Jokic, fell in love with drinking tea.

Xu Yong just gave it casually at first, but he didn't expect that he would create a [Serbian Tea Artist].

But luckily this is real tea.

The effect of tea is similar to that of coffee. It can refresh the mind and, to a certain extent, promote the secretion of gastric juice and fat dissolution, thereby assisting in weight loss. It can be said to kill two birds with one stone.

However, Xu Yong still reminded Jokic that although tea is good, you can't drink too much of it, as drinking too much can cause kidney problems.

This was advice from him, a human in the Jindan stage, before his rebirth.

Time flies, and it is already mid-September. The Bulls' pre-training camp mini-training camp has come to an end with remarkable results.

When Thibodeau arrived at the team and started the formal training camp, after seeing the players' condition, he said that it would seem redundant for him, as the head coach, to not do something.

So on the first day of training camp, he skipped basic training and went straight to full-court tactical drills.

Then he was pleasantly surprised to find that the two core players, Xu Yong and Butler, had made further progress.

Butler has enriched his breakthrough methods. Before, his breakthrough basically relied on the first step, but he added the European step and small floaters, which significantly enhanced his breakthrough lethality, and his step-back jump shot ability has also become much more stable, which is obviously the result of a lot of training. God knows how he did so much in one summer.

And Xu Yong's sudden improvement in his low-post singles ability to support tactical initiation made Thibodeau certain that he seemed a bit redundant.

The core of the team is getting stronger without any urging on his part, so what else do you want him to do?

However, during the formal training, there was a small incident.

That is, in the single-quarter confrontations for several consecutive days, the bench team defeated the substitute team.

Bench: Dellavedova, Holiday, Artest, Kyle Anderson, Jokic.

Substitute team: Hinrich, Foye, Ennis, Prince, Hawes.

The reason for this is partly due to the state of the substitute team.

In fact, since last season, the performances of Hinrich, Foye and Hawes have been declining compared to before.

Except for Hinrich, whose problems are caused by age, Foye and Hawes' problems are more due to lack of playing time.

There is no way around it. The Bulls' iron triangle is at its peak, especially with two physical freaks. The substitutes have limited playing time, and without enough playing time, the players' condition will decline.

The remaining part is that the Bulls' bench strength is underestimated.

There is no need to say much about Delaventu. The Bulls signed him for rotation. With his excellent form, the coaching staff can now rest assured to let Hinrich play as the third substitute.

Anderson and Jokic performed unexpectedly.

Anderson's defense, three-pointers, and even his condition on the court give people the most direct feeling that he is fully ready to play.

As for Jokic, his performance was not that good. On the defensive end, he was repeatedly passed by Foye when he was defending a smaller player. However, he has a very good sense of rebounds and can always successfully predict where the ball will land. What's more important is that on the offensive end, when the ball passes his hands, he can find the person with the best opportunity in the first place.

In other words, he is not the king of data, but he is the one who can make others better.

These are talents that cannot be demonstrated in a one-on-one match and can only be displayed in a full-court confrontation.

Xu Yong was also amazed watching from the sidelines. There is a reason why Jokic surpassed Sabonis and Divac to become the best passing big man in NBA history. This kind of talent, like Durant's coordination that is not supposed to belong to a person of his height, is something that transcends [general cognition].

This little episode suddenly made the Bulls' rotation competition fierce.

The result of this competition is that the Bulls won 7 games in the preseason and beat their opponents by an average of nearly 20 points per game.

This does not mean that the Bulls are stronger than last season, or that they were more ruthless, because just like in the past few seasons, the main players of the Bulls only played in the first half, and the substitutes played in the second half.

And the reason is that when playing as a substitute, in order to compete for opportunities, the substitutes all try their best to show themselves.

Then from the results, this competition is healthy.

After the preseason ended, ESPN ranked the strength of each team in the new season.

At the top of the list is the Cavaliers...the Thunder, their opponent in the opening game.

ESPN's analysis is: When the Thunder have Kevin Durant, James Harden, Dwight Howard, and Serge Ibaka, it's hard not to put them in first place. This will be the best time for Kevin Durant to reach the top.

