Jordan was the finale in the east, and Zhou Quan was the finale in the west. When it was his turn, he trotted out. At this time, the guzheng music of the Spring River Flower Moonlight Night played on the scene. Among the bright lampposts, he performed the Thirteen Zhang Sanfeng Tai Chi poses.
Wudang Tai Chi is not a set of boxing, but a variety of martial arts, including Tai Chi Sword, Tai Chi Thirty-six Postures, Liangyi Quan, Wuji Kung Fu, etc. He learned it in a short time and practiced very little. Thirteen Postures are what he learned. very good.
"Pa bang bang..."
The specially prepared Chinese classical music had a certain artistic conception and won the warmest applause during the ceremony.
"Ouch, Zhou Quan is doing Tai Chi, haha!" Zhang Lili said happily in the CCTV commentary box.
"Didn't you listen to what he said?" Sun Zhenping said with a smile.
"This, this seems normal, right?"
In Boston, Mai Baochan was stunned.
As a Tai Chi master who has been practicing Tai Chi for decades, Zhou Quan's Tai Chi practice is too ordinary in her eyes. It is nothing more than learning a model based on good flexibility and coordination.
But she immediately realized that Zhou Quan did not specialize in martial arts. He was a professional sports athlete, and it was already good to be able to fight like this.
"Mom, he is very famous in Xiangcheng and is the spokesperson for many big international brands." Zhen Zidan said with a smile.
There was obvious envy in his eyes. In recent years, he has been able to make a name for himself in Xiangcheng. He is considered a kung fu superstar after Chenglong and Li Lianjie, but he has always been suppressed by them. There are not many in his body. The endorsement of an international first-tier brand, an international first-tier brand, represents international popularity and international commercial value.
Mai Baochan glanced at his son and smiled: "Do I still need you to tell me? He is now one of the most popular superstars in the American basketball world. His popularity is as high as that of Michael Jordan. He is the most famous among Chinese Americans.
If he wins another championship this year, that would be amazing. He won two championships in three years just after his debut, and he will definitely become a superstar instantly. "
Makodan smiled and said, "Mom, are you very concerned about basketball now?"
Mai Baochan rolled her eyes at her son and said, "Didn't I just say that he is the most famous Chinese in the United States. If it weren't for him, who would watch the NBA?"
Zhen Zidan glanced at Zhou Quan on the TV, shook his head and said, "His Tai Chi skills are average."
Mai Baochan smiled and said: "He is not a martial arts practitioner. In addition to playing basketball, he can also play ice hockey, baseball, golf, and boxing, and he has all reached a professional level."
"So versatile?"
Makodan was startled.
At the All-Star scene, David Stern became more and more satisfied with Zhou Quan. This year, there was a specially prepared appearance ceremony, which shows that Zhou Quan attaches great importance to and respects the All-Stars.
"Iron Fist, teach me kung fu, and I will appear with you next year." O'Neal shouted.
"You are in the east and I am in the west, how can we appear together?" Zhou Quan asked with a smile.
"You just teach me Kung Fu." O'Neal said hurriedly.
"Okay, when we get on the court later, just don't block me. Just get out of the way when you see me rushing in." Zhou Quan whispered.
O'Neal was startled, with a slightly embarrassed expression on his face. Doesn't this make him a traitor? But forget it, in order to learn Kung Fu, a traitor will be a traitor.
At half past eight, the main game begins.
The head coach of the Western Conference All-Stars was George Karl. The Eastern Conference coach was originally Phil Jackson, but he happened to suffer from an old hip injury, so he was replaced by Hawks head coach Lenny Wilkens.
The Hawks currently have the second best record in the Eastern Conference and are running very fast. Lanny Wilkens is also a highly respected old coach.
However, these two head coaches obviously didn't care much. After arranging the All-Star starting lineup, they sat back on the bench to watch the show.
O'Neal and Olajuwon jumped the ball, and the East attacked.
Among the five All-Star starters in the Eastern Conference, there was no serious point guard. Jordan played the one position, and Zhou Quan immediately followed him.
