Meanwhile, Barkley had arrived in Chicago and was interviewed by reporters at the airport.

"Charles, you're here to see the East Finals, so do you support the Bulls or the Pistons?" A reporter asked.

"Charles, I heard you're going fishing in Los Angeles?" Another reporter quipped.

Barkley laughed, in fact, he really wanted to give this non-talker a powerful hug and wreck him to the ground.

Pretending not to hear the reporter's question, he answered the previous reporter's question and said, "Yes, I came to see the East Final." Bulls vs. Pistons, I'm sorry, I'm rooting for the Bulls. ”

"Why?" The reporter asked.

"Because Michael is my good friend, and the Bulls are obviously a lot stronger than the Pistons, the Iron Fist team has not yet been able to upset." Barkley grinned.

"Charles, which team will Philadelphia trade you to?" A reporter asked again.

Barkley smiled, although he also wants to leave Philadelphia, but being traded by the team is not a comfortable thing, and he will be a wanderer from now on.

However, it is better for him to be traded than to actively apply for a trade, so he immediately said with a bitter face: "Alas, we didn't play well this year and didn't make the playoffs, and I didn't complain about the team's idea of trading me, so they decided, and I respect their decision." ”

"So which team do you want to go to?" The reporter asked.

"Can I say bull? Haha, well, I know it can't be, just kidding. But I can't decide my future, it's a very bad feeling, let God decide where I belong. Barkley said helplessly.

A reporter rushed to the United Center arena to interview Michael Jordan and asked, "Michael, what do you think of this bet?" ”

Jordan didn't have a smile on his face and said, "Look at that kid's sneaker sales, I think not only a sneaker company will go bankrupt, that kid may also go bankrupt." ”

The reporter immediately asked: "The ESPN reporter proposed to let you bet against Iron Fist, and Iron Fist refused, what do you want to say about this?" ”

"He doesn't have any money, so it's sensible to refuse. I really don't understand how stupid it is to bet against ESPN since I don't have money. Jordan said dismissively.

"How likely do you think you're going to sweep your opponent?" The reporter asked again.

This question made Jordan silent for a moment, after all, it is not easy to sweep the Pistons, this year's Pistons are not the Pistons that lost their sharpness and were lifeless last year, the sharpness and willpower of this Pistons, in his opinion, belong to the top of the league, and he even feels that the Bad Boys Army has been resurrected.

But he was silent for only a second, and then immediately said firmly: "I insist that we have a good chance of sweeping the Pistons." ”

After Zhou Quan proposed to bet with ESPN, he could not show any weakness, otherwise it would definitely affect the morale of the Bulls and definitely boost the morale of the Pistons, so even if there is a possibility of being slapped in the face in the future, he must make the strongest statement.

However, his words still did not say death, leaving room for the future.

At six o'clock in the evening, ESPN publicly announced that it had agreed to make a bet proposed by Zhou Quan, and if the Pistons avoided being swept by the bulls in the East, ESPN would donate $5 million to a charity.

This news dominated the headlines of all television media in the evening.

At half past six, Zhou Quan, who had just finished dinner and had not yet finished the table, received a call from his agent.

"Zhou, from 4 p.m., your sneaker sales have exploded, and there are long queues at every store, and by the time the store closes at 6 p.m., the U.S. has sold $350,000 today, with 99 percent of sales coming from 4 to 6 p.m., 41 percent in Los Angeles, and 35 percent in Detroit." Philip said excitedly.

Zhou Quan calculated, the remaining 1% is today's normal sales, only 3,500 US dollars, and it is 60% or 70% lower than yesterday?

If this is not saved, the sales may be zero in a few days, and his shoes will be taken off the shelves after the East Decisive beating, and it seems that his bet is still right.

Philip then exclaimed, "There should be another wave tomorrow, and tomorrow is the main meal." Zhou, you've done a great thing, and I really hope that this effect can be maintained until the end of the Eastern Conference, when maybe the sales of eight million dollars will not be a problem, and you will have the hope of getting the next six million dollars. ”

Zhou Quan smiled: "Rogge, aren't you worried that I will lose half a million dollars?" ”

Philip was stunned and immediately said: "Zhou, I never believe that your team will be swept by the Bulls, I have confidence in you." ”

"I believe it too." Zhou Quan said.

