"Michael, will tonight's victory resolve the Bulls' internal conflicts?" a New York Times reporter asked.
Jordan's face looked a bit foul, and he stared at the reporter and said: "We have no conflicts. We are together every day. When we disagree, there will inevitably be disputes. We need to communicate. It's all just hype by the media."
"So you haven't been interviewed about what happened to the Sonics in the hotel last night. Do you know the inside story? Are those Japanese and Korean girls who specifically attacked the Iron Fist room really international students from the University of Chicago? Are they really paid-dating girls? Have you ever interacted with them?" the reporter asked again.
"I don't know anything about it, and I don't have any dealings with those women. I don't know anything about it." Jordan immediately denied it.
"Protest, they are not prostitutes, they are international students. They are just carrying out normal assisted dating activities and do not involve money transactions."
"Michael, please apologize."
There were many Japanese and Korean reporters below who were very dissatisfied when they heard Jordan's words and started shouting one after another.
Jordan rolled his eyes. Do you think I'm stupid? I don't need money. Do you charge me for free?
"Quiet! Please be quiet, otherwise we will be kicked out immediately." The host yelled loudly, which made some Japanese and Korean reporters shut up.
The next question was from a reporter from the Los Angeles Times, asking: "Michael, do you think the SuperSonics' loss tonight was related to the harassment they received last night and their unsatisfactory state?"
"The game is a game. Winning is winning, losing is losing. When I lose, I never find any excuse. I accept failure." Jordan said.
On the other end, the SuperSonics press conference.
"Iron Fist, how will you adjust your condition next?" a reporter asked.
"Get some rest and focus on the game."
"The Bulls implemented the craziest double-team on you, and your performance in this game was not good. How are you going to solve their double-team tactics?" the reporter asked again.
"This issue involves the coach's work and needs to be discussed with the coaching staff. I am just a player, not a coach."
"You were not interviewed about what happened in the hotel last night. Do you want to say something now?" the next reporter asked.
"Bulls fans are very fighting spirit." Zhou Quan said helplessly.
"Pfft!"
Many reporters laughed.
The reporter who asked the question smiled and asked: "According to current news, the girls who harassed you last night were all Japanese and Korean students. This must have been specially prepared for you by some people. Do you think they are in line with your aesthetics?" ?”
"Protest, protest, they are not prostitutes, they are just escort girls." A Japanese reporter shouted angrily from below.
"Sorry, my door has never been broken into, and I haven't seen them. I can't answer your question." Zhou Quan said with a smile.
"Ha ha……"
The reporters below burst into laughter.
…
Shortly after the press conference, the Supersonic bus left the United Center and drove to the new hotel.
This is a private hotel with high privacy, which is more expensive than an average five-star hotel. It was specially arranged by Ballmer.
In order to defend his title, Ballmer was still willing to take money. In addition to the players and staff, a group of wives and girlfriends also stayed in this hotel.
Zhou Quan didn't get up until ten o'clock in the morning on the 7th.
On this day, he did nothing but eat and practice the sleeping elixir technique.
Needless to say, after another day and night, when he got up in the morning on the 8th, after practicing two nights a day, he had a deeper understanding of the sleeping elixir technique, which was indeed different from ordinary sleep.
His grandfather asked him to sleep twenty hours a day, but he never tried it because sleeping too much would make his mind and body even more tired.
But now after practicing for one day and two nights, for at least 25 hours, he felt that his mind and body did not feel as tired as sleeping too much.
At 8:30 in the morning on the 8th, management staff, players, and family members all gathered together for breakfast.
"How do you feel?" Zhou Quan asked.
"not bad."
"OK."
Schrempf and others said.
Zhou Quan observed it and found that it was better than before the G3 game. But overall, he has played nearly a hundred games. Both mentally and physically, he is actually close to a limit. He is just persisting. Two days of rest are completely It’s not enough for them to regain their physical fitness, and recovery is impossible for two months.
In the NBA, there is a saying that the playoffs are the stage for superstars, but the finals are the stage for super giants.
Therefore, in the following series, he has to rely more on his own performance rather than his teammates who are approaching the physical limit.
After breakfast, the Sonics held a tactical meeting.
George Karl didn't look relaxed because he couldn't find any good way to solve the Bulls' double-teaming tactics against Iron Fist.
