Zhou Quan holds the ball and Anfernee Hardaway defends.
"Bang bang bang..."
He pushed forward very quickly with the ball. He advanced to the frontcourt in three dribbles. Then he broke through with a one-handed feint and passed Hardaway from the right, reaching the top of the arc and going straight to the basket.
Even though Hardaway has excellent athletic talent, he is taller than Jordan, so no matter how fast he is, he is not as fast as him, and no matter how agile he is, he is not as agile as him.
O'Neal sat under the basket, raised his hands high, and jumped to block the shot.
"boom!"
Zhou Quan took off in front of O'Neal, turned around in the air, twirled around, avoided the opponent and circled to the right side of the basket, then picked up the basket with his fingertips, and the basketball hit the basket.
"Oh, ho, turn 360 degrees in the air, and then pick up the basket with your fingertips, it's so beautiful!" On-site commentator Hernem Chrisman roared excitedly.
"Oh oh oh..."
The difficult layup also made all Sonics fans cheer enthusiastically.
In the CCTV commentary box, Sun Zhenping said excitedly: "Zhou Quan has tricked the big shark!"
"The two have a very good relationship. We knew each other when we were in the NCAA. Yesterday Zhou Quan invited O'Neal to his home as a guest." Zhang Li said with a smile.
"Shark, your shots are a little short."
Zhou Quan ran towards Hardaway without saying a word.
This rookie guarded him and reciprocated with courtesy. Of course, he had to give this rookie a welcome ceremony to avoid being said to be rude.
"Where is the lack? I have almost 20 times this season, 3 times more than last season." O'Neal muttered.
In the following time, Anfernee Hardaway had almost no chance to catch the ball and was completely targeted by Zhou Quan, who was faster, more agile and more experienced than him.
After the third quarter, the SuperSonics lead reached 27 points.
Zhang Liji smiled and said: "Zhou Quan didn't get a single defensive statistic from Hardaway. Maybe this is just a good fighter without any outstanding achievements."
Sun Zhenping smiled and said: "The best defense is to prevent the opponent from catching the ball."
In the final quarter, the Magic surrendered, and the SuperSonics naturally sent in a substitute.
"Shh!"
Seeing that the Magic had withdrawn all its main players and the stars had left, the Seattle fans gave up and booed vigorously.
"Shark, your partner is still a little weak. No matter how talented he is, he won't be able to grow in a year or two. Just gaining weight will take a year or two."
After the game, when leaving the field, Zhou Quan said to O'Neal.
"I can wait for a year or two. You didn't win the championship in your rookie season." Shark O'Neal said with satisfaction.
Zhou Quan laughed and said: "Shark, I didn't say that you will have the strength to win the championship in one or two years. Don't get me wrong."
O'Neal raised his arm unconvinced, flashed his biceps, and said with a proud smile: "That's possible, I'm a super center."
"Remember, Shark, if you don't win the championship in the future, come to me." Zhou Quan patted O'Neal's arm and said.
"You came to me. My thighs are thicker than yours."
O'Neal put down his arms unconvinced, lifted up his trousers again, and began to show off his thighs.
Zhou Quan also flashed his thigh and said, "That's not necessarily the case."
O'Neal looked down and said, Shet, why are Iron Fist's thighs so thick?
…
On the 17th and 18th, the SuperSonics played back-to-back games, defeating the Bucks and Warriors successively, achieving a record of 18 wins and 3 losses.
Up to now, Houston Mosaic is indeed in a hot state. Super center Olajuwon has been dormant for so many years and ushered in a big explosion. He led the team to a record of 21 wins and 1 loss, still first in the league.
The Bulls, Knicks, Pistons and other teams have all lost games and fallen behind the SuperSonics. The SuperSonics are second in the Western Conference and second in the league.
However, there is one Eastern Conference team that is chasing forward, and that is the Hawks.
The Hawks have chased 16 wins and 5 losses, with a winning rate of 76.2%. They are currently ranked fourth in the Eastern Conference, only behind the Knicks, Bulls, and Pistons.
