After the premiere here, because it was almost time for the Magic players over there to take off from Orlando on a special plane and prepare to come to Los Angeles, Edison called Thibodeau.
"Paul, I was just about to call you. I have some bad news." Although Edison didn't see it, he could tell from Thibodeau's tone that he was in a state of distress.
"What happened to the team?" Edison was also very worried after hearing Thibodeau's words. He was now particularly afraid of receiving a sudden notice that he was dismissed from get out of class.
"That's it. During training this afternoon, Iguodala and Josh Smith collided and sprained their ankle. Nelson meant to rest for at least a week, and he will definitely not be able to play tomorrow's game. So we left him in Orlando.
, He will not be included in the people who will set off later."
"That's right, I thought it was something big. It's inevitable for players to get injured, not to mention it's just a minor injury. They just won't be able to participate in the rest of this year's games." Edison immediately relaxed a lot after hearing this. It was indeed like
What he said is that in the NBA, and even in the entire sports world, there is no one who has not been injured and recuperated for ten or eight days. As long as it is not the kind that affects his career, it will be no big deal.
"But Iguodala is our defensive leader on the outside. Without him, what would we do when we meet Kobe?" Although Thibodeau is older, he has never been his own man after all, and he still cannot understand many things.
"Okay, okay, Tom, you lead the team here. You tell the players to gather in the hotel lobby at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. We will talk about the game at that time. Okay, that's it." After saying that, Edison hung up the phone and took the car.
The car that agent Martin had prepared long ago returned to the hotel that the Magic had booked in advance.
For fans, every game of the team they support is the most important in the league season. But for officials, the most important games of the NBA season are 4 games or 4 games - the opening game.
The Christmas game, the All-Star Game and the Finals.
The other three games were taken seriously by the league simply because of the great significance of the game itself. Only the Christmas game was due to the special time of the game.
Generally speaking, on the day of the Christmas game, the league will only arrange two games due to ratings and pre-game publicity considerations, and this year is no exception. The Lakers will play at home against the Magic starting at 8:00, while last season's game started at 9:30
In a rematch of the Finals, the Pistons face the Spurs at home.
One of the two games focuses on entertainment, while the other is very tactical. One game is filled with all kinds of celebrities and the visual impact is amazing, while the other game mainly depends on the formation of the head coaches of the two teams.
, a battle of wits and courage. It can be said that this arrangement of the league meets the viewing needs of the two major fan groups, rational and emotional.
Let's put aside the game between the Spurs and the Pistons, and focus on the game between the Lakers and the Magic.
Although the Lakers have welcomed back the meritorious coach Jackson Jackson this season, they have no choice but to have no one available in the team. In addition, they are in the West that has been hit by a thousand cuts, so the results are very unsatisfactory. Historically, the Lakers were seventh in the West.
And this is despite the fact that the Nuggets' record is not dominant and they are ranked third due to the advantage of division rules. However, this season they fell to eighth in the Western Conference.
The one who pushed the Lakers down was none other than the Houston Rockets. Historically, the Rockets' Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady were injured in turn during that season. The two played a combined 104 games, so their results were very poor. But it's different now.
Now, the Rockets don’t have Tracy McGrady, and Kidd is here. A good point guard carries an aura with him and can maximize the strengths of other players. Therefore, although the Rockets’ current record is not as good as that of the Mavericks and Spurs, they are still able to press
The Lakers' end is still fine.
And McGrady went to the Suns. Under the protection of the Suns' miracle medical team, major injuries became minor injuries, and the number of missed games was greatly reduced. Therefore, although the Suns did not have the same power as Nash, they were still ahead of the Lakers.
But this must be said in reverse. In addition to the deteriorating external environment, there are still many serious problems within the Lakers. Of course, no one is the first to bear the brunt. Nash is not a head coach who is good at leading weak teams.
important factors.
If we compare the head coach to a gambler, then Phil Jackson is one of those who likes to cheat in high-end games. If you give him four 2s, he can use these four cards to force others not to dare to play, and then
Bring out a handful of small cards. But now the Lakers only have Kobe as their main player. Jackson cannot scare people, and others are not afraid of him. So Phil Jackson belongs to the kind of team that can always reach the conference finals if you give him.
Your championship, but if you give him an average lineup, he can really only focus on maintaining his own sense of mystery.
In turn, let’s talk about two other famous head coaches, Larry Brown and **Veach.
Larry Brown is the kind of person who is very calculating and good at playing small cards. He can calculate every card of the opponent and the cards in his own hand. Then he tries his best to play out his small cards without letting the other party take advantage of them.
But his problem is that he doesn’t know how to play cards well. If you give him 2 cats and four 2s, he dares to take them out to you directly. He even calls it: "Brother directly played 6 cards." So Larry Brown
If you give him a garbage lineup, as long as the players in it are not particularly talented, he can lead you to the playoffs. If the fit of these players is better, he can even lead you to the finals, or even
I'll give you a championship. But if you give him a team of talented players, look at the New York Knicks.
