Healing Basketball

Chapter 61 61. Who will be the stepping stone?
At two o'clock in the afternoon, the Trail Blazers conducted the last team training game before the regular season.

Different from the tactical adjustment training, tactical running and coordination strengthening training in the past two days, this is a game. According to the usual practice, this is a game that will definitely affect the chance of playing in tomorrow's opening game. Everyone played very seriously.

It's hard to compare in the game, but compared with the training game on the 25th, Liu Xiu's defensive performance has improved significantly!
Dale Davis is not well.

He estimated that Liu Xiu would become a qualified supplementary defense player in a short time.

This is not an easy matter. A rookie, a rookie who was not good at defense in college, or a guard, after entering the NBA, it is not difficult to quickly improve his single defense ability to the qualifying level.

But what Liu Xiu improved was supplementary defense and auxiliary defense!

It can be said that in basketball, there is nothing more boring than this, and it is also the thing that most people are willing to learn.

This game also needs talent support, which is outrageous.

But Liu Xiu just learned so casually and got started, and during the preseason, he will touch the threshold of passing level!
The pass line is not particularly strong, and it can't play a role in helping the team in the game, so it becomes the embellishment of the team's defensive boss.

Everything is difficult at the beginning, and playing basketball is the same. If you can't get started or pass, it means you have no talent.

Liu Xiu's talent has exploded!

Forget it, Liu Xiu has improved in terms of basic skills compared to a few days ago...

In the team training game on the 25th, Liu Xiu learned the importance of stepping skills when attacking the frame at close range. In the past few days, except for the simulated training on the defensive end, the basic skills of shooting and the simulated training on the other side, Liu Xiu stopped everything else. Down, a considerable part of the physical strength is given to the stride simulation training, which is one of Derek Anderson's basic skills.

Liu Xiu originally also had this ability, but he was not strong, and his training methods were not as good as Derek Anderson. As a guard, he should have been trained in this area. He also has talent...has a foundation, rapid progress, and has reached the passing level in a few days .

Coincidentally, on the 25th, Liu Xiu went to Derek Anderson to review the training details of the basic striding skills while waiting for revenge by smashing a little flying squirrel...

Is there any veteran who doesn't like his skills being learned by talented juniors?

Regardless of strength and strength, only considering versatility, Derek Anderson can be called a technical master. His planned job after retirement is to become a trainer or assistant coach and attack the head coach.

Dale Davis is also a defensive champion with a name in NBA history.

Anyway, Derek Anderson and Dale Davis hope Liu Xiu can learn well.

Therefore, there is extra attention paid to Liu Xiu in the team training game.

Then, he noticed Liu Xiu's progress.

During the training break, the two teachers got together and complained...

"Derek, I didn't believe that there was such a genius who could improve his skills with casual practice, but now I believe it."

"Actually, I've heard of such a person," Derek Anderson said with a wry smile, "but I didn't believe it at the time, and I believe it now."

Derek Anderson thinks of that high school kid in Toronto a few years ago who smirked and said he was going to be Pippen next to his brother...

Dale Davis originally only played with those famous veterans, but recently got together with Derek Anderson because of Liu Xiu, a common student.

Now, the two have the same idea again - they have lived their careers on dogs for so many years!
……

The two teachers were discussing Liu Xiu, and the two coaches in charge of the team were also there.

"Morris, have you ever seen a player improve faster than Jace?"

"Yes, but that man entered the leap period after laying the foundation. How could he improve so quickly from scratch like Jess, no."

"NO! Morris, with his rapid progress, do you think anyone can really hit him? How can we make him work hard?"

Maurice Cheeks was speechless - why do you have to let your players get hit hard?Wouldn't it be enough for people to make progress?
Or are you still thinking about that Porsche 365A?

Everyone asked someone to build a garage next to the yard to display this car, okay?
The two chatted and walked to the entrance of the visiting team's training ground, just passing by... But they heard the angry old man inside, the words and sentences were all compliments, and it was simply unbearable!
The soundproof door can't stop it!
The two coaches couldn't help but stop and eavesdrop for a while.

