NBA: I am the card dealer

All-Star Weekend.

It is a rare rest time for the players throughout the season, almost a whole week, but for some players, the All-Star Weekend is still very busy.

That's right!

These are the players selected for the All-Star Game and the players who participate in other All-Star game activities.

Xue Liancheng was absent due to injury and didn't even go to the scene.

I did shoot some promotional videos with Zhuang Yan.

Then it's time to monitor the ankle injury.

Fortunately, the recovery was good and the swelling went away after three days, but I still need to continue resting.

soon.

The All-Star Weekend passed in a flash.

The players' relaxed mood immediately tensed up.

Because after the All-Star Game, it is the final sprint of the season, especially those teams competing for the playoffs, they must put all their efforts into the final sprint.

The Nets' first opponent after the All-Star Weekend is the Hornets.

The Hornets are no longer a dark horse this season. With a record of 23 wins and 34 losses so far, they are no longer in the playoff picture.

Fortunately, they have developed a potential new star, Aaron Gordon, who averaged 17.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, showing a good future prospect. This is their biggest consolation this season.

Now, the Hornets have no pressure to perform well, so they can play as they please, and their offensive power is still very strong.

only.

They met the Nets.

In this game, after the team doctor repeatedly confirmed that the injury was not serious, Xue Liancheng chose to return.

In fact, according to Atkinson, it would not be too late to rest for another week and then come back. After all, there are only three or four games and it will not have much impact.

But Xue Liancheng still decided to come back in this game.

The reason is simple. Now many games involving the Nets, whether at home or away, are basically full.

Why is it so crowded?

It’s because they came here just for him, Xue Liancheng.

The fans spent a lot of money to see you, and you suddenly said before the game that you would not play. How disappointed those fans must be!

Another point is that some of these fans even drove here from rural towns. For example, for the game against the Charlotte Hornets, many fans looked at the game schedule, bought tickets a few weeks in advance, and then put down their work and came specifically to watch his game.

In this situation, how can he have the nerve to call a truce?

He must live up to the fans who support him!

Since the team doctor has confirmed that he can play and there is no major problem with his body, he cannot just take a rest and trample on the fans' love for him.

of course.

He gradually realized this truth over the past two years.

In the past, when he played away games in places like Minnesota and Orlando, he didn't see so many fans.

And now, wherever he goes, it will be packed.

He also gradually realized that these fans came for him.

So he gradually changed his mindset, and generally he would not miss a match unless there was a serious injury or illness.

Even if he is absent, he will let the official website announce it in advance.

That's it.

As expected, the game in Charlotte that night was packed with people. It was just an ordinary regular season game, but many people cheered excitedly and some cursed wildly.

This is also normal.

Black fans are also fans. They also spent a lot of money to buy tickets to come in and curse you.

This is different from the traffic police team on the Internet, which directs traffic for free. These people spend real money.

The result of the game was no surprise.

With Xue Liancheng's return, the Nets returned to their previous offensive level and easily defeated the Hornets 117:96 with great momentum, continuing to increase their winning streak.

薛连城只打了22分钟，16中10，三分9中5，罚球6中6，浅浅地拿到了31分14助攻3篮板。

Even if he only plays for such a short time, he can still lead the team on the right track.

After winning this game, the Nets' record became 49 wins and 11 losses, and they are getting closer and closer to locking in a playoff spot in advance.

At present, the top five spots in the Eastern Conference have basically been secured, with the Nets, Raptors, Knicks, Celtics, and even the Pacers all having a certain distance from other teams.

Six teams will compete for the remaining three playoff spots.

They are:

The Heat, with 31 wins and 27 losses, are currently ranked sixth, but the Wizards behind them have the same record as them, so they don't feel safe at all.

Then in seventh place is the Washington Wizards with 31 wins and 27 losses. Their record is the same as the Heat, but because they are at a disadvantage against teams in the same division, they can only rank seventh.

The last spot in the playoffs is occupied by the Cleveland Cavaliers, who have a record of 30 wins and 27 losses, just half a game behind the Wizards and Heat ahead of them, which is really just one step away.

