Curry eventually won the FMVP with a unanimous vote.
Although he lost to Durant in the regular season MVP competition, he ultimately gained more.
After receiving the trophy from the trembling Russell, Curry couldn't help crying.
After more than a minute, when Russell patted Curry on the shoulder and smiled kindly, Curry finally controlled his emotions.
With a slightly hoarse voice, Curry delivered his acceptance speech.
"In 2009, I came to the Bay Area, in 2011, Klay came here, in 2012, Draymond came here, and then Andre Iguodala and Wiggins came here. They said, 'Jump shots can't win championships,' but we spent seven years proving ourselves. Back then, our hair hadn't even grown out yet, but today, we finally became the champions."
Curry reached out and touched his beard as he said this.
This scene caused the Bay Area fans to cheer deafeningly, and also made Xu Yong couldn't help laughing.
Xu Yong has every reason to believe that Curry grows a beard not just to make himself look more mature, but more like a way of [growing a beard to show his determination].
Moreover, the phrase "the hair has not yet grown out" is a double entendre. Although it is short, it is brilliant enough.
At this time, Xu Yong couldn't help but think of Curry in the space before his rebirth. He won three championships in five years, but his performance in the first championship was poor and Iguodala snatched the FMVP. After that, he was the runner-up with 73 wins. The fans complained that the next two championships were because he relied on Durant. When Durant left and he failed to win the championship, the doubts came to the greatest.
If it weren't for the championship in 2022, Curry would never have been able to escape being questioned in his life.
But now, in 2019, Curry has dispelled outside doubts ahead of time.
Especially in Curry's speech, he mentioned Thompson and Green.
In a sense, the Warriors' championship is the same as the Thunder's last season. Both teams centered around rookies trained by the team, then selected some suitable rotation players, and won the championship after years of perseverance.
So if Xu Yong is asked to evaluate whether the Curry before his rebirth is more respectable or the Curry of this time and space, he cannot make the evaluation.
This may only be analyzed by the fans.
The cheers at the scene lasted for quite a long time, not only because of Curry's words, but also because this was the first time they won the championship again after 44 years.
When the royal army conquers the Central Plains in the north, don't forget to inform your father during the family sacrifice.
This statement applies to many Bay Area fans.
After expressing his emotion, Xu Yong also felt excited for Curry. With a dry mouth, he picked up the water in the cup on the table and took a sip.
Just after Curry finished his acceptance speech, Green on the side seemed to be eager to say something.
The host saw this and handed him the microphone.
“I want to say, after someone leaves, we are the champions!”
Green was very emotional, and this sentence made the already excited fans go crazy again.
Xu Yong choked on the water he had just drunk and started coughing.
Green is a really loudmouth. Talking like this in this kind of situation will definitely become a hot topic after the game.
But think about Green's personality. If he catches the chance, he will never let you go.
I don't know if James is watching the finals at this moment. If he is, the question that will probably pop up in his mind at this moment is: why always me?
Before he left the Heat, the Heat won the championship, and the Haslem Formula 2.0 was born. Now, Green reminds fans of this sentence again.
Xu Yong was also unable to collapse for a while.
So [sign James and then trade him] is the new formula for winning the championship?
After watching the finals, Xu Yong packed up and drove to the gym for more practice.
Leading the team to the Western Conference Finals was not his goal. His only goal in coming to Dallas was to help the Mavericks win the championship again.
When he came out of training, he saw Nelson Jr. standing at the door.
"Would you like to come to my office for a cup of coffee later?" Nelson Jr. invited him with a smile.
Xu Yong nodded. It was not a coincidence that little Nelson appeared here, but he came here specifically to find him.
Unlike Foreman's square face, Nelson Jr. has a round, fat face that gives people a greasy feeling, and is 80% similar to his father Nelson Sr.
However, Xu Yong had a very good impression of him, even better than Foreman.
Because Nelson Jr. is a genuine China expert, and is even very enthusiastic about Chinese culture.
Xu Yong was once invited to his home as a guest, where he saw many things that represent Chinese culture. Chinese knots were just the tip of the iceberg. He even saw a water mill in his yard.
David West developed a strong interest in Chinese culture after he grew up, but Nelson Jr. has been interested in Chinese culture since he was a child. This not only prompted him to visit China many times, but also made him become an assistant coach of the Chinese men's basketball team in 2008.
There was one thing that left a deep impression on Xu Yong, who was already in the national team at that time. That was that Nelson's daughter fell seriously ill during the Olympics, but Nelson still chose to stay and hurried back after the Olympics.
His obsession with China even influenced his father, Old Nelson.
You can even say that the Mavericks' previous series of China-related plots, signing Wang Zhizhi, Yi Jianlian, etc., were all caused by Nelson Jr.
When Xu Yong finished taking a shower and arrived at the office, little Nelson was already there making tea and waiting for him.
Well, Jokic and Nelson Jr. should have a good relationship.
After having some tea and briefly chatting about family matters, little Nelson got straight to the point.