At one o'clock at noon on the 21st, the Pacers, who lost to Mosaic in Houston last night, arrived in Seattle. They will play against the SuperSonics that night.
At 5:30 in the afternoon, Zhou Quan, who had completed team training, drove Reggie Miller to a French restaurant near the Central Gymnasium to have dinner together.
"Senior, you have made it to the playoffs for four consecutive years, but only got out of the first round. How is this season going?" Zhou Quan asked.
"10 wins and 12 losses."
Reggie Miller said with a gloomy look.
"It will be 10 wins and 13 losses soon." Zhou Quan said with a smile.
Reggie Miller glared at him and said: "We are back-to-back, and you won't be able to show your ability even if you win."
"How about letting Kendall Gill guard you tonight?" he asked with a smile.
Reggie Miller snorted: "Whatever, how about you come? I'll blow you up without any negotiation."
"Forget it, you are my senior, I can't let you lose face."
Reggie Miller was so angry that he clenched his knife and fork tightly, glared at Zhou Quan and said: "Iron Fist boy, you can make me lose face if you are capable."
Zhou Quan chuckled and said, "That won't work. We haven't produced many talented people at UCLA in recent years. We can't be in the same room. How about you help me?"
"ah?"
The last sentence was said so quickly that Reggie Miller didn't react. When he did, he shook his head like a rattle and said decisively: "That's impossible. As long as the Pacers don't trade me, I won't leave." , especially not leaving for the championship.”
"Forget it."
Zhou Quan nodded.
Reggie Miller suddenly cursed: "If the damn management hadn't wanted to trade you, Iron Fist, you wouldn't have left Detroit, right?"
Zhou Quan was startled, thought for a moment and said, "At least before that, I never thought about leaving the Pistons."
He then explained: "Senior, haven't you noticed that in fact, except for the Pistons fans, everyone else wanted me to leave there. During that time, the media was constantly hyping it, and behind it was the push from all parties."
"real?"
A look of envy suddenly appeared in Reggie Miller's eyes.
That night, the SuperSonics defeated the Pacers and won their 19th victory.
Next, there are two home games, the Suns and Mosaics, and then they will play the Bulls away from home. The second game against Mosaic is the Christmas Day battle on the 25th.
On the 22nd, the Suns arrived in Seattle.
The Suns currently have 17 wins and 5 losses, with a winning rate of 77.3%, ranking third in the Western Conference.
Personally speaking, the signature stars of the two teams were the opponents in last season's finals, so this game attracted a lot of attention.
According to many media analyses, the two teams are about the same strength and this will be a difficult game.
The game was broadcast live across the United States on ESPN, and the commentators were the two-man duo of Isiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer.
When arriving at Seattle Airport, the assassin accepted an interview with the media and said: "As far as the current situation is concerned, the SuperSonics are not good at playing against teams with strong interiors, and the Suns just have the superstar interior player Barkley.
However, Barkley is not tall enough. Although he is an all-around fighter, he is somewhat strong offensively and weak defensively, so the Sonics do not suffer much in the low post.
If Iron Fist can gain the perimeter advantage like he did to Kevin Johnson in the Finals, the Sonics will have a better chance of defeating the Suns.
I personally believe that Iron Fist will definitely suppress the Lightning, destroy and suppress the Suns' organization and offense, and achieve victory. "
Laimbeer said: "Barkley is not a good guy either..."
"Let's go, we're in a hurry."
The assassin quickly took Ranbir and left.
"Isiah, why don't you let me speak?" Ranbir said dissatisfied.
"Bill, although Barkley has beaten you, now you are the commentator and you have to comment on them from a neutral position." The assassin said.
"Isn't your butt sitting next to that guy from Iron Fist?" Ranbir said still dissatisfied.
"I'm different from you. I'm Iron Fist's teammate, but you're not. I can be biased toward him, but you can't be biased toward him," the assassin said.
