On May 17, U.S. time, the Houston Rockets defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 113-100 in the home game of seven battles, and eliminated the opponent with a total score of 4-2, thus officially advancing to the Western Conference Finals.

James, who didn't play well in the last game. Harden had an excellent performance in the tie-break, although he only hit 7 shots in 20 sports shots in the whole game, he showed his best skills, and he improved his stats to 31 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals with 18 free throws, and made JJ Redick, who was responsible for defending Harden, leave the game in the fourth quarter. In addition to that, Trevaux. Ariza, Dwight. Howard & Josh. Smith also scored more than 15 points, and Corey came off the bench. Brewer put together 11 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists, which means that the Clippers still can't stop the Rockets' strong offensive wave since the G5 game. Blake. Griffin's 27 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists with Chris. Paul's 26 points, 5 rebounds and 10 assists made people see the familiar script again, and the two cores have done their best 100%, but the team still lost the final game.

This season was supposed to be the best chance for the Clippers to challenge for a championship, and the team's health was satisfactory, and the team's excellent regular season record made the team more energetic...... But all of this came to naught in the Rockets' almost metaphysical Jedi counterattack, from a 3:1 lead to a 4:3 reversal elimination, such a defeat can be imagined as a heavy blow to the team. Especially Chris. Paul, CP3, who won the honor of 'No. 1 point guard in the league', has turned 30 years old this year, and no matter how good he is maintained, his physical function will gradually decline with age. Now that Paul has been hit again, he doesn't know if he can maintain the same high level of determination as he did when he first moved to the Clippers, and the 'No. 1 point guard' in his thirties may start to think about his future and the second half of his career.

The end of the tiebreaker also marked the end of the second round of the playoffs, with the Cleveland Cavaliers meeting the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference Finals, while the Houston Rockets will face the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. The first game of the East-West Finals will officially start on May 19, and the remaining four league giants will definitely attract more intense attention and huge commercial value, and the gimmicks that can be created will definitely be more complex and hot.

But none of this has much to do with Addison, or his perspective on these games has changed to that of a spectator. Now Addison is more concerned about what kind of business he will have this year, how he will arrange his training plan in between, and more importantly, he will have to choose between the national team to which he has been invited.

"NIKE wants to be able to release your first exclusive sneaker after the Finals, and the momentum of the playoffs ahead of that will definitely drastically reduce the attention of the outside world, and we agreed that we need to find a time to quickly focus on the release of the sneaker." Sam. Bernie explained to Addison on the phone that he had been working around the Chinese point guard business all summer, which is the most lucrative client for him right now, "NIKE will be hosting a sneaker show for you after the finals, ready to deal with the media at that time, Eddie." ”

"I'm at your command, Sam, and you know I trust you 100%. However, please be sure to make time for me to train every day, and I don't want to neglect my training schedule because of my business trips. "Addison is relieved to leave this matter to his agent, and 'there is a specialization in the arts' is his absolute credo. If a professional broker can't handle his contract and business activities, then why should he hire such a helper who will take 5%-10% of the profit from his business contract every time......

"As for your activities this summer, I have already received invitations from NIKE Asia, as well as from TX Group in China...... I'm thinking about getting these two big groups to work together, and we can accept their invitation to merge for a big Asian business event after the finals! "Speaking of which Sam. Bernie became excited, and his voice was raised, "As for the advertising contract with the Chinese Play City company, we can also shoot during that period, which is not only efficient, but also has higher commercial value, and can also enrich your event itinerary!" ”

Addison raised his eyebrows when he heard this, he leaned on the sofa in the living room and kneaded the muscles of his thighs, relaxing his body after the training he had just finished: "I'll just say you're an expert in this area, buddy, and a completely trustworthy agent." But don't forget that my most important thing for this holiday is that it will be difficult for me to plan my schedule for the rest of the day until this matter is decided. ”

Sam. Bernie was slightly stunned, and then let out a short sigh knowingly: "Something about the national team? Well, I can understand your struggle. If I were faced with invitations from two or more countries at the same time, I would also have a difficult choice. ”

"Why don't you let me hear from you, Sam?" Addison habitually asked his business associates, Sam. That's where Bernie can really be trusted – most of the time, he doesn't give an answer that deviates from objectivity because of his own interests or position. He is good at observing from a neutral point of view, and he is also able to restrain himself from leaving the scene and respond to others.

