Generally, the regular season MVP and other honors are announced during the first round of the playoffs.
These honors are determined based on the player's performance during the season, combined with the team's record, and then voted on by officials and the media.
But...
The various honors for this season have been delayed in being announced.
......
The second round of the playoffs has begun, with four teams from each conference advancing to the second round.
west:
Suns, Spurs, SuperSonics, Mavericks
east:
Heat, Pistons, Wizards, Celtics
There were also some upsets, such as the Rockets, with the Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady duo, losing to the Mavericks, and the Bulls, who were ranked higher in the regular season, losing to the Wizards.
The Rockets were the champions two years ago, so they should be considered experienced. With the addition of McGrady, Gu Tao was able to average 17+6+6, making him a qualified third option. However, after a hard-fought seven games, they lost to the Mavericks, especially the seventh game, which was played at home in Houston, where they lost to the Mavericks by more than forty points.
Houston fans did the opposite, starting to boo the home team.
more than this...
Every time the Rockets are on offense, the fans shout, "Defend the country!"
Houston fans have an unparalleled fondness for Wei Guo. That year, the Rockets had Yao Ming, Francis, Mobley... Wei Guo led them to be invincible, unstoppable. When McGrady joined the Rockets last year, fans thought it was an improvement on the roster, and they were looking forward to the Rockets meeting the Suns in the playoffs.
result...
The Rockets were eliminated in the first round.
Professionals have also seen that Gu Tao is not lacking in talent and hard work. He graduated from the Department of Mathematics at Harvard University and plays very reasonably. However, he lacks sharpness, which is the biggest difference between him and Wei Guo.
When Francis was with the team, he took good care of Yao Ming and Gu Tao. When McGrady joined the Rockets, he joined as the team's leader. Gu Tao didn't compete for anything and was willing to be the team's third option, becoming McGrady's supporting player. If Gu Tao had the same sharpness as Wei Guo, the Rockets would definitely not have been eliminated by the Mavericks in the first round.
......
The Suns will face the Mavericks, Nash's former team, in the second round.
The two teams faced off four times in the regular season, with the Suns winning three and losing one. In one of those games, Nash scored 30 points and 30 assists, a historic performance that even Wei Guo hadn't achieved.
There is a gap in strength.
The Mavericks, having won a game against the Suns in the regular season, weren't as desperate as the Grizzlies were when facing the Suns.
and...
The Mavericks also have Nowitzki, whose one-legged fadeaway jumper is almost unstoppable.
Mavericks fans are eagerly anticipating a victory over the Suns in this series, a game that would make the Mavericks famous and would bring them closer to the championship.
The league has always had this practice...
If a team with the best record in the league is defeated by another team, that team is considered to have a chance to win the championship.
Black eight (unlucky draw) happens quite often.
Perhaps in some season, the Mavericks will be upset by the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs, but... since this is already the second round of the playoffs, even if the Mavericks beat the Suns, it can only be considered a comeback, not an upset.
The Mavericks and the Suns have something in common: they are both offense-oriented teams with few good defenders. They both want to win games through offense and both have a group of very strong offensive players. Without further ado, this series is about to begin.
......
Starting lineup for this match:
Dallas Mavericks: Terry, Finley, Howard, Nowitzki, Dampier
Suns: Nash, Johnson, Weiguo, Marion, Stoudemire
......
Dampier and Weiguo stood in the center circle, ready for the jump ball.
The second-best center in the West had a deep fear of Wei Guo. He couldn't understand why Wei Guo liked to match up against him so much. Did he think he was easy to bully?
Although Wei Guo doesn't have the same broad physique as O'Neal, his strength is no less than O'Neal's. He is more agile under the basket and has more scoring methods. Without teammates helping to defend, Wei Guo's shooting percentage under the basket against Dampier is over 80%, provided that Dampier keeps fouling him, otherwise he can't stop a single shot.
"Beep!!!"
The whistle blew, and the basketball was tossed into the air.
Before Dampier could even jump, Wei Guo passed the ball to Nash, who controlled the basketball and made a long pass to Wei Guo.
Wei Guo pulls up for a three-pointer!
"Whoosh!!!"
The basketball went into the net.
3-0!!!
Gentry chuckled and said, "Brother Wei is on a roll tonight."
