On the last day of the All-Star Game, the All-Stars moved to Madison Square Garden for open training in preparation for the evening's finale.
Xu Yong was in a very good mood after winning the three-point contest. During the open training, he saw James actively greeting the Eastern Conference All-Stars.
Rose's previous news turned out to be true, James is indeed a bit busy recently.
He didn't really care because there were so many media waiting for him. He basically just went through the motions and then went to the sidelines to be interviewed by reporters.
"Any plans for the All-Star Game?"
"Let the fans enjoy a visual feast." Xu Yong said with a smile.
"You won the Three-Point Contest yesterday. Are you aiming to win the All-Star Game MVP today?"
When Xu Yong heard this, he felt someone was looking at him. He turned around and found that it was James who had stopped talking at some point. He turned around and said with a smile, "Who wouldn't want to?"
James was shivering with anger.
After finishing the interview, Xu Yong participated in an exclusive interview with CCTV and was delayed for a while before returning to the locker room.
As soon as I walked to the locker room door, I saw James chatting with someone there again, and making strange laughs from time to time.
Of course, there were photographers inside recording everything that happened. After all, this was the locker room of the All-Star team. The All-Star Game itself was a show, so naturally the information in the locker room was also public.
Xu Yong retracted his gaze, walked to the seat closest to the door and sat down. That was his seat.
The seating arrangement in the NBA locker room is very particular. The seats closest to the door and at the edge are usually reserved for the team's bigwigs because there is a lot of space and it is convenient for reporters to interview at any time. The same is true for the All-Star Game.
The interesting thing is that after Xu Yong entered the locker room, everyone else stopped talking and turned their eyes to him.
When the All-Star Game was divided into the Eastern and Western Conferences, it was very clear who was the leader of the division. After all, everyone played in the same division, and everyone knew who was the strongest.
It was only later that it became necessary to appoint captains to consolidate the alliance status of some people.
Paul handed Xu Yong a piece of chocolate. It was still early for the evening game, but they still had to take the final photos later, so they really needed to fill their stomachs first.
Xu Yong took it, then turned around and said, "PG."
George, who was originally being forced to talk by James, gave up on James and turned his head after hearing this.
"That guy lost the game yesterday and will definitely want to perform tonight. You have to keep an eye on him." With Butler absent, Thibodeau selected George to replace him in the Eastern Conference starting lineup.
"Stephen?"
"Yes, he has a strong desire to perform. He will not wait passively, but will take the initiative."
"I will defend him, and I will make sure his first four shots all miss the basket." Confident George couldn't see Curry, but he seemed to have imagined the appearance of a toy in his mind.
Xu Yong, who had just opened the chocolate, laughed when he heard this. George's self-confidence in the Magic team increased much faster than when he stayed in Indiana.
"If he hadn't made the first four shots, his teammates wouldn't have passed the ball to him," Anthony joined the conversation.
"Then he has to grab the rebound himself." Paul said with a smile.
"He might be better at dunking than rebounding," Xu Yong said as he stuffed the chocolate into his mouth.
Everyone in the locker room burst into laughter.
James' expression at this moment was indescribably ugly, because he suddenly realized that everything he had done before, all the busyness, seemed to be less effective than Xu Yong's joke.
Or at this moment, he realized a reality: he was in the Eastern Conference, and it was impossible for him to compete with Xu Yong for the All-Star Game MVP now, and even more impossible in the future.
That night, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the All-Star Game kicked off at Madison Square Garden.
The venue for the All-Star Game was decided two years ago, when Anthony was still on the Knicks. But now the Knicks are in the process of rebuilding and the team can't even find an All-Star player, so the enthusiasm of New York fans can only be thrown to Xu Yong.
Xu Yong was also quite respectful, breaking through Durant at the start of the game and performing a very theatrical dunk.
He has no intention of participating in the dunk contest again for the time being, but he can move the part that fans are looking forward to to the main competition.
However, after the dunk, he led the team to play defense. Poor Stephen, he was defended by George three times in a row, and then he didn't take any more shots.
George has both wingspan and mobility, and he has always had a strong desire to defend since his debut with the Pacers.