Now he can only hope for two things. First, when Iron Fist is double-teamed, he can pass the ball to an open teammate in time, and then the open player can throw in after receiving the ball; second, he hopes that the players will be in better condition.
There is only one way for Jordan to break out of double teams, which is to use strong personal offense to solve the problem. In his opinion, in addition to his personal offense being not inferior to Jordan, Iron Fist also has better passing ability than Jordan, so his ability to break out of double teams should be Better than Jordan.
The Bulls had only one solution to the tactic of Jordan being double-teamed, which was to use the triangle offensive system and use frequent passes, runs, screens, etc. to create singles opportunities for Jordan.
But this method is not suitable for the Sonics, because Iron Fist is not Jordan. Jordan mainly plays without the ball, and Iron Fist is a ball-holding and big-core play. The ball is always in his hands. The Sonics rarely pass the ball when attacking, so he is better than Jordan. Easier to be flanked.
"Tonight everyone opened up for me to create singles opportunities for Tekken. When he was double-teamed, others must run more, run out of position, pay attention to catching the ball, reduce mistakes, and take shots. Be decisive.”
"Tekken, you can add some passes, which will help break their double-team tactics."
“Defensively, our defense was good last game and we continued to do that tonight.”
In the afternoon, the team came to the United Center for recovery training.
In the evening, United Center.
Zhou Quan, Zeng Li, Zhou Jun, and manager Philip had dinner at a restaurant in the center. When they came out, a large group of reporters had gathered outside.
"Tekken, did you sleep well these two days?"
"Iron Fist, can you tell me the hotel you are staying in?"
"Iron Fist, is anyone still harassing you at night?"
"Iron Fist..."
Seeing them appear, all kinds of questions rushed up to them.
"Sorry, Iron Fist doesn't do interviews before the game."
Phillip stood in the front and opened the way with Zhou Jun.
After finally breaking through the encirclement, several people quickly walked away from the restaurant.
However, the reporters would not miss the opportunity and followed him one after another. Even if Zhou Quan didn't answer any questions, it would be good to take a few photos.
"Brother, if you answer a few questions, maybe they won't follow." Zhou Jun said.
"Your brother, I am not an answering machine. I answer every question. Do you know what reserve is? Do you know what hunger marketing is?" Zhou Quan laughed.
"..."
Zhou Jun couldn't help but be stunned, and thought to himself, he has learned another trick, which is to treat reporters like dogs and not let them eat enough.
…
On the night of the 8th, the stars were shining brightly at the United Center.
Celebrities and supermodels in the entertainment industry and NBA stars are everywhere.
Barkley, Damn, Ewing, etc., these Jordan's friends are all on the sidelines.
The same goes for O'Neal, Reggie Miller, Isiah Thomas, Bill Walton, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Zhou Quan's friends.
At eight o'clock, the two teams announced their starting lineups.
SuperSonics: Almon Gilliam, Rodman, Schrempf, Jose Hawkins, Zhou Quan
Bulls: Kevin Willis, Luke Longley, Scottie Pippen, Michael Jordan, Ron Harper
"The Bulls' starting lineup has not changed. The SuperSonics let Gilliam start. This is to increase the ability to open up and create more space in the penalty area for outside breakthroughs and inside cuts." Zhang Liang said.
"With Gilliam in the starting lineup, his low-post offensive ability has also increased. His rebounding and defense are not bad, but his confrontation ability is not as good as Matt Geiger. But what I want to know more is how Zhou Quan slept these two nights. So." Xu Jicheng said with a smile.
Zhang Lili chuckled. He had also asked, but Zhou Quan was so careful that he didn't even reveal it to him.
Xu Jicheng said with some worry: "In addition to the state of the game, there is another important reason for the loss in the G3 game, which is the Bulls' double-teaming tactic against Zhou Quan. I don't know how the SuperSonics can solve this problem."
"Yeah, I wonder if George Karl can come up with corresponding tactics, but I think it's difficult. The Bulls' three perimeter defenses are too strong, and they are determined to double-team Zhou Quan. It will be difficult to break their defense." Zhang Lijia He shook his head.
Xu Jicheng panicked and asked quickly: "Director Zhang, why?"
Zhang Lili said: "The Bulls fell at the feet of the Bad Boys for three consecutive years. This was how the Pistons defended Jordan. This extreme defense had no good countermeasures. Otherwise, how could the Bulls fail for three consecutive years?
