NBA: Magic Johnson opens the season, crowned MOP

In the fourth quarter, the old man directly sent out the inside and outside combination of Duncan and Yao Dao.

The Argentine vulture is still in good shape, and he scored 8 points on Batum's head with inside and outside shots. Duncan in the interior also exerted his full strength, and Ade and Hickson couldn't stop him. Continuous back-turning hook shots opened up the offense. The solid basic skills under the basket also made the Spurs' inside line impenetrable...

With less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter, the difference between the two teams had been pulled to more than 20 points.

Just when Pop announced that all the main players would be replaced, Joey, who walked off the bench, heard the former say"It's a joke"：

"Joey, can you still fight? Young people should still have the energy.……"

Everyone thought that the old man was joking with Joey. After all, the latter had played for 30 minutes in this game. This is a"critical point" for any professional player in an NBA team to be replaced by the coach for rest. What's more, Joey is still a rookie...

Joey was stunned for a moment, and the old man smiled and handed him the player data sheet on the technical table.

After taking the tablet, all the Spurs players gathered around - the back of Joey's data sheet: 20 points, 7 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 3 turnovers!

"Oh rookie, you actually scored 20 points in this game. This is the first time you have scored over 20 points in your career!"

"Hey! Congratulations on your newbie status. Let's prepare a treat tonight to celebrate.……"

"The rookie No. 0 on the opposite side must be mad!"

"……"

Duncan and other Spurs veterans rushed to Joey, and pairs of dark hands kept"groping" Joey's head.

Joey, who was originally happy, suddenly felt a chill on his scalp. When he turned around, he saw Duncan with a formal smile reaching out his hand and"gently" stroking his head.

His joy was immediately dispersed.——

"Okay guys, get out of the way, Joey hasn't answered my question yet!"

Popovich"scolded" them harshly, then smiled and said to Joey:

"So, rookie, do you want to continue playing? You know, you are not the main player in the team.……"

The old man smiled like a fox, and Joey naturally knew what he meant. There is an unwritten rule in the NBA that when the game enters garbage time, the team that is leading by a lot of points cannot let its main players continue to play, otherwise it will be considered an insult to the opponent and suspected of"malicious scoring".

Joey did not rush to refuse, unlike most rookies who just entered the league, who were afraid that their rash actions would leave a bad impression on the veterans and head coaches in the team.

After thinking carefully for a few seconds, he asked:

"Sir, how many points did Damian get?"

"19 points!"

Looking at the player statistics, Holzer next to Popovich answered

"OK, I understand.……"

"Thank you for your trust. I think I can't cause unnecessary trouble to the team at this juncture.……"

After confirming that he had surpassed Lillard in scoring, which was his best skill, Joey stopped thinking about playing for a few more minutes.

After all, the opponent would not send Lillard to score more than ten points at this juncture... It was also a revenge for the guy's"talkative" before the game!

In the end, the game ended with a score of 87:101!

The Spurs also officially ended the 12-13 preseason with a record of 5 wins and 3 losses.

In this game, facing the three perimeter defense pioneers Danny Green, Joey and Leonard, our cousin made 6 of 19 shots and"happily" scored 19 points with a hit rate of less than 30%.

Looking at the data sheet in front of him at this moment, the arrogant cousin had to lower his"proud" head.

In fact, Lillard had many offensive means in the first few years of his career, which was not much worse than first-class singles masters such as Pierce and Anthony, and could be called an"offensive kaleidoscope".

However, due to the team's tactical reform and the requirements of coach Stotts, who strongly promoted the small ball in the league, the cousin gradually changed his playing style.

Although he always had the habit of giving the ball to him at critical moments, and then coach Stotts arranged a four-out lineup to help him open up...

But the cousin in regular time undertook a lot of control and organization work, whether it was tactical card distribution, commanding running positions, etc., he was indispensable.

Later generations often believed that the reason why Lillard was unwilling to leave the Trail Blazers was because other teams could not give him the same large number of shots and the status of the team leader as the Trail Blazers.