If you replace Durant in this analysis with James, and the remaining three guys with the other Big Three of the Cavaliers, you will find how familiar he is.

As the defending champions, the Bulls ranked second, ahead of the Cavaliers.

As the Western Conference champions in last season's regular season, the Warriors also ranked third, ahead of the Cavaliers.

The Mavericks look very strong and are still ranked fourth above the Cavaliers.

It may sound unbelievable, but the Big Four of the Cavaliers are directly ranked fifth!

ESPN vividly demonstrated what it means to be yesterday's Sweetie and today's Mrs. Cow.

To be honest, the Cavaliers' lineup on paper this year is unprecedentedly strong. Coupled with a season of running-in, they are definitely in the top three, and it is not an exaggeration to even rank first.

But unfortunately, when the Cavaliers needed James the most, James was abandoned by Nike, and naturally he had no chance to play with those players.

After breakfast that day, Xu Yong opened social media and drank the tea made by Jokic. He almost burst out laughing.

"Scrap ESPN, Nike's dog, act blind with open eyes!"

"Which of ESPN's predictions have ever been accurate? They predicted the Bulls would be eighth, but didn't the Bulls win the championship?"

"Watching ESPN is not as good as watching TNT. Watching TNT this year...Fuck, why is the Bulls the No. 1 predicted by TNT?!"

"TNT is Xu Yong's dog, we still have to watch FOX. I'm so terrified, why is the Warriors No. 1 on FOX?"

"When the Cavaliers, Heat, and Pacers were ranked first, why didn't I see you guys making any noise? Things have changed, brother." Comment from "Los Angeles Nation".

"Poor king, abandoned by the mainstream media." Comment from "KBfnas".

"The peak gives birth to false users, while the dusk bears witness to true believers."

"Are you saying that the 30-year-old king is in his twilight years? Be careful or I will report you!" Comment from "Knight's Loyal Guard".

…

"What's so funny?" Jokic poked his head in curiously.

Xu Yong handed him the phone.

Jokic choked and coughed after watching for a while. He hasn't even opened social media yet.

"It's a pity that we don't play against the Cavaliers in the opening game." After taking the phone handed back by Jokic, Xu Yong said with a hint of regret.

James has received so many benefits before, including those rules, which ultimately comes down to Nike's influence on the league. Now that influence has suddenly disappeared, James is afraid that he may kneel on the court all night and still not get the whistle he wants.

"We can watch," Jokic said seriously.

Xu Yong was stunned for a moment, then he laughed. This was indeed possible.

Their season opener will be on the second day of the season, and their opponent is the Lakers. We can indeed watch this highlight game on the first day.

In addition to James and the Cavaliers, he also wants to see how the Thunder's lineup will look this year.

In history, the Warriors went all the way to 73 wins that year. Let's assume that the Western Conference opponents became stronger and the Warriors still managed to do it. But if they failed to make it out of the West in the end, it would be even more ridiculous than the Cavaliers last season.

"Boss, I think I'm ready now." Jokic put down the teacup and said, because Anderson had always called Xu Yong "Boss", he now changed his words as well.

Adams and Anderson both looked at Jokic with curiosity. Jokic has indeed changed a lot in the past two months.

Xu Yong put away his smile at this time, and said seriously: "You have to be prepared for not having a chance to play. This is a championship team, and it will take time."

Based on Jokic's big boy temper, Xu Yong felt it necessary to remind him so that he would not feel frustrated.

"Yes, I hardly attended the class last year, but I think things will be different this year," Anderson nodded.

Jokic felt somewhat disappointed when he heard this. The past two months have been the two months with the hardest training in his life, and he also had some performance in the preseason.

"Be patient. Opportunities come to those who are prepared." Xu Yong comforted.

Jokic nodded, pouting and continuing to drink his tea.

That night, except for those who lived in the two villas, Butler also drove over.

Speaking of which, Butler is quite good. After signing a five-year maximum salary contract with the Bulls, he advanced his salary. In addition to buying a house for himself, he also bought a new house for his adoptive parents, and then gave Xu Yong a Ferrari worth more than 700,000 yuan in return for the car and his help to him over the years.

I came here now and prepared a lot of snacks to eat while watching the game.