"Am I leaning towards him? When did I lean towards him? It won't be possible in the next life. Don't talk nonsense." Ranbir gritted his teeth and said.
…
On the evening of the 23rd, the Seattle Center Arena was full again.
This is the 23rd regular season game this season, the 13th home game, and the sixth time the SuperSonics has been full.
You must know that although the football market rebounded last season, there were only 7 full games in the entire regular season. In terms of attendance, the football market this season has really improved a lot.
At eight o'clock, both sides announced the starting lineup.
Suns: Oliver Miller, Charles Barkley, AC Green, Dan Mulley, Kevin Johnson
SuperSonics: Sam Perkins, Rodman, Schrempf, Kendall Gill, Zhou Quan
CCTV also chose to broadcast this game live. The NBA gave CCTV the rights to 42 games for free this season, 34 of which were played by the SuperSonics and 8 by the Bulls. It only broadcast the games of these two teams. Last season Pretty much the same.
"The Suns strengthened their lineup and signed Lakers insider AC Green with a big contract." Zhang Lili said.
"Director Zhang, how big is the contract?" Sun Zhenping asked.
"This season is still a Lakers contract, signed in advance, with a five-year contract of 28.02 million U.S. dollars, and an average annual salary of more than 5 million." Zhang Liang said.
"Such a big contract? It's higher than Jordan!" Sun Zhenping said in surprise.
Zhang Lili said: "Green was the main member of the Lakers' championship team in 1987 and 1988. He was also an All-Star starter. He was selected to the defensive second team once. He is very strong.
But his most valuable attribute is his ironman attribute. He has been in the NBA for 8 seasons, and has played full attendance in 7 of them. He only missed three games in the second season and is known as an ironman.
His rebounding and defense are both good. The Suns failed in the last finals. Zhou Quan's breakthrough caused them to suffer a lot. In order to compete for the championship, they spent a lot of money to trade Green to strengthen interior defense and rebounding. "
"Then this season the Suns are much stronger than last season." Sun Zhenping said.
…
"Fliggy, how does it feel to be under us? Do you feel comfortable?" Zhou Quan asked loudly when he saw Barkley walking in the player tunnel.
"Iron Fist, I will overthrow you this time." Buckley snorted.
He looked at the passage exaggeratedly and said with a look of disdain: "This shoddy arena, you guys are obviously not welcomed by the Seattle city government."
Zhou Quan's face twitched. It's not his fault. Boss Ballmer is not as powerful as Paul Allen.
"Hey Lightning."
He ignored Barkley and called out to Kevin Johnson instead.
"Hey, Iron Fist." Lightning nodded.
He smiled and said: "Lightning, if you fail to win the championship this season, I don't think the management will trust Fliggy. After all, he has never proven himself and will probably choose to trade him."
"..."
Kevin Johnson was speechless and turned around to see Barkley.
Barkley's face was red with anger, his fists were clenched tightly, and he shouted at Zhou Quan: "Boy, don't think that winning a championship is a big deal."
Zhou Quan said with a smile: "I won the championship in just two years. Compared to you, of course it's amazing."
Buckley was so angry that he almost vomited blood. He pushed forward, hit Zhou Quan with his chest, and shouted, "Boy, are you going to fight?"
Zhou Quan was knocked back half a step, but he was not angry. He smiled and said: "Don't move your hands or feet. You are not my opponent. I won't feel a sense of accomplishment if I beat you. My goal is to be the world boxing champion."
"Do you dare to wrestle with me?" Buckley shouted.
"You should lose twenty kilograms first." Zhou Quan said.
"Why should I lose weight and why can't you gain weight?" Barkley said unconvinced.
"It's you who wants to fight, not me."
At this point, Zhou Quan suddenly realized the truth and said: "Fliggy, you are such a thief. You actually changed the topic. Aren't we discussing the championship? Come on, continue this topic."
"roll!"
The devil wants to discuss the championship with you. Barkley, who was about to vomit blood, turned around and walked out of the tunnel.
