Pick Westbrook

Chapter 388 The God of Point Guards
The first quarter is over.

The Bucks led 28:20.

Jimmy Butler was very arrogant when he got off the field.

"Made, he thought he could pass my defense?"

"If you make a three-pointer, you're not a human being?"

"You old Lu, thinking about farting."

Chandler Parsons looked at Jimmy Butler, who ended up arrogantly, with a frustrated expression, and was so angry that he was dying.

Originally, he wanted to rush over to ask Jimmy Butler for some reasoning. They are all rookies in the same year. Why are you so arrogant.

It's just that after seeing his statistics, Chandler Parsons immediately bowed his head in silence.

5 of 1 shots, except for the three-pointer that was released, all the shots behind Chandler Parsons were ironed.

In the second quarter of the game, Li Lai went straight up and down, taking all the starting players off the field.

The head coach of the Rockets, Kevin McHale, did not choose the same substitution strategy as Li Lai. Instead, he took Yi Jianlian back on the court after a short break for 3 minutes.

In the first quarter of the game, Kevin McHale mainly played the tactics of Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian on the court at the same time, observing the effective tactical coordination and offensive methods of the two.

In the second quarter, what Kevin McHale wanted to do was to observe how Yi Jianlian and the team's second offensive choice, Kevin Martin, formed an effective cooperation.

The game continues.

Dior was placed at the top of the arc to direct his teammates to run, and the Pelicans practiced the tactical coordination they had already played last season.

JR Smith slid to the bottom line, the inside line Lewis and Oden double-screened at the same time, creating a corner wall for JR Smith.

Swish!
"JR Smith made a solid [-]."

"Since JR Smith came to the Pelicans last season, there have been a lot less off-court news and nonsensical actions."

"Last season, JR Smith was also successfully elected as the best sixth man, making rapid progress."

"It is foreseeable that JR Smith will be looted by many teams in the free market next season."

Yu Jia suddenly mentioned this matter.

Of course Su Qun knew the reason why the other party suddenly mentioned this matter, because not only JR Smith, but Beverly will also face the issue of contract renewal next season.

This season, the Pelicans successfully re-signed Chris Paul with the designated player's super high salary of 1.1 million. Although Lewis re-signed and cut his salary, the choice of the Pelicans will also make them bear Lewis' 800 million next season. about salary.

This is not a small amount.

With the current salary situation of the Pelicans, their team salary next season will definitely explode. Even if they successfully renew the contracts of JR Smith and Beverly, the salary of Leonard and Jimmy Butler will come again next year. up.

Renewing these two is more difficult than renewing JR Smith and Beverly.

on the field.

Beverly robbed Kevin Martin and then made a fast break.

After receiving the ball from the bottom corner, Lewis made a steady shot and hit the basket.

The Pelicans suddenly played a fast-break storm in this quarter, and the Rockets' substitute insider Omer Asik played brilliantly in this quarter, successfully defending Oden twice in a row.

Stevens reminded: "Omer Asik belongs to the league's first-class defensive insider, with specific size, mobility and awareness, and has an excellent sense of rebounding."

"Of course, he is not without shortcomings. He lacks shooting range and is not good at free throws. His offensive hands are too stiff at the basket. He is suitable for attacking with cakes. He is an extremely offensive and defensive player."

Du Feng said: "Omer Asik was Noah's first substitute for the Bulls last season, and Taj Gibson supported the Bulls' entire offensive and defensive capabilities with one offense and one defense."

"Although the average data per game is only 4 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block, it is very advanced in terms of high-level defensive efficiency."

"The management of the Rockets is smart, and directly used a three-year contract of 3 million yuan to rob people."

Hearing this, Stevens said a little strangely: "In order to be able to sign the United Arab Emirates, the Rockets even traded for a better point guard Lowry. Why can they still offer a three-year 3 million contract?"

"It is enough to renew Lowry with this contract."

Li said: "This is the cleverness of the Rockets management Dog Mo. The contract he signed to Omer Asik used the Arenas clause."

"For restricted free agents who have stayed in the NBA for 1-2 years, the salary in the first year of the invitation contract can not exceed the middle-class clause of the year, but the salary in the second year can get a maximum increase of 8%, and the salary in the third year can be even higher. increase in magnitude."

"So, Asik's salary was $500 million and $520 million in the first two years, and it soared directly to $1480 million in the third year."

Stevens and Du Feng nodded repeatedly, knowing that Li Lai was also very good at player transactions.