Because of the feud between Jordan and Zhou Quan, last year's All-Stars took it seriously from the beginning. This year's fans are also looking forward to entering the most intense state from the beginning. As the saying goes, theatergoers are not afraid of big troubles. This is their mentality. .
"There's something good to watch tonight!"
The copyright for this year's All-Stars belongs to TNT, and the commentators are the Magic Birds, Magic Johnson said at this time.
Larry Bird nodded, grabbed the microphone and said: "Michael, Iron Fist, you two are dueling head-on. No one is allowed to call for cover, and no one is allowed to call for help. Just rely on your ability to overwhelm the opponent, okay?"
"Single fight! Single fight! Single fight..."
The All-Star event was broadcast live, and TNT's commentator was the commentator. Larry Bird's words rang through the live speakers at the target center. Everyone in the audience heard it. Countless fans immediately cheered. Obviously, Larry Bird's The suggestions received their approval and strong support.
The smile on Zhou Quan's face became even brighter. He still stared at Jordan, but raised his right hand and made an OK gesture.
Naturally, Jordan was not to be outdone and also made an OK gesture.
"Oh ho..."
The fans at the scene cheered enthusiastically.
"Flying Man, how about you stop five goals tonight?"
While he was on guard and retreating, Zhou Quanwei, who was smiling, was spewing trash talk at the same time.
"Tekken, try it."
Jordan's eyes were filled with anger and he forced out a sentence through his teeth.
He said that, but he knew Zhou Quan's stealing ability, so he put on the highest vigilance. After passing the center line, he immediately accelerated to the right wing.
Zhou Quan quickly followed.
Although the rhythm of passive defense is half a beat slower, his reaction speed is too fast, so he is not half a beat slower, only a little slower.
Moreover, he was faster than Jordan, and he was not left behind even half a step. He stuck to Jordan's left side, using physical confrontation to slow down Jordan while preventing Jordan from breaking through to the right elbow area.
Jordan held the ball to the 50-degree position of the three-point line. He did not slow down, but continued to accelerate forcefully. However, the strong confrontation made him feel as if his body was stuck in a quagmire, unable to accelerate as much as he wanted, and his most powerful explosive power could not be used. .
But his explosive power was more powerful than Zhou Quan's, which was his ultimate talent. He accelerated again and finally broke through the quagmire, broke through, and reached the three-point line.
He doesn't need to completely get rid of Zhou Quan. With Zhou Quan's defensive and mobile abilities, that is almost impossible. All he needs is a little space.
Even if he really can't break through, he still has a trump card available. If he can't break out of the space by turning around and shooting from behind, then he can create his own space.
"not good!"
Feeling a lightness on his body, Jordan lunged forward with a cry. Zhou Quan knew something was wrong. The next moment, Jordan suddenly stopped half a step in front of him.
"squeak!"
The reaction was super fast, and he immediately stopped. At this time, Jordan was already in the air, and he also made an outward drift. Coupled with the backward shot, he tried his best to take off and block the shot, but his hand still only reached the opponent's elbow.
"brush!"
The basketball flew down the basket and splashed water.
"Oh ho!"
The target center immediately burst into warm applause and cheers.
"First shot, Michael Jordan wins," Magic Johnson shouted with a smile.
"Drift + fade, Michael is indeed a shooting textbook! Now it's Iron Fist's turn." Larry Bird said with a smile.
Postman Karl Malone picked up the basketball and retreated to the baseline to serve. Zhou Quan prepared to receive the ball, but Malone sent the ball to Rocky Richmond.
Richmond knew that the fans in the audience were waiting for Zhou Quan to return Jordan, so he passed the ball to Zhou Quan.
When the postman saw it, he couldn't help but snorted, feeling dissatisfied with Richmond.
Zhou Quan changed direction and bypassed Jordan, accelerated on the right sideline, and reached the frontcourt. Indeed, no one double-teamed him, not even Pippen.
Rushing to the 50-degree position of the three-point line on the right wing, he suddenly slowed down and dribbled the ball from his hip. Jordan rushed to the front and immediately stepped on the brakes. Just as he turned around, Zhou Quan accelerated and stepped past the opponent, attacking from the inside. Entering the wing, the entire breakthrough movement was very continuous and skillful.
