Zhou Quan's opponent is Kidd. He played against Kidd in the 1996/97 season. This young man also couldn't deal with him because of Gary Payton.
This is Kidd's sixth season, and he has entered his peak period. His overall view and court control ability are better than Payton's, he has a master's defense and good rebounding.
But Zhou Quan looked down on Kidd because Kidd's offense was so poor.
It's not that the score is low, but the efficiency is too low, it's a complete waste of shots.
In order to study his opponents, he specifically checked Kidd's information. He still had a 44.4% shooting rate last season, but so far this season, he only has a 40.9% shooting rate.
This kind of efficiency greatly reduces Kidd's threat with the ball, and there is no need to double-team him at all.
A ball carrier who has no ability to attract double-teams, has no way to create openings for his teammates, and has no ability to stand up and take over the game at critical moments, is not worthy of his too much attention.
However, in this back-to-back game, although Zhou Quan defeated Kidd on both offense and defense, his teammates fell into a slump, and the Sonics still lost the game.
With 10 wins and 2 losses, the Sonics are still first in the league.
On the 26th, the SuperSonics defeated the Clippers at home, and then suffered a losing streak, losing to the Pacers and Lakers successively, ending the November game with 11 wins and 4 losses, second in the Western Conference and second in the league.
The league's number one is the Lakers. After winning against the SuperSonics, they also have 11 wins and 4 losses. They are temporarily leading by virtue of the outcome between the two teams.
On the 1st, the league announced the best player of the month.
Zhou Quan averaged 40.5 minutes per game this month, 37 points, 4.2 rebounds, 10.8 assists, 5.6 steals, 2.5 blocks, 2.2 turnovers and 2.4 fouls, with a shooting percentage of 50.4%. He won the Best of the Month for the tenth time in his career.
However, the No. 1 spot in the MVP rankings was taken away by O'Neal, who had just scored 38 points, 18 rebounds and 5 blocks against the SuperSonics. O'Neal's shooting percentage in that game was as high as 72%.
"Haha, Iron Fist, you lost to me again." After the official announcement, O'Neal called to show off.
"Shark, don't get too proud too early!" Zhou Quan said.
"Iron Fist, don't scare me, just with your broken lineup, I can defeat you in the playoffs." O'Neal said proudly.
Zhou Quan further understood the strength of this Lakers team. O'Neal was too strong in the low post and it would be difficult for the current SuperSonics to beat the Lakers.
He believes that the current O'Neal, this fat shark's low-post dominance has surpassed the three super centers such as O'Neal, especially once he gets the ball under the basket, no matter how many defenders are around, he cannot stop him.
And the group of basic-salary players around him are still a long way from maturity.
On the other hand, Ben is not bad. After all, he is no longer a rookie. This is his fourth season. He can now be said to be the team's best in interior defense and rebounding. He is fully capable of playing the main center in the SuperSonics. It's just that with Ben's size, he can't stand up to the big shark.
After losing to the Lakers in the preseason, they lost again this time. Head coach Paul Westphal is also thinking about how to defend O'Neal.
He now realizes that Ben Wallace's defense and rebounding are what the SuperSonics need. Ben Wallace's role as the main center is beneficial to the team, and he also has the strength, but he has been struggling with Ben Wallace's height. and offensive capabilities.
On December 1, the SuperSonics flew to Auckland.
In the afternoon, Paul Westphal came to Zhou Quan's room to discuss the Ben Wallace issue with him.
He said very tangledly: "Iron Fist King, do you think Ben Wallace can be in the starting lineup? He is too short. It's okay to say that in the regular season, but once he faces O'Neal in the playoffs, he will never be able to guard against the Sharks.
And if he plays the main center and Campbell plays the power forward, Campbell has no offensive ability, and he has no offensive ability, then our interior offensive ability will be too poor. "
"Both of our two insiders must be able to attack. At least one of them must have certain low-post offensive capabilities and can also pull out the mid-range shot." Zhou Quan said.
Paul Westphal nodded and asked again: "Then do you think he can play the main center?"
Zhou Quan has been thinking about this issue in the past few days and said: "First of all, Campbell can't guard against sharks. In this case, next time we play the Lakers, we might as well try to let Ben guard against sharks, and then let others Help with defense?"
