am i proud?

Chapter 190 Farewell, the sadness that cannot be concealed even after winning the championship!
On the evening of June 6th, the G15 finals game between the Lakers and the Pistons finally started.

At the beginning of the game, the Lakers launched a fierce attack on the inside. O'Neal's attack at the basket was so strong that even though Daben tried his best, he couldn't stop it. Instead, he quickly lost 2 fouls and was replaced.

For the Pistons, Wang Dalin also immediately turned on the offensive mode. He succeeded in two singles against Fox, and also sent an assist to Billups and Hamilton.

Immediately after O'Neal attracted the Pistons' defensive attention inside, he began to frequently score outside. Fisher and Kobe each hit a three-pointer.

At this time, the Pistons starting point guard Billups stood up.

He singled Fisher twice in a row, hit a jumper with an emergency stop after a breakthrough, forced a layup after a breakthrough and caused Fisher's thug foul, and then made two free throws at the free throw line.

The two sides fought very fiercely in the first quarter, and until the end of the first quarter was coming, the scene was still evenly matched.

The Lakers replaced O'Neal to rest, and Kobe led the team to continue the onslaught. The Pistons replaced Hamilton, who performed poorly in the first quarter, and replaced Williams.

At the end of the first quarter, Wang Dalin and Kobe started a confrontation. The two scored 2 goals respectively, but Billups stood up to steal the spotlight... He first made a sudden shot from outside the three-point line, and then decisively double-teamed to steal Kobe. In the counterattack, Wang Dalin sent an alley-oop assist.

"Second brother" is indeed a man who can win the FMVP in the original time and space. Although he has not really reached the peak yet, he has already let everyone see his great potential.

At the beginning of the second quarter, Wang Dalin and Kobe continued to score against Biao, and the scores of the two teams also rose alternately, and no one could widen the gap.

However, due to the advantage established by Billups' sudden outbreak, the Pistons always led by about 4 points. In desperation, Jackson had to replace O'Neal in advance.

Until the middle of the second quarter, the Lakers finally replaced Kobe, and Carlisle quickly replaced Wang Dalin to rest... He played the entire first quarter and played for about 6 minutes in the second quarter. He was really tired.

The Lakers took the opportunity to counterattack, and O'Neal once again showed his power inside. Carlisle decisively sent Gates to "cut the shark", and asked the players to consume O'Neal's physical strength in the interior as much as possible.

The finals came to Game 5, and the consequences of the Lakers' tiebreaker in the Western Conference Finals finally came to light. O'Neal was really weak in the second half of the second quarter. Although he was still as unstoppable as a prehistoric beast, he was already unable to play 2+1 when he was fouled.

Not only O'Neal, but even Fisher and Horry have obvious problems. Their outside shots have always been accurate, but they failed to make a three-pointer in the first half.

The situation of the Lakers was worrisome, so Jackson had to replace Kobe again. In the most difficult time, only the super-strong Kobe could continue to maintain offensive firepower.

Kobe played again, and Carlisle naturally replaced Wang Dalin.

In the last 3 minutes of the second quarter, the two started another round of scoring. This time Wang Dalin clearly had the upper hand, because he scored two three-pointers, while Kobe scored two-pointers.

After the intermission, O'Neal's physical strength recovered a lot, and his dominance in the interior also immediately recovered. In the first half of the third quarter, he led the team to a small climax of 12:4, tying the score in one fell swoop.

The critical moment was Billups again. He first assisted Hamilton to make a mid-range shot, and then broke into the paint under the cover of Wang Dalin's pick-and-roll and caused O'Neal's foul. He made two free throws steadily.

Kobe Bryant immediately succeeded in singles against Hamilton, and also sent a very exciting alley-oop pass to O'Neal.

In the second half of the third quarter, Wang Dalin began to take over the game, and his various attempts made Fox complain endlessly.

Jackson decisively arranged for players to double-team him, but Wang Dalin took the opportunity to send Hamilton two assists, which immediately made the Lakers' double-team useless.

In the first 4 minutes of the fourth quarter, the head coaches of both sides left the main players off the court to rest. Neither O'Neal nor Kobe played for the Lakers. Among them, Kobe played 33 minutes in the first three quarters, and O'Neal played 31 minutes. It was obviously due to excessive physical exertion.

Carlisle also forced Wang Dalin and Billups to the bench. These two also played a lot in the first three quarters. Among them, Wang Dalin played 32 minutes and Billups played 30 minutes.

