Time flies by at the training camp.

After a few days of observation, basically knowing the state of the players, Thibodeau began to group according to the state.

Those who are considered qualified will start tactical training under the leadership of Ma Long, while those who are considered unqualified will carry out high-intensity basic training on their own to quickly recover their state.

His principles are simple and can basically be summarized into two.

First, competitive sports is not about inviting guests to dinner, whether it is on-field games or off-field training, he requires 100% commitment from the players.

"If you just don't want to be pushed to the limit, you'll be eliminated from this league in no time", is Thibodeau's exact words;

Second, everyone in the team has their own positioning and value, and no one is dispensable.

"If you don't know what you can do, come to me and I'll tell you."

If the previous one was harsh, then this one made Xu Yong see the gentleness he had seen a few nights ago.

Xu Yong found that in just a few days, he had shattered the rigid image of Thibodeau in his mind before his rebirth, which was as rigid as Jeff Van Gundy, a very capable and charismatic coach.

But it's right to think about it, a rookie head coach can take the Bulls who only joined one Boozer in history, and directly dominate the Heat Big Three for two seasons to monopolize the first place in the East, which can't be done without real materials.

All in all, the Bulls, who have undergone a major change in the offseason, after Thibodeau's back and forth a few times, not to mention how well they played, at least the team cohesion was pulled up.

Even O'Neill, who was assigned to a disqualified state at the beginning, worked hard to recover on his bicycle under Thibodeau's individual guidance.

The head coach of the Bulls is definitely worth it.

Training camp time flies quickly, and in the blink of an eye, the preseason season begins.

This year, the Bulls' preseason games were all scheduled on American soil.

There were no surprises in the process, with a 7-0 record and the Bulls showing their roster depth.

That's right, it's not the quality of the squad, it's the depth of the squad, because Thibodeau gave the substitutes a lot of opportunities to show.

It's not that he doesn't know Xu Yong at all, but the Bulls can play too much on the bench, and Thibodeau can only do this if he wants to find a rotation lineup.

And it's worth it to give so much time, with Hinrich and Korver on the outside, and O'Neal Jr. on the inside, becoming his favorite eight-man rotation, followed by O'Neill and others.

With the preseason over, ESPN, as in previous years, began a wave of predictions about the strength of each team in the new season.

James's team is ranked first on this list again.

Although this year, it may seem like the most well-deserved year.

1. The Heat

A superteam that has never been seen before, the Heat Big Three had the highest MVP list of 1/5/12 last season, and the team led by Grandma O'Neal was a team that could win.

In addition to the Big Three, they also signed Mike Miller on a mid-level contract, retained Haslem at a below-market price, and "Big Z" Ilgoskas also followed James to the Heat with a base salary, just to fulfill a championship dream.

They also signed a group of players with a base salary who came in and still had the strength to fight.

The only question is, will they be able to beat the 72-win record that Michael Jordan led the Bulls to in the new season?

Second, the Lakers

The Lakers are still the same Lakers team, they have limited reinforcements in the free market, and they only brought Matt Barnes with a base salary, but their bigger changes will come from within, and Bynum's growth will provide the most help to the team.

Bryant has a chance to become one or two more consecutive champions since Jordan this season.

Of course, it will be very difficult, as the Heat will most likely make Kobe Bryant and the Lakers fall short.

But at the very least, fans finally have a chance to see the 23vs24 scene on the stage of the finals.

3. Magic

Fourth, the Celtics

5. Mavericks

6. Spurs

7. Thunder

8. The Bulls

The Bulls had a stellar performance last season, but instead of bolstering the roster, management made another big trade, sending away two starters for the second straight season and changing the team's head coach.

Although they have made a lot of signings on the free market, such a huge team change, the team's chemistry is worrying, and Yao Ming's injury is also their biggest concern.

If they can overcome these two issues, they may become a difficult opponent for the Heat in the East.

……

"The eighth? This ESPN guy must have been kicked in the head by a donkey! When he saw this power list, Artest was unhappy, they should be in the top five teams, but now they are behind the Thunder.

"Not bad, we were both twenty last year." Rose squeezed out a small smile and said.

"These guys really don't take us seriously." Artest was still indignant.

"It's good." Xu Yong stood up at this time, and his actions also attracted the attention of the others in the locker room.