After falling in love with mahjong and Guandan, Gentry would use "smooth sailing" to describe when his players were in good form, as he had a vague premonition that the team would score a lot tonight.
The Mavericks are on offense!
Finley received a pass from Terry and scored with a layup.
It was as if it had been pre-arranged...
Both teams focused on offense, making for a fast-paced game where an attack often occurred before the defense even had a chance to react.
The player is on fire!
In fact, the Mavericks had a better shooting touch than the Suns. They never passed the ball more than three times on offense and often took the shot immediately when an opportunity arose. Nowitzki twice attacked the basket and overpowered Wei Guo. His body was twisted and deformed when he leaned back in the air, but he was still able to throw the ball into the basket.
The Suns maintained their usual shooting touch.
At the end of the first quarter, Wei Guo scored 13 points on 5-of-7 shooting, Stoudemire scored 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting, Johnson scored 9 points on 3-of-3 shooting from three-point range, Nash scored 5 points, and Marion scored 7 points. Richardson and Jackson, who came off the bench in the final minutes, did not score.
44:46!!
that's all...
The Suns are still down by 2 points.
......
"Offensive warfare can also be suffocating."
"Brother Wei hasn't shown his true colors yet..."
"Is there anyone who can calculate the shooting percentages of these two teams in the first quarter?"
"More than 70% of the time, I didn't see many missed shots."
"Brother Wei missed two shots. I remember it very clearly. One was a mid-range shot that missed, and the other was a fast break dunk where the ball flew out of bounds."
"Hahaha..."
"Wei Ge is undoubtedly a cancer on the Suns."
......
With 7 minutes remaining in the first quarter, Wei Guo stole the ball and launched a fast break, jumping just inside the free throw line with no one in the basket.
Because he jumped too high and with too much force, the basketball bounced off the rim and flew away. Wei Guo landed while the basketball was still in the air, and he jumped up to dunk it for a score.
Self-alley-oops and dunks are common, and Wei Guo often performs them in games. However, a situation where the first dunk misses, and then the player jumps up and dunks the ball again after landing, has never occurred in the league before.
actually...
Wei Guo was thinking of grabbing the rim with his right hand while scooping the ball back with his left, but the basketball bounced straight into the air and he couldn't scoop it back at all.
Unintentionally, this incident allowed the audience to witness the terrifying speed of Wei Guo's bullets.
Although it lowered his shooting percentage, it also allowed Wei Guo to grab an extra rebound, because his shooting percentage was too high in the first quarter, and Wei Guo only managed to grab three rebounds.
During the break, all the Suns players looked up at the scoreboard. 44 points in a quarter was already impressive, but the Mavericks scored an incredible 46 points in a quarter. At this rate, the score tonight would be very high.
The break time is almost over, and the players are getting ready to go on the field.
Just as D'Antoni was about to make arrangements with the players, Johnson frowned and said, "Coach, I'm not feeling well."
"What's wrong?"
D'Antoni noticed that Johnson's lips were pale.
Everyone else had long since wiped the sweat off their bodies, but Johnson's forehead was still dripping with sweat.
Johnson explained, "I have a slight fever, probably the flu."
Why didn't you say this before the match?
D'Antoni retorted, "The flu is no small matter either."
This season, several Suns players have already contracted the flu during games, and the air in the US doesn't seem to be very clean either.
There's a bit of mystical element to this...
The Suns once again used the flu as an excuse to refuse to play, and the flu actually struck the team after that.
Gentry patted Johnson on the shoulder and said, "Go back to the locker room and rest. Let the team doctor check you again."
D'Antoni originally planned to give Wei Guo a two-minute rest, but Johnson was unable to play tonight due to his condition, which meant that other players would have to increase their playing time.
For the Mavericks, Stackhouse replaced Finley, and Henderson replaced Dampier.
Nowitzki, Terry, and Josh are still on the court... All three of them are shooting well tonight, and they need to keep it up if they want to beat the Suns.
It's worth mentioning...
The Mavericks' head coach is no longer Don Nelson, but Avery Johnson. The substitute, Stackhouse, is also Wei Guo's old rival. When Wei Guo entered the league, Stackhouse was at the peak of his career and could be considered the leader of the Pistons. He had also provoked the rookie Wei Guo in a game.
That season, the 76ers and Pistons faced off multiple times, and Stackhouse picked Weiguo, which naturally didn't end well.