In the last 8 minutes of the game, the two sides did their best, and finally it was time for a desperate battle.

The 4-minute rest time is certainly enough for Kobe, a physical monster, but it is far from enough for O'Neal... This "inside behemoth" has greatly reduced his efficiency in the final stage of the game. He has basically been reduced to a blue-collar center who grabs rebounds and protects the frame.

The Lakers' offense is completely dependent on Kobe alone. Although his offensive firepower is still very fierce, how can he alone be able to fight against the entire Pistons?

Wang Dalin is now almost at the level of a physical monster, and Hamilton is a super physical monster with bottomless physical strength, plus Billups who rested for 4 minutes, and Ben, who is already known for his toughness... The Pistons can play very efficiently on both offense and defense.

With about 2 minutes left in the game, the Lakers had trailed by 11 points. Jackson replaced O'Neal... Originally, he also wanted to replace Kobe, but Kobe refused to leave the game. He wanted to fight until the last moment.

In the era when Tracy McGrady hadn't hit 35 points in 13 seconds, and trailed by 2 points with 11 minutes left, this was a lost game...but Kobe still refused to give up.

In the last 2 minutes, Kobe began to shoot wildly from beyond the three-point line, but tonight he was no longer the peak "Black Mamba" in the G1 game. He only made 5 of the last 1 three-pointers.

In the end, the Pistons defeated the Lakers 105:94, sweeping their opponents with a big score of 4:1, and won the championship this season!
王大林以场均40.4分、9.6个篮板、7.2次助攻、1.8次抢断和1.2个盖帽的数据，成功当选了本年度的FMVP。

This is also the first time since 1 Michael Jordan, someone can average more than 40 points in the finals. Wang Dalin, the FMVP, is full of gold!
This is the third championship in the history of the Pistons, and it is also the first championship for Wang Dalin and his group of players.

You know, last season the Pistons were only the tenth in the Eastern Conference and No. 20 in the league. It is not an exaggeration to call it a "fish belly".

Such a team, after only one season, counterattacked all the way, not only won the first place in the regular season in the Eastern Conference and the third place in the league, but also won the final championship in one fell swoop. One can imagine the gold content of this championship?
Rick Carlisle led the team to win the championship in the first season of his coaching career, and this young rookie coach was immediately dubbed the "magic coach".

At the press conference after the game, only head coach Carlisle attended the Pistons side, and the players all drank champagne and sang songs in the locker room.

Wang Dalin and his brothers sang and danced, having a great time... As for not attending the press conference, if the league wants to fine them, then fine, bro, it's not bad!
That night, the Pistons players and coaching staff flew back to Detroit, came to the square outside the "Palace of Auburn Hills" and had a grand carnival with tens of thousands of fans.

Old John held Wang Dalin's hand tremblingly, and said excitedly, "Darling, I knew it... I knew it, you will definitely bring us a championship!"

Wang Dalin was also very excited, and patted his chest on the spot and let out wild words: "How can one championship be enough? We still want to win three consecutive championships, four consecutive championships, five consecutive championships..."

……

On June 6, the Pistons held a grand championship parade along the Detroit River. Although the preparation time was very short, the Detroit City Government and the Pistons worked together to arrange the parade properly.

The players took their families and friends on a cruise ship and received the worship of tens of thousands of fans on both sides of the Detroit River. This feeling is really wonderful.

On the night of winning the championship, Wang Dalin contacted his parents, hoping that they would come to Detroit to participate in the championship parade, but his two close relatives obviously had no interest in going abroad.

Besides, June is already the peak season for hot pot restaurants in Chongqing, and my parents are so busy every day, how can they come to Detroit in time?

In this regard, Wang Dalin can only give up with regret.

The parade went through a water journey, and then they took a car to stroll around the center of Detroit, and finally came to the square in front of the "Palace of Auburn Hills Arena".

When it was Carlisle's turn to give a speech, the head coach who looked exactly like Kim Kelly first put on a classic pose of "geek in disguise", and then smiled into the microphone: "Are you satisfied now?"

"Satisfied!" Nearly [-] fans shouted in unison. The voice shook the heavens and the earth, and almost collapsed the huge arena.

"I am also very satisfied... We have experienced many difficulties this season. First, Ben was absent due to injury, and then Darling was absent due to injury. We were suspended again in the playoffs, but we survived!"

"We have a tough inside pillar like Ben. As long as he is on the court, I will never worry about the opponent scoring easily under our basket... Yes, he is so reliable!"