Xu Yong, Butler, Adams, Anderson, Jokic, a group of people sat on the sofa, with a pile of snacks on the coffee table, waiting to watch the game. If this scene was captured by the media, it would be excellent news material.

Before the game started, it was time for betting again. However, there were more people today, so they didn't bet against each other like last time. Instead, Xu Yong was the banker. He bet on the Cavaliers to win, and then opened a handicap of 1 to 2, and everyone else could bet as they pleased.

"Senior, I want to bet the tens of millions left in my bank card." Butler said eagerly.

"If you're not afraid of working for me for your entire career," Xu Yong started the trash talk session.

In the end, everyone placed their bets. Butler bet the most, $50,000. Adams bet $5,000. Anderson bet $1,000. Jokic bet on a pack of Laobanzhang cigarettes.

After they finished betting, the entrance ceremony began over there. They watched while eating snacks.

The game was played in Cleveland, and both sides used their regular starters.

Thunder: Harden, Robertson, Durant, Ibaka, Howard;

Cavaliers: Irving, JR Smith, James, Davis, Love.

However, during the main ceremony, Xu Yong noticed a detail.

Davis has become much stronger, and his muscles can be felt even through the screen, while Love... has turned into a male model.jpg.

Speaking of which, the Cavaliers played poorly last season. In addition to the running-in and injuries, the two inside players were always undecided as to who would play the four and who would play the five.

But from this detail, it can be seen that Davis is confirmed to play five and Love will play four.

Love finally fulfilled Bosh's prediction and lost weight and squatted in the corner.

When the opening ceremony ended and the starting lineup appeared on the screen, just as Xu Yong had judged, Davis did appear in the C position.

This is a good thing for the Cavaliers in the short term, but not necessarily in the long term.

Xu Yong knows something about Davis's glass attributes. If you really let him play the five position for too long, he will definitely be out for the season.

The game started quickly and Howard jumped for the ball for the Thunder.

Then, Xu Yong just picked up a squid ring and put it to his mouth, but his action stopped the next second.

Howard is actually setting a pick-and-roll for Harden?

Was it the two years of decadence in Los Angeles that smoothed out his edges, or was it just him putting on an act when he first arrived in Oklahoma?

The answer came quickly after the pick-and-roll, because after Harden was out of match with Davis, he just dribbled the ball one step and threw it out.

The ball flew over the basket, and Howard had already knocked JR away and jumped into the air, scoring the first goal of his Thunder career with an alley-oop dunk.

In his prime, Harden could be said to be the best shooting guard in the league at feeding the ball. He could feed Capela into a quasi-All-Star center.

When thinking about this, Xu Yong was suddenly surprised to find that Capela was sitting on the Thunder's bench. Did this Thunder team just become the plus version of the Rockets that faced the Warriors?

Then in the next round, the scene they were expecting appeared immediately.

The Cavaliers opened up space for James to break through, but the referee called a traveling violation on the first round when James broke through Durant!

There was inexplicable silence behind the door of the room, followed by a burst of laughter.

Except Xu Yong.

It’s not that Xu Yong didn’t want to laugh, but he had to hold it back. After all, in front of so many younger brothers, he still needed to remain reserved.

But when James spread his hands and received a warning whistle from the referee, and saw James with a black question mark on his face in the camera, he couldn't help but laughed along with everyone else.

Although it was expected that James might lose his privilege, it was unexpected that it would be so tragic and he was targeted so much at the beginning.

He had only seen players being called for technical fouls while holding their heads in the CBA before, and this was the first time he had seen a player being called for spreading his hands.

This referee is too much.

And as the game progressed, the tendency of the penalties became more and more obvious.

Even when there was a dispute over ball possession between James and Ibaka, the referee blew the whistle to give the ball to the Thunder, but after slow-motion replay, it should have been given to the Cavaliers.

Finally, after being called for a foul during a defensive block, James exploded. He took off his braces and loudly questioned the referee, and after the referee ignored him, he sprayed the referee: "If you can't do this well, change someone else, you act like an amateur referee!"

Because the players now have microphones on their clothes, this segment was broadcast directly.

Then the referee gave him a T.