"We can do black eight again." He then said lightly.

When he said this, the team members were stunned for a moment, and then they couldn't help laughing.

Even Artest laughed in hindsight.

Xu Yong's words are very connotative.

But it does make people laugh all at once.

They are ranked eighth, and if they can take out the Heat in the playoffs, it will indeed be another "black eight".

You don't even have to wait until the playoffs.

"We're playing the Heat in the opener, right?" Rose then spoke.

"Well, the Alliance takes good care of us." Yao Ming, who had not spoken, said expectantly.

"Then get ready, brothers, let them see the strength of our Black Eight team." Xu Yong then looked around at the crowd.

This pun instantly made the Bulls players gear up.

The opening battle or something, you have to do a loud shot!

By the way, there are two openers this year, in addition to the Heat and Bulls, and one is the Lakers playing the Thunder.

However, there are also differences in the treatment of the teams involved in the opening game.

The Heat and Bulls have the first and second most back-to-back teams in the league this season, respectively, and the teams that started playing at the beginning of the season are not weak.

Obviously, it was Stern, who was almost stunned last season, who took special care of them.

……

The season is about to begin, and the teams have completed the final layoffs one after another.

The result on the Bulls' side was the same as Xu Yong expected before, and it was the veterans who were left behind.

Because the Bulls' current roster is relatively stable, even if there are any accidents, they can be traded in the middle of the season, so seeking stability is the first principle.

As a veteran, as a player deep on the bench, there is little chance of getting emotional and it can provide the team's young players with game experience.

It was at this time that Xu Yong received a call from Sun Yue.

He didn't get a chance with the Suns, but managed to stay on the Warriors' 15-man roster.

"Congratulations, remember to invite me to dinner next time you go to Golden State." Xu Yong quipped.

He was really happy, no matter what the Warriors kept Sun Yue for, at least Sun Yue could get good training.

For a men's basketball team that lacks a guard, that's all that matters.

As the footsteps of the season draw, the media began to build momentum for the opener.

The opening game between the Heat and the Bulls quickly gained a lot of attention.

The debut of the Big Three, coupled with the grudge entanglement between the Bulls and James, between James and Yao Ming Artest, the two Rocket veterans, the elements of this game are directly full.

The game was played at the Union Center, the home of the Bulls.

On this day, a large number of fans gathered early in and outside the stadium.

Although the World Championships gave Chicago fans a taste of the power of the Yao and Xu combination in advance, what they are really looking forward to is the Bulls in the new season.

You must know that this is the first time since Jordan's retirement that the Bulls have become a real championship team.

The enthusiasm of the big gangsters is like a fire in winter, warming Chicago.

Of course, in addition to the fans, there are many stars who come to join in the fun, such as pop singer Taylor Swift in the front row of the audience, and Scarlett Johansson, who became popular because she played the role of "Black Widow" in "Iron Man 2".

You must know that this opening game is also the debut of the Heat Big Three.

This past offseason, the outside world was eager to see the superteam's debut.

However, when the players of both teams began to walk out of the tunnel of the players, all eyes of the fans were drawn to the players.

At the beginning of the shot, the players on both sides continued to ignite the emotions of the fans on the spot.

James, Wade, Xu Yong, Yao Ming, these were all All-Star starters last season, and Bosh and Rose were also off the bench.

This ordinary regular season game has gathered six All-Stars at once, and the stars alone in this game are dazzling enough.

The photographer also gave Xu Yong and James two slitted shots.

Xu Yong wore No. 23 in college, James was the No. 23 he wore before going to the Heat, and now both of them are wearing No. 6, this sense of fate or something that is destined in the dark is simply a fan favorite.

When the scene began to warm up, the commentators on the sidelines couldn't help but start warming up.

The guest commentators tonight are also heavyweights, with Barkley and Kenny Smith on TNT's side.

"Charles, who do you think will win tonight?" Smith asked.

"Who wins? Man, you're not asking the right question, you should be asking how many points the Heat can win! Barkley pulled up the decibel with a disgruntled expression.

"I can't imagine the Heat losing, so the Bulls are blessed!" Barkley then added.

Kenny Smith was overjoyed to hear this.

