Chapter 346 Opener

   "Old K, this bastard, he wants to **** us."

  Houston, in the locker room of the training hall of the Mosaic team headquarters, Da Meng said angrily.

   Barkley said with a wry smile: "The Suns are rebuilding, and we have been reinforced from it. The chance of old K defending his title is too small. He will definitely complain to us, which is understandable."

  Drexler also laughed: "Old K definitely wants to defend the title, but unfortunately the Suns' two-time championship-winning lineup is aging, it is difficult to maintain the original lineup, and it is difficult to continue to attack the championship."

   As soon as he finished speaking, his expression became a little weird, and so did Barkley.

  Barkley's idea was that if he was willing to assist Old K in 1993 and be willing to be the second in charge, the Suns would definitely be able to successfully defend their title, and it was he who delayed Old K's defending.

   Even, maybe he can complete the dynasty is unknown. If he is in the Suns, even if he cannot introduce gliders last season, the Suns have the possibility of defending the dynasty.

Now in Houston, he is only one of the Big Three, and if he stays with the Suns, he must be the No. 2, and the old K in the second season is already a superstar. As he gets older, he is the No. 2 for Old K. No shame.

  Thinking of this, he felt a little regretful.

   As for Glider, he has no regrets. He is now playing for the retirement contract. The Suns can’t give him the contract he wants, so he can only choose to leave.

He just thought that if he stayed with the Suns, Wilkins would definitely still join the Suns for the championship. He played at No. 3 and Wilkins played at No. 2. The Suns' lineup would be the defending champion. Possibilities are very large.

"By the way, I was on the phone with old K a few days ago. He said that the K martial arts hall is going to launch a medicated diet. He said that it can delay aging. If you eat too much, you can live forever. Do you want to try it?" Barkley suddenly asked. .

"How much?"

   "It must be expensive, right?"

  Demon and Drexler asked both reflexively.

  Buckley said with a peculiar expression: "10,000 dollars for a dish."

   "Shet!"

  Dameng and the two made foul language at the same time.

   "Damn immortality, let him eat it himself, I have to keep my contract for retirement, otherwise if I live too long, I will still have to die of poverty." Drexler said angrily.

  Buckley nodded again and again, and said angrily: "That guy old K still wants us to support him. I won't agree this time. It's too expensive."

   "Charles, Clyde, do you still use medicated bath and medicated oil massage?" Da Meng asked with concern.

   There is no way, he can't help but care, these two companions have rings, if the state is affected to save money, he will be the one who suffers.

  Buckley and Drexler looked at each other and suddenly laughed at the same time, which made Da Meng feel good and bad. The next second, his feeling was confirmed.

Barkley smiled and said: "Hakim, I have been fighting for two seasons to help you win the championship. Now I really can't fight. It's all for you, don't you say anything? At least you have to encourage morale."

   As he said, he stretched out his hand and made a movement of counting money.

   "Use this encouragement?"

  Da Meng also counted the money and said angrily.

   Drexler also smiled and said: "I agree with Charles, Hakim, why don't you invite us to try the old K's medicinal diet?"

  Da Meng's face was ashen with anger. These two **** are no worse than Old K. They are both bastards.

   After a while, their media meeting also started.

   "Hakim, old K said that your three giants belong to the superstar group, do you agree?" a reporter asked.

   "I agree with you to die!"

Da Meng roared in his heart, and said angrily: "Old K is just hyping it up, he is a super giant now, he should speak more cautiously, the three of us are veterans over 30 years old, and we are 97 years old together, what is this? Hug?

  If we are in a group, he and Wilkins are also in a group. That **** Wilkins was paid the veteran's basic salary in the Suns. In order to hold the group, they have been desperate. "

   "Barkley, do you agree with what Old K said?" a reporter asked.

   "Oh, I don't agree, I just watched their live TV broadcast, and it was obvious that Old K was joking." Barkley laughed.

   "Clyde, how about you?" the reporter asked again.

   "I'm just here to retire, this may be my last contract, and Barkley and I are the main members of the finals, we don't need to stick together." Drexler said politely.

   The blue veins on Da Meng's head jumped. Damn Clayley, how did you say this, as if I had to hold a group?

   "Hakim, this year is your contract year. If you fail to win the championship, will you choose to stay in Houston?" a reporter asked.

   "You said we would fail to win the championship? No, absolutely not." Da Meng stared at the reporter like a wolf.

   The reporter felt a little hairy in his heart, for fear that the old hooligan from Dameng would rush down and beat him.

   The next day, the Bulls' new season media day was held as scheduled, and ESPN broadcast it live.

   "Michael, do you have any thoughts on joining Rodman? Have you got his support?" a reporter asked.

   "Of course, we have communicated and he expressed his willingness to contribute his strength to the Bulls." Jordan said confidently.

   "If we got Rodman last time, the chances of defending this season would be even greater."

  Phoenix, in the locker room of the training hall of the Suns headquarters, Kevin Johnson said with some regret.

   "Maybe, but he doesn't want to come, and he can't force it." Old Wang also felt a little pity, but he didn't have any regrets.