Stevens suddenly remembered something, and looked at Li Lai excitedly. He also knew that the Pelicans were in a very difficult situation because of Lewis' contract issue.

Li Lai understood Stevens' emotions, nodded and admitted, "Yes, Beverly also applies to this clause. Next season, I will renew JR Smith and Beverly at the same time, and I will use the Arenas clause." .”

"So don't worry, I will work hard to maintain the integrity of the lineup. What you have to do is to help the team become stronger every minute!"

Stevens clenched his fists.

He was born in the NCAA. The most unsightly thing about him is the players who have played for him for several years. He obviously established a very solid relationship, but in the end he was ruthlessly traded by the team.

Li Lai is undoubtedly a very good team management, which is why the players on the field respect him very much.

"A scholar dies for his confidant."

"Coach, you are the leader of this team, and everyone is playing for you."

on the field.

JR Smith showed his firepower as the best sixth man of last season, blasting 13 points in a single quarter and hitting a wave of 17:5 offensive highs.

The Rockets' second offensive core, Kevin Martin, was completely at a disadvantage in the firepower confrontation with JR Smith.

Facts have proved that his foul-loving style of play is very dependent on the referee's calls. When the calls are loose in a game, his offensive threat will be greatly affected.

This is why Li Lai believes that Harden's style of play is difficult to win the championship, and it is also prone to ups and downs in the playoffs.

Yi Jianlian had no choice but to stand up at this time.

Originally under Kevin McHale's tactical system, Yi Jianlian should be the Rockets' offensive sorting point, court controller, and also the role of the offensive axis more often.

But the Rockets are too far behind at this time.

Yi Jianlian could only forcefully take over the offense, interrupting the offensive efficiency of the Pelicans' bench lineup with a super long three-pointer and a mid-range breakthrough.

The second game.

The Pelicans scored a score of 34:26 in a single quarter.

At the end of halftime, the score on the court had become 62:46.

Li Lai stared at JR Smith angrily.

JR Smith saw the emotion on the coach's face, and he quickly spread his hands and explained: "Coach, you said in the first quarter that we don't want to defend. Don't worry, we all do this."

"I had no defense at all."

Li Lai stared at JR Smith and nodded frequently, but his tone was extremely blunt.

He said: "Good, you did a great job! I really want to punish you for the remaining 24 minutes on the court."

"Not defending? So you are attacking me desperately!"

"Labor and management really convinced you old men."

JR Smith found out that the coach had seen through his tricks, so he hurried back to the bench.

Really let him play 24 minutes in a row on the court, but it will kill him.

Jimmy Butler on the side couldn't be happier, and whispered to JR: "It's so cool to finally see the coach deflated."

The third quarter of the game.

Li Lai, who focuses on training, rehearsing tactics and observing the players' status after the off-season, is very satisfied with everyone's performance.

It can be seen that many players of the Pelicans have worked hard to maintain their size and state during the off-season. The advantage of this is that when the regular season opener begins, the Pelicans do not need to make any adjustments to maintain the tyrannical strength of last season.

It's just that the Rockets were beaten badly tonight.

Fans from the entire Mercedes-Benz Cultural Center at sea cheered collectively for the performance of the Pelicans.

"This really turned the away game into a home game!"

Li Lai immediately replaced players such as Willie Green, Jason Smith and DJ Mbenga.

Kevin McHale was smart enough to let Yao Ming play for about 6 minutes in the third quarter, and Yi Jianlian even played a total of 30 minutes in this game.

In the second half of the game, the Rockets finally regained some advantages.

The game is over.

The Pelicans won the game 110:100.

When the whistle sounded after the game, Li Lai took the initiative to walk to the technical stage to explain to Coach Kevin McHale.

As a result, the other party just walked over symbolically, then turned around and left without shaking hands with Li Lai.

"Now it's time for media news."

"Play a preseason game and make the opponent's coach so angry that he doesn't want to shake hands."

"Coach Li Lai is such a bad guy!"

With a wry smile on his face, Marshall wanted to come over to explain, but Li Lai raised his hand secretly to stop him.

There is no need to delay Marshall because of this incident. Kevin McHale does have some experience in the establishment of the twin towers and the interior defense. If he is willing to hand it over to Marshall without reservation, the opponent can learn a lot.

Post-match interview.

Kevin McHale was asked about the Rockets not leading the Pelicans throughout the game.

He said with a serious face: "This is just a preseason game, but the coaching staff of the Pelicans treat this game as a playoff game."