But what they should be considering now is not how to fight for the top six, but how to prevent being caught up by the teams behind them.

Because the Bucks also had a record of 30 wins and 27 losses, but they could only finish ninth.

This is the East.

The bloody trial place!

The competition is so fierce that it is really eye-catching.

In addition to the above four teams, the tenth-placed Digital Man cannot be ignored. Their record is 29 wins and 27 losses, only half a win behind the eighth-placed Cavaliers.

The battle for the playoffs was extremely brutal.

The Pistons have a record of 26 wins and 31 losses. They only have a theoretical chance of competing for the playoffs, but they cannot be ruled out.

This is the current situation in the east, and it is very bad.

No matter which teams they are, if they suffer a series of defeats by mistake, they will fall into an abyss.

The Nets don't have such worries.

They need to win five more games. Even if the ninth-placed Bucks win, the Nets can still secure a playoff spot in advance.

What's more...

The Bucks or Cavaliers may not win accordingly.

So the Nets are really close to locking in the playoffs early, just in these few games.

However, the Nets played a full sixty games, which was much faster than other teams, so they had a rare rest time in the next three days.

Three days later, the Nets faced the Bulls at home.

The Bulls have now collapsed, with a record of 18 wins and 41 losses, a pure underdog team.

Xue Liancheng once again checked in for the third quarter, leading the team to an easy win of 114:87, and the whole process was effortless.

他14中9，三分6中4，罚球7中7，得到了29分12助攻的两双数据。

The data is no longer amazing, but the dominance is still obvious.

Rose of the Bulls made 15 of 3 shots and only scored 10 points. He is no longer the Windy City Rose of the past!

No wonder the Bulls management has always wanted to get rid of Rose. His offensive efficiency is too poor and he has no three-point shooting ability. Keeping him will only take up the ball and hinder the growth of other potential new stars.

For example, Markkanen, this guy is pretty good. He made 18 of 8 shots in this game and scored 19 points and 6 rebounds.

Even if we look at the entire season, Karmanen is definitely the best among this year's rookies. His averages of 15.4 points and 7.4 rebounds per game are amazing.

The Bulls wanted to cultivate a new core, so they traded Mirotic, who had conflicts with Portis.

When Zach LaVine returns, this inside-outside combination will immediately be competitive, and the reconstruction will be complete.

The presence of Rose has indeed hindered their growth, especially if LaVine returns, one ball will not be enough.

This is the current situation of the Bulls. The Windy City Rose has completely withered.

After defeating the Bulls, the Nets went straight to Cleveland, where they needed to challenge the Cavaliers back-to-back.

The Cavaliers are currently in dire straits. They lost games in a row in the past two days, with a record of 30 wins and 29 losses. They have been kicked out of the playoffs. Meeting the Nets at this time is simply adding insult to injury.

But the Cavaliers played very tenaciously, Irving fought hard, and Love also played with blood, but it was useless. The Nets' overall strength was obviously much stronger.

finally.

The Nets defeated the Cavaliers 129:123, achieving a three-game winning streak and continuing to consolidate their position as the league's top team, with a record of 51 wins and 11 losses.

After the Cavaliers lost this game, their record became 30 wins and 30 losses, and they are getting further and further away from the playoffs.

But Irving and Love really tried their best.

The former made 25 of 13 shots, 7 of 3 three-pointers, and 3 of 3 free throws, scoring a high score of 32 points. In addition, he had 11 assists and 10 rebounds, a triple-double!

But it still doesn't help.

Love made 17 of 9 shots and scored a double-double of 26 points and 12 rebounds, and he tried his best.

But the gap in strength is too huge.

This caused them to lose this extremely important game.

This is the end.

Give up the initiative and control.

And the Nets.

薛连城24投14中，三分13中6，罚球14中14，爆砍48分13助攻8篮板，表现得无可挑剔。

Sabonis Jr. made 16 of 9 shots and also got 21 points and 11 rebounds.

Anunoby made 13 of 6 shots and scored 15 points.

All three of them played well, making the Cavaliers' fierce attack useless.

rest for a day.