"Me?" Sam. Bernie's voice came from surprise, and he sounded like he was being amused, "What? Do you want to hear the opinion of a businessman who is also an American? It wouldn't be surprising if I suggested you add Team Dream, but I'd rather see the Stars and Stripes on the podium of the international competition. ”

"But you won't say that, Sam, and you'll give me a pertinent answer after thinking about it, Sam I know. Bernie is such a person. Addison laughed too, but still said affirmatively. The man on the other end of the line slowly reined in his laughter, thinking for a moment as Addison had said.

"Well, if you must listen...... I'm not a professional player value analyst, but in my opinion, you're quite a challenger, Eddie. This season, whether it's the regular season or the playoffs, whenever you're underestimated by the outside world, and when you are out to lead the team, you've always been able to play amazingly...... So I'm pretty sure you're a character who is extremely keen on a challenge, and it's a great character. Don't let outside voices or circumstances change your love of challenge, that's my purest hope for you. ”

- The purest hope? The other party's words made Addison stunned, thinking to himself that this guy didn't tell too many lies when talking about business, so that he only wanted to be righteous when facing himself?

“…… In that case, maybe my choice will be the opposite of what you expected, Sam. ”

"That's your choice, as long as it doesn't run counter to your own ideals, I think it should be a good choice."

***

On May 19, U.S. time, the day the playoffs Eastern and Western finals began, the league announced the 2014-15 NBA Rookie All-Star Team.

Addison. Ann (Heat), Elfried. Payton (Magic), Jordan. Clarkson (Lakers), Andrew. Wiggins (Timberwolves) and Nolens. Noll (76ers) was named to the All-Rookie First Team, with Addison and Andrew Brown in the All-Rookie First Team. Wiggins was unanimously voted for the All-Rookie First Team with 130 votes. Addison didn't feel anything about this, he even had the 'best rookie' in his arms, how could he still worry about missing out on such an honor with the rookie?

Marcus. Smart (Celtics), Zach. LaVine (Timberwolves), Langston. Galloway (Knicks), Nikola. Mirotic (Bulls) and Yusuf. Nurkic (Nuggets) was named to the rookie second team, and Addison was impressed with both Nurkic and Smart.

Yusov. As a white big man from Serbia, Nurkic has the advantage of being soft on the offensive end of the European interior line, but also has quite good defensive ability, and has a keen sense of protecting the basket. He is averaging 1.1 blocks per game in just 17.8 minutes per game this season, and is the only interior player on the Nuggets to protect the basket since Mozgov's departure. And Marcus. Smart, Addison's two biggest impressions of him are the terrible projection and the hard-hitting entanglement defense...... Despite being only 6'4" (193 cm) tall, his 220-pound tonnage and nimble footwork allow him to defend anywhere from the perimeter. Coach Stevens has placed a lot of trust in the rookie, and Smart can often be seen in games when it comes to defending swingmen who are more than 200 centimeters tall.

No matter how times change, the NBA is still a league based on defense, especially in the highly competitive playoffs. Players who are willing to do their best to defend aggressively can at least find a place in the league. Green, Warriors' Drummond. Green, Patrick of the Rockets. Beverley...... These are all starting from the lowest level of defenders, and they have become more and more outstanding achievements, not to mention that Smart still has a lot of potential waiting to be tapped as a high-pick rookie.

The Miami Heat's public relations department stepped up after Addison was named Rookie of the Year team, making a last-ditch effort to get Addison on to the league's All-Rookie team in his rookie season, editing video clips of the Chinese-American point guard's games into highlights and sending them to major media outlets and TV commentators who were eligible to vote.

This is not a wishful thinking of the Miamins, as we all know that being selected to the NBA All-NBA Team in his rookie season is an absolute honor. Jordan, Tim. With the exception of a handful of players like Duncan, few players have the ability and qualifications to compete for that honor in their rookie season. However, Addison's average of 16.2 points, 10.1 assists, 3.5 rebounds, 2.1 steals and 0.2 blocks per game in the regular season this season, 48.6% shooting, and a 52-30 record made the Heat think that he might really be able to compete, after all, the only point guard in the league who can average a double-double per game this season is Chris. Paul, John. Wall and Addison, while the Heat point guards have a stable record in both the regular season and the playoffs.

In this era of increasingly explosive data, it is no longer a luxury for rookies to create miracles......