As the temperature in Chicago rose, the Bulls' touch gradually improved, and their performance in January returned to the level of last November.

But they are still not the most dazzling team in the league. The most dazzling team is the Warriors.

The Warriors are still undefeated in December, and their winning streak has extended to a terrifying 27 games!

Moreover, during this period of time, their opponents include championship contenders such as the Raptors and Pacers, and they even took revenge on the Thunder in the Christmas game.

Are they strong? Yes, this record speaks for itself.

But they are still hated because it is shameful to win more games by taking super shortcuts.

Of course James and Yong are happy, because they enjoy this state of "you dislike me but you can't beat me".

"I feel like I'm in the best phase of my career. Are we the best team in the league now? I don't care about that. My only goal now is the championship." After a long period of silence, James finally revived his glory as a king in an interview with FOX Sports.

It is worth mentioning that the 27-game winning streak is the second longest winning streak in NBA history, only 6 games away from the longest 33-game winning streak.

Against this backdrop, the Warriors and the Bulls will face off for the first time this season, making it another hotly debated battle following the opening game between the Warriors and the Bulls.

"Boss, why haven't the softie and LeBron fallen out yet?" Anderson couldn't help but ask Xu Yong during the training session the day before the match between the two sides.

Xu Yong was stunned by the question, and then he realized that Anderson was talking about Green.

"He doesn't dare yet."

"What about next?"

"Who knows?" Xu Yong smiled and shook his head.

If you study the tough guys in the NBA, you'll find they are two extremes.

Those who can play well, such as Big Ben and James Johnson, will not take the initiative to cause trouble on the court and will even be friendly, because ordinary people dare not to provoke them.

This is one extreme. The other extreme is the type of players like Green and Garnett, who can talk a lot but basically don't dare to fight with others.

No, not entirely. They are probably known for bullying the weak and fearing the strong.

It was a daily routine for Garnett to bully new players. Of course, he was beaten up by the team's second-round pick Rick Ricotta in the training camp. He sneaked up on him with a punch and sent him to the hospital where he needed seven stitches. He also kicked him out of the NBA.

As for Green, Puer was a rare rookie cultivated in the Warriors 2.0 era. As a result, he knocked someone down with one punch in his team and beat the latter so hard that he had psychological problems.

But when Garnett faced Anthony blocking the bus, he could only hide in the car. When Green was kicked in the balls by Xu Yong, he even dared to emphasize in his blog program that it was an accident.

So in theory, Green doesn't dare to attack James. Although James can't do anything to Xu Yong, it is too easy for him to control Green.

Especially now that the Warriors are on a winning streak, anyone who creates internal conflicts will immediately become the target of public criticism.

"What a pity. I thought it would be a good show." Anderson said with a hint of regret.

"Play well." Xu Yong reminded.

It’s a good show, of course you’ll have a chance to watch it.

Xu Yong, as a reborn person, has been looking at Green's entire career. You will find that every time Green makes trouble, it is when his contract year comes to an end, whether it is the trash talk to Durant or the punch to Pu'er.

So if the Warriors want to trade him one day, Green will definitely not sit idly by.

But it might be a bit difficult right now. If James and the Warriors are compared to a young couple, they are in their honeymoon period now, and Green will not be the first to step out at this time.

When Schwartz returned home after training, he called Xu Yong and talked to him about the information he had recently obtained.

But it’s not about the players, it’s about the league.

Agents of Schwartz's level are as sensitive to these news as media people, and they are even more informed.

The league is preparing to sign a sponsorship contract with gaming companies.

When he heard the news, Xu Yong's brows frowned instantly.

When did the NBA begin to decline?

If we talk about it from an economic perspective, it actually isn't, because each bigger and bigger broadcasting contract shows that it is on the road to prosperity.

But when did the NBA lose its original popularity?

One is the change in playing style in the small ball era. This is a chronic process. There are two main reasons. One is the [vertical jump rule] that has already happened, and the other is the change from 24 seconds to 14 seconds that has not yet happened.

Another is that the NBA is gradually becoming like WWE, and the biggest driving force behind this is the legalization of gambling.

It may sound a bit fantastic, but gambling companies can become sponsors of competitive sports and then make money from gamblers.

But this makes the NBA gradually lose its competitive flavor and become a completely commercialized game. Who else except gamblers is willing to devote their enthusiasm to it?

If anyone doesn’t have a thorough understanding of the four words “drinking poison to quench thirst”, then this may be a demonstration.

