This year's MVP selection came a little later than in previous years.

Just after the series between the Bulls and Raptors, the league announced the results of the season's MVP selection.

Without much suspense, Xu Yong was successfully elected MVP of the 2016~2017 season with 38% of the votes.

Last year, Xu Yong's data was better, but because the Bulls' record was not as good as the Warriors, he finally missed the MVP, but this year, the Bulls' record is the same as the Warriors, and Xu Yong's data is obviously better than Curry and James, not to mention the look and feel of the game.

In fact, the biggest problem with the huddle team, unless it can completely suppress the other cores of the team, or force the other cores of the team to give up the right to shoot, it basically means withdrawing from the MVP race.

And Durant has 29% of the vote this year, more than Curry and James.

The atmosphere of the alliance has been unconsciously corrected by Xu Yong, and even the factors considered when voting with media people have changed.

However, it is a little regrettable that Xu Yong won the MVP three times in four years, but because of last season, this is the same regret as Jordan to miss the third consecutive chance.

Of course, for Xu Yong, who is only 27 years old, he still has a long career ahead of him.

Xu Yong didn't choose to pick it up before the game this time, because the Cavaliers and Raptors hit Tianwang Mountain there, and he didn't know when it would end, so he chose to go to the New York headquarters to collect it.

He went with Jalen Shipp.

Who is Shipp?

When he first entered Arizona State University, he was a teammate who didn't know each other and later had a good relationship with him.

At that time, most of those people were engaged in basketball-related careers, such as Xu Yong's first younger brother, Cook Six, although he did not make it to the NBA, but now he is playing in the European League.

Shipp's words, because of his poor talent, he tried to pursue his dream for two years after graduation and then gave up, and then went to study finance.

James, who dreams of becoming a programmer, is still working hard in Golden State, while Shipp, who dreams of playing basketball, became Xu Yong's personal assistant last summer.

Someone has to help anyway, and it's better to find a college teammate than a stranger.

At this point, he thought of it with Durant.

The NBA headquarters is located at 645 Fifth Avenue, right next to Central Park.

The 51-storey building, known as the Olympic Tower, is one of the most iconic buildings in the vicinity.

When they arrived, Tatum was already waiting for them in the lobby on the first floor.

Of course, this 51-story building can't all belong to the NBA, in fact, the NBA only leases 12~20 floors of it, although this sounds exaggerated enough.

The 12th floor is the entrance, and on the wall of the front desk, Xu Yong saw a lot of classic posters.

There is Jordan holding the championship trophy and crying (Bulls Dynasty), there is a picture of Bird and Johnson facing off (Black and White Hero Showdown), there is Kobe Bryant and O'Neal leaning on the championship trophy together (Lakers Dynasty), there is also a scene of Duncan raising a glass (Spurs odd-numbered champion), and the middle, the most eye-catching, should also be the latest, is the scene where he kisses the championship trophy last season (New Bulls).

This is what you can see at a glance when you come in, and it is equivalent to the first impression when you meet someone.

On the other side, that is, next to it, is a small sports area in the shape of a circle, and then surrounded by a wall of six lights, on which are the freeze-frame images of six people scoring: Leonard, Curry, Yao Ming, Kobe, Durant, and Xu Yong.

Unlike the poster, this light wall can be replaced, except for Kobe Bryant and Yao Ming, the rest are active top players.

What, why is there no king?

Because this is not Cleveland.

There was no one at the front desk, but when Xu Yong entered through the gate, the NBA staff inside was directly boiling.

They all stopped what they were doing, and then watched, taking out their mobile phones one by one to take pictures of Xu Yong.

Tatum didn't stop it, he is a good-tempered leader himself, and Xu Yong's current popularity, these employees rarely have such a close opportunity.

"Xu, can I ask for an autograph?" Finally, someone mustered up the courage to ask.

"When I'm leaving." Xu Yong did not refuse, but now he and Tatum still have something to do.

The employee nodded excitedly, and when he saw that the others were about to speak, Xu Yong also signaled that everyone had it, and there was a burst of cheers in the office.

Tatum then walked forward with Xu Yong, he smiled and pointed to the wall on the side, which was made of glass, with a height ruler on each side, and specific names in some specific places, such as Derry Black at 5'1, Jordan at 6'6", Xu Yong at 6'9, O'Neal at 7'1, and Yao Ming at 7'5.

