darius is 206cm tall and weighs only 95kg. He mainly plays the 3rd and 4th positions.
At the time of the draft, he was hailed as "Garnett II". He can easily carry the ball to the frontcourt by himself, and his skills are quite good. Such skills can ensure that he can swing in multiple positions, but due to weight and strength issues,
He can't play at the power forward position for long.
The Clippers' point guard is Steve Francis, and Darius has an easier time obtaining data and is at home on the offensive end. He only needs to run with Francis, taking advantage of his mobility.
In addition, because Darius chose No. 21, it made him more conspicuous on the court.
Nowadays, many players choose No. 21 when they enter the league, hoping that they can become a superstar like Yang Jian. Fewer people choose No. 23.
Yang Jian knew about this, and the reporter asked him to talk about his thoughts. He didn't say anything at the time, but he was curious about what number the "little emperor" would choose when he entered the league in 2003, and what its special meaning was.
Nowadays, the No. 23 jersey is no longer the number of the God of Basketball. It is just the number of a star who was forced to retire because of gambling. After his comeback, he was hanged every year. If he did not choose No. 23, what gimmick would the emperor who is good at hype and publicity find?
Woolen cloth?
The Clippers seem to be on the verge of rising. Maurice Taylor, Corey Maggette, and Jeff McGinnis are also very capable. Although they still did not make the playoffs, their home attendance is much higher than before.
He can often play beautiful fast breaks. Head coach Alvin Gentry's ability has been recognized and he led the team to 30 wins.
Cuttino Mobley won the Best Sixth Man Award for the second consecutive year. He averaged 29.6 minutes per game, 15.2 points, 3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1 steal, shooting 45.6% from the field and 39% from the three-point range.
Mobley was the team's third scoring point during the regular season. He performed relatively stably and outscored Rashard Lewis. The latter averaged 14.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game, with a higher shooting percentage, and is already a qualified starter.