Of course, one thing can be seen from this, that Curry did not have the dominance over the game at that time.
This is probably the reason why he was restricted by Dellavedova in the finals that year in history.
Or you can understand that Curry's popularity surge this season is not due to the improvement of his personal strength, but more due to the rise of the Warriors.
After all, it is a bit far-fetched to say that a player who takes a lot of three-pointers in a season but averages less than 24 points per game is dominant.
Curry truly showed his dominant performance in the next season, when he made an unprecedented 402 three-pointers and used the logo three-pointer as a regular weapon.
Moreover, as the game progressed, the defensive intensity of both sides decreased, and the most active person on the Western Conference side was not Curry or Durant, but Westbrook.
Agui, who has already achieved an economical triple-double for the Pelicans this season, said he is most familiar with the All-Star Game, a large-scale stat-boosting event, and he rushed forward with the ball.
It can be said that both sides had their own highlights, and those who wanted to fight basically had a great time.
Only James, the [King of Cleveland], [Chosen One], and [Nike's No. 1] player, seemed a little embarrassed.
Because he found that although he had prepared himself mentally, the reality was still more cruel than he had imagined.
When he is on the court, few people pass the ball to him!
When starting, Paul would either pass the ball to Xu Yong or Anthony, without even looking at him.
Originally, based on their previous communications, he thought he and Paul had reconciled.
However, it turned out that he was overthinking.
Or maybe he simply lacks self-awareness. He left the Pacers without saying goodbye to Paul. Given Paul's personality, even though he knew James might leave, if you just left without even saying hello, would he possibly just pretend nothing happened?
He's not as easy to get along with as Wade.
Being hypocritical and playing along is considered as not breaking up the relationship and leaving a last bit of face for both sides.
Although just like American soldiers sometimes suffer from epidemic concussion**, those who understand will understand.
Then when he became a substitute, a lot of people were unhappy with him, including Wade, Bosh, and even DeRozan and Lowry.
Breaking up needs to be "decent". James has changed teams three times, and each time he had such unpleasant experiences with his parent team. It would be weird if he can still be welcomed in the East.
After the two teams played for three and a half quarters, they had a real showdown in the last half. Xu Yong and Leonard staged a wonderful offense and defense battle in the final moments, and successfully won the game after making two consecutive difficult key shots.
The final score on the field was 163 to 158.
According to post-match statistics, in the Western Conference, Westbrook made 16 of 28 shots and scored a game-high 41 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 steals. Durant made 11 of 16 shots and scored 29 points, while Curry only scored 15 points on 6 of 16 shots.
In the Eastern Conference, Xu Yong scored a team-high 34 points with 15 of 21 shots, Anthony scored 21 points with 9 of 20 shots, George scored 19 points, Paul scored 14 points and 16 assists, and James scored 14 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
There was no suspense about the final MVP. Xu Yong once again won the All-Star Game MVP trophy after four years.
There was also a very interesting scene after the award ceremony. After Xu Yong received the trophy, he found that his shoelaces were untied, so he handed the trophy to James who was closest to him.
James was confused at first, but after taking it, he looked excited and signaled the reporter with his eyes to take a picture of him.
However, when the reporters were ready, Xu Yong had already tied his shoelaces and took back the trophy under James' reluctant gaze.
"Thank you." He thanked James, and James was stunned.
This scene, combined with the result of this All-Star Game, perfectly illustrates the saying: I can give it up, but you can't take it away from me.
…
The All-Star Game came to a bang, and the 2015 NBA trade deadline arrived immediately afterwards.
Because of Adams' injury, the Bulls still had some ideas at this year's trade deadline.
Originally, their expectations for veteran Muhammad were similar to last season, that is, he just needed to play for ten minutes. However, Muhammad's physical decline this season was more obvious than expected. It didn't have much impact when the team didn't encounter any injuries, but now the situation is obviously not good.
So use him as a second-round pick and replace him with an inside player who can still play to get through this period. The Bulls' preferred targets include veterans Haywood, Andersen, etc.
Because Adams' injury is expected to last only about ten games, the Bulls don't need to make much investment.