"We still have Chauncey, he's so calm and never loses his spirit, I think...everyone saw how good he was in that last game?"

"Of course, we can't forget Richard. Without him, we would lack a strong scorer with an average of 20 points per game. I am very grateful for this. Fortunately, he is on our side!"

"And Darling..."

When they heard Wang Dalin's name, all the fans in the square shouted in unison - "Darling... Darling... Darling..."

Carlisle had no choice but to tap on the microphone and said, "Everyone is so enthusiastic that I can't even say a word to praise Darling... Hahaha... Yes, he is the leader of our team. As long as he is there, we can defeat all opponents!"

"And Clifford, Charles, Corliss, Love, Joan, Damon, Michael, Mickey, Gates, Victor, Rodney... Without you, we don't deserve this championship!"

"I am very proud to have such a group of excellent players. We were able to unite as one and finally defeated a strong opponent. Do you like this trophy?"

"I like it!" Another earth-shattering voice shouted in unison.

"I like it too! It's a pity that this thing is not just for me... haha... Come on, Darling, come up and talk to everyone!"

Urged by Carlisle, Wang Dalin stepped onto the podium and shouted into the microphone: "Pistons champion!"

"Pistons championship... Pistons championship... Pistons championship... Pistons championship..." The fans chanted again in unison.

"Hahaha... I'm so happy!"

"I didn't expect that I could win the championship in the second season of my career...Charles, do you really want to come up and beat me when you hear this sentence?"

"Hahaha, you won't beat me, because you also have a championship now! Are you happy? Listen to me, how about playing for another year? You are not old yet!"

"I still remember when I said at the beginning of the season that our goal was to win a championship, people didn't believe me, nor did they believe in our team's coaching staff and players, but we did it!"

"First of all, I have to thank Coach Joe and Rick. It was you who brought me to Detroit. Without you, I wouldn't be the FMVP... How do I seem to be praising myself? Hahaha, I'm serious, I really thank you!"

"Coach Rick is a real tactical master... Yes, he is a rookie, but what does that mean? I am also a rookie, but we won the championship together. Isn't that amazing enough?"

"And Ben, Chauncey and Richard, you are all my good brothers, I look forward to continuing to fight with you in the future, and we will definitely win more championships in the future!"

"I would also like to thank everyone on the team. You definitely have a share in this championship. Without you, we couldn't have done it!"

"Finally, I would like to thank all the fans present and thank you for your participation every night. Your cheering and cheering will always inspire us to defeat one after another powerful opponents!"

"I'm very happy today. I hope to see you here every year in the future. Let's talk about it... next year, right here. Let's do it again... the Pistons championship!"

"Pistons Championship...Pistons Championship...Pistons Championship...Pistons Championship..."

……

After the carnival parade, Billups invited Wang Dalin alone to the famous "Volt" restaurant in Detroit, where pike and whitefish are their signature delicacies.

During the carnival parade, Wang Dalin noticed that something was wrong with Billups. He always looked like he was forcing a smile, and this feeling was even more obvious at this moment.

As sworn brothers, Wang Dalin had to ask quickly, "Second brother, what's wrong with you?"

Billups had a lonely expression on his face: "Fourth brother, I'm afraid that if I say something, it will affect everyone's mood, so I will invite you here alone. Can you guess it?"

Wang Dalin felt a "thump" in his heart, and asked in disbelief, "Second brother...are you leaving?"

Billups sighed and said, "Fourth brother... you Chinese are so smart, I knew you would be able to guess it!"

Wang Dalin hurriedly asked: "Second brother, you really want to leave? Why?"

"Yes, my contract has expired. The Pistons haven't contacted my agent about renewing the contract. I think...they should have given up on me!" Billups smiled wryly, shrugging his shoulders deliberately to cover up his embarrassment.

"How is this possible? No, I have to ask Joe!" Wang Dalin touched his cell phone to call Joe Dumas as he spoke.

Billups pressed his hand and said, "Fourth brother, don't ask!"

He then slowly said: "My agent has told me that the Pistons have indeed given up on me! You should still be afraid that after renewing my contract, there will not be enough salary space to renew my contract with my third brother and eldest brother in the next two years, right?"

As he said that, he laughed at himself: "If we didn't win the championship, I would be satisfied with a full mid-level contract, but now...hehe, I am also the core point guard of the championship team. A full mid-level contract may not be enough, right? Do you think I am a bit too greedy?"

