After easily winning the Spurs in the rematch with the Spurs, the position of martial arts in the team has also been stabilized in the true sense.

On the following day of 11.18, the Timberwolves faced the Suns away, and then easily blew up the Suns with a crushing attitude of 116:90.

Kevin Johnson played 43 minutes for the Suns in this game, scoring a team-high 27 points, 3 rebounds and 8 assists.

The Suns' backup forward Danny Manning also played well against Garnett, playing 29 minutes and cutting down 20 points and 11 rebounds.

The Timberwolves' martial arts side easily blew up the opposing player Jason Kidd (193cm/93kg) again.

This super outside defensive elite who has been selected as the best defensive 1/2 team for 9 consecutive years since the 98-99 season has shown his disadvantage in the confrontation with martial arts.

It can't prevent the breakthrough of the martial arts, nor can it prevent the dry pulling of the martial arts.

is obviously a super good player, but during the game, he was directly blinded by martial arts.

In the first quarter, he was cut by Wu Dao on his head by 18 points, and led the team to win 14 points with a single quarter score of 36:22.

In the second quarter, Jason Kidd was sleepwalking, and Wu Dao saw that this guy was a little confused, and the team also had a lot of advantages, so he did not continue to attack Jason Kidd, but gave the ball to his teammates to play.

The average height of the Sun is not high, and even if Wu Dao reduces his shots, the Sun is still crushed by Garnett and Tom.

In this game, Tom finally swept away the decline, shooting 9 of 13 from the field, and then conscientiously guarded the frame for the team, stuck the position for the inside, and scored 20 points at the same time, he also picked up 10 rebounds, and also gave 8 assists to the team.

Wu Dao only played 33 minutes in this game, easily scored 41 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, and after helping the team to win the game, he clocked out early.

A team like the Suns, whose maximum height is only 208cm, is not a match for a team like the Timberwolves.

On this day, the Timberwolves also had an excellent record of 8 wins and 1 loss at the beginning of the season, ranking second in the West.

The first place in the West is the Lakers, who have won 9 consecutive games since the start of the season.

And the Timberwolves boarded a plane to Los Angeles the night after the game with the Suns.

11.19th.

With a nine-game winning streak, the Lakers, who are first in the West, host the Timberwolves, who are ranked second in the West.

And this game between the Timberwolves and the Purple Lakers also attracted fans from all over the country.

The Lakers die-hard fans want to see this game, and the Timberwolves fans want to see this game too.

It's a game for the league's emerging forces against the established powerhouses.

The Lakers in the 97-98 season are also considered by many to be a super team with championship potential.

In addition to O'Neal, the most dominant center at times, there is Eddie Jones in the prime of life, and Kobe Bryant, who everyone is familiar with.

In the previous game between the Lakers and the Utah Jazz, Kobe Bryant played 29 minutes off the bench and scored 19 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks.

For many teams that regard the Lakers as opponents, they can't ignore Kobe's existence for a long time.

It's just that compared to Eddie Jones and Rick Fox, the current Kobe Bryant is a little immature, and there is still a lot to improve.

The game between the Timberwolves and the Lakers not only attracted a large number of viewers, but also a large number of media.

In this era, the Lakers are one of the representatives of the "big ball market" in the entire league, and O'Neal is also the most high-profile superstar in this era.

Last season, O'Neal averaged 26.2 points, 12.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game, gorgeous statistics combined with his out-of-the-box personality, and the devastating interior dominance on the court, with the blessing of the Los Angeles media, O'Neal seems to be on the verge of becoming the league's No. 1 center.

People often sigh at O'Neill's strength.

There are Joe Cho Joe and no Joe Shark.

This sentence has begun to emerge at the end of the 90s.

O'Neal has proven his fighting power game by game, and he now needs a championship to justify his ability to lead the team.

Of course, in fact, in the eyes of martial arts, the current O'Neal may not be able to beat Karl Malone, and if he really beats Malone, the Lakers will not be swept by the Utah Jazz.