In fact, unlike what many people think, except for ESPN, other media are cynical about the Heat, but Barkley himself has hugged his thighs, so he can only talk like this.

While speaking, the warm-up on the field ended, and the scene entered the opening ceremony.

The Heat were the first to come on as the visiting team.

When they appeared on the stage, the fans at the scene also gave them the most enthusiastic ...... There was a heckling.

Chicago fans don't care that the Big Three were once close to the Bulls, they just express the most primitive and genuine disdain in their hearts.

Among the Big Three, Wade has a wry smile on his face, and he has received more ridicule in recent months from the United States to China and back again than he has in the first seven years of his career.

James nodded to the boo, as if enjoying the feeling of being the enemy of the people.

As for Bosh, he appeared with a blank face and didn't know what he was thinking.

Carlos Arroyo, Wade, James, Bosh, Ilgoskas.

The Heat's three-belt-two lineup, those two "twos" are not bad.

When the home team Bulls played, the familiar background music of "Sirius" burst into cheers from Chicago fans.

The red flame will sweep the alliance again!

The Bulls' starters are also very interesting, because fans can confirm that the starters are Rose, Xu Yong and Yao Ming, and there are a lot of variables left.

The final starters came out: Rose, Tony Allen, Xu Yong, Artest, Yao Ming.

Thibodeau ended up opting for the squad he used the most in the preseason.

When he saw this lineup, on the Heat bench, James couldn't help but laugh out loud.

This lineup doesn't even have a serious power forward, do you think Bosh can't beat Artest, or do you think Yao Ming can defend against Bosh?

The Bulls' selection of a rookie like Thibodeau as head coach was their biggest failure.

The final tactical arrangement was completed, and the starters of both sides appeared one after another.

James still chooses to be the last to appear, and then pinpoints the position of the camera and throws out his domineering magnesium powder.

This magnesium powder he has to throw because that can represent this is his team.

Yao Ming and Ilgoskas jumped the ball in the middle circle, and the competition between two 2.20+ meters giants basically depends on who is fast.

In the end, Yao Ming, who had just finished the World Championships, was even faster, winning the opportunity for the Bulls to take the lead in attacking.

The head coach of the Heat is Spoelstra, and Spoelstra's resume at this time is very similar to Mike Malone on the Bulls' side, the main difference is that he has been a head coach with the Heat for two years, but he is still a rookie coach at heart.

He was sitting on the bench at this time, his eyes looking straight at the field.

In the opening game of the new season, he is still more observing.

Because he coaches the Big Three, he must make sure that what he says is justified, otherwise the giants will oppose him, and he will not be able to do it for long as the head coach.

Rose held the ball and then quickly made tactical gestures.

Yao Ming quickly mentioned that the high post gave Xu Yong a no-ball block, and quickly cut into the basket after the dismantling.

However, the Heat's defense was well tuned by Spoelstra, James successfully squeezed through the cover, and Big Z also reached out to interfere with Yao Ming's passing route, and this wave of tactics did not get a good offensive opportunity.

Seeing this, Rose made a tactical gesture again, and Yao Ming directly pulled to the free throw line at this time to make a covering wall for Rose.

This time, Rose successfully took advantage of Yao Ming's pick-and-roll to shoot a mid-range jumper near the free throw line.

"Huh!"

Basketball hollow into the net.

Rose's summer training has been fruitful.

The Bulls came out on top.

And from the two consecutive waves of offensive attempts at the beginning of the Bulls, we can see the tactics of the Bulls' positional battle, blocking and dismantling.

This is also the reason why Thibodeau was so rushed to cut and dismantle the material before, because the practice of new tactics is not achieved overnight, but requires a lot of time.

However, the effort paid off, and judging from the opening performance, this tactic is a good fit for the Bulls' current lineup.

Of course, the Heat fans and players don't care too much, a 2-point, and Rose shot it in a way that he is not good at, and I send you away.

You must know that the Big Three are strong but attack!

Arroyo advanced to the front court with the ball and obediently gave the ball to James, who asked for the ball at the top of the arc.

James this summer, as Xu Yong knew, directly increased his weight to 120 kilograms.

The feeling of muscle power in his body, even in his head, has inflated his self-confidence, and he can't wait to prove that he is different from last season.

My sense of taste and smell is basically gone......

(End of chapter)