They defeated the Kings 120:111 on the road and achieved a four-game winning streak.

This victory was expected by everyone. After all, it is quite difficult for a weak team like the Kings to upset the league's number one team.

And the Nets have no reason to let the game go.

What's more, they are now in high spirits and have great momentum, so they can add three points of strength to anyone they fight.

After another day of rest, they still completed a double kill against the Clippers 128:116 on the road.

After winning this game, the Nets' record reached 53 wins and 11 losses, with 18 games left until the end of the regular season.

Although the ninth-placed Bucks also won, their record is 32 wins and 29 losses, with 21 games left.

In other words, even if the Nets lose all the following games and the Bucks win all the remaining games, the records of both teams will be 53 wins and 29 losses. However, given that the Nets have an absolute advantage in the record against the Bucks and even all the teams competing for playoff spots in the East, the Nets will still rank at the top even if the records are the same.

In other words.

The Nets have secured a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference in advance.

this time.

The Nets officials were excited.

"We've secured a spot in the playoffs in advance, let's throw some flowers..."

“ESPN is going to be trending again.”

"Do you underestimate the best player in the league? You don't even have a playoff spot prediction. Are you embarrassed now? Haha~~"

"The Nets' lineup was really weak at that time. Who could have thought that Sabonis and Anunoby could grow to this level!"

"Even if Sabonis and Anunoby don't grow to this level, the name Xue Liancheng deserves a playoff spot."

"Do you really think the No. 1 player in the league is a leak?"

"The fact that Sabonis and Anunoby can grow up shows one thing, Xue Liancheng can really make his teammates better. Just look at what Sabonis was like last season and what he is like this season."

"Anunoby is the same. He is a first-round pick at the end of the season. Logically, it should be good enough for him to be a substitute. But he actually grew into an All-Star. Barkley has a sharp eye!"

"With Xue Liancheng's feeding method, as long as you are not a waste, you can eventually make a name for yourself."

"As the first team in the league to secure a playoff spot early, no one doubts Xue Liancheng's dominance now, right?"

"Eighteen games in advance! It's really too fast."

Amidst the noise.

Atkinson also held a press conference and accepted interviews from reporters.

Reporter: "This is your first playoff game since you led the team. Do you have any special feelings?"

Atkinson: "After the game, when I got the news, I felt it was amazing. I was very excited and thankful for Xue's trust in me. He made us have a great season. Of course, this is just the beginning. I hope the ending will be great too."

no doubt.

Now Atkinson finally realized the importance of Xue Liancheng.

He also understands that Xue Liancheng has made great contributions to the Nets' success in getting to where they are today and securing a spot in the playoffs.

Without Xue Liancheng, they wouldn't even dare to think about the playoffs, let alone being first in the league or even locking in the playoffs 18 games in advance.

All this is thanks to Xue Liancheng.

Reporter: "Sir, what do you think of Xue?"

Atkinson: "He is a historical superstar, absolutely the most dominant superstar of all time, and there is no other. To work with him, you only need to do one thing well, which is to call a timeout and make a substitution~~"

There was a burst of laughter at the scene.

Although this statement is exaggerated and even a bit self-joking, it is this statement that most fully reflects Xue Liancheng's dominance.

As a head coach, you naturally cannot only know how to call timeouts, substitutions, defense, coordination, pick-and-rolls, screens, and targeted tactics. These basic qualities are reflected in every corner.

But the Nets' victory did not rely on these, but on Xue Liancheng.

This is the greatest reality.

The fact that Atkinson could make fun of himself and use it to highlight Xue Liancheng's greatness also indirectly shows that he was completely impressed by Xue Liancheng.

The arrival of a player can actually build the team's tactical system and make the team leap from the last place to the first place in the league. Such influence is simply terrifying.

It's enough to impress any coach.

Reporter: "Now that you are a playoff team, what adjustments will you make next?"

Atkinson shook his head: "No, although our record is the best in the league, this is just the beginning. We still need some running-in, especially Sabonis and Anunoby need to take more responsibility to make final preparations for the playoffs."