At this time, Larry Johnson swayed very quickly, avoiding Zhou Quan's straight punch, and then raised his arm to deliver an uppercut, hitting his target, Zhou Quan's chin.
Zhou Quan quickly leaned back to avoid the uppercut, and then fought with the opponent.
"Stop! Stop!" the referee shouted sternly.
A large group of security personnel rushed out of the player tunnel, and some Hornets staff rushed directly onto the court.
Zhou Quan saw that he couldn't delay for long, he had to defeat the opponent quickly, otherwise he would suffer a loss today, so he gritted his steel teeth, and when Larry Johnson hit him with a diagonal hook, he simply stepped forward and gave him a hug. .
"boom!"
A headbutt followed the trend, and his forehead hit Larry Johnson's chin hard.
"Well!"
Larry Johnson cried out in pain.
"boom!"
Zhou Quan hit another headbutt.
Larry Johnson screamed in pain, blood began to pour from his mouth, all the strength in his body was released, and he began to stagger back.
Taking this opportunity, Zhou Quan pounced forward, threw the opponent to the ground, mounted him and punched him.
"Bang bang bang..."
He threw several punches in a row, but Larry Johnson blocked two punches with his arms crossed, and two or three punches hit his face. Larry Johnson lost all resistance and was beaten half-conscious. Then Zhou Quan He was also pulled away.
Seeing the dizzy Larry Johnson, Gidal Gill, who was about to take action, was stunned. He was glad that he was slower, otherwise he would not have been beaten to death by an iron fist?
"Shh!"
The Hornets' home court reacted and burst into loud boos. The arena, which had been indifferent for a whole night, now had a brighter atmosphere.
Zhou Quan was too lazy to pay attention and saw John Selly getting up from the floor and shouted: "John, how are you?"
John Selib spit out a mouthful of blood on the floor, and a tooth rolled to the side. He said angrily: "Iron Fist, I suffered a big loss!"
"I'll take back the loss you suffered," Zhou Quan said.
"Thank you, Iron Fist. From now on, whatever you say will be whatever you say." John Salley said sincerely.
The referee looked extremely ugly and made continuous gestures to eject Zhou Quan and Larry Johnson from the field.
When the Hornets doctor came on the court, Larry Johnson was a little more awake, but still a little confused.
Two teammates helped Larry Johnson to the tunnel, and Zhou Quan also came in. When the two players saw Zhou Quan, they hurriedly stepped aside.
When Larry Johnson saw Zhou Quan, he woke up and said angrily: "Iron Fist, you bastard, you broke the rules. Does boxing mean hitting someone with the head?"
Zhou Quan scolded angrily: "Are you out of your mind? We are fighting, not boxing. Even if it is boxing, what does your sneak attack on Selly count?"
"..."
Larry Johnson was speechless.
"Do you want to continue fighting?" Zhou Quan asked.
"I can't spare you."
Larry Johnson didn't take the bait, but instead dropped the harsh words.
"Bang!"
Zhou Quan just punched him, but before Larry Johnson could recover and couldn't react at all, he was hit in the abdomen and was instantly beaten to a pulp.
"oh!"
Under the severe pain, he cried out in pain and knelt at Zhou Quan's feet, with a lot of snot and tears.
The two Hornets players next to them were stunned. Facing Zhou Quan with a stern look on his face, they didn't know whether they should run or not.
"Do you want to continue fighting?" Zhou Quan asked again.
Larry Johnson shook his head quickly: "No, no fight, no fight. You bastard, you take advantage of others' danger. If you have the guts, let's fight again. This time I won't accept you."
"I'll take advantage of your illness to kill you, do you understand?" Zhou Quan said this with a smile.
Larry Johnson was frightened for a while. He understood the difference between him and Zhou Quan. He was not ruthless enough, and he only fought professionally.
Zhou Quan said again: "You want to have a fight with me? Just in time, the postman asked me to have a fight. Why don't you also ask me to have a formal fight?"