This is probably also the reason why the bosses pushed Xiao Hua to the stage before, because businessmen definitely hope to get investment returns as quickly as possible, and gambling companies can just satisfy their interests. Is there anything in the world that is easier to make than gamblers' money?

On the night of the game, the fans at the United Center were in extremely high spirits. Last season, the Warriors started with a 24-game winning streak, which was finally ended by the Bulls in Chicago.

And now, another Warriors team with 27 consecutive wins has been delivered to the Bulls, or in other words, another golden background board has been delivered.

During the warm-up before the game, the photographer on the scene was looking for the camera of Xu Yong.

In the camera, Xu Yong was sitting on the bench with a very serious expression.

"This game is a huge challenge for the Bulls. The opponent they face is very strong." On the commentary side, after noticing Xu Yong's expression, Barkley rarely praised the Warriors.

"Of course, I'm not a big fan of this way of forming a team. It's like in 1993, if you had let me join the Rockets, I could have easily won two championships." He also added.

"So do you think the Warriors will win the championship this year?" O'Neal asked Barkley a soul-searching question.

"Do you think the Rockets would have won the championship if Michael had not retired in the summer of 1993?" Barkley gave a very clever answer.

The answer to this question is an interesting hypothesis, but the reality is that although the Alliance does not have God now, it has Satan.

“Huh~”

Xu Yong let out a long sigh and stood up from the bench.

Thinking about it from last night to now, he felt that his plan to get Xiao Hua out of office might have to be brought forward, because business cooperation is very difficult to cut off after cooperation, especially after in-depth cooperation, the two are intertwined and impossible to separate.

But if the plan is advanced, it will require some price to pay, which makes him feel very depressed and he urgently needs to find a place to vent.

After the pre-match warm-up, the starting lineups of both sides were announced one after another.

Warriors: Curry, Thompson, Iguodala, James, Green;

Bulls: Beverly, Butler, Xu Yong, Anderson, Adams.

Kerr started the game with a small lineup, which only meant one thing: he really wanted to win the game.

This is completely understandable. After all, giving away a golden background once is enough.

Adams passed the ball back to the Bulls' half and the game officially started.

Xu Yong went straight to the low post to receive the ball.

Last season's finals matchup seems like yesterday. Although the Warriors have James, it's like adding a toy to a couple's relationship. The fun has increased, but the postures are basically the same.

Green retreated to the weak side to help defend, and Xu Yong made a fake pass in the direction of Anderson. After forcing Green back, he turned directly to the baseline, faced a strong confrontation with Iguodala, turned around and jumped, walked in the air and made a low shot to score.

You have to admit that in the Warriors lineup, only James and Green can hold off Xu Yong in the low post, but if Green defends, pulling Xu Yong outside to beat him is like walking a dog. The humiliating game in last season's finals is a painful thing that Green doesn't want to recall.

As for James, he said he is the team's organizational core and defense should not be his job.

"Good news, Xu has a strong desire tonight." Barkley said excitedly in the commentary booth. Xu Yong has only scored 60+ once in more than two months this season, which is not like his personal style.

But when he said this, it sounded as if James was really the toy to add to the fun.

But looking back, James broke through Anderson and passed the ball to Thompson who made a quick shot from the outside.

James and Curry are a good match, but a shooter without the ball like Thompson is really like a fish in water, because before James came, the opponent's defensive energy would be greatly distracted by Curry. Once James came, he was simply too comfortable.

Xu Yong continued to play in the low post, and Green double-teamed him this time. Xu Yong passed the ball to Anderson, who broke through the inside and performed his signature slow layup facing Green's help defense.

Time and space seemed to have stopped at this moment. His movements were obviously very slow, but Green on the opposite side could not keep up with the rhythm. When Green jumped up to block the shot, Anderson just started the first step of the three-step layup, and the result was a layup like an old man.

"That's not the kind of breakthrough layup that should appear in the NBA!" Although he had seen it more than once, Barkley couldn't help but shouted with a smile.

"Man, he is the Lord of Time and Space." O'Neal gave Anderson a nickname.

But looking back, Thompson received the pass from James on the outside, attracted help defense and then passed it to Curry, who also made a three-pointer from the top of the arc.

This round showed why the Warriors were able to achieve 27 consecutive wins. James and the Warriors system are really a perfect match.

The game seemed to have returned to last season's finals, with three points always scoring one more point than two points.

Moreover, the Warriors continued to double-team Xu Yong, and Xu Yong continued to pass the ball. This time, Green showed his ability to adjust on the defensive end, successfully forcing Anderson to miss a shot from close range. James turned around and grabbed the defensive rebound.