"Iron Fist, it's time."

That's when Chuck Daly beckoned.

"Here we are."

Zhou Quan ended the phone call and came to a business conference room with his teammates, tomorrow G1 battle, now a tactical meeting.

Actually, it was held yesterday to discuss some issues, and it continues today.

After everyone arrived, the staff gave a cup of coffee, and Chuck Daly took a sip and said: "Gentlemen, iron fist bet on his net worth, I hope everyone will work hard not to let his 500,000 run into other people's pockets." ”

"Haha......"

Everyone laughed.

Rodman shouted, "Coach, it's not someone else's pocket, it's a charity's account. ”

Daley said: "I know, but little fool, charity is business, don't forget this sentence, if we are swept away, the 500,000 of the Iron Fist will definitely go into the pockets of some rich people." ”

Everyone was stunned, and Jo Dumas hurriedly reminded: "Chuck, the boss is a philanthropist." ”

Daley was stunned, glared at Rodman and said, "Dennis, don't mention charity-related topics in the future, do you want me to be fired by the boss?" ”

"Haha......"

The room burst into laughter.

Zhou Quan felt good, the atmosphere was very relaxed, better than nervous, but he hoped that this relaxation was not because of complete abandonment.

"Alright, joked aside, now let's get down to business."

Chuck Daley took two more sips of coffee, cleared his throat and said, "Yesterday we talked about defensive tactics, and today we decided on offensive tactics.

I'll give you some stats first, which is Michael Jordan's stats in the first and second rounds, he averaged 45 points, 9.7 rebounds, 3 steals and 1 block per game in the first round, and averaged 10.7 free throws per game.

For his performance in the first round, I have the following evaluation, which is a big cut beyond his performance in the regular season, with unlimited firepower, unlimited killing, top offensive and defensive capabilities, and explosive rebounding ability.

He shot 60.9 percent from the field and 66.7 percent from the field, which is enough to destroy any team, including the league's strongest defense. ”

"Whew!"

Zhou Quan and the others all began to take a deep breath, because these data gave them great pressure.

Daley then added: "He's not doing a little bit in the second round as well as the first round, but he's also very good, and you can see how good he's been in the playoffs if you look at the recent sales of his MJ brand." ”

Zhou Quan sighed helplessly, Coach Daley, which pot are you not opening and mentioning, when you talk about offense, you can talk about offense, what kind of shoes do you mention?

Chuck Daly added: "But just because Michael Jordan is very strong doesn't mean we don't have any hope of winning.

I'll give you another statistic, the Bulls' overall shooting percentage in the first two rounds was not as good as in the regular season, where they shot 50.8% in the regular season and 48.7% in the playoffs.

This shows that apart from Jordan, the Bulls' offensive efficiency is not as good as in the regular season, and this is our chance, we are the best defense in the league.

In the regular season, the Bulls limited their opponents to 46 percent shooting, compared to 45.3 percent, and we said yesterday, stand on defense, play well defensively, and then try to attack. ”

Speaking of this, he looked at Zhou Quan and said: "Offense, we must be efficient, we must have quality, we refuse to shoot and meaningless shots." ”

Zhou Quan nodded immediately, even if Dong Jue didn't let him make a move, he was willing, there was no way, he might not get the reward of bounce +1 because of this, but if he was swept by the bull, his loss of interests would be even greater.

Chuck Daley said at this time: "Iron Fist, Jordan has added a lot of breakthrough layup points in the playoffs, so he can play super efficient, then I also hope that you can strengthen the breakthrough." ”

“OK。”

Zhou Quan nodded heavily, they all arrived at the most critical east-to-east duel, and they had to fight hard.

After the tactical meeting, the G1 battle of the Western Conference Finals was just started, and they happened to watch the game together in the conference room.

As a result, the Trail Blazers, who were playing at home, won a big victory, 88-113, and won by a full 25 points.