"Fliggy, if you are traded by the Suns again, come and hug me. I will help you win the championship. I have experience in this area." Zhou Quan shouted from behind.
"Iron Fist, I will fight you."
With a roar, Buckley turned around and rushed over.
Fortunately, there were security guards who blocked him immediately.
"Let me go," he roared.
"Mr. Buckley, we are protecting you." A security guard said.
"I'm going to throw him to death!"
Barkley was literally vomiting blood.
"Ha ha……"
Zhou Quan, Rodman and others were almost laughing to death.
…
At half past eight, the game starts.
"Snapped!"
In the jump ball, Oliver's tonnage may have reached 135 kilograms and he couldn't jump. Sam Perkins actually won.
"According to statistics, this is the seventh time the SuperSonics have successfully jumped the ball this season." Laimbeer complained in the ESPN commentary box.
"Oliver is already as fat as a ball in his second season and is only 206 centimeters tall. Is he preparing for horizontal development?" the assassin also complained.
Laimbeer sneered: "He is preparing to compete with that pig Barkley. There are two pigs in one team. I bet that the Suns can't even break out of the Western Conference this season because they are too heavy and can't run at all."
"Yes, Iron Fist will deal with them." The assassin said hurriedly.
"I said mosaic," Ranbir corrected.
"No, it's supersonic speed." The assassin said.
"Mosaic," Ranbir insisted.
The two looked at each other with big eyes, causing ESPN's on-site director to secretly complain, "Why don't you two guys have a fight first?"
Zhou Quan took the ball to the frontcourt and did not rush to launch an attack. He first observed the situation on the court.
Sam Perkins pulled to the left three-point line, and Oliver also followed. Rodman moved in the paint area, AC Green sat in the penalty area, Schrempf moved on the left wing, Barkley faced off, Kendall Gill and Dan Marley is on the right wing.
Lightning, Thunder, and Iron Man are all guys with good defense. Although Barkley is strong offensively and weak defensively, his defense is also above the standard. In other words, the Suns' defense this season is stronger than last season.
How to beat this team in a positional battle?
Not to mention here, the other four positions have no advantage in positional battles.
In other words, he has to rely on himself to fight for opportunities for his teammates.
When you have an idea, you immediately raise your right hand and make a tactical gesture.
The teammates reacted immediately and started running one after another, using repeated pick-and-roll screens, repeated counter-runs, and constant inside and outside cuts.
The Suns' defensive formation was torn apart by Seattle's off-ball movement, and Zhou Quan also began to break through with the ball.
Hold the ball and take a step back. When the lightning catches up, he suddenly starts and makes a crushing breakthrough from the right side.
Lightning was only 185 centimeters tall, 6 centimeters behind Zhou Quan, and there was a 10 kilogram difference in weight. As soon as the two came into contact, Zhou Quan relied on his strong confrontation advantage to squeeze past Lightning and rush forward.
AC Green could only step out from the basket to cover up the defense. Zhou Quan raised the ball and took off, attracting the opponent to jump. However, he suddenly deflected his right arm to let the opponent block the shot. With a flick of his wrist, the basketball flew towards the basket.
Rodman entered the paint from the low post on the right wing, caught the ball for a layup, missed first, then grabbed an offensive rebound and scored.
"Dachong has 17 rebounds this season and 18 last season. If this continues, he will have the rebounding title again," Laimbeer said.
"Well, Big Worm's offensive rebounding has always been good, with a ratio of 33%. He is very knowledgeable about how to grab offensive rebounds." The assassin said with a smile.
The Suns attack.
Lightning held the ball and faced Zhou Quan, which put a lot of psychological pressure on him.
He scored 37 points, 10 assists and 5 steals in the finals series. This was the source of pressure. He would never forget the failed series less than half a year ago.
Out of pressure, when he saw Barkley stretching out the three-point line to ask for the ball, he passed it over.
The passing movement was very cautious, taking one step back before passing the ball, not giving Zhou Quan any chance to steal.