Butler laughed so hard that he slapped his thigh.

But after this series of moves, James really became obedient.

Xu Yong remembers that Silver, who was once forced into a corner because of a penalty issue, once commented on James, saying that he was a "spoiled child."

This evaluation is quite appropriate in a sense. Many abstract things in this world only appear after being indulged.

But now, capital’s protection and pampering are gone, and one has no choice but to be honest even if he is not honest.

But you know what, James played quite well after he calmed down.

This is understandable. After all, James is a star. Even if his hard power cannot reach the first tier, his strength is above that of an All-Star just based on his historical physical fitness. To use the classic saying, even if you are just scoring points in the NBA, you have to have the ability to get up there if you are given the opportunity.

Not to mention that he has had a lot of ball possession since entering the league, and even if his skills haven't improved much, they are still improving.

On the other hand, as the Cavaliers gradually adapted to the referee's penalty standards, many problems arose on the Thunder side.

For example, although Harden made an amazing alley-oop pass at the beginning of the game, his overall condition was not good and he made a lot of mistakes.

He didn't listen to Xu Yong's advice and was obviously defended by [Best Defensive Player] Kardashian.

Fortunately, Durant's performance was still brave and the two sides were evenly matched.

Finally, it came to the final decisive moment. The two sides were tied and Durant had the chance to score the winning goal.

Facing James' defense, he shot from the 45-degree three-point line, and the ball hit the rim and bounced out, but the referee's whistle sounded immediately.

James did not hit Durant's hand in this ball, but the referee called a defensive foul on James!

James' reaction was particularly funny. He wanted to spread his hands, but perhaps thinking of the situation of being targeted tonight, he immediately put them down halfway. In the end, he could only spit out the braces and bite them on the corner of his mouth, shaking his head helplessly.

Durant made all three free throws to kill the game.

In such a big battle, the final protagonist turned out to be the referee. No one expected this.

Because of this referee, Xu Yong lost the bet tonight and had to pay a total of $112,000 plus 2 packs of Lao Ban Zhang.

"I really should have bet my tens of millions." Butler said with a smile when the results came out.

"And senior, next time we meet the Cavaliers, what do you think of the opponent?" Then when Xu Yong went to the safe in the room to take out the team and gave it to everyone, Butler did not forget to add. [Note 23]

"Boss, will the referee be so biased towards us next time we play against the Cavaliers?" Adams asked a very real question.

Xu Yong thought about it, then shook his head.

In tonight's game, the opening call was clearly sending a message, the message that James no longer has privileges.

In other words, James got the 13-year, $200 million Adidas endorsement contract that originally belonged to Harden, as well as the iconic truckload of shoes, but he also inherited the "different treatment" that originally belonged to Harden.

But the result of this game and the final buzzer-beater were more of a reflection of Durant's rise to Nike's top brand.

The Bulls, however, do not possess this trait.

Besides, Xu Yong didn't like that either.

He could have won with his own strength but ended up relying on the referee. He wouldn't be happy even if he won. From this perspective, it wasn't a bad thing that he didn't sign with Nike.

"At least we are fair." Xu Yong replied. He had beaten James many times before with 5 against 8, so he was looking forward to what it would be like if the two faced off again under fair conditions.

…

After the game between the Cavaliers and the Thunder, James fans were in an uproar on social media, and they almost cursed Silver's mother, but the final result was that the league issued a referee report, stating that there was no problem with the penalties in the last two minutes of the game, including Durant's final buzzer-beater: Although James did not hit Durant's hand, he violated Durant's shooting cylinder.

James' subsequent remarks were very interesting. He did not dwell on the final penalty, but said: The outcome is not determined by the last two minutes.

What this means is that there were also problems with the refereeing in the previous 46 minutes.

The result was that his voice, like that of other protesting players in many previous seasons, fell on deaf ears and received no response from the league.

The discussion about this game did not last too long, because the next day, the game between the Bulls and the Lakers was about to start, which was also the season opener for both teams.

Although Kobe did not say before the season that this would be his last season as Xu Yong had expected, with Gasol's return, the outside world's expectations for them this season have reached a peak.