The Warriors launched a fast break. The Warriors' fast break speed was fast to begin with, and it became even faster with James.

The Warriors had three against two in the frontcourt, and James received a pass from Curry and performed his signature slam dunk in the middle.

After landing, James glared at the camera and made his signature "strong" gesture.

It felt like he was going to take back everything he lost in the Eastern Conference this season.

Xu Yong's face became increasingly gloomy. He did not go down to the low post to play one-on-one again, but went directly to the high post to ask for the ball.

Moreover, the moment he received the ball, he didn't even try to test it. He just turned around and forced his way in.

Iguodala was a little behind in the confrontation. Xu Yong was not like James who had no skills. His footwork and explosiveness were combined so perfectly that Iguodala had no time to make judgment.

When he broke through to the three-second zone and saw Green coming to help defend, he didn't slow down and jumped into the air, pulled the ball high towards Green and slammed it directly into the basket.

Green felt his body go soft, as if some part of his body shrank, and he was knocked away directly.

“Bang!”

Xu Yong smashed the ball into the basket directly through Green.

James, who was supposed to come over to assist in defense, was standing on the weak side with his hands on his hips.

Compared to the improvement in offense, the defensive problems of this Cosmos team seem to be bigger than last season.

However, Xu Yong did not pay attention to James who was posing. Instead, he turned to Green who was about to serve the ball at the basket and said lightly: "You, soft."

A piece of trash talk that seemed to have traveled through ten years. In the 2007 NCAA opening game, Griffin sprayed trash talk at Xu Yong, and Xu Yong turned around and spoke it to Green.

But the difference from that time is that Green, who has already been known as a wimp, is so suitable for this sentence.

Green's face flushed, but the dull pain in his body reminded him to stay rational.

Losing one egg is painful, but losing another one is not a question of pain or not, it’s a question of whether you are worthy of being a man.

Back on the defensive end, Xu Yong and Anderson switched defense directly.

However, the Warriors still scored in this round. Curry came out of the elevator door to receive the ball and attracted help defense. He jumped up and passed the ball to Iguodala who cut into the basket for a layup.

Unlike all the teams James has been on before, in the past, if you could control James, the team he was on would be at least half ruined, if not completely destroyed. But now, even without James, the Warriors are a team that can compete with the Bulls.

With more James, it would be icing on the cake; with less James, it would be just as good.

A hot knowledge is that even though James takes more shots, his three-point shooting percentage is not much lower than that of his predecessor Barnes, and James's cuts are far more threatening than Barnes. In the Warriors' small-ball play, even if he doesn't have the ball, it will not affect the space.

After scoring the goal, Iguodala celebrated by bumping chests with Curry while retreating, and the Warriors' morale was high at the start of the game.

At this time, Xu Yong pulled Adams aside and gave him a few instructions.

Then on the offensive end, he held the ball directly from the outside and called for a pick-and-roll with Adams.

When Adams broke the ball and cut in, and Xu Yong made a pass to force Iguodala to follow, Green was suddenly stunned, because he was sent in front of Xu Yong, to the painful position in his memory.

Before Green could react, Xu Yong quickly launched an attack.

For a moment, Green felt that his unhealed wound was being torn apart by something.

Xu Yong dragged past Green and broke into the inside with a gliding shot.

"Help defense, pay attention to help defense!" Kerr shouted into the air on the sidelines.

"The air in Chicago doesn't listen to you, Steve." Xu Yong turned to remind Kerr that he was full of aggression and needed to vent, not just on the court.

Cole's face tightened, as if he had been stabbed by something.

"Defend! Defend!"

The scene began to recall the shouts of Chicago fans.

Under the camera, Xu Yong revealed a murderous aura that came from afar, and they felt their hair stand on end, which was the release of physical excitement.

The Warriors' offense was slowed down because the Bulls' defensive intensity increased amid the cheers, but more importantly, Adams left Green open.

That was Xu Yong's instruction.

The Warriors' small lineup is indeed very strong. It is difficult to take every point into consideration, so they need to find a breakthrough. Compared to James, who has been beaten to a pulp by him, Green is a more suitable target.

So he was responsible for disrupting Green's mentality, while Adams contracted the defense.

This worked, because Green's three-point shot, which was left open, hit the front of the basket and almost missed the target.

Seeing this, Xu Yong was even more determined to look for Green on the offensive end.

Green's expression looked like he was constipated.