In fact, this is a relatively one-sided cognition. The cousin's playing style does give people a sense of"the ball is always in hand", but if you look closely at the Trail Blazers' games, you will find that most of Lillard's seemingly unreasonable shots are all due to poor offensive organization in advance, teammates being blocked, and tactics not being able to open up, etc.

So in fact, compared with the"coach Li" who focuses on team victory in the later period, the"cousin" who is in the early stage of his career and urgently needs some good data is easier to defend.

During the post-match exchange, Lillard took the initiative to find Joey, apologized for his pre-match arrogance and ignorance, and asked to exchange jerseys. Joey readily agreed - in fact, Lillard has always left a good impression on him.

Whether it was the several encounters in the 11-12 college period or the group confrontations during the joint tryouts, Joey always thought that Lillard was a character similar to the"Martial Saint Guan Erye" in the Chinese classical masterpiece"Romance of the Three Kingdoms".

Under the"witness" of the spotlights of various sports media, the two exchanged jerseys and contact information.

Before leaving, Lillard also invited Joey to take him to watch the jazz concert once a month when he next visits Portland.

Joey readily agreed.

During the post-match press conference, the old man still only brought"No. 21 rookie" Duncan to the scene.

What is a little different today is that the largest press conference site in the ATT Arena was actually a little"unable to accommodate""——

There were reporters from ancient Asian countries everywhere.

When the Spurs press officer Scott randomly clicked on a domestic search for reporters, the first question made Popovich a little"confused"."：

"Will you arrange for Joey to start in the regular season?"

This question made Duncan's expression change a little. He secretly observed the old man beside him and was a little worried about the rookie in the team this year.……

"The next question"

Old Man" has no expression on his face"

"What do you think of the team's rookie guard Joey's performance today?"

Well... this question is normal.

The old man cleared his throat and was about to answer, but suddenly changed his mind:

No, why is it about this brat again? I just arranged for him to start in one game, not to start in every game in the future?

It can only be said that the old man does not know enough about Joey's"topic" and"exposure" as an Asian point guard."……

"Joey... ahem, this is the rookie selected by our team management after careful discussion. I have always believed that he is a natural Spurs player, silent, low-key, introverted, and simple.……"

It was hard to tell whether the old man's comments were good or bad, but at least he didn't dislike Joey. This"signal" made the Chinese reporters present feel relieved.

"As for his performance today... Come on man, I mentioned him as a starter, how do you think I should evaluate him?���Good? Can you also praise me for my good eye for talent?"

Popovich's usual"black humor" jokes made everyone present laugh.

After a few more questions about Joey, Spurs press officer Scott finally called on a reporter from FW Sports:

"Mr. Popovich, what are your prospects for this year's team after you led the team to the Western Conference Finals last season?"

"The Spurs, whose average age has reached 33, have become a veritable old team in the league. Do you still aspire to win the championship this year?

This revealing question instantly brought the atmosphere of the post-match press conference to a freezing point.

All reporters immediately pricked up their ears and pointed their cameras at Popovich on the stage.

Duncan, who had been silent, also"cautiously" looked at the coach next to him, carefully observing his expression.

Popovich's face did change for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal after his good Qi training.——

"First of all, I take the primary responsibility for the team's playoff failure this year.……"

Although the old man still had a smile on his face, one could clearly feel that the air pressure around him was a bit low.

"Secondly, I once said that the Spurs are a team that never gives up. We uphold the tradition of putting team honor above everything else, and this has never changed!"

The old man added in a firm tone:

"I think this year, next year, the year after next...even decades later, as long as the San Antonio Spurs still exist in this league, they will always fight for the championship!"

Popovich's words spread throughout the venue through the microphone, and will soon spread to every fan in the Mili family...

Old soldiers never die, they just fade away!

Joey, who was watching this scene in front of the TV broadcast in the locker room, remembered this sentence for some reason.

Not only him, but other Spurs players in the Spurs' simply decorated locker room also looked at the white old man on the TV screen...

Who will win the NBA championship trophy this season?

——————