It is true that the Lakers lost not only because O'Neal alone, but also because O'Neal did not have good enough helpers around him to deal with the "iron-blooded basketball" of the Utah Jazz.

But this is the characteristic of the era, others play muscle basketball, you can also play muscle basketball.

Isn't it fair that everybody is muscular basketball?

Your muscles aren't as hard as your muscles, so that's how you should lose.

It's as strong as Jordan needs a "knife guard" around him, don't you O'Neal need it? If you don't need to, you will lose.

The young Kobe Bryant also grew up in the "muscle basketball" environment of this era, and he was very smart, and learned a trick and a half from Malone after the Lakers were swept by the Jazz.

Later, some fans affectionately called the little blacksmith "Little Malone".

After a sweeping journey in the 97-98 season, Kobe Bryant finally learned how to play basketball in the NBA, and then was naturally promoted to starter.

Of course, the current Kobe Bryant is still a clear and simple sophomore rookie, the "king" on the team's bench.

And the Lakers also realized that O'Neal needed a helper after being swept by the Jazz, and brought in Jordan's helper in the 98-99 season, Rodman, but Rodman and the Lakers are not very compatible.

The Lakers suffered the Spurs in the playoffs and continued to be swept away.

In the evening, Staples Arena was bustling with people. The avid fans filled the stadium just over an hour before the start of the game.

In the open space around the court, media from all over the world are debugging the machine, and their colleagues in the on-court media are also busy interviewing the Timberwolves and Lakers.

At the pre-game press conference, Coach Philip took Garnett, Marbury and Tom to attend, and after changing his equipment in the lounge, Takemichi was blocked at the door by a skilled reporter when he went out to the bathroom.

Three or four microphones were directly in front of Wu Dao, and the reporters also asked:

"Martial arts, do you have confidence in today's game? How many points are you going to score? ”

"Do the Timberwolves have any targeted tactics against the Lakers' center? Do you think you Timberwolves can stop O'Neal? ”

The reporters scrambled to ask questions, some of which were so tricky that Martial Arts couldn't answer them at all.

In the face of fanatical reporters, Wu Dao could only spread his hands and said perfunctorily with a smile:

"There's no way to reveal the technical and tactical aspects to you."

"If you want to see how our Timberwolves respond, just watch the game!"

'I have confidence in the team and I have confidence in myself.

With that, Wu Dao hurriedly squeezed through the crowd and slipped away. At the press conference at this time, Coach Philip was also harassed by some reporters.

The reporter in Los Angeles is a chicken thief, and today he turned over the previous incident of Coach Philip pressing martial arts on the bench.

Then he talked about the performance of the previous games of martial arts, and finally asked Philip if he admitted that he was "blind".

In and out of the words, he is provoking the relationship between Philip and Martial Arts, and at the same time, he also radiates the range of attacks to Tom's body, alluding to Tom's "unworthiness" before.

The Los Angeles reporter played this trick very insidiously before the game, provoking the Timberwolves' intra-team conflict.

Faced with the questioning of the Los Angeles reporter, Philip's face became ugly, and even Garnett and Marbury, who were interviewed with him, felt the deep malice of the Los Angeles reporter and couldn't help but worry.

The team is in great shape, and with the current team intensity of the Timberwolves, making the playoffs is a complete certainty.

Neither Garnett nor Marbury wanted any "moths" at such a time.

"That's the question."

Philip was about to refuse the reporter's question, when Tom, who was not far away, suddenly pinched the microphone, and a noise was heard in the press conference room.

Philip was interrupted and turned to look at Tom.

"I'll answer that question."

"We, the Timberwolves, have never misjudged the combat effectiveness of the martial arts."

"And his combat effectiveness, there is no need for any so-called judgment at all, let alone a professional coach, even an ordinary fan, can see that he is better than me."

"Far better than me!"

"Takedo is a very good young man, he is very talented, and I am very happy to be able to play with him as a teammate."

"In my opinion, he is stronger than Michael."

"I'm witnessing the rise of legends and I hope I can become the Pippen of martial arts and get more glory with the team."

Tom's slightly deep voice rang out in the room.