However, this year the teams' trades came earlier than in previous years, and trades had already begun before the trade deadline.
The most noteworthy among them is the Heat.
The Heat made a three-way deal with the Suns and Mavericks.
The Heat sent Norris Cole, Justin Hamilton and Devin Harris, as well as two first-round picks, to get Goran Dragic and Zoran Dragic.
The Suns sent the Dragic brothers and received Cole, Hamilton, Delonte West, two first-round picks from the Heat, and a first-round pick from the Mavericks.
The Mavericks sent West and a first-round pick to get Devin Harris.
Dragic had a masterpiece last season, averaging 20.3 points and 5.9 assists per game with a shooting percentage of 50.5%, a quasi-All-Star performance. So far this season, he has also averaged 16.2 points, 4.1 assists and a 50% shooting percentage.
The Heat got him after paying a lot of scraps and formed a luxurious five-star lineup of Dragic, Wade, Luol Deng, Bosh and Hibbert!
Riley's move is crazy enough. Although Dragic's trading value is low, largely because his contract will expire this summer, he is obviously fighting for this season.
Even though the Bulls were at their peak, and even though the Cavaliers had an unprecedented Big Four, Riley seemed to have rekindled his former passion and gave it a try.
Of course, the actual situation is that the Heat can't wait. Wade's condition has obviously declined this season. In addition, Hibbert's role on the court has been greatly reduced due to the [vertical jump rule]. The Heat has dropped to fifth in the Eastern Conference. If they don't fight now, they will have no chance later.
In addition, there are several other transactions that are worth paying attention to.
The Pelicans made a trade with the Jazz, with Perkins as the main player, and exchanged Kanter from the Jazz. Perkins has obviously deteriorated due to age and injuries and can no longer play as a starter;
The Timberwolves traded Thaddeus Young to the Brooklyn Nets for Garnett, and the Timberwolves returned to where their dream began in the final stages of their career.
The Celtics traded Marcus Thornton and a draft pick to the Suns for Isaiah Thomas;
…
Although there were no trades this year that were enough to change the league's landscape, the number of players involved in the trade reached 43, the most ever.
This ultimately comes down to the impact of the super luxury tax. Except for a very small number of teams that are rich and willing to spend money, most teams are avoiding triggering it.
Xu Yong was also paying attention to this trading market, but the Bulls did not make any moves until the trading deadline.
This is a bit unexpected, but also reasonable.
The Bulls' position as the top team in the league this season is extremely secure, and there is almost no uncertainty about next year's draft picks, with 30 in the first round and 60 in the second round.
It's not worth giving up the first round for a team's third substitute, but that second round is almost the same as not having it, and other teams don't want you to continue to become stronger.
However, the problem should not be too big. Hawes has the ability to start. If not, it is not a big problem to let Johnson play at the five position for a few minutes. After all, the league is no longer dominated by big centers.
The day after the trading day, Xu Yong finished his morning training and went to the gym with Anderson.
When getting in the car, Xu Yong noticed that Anderson had dark circles under his eyes, and it seemed that he did not sleep well last night.
He suddenly realized something. Since Anderson hadn't gotten any chances so far this season, there was a high probability that he would become a trading chip. Last night must have been a tormenting night for Anderson.
The car stopped at the intersection of the traffic lights. Seeing the tattoo on Anderson's arm, Xu Yong interrupted the conversation: "Is that your relative?"
Anderson turned his head in confusion.
"On your arm." Xu Yong has seen many tattoos in the United States over the years. The most exaggerated one is Anderson's, but he has never seen someone with two old ladies tattooed on his arm.
After hearing this, Anderson smiled and held out his left arm to Xu Yong, saying happily, "These are my grandma and my grandmother."
“You love them very much.”
"No, they love me very much. They have taught me a lot since I was a child and have helped me a lot." Anderson looked at the tattoo on his arm with love in his eyes.
Hearing this, Xu Yong couldn't help but nod in approval. Anderson has been very active in his work since he moved to where he lives.
Now it seems that all these were influenced by his family. No wonder he followed his mother to search for his relatives thousands of miles away.