"You should have seen the defense of the Pelicans throughout the game, very aggressive."

"Jimmy Butler and Beverly and others are almost playing defense, so the Pelicans naturally won the game."

"Our goal is not to win, but to integrate Yi into the team's offensive system as soon as possible and participate in the defensive task."

"We have initially completed some tactical and defensive ideas in this game, and we will definitely do better in the future."

A reporter asked curiously: "In Beijing North the day after tomorrow, the Rockets and the Pelicans still have a game to play. Will you try your best to win that game?"

Kevin McHale said without hesitation: "Of course, we will definitely win the Pelicans in that game."

"It's rude to show them a playoff-caliber defense in the preseason."

The interview room on the other side.

A reporter relayed what Kevin McHale said during the interview.

Jimmy Butler and Beverly, who followed the interview, did not wait for Li to speak, and each competed for the microphone.

Jimmy Butler said angrily: "Kevin McHale calls this a playoff defense? I'm afraid he doesn't know enough about the Pelicans' defense."

Beverley snatched the microphone from Butler and said: "We can show them what the Pelicans' playoff-level defense is."

After saying this, Beverly moved the microphone to Li Lai.

Li Lai put his arms around and didn't take the microphone, but looked at the two with a dark face.

Jimmy Butler stood up slightly and moved the microphone in front of himself, saying, "Look, my coach also meant the same thing."

Li Lai: Damn it!Caught off guard.

The first game of the preseason is over.

In addition to the China game, the United States also played 5 preseason games.

Among them, the Lakers unexpectedly lost to the Warriors 88:102.

Curry played for the Warriors for the first time. In 22 minutes of playing time, he surrendered 28 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.

After witnessing the game, the fans in the Bay Area were collectively overwhelmed by this sharpshooter who even Reggie Miller publicly praised as better than himself.

It is true!

Although the Lakers' four All-Stars Kobe, Howard, Nash, and Gasol did not attend this game, Durant of the Warriors also did not play in this game.

It was a bit surprising to lose the game with such a big point difference.

After the game, Lakers head coach Mike Brown said seriously: "The Warriors are not a weak team. Curry is an FMVP-level player and a player who created the small ball era."

"We have four main players who did not play. We will give Howard some playing time in the next game, let him find the feeling of the game, and we will win the next game."

The American media are very convinced of Mike Brown's words. After all, the Lakers are the biggest favorites for the championship this season, and they are also the biggest challenger to the defending champion Heat.

At the same time, the Knicks, led by new aid Jeremy Lin, contributed 20+5+5 in the first game.

Although this is a preseason game, Jeremy Lin's state and ability have made the Knicks management very satisfied.

Anthony, who was sitting on the bench, even stood up and applauded his brother.

Last season, the Knicks were almost beaten up by the Heat because of the disadvantage of the point guard position. This season, Anthony is aiming for revenge, and wants his good brother to take a good look at himself.

After all, when they first entered the league, the two were called the peerless twins together.

The first day of preseason is over.

All members of the Pelicans rushed to Beijing immediately after the game, because Li Lai had decided to give the team a day off and accompany them to visit the Great Wall of China, one of the eight wonders of the world.

Gong Luming and Wang Fei from the basketball team specially accompanied each other after learning the news, and the three also discussed the training camp at the same time.

In order to make the players of the Pelicans willing to come to China to hold training camps, Li Lai proposed that business and training camps should be carried out at the same time, and that he would give great benefits in terms of business.

Li Lai also made this matter very clear. With his ability and relationship with the players, they were naturally willing to help Li Lai and come to China to set up a training camp.

I hope whether you want to teach well, whether you will teach with your heart, this will be a big question.

And this is not something that happens overnight, nor is it an activity that will be stopped after one or two years, but a long-term establishment and a regular activity.

Only in this way can we truly help Chinese players grow.

So the business has to be with the training camp.

Li Ning is willing to take the lead in this matter, and Li Lai has already communicated with Zhang Zhiyuan on this point.

This can greatly increase Li Ning's exposure among Chinese fans, so this is a mutually beneficial move.

This matter is finalized and will be held in the off-season next season. Paul will become the first American player to open a training camp in China. At the same time, he is also a point guard player that Li Lai has always cared about, and even the god of point guards.

Chinese players urgently need to be trained at the point guard position.

Later, Adam Silver called.

He rushed and even said angrily: "Brother! Are you playing with me?!"

(End of this chapter)