"Oh, Michael got caught." Magic Johnson yelled.
Just when Zhou Quan reached the right midfielder, Derek Coleman came out to cover. His reaction was too quick. He pulled up the ball while making an emergency stop and threw the ball over Coleman's head. Richmond rushed down from the free throw line and immediately flew up. After catching the ball in the air, he dunked with one hand and knocked over the Eastern All-Star's basket.
"Oh ho!"
Warm cheers immediately erupted from the target center.
"Oh, a beautiful alley-oop dunk, the iron fist and the rock cooperate very well." Larry Bird shouted excitedly.
"Iron Fist is different from Michael. He is a point guard, so although the ball was not shot by himself, it can be regarded as a response to Michael's shot just now." Magic Johnson said.
Larry Bird laughed: "From a purely competitive perspective, Iron Fist's personal finishing ability is indeed not as good as Michael's, but combined with his passing, the threat with the ball is almost the same."
Zhang Lili said with a smile: "Zhou Quan is quite smart. If he insists on attacking Jordan individually, he will use short attacks to achieve long results."
Sun Zhenping nodded and said: "Yes, the combination of personal offense and passing is the most powerful Zhou Quan. To use personal offense alone to challenge Jordan is to cut off one of his own arms, which is unwise." Lift."
On the right wing, Jordan held the ball and advanced beyond the three-point line. He paused briefly. In the next moment, he would break through with a one-handed feint, rush in, and then make a jump shot.
Zhou Quan no longer defends passively like the previous goal. His strongest point is aggressive defense, using his strong stealing ability to force his opponents to make mistakes.
When Jordan paused and dribbled downward, the moment the ball just left his hand, relying on his faster nerve reaction speed, he took the lead, stepped forward with his left foot, leaned down, and stabbed the ball with his left hand.
Jordan's nerves suddenly tightened, and he instinctively turned around to protect the ball, and then prepared to turn around and break through from the inside to the right elbow area, which was his favorite position.
But just as he turned around, Zhou Quan withdrew his left foot, and the distance between the two was once again one step away.
Zhou Quan predicted that Jordan would break through from the inside, because the right elbow area is one of the positions where Jordan has the highest mid-range shooting percentage, only lower than the basket.
At this time, Jordan turned around and broke through. Zhou Quan completed the lateral movement half a beat earlier, and stabbed Jordan with his right hand. With a precise strike, he knocked away the ball that Jordan was sending to the floor.
"Oh, the ball was stolen?!" Magic Johnson exclaimed.
"Damn it!"
Jordan quickly stopped and turned around, trying to get the ball back.
But at this time, Zhou Quan stepped up and squeezed into Jordan's arms, controlled the ball at the same time, and then started to play quickly.
He always rushed in front of Jordan, but he was only one step away. He only completed the ball when he reached the left elbow area, and took off after one step.
Jordan chased after him and took off slower, but it was already too late. Zhou Quan was already a little faster than him, and his rhythm was half a beat slower.
"boom!"
The next moment, he dunked with one hand, and the Eastern All-Star's basket was exploded.
"oh!"
The whole audience burst into cheers.
The first four minutes of the first quarter were the time for Jordan and Zhou Quan to compete, with the rest of the All-Stars becoming foils.
Each player played 4 games with the ball. Jordan made 2 of 3 shots and scored 4 points with 1 turnover. Zhou Quan made 1 of 2 shots and scored 2 points and 2 assists. Each of them showed their strong side. One is an absolute offense. One is the ability to combine offense and passing.
Subsequently, Jordan first reduced his personal offense, started passing the ball, and unilaterally declared a ceasefire.
He is not stupid. This is the All-Stars, not his personal exhibition game. If one person takes action, the Eastern All-Stars will be offended. When the time comes, nine against one, he will be the one. In fact, the average Pippen has no relationship with him in private. will help him.
But Zhou Quan is different from him. He is a real point guard. When competing with him at full strength, he did not give up passing the ball to his teammates and would not offend others.
Afterwards, the All-Stars entered a normal atmosphere and rhythm, that is, a performance. In the first half, there was almost no defense, various fancy dunks, and various dazzling offenses, making the target center cheer after wave. One wave.
