NBA: I am the card dealer

At this time, reporters also flocked to Brooklyn, vying to interview Xue Liancheng.

Reporter: "When ESPN predicted that you would only be ranked tenth in the Eastern Conference, how did you feel?"

Xue Liancheng replied: "I don't have any feelings."

It was really hard to be optimistic about the Nets' broken lineup before the start of the season.

but.

There is a huge base point here.

This is based on the growth of Anunoby and Sabonis Jr. as role players.

However, Xue Liancheng could see the future of the two men and knew that they were both talented people with great potential, so he trained them as the absolute main force from the very beginning and even gave them a very high tactical position.

For example, Anunoby plays the role of a finishing arrow. He can average 10+ points per game just by catching rebounds. In addition, Anunoby is also good at three-pointers, so he immediately became a hot new star in the league.

For example, Sabonis Jr. was fouled out from time to time at the beginning, and his condition on the court was very unstable. However, as Xue Liancheng kept feeding the ball and he kept touching the ball from high positions, his confidence increased.

The two have now completely grown into the backbone of the team, one is a top 3D player and the other is a first-class inside player.

It is their existence that makes ESPN underestimate the Nets' overall strength.

ESPN treats Anunoby and Sabonis Jr. as ordinary rookies and quasi-rookies. How can it not be slapped in the face?

In addition, with the arrival of Covington, who is more willing to defend, and the front line backbones of Vonleh and James Johnson, their overall strength has improved by leaps and bounds, and they are no longer the unknown players they used to be.

So he didn't blame ESPN for looking down on them.

The reporter didn't know that and said bluntly, "You are the best player in the league! They actually think you can't lead the team to the playoffs. Aren't you angry about this at all?"

Xue Liancheng smiled bitterly. This was indeed a bit infuriating. “Since I entered the alliance, I have never been favored, so this is not surprising. All doubts will turn into motivation and urge me to move forward.”

He has overcome doubts all the way and now has three championships, three FMVPs, two MVPs, two assists leaders, and a scoring leader. However, he is still considered not to be a guarantee for the playoffs in the new season, which is indeed a bit insulting.

Reporter: "So what do you think of ESPN?"

Xue Liancheng: "They are just sports media, not authorities. It is hard for me to have any opinions."

Reporter: "Now that you have reached the first place in the Eastern Conference, can you tell us what your next goal is?"

Xue Liancheng: "Our goal remains the same, which is to win the championship. Now it's just a process, and we are enjoying it."

Reporter: "Do you think you can stay first in the Eastern Conference and finish the regular season?"

Xue Liancheng: "If nothing unexpected happens, it shouldn't be a big problem."

As Sabonis Jr. and Anunoby grow up, they still have a lot of people who can fight. Sabonis Jr., Anunoby, Covington, Vonleh, James Johnson, Joe Harris, and Crabbe, these important rotation players are all very fierce and definitely have the ability to start.

In addition, Hart, Powell, Lopez Jr., David West and others can also stand out from the bench and fill in the vacancies at any time.

As long as there are no widespread injuries, they should be able to maintain their position as the leader in the Eastern Conference.

After all, as the season progresses, their coordination will get better and better, their cooperation will become more and more tacit, and their playing results will continue to improve, so their record naturally cannot be bad.

The reporter's eyes lit up: "Are you so confident?"

Xue Liancheng: "Without a doubt."

And the next day.

Xue Liancheng threatens to be the first in the East

Xue Liancheng: No one in the East can stop me

"The season is not even halfway through, but Xue Liancheng has already secured the top spot in the Eastern Conference"

The media moved in unison and directly lifted Xue Liancheng onto the sedan chair.

This will naturally make people unhappy.

The team that would be unhappy is naturally the Celtics, the Nets' direct competitor for the top spot in the Eastern Conference.

Jaylen Brown was the first to respond: I know he is strong and is one of the league's top superstars, but what he said about wanting to be No. 1 in the Eastern Conference is nonsense. Please tell him that we'll see you after the season.

Another superstar on the team was also unhappy: Reservation? Why?

Tatum was still very crazy when he just entered the league.

wrong!

Any rookie who has just entered the league is very confident and thinks he is the protagonist. Tatum should have this mentality at this stage.