It wasn't until the Bad Boys got old, injured, and scattered, the league introduced flagrant foul rules in 1990, and Jordan entered his peak period. The Bulls were not able to overturn the Pistons in 1991, and Jordan turned over. "
"What about supersonic speed?" Xu Jicheng asked quickly.
Zhang Lili smiled and said: "Don't worry, after all, the Bulls are not that bad boy team that uses any means to defend, and the SuperSonics are already very strong, no worse than the Bulls. The Bulls consume too much on the defensive end, and their investment in the offensive end will definitely be reduced. The Sonics also have a chance."
Xu Jicheng felt a little more at ease and nodded: "So far in the season, both the SuperSonics and the Bulls have played nearly a hundred games, and their physical fitness should be almost gone. Now it depends on the competition of will. I hope the SuperSonics will persevere to the end."
"You must have a good rest to recover some blood. Not having a good rest before the G3 game is indeed one of the important reasons for losing." Zhang Lili said.
In the TNT commentary box, Larry Bird said: "I don't know how Tekken has slept in the past two days. I look forward to him having an explosive state in this game."
Magic Johnson said: "I think it's difficult. The players' physical fitness has been exhausted, and now they are persisting.
Generally speaking, even if you are a super giant, it is good to be in normal or slightly better form in the finals series.
In the first three games, neither Michael nor Iron Fist scored 50+ points. Iron Fist averaged 35.6 points per game, slightly lower than the regular season performance, and Michael scored 31.3 points, slightly higher than the regular season performance. This is already very good. "
Larry Bird also nodded and said: "Physical fitness is indeed not enough. Now I rely on will to support me. In addition, although Michael Jordan is a physical monster, Iron Fist's physical fitness is not bad, and he is younger."
Magic Johnson shook his head and said: "Faced with the Bulls' double-teaming tactics and the three top defenders on the outside, I don't really believe that Iron Fist can perform super explosively.
Moreover, the Bulls did a very good job of limiting the Sonics' offensive and defensive rhythm in the last game, greatly reducing their fast break points. "
Larry Bird said with a smile: "In fact, the Bulls have been double-teaming Iron Fist in the past few seasons, but Iron Fist still won two championships, which shows that the Bulls' double-teaming tactics may not necessarily prevent him."
Magic Johnson immediately said: "But it's different now. Although Ron Harper and Pippen can't defend Iron Fist alone, they can have a very good limiting effect on Iron Fist in assisting defense. This is why the Bulls won the G3 game." main reason."
"No, the main reason why the SuperSonics lost in G3 was due to state issues. The Bulls fans were too competitive." Larry Bird said in a teasing tone.
"Ha ha……"
The two of them laughed when they said this.
In the player tunnel, the starting lineup of the two teams met.
"Iron Fist, I will definitely win this game, and there will be another one."
Jordan's eyes were sharp, full of desire for victory, and his tone was extremely firm. He looked sharp, not like a 33-year-old veteran at all.
"Next game? Haha, Mr. David Stern will come to Chicago with the championship trophy before the G5 game." Zhou Quan dropped a sentence lightly and appeared on the stage.
"No way."
Staring at Zhou Quan's back, Jordan gritted his teeth and said.
"Zhou Quan appears!"
At this time Zhang Lili shouted excitedly.
"I hope the Sonics can withstand the pressure and win this game. If they get the match point at 3-1, they are basically safe. If they lose and draw 2-2, the Bulls will still have a home court, which will be a bit troublesome. "Xu Jicheng said.
"If there is a tie, it will not be a little troublesome for the SuperSonics, but it will be quite disadvantageous. After winning two consecutive games at home and being tied on the road, morale will definitely be greatly affected." Zhang Liang said.
"Iron Fist, did you sleep well?" O'Neal yelled from the sidelines at the edge of his throat.
"Not bad." Zhou Quan said with a smile.
"I have a bottle of sleeping pills here. I think this thing will be useful to you. Do you want it?" O'Neill said with a smile.
"No, that thing has a negative effect on me."
After Zhou Quan finished speaking, he suddenly looked shocked and looked at O'Neill and said: "Shark, what are you doing with a bottle of sleeping pills? Is there something you can't think about? Depression? Damn it, don't mess around. How much have you taken? Do you want me to call an ambulance for you?"
"..." O'Neill looked demented.
"Ha ha……"
The smiling assassin and a group of people next to him fell down laughing.
…
(End of chapter)