This is somewhat similar to what Xu Yong saw at the All-Star Carnival in Dallas back then.

Once they had walked past the office, they were in the elevator.

With so many floors, of course they won't look at it layer by layer, but if Xu Yong is willing to receive the award, Tatum will arrange for someone to show him around.

They went directly to the elevator room, that is, when they arrived here, Xu Yong was attracted by the scenery on the wall here.

On one side of the wall was the entire half, a free throw ring, and even the planks on the wall were long strips of maple that were spliced together for the game floor.

On the other side, there are some basketball knowledge points, such as important rules, and some cold knowledge, such as the size of the rebound, and the size of the basket.

Xu Yong was attracted by the size of the basket at this time, because he drew exactly two balls in the basket.

In other words, the diameter of the basket is exactly twice the diameter of the ball, which is much larger than many people think.

This is the first time Xu Yong, who has played basketball all his life, knows this, and it's quite interesting.

On the 19th floor, there is an event stage, where there are already reporters and media.

Xu Yonglai came to the headquarters to receive the award, this is not a trivial matter, this kind of first-hand material is quite valuable.

When it was time to present the awards, Xiao Hua finally appeared, although before the award ceremony, his displeasure could be seen on his face.

The experience of last season's finals should have made Xu Yong and him completely stiff.

But so what?

When Xiao Hua came to the stage, he could only try to be excited and happy, and then presented Xu Yong with an award, shook hands, and said words of congratulations.

But just as Xu Yong got the trophy and came down, Tatum congratulated him with a flushed face.

Xu Yong could feel that unlike Xiao Hua's hard squeeze, Tatum should congratulate him from the bottom of his heart.

Perhaps this is the power of blood.

"Mr. President, can you take me on a tour of the headquarters later?" When Xiao Hua turned his head, Xu Yong held Tatum's hand and said.

"Of course, my pleasure." Tatum nodded excitedly.

Xiao Hua's mouth was crooked.

The following time, Xu Yong, accompanied by Tatum, began to visit the NBA headquarters from top to bottom.

Wherever Xu Yong went, he would set off a sensation among the staff on that floor, and at this time, Xu Yong had time to take photos with them and sign autographs.

By the time Xu Yong left, these staff members from the NBA headquarters had come to the door to see him off.

"Thank you, Xu, for a happy day at NBA headquarters, and I think most of the people here will be happy to think of it." When Xu Yong was about to get into the car, Tatum thanked Xu Yong.

"It should be my gratitude to you for accompanying you on this day, the NBA president is my tour guide, which is not a treatment that everyone can have." Xu Yong said with a smile.

Tatum's face turned red after hearing this, and it was really happy to be able to get praise like Xu Yong.

When Shipp drove to the airport, Xu Yong felt quite good.

He's certainly not the kind of person who just goes to bed and doesn't care about the aftermath.

In fact, if the NBA is compared to a historical dynasty, Stern can be compared to a figure like Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, who expanded his territory and created a strong empire when the empire was in turmoil.

His successor, in theory, only needs to develop steadily.

So although Tatum is a bit of a mediocre, although he doesn't have Stern's strategic ability, or even Xiao Hua's business ability, at least he is a loyal supporter of Stern's global plan, and he is good at handling interpersonal relationships, which would be a good candidate for the now prosperous NBA.

A few days later, the matchup between the Cavaliers and the Raptors on the Eastern side was finally decided after seven big battles, and with DeRozan's key shot, the Raptors got through the danger and met the Bulls again.

Of course, unlike last season, this time they met the Bulls in the division finals, which is the kind of game where whoever wins and goes to the finals.

It can be said that although it is a win or go home game, the closer you get to the finals, the stronger the players' desire to win.

Almost at the same time, the semifinals on the Western Conference side were also over, Leonard was trapped in a poor injury form, and the Thunder eliminated the Mavericks 4-2, also for the second year in a row and the Warriors will hunt the West.

This year's divisional finals in the East and West all have a sense of epic opening with a big drama.

Before the curtain officially opened, the league announced the final batch of awards of the season, which is also the attribution of the best team.