The Trail Blazers led by 18 points in the first quarter, and it can be said that they collapsed the Jazz in one quarter.

Rebounds, shooting percentage, steals, assists, and shots, the Trail Blazers are all ahead of the Jazz.

Among them, the Trail Blazers had 36 assists, while the Jazz had only 20.

Five-time assist king John Stockton made 1 of 6 shots and only got 6 points, 1 rebound, 9 assists and 0 steals.

The Trail Blazers had 10 steals, while the Jazz had four.

The number of shots, 85 to the Jazz, only 65, a huge gap of 20.

The Jazz shot 1-of-6 from three-point range, with a 16.7 percent shooting rate, while the Trail Blazers shot 7-of-14.

The Jazz didn't score 20 points, Jeff Malone scored only 16 points, and the Postman scored only 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting, losing without a bit of temper.

For the Trail Blazers, five scored 10+, two of whom scored 20+.

Among them, the core glider Drexler made 5 of 11 shots and scored only 11 points.

But this shows the strength of the Trail Blazers lineup, even if the core is out of order, there are others who stand up and blow up the powerful Jazz.

After watching this game, Zhou Quan feels that ESPN has always placed the Trail Blazers in the second place in the championship chances, which is very reasonable.

He said: "Don't blow or black, this year's Trail Blazers, from beginning to end, average points per game are second in the league, and the first Pacers are out of the first round, that is to say, among the four teams now, the Trail Blazers have the strongest scoring ability and really have the temperament of a championship." ”

The smiling assassin said, "Their defense is poor, whether it is us or the bulls, it is not a problem to deal with them." ”

Zhou Quan smiled: "Then let's work hard and try to kill the bull." ”

"Kill the bull?"

Jo Dumas swallowed dryly, he didn't dare to answer the words.

Last night, Isaiah invited him to dinner, as well as Rodman, and cheered them up desperately, but in his heart, he didn't think the Pistons had the strength to eliminate the Bulls, at most he didn't think the Bulls had a chance to sweep the Pistons.

If you want to take out the Bulls, Michael Jordan will fight with them, it's not worth it at all, he thinks he should be able to win one or two games at home, and the chances of winning the Bulls away are slim.

Zhou Quan observed everyone's mood, it was not too bad, but the morale was not too high, not the kind of morale that fought with the belief of victory.

This makes him feel good or bad, and he always feels that this group of guys who have won two consecutive championships have no strength to fight.

McCloskey and Troy Weaver have also been watching the players, and they've seen Zhou Quan boost morale in a number of ways, even at the cost of betting against ESPN.

Effective, the morale of the team is indeed okay, but unfortunately, this team is still impossible to return to the top, the body is aging, the mentality is also aging, this is the current situation of the Pistons.

"Mentality is everything, and fresh blood must be replenished."

Troy Weaver, who was about to take over as general manager, glanced thoughtfully at the Assassins and several other veteran players, the team needed a trade, and a trade needed chips.

……

The Trail Blazers' defeat of the Jazz was not an upset, so the main focus of the media on the second day was the G1 game of the Eastern Conference Finals, or the Bulls.

"Although the Pistons faced the Bulls with two wins and three losses in the regular season, the Battle of Auburn Hills caused the Bulls to have an incomplete lineup, otherwise the Pistons are likely to lose all five regular season games. New york times.

"Michael Jordan is determined to sweep the Pistons again in the Eastern Finals, proudly donating 500,000 US dollars, the momentum is resolute, the sharpness of the sharpness, has become an unstoppable trend, and the probability of the Pistons being swept in the Eastern Conference finals is more than 60%." Cleveland Knights.

The bulls were fueled by a wide range of media, and the sound of sweeping the pistons was heard endlessly, from print media to television and radio media.

But at the same time, there is another hot topic in the media, that is, Zhou Quan's bet with ESPN, which has made the front page headlines of major print media in the United States today after last night's TV media.

In the morning, the Bulls held a tactical meeting at headquarters.