Paul Westphal nodded and said: "You are right, Campbell can't guard him anyway, so we can really let Wallace have a try.
Then we need a power forward who is fast on defense and has a certain ability to attack in the low post on the offensive end and can pull out.
Campbell has some mid-range shooting ability and is very tenacious defensively, but he has never been a high-quality defender and has no offensive talent. He is just an ordinary blue-collar player.
It's a pity that Otis Thorpe is old, otherwise he would be a better fit than Campbell. Miller is not suitable either. He cannot play power forward and cannot return to the basket quickly. "
"There is no perfect lineup, there are always flaws. We try to make up for the flaws through tactics and then play to our strengths."
Zhou Quan said with a smile, and then added: "So Paul, boldly adjust your lineup and tactics in the regular season. These young people with basic salaries in our team can still be used. Each of them has their own characteristics. They are in the NBA." The ability to gain a foothold depends on how we use them and how quickly they grow.”
Paul Westphal smiled and said: "Okay, Iron Fist King, if you say this, then I will give them a little more time.
The two veterans Rodman and Otis Thorpe would have no objection. They are both very old, one is 38 years old and the other is 37 years old. They are eager to rest more.
Campbell's playing time will not be reduced to him, and he should have no objection to letting him play the fourth position. He is originally a person who plays two positions. "
…
On the 2nd, the SuperSonics challenged the Golden State Warriors away from home.
At half past seven, in the visiting team's locker room, Paul Westphal announced tonight's starting lineup.
He glanced at Zhou Quan, then looked at Ben Wallace sitting in the corner, and said: "No. 5, Ben Wallace."
"What?"
There was silence in the locker room.
"..."
Ben Wallace was changing his shoes. He was wearing Tekken 9. When he heard his name, he thought he heard it wrong and looked up at the head coach blankly.
Campbell was startled. Has my starting spot been taken away?
"No. 4, Elden."
Paul Westphal continued.
"call!"
Campbell breathed a sigh of relief. He could serve as a substitute for Divac and O'Neal, but he was still unwilling to let him serve as a substitute for Ben Wallace, the undrafted draft pick. But it was okay to switch to the fourth position.
"Ben, congratulations." Brad Miller, who was sitting next to him, poked Ben Wallace with his elbow and said with envy.
"Thanks!"
Ben Wallace was full of surprises, but he was naturally calm, so his face was still a piece of black iron and his expression remained unchanged.
Paul Westphal announced the remaining three starters, namely Corey Maggette, Brent Barry, and Zhou Quan.
Only then did he say to Ben Wallace: "Ben, I will let you start this time. Your task is to defend in the low post, protect the basket, and grab rebounds. If you don't play well, you will be replaced immediately. Do you understand?"
"clear."
Wallace stood up from his chair and shouted in a deep voice.
Westphal nodded. Another advantage of Ben Wallace is that he is calm. It was his first time in the starting lineup and he was so calm. There was no excitement on his face.
At eight o'clock, both sides announced the starting lineup.
Warriors: Adonal Foyle, Tony Farmar, Antawn Jamison, Tim Legler, Mookie Blaylock
SuperSonics: Ben Wallace, Campbell, Corey Maggette, Brent Barry, Zhou Quan
Against a bad team like the Warriors, which had not made the playoffs in five seasons, Paul Westphal gave Ben Wallace 37 minutes of playing time.
Ben Wallace also lived up to the coach's expectations. He made 3 of 6 shots, 1 of 3 free throws, and scored 7 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls.
Under his defense, the Warriors' blue-collar center Foyle made 1 of 6 shots and 1 of 2 free throws in 24 minutes. He only had 3 points, 4 rebounds, 2 blocks, 1 turnover and 3 fouls.
The All-Star veteran who came on the bench for the Warriors, former SuperSonics champion Terry Cummings, played 14 minutes and was defended by Ben, who made 1 of 3 shots and only had 2 points and 5 rebounds.
Because the Lakers' O'Neal is too strong and the Spurs have a super inside combination, Zhou Quan pays special attention to the growth of several young inside players. Ben Wallace's performance makes him very happy.