"Just hit me. Am I afraid of you?"
Larry Johnson stood up holding his stomach, leaned against the wall, took a few breaths and said: "The rules of boxing are not to use crooked moves."
"As you wish. Remember to contact my agent." Zhou Quan left without saying a word.
In the end, the Pistons won the game.
The next day, the league issued a penalty for yesterday's on-field brawl.
This time, Stern finally couldn't turn a blind eye to Zhou Quan's violence and was fined an additional US$10,000 and suspended for two games.
Similarly, Larry Johnson is also pursuing penalties.
Both of them were suspended at the same time, but it did not affect the competition between them.
…
But at noon that day, ABC Midday News broke a piece of news that shocked many people.
"According to current reliable information provided by the police, a check issued by Michael Jordan was found from the two arrested peddlers..."
"Michael, how did your check end up in the hands of the sole trader?"
It happened that one of David Falk's men saw the news and notified him immediately, and then he contacted Jordan immediately.
"What did you say?"
Obviously, Jordan was confused.
After David Falk explained, he became anxious and immediately denied: "It has nothing to do with me. I don't know why they have my check. Maybe it was a check issued while playing cards a few days ago. Who knows? What day? Do you know what day that check was written? How much was it?"
"No, the police did not disclose specific information. Michael, please don't accept interviews from anyone. Now turn off the mobile phone that the media knows about, as well as the landline at home. Do you understand?" David Farr Ke warned.
"Okay, okay."
Jordan's head was already sweating.
In New York, after David Stern learned the news, he didn't even eat lunch and immediately started contacting the Bulls and Jordan.
He first contacted Jordan himself, and the phone rang for a while before he was answered.
Jordan's voice sounded, very anxiously: "Mr. Stern, this has nothing to do with me. I have nothing to do with them. It's too bad. I don't know how they got my check..."
"Okay, I don't want to know the details. From now on, you shut up and leave all matters to your agent, the Bulls management, and the league to resolve. Do you understand?" Stern said sternly.
"I know, I understand." Jordan said hurriedly.
Subsequently, Stern contacted the Bulls, and asked David Falk to contact Nike and other Jordan sponsors, and everyone worked together to put out the fire.
Just like the last Battle of Mount Auburn, the power of capital is very powerful. After this matter started to explode, the mainstream media stopped paying attention and obviously cooled down the matter.
Although some media questioned it, it was just a check, and Jordan issued a lot of checks, which didn't mean anything. In the end, the matter was settled.
…
Time entered April, and on the second day, Zhou Quan’s agent Philip arrived in Detroit.
He didn't come alone, there were people from Skechers with him.
The regular season is coming to an end and before the start of the playoffs, Zhou Quan's signature sneakers will be on the market. This time Skechers' preparations in Detroit are about to begin, including store construction, stocking, and publicity.
Zhou Quan's reputation is not bad, but his influence is not as good as his popularity. Therefore, Detroit, as the base camp, is a key city for brand shoes, and the main sales volume depends on it.
Then there is the Los Angeles area, where Zhou Quan’s popularity is no less than that of Detroit, and it is also a key sales city.
As for some other big cities and first-tier cities, although they will not give up, the intensity is much lower. There are no brand shoe stores, but they are placed in Skechers stores.
Skechers is a company that was just established this year. In addition to basketball shoes, it also has some other footwear. It has also invited several first-line Hollywood stars to endorse it. Currently, it has established stores in major cities and has its own sales channels.
Zhou Quan took time to shoot some advertisements for the company, and soon his advertising photos were erected in various neighborhoods of Detroit.
…
On the 5th, Zhou Quan completed his seventh round of pull-up jump shots, improving his shooting to level 93 and his pull-up jump shot to level 87.
According to the current situation in the Eastern Conference, the Pistons will enter the playoffs ranked third. They will face the sixth place in the first round. If they advance to the second round, they will face the winner of the second and seventh places in the second round. If they can reach the playoffs, In the Eastern Conference Finals, the most likely opponent will be the Bulls.