Phil Jackson emphasised the importance of the No. 1 position: "On the offensive end, the No. 1 position is only responsible for bringing the ball to the frontcourt, and that's fine, but on the defensive end, we're going to have a situation where the No. 1 position is being targeted and blown up. ”

"I'm going to guard against that rookie."

Jordan's face was grim, and his tone was resolute, not a request.

Phil Jackson nodded, Iron Fist's offensive skills are getting better and better, and at the same time, he also controls the main ball possession of the Pistons, and his current importance is even greater than that of Joe Dumas, such a person is impossible for John Paxson to defend.

"The Iron Fist was handed to Michael. John Paxson, you can't guard against Ulrich, go guard against Joe Dumas. He said.

John Paxson breathed a sigh of relief and nodded silently.

He didn't want to defend against the iron fist anymore, and the two broken ribs still seemed to ache.

At this time, Phil Jackson said: "But you can't prevent Joe Dumas, you may also be blown up, a little better, now most of the ball is in the hands of the Pistons, Joe Dumas is much less threatening, you have to follow him, cut off the passing angle between him and the iron fist." But ......"

Speaking of which, he looked at Jordan and said, "Michael, John will definitely be targeted there, Iron Fist should give Joe Dumas a lot of passes, so you and John Paxson have to cut off the passing angle of both of them at the same time." ”

"Understood." Jordan nodded.

Phil Jackson added: "At the same time you have to step up your offense on the offensive end, because Joe Dumas is probably going to score a lot of points on John's head, so you need to fill in the hole for John. ”

John Paxson lowered his head in shame, while Jordan nodded, "Leave it to me, Joe Dumas can score on John's head, but I can blow him up." ”

Phil Jackson said to Grant: "Hores, you pull out on the offensive end and try to bring Rodman out as much as possible to create space for the outside to break through and also help us grab more offensive rebounds."

At the same time, you have to strengthen the interior and don't waste the inside chances that Michael has created for you, we need your basket to score, that's important for us.

Defensively, guard against iron-fisted passes to the basket, and John Sailly and Rodman receive several of these passes per game. ”

"Understood." Grant said.

……

At noon, the Pistons came to the United Center arena for practice.

At half past five, after the training session and the bath, everyone went to the restaurant in the stadium to eat, and it was almost seven o'clock after eating, when the fans were about to enter.

"Zhou, good news, today's sneaker sales continue to explode, selling more than 700,000 in one day." Before Zhou Quan returned to the locker room, he received a call from his agent.

Zhou Quan's eyes widened, he sold more than one million in two days, plus the previous sales, it was close to three million, and Dongju sold another one million, which is half, and the sales of eight million US dollars can be expected!

"Iron Fist, your sneaker sales have exploded again?" The assassin said with envy.

Zhou Quan put his mobile phone in the closet and said with a smile: "Sold one million in two days, which is a blast, Jordan's rookie season sold for 80 million US dollars a year, which is 20 times more than his additional conditions, I don't know if I can complete it." ”

"Don't compare yourself to that pervert."

The assassin gritted his teeth.

At this time, Zhou Quan's phone rang again, and when he took it out, it was a reasonable call.

"Xiao Zhou, come on!"

"Brother Zhang, you're very quiet, aren't you on the spot, don't you come to watch the game?" He asked.

"Alas, the tickets for the Bulls are too expensive, several times more expensive than the regular season, I'll watch it at home, make a phone call to cheer you up, hehe!"

Zhang Reasonable was embarrassed to ask Zhou Quan for a ticket, this was an away game, he opened his mouth, and Zhou Quan had to buy it for him out of his own pocket.

"Alright, thanks! When we get to our home stadium, I invite you to watch the game. ”

"Then thank you in advance."

Zhou Quan didn't say kind words, and he didn't have a ticket.

There are family tickets at home, but only family members can enter, friends are not included, once in a while is OK, but it is definitely not possible if there are too many times.

As for the away team to get a free ticket, the star who has to have face has to ask the away team management himself, and he has to talk to the Bulls management about his relationship with Jordan, and he can't be smacked in the face? He didn't even bother to speak.

(End of chapter)