Wang Dalin immediately responded without hesitation: "Second brother, what are you talking about? You are more than worth a full middle-class contract!"

How could he not know how good a point guard Billups is?A mere full middle-class contract... How can it match his value?
Billups smiled and sighed: "Hehe, hey... I am more than this price. Is the third brother only worth this price? Is the eldest brother only worth this price? Adding your maximum salary, how can the Pistons have salary space to support us with four big contracts at the same time?"

Wang Dalin hurriedly said: "But... no matter what, I have to renew the contract with you first? Let's talk about next year next year? Why are you so anxious to let you go?"

Billups said with a smile: "Fourth brother, don't you know... If the Pistons don't renew the contract with the third brother in advance this summer, he will become a restricted free agent next year!"

Wang Dalin thought for a moment, and asked, "You mean... the third brother and the team have reached an agreement to renew the contract in advance?"

Billups nodded and said, "If I'm not mistaken, as soon as the trading market opens on July 7, Joe will immediately renew the contract with the third brother in advance, and the contract period will definitely not be less than five years... Only by signing such a long-term contract can the third brother accept a relatively low price!"

After finishing speaking, Billups laughed at himself again: "The third brother is not like me. He has no ambitions. It is estimated that he will agree to 5 million US dollars in five years!"

Wang Dalin asked worriedly: "If you leave, how can we continue to win the championship?"

Billups laughed and said, "Fourth brother, you underestimate yourself too much! I'm not trying to praise you. With your current strength, the Pistons would be a championship-level team even without me. I believe you can at least make it to the finals next year. As for winning the championship...you can do it this year, why can't you do it next year?"

Billups is right. Wang Dalin has turned into an MVP-level star in just one season, and he is still getting stronger day after day. As long as he is there, plus the inside pillar and powerful scorer Hamilton, the Pistons are of course a strong team at the championship level.

No bragging, just this year's Lakers team, even if the Pistons lack Billups, they haven't seen anyone win or lose in this round of finals.

You must know that this is the Lakers team with the "OK combination", a dynasty team in the original time and space!
According to the historical trend of the original time and space, the strength of the Lakers this season has not advanced but retreated, and they have not even been able to make it out of the West.

If the Pistons retain the main frame of Wang Dalin, Ben and Hamilton, coupled with Williams, the best sixth man, and high-quality role players such as Joan Barry and Damon Jones, plus the draft and signings, can they still be inferior to the Spurs?

You must know that next season Parker is only a second-year rookie, Ginobili is a rookie who has just entered the league, only Deng Daida can be regarded as a complete body in the "GDP combination", David Robinson is also completely old, and the combat power of the Spurs may not be so strong!

Seeing what else Wang Dalin wanted to say, Billups interrupted him and said, "Fourth brother, you should bless me...Maybe when we meet again on the court next season, I will be the head of a team. Then you have to be merciful and don't embarrass me too much!"

Wang Dalin sighed and said, "Second Brother...why didn't you tell me if you had such thoughts?"

Billups said angrily: "So what if I tell you? Could it be that you can still give me the position of team leader? Even if you are willing to give up, will the brothers be convinced?"

Wang Dalin opened his mouth and said, "But..."

"Don't be so bad! Fourth brother, you need to know...you are the boss of the Pistons, and no one can change this! Only if you are the boss, will everyone in the team unite as one. It doesn't matter who you are if you change someone!"

"Second brother, I see!" Wang Dalin asked after thinking for a while, "Have you decided where to go yet?"

Billups smiled: "It's Oakland! Why, you didn't expect it?"

Wang Dalin was a little surprised: "Golden State Warriors? Don't they already have Gilbert?"

Billups lowered his voice: "I heard from my agent that they have decided to send Gilbert to Washington in exchange for a first-round pick. You know, the Wizards' first-round pick is very valuable now!"

Even if the Wizards introduced Arenas, it would be useless, basically there is no hope of making the playoffs... Jordan is really old, and he no longer has the dominance of the past.

Wang Dalin said again: "But the Warriors still have Antawn Jamison, he is the boss of the team, right?"

Billups said with a smile: "With my current strength, I can definitely hold him down! And the Warriors still have the second pick this year. If Cleveland chooses Jay Williams, we will definitely choose your compatriot... Don't worry, I will take good care of him!"

Wang Dalin laughed and said, "I'm afraid this is unlikely. Why would the people of Cleveland choose a point guard? They already have Andre Miller!"

