Chapter Ninety-Five: I Can't Remember Who Else I Am for a while
"Zhang is a very determined player, and the fact that he can survive in the NBA with such a mediocre body is enough to illustrate the problem. Pen "Fun" www.biquge.info we all know that he was an undrafted rookie in '03, and I would have picked him from a lot of players and brought him to San Antonio, because of this quality in him that touched me. ”
"And he's very smart, when a lot of players are still racking their brains for not being able to understand the team's tactics, he is still sitting on the bench, and he doesn't have my trust, in order to create playing time for himself, he even tailors a tactic for himself according to his own characteristics. It's the one that the Spurs bench has been using this year, and I don't think I need to describe the effect anymore. ”
"Yes, that's completely incomparable, and the Pistons' list is as big as the gap between the ground and the sky."
"He's very hardworking, he's always strict with himself, and that can be seen from his textbook basic movements."
"I was surprised at the time, I never expected to eliminate the Lakers, they were really strong this year, but Zhang restrained O'Neal."
"He's a well-rounded technique, and although he's mostly rough, he'll surprise everyone if he's given time to grow, and he's learned to hook his hands!"
"He's very gentle-tempered and respectful of me, and there's no conflict between him and his teammates and me! You can look at Rocket Yao, their personalities are actually no different. ”
These are Popovich's answers when asked about Chamberlain's questions by reporters.
This time, Popovich did not deliberately avoid this topic as before, nor did he deliberately slander Chamberlain in front of the media because he refused to sign.
This made Chamberlain, who was a little disappointed in this famous business field, see the warm side hidden in it.
These days, there are a lot of media active in San Antonio, and they frequently haunt every street and alley of the SBC arena, they chase and intercept everyone who enters and exits here, digging out the truth or falsehood, or just subjective assumptions, every piece of news that can attract people's attention.
And that includes their peers from faraway China!
The Chinese media, which has a natural geographical advantage, under the leadership of Yao Ming, who came from China to cheer for his fellow villagers, contacted Chamberlain, who was in hiding everywhere, and the two of them accepted an exclusive interview together.
Of course, Yao Ming is a supporting role at this time!
This is the first time that Chamberlain has been positively reported by the domestic media under such a formal situation, and he was only a trick and a dispensable role in the minds of the Chinese people in the past. After this report, he began to be taken seriously by the Chinese people and regarded as an existence that can be compared with Yao Ming!
Of course, there will be nothing new in these reports, nothing more than his growth, today's achievements, and plans for the future, etc.!
In the midst of all these disturbances, the Spurs have not stopped refining their tactics.
After experiencing the tactics that were urgently developed to chase points when playing against the Timberwolves, Popovich used this set of tactics to replace the "inside ball" tactics used by the Spurs in the regular season this year after careful consideration, and made it the first choice for the Spurs' tactics in the finals.
"Parker, watch your dribbling, Billups isn't going to give you an easy break."
"Tekoglu is back and you're tasked with helping Parker dribble the ball to half court and get it to Chang or Thiem."
"Bruce, your opponent is not Devon Brown, treat him as Hamilton, keep an eye on him, don't give him a chance to run out of the open space."
"Zhang, be decisive, Willis is no slower than Ben Wallace, they can't catch up with you. Pay attention to the pass, pay attention to the pass, pass the ball before it gets caught. ”
"Tim, watch out for Zhang's passing, watch for rebounding, this is the Finals, take your opponent for Rasheed Wallace. Pay attention to Zhang's position and don't always think about passing the ball out! ”
In order to give full play to his due power in the game, Popovich has been practicing against the Spurs almost non-stop in the SBC Center these days, frequently adjusting the players' running positions, cooperating with each other and passing routes. In the entire basketball arena, except for the sound of the ball hitting the floor and the basket, all that was left was the sound of him constantly shouting at the players who could not satisfy him, reminding them of things to pay attention to, and correcting the mistakes they made!
Because these tactics are a combination of all the tactics used by the Spurs in the past, it is not too difficult to get used to it.
After a few days of hard work, the mistakes of the players have become less and less, and the problem of running and passing has been basically solved.
The time is June 7, 2004, the much-anticipated NBA Finals, the first game between the San Antonio Spurs and the Detroit Pistons finally kicked off!
Because the Spurs are ranked higher than the Pistons in the regular season, this first game will be held at the SBC Center, the home of San Antonio!
The Spurs, who just reached the top last year, reached the finals this year, and although they lost the old king - "Admiral" in their lineup, this did not affect the media's praise for them and the fans' pride in the team's achievements!
Today's SBC Center is full of people and a warm atmosphere, and everywhere is filled with jubilation and joy beyond any time!
In the anticipation of the fans, the media, and the audience in front of the TV, it was finally time for the balls of both sides to play!
At this time, the light in the center of the SBC began to dim, and the lights went out one by one. The slurred voice of the DJ rang out at the scene.
Led by the DJ's utter voice that was completely incomprehensible to anyone, the Pistons who were the first to appear one by one emerged from the dimly lit tunnel of players. At this time, the fans at the scene, as if they had seen a flood of beasts, all kinds of curses and ridicules sounded frequently, one after another!
Then slowly, these sounds began to calm down, and all the noise was replaced by passionate music.
"Next to appear is the Inner Tower of San Antonio from the beautiful ancient country of the East, the pearl left on the beach, six feet and eleven inches tall - C-h-a-m-b-e-r-l-a-i-n".....