A night of silence.
Early the next morning, after a series of examination results, the Trail Blazers officially announced Jokic's injury report.
A slightly dislocated shoulder requires 3 to 5 weeks of recovery and treatment.
In other words, Jokic will have his first regular season break in his career, and it will take at least about a month.
This is obviously not good news.
This is true both for the team and for Jokic himself.
First of all, for the team, without Jokic, an important rotation core player, the team's overall strength will inevitably decline.
Next, if you meet an average team, it's okay, but if you meet a top team at the same level as yourself, such as the Golden State Warriors, then Jokic's absence will most likely be a hindrance to the opponent's defeat of the Trail Blazers. fatal factor.
Secondly, for Jokic himself, missing nearly 20 games in a month will affect his selection for the best sixth man award in the regular season to a certain extent.
So far, Jokic has played 40 games as a substitute for the Trail Blazers, including today's game with the 75ers and he retired midway through the game.
During this period, he averaged 21 minutes per game, scoring 12 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1 steal and 0.5 blocks per game. He is one of the favorites to win the Best Sixth Man of the Season this season.
The other favorites are Jamal Crawford, who averages 16 points, 1.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game for the Clippers;
Andre Yingodala averaged 7 points, 4 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.1 steals per game for the Warriors;
Evan Turner of the Celtics averaged 10.5 points, 5 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1 steal per game;
Ryan Anderson is averaging 17 points, 6 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game for the New Orleans Pelicans.
Taking into account personal data and team record, the five most popular players who are most likely to win the Best Sixth Man award at the end of the season are the above.
Originally, Jokic's momentum and reputation could be said to be the strongest, even beating the veteran super sixth man Crawford.
After all, Paul's departure has made the Clippers' record worse and worse. Although his personal data is good, the team's record is not good enough.
The same is true for Yin Guodala, another favorite. His record is very good, but his personal data is average.
In addition, we must also consider that the two of them average playing time of 26 minutes per game, while Jokic only plays 21 minutes, and the efficiency is even higher than them.
But now, Jokic's rising momentum has been directly ruined by Okafor's push from behind, and he may even lose the first important award he is about to win in his career.
Therefore, after this injury report came out, fans were already denouncing Okafor on the hotline.
"If you ask me to say that Harrell was too gentle, this kind of person should retire him."
"Shet, that guy is a total loser and must be suspended for a season!"
"This is not a normal basketball game. It is an action that should be taken. I think the league should punish him severely!"
…
While fans were furiously condemning the incident online, Wang Zelin sent a message to Bald Hua in the hotel.
"Harrell overreacted because of his opponent's flagrant foul and verbal provocation. He should not be suspended too severely."
He ignored Okafor and defended Harrell in advance.
Okafor's villain is certainly hateful, but in the eyes of the league, the impact of Harrell's actions may be even worse.
After all, there is blood!
But Harrell's original intention was indeed to vent his anger on his teammates. From Harrell, he seemed to see himself as a rookie in the first two seasons, with the same youthfulness, the same passion, and the same boldness on the court.
Therefore, whether public or private, he must find a way to protect Harrell and reduce the penalty as much as possible.
Even in Bald Hua's view, this is an offense and a challenge to his authority as the league president by Wang Zelin, the number one active player.
That's right, Wang Zelin is putting pressure on the league's top leaders as the number one active player, and he has no intention of hiding his selfish motives anyway.
Besides, as the boss, why would he favor his younger brother? Is there a problem?
At this time, Okafor, who was lying in the hospital with his head wrapped like a rice dumpling, said: "You are amazing, you are noble!"
New York
NBA headquarters.
Bald Hua naturally understood this, but considering the huge commercial value of the other party, he had to carefully examine the message on his phone.
"I know."
His reply was very simple.
After seeing the reply, Wang Zelin left the hotel with peace of mind and went to the hospital to visit Jokic.
After almost four years of playing in the NBA, as a moderate veteran, he has gradually figured out the twists and turns in the league.