After a while, the door was pushed open, and the two coaches quickly walked a few steps, without being noticed by the people inside. Turning their heads, when the door was closed, a tall Caucasian child walked out quickly, and the corners of the boy's eyes seemed to flicker With crystal tears...

It's no secret that Larry Brown has a bad mouth in the entire NBA coaching circle.

I don't know what happened. It is difficult for the two coaches to comment on Milicic being scolded and crying.

But Kevin Pritchar has something to say: "Morris, tell me, can we learn from Brown, tough and iron-blooded, with sharp words, and save our team environment?"

Maurice Cheeks looked up and down at Kevin Pritchar, seeing that the latter was furious.

"What's wrong? Morris, what's wrong with what I said?"

"No, no, no problem, it's a good idea," Maurice Cheeks said with a smile: "Think about our team, there's Zach, there's Dell, there's Ruben... By the way, there's Jess, I have been retired for ten years and I often work out, I should not die if they take turns beating me, you..."

"..."

Kevin Pritchar felt that the team environment was not that important, so he turned around and walked quickly to the parking lot: "I'll go to dinner first, see you in the evening."

For the opening game, the Trail Blazers coaching staff had to work overtime to make better preparations for coaching.

……

The Blazers coaches are working hard, as are the players.

After the training in the afternoon, Liu Xiu called four friends from the "Aohu Squad", called Tianzun, who created the image of a villain himself, and the all-round thug teacher next to Tianzun, and a group of seven people discussed tomorrow's game together. .

Originally, I wanted to call Dale Davis, but this one, with more face than the sky, playing with Liu Xiu and Derek Anderson in private, it's no problem, there are many people and things, so he doesn't want to come out to play casually , unless the seven of them all called Big Brother together, he would come.

But Liu Xiu has never been a little brother, and Randolph has never been a little brother...

However, even if Dale Davis doesn't come, this discussion group still accounts for half of the team!
Liu Xiu was not conscious about this. This was the case when he started playing basketball.

Randolph looked at Rasheed Wallace and Derek Anderson in astonishment—this Nima rookie season has not even started yet, and Liu Xiu has already become the most powerful leader in the team!

Last year, those people fought back and forth within the team, fighting for a hammer!
Also, Randolph felt that this seemed to be a matter of course for Liu Xiu...

Exchange, but also did not exchange any tricks.

What's more, through the discussion meeting on the last day before the new season, we can confirm one thing with each other - we are in the same group!

……

The opening game of the regular season is a big event, and it means that the long-awaited new season is about to begin!

A good start, the United States also has a similar statement, anyway, the teams in the opening game attach great importance to it.

The league, the media, and the fans naturally all valued it, but what they valued was the teams with balloon stars.

Anyway, the Trail Blazers are completely ignored.

They and the Pistons have grievances and grievances. They played against each other in the finals more than ten years ago.

But at that time, all the players of the two teams retired, and there was no grievance that time. The Trail Blazers were beaten by the Pistons, and there was no grievance at all.

It seems that after the opening games of those popular teams are arranged, they just make up a matchup combination for them.

It's the day before the opening game, and the Trail Blazers don't have many reporters.

Even the Chinese reporters didn't come too many, and the manpower was concentrated on Yao Ming's side.

Originally, the domestic media was very enthusiastic about Liu Xiu, but Liu Xiu's reputation in the United States is getting worse and worse. There are also problems with the domestic environment these days, and his popularity in the country has faded.

Liu Xiu felt a little bit pained, but there was nothing he could do about it, let's not worry about it, it was something that couldn't be rushed.

After getting together with a few teammates, Liu Xiu went home at night and watched the most popular live broadcast of the opening game - the Lakers vs. Mavericks at home!
When the Mavericks sent Nash, Finley, Anthony Walker, Jamison, and Nowitzki to start, Liu Xiuyi had question marks in his head...

