The Magic, who have reached the playoffs again, are obviously different from last season.
If last season these rookies still had a feeling of "trembling with fear and sweating profusely" when facing the legendary playoffs, then this season it has become "trembling with fear and sweating profusely".
Of course, not everyone is so calm. For example, "Captain" Brand is very nervous.
Although this is Brand's seventh year in the league, this is his first time in the playoffs. For every player who enters the NBA, not everyone dreams of a championship from the beginning. In fact, every season
The playoffs are the original and true goal for most people.
The same is true for Brand. He entered the league as the No. 1 pick and quickly proved his ability. In his first season in the league, he became a member of the 20+10 club and won the MVP award that season.
The best rookie. But a high starting point did not allow him to enter the fast track of life. The Bulls who had seen the gods always doubted this person's talent, thinking that he was just that, unworthy of a big job. Until a few seasons later, 20+10 in
It has become the exclusive domain of a few people in the league, and the Bulls finally realized what they were missing.
But this no longer means anything to Brand. He went from a rebuilding team to a completely bad team, and even a bad team that will never give people hope.
Although he is still as stable as Stone Buddha, scoring 20+10 data in every game, he is always ignored by others, and for a period of time, everyone will forget that this guy is also a member of 20+10.
The fundamental reason for all this is that he has never played in the playoffs.
Although the playoffs are a continuation of the regular season, they can actually be said to be two events with the same rules. Precisely because of the difficulty and excitement of the playoffs, the performance of the players in this series can maximize their own
Notability and popularity.
If you perform well in the playoffs, as long as you maintain a normal level the following year, the All-Stars will not be able to beat you.
But it's a pity that Brand never got the opportunity to show on this stage.
No matter how much preparation you have done in the past, people will be nervous, scared, and even flinch when they face it for the first time. It's like you have been drawing blood at home, but when you do something for the first time, you will still ejaculate instantly.
This is an objective law of human beings.
Although Brand didn't say it, anyone could see his nervousness - he was particularly anxious during his usual training.
Brand is very low-key. Although he also has his own excited and exaggerated side, that is in life, not at work. Once he steps on the basketball court and comes into contact with basketball, Brand becomes extremely stable. Edison
He and others in the Magic once believed that Brand's stability was eternal, but now they know they were wrong.
Brand actually pushed Josh hard because he was blocked by Josh Smith during an ordinary confrontation practice, and Josh, who was completely unprepared, was pushed and somersaulted.
Josh is like this, he always has a kind of limitless physical strength and energy, coupled with his slam dunk king level jumping, so when defending, he often chooses to let others take action, and then blocks the shot. Basically, the Magic team
Everyone in the room was overshadowed by him. And blocking shots is one of the three most irritating behaviors in basketball, the other two are riding dunks and facial shots.
It's not like no one was angry because Josh blocked a shot in the past, but everyone was a teammate, so they mostly tolerated it. If they were really unhappy, they would punch him twice as a joke, like Brand.
This is the first time an obvious attack has occurred on the Magic team.
In the Magic team, Josh has more friends than Brand. This is not only a matter of the length of time he has been in the team, but his personality is also a very important factor.
Most of the Magic team are young people, so their interests and hobbies are relatively close and they talk about each other a lot. But Brand is relatively old and can't keep up with their rhythm. In addition, he is a relatively introverted person.
Introverted people don't like to be in contact with others, so when the Magic players mention Brand, their first reaction is to respect and admire him instead of being a friend.
So after Josh fell, the rest of the Magic stopped working, especially Howard, who rushed in front of Brand and stared at him.
Brand also discovered his mistake at this time, but as mentioned above, he was too restrained. He didn't know what he should do at this time, or what would be better. And the final result was that he chose
The worst way is to leave in silence.