Billups lowered his voice and said, "I received some inside information. The Cavaliers will send Andre to the Clippers this offseason, so they will probably choose a point guard. And Yao Ming is a center. Why would the Cavaliers choose him when they have 'Big Z'? Are they going to get two big men over 220 cm to play against the Twin Towers?"

Wang Dalin thought for a while and sighed, "If that's the case, it seems that the Cavaliers will definitely not choose Yao Ming!"

He really feels a bit sorry for Yao Ming. In this life, Yao Ming still has no chance with James...Of course, it would be nice to be able to partner with such outstanding players as Billups, Jamison, and Richardson.

Billups added: "I also heard that the Rockets are secretly negotiating with the Cavaliers. They want to get the No. [-] pick from the Cavaliers. The bargaining chip is the No. [-] pick and some cash in their hands. If this deal is successful, your compatriots will probably have to go to Houston. We all know that they are most interested in Yao Ming!"

Wang Dalin felt another "click" in his heart... Damn it!I almost forgot that there is the Rockets. Although they didn't get the No. [-] lottery, the No. [-] lottery is not low. The Cavaliers may really trade with them.

In 2017, the Celtics made such a classic transaction. They used the No. [-] pick in their hands to trade the No. [-] pick and some cash from Philadelphia. Not only did they successfully avoid Markelle Fultz, the parallel No. [-] pick, but they also selected All-Stars like Jayson Tatum.

Facts have proved that Tatum is the strongest rookie in the 2017 class, and even Donovan Mitchell of the Jazz is slightly inferior to him.

Wang Dalin couldn't help shouting silently in his heart—"Yao Ming, you must never go to the Rockets!"

……

After parting ways with Billups, Wang Dalin still called Joe Dumars. Facts proved what Billups said, the Pistons did not intend to renew his contract.

Some people would say... Renew Billups first, even if you can't keep Hamilton next year, at least win another championship next season?

According to Wang Dalin's idea of ​​playing the 2K game dynasty mode, he probably thinks so too, but the reality is reality after all, not every owner of the 29 NBA teams is so aggressive!
At present, Wang Dalin has the highest salary in the Pistons. In the new season, his annual salary will reach more than 1150 million US dollars, plus Robinson’s 842 million US dollars, Ben’s 520 million US dollars, Williams’ 450 million US dollars, Barry’s 318 million US dollars, Curry’s 260 million US dollars, Moore’s 241 million US dollars...

Even if Hamilton's annual salary next season is only 268 million U.S. dollars, the salary of the few of them is already close to 4100 million U.S. dollars.

This is not counting Damon Jones and Ralph Alston. Jones is fine. His contract still has two full years, but Alston's contract has expired.Based on his performance this season, it is unlikely that a basic salary contract can keep him.

Joe Dumars is also really difficult. On the one hand, he has to keep the team as strong as possible, and on the other hand, he has to save money for the owner Bill Davidson.

Billups has indeed played out his worth this season, and coupled with his status as a draft pick, it is undoubtedly impossible to keep him with a middle-class contract with a starting salary of about 500 million.

If he uses a big contract to keep Billups this year, the salary space of the Pistons will be locked up immediately. Even keeping Alstom has become impossible. What about renewing Hamilton next year?
In contrast, he can only choose to renew his contract with the "cheaper" Hamilton in advance, and give up Billups, who has doubled in value.

……

That night, Wang Dalin invited Billups, Hamilton and Ben to have an American barbecue in their yard.

The four brothers ate delicious barbecue, drank cold beer, and talked about the past year.

At this party, Wang Dalin also made an exception and drank alcohol... Anyway, he was at his own home, as long as no one was telling the truth, who could he be afraid of?

While drinking, Billups finally confessed to Big Ben and Hamilton. Big Ben was very excited after hearing this, and almost ran to find Joe Dumars immediately.

Hamilton seemed a little guilty, because it was the team and his early contract extension that led to Billups having to leave.

And he also confessed to his brothers that he will sign a five-year $5 million long-term contract with the Pistons, and he will sign the contract as soon as the trading market opens.

Billups also told everyone about the conditions that the Warriors offered him. He will receive a six-year $6 million contract.

The two brothers were able to earn a lot of money, which finally made the upcoming parting a little less sad, but maybe it was the effect of alcohol... Wang Dalin and the others still cried profusely.

That night they drank until four o'clock in the morning, and then they found their own rooms to sleep...

　Thanks to "Warm Heart Confession" and "Three Great Axes Behind" for their monthly encouragement!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)