“Kyle.”
Anderson heard Xu Yong calling him and looked up at Xu Yong again.
"No matter where you are, opportunities are reserved for those who are prepared. The direction of your current training and the degree of your efforts will ensure that you will have a place in the NBA in the future, so don't worry too much." After saying this, Xu Yong looked ahead and saw the green light.
Anderson looked a little excited at the moment. He felt as if his future was suddenly brightened when he heard such affirmative words from Xu Yong.
"Thank you, Boss."
After saying that, he turned around and started the car. The car in front had already left and the road ahead was clear.
…
After arriving at the stadium, Xu Yong went to the locker room first. Since it was the team's daily training, the players were chatting and laughing there at this time.
"Spencer, did you find your toilet?" Butler wanted to ask Hawes with a smile while changing into his training clothes. Adams couldn't play because of injury, but he looked full of energy.
His condition before and after this makes people wonder if he was injured passively because he didn't want to go to the All-Star Game.
“I posted on social media and it showed up on my doorstep not long after.”
Hawes's words immediately caused laughter in the locker room. This was the popularity of the Bulls in Chicago. They no longer needed any gangsters to protect their lives and financial security, because all the gangs in Chicago were protecting them.
Xu Yong also smiled and shook his head, but at this moment, he discovered that there was one person missing in the locker room. After a closer look, he found that the sign on one of the wardrobes had been taken down.
It's Muhammad's.
This made him a little confused, because he was sure that the Bulls did not make any moves on the trade deadline.
Just then, Thibodeau entered the locker room and called Xu Yong out.
After leaving the locker room, Thibodeau did not speak in a hurry, but took Xu Yong directly back to the coach's office.
"Steven is expected to miss about 10 more games, and Jimmy... about 15."
After listening to what Thibodeau said, Xu Yong was surprised, mainly because of Butler. He also thought Butler would be able to play after the All-Star Game, but it turned out that he had to rest longer than Adams?
"Jimmy's situation is a little special. He can play with an injury and he wants to play with an injury, but the coaching staff wants to wait until he is fully healed before letting him play."
It turned out that it was because of this. Xu Yong now understood why Thibodeau called him here.
The Bulls have had an excellent record this season. So far, two-thirds of the schedule has passed, and they have only lost seven games. There is a real chance that they will break the record of 72 wins that year.
But now the emergence of a wave of injuries has cast a big question mark over all of this.
In other words, the Bulls now have to make a choice: to break the record at all costs, or to give up in advance and ensure that all players are healthy and enter the playoffs.
"I think the coaching staff's consideration is correct." Xu Yong agreed with Thibodeau. As a reborn person, he had a deep impression of the Warriors team's history of being plagued by injuries in their quest to break this record, and ending up with a ridiculous 73-win record and the runner-up title.
Thibodeau looked happy when he heard this. Since Xu Yong agreed with him, he had nothing to worry about.
"But I think our momentum can continue." However, Xu Yong followed up with a turning point.
"Tom, I'm only 26 years old. I didn't contribute much in the first two-thirds of the season. Just leave the remaining one-third to me."
Of course I want all the choices adults make.
Thibodeau opened his eyes wide and laughed the next second because he could not refute what Xu Yong said.
As for injuries, Butler said he is durable, but he still got injured. However, Xu Yong has never been injured in these years. He is truly the contemporary AC Green.
"By the way, was Nazir (Mohammed) laid off?" After finishing the serious business, Xu Yong couldn't help but ask before leaving.
"Gal (Forman) said there will be a new person coming in two days, but nothing is confirmed, and he didn't say who it will be." Thibodeau nodded.
Xu Yong suddenly realized that this was probably the reason why the Bulls did not take action on the trade deadline. After all, there is a buyout market behind it.
If it were in previous years, a buyout would definitely not be as attractive as a trade, but given the situation this year, the Bulls will probably have a lot of veterans to cling to.
Two days later, after a practice session on the day of the game against the Grizzlies, Malone led a newcomer to the locker room.
When he saw the other person, Xu Yong was quite surprised, because the other person was Kendrick Perkins.
