"Bryant, I suggest you take a truce for a few more games due to your injury. The examination shows that your knees and ankles have been damaged to varying degrees." Gary Vitti said while doing a routine examination on Kobe. "No,
Gary, I'm going to play, and I'm going to play in the next game." Kobe opened his mouth and said.
"Bryant, I don't recommend you to do this, because you are different from others. You will give it your all as soon as you come on the court. This will risk aggravating the injury even for 20 minutes!" Gary Vitti frowned.
He frowned and objected. Kobe shook his head and said, "Gary, I have to play in the next game. You know I don't have much time left."
"Bryant, forget all the disturbances from the outside world. The Lakers have already..." This time, before Gary Vitti finished speaking, Kobe cut him off instantly and said, "Gary, the Lakers will definitely...
Entering the playoffs! I hope you won’t say similar depressing words in the future!”
Kobe and Gary Vitti have worked together for at least more than ten years. It is rare for him to have such an unhappy tone, even a little angry. But some of Gary Vitti's words just now stepped on the "minefield" of Lakers No. 24
", so he detonated it without hesitation. Gary Vitti seemed to be very familiar with Kobe's temperament, so he didn't care, and said: "Bryant, I know you are a competitor, a competitive maniac, but there are some things.
You'd better not force yourself too much. The Lakers have only 12 games left this season. If they want to catch the last train in the playoffs, unless they win all, there is no hope at all. Okay, let me say this.
If you don’t like to hear it, even if it is a complete victory, it depends on the faces of the Jazz and Rockets. If they have good results in the remaining games, our Lakers will have no hope. So..."
"Gary! You know I don't care about these objective reasons!" Kobe was a little angry. He looked at Gary Vitti and said: "I just want to win, I just want to send the Lakers to the playoffs, nothing else.
What, I won’t think about it at all now!” “Is it worth it for you to work hard for something with such a small probability? If you get injured, do you think it’s expensive? Listen to me, although I didn’t do it before the season started.
I am very optimistic about this Lakers team, but... the development of things is often beyond human control. We lost, and you tried your best. That is enough. No one will criticize you too much, Bryant...
"
"Do you think no one will criticize me harshly?" Kobe smiled, but it was obviously not the warm kind. "Didn't you see it? The season is not over yet. He was taunting me and laughing at me.
, it’s already overwhelming. If I don’t work hard, I won’t be able to pass this hurdle!” As he said that, he sat up from the bed and continued: “Let’s not talk about it anymore.”
Kobe looked down at the two English abbreviations "******" on his jersey, and said in a low voice: "Even if I don't fight for myself, I still have to fight for Mr. Buss. This is what I wanted to do before he died."
One of the things I promised him."
"I can't break my promise to him."
"So in the remaining 12 games, I have to play, and I have to win!" As Kobe said this, the expression on his face became slightly stubborn.
On March 25th, U.S. time, the Lakers challenged the Golden State Warriors in the Bay Area away from home. The Golden State Warriors currently have 40 wins and 31 losses, ranking 7th in the entire Western Conference. This game was also the first time Kobe Bryant returned from injury.
a match.
This game was extremely weird.
In the first half, Howard was still going his own way, but in the second half, he didn't take a single shot. If you look at Howard's statistics for this game, he took zero shots in the second half, and even had very few chances to touch the ball. Why? The answer is
Kobe began to work alone.
It's not the usual "Black Mamba mode" for a period of time, but... it's the entire second half.
The so-called "Kobe Time" and "Kobe Score Mode" were continuously turned on.
This is a very abnormal phenomenon, because Kobe will be 35 years old in a few months this year. At this age, no matter what competitive sports he is placed in, he is an "absolute veteran" age. Logically speaking, this
At his age, Kobe should conserve his energy in the regular season and wait for the playoffs to exert his strength. But if you look at his playing time this season, he is in the top five in the league, longer than everyone in the 2003 Platinum Generation.
.This kind of exhaustion on the body function of "Old Kobe" is absolutely unimaginable.
