The Suns players returned to Phoenix City for a day of rest and played at home against the Clippers, and Guo Xu once again showed outstanding strength.

The Suns' overall defense was very scorching until the final moments, and the Suns fell behind 106-107.

After D'Antoni called a timeout, he arranged for Guo Xu to make the last attack, and his teammates helped him receive the basketball, Guo Xu broke through at full speed with the ball, and forced a layup in the face of Odom, a high board on the right side was thrown to avoid the block, and he hit the whistle cleanly. 108 to 107.

After several years of training, Guo Xu's throwing has become a conventional weapon, and it can even be called a trick. This move can not only score goals, but also save physical strength by dodging blocks with various levers like those flying people.

Now there are many people in the NBA who imitate Guo Xu, the shooting rate is not high, this action requires one hand to lift the ball high in advance, it is not easy to exert force, if the arc of the basket is too low, it is easy to be cut directly by the opponent, and the requirements for the ball sense are particularly strict.

Guo Xu's strength is very good, he can easily pick the ball out, he uses the cover to start, the dislocation is small and the big is big, and the speed inside line is like no one. He stretches his body when he lays up, using explosiveness and shooting to make up for his lack of height.

He played 40 minutes and finished with 35 points, four rebounds and seven assists on 14-of-23 shooting, 3-of-9 three-pointers and 4-of-5 free throws.

He didn't perform well outside the three-point line, and adjusted in time to focus on breakthrough and mid-range shooting, and passed Brand again and again after misalignment.

"The Captain" is recognized as excellent defensively, able to resist people in the low post, and can interfere with shots with long arms, although he is only 203cm tall, but the low post defense is very efficient. His weakness is the anti-pick-and-roll, and his weight of 125 kilograms dooms him to be unable to be fast, and his body is particularly thick.

Clippers starting guard Andre Miller was abused this time, and his stats dropped to 13.6 points, 4 rebounds and 6.6 assists after he was traded to the Clippers, and his shooting percentage barely reached 4 percent.

To make matters worse, the Clippers' record this season has slipped and they have not been able to make the playoffs, although the team has been plagued by injuries and the core has been suspended, but Miller's weakness has also been revealed, he is a restricted free agent in the summer, and it is difficult to get a big contract.

AS A HEAVY POINT GUARD WITH A HEIGHT OF 188CM AND WEIGHT 91 KG, MILLER IS NOT FAST, HAS NO RANGE, AND HIS BEST SCORING TECHNIQUE IS PLAYING FROM THE LOW POST. This is destined to make it difficult for him to play at the level without a suitable offensive system, and it will be uncomfortable when he encounters joint defense, how can there be so many opportunities for him to chisel a point guard with his back to the basket?

In fact, Miller is strong, but he was born in the wrong era. In Guo Xu's previous life, Miller was a famous iron man in the league, and his attendance rate was very amazing, and he once played 632 games in a row. He's a floor-flow player with a lot of assist awareness, and although he doesn't have speed, he has great footwork, and if he had been in the league in the '80s, he would definitely be a super point guard like Mark Jackson.

There are a lot of players in the NBA who are not born at the right time, and the achievements of the next era will be even higher.

Take Yao Ming as an example, if he had entered the NBA ten years earlier, eighty percent of the league would have five centers. If he only entered the NBA ten years later, in 2012, it would be bad, the offensive rhythm of each team has become very fast, and he will have to be exhausted.

In the game played the same day, the Mavericks suffered their 12th loss of the season by an upset loss to the Bucks, and the Suns were one step closer to the league's best record.

Nelson Sr. didn't let the Mavericks play for long in the All-Star Game, the Trident played well on the offensive end and cut 20+ and had a high shooting percentage, but the Mavericks' defensive weaknesses were still obvious, playing 114-120 in regular time.

Five of the Bucks scored in double figures, and even blue-collar interior Rartleaf scored 16 points.

The media have expressed that they are not optimistic about the Mavericks winning the championship, they are particularly fierce when they abuse vegetables, and when they encounter strong attacking power, the team that can play against the attack may lose. The Mavericks have two blue-collar workers on the outside who can hold up a bit, and there is not a single defensive expert on the inside.

The Suns' strengths and weaknesses are similar to those of the Mavericks, and experts are not optimistic about them winning the championship. The Suns' interior and exterior defense is relatively weak, only Marion's wing defense is acceptable, and he can defend excellent scorers and help block blocks.

The best person in the Suns defensive box turned out to be rookie Nene, which is a hidden danger. The two rookies on the inside can help the team win by relying on talent in the regular season, but entering the playoffs is a test of mental attributes, and most rookies are not as good as veterans in this regard.

That night, Suns owner Jerry Colangelo called his son Brian to his study to discuss what's going on with the Suns.

"Brian, I think the Suns have a championship hope this year, just two defensive players, one inside and one outside, do you have any goals?"

NBA owners have a common problem: when the team is rebuilding, they are eager to trade all the high-paid players on the team, and when the team has championship hopes, they always feel that the roster is not good enough, and they are willing to strengthen in various ways, even at the expense of the future.

Jerry is looking forward to the Suns winning the championship, he was established by the Suns in 1968, as the youngest manager in the NBA to become the owner step by step, he has accompanied the Suns all the way, from a hot-blooded youth to an old man.

Jerry is a generous owner, and he has made too many attempts to compete for the title, signing Gugliotta and Anfernee Hardaway have spent a lot of unjust money.

Brian poured cold water on Daddy. "I'll be straight, don't expect a mid-term trade, I've been researching it for a month and I've been in contact with a lot of teams, and they don't want to trade a strong interior lineman. There are not too many teams with a good defensive meat shield interior line, and they want to trade Dampier from the Warriors, and they all offer to use Nene as a bargaining chip. ”

Brian explained that the only strong interior player who was traded this year was Kenny Thomas of the Rockets, who was in a contract year and was only 201cm tall and had obvious flaws so the Rockets management did not want to renew his contract.

Even Thomas, when he renews his contract with the 76ers in the summer, his contract will certainly not be small.

Jerry asked, "What about the outside line?" ”

"There's no need to look for defensive players on the outside, and I don't have many opportunities to play when I come, because players who can defend and shoot are not cheap, and Bruce Bowen I think is an exception, and it's a shame that he's on the Spurs."

The Suns already have Kirichek, Joe Johnson, and Jacobson three swingmen to share playing time, and the 2002 first-round rookie Jacobson has not had many opportunities to perform, and it is even more difficult to arrange rotation for the individual coaching staff.

The championship team generally takes the elite route, three swing people are enough, and the playoff rotation players are of little use, mainly the ability to fight for stars.

Jerry sighed and said, "You try again before the 21st, and try to trade a meat shield." ”

"I see." Brian said lazily.

Jerry snorted: "Don't be perfunctory, don't forget our agreement, I'll let you take over when the Suns win the championship in these two seasons, otherwise I'll sell the team." ”

"Hey, didn't you say that the team would let me take over if they reached the Western Conference finals? Why did it change to winning the championship? Brian smiled wryly.

"Can't I change my mind?"

Jerry plans to retire from the Suns next year, and he can't wait.

But how easy is it to strengthen in the medium term? Not only the Suns, but the Mavericks management is also looking for people to negotiate a deal everywhere. Unless the championship team has some special relationships, there is basically no possibility of negotiating a big deal, and it is difficult to take advantage of it.

Competitors who are also strong teams are unlikely to send "assists", and their trade partners can only be selected from bad teams. And the role players on the bad team who don't have stats are not looked down on by the Suns at all.

This season, how far solar energy goes, mainly depends on the performance of Guo Xu and the newcomers.