NBA: Magic Johnson opens the season, crowned MOP

On the evening of November 12, the Spurs boarded a plane to Los Angeles at San Antonio International Airport.

Tomorrow night, they will be away to the Staples Center to challenge the Los Angeles Purple and Gold Army.

"Hey rookie, are you nervous?"

Manu approached Joey and took off his headphones and asked.

Joey looked helplessly at the guy next to him whose sparse hair made his handsome face look even more shabby, and reminded Leonard who was catching up on his sleep:

"Kawhi, old man Manu is asking you a question!"

"What?! I'm asking you, little bastard.……"

Manu responded with an"incredible" look on his face:

"I care about you. Greg put you in the starting lineup for the first time this season! If you don't perform well and get bitten to death by the venomous snake in Los Angeles, you won't get more playing time in the future.……"

Manu tried to pretend that he was doing this for your own good, but was mocked by the Spurs players in the cabin."——

"Come on, you old man, you are the one in the team who likes to play tricks on the newcomers the most!"

"Manu, please tone it down. The Lakers are not a weak team like the Kings. Kobe + Nash are recognized as the most terrifying backcourt combination this year.……"

Neil, who was replaced by Joey in the starting second position in this game, took off the massager on his face and actually"intimidate" the Argentine veteran

"Hey, hey, I'm an old man, don't scare me, I'm so scared……"

Manu's sly look instantly drew everyone's eye rolls.

Joey didn't join in the old guys' laughter and playfulness. He looked at the clouds"receding" outside the window and muttered to himself:

"Kobe?……"

In fact, the backcourt combination of two old men who are already 36 or 37 years old is completely overestimated by all teams. It is difficult for any professional athlete to maintain a perfect competitive state at this age, not to mention Kobe and Nash who have suffered serious injuries.

I vaguely remember that in the original history, the Lakers lost to the Mavericks, the Trail Blazers, the Clippers, the Pistons, and the Jazz in the first five games of the regular season, averaging only 97.2 points per game.

In the first half, they only achieved a record of 17 wins and 24 losses, ranking 12th in the West. Before the All-Star Game, the Lakers had 25 wins and 29 losses and chased to tenth in the West, but they were still 3.5 wins away from the playoff threshold.

Although in the end, Kobe led the Lakers into the playoffs at the cost of a ruptured Achilles tendon, they were swept out by the Spurs in the first round.

In fact, the Lakers exposed many problems at the beginning of the season. First, Kobe and Howard had a lot of disputes over ball possession and tactical execution;

Nash was too old and had been injured since forming the F4;

Gasol also had ups and downs, and even suffered a concussion during the season. Clark became the starter after returning;

Metta World Peace (Artest) directly entered a semi-retired state. Not to mention half of the strength of the best defensive player in his peak period, even the key three-point shooting ability during the 2009-10 Lakers championship period has degenerated.

All these factors combined led to the fact that the"Universe Lakers", which was called the Big Three of the Heat, almost didn't even make it to the playoffs.

But these factors were summarized by the sports media in later generations. People nowadays don't know how empty and fragile the bubble hidden under this attractive"Big Four" gimmick is...

On the afternoon of November 13, when the Spurs were training in the temporary away training hall in Los Angeles, the staff brought a tablet to Popovich.

A video was playing inside - a conversation between reporters interviewing the two Lakers stars Kobe and Howard.

Los Angeles unscrupulous tabloid reporter: Are you confident of winning the game against the Spurs tonight?

Faced with the same question, the two league superstars gave the same answer -

Kobe: Yes, we will go all out to keep the victory in Los Angeles.

Howard: Nothing makes me happier than bringing a salute of victory to the fans. We will definitely give the victory to the fans who support us!

Los Angeles unscrupulous tabloid reporter: But you said the same thing in the first five regular season games.

Kobe, Howard:...

Indeed, the Purple and Gold Army's current regular season record is 54 wins and 1 loss, but the Spurs have played a strong start of 5 wins and 1 loss.

This question is normal. Popovich doesn't quite understand the significance of the assistant coach showing him this video, until the next question -

Los Angeles unscrupulous tabloid reporter: Spurs rookie Joey, who played well in the West at the beginning of the season, is currently ranked first in the 12th rookie rankings. I heard that he will start in this game. Have you (you) seen his game? What do you think of his performance?

Kobe's answer made Popovich secretly say

"Rookie?"

Kobe and Howard showed their iconic"black question mark" faces in the camera:

"You said he is a rookie, why should I pay attention to a rookie?"

"I don't care how amazing his performance is, and I don't know what kind of sensation he caused. For me, I have to win this game!"

Compared with Kobe's"experienced" answer (don't ask, just ask Linsanity), Howard's answer seems a bit more targeted:

"What? Are you kidding me? How can a rookie influence my opinion? I don't want to judge him. In fact, you know……"

Howard showed his signature"sunshine boy" smile:

"I would rather go to PlayHouseCLUB and comment on the dancing of the female workers there after winning!"

Old man Popovich has lived for more than 60 years and has seen everything. This is the first time he has seen a player who dares to say to the camera in public that he wants to go to a strip club.