The Pistons were swept and eliminated by the Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals last year, which had a huge impact on the Pistons.
The first is that the Bad Boy Legion's limited vigor was completely defeated, and its era was over.
The second is that for Isiah Thomas, being swept in the Eastern Conference Finals was a huge blow.
This little point guard who was so great in his peak period that he could even rival Magic's, his historical evaluation has dropped a lot because he was swept.
This season's Pistons lineup, in terms of paper strength, is actually not as good as last season. At best, it is barely the same.
Without the main center Laimbeer, the assassin Thomas is also half useless. Although there is an extra one, his current strength is not good enough, especially his offensive ability, his stability is very poor, and he cannot stand up at critical moments.
Especially after entering the playoffs, he didn't know what kind of performance he could perform as a rookie.
Last season, the Pistons finished third in the regular season and won 50 games. The team is now close to 50 wins and should be able to exceed 50 wins, but this does not mean that the team is stronger than last season.
If the Pistons are swept out by the Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals again this year, it will be a devastating blow to this team and the end of the world.
Once he is swept away again, the vigor he managed to inspire in the old assassins will be completely destroyed, and the team's confidence will be shattered.
Once it is swept again, the owner may sell the team, the management will be replaced, the team will be coached, and he may even be traded.
"Swiss Sweep?"
Thinking of this word, the smile disappeared from his face.
There have been four regular season games with the Bulls, two wins and two losses. Everyone is tied. How could they be swept?
Although the current Pistons are not stronger than last year on paper, they have regained their vigor. This is a team striving for the top, not a bad boy army waiting to decay after two consecutive championships.
However, it is not easy for this Pistons to reach the Eastern Conference Finals.
Whether the old guys can maintain their vigor, and whether the newcomers including him can adapt to the intensity of the playoffs are all unknown. They might not even have a chance to face the Bulls in the playoffs.
There are still two weeks before the end of the regular season. The league updated some rankings in the morning, such as MVP and rookie rankings.
Jordan continues to rank first in the MVP rankings, and the possibility of winning the championship is becoming more and more likely.
However, Zhou Quan unexpectedly discovered that he had risen from the second place among rookies to the first place, surpassing No. 1 pick Larry Johnson.
"I really have a chance!"
He thought this might be a sign.
Later, teammates also called to express their congratulations.
"That's not fair!"
Seeing the rankings, Zhou Quan, on the contrary, Larry Johnson was very angry. There was a high probability that his Rookie of the Year award was going to fly away. He had a hunch.
The media reacted quickly and immediately commented on both the MVP and rookie rankings.
ESPN: "As the last FMVP, Michael Jordan also performed amazingly in the regular season, and Michael Jordan is qualified to win this year's MVP.
Regarding the selection of the best rookie, the media believes that they should be more cautious, because both Iron Fist and Larry Johnson performed very well, but the offensive efficiency of the No. 1 pick was significantly better, and the mainstream media believed that Johnson was more qualified to be the best rookie. "
The Detroit Worker: "Larry Johnson played well, but that's how he should have played, and he was the No. 1 pick.
The performance of Zhou Quan, the 17th pick in the first round, has us looking forward to it even more, because he is not even a lottery pick. He is a surprise.
Comparing the performance of the two, Zhou Quan is the controller of a team. His performance must not be purely based on his offensive efficiency. This is an extremely one-sided view.
Our record this season is proof that Iron Fist has done his best, and he is definitely qualified to be the best rookie this season.
Larry Johnson is just a power forward and he does not need to take on more responsibilities. The Hornets' record also proves this well. "
There are more media supporting Larry Johnson, while there are relatively few media supporting Zhou Quan in other cities except Detroit.
Obviously, the Pistons were the public enemy of the league before this, and Zhou Quan is a Chinese, so the media's choice was targeted.
No. 6, Houston. It has been forty days since Zhou Quan was injured. Dameng had already started training with the ball a week ago.
Although his health improved, his mood was quite bad.