The big bug's personality is too weird, he must be a bit at odds with him, plus he doesn't like to be bound by rules, and he often misses training. It's really coming. There is a high probability of conflict. With his personality, he doesn't listen once or twice. , it is really possible to choose to use violence to persuade the other party.

  …

   Just as the regular season was about to start, at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the Los Angeles media suddenly broke the news that the new president of CAA, Jay Maloney, has a history of smoking alone and has been smoking.

  Then the exposure of this news quickly aroused public opinion and created enormous pressure on CAA and Jemaroni.

Generally speaking, this is not a big deal in the United States, but it is normal. CAA is the largest brokerage company in Hollywood and has two-thirds of Hollywood stars. This is not a trivial matter. After all, it is not a glorious thing to be alone , is absolutely negative news.

  …

  On Friday, November 3, 1995, the 95/96 NBA regular season officially kicked off.

   As the finals team last season, the Bulls and the Suns had opening games, but they were not opponents, but they were all at home.

The Suns’ opponent in the first regular season was the Clippers, a bad team that the media recognized as unable to make the playoffs. The five starters did not have a star player. The Clippers owner Sterling was even more stingy than the Mosaic team owner Alexander. , I just want to make money by selling tickets in the big market in Los Angeles, and I don’t want to invest in building a competitive lineup at all.

  Mexican Arena has a 100% attendance rate, and the ticket price has increased by 30% compared with last season, but the sales of season tickets are very hot.

   This was unthinkable three seasons ago, and it shows the rapid expansion of the Suns' market.

   It’s not just people from Phoenix who come to watch the ball. There are also a large number of people in the surrounding cities who drive here just to watch a Suns game.

  The Suns have now successfully turned several surrounding cities into their own football market, and the potential of the football market has improved a lot, breaking through the disadvantage of Phoenix’s lack of population.

   CCTV, the live broadcast of the new season has also started, and they chose to broadcast the Suns' opener.

"This reasonable collision zone is a semi-circle with a radius of 1.2 meters with the center of the basket as the center. Within this range, the rules are in favor of the attacking side. As long as you have no extra actions, you will not be sentenced to an offensive foul, while the defender will You must take off vertically to defend, if you stand still, it is a blocking foul, and you can’t have extra moves.” Zhang Li explained.

  Suqun asked: "Director Zhang, what is the impact of this rule on Old K?"

   Zhang Lili thought for a while and said, "His offensive fouls at the basket will be reduced, and his basket attack will be stronger."

   In this game, the Suns arranged the starting lineup of Wang Tiejun, Robert Horry, Wilkins, Michael Finley and Kevin Johnson.

   "Sun King! Sun King..."

  When Wang Tiejun came on stage, there was a shocking cry from the American West Arena.

Originally playing such a bad team, even though the Suns' current lineup is very flawed, there will be no problem with Wang Tiejun and Wilkins and Kevin Johnson on the outside. Unfortunately, sometimes, some accidents will happen. occur.

   In the tenth minute of the first quarter, at 25:17, the Suns had an 8-point lead.

Wang Tiejun hadn't exerted much effort, because the Clippers had no big center at all, only a short center with a height of 208 cm. The opponent was not strong, and he was not very excited to play. He made 4 of 5 shots, 3 of 4 free throws, and scored 11 points. 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks.

At this time, he was substituted, Westphal was replaced by Vaiman Tisdale, Big Ben replaced Horry at No. 4, Perry was replaced by Lightning, and Mario Bennett was replaced by Wilkins. Only the rookie Finley continued to stay on the field to hone, and the five main players made four.

   The Clippers also changed to a bench lineup, and as a result, this bench lineup broke out. Two minutes later, the Suns hit an 8-0 attack wave and tied the score at 25 in one fell swoop.

The Clippers' bench lineup was led by forward Rodney Rodgers and swingman Eric Piakowski. These two scored all eight points in two minutes. The former scored 5 points and the latter finished. A steal and a 3-pointer on the counter.

   However, the Suns didn’t take it to heart, and they didn’t think the Clippers would pose any threat to the Suns. They didn’t adjust the lineup in the second quarter, and played as a substitute at the end of the first quarter.

   As a result, the Clippers' bench lineup continued to break out, overtaking the score in the half quarter, 40:35, exceeding 5 points.

  The Suns were stopped and forced to call a timeout.

"This Rodney Rodgers was the No. 9 pick in the first round of the Nuggets in 1993. He was the main forward of the Nuggets last season. He played in 80 games and started 77 games. He was traded to the Clippers. The first game should be watching, Then I'll definitely play the Clippers' main forward."

  The game was broadcast live across the United States by TNT, commentator Dort said.

   "Eric was the Clippers' 15th pick in the first round last year, and his performance was average, but he had a three-pointer. He played well today." Another commentator, Silatum, said.

   Dortmund analyzed: "I can only say that the Suns were careless, they didn't think the Clippers could pose a threat to them, so they let Michael Finley, a rookie, make a lot of shots.