Best team: Westbrook, Curry, Harden, Xu Yong, Durant;

Second Team: Isaiah Thomas, Irving, Butler, James, Anthony Davis;

Three: John Wall, Paul, DeRozan, Aldridge, Antetokounmpo;

Best Defensive Team: Marcus Smart, George, Xu Yong, Antetokounmpo, Gobert;

Second team: Jrue Holiday, Klay Thompson, Butler, Draymond Green, Embiid.

Xu Yongshuang's number of times for a while was +1, and he also continued to catch up with Jordan.

Just the day after the All-NBA was announced, the Bulls ushered in their first meeting with the Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Compared to last year, the Raptors' offense this year is significantly more diverse, and Antetokounmpo's tactical position is close to DeRozan's, making it difficult for opponents to choose defensively.

Carroll also played a full season with the Raptors and fit well into the team's system.

Coupled with the arrival of Shampert to enhance their perimeter defense, the Raptors are close to full fitness.

The same was true of the game, where they were in a stalemate with the Bulls from the beginning until the end of the quarter.

Then, at the final decisive moment, Xu Yong blew up his good brother DeRozan.

Especially Xu Yong knew that the Raptors could only rely on DeRozan to play key shots in the end, so he was directly approached to play at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends.

DeRozan is completely inferior to Xu Yong in all aspects, and there is really no way to do it.

Antetokounmpo can't wait to step up, and he is in great form in G1, having already scored 26 points and 11 rebounds.

But in the playoffs, especially against a top team like the Bulls, the slightest technical flaw will be targeted to death.

Last year, the Bulls coaching staff didn't prepare him enough, but this year it can be said that he is very familiar.

As a result, he tried to stand up with the ball, but rushed in to face a wall, and his passing skills were not enough at this point.

109-104, the Bulls narrowly defeated the Raptors, winning at the final decisive moment, Xu Yong scored 8 points in a row at the critical moment, and helped the Bulls win the game in the way he is best at.

Then, in the same way, the Bulls did it again in G2.

Everyone can see that the Raptors are strong enough to wrestle with the Bulls, but they are just behind at the end.

At this time, Casey fully understood why Stevens would say such a thing after falling behind 1-3, and the gap between the two teams was really only that.

But if you really look at that point closely, you'll see that it's probably a galaxy in there.

After all, just like no one in Jordan's peak could come close to him in terms of strength, who in this league can compete with Xu Yong's scoring ability at critical moments now?

After the G2 game, Xu Yong saw that DeRozan was very depressed, knowing what happened to DeRozan in history, and he didn't know how to comfort him as a good brother.

After all, competitive sports are cruel, and he can't give up the chance of dynastic because of DeRozan.

"Demar, believe in yourself, I've failed too, twice, but I finally got back up, didn't I?" When shaking hands and hugging DeRozan, Xu Yong could only comfort him like this.

DeRozan looked at Xu Yong with a wry smile and nodded.

He wanted to say that people are different, but what Xu Yong said was also true.

G3, the two sides moved to Toronto.

Familiar scenes, familiar flights, but the difference is that when they get off the plane, they are greeted by a warm wind.

The difference between the divisional semi-finals and the divisional finals is also reflected at this time, although it is only about half a month apart, but the temperature in Toronto has risen significantly.

"Finally, I don't have to endure the ice and snow anymore." Jokic also had a look of emotion when he got off the plane.

He has much less fat to keep out the cold this year than he did last year.

Not only him, but the rest of the Bulls were also full of joy, after all, last year, coupled with the cold snap in Chicago this year, they really didn't like to play in that cold environment.

Xu Yong also looked forward to it, the dynasty was getting closer and closer, and even he was uncontrollable in his excitement.

The Scotiabank Arena, which can accommodate nearly 20,000 people, is packed, and the enthusiasm of Canadian fans is still there.

Although they are 0-2 behind, the Raptors are actually not much inferior to the Bulls, and the Celtics have completed a 0-2 comeback this year, and they are not without opportunities.

At the beginning of the game, the Raptors also showed their determination, especially DeRozan, who was in hot form, and he hit a series of strong shots in the face of Butler's defense, allowing Toronto fans to relive the style of last year's playoffs.

Relying on his play, the Raptors led the Bulls by 8 points in the first half of the quarter.

