The difficulty level of the Western Conference schedule is obviously one level higher than that of the Eastern Conference.
After the Nuggets lost to the Spurs, they returned home to have a battle with the Phoenix Suns.
In the end, the Nuggets relied on Anthony's three-pointer at the last minute to come back and win by one point.
However, in this game, Marcus Camby injured his right knee and is expected to be absent for 3 weeks.
Camby's injury also sounded a wake-up call for the Nuggets.
For older players, rest is very important. Tim Duncan and the Spurs can remain competitive for more than ten years, which is inseparable from Popovich's strategizing.
Popovich used rotation tactics to the extreme in the regular season to ensure the physical condition of the veterans to the greatest extent.
Although he cannot manage the load like the Spurs, George Karl is also consciously reducing the playing time of Iverson and other team veterans.
In back-to-back games, George Karl will choose to let veterans like Iverson take appropriate rest.
Although they lost some games as a result, the physical condition of the Nuggets players improved significantly.
Li Yan's physical condition is naturally very good. In games without tasks, he plays relatively healthy.
Coupled with the fact that he has magical skills like "Master of Ball Control" that can be recharged, Li Yan does not feel too tired from the game.
It is worth mentioning that Li Yan accumulated some status cards during this period.
Li Yan hasn't studied English for a long time since the All-Stars parted ways.
After going to Los Angeles, after the game against the Lakers and Clippers, Li Yan had in-depth discussions with Jessica Alba and Taylor Swift respectively.
Jessica Alba is okay, her relationship with Li Yan is very pure.
"Taylor Swift" is a bit clingy. When Li Yan arrived in Los Angeles, he stopped recording any songs and focused on being a companion.
"Dear, I really miss you!" "Taylor Swift" suddenly hung on Li Yan's body like a spider.
Falling in love, "Taylor Swift" has eyes for Li Yan.
Li Yan hugged "Stymie", wrapped his arms around her waist, and said with a smile: "Why don't you record the song well?"
"Taylor Swift" said coquettishly: "I just want to be with you!"
"By the way, I wrote a song, which is especially suitable for couples to sing duet. We can try it." "Taylor Swift" said softly.
"Uh!" Li Yan didn't expect that "Taylor Swift" would start to draw inspiration from life at this time. She is worthy of being a creative female singer.
The chorus is not a big problem, as long as you don't write me into the song.
Li Yan thought to himself, after all, being written into a song was not auspicious.
The voice of "Taylor Swift" is indeed very beautiful. Li Yan can listen to the "original album" while "galloping the horse", which feels really cool!
…………
In April, the Nuggets visited Houston to face the Rockets.
This is a Chinese derby that attracts the attention of all Chinese people.
The Nuggets came to Houston two days before the game.
George Karl also knew that this game was of great significance to Li Yan. During the pre-game training, he told Li Yan that he could play more freely in this game.
Iverson and Anthony naturally have no objections.
Li Yan didn't have much desire to perform. He just told George Karl that he wanted to defend McGrady.
It's not that Li Yan took the initiative to increase the difficulty for himself, it was just because the system issued a task.
As long as McGrady's score is limited to less than 25 points, an attribute point will be awarded.
From a matchup perspective, one of Li Yan or Anthony will defend McGrady.
Instead of hoping that Melo can cheer up on the defensive end, it's better to work harder yourself.
George Karl happily agreed. Li Yan was indeed a good choice to defend Tracy McGrady. The two have similar physical conditions.
The key is that Li Yan has always been very committed on the defensive end, which Anthony cannot match.
Li Yan has top-notch defensive awareness and a long wingspan. The biggest difficulty in defending McGrady is whether he can withstand his first step of breakthrough.
McGrady's fastest first step is a nightmare for all opponents.
McGrady is nearly 205 centimeters tall, which is quite tall for his position. Moreover, McGrady's first step when breaking through is big and fast. This allows McGrady's breakthrough to leave the defender behind with just one step.
Therefore, it is rare to see Tracy McGrady doing fancy dribbling, because he doesn't need it at all. Whether it is left or right, he can get rid of the defense with just one step!
Li Yan is not inferior in terms of size. Whether he can limit Tracy McGrady depends on his on-the-spot performance.
Before the game, Li Yan received an invitation from Yao Ming.
Yao Ming is the greatest player in the history of Chinese men's basketball. In his previous life, Li Yan started paying attention to the NBA when Yao Ming entered the NBA in 2002.
Li Yan has always admired this pillar of the Chinese men's basketball team.
Even before time travel, when Li Yan was so angry by the Polish star that he almost vomited blood, he was thinking about how great it would be if Yao Ming was still there.
Now that he has received an invitation from Yao Ming, Li Yan happily goes to the appointment.
Yao Ming also pays great attention to Li Yan. As a center, Yao Ming knows how important a good defender is for a center.
Since Li Yan became famous at the point guard position, Yao Ming will pay attention to Li Yan in almost every game.
He was happy for Li Yan's progress.
In recent years, if compared to the inside line, the Chinese men's basketball team is not afraid of the world's powerful players.
The shortcoming is at the point guard. Liu Wei's basic skills are pretty solid, but his physical fitness is still far behind the guards of these basketball powers in the United States and Europe.
The Chinese team played against the world's top teams. In the first half, the game was back-and-forth and even had an advantage. Then it began to struggle in the third quarter and was reversed in the fourth quarter. Such plots abound.
In addition to the physical reserves of the Chinese players themselves, the more important thing is that they do not have a good ball handler.
Every round is left to Yao Ming to hit hard inside. With Yao Ming's physical load, it is inevitable that his physical strength will decline until it is exhausted in the second half.
The most terrible thing is that once the opponent launches a full-court press, the Chinese team will make a large number of unforced errors, which is especially obvious in the second half when their physical strength is declining.
Now with Li Yan, everything will change.
The upcoming Beijing Olympics may be the time when the Chinese men's basketball team shocks the world.
Li Yan was still a little reserved when he met Yao Ming. Although he used Chairman Yao's emoticons very happily in his previous life, this feeling was completely different from when Yao Ming was sitting and chatting with him.
Li Yan finally understood O'Neal's feelings. Li Yan, who was 204, was like a "little fish" in front of Yao Ming.
The two exchanged pleasantries, and the subsequent chat naturally revolved around the topic of basketball.
As the big brother, Yao Ming gave Li Yan a lot of advice, not only on the court, but also off the court.
Yao Ming has a high emotional intelligence, and Li Yan found his advice very useful.
"Xiao Li, play hard. When the UAE enters the NBA next season, we will have three NBA players." Yao Ming sighed and said, "I still have to rely on you in the future. I am starting to get more injuries now. "
Yao Ming's attendance rate in the first three seasons of his career was very high, 82 games, 80 games, and 80 games respectively.
But starting from last season, injuries came to Yao Ming.
In both seasons, Yao Ming missed more than 20 regular season games.
"Brother Yao, you are still young." Li Yan comforted, "There will be no problem in fighting for another ten or eight years."
"However, let me tell you, Brother Yao, you are too talkative. The NBA is already hard enough, and you have been playing for the national team during the offseason." Li Yan suggested:
"You said, forget about the World Series. I feel like I can let go of the Asian Cup and Asian Games, not to mention the Stankovic Cup and a lot of warm-up matches."
"I really don't know what those guys in the Basketball Association have in their heads."
"Brother Yao, what you need most is not training and competition, what you need is rest!"
Li Yan's words immediately shocked Yao Ming on the spot.
Are all young people today so brave?