Barkley caught the ball outside the three-point line on the left wing. Schrempf opened his arms to block the ball in front. He turned around and started to play from behind.
At this time, Sam Perkins, who was in the low post on the left wing, seized the opportunity of Barkley's back and immediately came out to flank.
Rodman, who was under the basket, adjusted his position and stood on the left side of the basket, shortening the defensive distance from Oliver.
It only took two and a half seconds for Sam Perkins to complete the assist defense. Barkley, with his back on his back, did not fully observe the open spaces in the low post and the basket. Even if he saw it, under Schremf's confrontation It’s also difficult to pass the ball down low.
He arched back a few times, arching into the three-point line. When he turned over and shot a jumper, Perkins was already beside him.
The moment he took the shot, he was forced to adjust his angle to avoid Perkins' block, but the ball's path had completely changed and it hit the backboard instead of hitting the basket.
"Snapped!"
Dennis Rodman accurately predicted the landing point, moved the block first, and grabbed the rebound over the heads of Oliver and Green.
Zhang Lili praised: "The SuperSonics' defense is getting better and better. Although the individual defense capabilities of Perkins and others are not very good, and they are not as good as Zhou Quan, under this defensive system of double attack and rotation, they can It can produce a defensive effect of 1+1 greater than 2.”
The SuperSonics' fast break failed. AC Green and Oliver counterattacked on the spot. Rodman did not pass the ball. Zhou Quan went to respond, and a position battle began.
In the middle, he stopped two steps in front of the center line and two steps away from the top of the arc. While dribbling, he made tactical gestures and organized the offense.
Although Perkins can't attack in the low post, he has a strong ability to stretch the ball and pull it to the left three-point line. The Suns only have AC Green under the basket.
Zhou Quan feels that insiders like Sam Perkins also have their benefits, and it would be better if Rodman can pull away.
"The basket is a little empty, and I intentionally stopped outside. Iron Fist should still break through with the ball." The assassin said.
Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Quan began to make a breakthrough.
It was a crushing breakthrough. Lightning blocked it for two steps before being squeezed away. He successfully broke into the top of the key.
On the left wing, Barkley, who was two steps away from the three-point line, quickly returned to defense. Schrempf was empty, his position was only one step away from the three-point line, and he raised his hands to his chest, ready to catch the ball.
Zhou Quan drove in from the free throw line. Barkley jumped to his left and Green blocked the front. As he slowed down, the moment he pulled up the ball, he flicked his backhand and the ball flew towards Schrempf.
"Don't look at the pass from behind!"
the assassin shouted.
"brush!"
Schrempf caught the ball, and Oliver rushed at him three steps away. It was too far. He started calmly, took a two-point shot from far away, and hit a goal.
"Fliggy, I can destroy and suppress your organized offense, but you can't suppress our organized offense, and you are not Da Meng. Da Meng can defeat us because of his defense, so I will definitely win against you." Zhou Quan said to Buckley.
"That's not necessarily the case," Barkley snorted.
But the result was just as Zhou Quan said, in the end the Sonics won the game.
Zhang Lili explained at the end: "The Suns are a bit similar to the SuperSonics, with mediocre low-post offense, a lot of outside jumpers, a lot of three-pointers, and touch is very important.
So when Zhou Quan suppressed Kevin Johnson and thus destroyed the Suns' organizational function, the Suns' offense was affected.
But Lightning Kevin Johnson couldn't suppress Zhou Quan, and neither could Barkley, so the Sonics' offense was still normal, and in the end the Sonics won the game. "
Sun Zhenping said: "During Mosaic, Zhou Quan actually suppressed Kenny Smith, but Dameng's performance was too strong. He almost suppressed the SuperSonics' offense by himself, even defending to the three-point line. .”
Zhang Liyi nodded and said: "He can't be that strong in every game. It still depends on his condition. He and Zhou Quan have an inside advantage and an outside advantage. In fact, both of them have a chance to win."
…
(End of chapter)