   But the rookie is a rookie after all. He started in the first game of his career. He should be under a lot of pressure and his performance is average. Now he is 2-of-6 from the field. Before the second quarter was over, he had two turnovers. "

  Letham joked: Old K has even been sitting on the court for 8 minutes, and he is almost falling asleep. "

   "Okay, he stood up, and the game is about to end. From the moment Old K stood up, the game has lost its suspense." Dotte laughed.

   "Old K, you come to fight and get a good start." Before the Suns bench, Westphal said to Wang Tiejun.

"certainly."

  Pharaoh nodded, the head coach did not say, he would do the same.

   This season, he intends to compete for MVP. Whether it is the West or the East, he will try his best to win the games he can win, and the underdogs will not let go.

   The next game, he took over.

   Just like playing the Bulls in the finals, the strength of the centers of the two sides is too different, and the game loses its suspense.

   Especially now that he has a reasonable collision zone, it is more conducive to his rampage under the basket.

In the following period of time, nearly 20,000 spectators at the American West Arena, as well as countless fans in front of the TV, continued to see a terrifying behemoth, forcibly pushing or knocking over the double team under the basket. opponent, and then complete the dunk scene.

   The Clippers kept losing fouls, and they couldn't stop Old K's frantic attacking the basket. The entire inside line was beaten completely, with no face and morale collapsed.

Three quarters clocked in and played only 28 minutes in total. In the first opener, Pharaoh made 13 of 15 shots, 9 of 14 free throws, and scored 35 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 2 fouls. The shooting percentage It reached a terrifying 86.6%, and the free throw percentage reached 64.2%. After helping the team lead by 15 points, he never played again.

  106:111, the Suns got a good start to the regular season. Although it was only a small victory, the entire American West Arena was also full of joy.

  Lightning Kevin Johnson scored a double-double of 18 points and 10 assists, and shot 50.8% from the field. He also played well in breakthrough tactics, and his state was eye-catching.

   And Wilkins, got 15 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, shooting 42%, compared with his last season, his performance is normal.

The rookie Finley played 34 minutes and scored 5 of 12 shots, with a shooting rate of 41.6%, including 1 of 3 three-pointers, 2 of 2 free throws, and 13 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 4 turnovers and 3 The foul data, the performance is not good or bad.

  Robert Horry, about the same efficiency as Finley, scored 9 points.

  The five main players teamed up to contribute 90 points, and the bench scored 21 points. Among them, Big Ben played 11 minutes and was a power forward, and got 2 rebounds and 1 steal. The performance of the marginal person.

   On the Clippers side, not to mention the main players, there was no super-explosive performance, but the two substitutes played star performances, one scored 24 points, and the other scored 20 points.

   After the game, Zhang Lili calmly analyzed: "Although he won, his opponent was too weak, but he only won by 5 points, but this game exposed a lot of problems.

First, there are too many new players, the team's new tactical system has not yet been established, and neither Wilkins nor rookie Finley has been integrated into the tactical cooperation between the Iron Army and the Lightning. They still need more time, in the future. For a period of time, the Suns will also be in a state of reconstruction and integration of the tactical system.

  Second, the perimeter defense is fragmented, making it too easy for the opponent to score, and they go in in a hurry. When they enter one step or two steps, they immediately make an emergency stop and jumper.

   Third, the ability to pull the outside line is not good. The team made 2 of 9 three-pointers, causing the opponent to double-team the low post. That is to say, the Clippers are not the opponents of the Iron Army at all in the interior, otherwise I don’t know what it will be like. "

   "Yes, Lao K is often double-teamed today, so playing like this consumes too much physical energy." Su Qun team agreed.

   Zhang Lili nodded and said: "To play a bad team like the Clippers, the Iron Army will fight hard, what if you encounter a strong team?

   This is the problem with the Suns, you can't point at the Iron Army every time and try hard, then he will run out of energy in the regular season, what about the playoffs?

   Moreover, this is the Clippers, playing Mosaic in the end, with a strong defense like the big dream, coupled with the contraction of the defensive formation, even the offensive efficiency of the Iron Army will be reduced, how to fight? "

  Suqun went on to talk about Kevin Johnson and said, "Director Zhang, Lightning seems to be in good shape today. I heard that he has been practicing more in the offseason?"

   "Yes, there have been reports in the American media. This season is his contract year. He has worked hard, and he has reached his age. After this season, he is ready to get a bigger pension contract." Zhang Lili laughed.

   On the sidelines, the reporter was interviewing Wang Tiejun. Although he only played for 28 minutes, he was still the best athlete in the game.

   "Old K, what do you think of the Suns' performance tonight?" the reporter asked.

   "There are some issues and we're working on them, but overall it's good, I'm happy with the state of the Lightning, and our rookies are doing well, which are pretty positive signs," he said.

   He was really happy. The only thing that made him happy in today's game was Lightning's performance. Everyone else's performance was average. Horry's performance disappointed him.

   As for Ben Wallace, who squeezed out Ma Jian, he may have played too little time, and there was nothing that could make him look good.

   Although the Suns got off to a good start, they did not receive praise from other media except the local media. On the contrary, many media pointed out a lot of problems with the Suns and believed that the Suns this season had lost their impact on the championship.

  After a day off, on November 5th, the Suns will play the old rival Mosaic at home.

   (end of this chapter)