However, Campbell's cooperation with Ben at the fourth position was not very good. He only made 3 of 8 shots. His offensive efficiency was too low. He left the basket and his rebounding was even worse. In addition, he was unable to provide Ben Wallace with quick defense in time.
They first beat the Warriors on the road, then beat the Clippers on the 4th. After winning two consecutive games, the Sonics rushed back to Seattle overnight. On the 5th, they lost back-to-back to the Hornets.
In the following regular season, the team will still focus on training a group of players with minimum salary.
Ben Wallace, who got more playing opportunities, secured his position as the starting center. This is why the Sonics did not have a high-quality center in the first place. He caught up with a good opportunity.
Brad Miller became the first backup center at the fifth position, and Campbell, Rodman, and Thorpe took turns starting at the fourth position.
At the third position, Corey Maggette has basically secured his starting position, with Rashad Lewislu and Bowen as the first and second substitutes at this position.
Patterson is the first substitute for Barry at the second position. He is good at perimeter defense. He is only a sophomore and is known as the gatekeeper of perimeter defense, and he is very good at fixed-point jumpers.
But sometimes, Westphal will arrange for Patterson to start at small forward.
Although the SuperSonics are a group of young players with basic salaries, because of Zhou Quan's existence, he alone has raised the lower limit of this team a lot. Under his leadership, the record is pretty good.
The league's situation continues to improve and has passed the most difficult period.
But on December 16th, a big thunder suddenly exploded.
On this day, Atlanta's Gold Club made headlines in many media.
A large number of NBA stars such as Jordan, Ewing, Mutombo, Reggie Miller, and Rodman also appeared in this news.
There are not only many NBA stars, but also stars from other sports leagues, such as Madonna, Willis and a group of Hollywood stars, some politicians and even members of foreign royal families, wealthy businessmen and celebrities such as Bill Gates, etc., both men and women. .
"Michael Jordan was obsessed with the various services provided by the club. The manager of the club admitted to the police that he had provided remote services from other places to Jordan and other NBA stars." New York Times.
“The Gold Club acknowledged that Ewing had received services at least thirty times.” Los Angeles Times.
"African giant Mutombo once complained to the club that the price was too expensive, but he was still happy to accept the club's services."
"My dear!"
Zhou Quan could only express surprise when he saw the news.
When he saw Rodman's name, he could only laugh helplessly. He retired for two years, but he didn't expect that the rodman would become more and more prosperous.
When I saw the name Bill Gates, I was a little curious. As a good partner, has Ballmer been there?
"These bastards! bastards! bastards!"
When David Stern saw the news, he had the urge to strangle these stars.
Especially Jordan, he doesn't know how this guy is doing? With Jordan's reputation, what kind of woman could he want without having to go to a place like that?
These news made him further realize the preciousness of Zhou Quan.
Compared with these stars, and even compared with Jordan, Zhou Quan is simply perfect!
Recently, Jordan is in contact with the Wizards, because the Wizards owner hopes to join forces with him and transfer 5% of the shares to him, and he also hopes to become the boss of the Wizards in the future and personally control a team.
President David Stern personally facilitated his first meeting with the Wizards owner, and he was grateful to Stern for that.
But now, his phone number has been bombarded by the media. He dare not answer it. He simply turns off the phone, unplugs the phone line at home, and does not check his email or surf the Internet.
"Michael, you embarrass me."
His wife also had a falling out with him, and they already had no relationship, but now the relationship is even worse.
He wanted to leave home and hang out for a while, waiting for the public opinion to pass before coming out, but his home was surrounded by dozens of reporters, which forced him to accept interviews from the media, otherwise these guys would not let him go.
"Michael Jordan, how many times have you received services from a club? How many times have you received that kind of service, you know?"
"Jordan, the club told the police that you have asked the club to provide out-of-town flight services many times. Is this true?"
"Michael, did you take a statement to the police?"
When they saw Jordan appear at the door, the media reporters outside immediately became excited and asked all kinds of questions.
"Sorry, really, I only saw the striptease show at the club and didn't do anything else."
"Sorry, really, I only saw the striptease show at the club and didn't do anything else."
"Sorry, really, I'm only in the club..."
Jordan only said this sentence repeatedly and was surrounded by reporters for more than 20 minutes before he drove away from the house with the help of David Falk and two security personnel.
…
(End of chapter)