But there is no way. He does not have the conditions of Duncan to "play dead" or "play soy sauce" in the regular season, and this season the Los Angeles Lakers are the focus of media attention. His every move is under the spotlight and is infinitely magnified. This gives
He lost Kobe Bryant and faced tremendous external pressure. It’s not that he doesn’t want to be “lazy” in the regular season. After all, the deterioration of physical skills is something that even “God Qiao” can’t resist. It’s just... how can he rest now?
Come down?
The cynicism from the outside world, the ups and downs of the Lakers this season, and the death of Buss, all came together to finally exhaust all of Kobe's patience. His inner paranoia and stubbornness were completely activated at a certain moment.
In the second half, he scored 29 points, including 10 free throws. It can be seen that the Lakers' No. 24 stepped on the accelerator and shifted gears to the end. But because the digging hole in the first half was too big, even Kobe Bryant won the second half.
29 points still failed to stop the Lakers' decline, and finally lost to the Golden State Warriors 103-109, 6 points.
With 34 wins and 37 losses, the Lakers' winning percentage continues to decline.
On that day, Kobe Bryant missed the post-game press conference. It is said that he did not even return to the locker room, but turned around and walked out of the Warriors' Oracle Arena.
The mainstream media is naturally "happy to hear" that the Lakers continue to lose.
For example, ESPN released several headlines in succession, saying:
The Lakers are completely screwed! Do they have a 1.9% chance of making the playoffs?
"Four Kings"? This Lakers team is simply a ragtag team!
Big laugh! Count down Kobe Bryant’s “bold words” this season!
At the same time, various ESPN experts, reporters, and analysts began to "gear up" and write about some of the "things" about the Lakers this season on their Twitter and columns. Of course, they were basically all sarcastic.
Seeing the sarcasm made the Lakers players feel angry, but there was nothing they could do about it.
Because competitive sports require results to speak for themselves, and if you fail to produce results, then no matter how you defend yourself, it will only result in a more violent attack. In this regard, the American media is even more unscrupulous and ruthless than the domestic media.
Tang Qian couldn't bear it anymore. He wanted to go to the Lakers general manager's office to file a complaint, but before he walked through the door, he was intercepted by the security guards outside. No matter what he said, these security guards just didn't want to.
Let him in.
Tang Qian knew that this was an underhanded move by Mitch Kupchak because he was too lazy to see him.
Tang Qian had no choice but to call the team's owner Jim Buss directly. But unlike Bass, this young man rejected him in one breath, claiming that he would 100% support any team decision made by the team general manager. This
The look of air coming out of one nostril really made Tang Qian want to crawl over and punch him angrily.
Could it be that... there is really no other way? Then, if this is the case in the future, what future does he have with the Lakers?
But if he changes to another team, not to mention that he doesn't accept it emotionally, even if it succeeds, can you guarantee that this kind of thing won't happen again?
The NBA is first a business place, and then a competitive circle.
Tang Qian was quite upset at this time. He was "lazy" for a rare day, and then decided to go to downtown Los Angeles to relax.
After getting off the Uber, Tang Qian was a little aimless. Although he wanted to come out for a breath just now, when he finally came out, he felt like he had nowhere to go. What about calling Taylor? Tang Qian's heart suddenly rose.
Got this idea.
He took out his cell phone and dialed Taylor's number.
The call was connected, but the person on the line was not Taylor Swift but her manager Lucy. For some reason, Tang Qian always felt that this person named Lucy didn't like him very much, so he had a simple conversation.
Finally, Tang Qian hung up the phone in disinterest.
Forget it, just wander around by yourself, and when you get tired of wandering, go back.
Tang Qian put his phone back in his pocket, and then started walking alone on the streets of Los Angeles.
The urban area of Los Angeles is really developed. There are busy cars and people everywhere. But unlike in China, although it is lively here, the flow of people is still incomparable with that in China. Generally speaking, it will not make you feel upset.
Sometimes I feel more irritable.