In the second half, the defense of both teams began to improve.
In this All-Star game, there was no winner until the last minute, and the teams were about the same strength.
"133:133, there are now 23 seconds left in the game. The Western Conference All-Stars have the ball. There is no timeout. George Karl and Wilkens leave the game to the All-Stars themselves." Zhang Lili said excitedly.
Sun Zhenping said passionately: "Zhou Quan is moving forward with the ball, and he is accelerating! Passing past Jordan, at the top of the arc, making a sudden stop jumper!"
"brush!"
The water splashed and the sword pierced the heart.
Zhang Lili shouted excitedly: "Beautiful! Zhou Quan hit his fourth three-pointer of the game, scoring 21 points, 11 assists and 3 steals."
In the backcourt, Jordan advanced with the ball.
Zhou Quan retreated from the front while making harassing steals from time to time.
Pippen came over to cover, and Jordan took the opportunity to reach the top of the arc. When Zhou Quan caught up, he made an emergency stop jumper and responded with a three-pointer.
Everyone craned their heads to watch, but the basketball was a little short, and with a bang, it bounced off the basket.
"well!"
The fans shook their heads helplessly.
Jordan himself was very regretful. Although he was practicing three-pointers during this period, the time was still short and not as accurate as his mid-range shots.
Dameng grabbed a backcourt rebound, passed it to Zhou Quan, and passed it to his old friend Drexler.
Drexler advanced to the left wing of the frontcourt, faced Wilkins' defense, and made a fake three-point shot.
"boom!"
It missed and failed to hit.
"ball!"
O'Neal grabbed the rebound, shouted, and threw it to Jordan, who was about to go down on the right wing.
Zhou Quan returned to defense very quickly and ran one step ahead of Jordan, so O'Neal's pass was late and Jordan could only slow down to catch the ball.
But at this moment, Zhou Quan stopped suddenly.
The moment the ball fell, the two reached out to catch the ball at the same time.
"Snapped!"
I don’t know whose hand touched the ball out of the baseline. Anyway, after the ball came out of the sideline, Jordan immediately pointed to the frontcourt, and Zhou Quan also pointed to his own frontcourt, both indicating that this was our ball.
The referee gave the ball to East, and the ball was served from the sideline with 7.2 seconds left.
Jordan ran with all his strength on the left wing, with Zhou Quan chasing after him.
He doesn't have to stare at Jordan at all. The full panoramic vision allows him to see any movement of Jordan. When he lowers his head and pursues him, he is already moving faster than Jordan, even if Jordan uses screens and counter-runs to get rid of him from time to time. , he can catch up again every time, and there will be no big openings for Jordan, only some small openings.
But this time, Ewing, who was serving, failed to take advantage of Jordan's small opening in time. After Zhou Quan caught up with Jordan again, he had to give the ball to Wilkins at the top of the arc. Wilkins immediately broke through with the ball. Then he made a pull-up jump shot.
"boom!"
Still missed.
Dameng grabbed the rebound again and gave it to the glider.
"Every time the big dream goes to the glider, this is true love!" Larry Bird joked.
Magic said with a smile: "My teammates at the University of Houston have a very good relationship. I think they will join the same team sooner or later."
"boom!"
Glider shot a three-pointer and missed again.
"Beep!"
After the shot, before the basketball hit the basket, the light on the backboard lit up, and then the full-court whistle sounded, signaling the end of the game.
A few minutes later, Zhou Quan won the AMVP trophy and became the star of this year's All-Stars.
"Congratulations to Zhou Quan for being the defending NBA All-Star AMVP." Zhang Lili said excitedly.
"I hope I can win this year's MVP." Sun Zhenping said hopefully.
"Let's see how he plays in the second half of the regular season. Judging from his current record and his personal data, he is no worse than Dameng and Jordan." Zhang Lili said.
Then he said thoughtfully: "Judging from Zhou Quan's transaction, the alliance definitely hopes that he will come to the West, and is even one of the promoters, so it should not be intentional in this matter..."
At this point, he did not continue, but instead said: "But MVP is judged by the media. In the end, no one can say whether Zhou Quan will get it."
…
(End of chapter)