Horford's opinion is: There have been many great players in NBA history, and Xue is undoubtedly among them, but I can guarantee that he will never be able to fulfill this promise.

Thomas also has an opinion: Everyone can talk, but I think the real ability lies in showing it on the court.

There is no doubt that the entire Celtics team is quite pleased with Xue Liancheng's declaration of being the boss of the Eastern Conference.

After all, the Celtics had been in the top position for nearly half a season, but were recently ousted due to their poor form. Then someone announced that he wanted the first place.

Anyone who hears such words would probably get angry, right?

If this person was not Xue Liancheng, the most dominant superstar in recent years, they would probably all jump up.

Really are……

who do you think You Are?

This is the situation, but when the Nets players heard the response from the Celtics, they immediately became unhappy.

Anunoby was the first to speak out on Twitter: Not convinced? Just keep it to yourself.

Young people are full of energy.

At the beginning of the season, when no one was optimistic about them, they made it to the top of the Eastern Conference. This is their capital for being awesome. Moreover, Anunoby, as the team's second-leading scorer, is the real backbone of the Nets. Naturally, they are extremely arrogant.

Especially there is a rookie of the same level on the opposite side, the famous Tanhualang.

He was just a small-time guy at the end of the first round, picked 23rd, but he played better than the third pick and was a hot favorite for the best rookie.

How could he not be arrogant?

Tatum naturally knew that Anunoby was mainly responding to him, and he immediately exploded: No more nonsense, the real truth will be revealed in the Christmas matchup.

Anunoby was full of confidence at the moment and directly responded to the challenge: Would I be afraid of you?

The two of them provoked each other from a distance.

thus.

The feud between the two of them was completely settled.

And two days later is the Christmas battle, including the Nets vs. Celtics.

The result was very unexpected.

Less than three minutes into the fight, the two of them were hugging each other. It was a really close and intimate fight.

Fortunately, the referee was close by and quickly separated the two men, avoiding a fight.

Since both players threw punches, the referee tried to avoid the situation escalating by sending them both off, thus ending their Christmas battle early.

When leaving the court, Anunoby cursed: "What a wimp..."

Obviously.

He was outraged by Tatum's behavior.

Although Xue Liancheng didn't know what happened during the confrontation between the two, he knew that the two were just young and frivolous. When he first entered the league, he was also arrogant. He understood their current state, so he smiled and said to Anunoby: "Go back and practice well, and try to make the other party a real wimp next time we meet."

Anunoby responded without hesitation: "It's not about striving, it's about making sure."

Xue Liancheng patted Anunoby's head to comfort him and said nothing more.

Emotions on the court can easily spread, and sometimes he can't control himself when faced with offenses, but he usually can't bring them off the court.

If we bring it off the court, we will really become enemies.

Just like Paul and Rondo, and like him and James.

He hopes those emotions will go away once Anunoby leaves the court.

The game continues.

The Nets' loss of Anunoby still has an impact. Whether it is James Johnson or Vonleh, their explosiveness and three-point quality production cannot match Anunoby.

Even his fast break speed couldn't keep up with Anunoby.

In addition, Anunoby is smaller in size and more flexible, so his role on both offense and defense is actually greater.

But the Nets' lineup depth is still deep enough, Hart, Crabbe and Joe Harris can all replace them.

It’s just that the three have different playing styles and different technical characteristics.

Therefore, whoever replaces him will need to switch to different tactics and game rhythm.

For example, Hart is tough enough, has good defense, can shoot three-pointers, and has good physical fitness and speed, so he can serve as an extension of Anunoby.

Crabbe and Joe Harris make their livings by shooting three-pointers. No matter which of them comes on, their purpose is to create space for shooting.

Without Tatum, the Celtics also lost an attacking point, especially with Tatum's height and weight, who can be used as a three or four player, it is not so easy to make up for it.

But the Celtics also have good bench depth, with Marcus Morris and Smart both able to step up.

The former serves as an extension of Tatum, while the latter speeds up the backcourt.

The game was very intense.

Both sides are fighting hard for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. After all, the Bulls have already boasted about it, and if they lose, it would be a bit embarrassing.

But in the end, the Nets still had the upper hand in terms of hard power.

The most important thing is that the Nets have a certain advantage in offensive firepower. Xue Liancheng can create a lot of shooting opportunities by dribbling the ball alone.

