The China Power of NBA

Chapter 24 The Respectable Spurs

The SBC Center, home of the San Antonio Spurs.

At this time, the stadium that can accommodate more than 8000 people is full of seats, and everyone is wearing the Spurs' unique black and white shirts to cheer for the home team. San Antonio is a small ball market, but the basketball atmosphere here is not lost to New York. A big city like Los Angeles, because of the long history and culture of the Spurs, was one of the few teams in the NBA when it was just established.

The Spurs are an ordinary but great team, a team that some people don't like, but everyone has to take off their hats and pay tribute. In the end, there is an old saying - facing the Spurs, you don't have to like him , but cannot disrespect him.

"The Hornets players are on the field, and now our team players are on the field! Next, the person who is about to play is-Greg Popovich!"

The Spurs are different from other teams in every way. The home lights of the Spurs hit the player tunnel, and the fans stood up and applauded, but after waiting for a while, no one came out. Then the lights flickered, and it turned out that Popovich Already sitting on the team bench.

This is a typical American bad joke.

Popovich is one of the greatest head coaches in NBA history. He was outstanding in the Air Force in his early years. His background as a soldier made Popovich pay more attention to unity and discipline than any other head coach. During this period, Popovich even He worked as an agent, so he hit it off with Duncan, who studied psychology. Popovich studied under Larry Brown and Don Nelson. Odd's tactical system occupies a large proportion. Players on the court keep picking and rolling to create offensive opportunities for strong points. Everyone is assigned their own tasks. On the offensive end, everyone can only play in the area they are best at. shot.Popovich has led the team to win four championships, so some people say that the biggest leader of the Spurs is not Duncan, but Popovich.

Popovich smiled, stood up from the bench, and waved to the crowd.

"Next, let us give our warmest applause to Argentine defender Manu Ginobili!"

The fans in San Antonio were obviously more enthusiastic than the fans in New York. As soon as Ginobili played, the fans immediately stood up and cheered.

Ginobili is 33 years old. He is one of the few players in the basketball world who combines the NBA championship and international championship medals. He was picked by the Spurs with the 1999th overall pick in 57, but he did not officially land until 2002. In the NBA, he was selected as an All-Star substitute team in 2005, and was assigned to play as a substitute in the 2006-2007 season, mainly to increase the depth of the bench and lead the scoring of the bench. In 2008, Ginobili won the honor of the best sixth man in the NBA. Technically, Ginobili's breakthrough and change of direction are very strange, accurate three-pointers, and the pass is full of monsters, which is very entertaining. This season he still plays off the bench, averaging 22 points, 4 rebounds and 6 times per game. Assists, 47.4% shooting, 39.9% three-pointers, completely at the level of the league's first-line shooting guards.

"Let's welcome our next player, Garrett Temple!"

Temple is 24 years old, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He participated in the 2009 draft, but was not selected. He represented the Rockets in the summer league and was waived. After that, the Kings sent a 6-day short contract. , was also waived after playing five games, and then the Spurs signed Temple with a ten-day short contract, represented the Spurs in six games, averaged 6 minutes per game, and only scored 2.5 points. Now the Spurs George Hill is the starter at the second position, Ginobili is on the bench, and rookie James Anderson is behind Ginobili. It can be said that it is difficult for Temple to have a chance to perform this season.

For such a standard figure on the fringes of the league, San Antonio fans still gave warm applause.

"The next player coming to us is DeJuan Blair!"

Blair was born in 1989 and is only 21 years old this year. He was selected by the Spurs with the 2009th overall pick in 37. Blair's position on the court is a power forward. With a weight of 201 kg, thick shoulder width, super long wingspan, good strength and excellent rebounding awareness, Blair can always grab crucial rebounds one by one beside the elders, not only that , Blair also has an excellent ability to finish at the basket. All of the above combined seem to be the qualities that a top insider in the league should have. Yes, Blair is such a player, but for him, it is really fatal. The most important thing is that Blair has undergone many major surgeries when he was in high school, and now he has no menisci at all in his knees. Such a player only has immediate combat power but no potential, and his career will not be great. Too long, this season he played as a substitute for Duncan in the Spurs, averaging 120 points and 8 rebounds per game.

"Let's welcome our rookie of the year, James Anderson!"

Anderson was selected by the Spurs with the 20th pick in the first round of this year's draft. It is worth noting that this pick is the highest pick by the Spurs since the Duncan era. Under such circumstances, the Spurs still won four championships. champion.Anderson was a player who received great attention from the spotlight in college, but all the glory came to an abrupt end after Anderson entered the NBA. His weakness was constantly magnified on the floor of the NBA. Anderson's most outstanding skill is the emergency stop of receiving the ball Shooting, after entering the NBA, it is estimated that he will have to rely on this bowl of food for the rest of his life. His template is Richard Hamilton, but compared to the latter, Anderson can't pass the ball, and his defense is lacklustre. The ball is often intercepted. This technical link is his biggest loophole, which reflects the basic skills of a player. This season, Anderson, as the third substitute behind George Hill and Ginobili, averaged 10 minutes per game. Able to score 3 points and 1 rebound.

"The following player is Antonio McDyess!"

The fans stood up and cheered. For them, applause and encouragement are not only given to rookies who lack self-confidence. At the same time, they will not be stingy with their applause for veterans who have fought in the league for more than ten years. McDyess, who has played for 16 years, is obviously such a player.

The 36-year-old McDyess was the No. 1995 pick in 20. Yes, he entered the NBA two years earlier than Duncan. With a healthy body, McDyess has always been the top power forward in the league. He has excellent physical fitness and tough defense. , the offensive end can play footwork, can hook, and can shoot mid-range shots, especially mid-range shots after pick-and-rolls with point guards. It ruined him, and in the case of only playing ten games this season, he will be reimbursed for the entire next season.

This injury caused a top power forward in the league to become the team's backup power forward. From averaging 21 points per game to less than 7 points per game, it is embarrassing how the world has changed. In the 2005 finals, McDyess faced Duncan who was in full swing, no matter in terms of aura, technology or ability, he was not inferior to Duncan, and he used his unsolvable mid-range shots to save the team many times , This series left a very deep impression on the Spurs' management, so in the summer of 2009, the Spurs used a three-year $3 million contract to recruit McDyess.This season, he averaged 1897 minutes per game and was able to score 15 points and 5 rebounds.He has made it clear that this year will be his last season, and he will retire at the end of the season.

"The following is also a veteran, let us welcome the jumping soul-Ralph Alston!"

The fans stood up and gave Alston more applause than McDyess.

In the United States, whether it is in the famous Rock Park, Staten Island, or standing on any street basketball venue in New York, Brooklyn or Queens, you can ask those who are holding a basketball, and then struggling to throw the basketball Five or six-year-old boy who throws the hoop, they probably haven't heard who LeBron James is, they probably haven't heard who Kobe Bryant is, they probably haven't even heard who Michael Jordan is, But from their mouths, they must be able to hear a name called Ralph Alston, or his nickname "Jumping Soul"!
He is a legend standing outside the NBA court!

Tap the screen to use advanced tools Tip: You can use left and right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.

You'll Also Like