I didn't expect that Foreman would get him here without any warning. He must have some talent.
Perkins was also very good at dealing with things. The first thing he did after entering the room was to come to Xu Yong and pay his respects to him, and he opened his arms as soon as he came up, as if the two of them were very familiar with each other.
Don't be fooled by this guy's silly look, as if Li Kui from the Water Margin traveled to the modern era, but Xu Yong knew that he became a commentator for ESPN and was doing very well after retiring.
Xu Yong didn't embarrass him and stood up and hugged him.
Although Perkins' current ability is no longer as good as it used to be, he can still do Muhammad's original job, which is to last for ten minutes.
And the key is his experience, which makes him stronger than Muhammad. After all, he is a genuine championship blue-collar center with rich game experience. He can help Adams grow better.
"When I came here, I heard that Chris (Bosh) was out for the season." After receiving a hug from Xu Yong, Perkins became more proactive. He sat directly in the empty seat next to him and talked about the gossip he heard.
"Blood clot?" Xu Yong was not too surprised, because he thought of this matter during the All-Star Game.
"You already know?" Perkins said as he moved closer to Xu Yong.
"I just heard about it too." Xu Yong smelled a strong body odor and leaned back.
"A blood clot in the lung means the Heat are done for the season." Perkins took the initiative to move away and said with emotion.
Xu Yong also felt a little emotional. Riley is a master of calculation, but man proposes, God disposes. The Heat's five-star lineup ended before it even began.
But in this way, the feud between them and the Heat seemed to have come to an abrupt end.
That night, the Bulls played against the Grizzlies at home. Butler and Adams were both absent due to injuries. Although Perkins was new to the team, he was directly included in the rotation.
The Grizzlies are ranked fourth in the Western Conference this season and are the best performing team besides the Warriors, Thunder and Mavericks. They even acquired Jeff Green from the Celtics on the trade deadline.
The starting lineup includes Mike Conley, Courtney Lee, Jeff Green, Randolph, and Gasol Jr. This lineup is very oppressive just thinking about it.
This game was also the toughest game for the Bulls this season.
The Grizzlies turned up the defensive intensity from the start. Without Butler to dilute the ball, Rose was also locked down by Conley who had been defending for a while. The Bulls' offensive pressure was basically all on Xu Yong alone.
Moreover, the black and white duo also put great pressure on the Bulls on the offensive end.
West had a hard time matching up against Randolph on the defensive end, and Hawes was completely unable to handle Gasol Jr. The impact of Adams' absence was infinitely magnified.
The Bulls were lagging behind in the first three quarters. In the final decisive moment of the last quarter, Thibodeau directly abandoned Hawes and replaced him with Perkins as the main center.
The effect is significant. Although Perkins may not be good at other things, his body toughness is there, and his protection of the inside line is significantly improved.
However, this will put more pressure on Xu Yong's offense, because Perkins is basically useless on the offensive end and can't even eat the ball fed to him.
Then Xu Yong led the team to win the game 96-91 with one mid-range and long-range shot after another, 20 points in a single quarter, and a dunk over Gasol Jr.
"We tried everything, but in the end we couldn't stop him from scoring." Grizzlies head coach Dave Joerger could only smile bitterly in front of reporters after the game.
When the opponent's two main players are absent and you still cannot win the game, that result is hard to accept.
The reason why you were smiling bitterly instead of feeling depressed was because the opponent team had Xu Yong, so it was reasonable for you to lose.
Facing the Grizzlies' high-pressure defense, Xu Yong still scored 45 points, which was nearly half of the team's total score.
However, it was not only Xu Yong who attracted attention in this game, but also the newly joined Perkins.
Because of his outstanding performance in the last quarter, Thibodeau also brought him to the press conference.
"Xu is the strongest teammate I have ever met in my entire career. I will not be surprised if he scores 100 points." Perkins played without blushing or beating his heart.
However, this shameless behavior further explains why he was able to succeed at ESPN in the future.
Xu Yong on the side had no expression on his face, but to be honest, considering Perkins' resume, this flattery was quite pleasing.