And there is the century-long loophole of Isaiah Thomas. For someone like Xue Liancheng who has dynamic imaging and predictive ability, you Celtics can't cover it up no matter what.

If he could seize this opportunity to hit Thomas, he could break the Celtics' defense.

finally.

The Nets defeated the Celtics 117:108 on the road, improving their record to 27 wins and 8 losses, while the Celtics lost this crucial positioning battle and their record became 27 wins and 11 losses, falling behind by 1.5 wins.

The gap is still quite big, and you need to win three more games to climb up.

Xue Liancheng made 24 of 15 shots, 15 of 8 three-pointers, and 14 of 13 free throws, scoring 51 points, plus 14 assists and 8 rebounds. His performance was definitely top-notch.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that he defeated the Celtics single-handedly.

Sabonis Jr. was in average form in this game, scoring 13 points with 5 of 14 shots.

Covington made 12 of 5 shots and scored 12 points.

Vonleh was even worse, scoring 9 points on 3 of 10 shots.

Joe Harris from the bench stood up and scored 9 points on 5 of 14 shots.

Hart scored 9 points.

Others are not worth mentioning.

Celtic side.

Thomas Jr. scored 21 points and 10 assists with 28 of 8 shots. His offensive ability is indeed strong, but his defensive end is not worth mentioning.

And most importantly, Thomas fell every time he broke through, which made it easy to get injured, especially to his hips.

With two minutes left in the final quarter, Thomas fell and didn't get up for a long time, but he finally gritted his teeth and insisted on finishing the game.

According to historical records, Thomas would have been injured and kicked out by the Celtics a long time ago, but the current progress is that Thomas is still with the Celtics this season and has not been injured.

but.

Looking at the way Thomas is falling now, it will be soon if he doesn't get hurt.

result.

It really came true.

After the game, the Celtics officially announced that Thomas had a hip bruise, but it was not known how serious it was.

In addition to the Nets and Celtics, the Christmas games of other groups are also very exciting.

Digital Man fought hard with the Knicks, but in the end James was outnumbered and lost the game 98:105. The second place in the Eastern Conference was hopeless, while the Raptors and Digital Man behind them were ready to make a move.

The match between the Lakers and the Warriors was purely for entertainment. The Lakers were beaten up by the Warriors in Los Angeles and lost by a full 27 points.

In the match between the Rockets and the Thunder, Westbrook went crazy and led the team to defeat the Light Bulb Combination 112:107, winning a crucial game and greatly boosting the Thunder's low morale.

The Big Four of the Timberwolves faced the twin towers of the Pelicans. It was a star-studded match and very much a topic of discussion, but no one expected that the Pelicans would be beaten up by the Timberwolves and lose the game 104:122.

This is the end.

The end of Christmas means the season is almost halfway through.

The league's structure has also undergone some changes, such as the Nets' counterattack to the top and their position as the leader in the Eastern Conference.

The Golden State Warriors have been playing absent-mindedly recently and their record has been surpassed by the Nets.

In other words, the Nets are second only to the Rockets in the entire league, and are very close to the top position.

The momentum is really at its peak.

In addition, the second round of All-Star voting has also started. The current leaders in each position in the Eastern Conference are Xue Liancheng, Oladipo, James, Antetokounmpo, and Embiid.

There is no need to say much about Xue Liancheng. He is the scoring leader + assist leader + the team's Eastern Conference leader. It will not be a surprise for him to occupy the starting spot.

Oladipo deserves the title. The Pacers are currently ranked sixth in the Eastern Conference with 21 wins and 14 losses. His personal data is 27+5+5. In this position, no one has more advantages than him.

The only threats are DeRozan and Irving.

However, the Raptors where DeRozan is have two guns, and the Raptors are only ranked fourth, so they are not suppressed in terms of record. Moreover, DeRozan averaged 22+4+4, which is obviously far inferior to Oladipo.

Irving's statistics are pretty good, with 26+6+4, and his offensive power is comparable to Oladipo's, but the Cavaliers have dropped to eighth place, and their playoff spot is in jeopardy. If he wants to compete with Oladipo for the starting spot, it may be a bit difficult!

The most important thing is that Oladipo has the bonus of a championship and has partnered with Xue Liancheng, so there is no need to say more about his popularity.