And on paper, the Lakers do have a chance to make it back to the playoffs in the Western Conference this season.

The game was held in Chicago. The United Center was exceptionally lively that day, with many big names gathered. Even Jordan, who had not appeared in an NBA game for a long time, came to the sidelines.

Before the players from both teams entered the court, the lights focused on the center of the court and the Bulls' championship award ceremony began.

This year's championship award ceremony was very unique. The players did not enter the venue in advance, but waited in the player channel, as if waiting for a surprise to be revealed.

The familiar and classic prelude of "Sirius" began to sound, and Xu Yong swayed his body unconsciously.

If the NBA is compared to a war, they won the championship night, and now is the time to be awarded, especially this championship means a lot to him.

"I heard from Mike (Mallon) that this year's championship ring will be very special." Butler then leaned close to Xu Yong and said.

"Why is it special?" Xu Yong stopped what he was doing and turned around to ask.

Butler shook his head. He had only heard about it.

Xu Yong rolled his eyes at him. This was just a way to keep people on suspense.

At this time, the players have already received the rings.

Rose was the first to appear, followed by Foye...The finale was Butler, and the closing act was Xu Yong.

Everyone else just had a simple name, but when it was Xu Yong's turn, the live DJ stretched out the tone.

"Now, from Arizona State, a 6-foot-9 small forward... Xu Yong!"

When Xu Yong trotted out of the player tunnel, the cheers at the scene reached the climax of the award ceremony.

Xu Yong came up to Xiao Hua and took the championship ring from him.

It was at this time that he discovered that what Butler had heard was true, and this year's ring was indeed unique enough.

It is not a separate ring ring, but the whole shape is like a "9", except that the lower part is close to the ring itself.

In terms of cost, this ring may not be more expensive than the previous two because there are no blue diamonds used to form numbers. However, the design can definitely be given full marks. It is not only very directional, but also unique enough.

On a whim, Xu Yong put the ring directly on his hand and raised it above his head.

The scene was filled with thunderous applause and cheers from a large number of fans who stood up and clapped, with the cheers reaching the sky.

Just then, Jokic leaned forward and looked at the ring in Anderson's hand with curiosity.

After Anderson noticed Jokic's gaze, he handed the ring to him. Jokic looked at it closely, his eyes full of love.

It was the first time he saw a championship ring in real life, and he didn't expect it to be so beautiful.

"Don't be envious, you will have it soon." Anderson, who was in a similar mood to Jokic at this time, took the ring and put it away carefully under Jokic's reluctant gaze.

Listening to their conversation, Butler had an expression that said, "You two have never seen the world."

The on-site staff gave the microphone to Xu Yong.

He needed to give a short speech before the championship banner was unveiled.

"When they brought me to this city with the second pick in 2009 under great pressure, I thought at the time that I must bring a championship to this city. Now we have done it three times, but that is far from enough. We need your support. Thank you all for your support."

When Xu Yong finished speaking, the flag of the 2014-2015 season was slowly unveiled next to the flags of the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 seasons, accompanied by fireworks scattering all around.

The United Center was once again filled with the fans' overwhelming cheers.

After a long time, the audience's cheers died down and the scene entered the warm-up phase.

At this time, Xu Yong greeted some familiar people on the sidelines, including Jordan.

Jordan has gained a lot of weight. Although only two years have passed, he is no longer the man who could challenge Xu Yong in a one-on-one duel.

At this time, Kobe also came here and hugged Jordan and Xu Yong one after another.

"If I have time, I won't miss your game."

After hugging Kobe, Jordan said something very meaningful.

Although Kobe didn't say it, he could feel that Kobe's current condition was very similar to when he was in the Wizards. It really was true that each game was one less and one less.

This is also the reason that attracted him to the scene tonight in addition to witnessing the award ceremony for the Bulls' ninth championship.

"Then I can see you often in the next two years." But Kobe obviously didn't think so.

Jordan laughed and shook his head when he heard this.

Xu Yong couldn't help but feel confused when he heard this. Kobe's implication was that he would continue to play for another two years, at least he would definitely not retire this season.

This high morale made him doubt himself. Was there something wrong with his memory again? Did Kobe retire in the next season?