Even the old man's rock-hard heart was made to laugh by Howard.

As for Kobe... the old man returned the tablet to the staff and turned his eyes to Joey, who was sweating profusely on the training ground practicing ball control and shooting.—���

Our rookie will give this proud black mamba snake, who refuses to admit that he is old, a"self-introduction" that will be remembered for a lifetime."！

——————

It was 8:30 that evening.

The Staples Center was covered with golden jerseys and a wide variety of cheering tools.

The enthusiastic Lakers fans shouted Kobe's name loudly. The purple and gold No. 24 jersey seemed to be the common belief of more than 21,000 fans on the field. At this moment, Kobe Bryant was the"king" of Los Angeles!

Even though there were some fans wearing Nash, Gasol, and even Howard jerseys in the audience, they were like a drop in the ocean compared to the Kobe fans in the stadium. You might not be able to see one even if you searched for a long time. In the audience closest to the field sat Jack Nicholson, Ice Cube (one of the founders of Big3), Denzel Washington and other Hollywood celebrities.

There were even popular female stars such as Taylor Swift, Jessica Alba and Selena Gomez watching the game on the sidelines.

It is worth noting that the teenage star Selena actually came to the scene wearing the Spurs No. 3 jersey.

When the camera was on her, she even pulled her friend to show off the silver-gray Spurs home jersey she was wearing.

Interestingly, her public boyfriend Justin Bieber did not accompany her to the event.

"Hey rookie, that Hollywood actress in the first row on the left sideline is wearing your jersey. Do you think she is interested in you?"

"Oh, our little rookie has gained a celebrity fan so quickly. I'm so envious.……"

Joey, who was warming up, heard a teasing voice. He didn't need to look back to know that it must be Manu and Dio, the two most popular guys in the team.

Wearing a player's jersey means you like that player? Then do all the fans wearing Durant's jersey like"Contractor"?

Ignoring the two old guys, Joey concentrated on warming up and getting familiar with the feel of the game - he took this game very seriously. He also saw the interview video of Kobe and Howard this morning, but he was not serious about this, but because of a side quest triggered by the system:

【In the game against the Los Angeles Lakers, get 20+10 and win the game. Reward: 10 free attribute points, 1 mysterious badge】

"Hi Joey……"

Joey, who was shooting a three-pointer from the right corner, suddenly heard a cheerful and lively female voice behind him.

He threw the basketball in his hand and turned his head to see a girl wearing his No. 3 jersey and with delicate features standing on the sidelines waving at him.

"Hello."

Joey nodded to her politely.

Selena Gomez, a Disney-style"green tea" girl star who was accused of being two-faced because of various scandals with her bestie in later generations

"Can I take a few minutes of your time?"

The girl blinked her bright eyes, as if to invite him.

Joey hesitated and looked at Popovich on the other side of the court. The Spurs staff on the old man's side had already set their sights on him.���Here.

Not only the Spurs bench, but almost everyone in the Staples Center saw this scene.

Disney's popular teenage star cheated on an NBA superstar?

Hiss - this title can be the headline of the first gossip newspaper"People" in the Mili family.……

"Sorry, I'm playing!"

Disappointingly, Joey only hesitated for a moment, apologized and returned to the court to continue warming up.

Alas...

Seeing Joey leave decisively and not have some imaginative conversation with Selena, people who were in a mood to watch the show were suddenly disappointed.

At the same time, they also doubted Joey's aesthetics... or orientation.

Such a beautiful female star took the initiative to talk to you, but you refused. Should we say that you are determined or your orientation is crooked?

Seeing this scene, Popovich on the Spurs bench opposite was relieved for no reason.

On Selena's side, the smile on her face suddenly stagnated after being decisively rejected by Joey. Her bestie behind her and Hollywood female star Taylor and others had already begun to"whisper".

Bastard!

Selena was ashamed and annoyed, secretly cursing herself for getting cold feet. It was a pity that she specially wore the Spurs' No. 3 jersey to come to the Staples Center today to cheer for Joey...

You know, as a Texan, Selena has always been a loyal fan of the Spurs. This year, the team she supported finally selected a good rookie, and this... The Asian rookie really looked like what she wanted. Plus, she was filming the movie"Aftershock" in Los Angeles. Plus, she just broke up with her boyfriend Justin Bieber. Plus... well, Selena was just attracted by his looks!

So she asked someone to get two VIP tickets for today's Staples game and brought her girlfriend to watch the game.

She wanted to get to know the Asian rookie from the Spurs. After all, the latter's appearance really met her requirements for younger men. Moreover, as a professional athlete, he was tall and strong. It was said that he had a nickname of"Death Striker"...

This guy was really what Selena wanted. She had just broken up with Bieber not long ago. After accidentally watching the game between the Spurs and the Thunder at home, she completely awakened the soul of"ten-year Spurs fan" in her body.

As a result, all the efforts she had made in the past few days were completely wasted after Joey's decisive refusal, and even the face of the young star was lost a lot after that...

Damn kid!

The more Selena thought about it, the angrier she became. Looking at Joey warming up on the court, a spirit of not admitting defeat suddenly surged up.