Being injured by Zhou Quan is of course an important reason for his bad mood. Another important reason is that his contract negotiations are still at a deadlock, and the stingy boss Charlie Thomas does not agree to his request.
"Hakim..."
General manager Steve Patterson found him and said to him: "We are now ninth in the Western Conference, two games behind the Lakers, and still have a chance to catch up. We need you now.
The team doctor told me that your body has fully recovered now, and you will return to the twelve-man roster and will play against the Kings tonight. "
"No, my injury has not fully recovered, and I can't risk my body." Dameng decisively refused to let him play.
"What?"
Steve Patterson was stunned.
"I want to find a doctor again. I'm not satisfied with the current doctor." Dameng said again.
"This bastard, how dare he refuse to play? He hasn't worked for more than a month, and he doesn't want to play now. I'm going to suspend him. He can't even think about getting free wages from me." Owner Charlie Thomas was furious when he found out. .
For so many years, the Mosaic team has been able to reach the playoffs and earn a large amount of revenue every year. Moreover, they do not have to pay player wages in the playoffs, which is very cost-effective. However, if they fail to reach the playoffs this year, they will lose a lot of money. This amount of income is unacceptable and intolerable to him.
In this way, the super center was suspended by the team because he refused to play in the game. The two sides fell into a dispute, and the media continued to hype it.
News about the Dream transaction is also emerging one after another.
"We need a good center, but it's a pity that we don't have any chips!"
McCloskey was very greedy for Big Dream, but if he wanted to trade Big Dream, he would have to trade the entire Pistons, which he couldn't do.
Like him, the Lakers also want big dreams, but trading is extremely difficult, and the Mosaic team rejects all trade applications.
A week later, Zhou Quan's rookie rankings still remained at No. 1.
This phenomenon shows the official choice of the league. Some media have changed their stance as a result, but most of the media still maintain their previous attitude.
On April 19, the Pistons ushered in their last regular season game and challenged the Bulls away from home.
This is also the fifth regular season game between the two teams. The first four games each had two wins and two losses.
After brushing up the data in the first ten games, Zhou Quan was lucky and barely reached his goal. He is currently averaging 19 points and 9 assists per game, and his field goal percentage and true shooting percentage have reached the system requirements of 43% and 51% respectively.
He lost three of the twelve games in total, including the two games he was suspended for. Fortunately, the team's record was not affected and the Knicks did not catch up.
In this last game, his data cannot be lower than the requirements for a novice task, nor can it be lower than 19 points and 9 assists. Jordan hates him to death and will definitely switch defenses. Facing Jordan's defense, this game should be very difficult for him. Big, he was also fully mentally prepared.
In terms of tactics, he still focuses on breakthrough points, which is also his main tactic this season.
At a quarter to eight, he saw Jordan again in the tunnel.
Enemies were extremely jealous when they met. This was Jordan's reaction. His eyes turned red as soon as he saw Zhou Quan.
Zhou Quan was still the same as before, with a spring breeze-like smile on his face, and he spoke first: "Hey, Mr. Jordan, the last game, do you want to fight in this one?"
"Are you qualified to fight with me?" Jordan said with his chin high.
"In other words, you won't switch to guard against me today?" Zhou Quan said in surprise.
"I'll keep an eye on you."
Jordan stared at Zhou Quan and said: "I know you are brushing up the statistics and want to win the Rookie of the Year, but you better stop thinking about it. Larry Johnson's performance is better than yours."
Zhou Quan smiled and said: "Nonsense, his scoring is about the same as mine, and he has more rebounds than me, but my assists and steals are much better than him. Our performance is similar, and I am more comprehensive than him."
"What about offensive efficiency?" Jordan said disdainfully.
Zhou Quan also put on a disdainful look and said: "You are a shooting guard. I understand that you don't have an overall view. This is not your fault."
When Jordan heard this half sentence, his nose was almost crooked with anger. He stared at Zhou Quan fiercely to see what the rookie would say.
(End of chapter)