Although Xu Yong also scored 8 consecutive points in response, the Raptors still led the Bulls 38-32 in the first quarter by virtue of their play.

The two sides entered the rotation, and Xu Yong, who played the whole first quarter, went to rest.

At this time, Thibodeau also compressed the rotation, letting Butler and Joe Johnson lead the team together, and counting Jokic, who was about to play, the Bulls' lineup in this bench transition is still quite strong.

In response, Casey on the Raptors' side didn't give Antetokounmpo time to rest, but let him continue to play.

Neither Xu Yong nor DeRozan were present at this time, but it was a very important link for both sides.

As soon as the second quarter began, Butler showed his scoring ability to continue to improve this season, he skipped through the cracks in the breakaway, and scored 2+1 on Biyombo.

Although he lost his balance and fell to the ground, he got up from the ground in excitement after seeing the ball go in, and then bumped Johnson's chest.

He was so excited.

And that was just the beginning, as Butler interfered with Terrence Rose's shot on the defensive end and hit a difficult step-back three-pointer on the right side.

Almost instantaneously, he wiped out the advantage that the Raptors had worked so hard to build in the first quarter.

Xu Yongdu couldn't help but stand up and applaud Butler's performance.

Even if he is a reborn, even if he watches Butler grow up little by little, he still has to feel the magic of Butler as a player.

You don't see that he has a killer move, but he always stands up when the team needs him.

He's not just Pippen, he's destined to be a superstar.

And more importantly, Butler's goal with a strong aura made the Raptors very helpless.

Because Xu Yong was not even on the field at this time.

If you want to talk about ability, Xu Yong is even stronger than Butler.

If they can't keep their advantage at this time, then when Xu Yong returns, the Raptors will end up worse than the Celtics.

Antetokounmpo's shot into the interior was missed, and the offensive rebound was still missed, and the Raptors' bench transition fell into a scoring drought.

After seeing the continuous lack of shots, Antetokounmpo couldn't help but shake his hands in annoyance.

DeRozan got up and walked towards Casey at this time, and he was ready to take the initiative to ask Ying to play.

Casey nodded, and he also knew that the Raptors had no way back now.

If they are down 0-3, they will never have a comeback.

DeRozan walked to the technical table and waited for the dead ball to come on.

At this time, Xu Yong turned his head and chatted with Anderson on the side about the details of the defensive round just now.

If the finals are against the Warriors, Anderson's performance as the starting No. 4 will be crucial.

But at this moment, a hurried whistle suddenly sounded on the court, and Xu Yong turned around to see Butler lying under the basket, covering his ankles with both hands, and the players on both sides were already entangled.

"Damn it! That guy is so dirty! At this time, Adams, who was sitting on the other side, couldn't help but scold.

The conflict was forcibly separated by the referee, and at this moment, the replay of the ball was given on the big LED screen at the scene.

Butler broke through Rose's defense, grabbed the position and flew up to make a layup, Antetokounmpo came over at this time, and he didn't have time to block, so he directly stretched his foot to Butler's landing point, Butler didn't notice it at all, and was directly cushioned by Antetokounmpo after landing, and he broke his foot.

Xu Yong's face instantly became extremely gloomy, and he got up directly and walked towards Xibodu.

Last season, he had a question about whether Antetokounmpo's history was the James he learned, or if it was his nature.

Now it seems that there is an answer to this question.

And after having the answer, he will let the other party know the price to be paid for doing so.

……

Bay Area.

Because the West Finals started a day later than the East Finals, James watched the game live with Fu Paul at his beach house.

Although Fu Paul has failed several times, the relationship between them is more than the relationship between ordinary players and agents, as the so-called Fu Paul abused him thousands of times, and he treated Fu Paul like his first love.

When they saw this happening, both of them were stunned for a moment.

Then Fupaul was the first to smile.

James then showed a happy smile, and then, as a person who came over, he held his mood and said, "He just wants to win too much." ”

But alas, his hands, trembling with excitement, had betrayed him.

Although Butler is not Xu Yong, he is too important, his injury, the Bulls have lost their organizational core, and the Warriors' probability of winning the championship in the Finals has skyrocketed.

He is finally about to win the first championship in his life!

(End of chapter)