Tang Qian felt for the first time that the NBA is not as simple as he thought. The NBA is sometimes more like a small society. Each team in it is a miniature country. You want to gain a foothold in this team.
, just skills and hard work are not enough, because there are many off-field factors that will affect you and restrict you.
Finally, he understood why LeBron James was so strong in the team. Even the management seemed to have to intervene a little bit before he was willing to accept it. This has disadvantages, but at the same time, it also has advantages. The advantage is that it can reduce internal friction and bring the whole team together.
They are all twisted together, focusing on themselves, and trying their best to hit the championship trophy. But really speaking, in the NBA, there are still very few outstanding people like LeBron James. One is the lack of strength, and the other is the lack of strength.
The second is a lack of brains, and the third is a lack of emotional intelligence. Without any of these three things, you will not be able to achieve James' supremacy in the team.
Because fighting against the management does not mean that you have the strength and potential. In the top ten in history, why can't Duncan do it? Why can't Kareem Abdul-Jabbar do it? Why can't Chamberlain do it? Why can't O'Neal do it? Why can't Kobe Bryant do it?
Not enough? This means that the latter two factors are lacking. Or you have one, but lack the other.
All the teammates on the team are willing to "reverse" and "confront" with James. Ordinary superstars simply cannot do this.
Kobe, he can't do it either.
Therefore, the level of internal friction of the Los Angeles Lakers has always been at the forefront of all NBA teams.
But James is different. He can let the team owner put all his efforts into building the team around him. If he wants people, he will poach people, and if he wants money, he will give him money. It is not that these bosses are stupid themselves and replaced by someone else as the boss, they will definitely do it.
Not to the level of James. It can only be said that James really has strong talents in some aspects. This is something that other NBA stars cannot learn.
If only... I could be like LeBron James in this aspect.
As Tang Qian walked, he suddenly had this thought in his mind.
He bets that this is the first time he has had such an idea since he started playing basketball.
While walking, Tang Qian saw a large outdoor basketball court. This may not be common in China, but it is common in the United States, the kingdom of basketball. Because here, too many people like to play basketball.
Hehe, it seems that the basketball court is the most attractive to me.
Tang Qian walked over involuntarily, and at this moment, he suddenly saw two sneaky and suspicious black men outside the iron fence. Tang Qian usually didn't bother to care about them, after all, he was not in the police station.
Tang Qian was at work, but when he walked past, the two men said something that made Tang Qian feel annoyed.
"Damn it, why did this bitch come to watch basketball? Didn't she not like competitive sports before?" A short black man stared at the iron wall and opened his mouth and said: "How did I know?
Ah, I guess I think my chest is too small. I want to play basketball and try to be as big as a basketball~"
"Haha~ It makes sense~ Although that stinky bitch's breasts are not small anymore, of course they would be better if they were bigger. It feels so good when you pinch them~" The tall black man said while stroking her breasts.
He laughed and echoed: "It sounds like you pinched me. You can pull me down. I am a wealthy lady. She can't even look down on a rotten person like you!"
"Tch!!!" The short black man showed displeasure and said, "Pull her ass, and pull her, and when we catch her, sooner or later we will have a chance to give her a good handjob~ When the boss gets tired, this is our chance! At that time
, I won’t call her Qiao An if I don’t cum. If it fills her foul mouth!!!”
"Hehe~ It makes sense~ The boss has always been like this. He never eats alone. When he gets tired, he will always quench the greed of the brothers~ I get excited when I think that I have the opportunity to get such pearls~ I don't know what she is.
Is it a 'solid wood floor' or a 'tropical rainforest'? Humph, I must beat her to death if I get the chance!"
"T.M.D! When will this damn basketball game end??? I'm so tired of waiting!!!"
"Who knows! Those who play basketball are all idiots. I don't know who invented such a boring and disgusting sport like basketball!!!"
At this point, someone suddenly interrupted from behind them:
"Hey~ I'm telling you~ why do you look down on people who play basketball?"