In the end, the Lakers beat the Mavericks 106 to 95. Even if Kobe didn't play, the Mavericks didn't have much power to fight back in front of the Lakers.

The luxurious super frontcourt does not seem to have brought any improvement to the Mavericks.

But the most important thing is the staggering strength displayed by the Lakers.

Even Charles Barkley, a rising star in the commentary world who takes pleasure in O'Neal, lamented that if Kobe was there, with Kobe and Malone on the two wings, the strength shown by the Mavericks probably wouldn't last half of the game.

Just in the opening game, Liu Xiu thought of a saying that was laughed at in the future - if the Lakers in the 03-04 season had no infighting or so many injuries, they might be the strongest team, even if their So old.

On October 10, the second game day of the regular season, the day for the Trail Blazers' opener arrived.

Liu Xiu got up at 7 in the morning. After enjoying a wave of sourness, she got up full of energy and looked forward to today's game!
At 6 o'clock in the evening, they will usher in the opening game against the Pistons at home!

The hottest opening game was all put on yesterday, and today's game, the heat has dropped significantly.

Liu Xiu had breakfast, watched the morning sports news, and read newspapers... Except for the final opener between the Magic and the Raptors, the TV programs and newspapers had almost no analysis of today's other games!

Even the local media in Portland were not very enthusiastic about reporting the game itself.

It's really a bit miserable... But, Liu Xiu knows, this is their Trail Blazers.

Liu Xiu was in high spirits, and came to the arena earlier than usual... After more than ten minutes, many teammates were surprised.

It's the opening game tonight, not all teammates are paying attention to him, although he often shows off in the team, but the actual competitor is Damon Stoudemire, judging by his height, he is pure control David, just the two of them.

Like Liu Xiu, the teammates are also in high spirits today, and the real competition is about to begin!Let's start with the official game!
……

Regardless of whether it is taken seriously or not, the two teams that were put together in the opener always have some connection.

The Trail Blazers and Pistons play games, although there is nothing topical at all, but they are related-there are equal records in the past two years!
开拓者队01-02赛季49胜、02-03赛季50胜；活塞队01-02赛季和02-03赛季都是50胜。

The Pistons lost Clifford Robinson in the offseason, and the Trail Blazers lost Bunch Wells, but the main players of the two teams have improved... In the prospect analysis of the teams before the season, the two teams were Put it in one file.

The Trail Blazers agree with this statement, and they regard the Pistons as an opponent of comparable strength and are preparing.

Even Liu Xiu thought so when Tianzun was still in the Trail Blazers.

But the Pistons don't see it that way.

Losing Clifford Robinson... was a decision made after detailed discussions between Joe Dumars and Larry Brown and the main players on the team.

Rick Carlisle spent two seasons patiently building the system, and now he has changed to an old coach who is stronger and more accomplished on the defensive end... The ambitions of the Pistons players have been highlighted!
The morning training is over, and then a few hours of rest, in the evening, they will play against the Trail Blazers.

In a coffee shop near the gate of the arena, Billups and Ben Wallace sat together, not saying a word. Billups talked a lot, but Ben Wallace really didn't talk much.

But both of them are full of expectations for the upcoming new season!
Billups now... Larry Brown's 'You fucking can't play like Iverson? ' Let his whole self-confidence ignite.

Billups had never started a full season before last season, despite Rick Carlisle being Billups' man.

But Larry Brown let Billups, who had spent six years honing his basic skills, fully release his nature. Billups became the first Pistons player to accept Larry Brown as their new coach.

Coincidentally, Liu Xiu, Randolph and his group passed by the door of the coffee shop talking and laughing.

Billups looked at the group of people downstairs and said to Ben Wallace: "We are going to win tonight! Let them know that we are different from them, let them understand the gap!"

Ben Wallace nodded, didn't say much, everything was in the air.

When an athlete's confidence and ambition are inflated, all the opponents in front of him will be regarded as stepping stones.

Everyone in the Trail Blazers is a stepping stone in the eyes of Billups and Ben Wallace!
(End of this chapter)