At 7 p.m. Pacific time, the game between the Clippers and Trail Blazers is about to start at the Moda Center.
This is Min Congda's first appearance in the NBA as a head coach.
Unlike in the past, his dress was obviously much more formal.
He was wearing a suit and leather shoes, and even wore a bright yellow tie, which made him feel uncomfortable.
Sitting in the audience, with the fans, Min Congda will feel like an outsider.
When you get on the field and be a part of the game, it's a really different feeling.
The biggest feeling is that the little dwarf has entered the country of giants. His shoulders are everywhere and he has to raise his head to look at people's faces.
Min Congda's height of 175cm is already ordinary, but standing next to these professional players, he is more than one size smaller.
Coaches such as Cole and Lucas are all tall men among ordinary people.
Not to mention Kim Hughes, a 211 power center, Min Congda thinks he can lift himself up.
Not only the players and coaches, but also the referees on the field are all tall and strong.
The referee has to follow the players back and forth for the entire game, which requires physical fitness.
Some referees are in their 50s or 60s, and they can turn around for the whole game, and their physical fitness is nothing to say.
The referees tonight are Trey Maldos, Michael Smith and Sean Wright.
Among them, Michael Smith is the oldest and is a senior referee who has been officiating since the 1993-1994 season.
Sean Wright and Maldos are young referees who gain experience from the veteran referees and have mixed seniority.
Among them, Maldos is the youngest and just entered the league as a law enforcer last season.
As a second-year young referee, he has little experience and seems a little cautious.
Min Congda is basically familiar with referees across the league and has been scolded by him in just two seasons.
This Maldos was a new face. When Min Congda saw him, he shouted to him from the sidelines: "No. 23! Call the game tonight well and be fair! Don't miss the whistle, but don't let the home fans down!"
Among the large group of people on the court, Min Congda was probably the shortest and most inconspicuous one.
But no one dares to ignore him, especially the referees. They learned a lot last season, and some young referees don't even want to call the Clippers game.
To be honest, there are many bad-mouthed people in the league, especially coaches. There are many people who use trash talk to mess up the referee's mentality.
When almost every referee first enters the league, the first lesson they have to learn is how to deal with the pressure exerted by coaches on both sides.
But the pressure brought by Min Congda was particularly great, mainly because of two points:
1. Not only does he have a bad mouth, he can also do things.
2. This guy is moody and has no idea where he gets angry.
This uncertainty puts referees under high pressure all the time.
Being a referee is inherently stressful, and with such a bully eyeing you, it's really too much for someone with poor psychological quality.
This was Maldos' first time officiating a Clippers game. Before the game, vice president Bozzia and Michael Smith reminded him to be cautious when blowing the whistle.
But don't be afraid of Min Congda. "If he makes any remarks or behavior that cross the line, don't be polite and give him a technical foul! Now he is the coach, not the general manager, and he can be expelled."
Thinking of this, Maldos plucked up the courage and replied to Min Congda, "Do your job well. You are the coach and I am the referee. You don't need to teach me how to blow the whistle!"
When Min Congda heard this, he saw that this young man had a bright future, and he dared to confront me. I gave him popcorn... You can't eat popcorn as a head coach.
And the league has warned not to throw things at the referees' heads anymore, but to restrain themselves.
Of course, Min Congda knew that such a young referee could easily be provoked and then desperately call a technical foul.
"Really? We'll see what happens later. If you blow incorrectly or randomly, I will write a referee report to Bozia! Come on, I will keep an eye on you!"
Min Congda showed no signs of weakness. As soon as he said these words, Maldos's heart pounded and he became nervous.
In fact, most head coaches talk trash and threaten young referees in a tentative manner.
If the young referees give in, these head coaches will continue to put pressure on the referees during the game to get penalties that are beneficial to their teams.
Once the referee's response is tough, the head coaches will relent, because competing with the referee will not end well.
Maldos listened to the experience of some seniors and tried to appear tougher so as not to be overwhelmed by Min Congda.
Who knows, Min Congda is a new coach who doesn't play by the rules, and he doesn't want the referee to give the Clippers a powerful penalty.
He's just here to get a technical foul!
Michael Smith came over at this time and asked, "What did Smart just say to you?"
"He told me to pay attention. He would keep an eye on me and report the officiating work to the league after the game."
"What did you say to him?"
"I said, you don't need to teach me how to whistle..."
"Shet, why are you arguing with him? Why don't you just give in and let it go with a smile?"
"But... they all say that we need to be tougher on these coaches, otherwise they will be taken advantage of."
"That's another coach. Smart is different. He's a lunatic. Forget it, the game is about to start. After the game, I told him not to let him go crazy. Play well and don't be nervous."
After the old referee comforted the young referee, the game was about to start.
After losing Brandon Roy, the Trail Blazers' reconstruction in recent years has been a complete failure.
The former Portland youth team gradually withered away due to injuries before it could grow up.
The Trail Blazers are now a patchwork lineup, Ade is still standing tall, and Przbilla circled outside and returned to the Trail Blazers.
Not to mention why the Trail Blazers have a center injury curse, Przbilla slipped and fell while taking a shower and injured himself.
After returning from injury and playing a few games, he was traded by the Trail Blazers to the Bobcats for Gerald Wallace.
After the summer contract expired and the new season started, the Trail Blazers signed Przybyla back.
There is no way, the Blazers really have no center to use.
At the shooting guard position, Roy retired and Wesley Matthews stepped up.
The team also signed players with certain qualities such as Raymond Felton and Crawford.
But neither Felton nor Crawford is in the Blazers' future team building plans.
So, this is a transitional lineup, and the Blazers are thinking about starting to rebuild.
How could such a broken lineup be able to beat the Clippers, who were healthy and well-organized and even reached the Western Conference Finals last season?
Starting from the jump ball, the Clippers quickly took the initiative and got the ball.
Curry went around the screen and hit a three-pointer from the middle, scoring the Clippers' first three-pointer of the new season!
The Trail Blazers are still slowing down their position, still superstitious about mid-range, and miss their jump shots.
Gasol got a backcourt rebound and passed the ball to Harden, who made a long pass to the frontcourt.
Ricky Davis caught the ball and made an easy layup, scoring two more points.
Ade stepped up and beat Randolph in the low post, but still missed the turnaround jumper.
Gasol got another rebound and made a long pass to the frontcourt. Harden got the ball and accelerated the breakthrough in the middle.
Suddenly the ball was passed to the wing. Curry caught the ball and shot a three-pointer, and hit it again!
In 1 minute, the Clippers beat the Trail Blazers 8:0, defeating the Blazers.
"Pause, pause pause!"
Maldos heard someone calling timeout and immediately blew the whistle to end the game.
But when the whistle blew, something didn't feel right. Why didn't the Blazers call a timeout?
Was it the Clippers, or was it Min Congda who called a timeout?
Some people died, but not completely...