He is not stupid at all. Just as Xu Yong knows, he is a guy who bullies the weak and fears the strong. Xu Yong is obviously much stronger than him. He will not get any benefit by provoking him, but will only be humiliated by Xu Yong.

Otherwise, why did he always target Adams when playing against the Bulls and never provoke Xu Yong?

You thought he was being soft in the podcast, but actually he was showing his kindness to Xu Yong: Brother, an egg thing is just a small matter.

It's a pity that his good intentions didn't seem to get the results he wanted.

After all, in Xu Yong's eyes, he wouldn't care about a rubbish attitude.

Xu Yong tried a different move, using a washing machine to turn around, but the same thing happened: he got past Green.

And James still didn't come to help defend. Just as Xu Yong said, the air in Chicago did not obey Kerr's command.

"Have you noticed that your teammates are watching the show?"

After scoring the ball, Xu Yong turned to Green and reminded him.

Green, whose face was getting redder, didn't want to pay attention to it, but when he turned around, he saw James with his hands on his hips.

Theoretically speaking, it is necessary for James to assist in defense because as a center, there is a high possibility that Green will be dribbled past by Xu Yong.

But firstly, James always helps with defense because there are opportunities to block shots, and blocking shots is not his habit. Secondly, if he helps with defense, it will inevitably mean letting go of his defender, and then the opponent will score more points, which will affect his matchup data.

Of course, there are three more.

If Curry is passed, he is willing to provide assistance defense, but Green?

Green didn't even welcome him to the Warriors, so why should he clean up Green's mess?

Green's expression at this time was extremely depressed. He didn't dare to get angry with Xu Yong, but he also didn't dare to get angry with James. He could only vent his anger on the basketball hoop when he returned to the basketball hoop. He punched it and grimaced in pain.

Looking back, Green was left open on the outside again. His three-point shot after adjustment still missed the basket, which made him so angry that he even cursed the Chicago air.

But unfortunately, James is not even real air.

The Bulls seized this opportunity to launch a defensive counterattack. Xu Yong passed the ball to Beverly, who put the ball into the basket before Green turned sideways.

Then, after scoring the ball, Beverley leaned over and made the "too small" gesture that Xu Yong had made to James last season.

Green nearly died on the spot.

Regardless of whether the Bulls are stronger this season than in the past two seasons, their ability to kill people and destroy their hearts has reached a new level.

Among the five starting lineups, three are masters of trash talking. Who can withstand this?

Kerr reached out and called a timeout.

After the timeout, the Warriors made a substitution adjustment, Pachulia came on the court, but he replaced Green instead of Iguodala.

Green looked a little injured in the camera, but there was nothing he could do.

It's just that in the corner of the camera, just like Bynum's performance when Gasol was dunked on, James was smiling.

Why not trade Green for a mobile blue-collar center?

Green had the same expression when Barnes left on the podcast, why wouldn't James have the same expression?

Seeing this scene, Xu Yong felt that tonight’s gains might be greater than expected.

When talking with Anderson before, he thought that Green would not jump out and be the first to take action.

But Green can act as a gardener to water and fertilize the seeds of conflict that he planted in the podcast, so that they can grow into towering trees as soon as possible.

Maybe, possibly, Green could really punch James like that in the future?

After the timeout, the Warriors did not fall into a disadvantage due to Green's departure, but instead stabilized the situation again.

Because after Green left the court, James became more active on the defensive end, as if he did not hear Kerr's shouting, but just had a delayed reaction.

Xu Yong felt both angry and amused.

I'm angry because if he had known James was so obvious he should have been gentler with Green. I'm funny because James really doesn't tolerate Green at all.

However, no matter how low James' status drops, Green won't be able to take advantage of him. It doesn't put any psychological pressure on him to squeeze Green out.

Thinking of this, Xu Yong felt that he should increase the intensity of fertilization.

When the game came to the end of the quarter, Xu Yong, who was still on the court during the stalemate, saw Green return to the game as a substitute at the fourth position. He took the initiative to switch to Green. When Green was transitioning with the ball, he said, "You seem to be the one who joined later."

"Enough!" Green had really had enough.

"Snap!" When his emotions were rising, the next second the ball in his hand was snatched away by Xu Yong.

Xu Yong performed a signature 360-degree dunk on a fast break, just because he's a good guy, which could help Green make it onto one of the top five plays after the game.

When he returned to the half court while retreating, he seemed not to have heard what Green had just said. He just shook his head at Green and said, "It seems that your Warriors career has entered the countdown."