**Vicci is a compromise between the two people. He is not as good at calling as Phil Jackson, but he is better at calculating than Zen Master; he is not as good at calculating as Larry Brown, but he is better at using big names than him. The most important thing is that he is lucky. In his early years, he was
At the beginning, he caught two cats, Duncan and Robinson. Later, Robinson retired, and he brought in Parker and Ginobili, and formed a smooth gold with Duncan. So **Vic is the kind of team that you can form a team and draft.
, leave all the games to him, and he will be able to build a top team in the league for you, but if you only let him be the coach, it may be difficult for him to reach his current heights.
…………
In the past 10 years, when it comes to the Lakers, Kobe is a figure that you can't get around no matter what.
The Lakers' record this season is not good, but Kobe's statistics are frighteningly high. This season, he averaged 40.8 minutes per game and scored 35.4 points per game. Some people may say that he can score so many points because of his
The number of shots taken was 27.2. This is true, but we have to look at it dialectically.
Kobe is not shooting randomly. Although he is shooting with his life, he is not shooting just for the sake of shooting. His shooting rate is still as high as 45%, which is quite remarkable for an outsider. If a player can maintain this
With a high shooting percentage, why don't you let him attack, but instead let those whose shooting percentage barely reaches 40% to shoot.
This is why many people questioned Westbrook last season. In the face of Durant's 50% shooting rate, why do you take more shots than him?
In addition to scoring, Kobe can also contribute 5.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. It can be said that he has done everything a shooting guard should do. If you demand more from him, that would be harsh criticism that is divorced from reality.
But there is an indisputable fact in the NBA, that is, the collective honor is always greater than the individual. If the team's performance is not good, your personal performance will not convince everyone, but it will make people think of it as a cancer.
For example, many fans are now willing to do whatever it takes to defeat Kobe Bryant:
Kobe came out and won: his teammates performed so well, Odom was possessed by a magician, Walton was possessed by his father, and Kwame Brown turned into Mourning. In this case, I can play with them.
win.
Kobe Bryant lost when he came out: You can't do it without O'Neal and others, they are the bane of the team.
Kobe won without Kobe: Let’s see if Kobe won without Kobe, who still boasts that Kobe is great.
Kobe lost when he didn't play: This is a cancer. He usually occupies too much shot rights. He can't play. As a result, other players whose shot rights surged felt that happiness came too suddenly and they didn't know how to play.
Of course, in this world, where there is black, there is white, and where there is science and black, there is Komi. And the public opinion mobilized by Komi is no less powerful than that of Komi, and they also take advantage of every opportunity.
The Lakers won: Kobe was 1 on 5 on the court and won simply.
The Lakers lost: In this game, Kobe was simply 1 vs. 9. In addition to the 5 opponents, there were 4 of his own teammates. They were so incompetent and made various mistakes that ruined the great situation that Kobe worked so hard to create.
Finally, he concluded: "Kwame doesn't know much, Odom is stupid again, Science God has tried his best, you can do your best."
And now Edison is also worried about Kobe's problem.
Iguodala's unexpected injury disrupted his preparation for the game. Although in the eyes of many fans, Iguodala's presence on the Magic team is very low, even higher than that of substitutes Martin and Josh Smith.
He. But in the eyes of experts, Iguodala is indeed a very important link in the Magic team.
Basically every game, he will guard the opponent's core. When he meets the Heat, he will guard Wade, when he meets the Nets, he will guard Carter, and when he meets the Cavaliers, he will fight James. Although these superstars are not as good at Iguodala's defense.
They can still score 20 or even 30 points, but their shooting percentage has dropped, and because they consume more energy on offense, it is difficult for them to maintain a high level on the defensive end.
The most important thing is that Iguodala has no complaints about this, and the annual salary of such a useful player is less than 3 million.
Without Iguodala, who will defend Kobe, especially Kobe who has scored 40+ points in two consecutive games, who can stop him.
There are two people in front of Edison now, Roy and Tony Allen.
Not much to say about Tony Allen. He is an outside defensive player who has body, speed, and is dirty enough. But if he is asked to guard Kobe Bryant, because of his height, Roy will have to play small forward. But
The current small forward commonly used by the Lakers is Odom, so Roy's disadvantage due to his height is more obvious.
If Roy is allowed to face off against Kobe, not only will he be unable to defend himself defensively, but he will also suffer on the offensive end, and he will probably be beaten by Kobe. However, the benefits are also obvious. As long as Kobe does not cause psychological problems, it will not affect Roy's future.
Growth is very beneficial.
The reason why Edison did not let Rasheed Wallace defend Kobe in his plan is that first of all, his defensive effect will not be better than Tony Allen, but it is acceptable. The key is that he is too short on offense. The Lakers must use Kobe.
To defend Roy, use Odom to defend Gerald Wallace, neither of them can take advantage. If it is Tony Allen, Phil Jackson cannot let Odom defend him, then he will be too powerful to misplace
, Odom will die suddenly.
Just when Edison was frowning in the hotel and not knowing how to make a choice, someone knocked on his door.