Edison happened to be on the sidelines when the incident happened, and he could clearly see the cause and effect. He first relied on his prestige to appease Josh and the people who helped Josh, and then called Brand away alone. As for Nash, Hada
Wei and other veterans stabilized the situation here, and the two of them continued to persuade Josh and Howard. The two of them knew that there could be conflicts within the team at this time, but there must be no internal strife. Although today's matter was small, it could not be dealt with.
The good consequences are immeasurable.
"Elton, your behavior has been a bit abnormal these days. Can you tell me what's the reason?" Edison had not yet thought that Brand's problem was due to nervousness. He couldn't guess the reason, but it was not because of Edison's poor skills.
This answer is really beyond the expectations of others and completely beyond Edison's expectations.
Brand listened to Edison's question and didn't speak. He just sat there and pinched his fingers.
"Elton, we are friends and teammates. We are about to enter the most critical moment of this season. If something goes wrong with you at this time, then my year's hard work will be in vain. I think you also know this,
So please tell me, what happened?"
Edison's attitude was very pertinent, and his tone was no longer as calm as at the beginning, but became anxious, making Brand feel that he was really worried about him.
"Coach, I think I might be a little nervous." Brand struggled for a long time and finally explained the reason after stumbling.
Edison was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and then couldn't help laughing, "I didn't expect this."
"I don't want to enlighten you too much, because I can completely understand your feelings. I was the same last season. I put everything on myself and felt like I was going to do whatever I wanted. But, you have to
Believe me, when the game starts, you will find that this is what the playoffs are like. Apart from being a little more tired than the regular season, there is nothing. Even if you are eliminated, it is not a big deal." Edison said.
He did not make a long speech, but simply said something based on his own experience, because he knew that Brand was just fascinated by the pressure. With his personal strength and intelligence, he would be able to find a solution quickly without the help of others.
.
"But Elton, I'm more concerned about what happened at the training ground just now than your nervousness. I think you also know that what you did was wrong, so you should do something."
"I know coach, I was too excited just now..."
"No, no, no, Brand, you shouldn't say these words to me, you should go and communicate with Josh. Do you understand what I mean?"
"I understand, coach." Brand said and stood up, then walked into the training ground, came to Josh, and said a few words to him. Josh waved his hand after hearing this, and then the training continued as usual.
It's like nothing happened.
Sometimes men are very simple when doing things, and sometimes they are just like children when they think about it. A conflict can be overcome with just one sentence. I am not being sexist, but women generally can't do this.
Although Edison and Brand said that Brand would make adjustments on his own, it was impossible for him to do nothing.
After training that day, Edison thought carefully and called his main player Jeter.
"You book a few tickets from New York to Holland in the name of the team, and then you arrange for someone to go to Brand's mother in New York and invite her over to watch our home games."
The team is so big, there are basically no secrets, not to mention that Brand would be nervous about something that can be said to be a joke.
As soon as Jeter heard Edison's arrangement, he knew what he was thinking, "No problem, I will apply for the highest reception treatment from the team."
Edison nodded after hearing this and thought, "It saves trouble to talk to smart people."
Brand's mother was very happy when she heard that her son had entered the playoffs, and was thinking of going to Orlando to cheer him on. Unexpectedly, Magic staff came to the door early.
The arrival of his mother really gave Brand a surprise. You must know that in Brand's heart, the status of mother is higher than that of his wife and children. It can be said that Brand can give up betraying the whole world, but he cannot ignore his mother.
I have to say that the best way to solve psychological problems is love. The care and encouragement of family members are more effective than anything else. They can not only calm the players' mentality, but also make them excited and motivated.
Like Brand, Roy and Rondo's parents also came to Orlando under Edison's arrangement. As for the other players, it's not that Edison doesn't care about them, but after the experience of last season, those who wanted to come have already come.
Yes, those who haven’t come yet basically don’t want to come.
Therefore, due to cost considerations, Edison cannot afford to waste too much of the team's funds.
After getting rid of their worries, the Magic took aim at their first opponent in three days, the Chicago Bulls.