The reporters sitting in front of him all looked at young Tom blankly, their faces full of surprise and consternation. Even Garnett and Marbury were looking at Tom with their heads sideways for a while, with exaggerated expressions, as if they were meeting Tom for the first time.

And Coach Philip was also full of astonishment, taking advantage of the fact that no one noticed him at this time, and quickly converged his expression.

"This guy. Crazy? ”

The reporters in Los Angeles looked at Tom with only one thought left in their minds.

"Stronger than Michael?"

A rookie, stronger than Michael Jordan?

It wasn't from one of those "ball-talkers" who liked to talk nonsense, but from an NBA player who thought Tom was crazy.

But at this time, Tom was really awake, or rather, his mind was more sober than ever.

Tom is a smart person, he knows that after the previous few games, his team status is no longer as good as martial arts, and in the eyes of the vast majority of Timberwolves fans, he is probably the biggest sinner of the Timberwolves' "1 loss".

Tom had talked to his agent, and he knew that his worth might have been tied up by martial arts. In the eyes of people, he will always be the player who is "not as good as martial arts".

Because of this, Tom wants to elevate the martial arts, and it is best to be able to send the martial arts to the altar, so that his value will not be affected.

You are not as good as a "rookie", that is not acceptable, but if that rookie is as strong as Michael Jordan, or even better than Michael Jordan, then the fact that Tom is not as good as martial arts becomes less difficult to accept.

The pre-game press conference was "ended" by Tom's words.

It's clear that the Timberwolves team has provided the journalists with excellent material to write an eye-catching story.

"Timberwolves, martial arts?"

"Who's that? I don't know. ”

"No matter who our Lakers are up against, you know, they're not going to beat me!"

"Because I'm Shaquille O'Neal!"

While the Timberwolves ended the interview, the Lakers, the reporters also left the press conference satisfied after receiving O'Neal's assurance.

In the middle of the lounge, how did Martial Arts know that Tom had pulled such a big wave of hatred for himself.

And Martial Arts didn't know what O'Neill said before the game.

The reporter did not help convey O'Neill's words, compared to O'Neill's words, what Tom said was the real "violent theory".

As the game approached, the Timberwolves who had returned to the lounge were also told to enter.

Martial Arts didn't notice Tom's frenzy as he stared at him, nor did he notice the strange looks that Garnett and Marbury looked at him.

After cheering himself up with his teammates in the lounge, Takemichi walked through the players' tunnel and towards the pitch at the beckoning of Philip.

As the players entered, cheers rang out from the audience, and some enthusiastic spectators even blew hooligan whistles, hoping to attract the attention of their idols.

The Lakers players were the first to enter, and after entering the team's rest area, the Lakers players looked to the other side of the court.

The young Kobe Bryant stared at the passage, and after seeing the Timberwolves players appear one after another, his eyes showed a strong fighting spirit.

The famous rookie Wu Dao and Kobe Bryant can be said to be friends.

Kobe Bryant is going to prove his strength by beating his good friend at Staples Arena today!

Compared with the martial arts, which established the status of the team in his debut, Kobe, who was shrouded in the shadow of O'Neal and played as a substitute for more than a year, is somewhat inconspicuous.

During the warm-up period, Garnett and Cherokee Parkes were quiet.

The cheers of the audience and the O'Neal who was about to face all put a lot of pressure on the two of them.

After the dreary warm-up time, with the sound of the live buzzer, the game between the Lakers and the Timberwolves officially began.

On the Timberwolves' side, Takemichi and Tom are still starters, as well as Garnett, Marbury, and Cherokee Parkes.

On the Lakers' side, they sent Eddie Jones (198cm/94kg, 2/3 swing), Shaquille O'Neal (216cm/133kg), Nick Van Exel (185cm/77kg, No. 1), Eldon Campbell (211cm/100kg, No. 4/5); Rick Fox (201cm/102kg, position 3).

After O'Neill and Cherokee Parks stood in the center circle, the venue was quieter.

As the referee's whistle blew and the basketball was thrown into the air, the game between the Lakers and Timberwolves officially began.