Back then, Wei Guo was young, and in a post-match interview, he told reporters that picking on him would only lead to trouble, a statement that has become a classic among Chinese football fans.
......
Both Wei Guo and Nash remained on the court.
Mavericks head coach Johnson understands that the Suns are not going to hold back either, and both teams want to win this game.
The Mavericks are on offense.
Terry went one-on-one against Nash and forced a three-pointer.
"Whoosh!!!"
The basketball went into the net.
44:49!!
Terry continues to maintain his magical touch.
This is a surprise weapon. Surprise weapons don't have the ability to consistently output damage, but if they explode, they can deliver a fatal blow. This three-point shot also made Wei Guo target Terry.
Wei Guo quickly moved to the baseline to serve!
The Mavericks did not use a full-court press. Everyone retreated to the backcourt. Nash received the ball from Wei Guo at midcourt, and Richardson was lurking outside the three-point line. He received the pass from Nash and took a three-point shot!
"bang~~~"
The basketball bounced off the rim.
Nowitzki grabbed the defensive rebound, and Terry and his teammates quickly ran up the court. When Terry received the pass from Nowitzki, Stackhouse was already running to the vicinity of the three-point line.
"Stackhouse, catch the ball!"
Terry gave Stackhouse a warning, then pushed the basketball forward with both hands, sending it flying straight toward Stackhouse.
Stackhouse is preparing to receive the ball...
Suddenly, someone appeared behind him, knocked the ball out of Stackhouse's hands, and slowly dribbled it across the frontcourt.
"Defend the country!!!"
Stackhouse's eyes widened. "When did you hide behind me?"
Guess~
"Kids are guessing!"
The Suns' offense was too fast this time. Wei Guo didn't enter the court after inbounding the ball from the baseline. He stood on the sidelines and waited until Richardson missed the shot and Nowitzki grabbed the defensive rebound. Wei Guo knew that the Mavericks were going to launch a fast break. He had been waiting for this opportunity.
Either steal...
Either block the shot...
In short, there is no pressure in the backcourt where one guards two, unless Stackhouse is about a step away from the three-point line when he takes the shot.
Wei Guo dribbled the ball slowly, while Nowitzki pulled up to the three-point line!
Facing a big guy...
Wei Guo simply used a Buddhist gesture to shake him off, then quickly changed direction and broke past him!
Dampier stood all alone under the basket!
Seeing Wei Guo rushing over, he made a very clear decision: to dodge and run out of the three-second zone.
"Bang!!!"
Wei Guo was holding back his energy, but ended up dunking an empty basket.
46:49!!
The Suns are still down by 3 points.
......
The Mavericks continue to have an excellent shooting touch.
Fortunately...
The Suns players were also in good form, and Wei Guo played with 100% effort in the second quarter, which is how they managed to keep the score close.
71:79!!
At halftime, the Mavericks led by 8 points.
79 points is almost the highest half-time score in Mavericks franchise history. The league's highest half-time score is held by the Suns, who scored 107 points in a game against the Nuggets in 1990!
First half...
Wei Guo scored 29 points on 11-of-16 shooting, his highest score of the game.
On the other hand, for the Mavericks, Nowitzki had 21 points, Terry had 23 points, Josh had 17 points, and Stackhouse had 11 points. Although Dampier and Finley didn't score much, the Mavericks had four players scoring in double figures in the first half.
The home dressing room!
Kintry made fish soup, as the sea has been rough lately and fish prices are higher than usual.
Cummings, holding a bowl of fish soup, said, “We had a total of 17 games in the regular season with more than 140 points, the highest record being 161 points in a single game... There were 11 games with more than 71 points in the first half, so tonight’s performance was just average.”
"Put away that old cadre air of yours!"
Wei Guo patted Cummings on the back of the head, "When the team needs you, you have to play."
Cummings has been improving, and he has also participated in intra-team training matches. Everyone knows that... although Cummings' level is not as good as some of the starting players, there are not many substitutes who can surpass Cummings.
only...
Cummings rarely plays, and even when he does, it's usually during garbage time.
Anyone can treat Cummings as a benchwarmer, but his teammates can't... Johnson is out due to the flu, and if the Mavericks can maintain this hot streak, the second half will only be more difficult than the first.
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