If Xiao Hua doesn't want to help, then he can use a very official reply to deal with him, but this kind of reply just shows that he will give face.
After all, he is also the number one active player. Such a small privilege is still acceptable to the league leaders headed by Xiao Hua.
Of course, this also depends on the person being beaten.
If Harrell is targeting a star player in the league, it probably won't be easy for anyone to come, after all, the star position is there.
But it was Okafor who was beaten. This guy is just a one-time pick in the draft. Apart from the Philadelphia fans who are interested in him, in the eyes of the league's top brass and many onlookers, this guy is also a player who has not fully realized his talent. Just a talented center.
What choice should be made between the number one player and the little genius? Xiao Hua knows with his feet what choice he should make.
…
…
Even without Jokic, the Blazers' pursuit has not stopped.
After a day off on the 16th, after getting permission from the team doctor and accompanied by his accompanying staff, Jokic boarded a plane back to Portland in the afternoon. He will remain in Portland for the next month. Best hospital for treatment and recovery.
As for Wang Zelin and other teammates, they also rushed to Washington, the capital of America, early the next morning.
8 p.m., Wizards home court at Verizon Center.
Another one-sided massacre.
There is a saying that victory is inevitable. The Trail Blazers exuded a sense of tragedy throughout the game. Those who didn't know thought it was the Wizards who had done something to them?
Before this game, the Wizards' record was 19 wins and 20 losses. With a record of nearly 50%, they ranked seventh in the Eastern Conference. It seems that they are expected to continue the playoffs tonight.
The biggest surprise of this season is the growth of the short backcourt combination of John Wall and Bradley Beal.
Wall averages 21 points, 10.2 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 0.8 blocks per game. He is one of the few active defenders who can score 20+10+5 and is also a popular candidate for the Eastern Conference All-Star guard.
Previously, he had been selected to the All-Stars for two consecutive years, and last year he was selected as a starter. Although he is likely to lose to Irving and Rose in the starting voting this year, with his 20+10+5 performance, there is a high probability that he will still be selected. Selected for the All-Star Game as a substitute.
As for Bradley Beal, the top prospect in the same class as Wang Zelin and Lillard finally ushered in his breakthrough in the last year of his rookie contract.
Currently averaging 19.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.2 blocks per game, shooting 45.8% from the field and 41.2% from three-point range. All statistics have reached career highs.
Before the game, Wang Zelin specifically tested the ability rating of the Wizards' double-gun backcourt. Wall's overall rating was 87, and he gradually developed into the No. 1 point guard in the Eastern Conference in the future.
Bill's overall score is 84. His offensive methods have gradually increased, his offensive stability has improved, and he has gradually revealed his skills as a potential scoring champion in the future.
In the last 9 games, Bill has scored 20 consecutive points. If he continues to maintain this scoring efficiency, it is really possible for him to average more than 20 points per game a season ahead of schedule.
Such rapid progress has obviously once again broken Wang Zelin's inherent impression of him and the Wizards.
In his memory, Bill's real breakthrough in personal ability came next season, when he averaged 23 points per game.
Coupled with another Wall who also averaged 23 points per game and also sent out 10.7 assists and 4.2 rebounds in two games.
Nice romance
Under the leadership of this All-Star backcourt combination, the Wizards broke their opponents' best record with a record of 49 wins and 33 losses. In the playoffs, they played 7 games with the Celtics who made it to the Eastern Conference Finals that year. During the game, a historic breakthrough was also achieved.
But now it seems that it is actually very possible to refresh the team's regular season record a season ahead of schedule.
However, the original history of the NBA has already undergone more and more changes because of his little butterfly. For an increasingly unknown future, he would rather choose a warm embrace than fear and fear.
To strike, you have to be strong. As long as you are strong enough, no matter how many changes occur in the future, it will not affect him and the team.
So, let him test the value of the Wizards' double guns tonight!