"I only practiced tactics for 45 minutes before going on the court. I didn't know what to do on the court, but we still won the game."
And when reporters asked about his performance in the final quarter, he seemed to downplay it.
His way of flattery is not directed at just one person, but the entire team.
Then, he integrated perfectly into the Bulls. No one would not want to be a teammate with someone who speaks well and has strength.
After finishing the game with the Grizzlies, the Bulls will face the Magic next.
The Magic are now ranked ninth in the Eastern Conference and are competing with the Nets and Celtics for a playoff spot.
Their starting lineup includes point guard Elfrid Payton, shooting guard Oladipo, small forward Paul George, power forward Aaron Gordon, center Channing Frye, and sixth man Tobias Harris on the bench.
This lineup is a real young army, the kind that hasn't even filled the pauper line. However, they have reached this position after two seasons of reconstruction, which is much faster than the last time after O'Neal left.
In the end, the Bulls won the game 116-108.
Xu Yong scored his first 50+ of the season, 54 points, plus 7 rebounds and 4 assists.
The old hands on the Grizzlies couldn't do anything about Xu Yong, let alone restrict the youngsters on the Magic.
George also played very well tonight, scoring 35 points, showing the style of a core player, which is also in line with his season average of 24.7 points per game.
The confrontation between him and Xu Yong tonight was quite similar to the scene when McGrady and Kobe faced off against each other.
"PG has the opportunity to become a superstar, he is very good." During the post-match press conference, Xu Yong also praised George.
Unlike in history, George was not selected for last year's World Cup Dream Team, which was full of elite players. This also allowed him to avoid the serious injury of a broken leg.
George, who has not broken his leg, is an all-round offensive and defensive star who can compete with James in the playoffs, and it is highly likely that he will become a superstar.
Xu Yong highly praised George at the press conference and seemed to be in a good mood. However, after leaving the press conference, he realized that this period was more difficult than he had expected.
In the two games after the All-Star Game, apart from him, Rose and West did not perform very well.
Especially Rose, he played against Conley in one game and Payton Jr. in another. Both of his opponents had strong defensive abilities and he performed poorly in both games.
This actually involves a topic. Rose adjusted his playing style so that he would not be easily reimbursed for the season, but the decline in his personal ability is inevitable.
Ross can't have his cake and eat it too.
The 50-point performance before the All-Star Game moved many Bulls fans. Even the host couldn't help but ask emotionally, "Will the former Derrick Rose come back?" But Rose's original answer actually gave the answer. He couldn't do it without the help of his teammates.
Rose is now a starting-level player who occasionally has outbursts but performs poorly against quality defenders.
Yao Ming maintained his career by losing weight due to injuries, but his performance has been declining year by year. Rose's situation is better because he is young, but he can't go back.
Time flies and it is mid-March. The Bulls have gone through the most difficult days of the season with an 8-2 record.
In these ten games, Xu Yong averaged 45.4 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.8 assists, with a shooting percentage of 53% and a three-point shooting percentage of 41%. His performance was explosive.
"I don't know how to describe it, but I'm shocked." This is the pale yet most powerful description Barkley used on the TNT show.
"The Bulls' opponents face the ruler of hell every night, and there is no shame in showing cowardice in front of Satan." The latest issue of Sports Illustrated used a photo of Xu Yong dunking over Gasol Jr. as the cover, and used these words to describe Xu Yong's performance in the past stage.
Even according to official NBA statistics, the league's ratings have increased by nearly 5 percentage points due to Xu Yong's performance in the past.
This is truly a one-man show to boost ratings.
Just as a wonderful dunk is often accompanied by a missed pass, the Bulls' wave of injuries has allowed people to witness Xu Yong's terrifying strength this season.
However, the Bulls are now facing a problem. There is nearly a month left before the end of the season, and the Bulls still have 15 games to play.
Although they will welcome the return of Adams and Butler, their current record is 58 wins and 9 losses. Unless they can win 15 consecutive games, they will not be able to break the Bulls' 72-win record.
Even if they lose one game, they will lose the chance to tie the record.
There are too many uncertainties in a long season, which is why the records are sealed.