"We want to know your opinion about DeMar."
Nelson Jr. was cautious when he spoke, after all, DeRozan and Xu Yong were college teammates.
"We respect DeMar very much, otherwise we would not have chosen him in the first place. However, his performance after arriving here did not meet expectations. I believe that is not a problem of his ability, but a matter of adaptability. We want to help you find a more suitable helper."
Xu Yong looked at little Nelson.
Nelson Jr. said it very tactfully, and there is no problem from the management's perspective.
DeRozan's regular season form was unstable, his playoff performance was poor, and he took up the maximum salary cap space.
You have to know that Jokic will also start to receive a maximum salary next season, and Xu Yong will also receive a maximum salary if he renews his contract. With three maximum salaries, the reinforcement of role players will be very limited.
In this case, trading DeRozan for a few rotation-level players is obviously a better choice.
"Although that means we may have to pay the first-round draft picks in the next few years, I think it is more important not to waste your peak period than that." Seeing that Xu Yong didn't say anything, Nelson Jr. added.
Xu Yong nodded, but then shook his head.
Nodding means agreeing with what Nelson Jr. said. Compared with the Bulls' previous approach of dealing with Rose, which was like executing first and asking for permission later, the Mavericks management's approach can be said to have given him enough respect.
Shaking his head meant that he didn't think that was a feasible solution, at least not now.
"Donny, I'm not the kind of person who would replace teammates if they don't play well in a season." Xu Yong said seriously.
Little Nelson was stunned for a while, and finally nodded.
The management's goal must be to build a better lineup, but if Xu Yong insists on trying again, they will respect Xu Yong's choice.
After all, compared to Xu Yong, everyone else is not that important.
…
"You mean, you want to trade a young player for a star player?" Lakers general manager Pelinka looked at James and confirmed.
"We have too many young players. If I want to achieve results, I need real help." James nodded in confirmation. Because of his close relationship with Pelinka, he often spoke directly without beating around the bush.
"You know, I'm 35 years old and I don't want to waste my last peak years." Perhaps fearing that Pelinka would disagree, James immediately added that last season was the first time he missed the playoffs since the 2005-2006 season.
Pelinka suddenly became serious when he heard this.
James has been competing against Xu Yong over the years, and people instinctively think that they are of the same age, but in fact James is 6 years older than Xu Yong.
The 29-year-old Xu Yong is still at the peak of his career, and although the 35-year-old James failed to make the playoffs, he can still maintain such efficiency, which is unique in history.
"So, who is the right helper?" Pelinka asked after thinking for a while.
"Inside." From Wade to Paul, and then to the Splash Brothers, he has become a little tired of the ball disputes that arise when working with outside star players.
"A star center with scoring ability and outstanding defense," he added.
Pelinka couldn't help but frown when he heard this.
James' request sounds complicated and is actually quite difficult to implement.
After all, there are only a handful of inside players with offensive capabilities, and they must also be star inside players who are both offensive and defensive.
Griffin of the Clippers, Towns of the Timberwolves, Embiid of the numbers man, Antetokounmpo of the Raptors, even if Aldridge of the Bulls and Horford of the Celtics are counted, there are only these few.
But no matter which one it is, it is not something they can get easily.
Oh, there are also Howard, Love and Davis, but they are all James' former teammates and should not be included.
"I'll let Richie find a way. As long as you can cooperate with me then it will be fine." Seeing Pelinka's expression, James simply said directly.
Pelinka was stunned for a moment, but still smiled and nodded.
He started out as an agent and became the general manager of the Lakers in 2017 thanks to his relationship with Kobe Bryant. He got to the position after fighting openly and secretly with "Magic" Johnson, and there were many doubts about him.
It wasn't until he successfully brought James in that the Lakers had a new look that the doubts were somewhat dissipated.
Although James is not as strong as before in all aspects, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse and is always better than those rookies.
As for rebuilding like he did when he trained Kobe, that is not what he should do with his influence. If he really did that, he would have been fired before any players grew up.
In other words, he doesn't care about the future of the Lakers, he only cares about his own interests. This is his way of thinking as an agent.
This is also why he and James can pee in the same pot.
…
After finishing the second conversation with Nelson Jr., Xu Yong pulled DeRozan to train with him.
Since he has supported DeRozan in front of Nelson Jr., he must make DeRozan stronger next season.
He really didn't believe it. DeRozan was very strong when playing against the Bulls.
As for DeRozan, Xu Yong knows more about him. DeRozan is the passive type, and he wants to whip him hard.
DeRozan lost his father and his lover, he has nothing left to lose.
While they were training, the 2019 NBA Draft came to an end in Brooklyn.
This year's No. 1 pick belongs to the Pelicans. After Westbrook left, the team focused on training Simmons, who played 23+8+8 all-around data and became the cornerstone of the team's future construction.
Of course, the price was that the Pelicans' record plummeted into the lottery, and they "luckily" won the No. 1 pick.
This is also Tatum's first visit to the city of New Orleans since taking office.
The Pelicans eventually chose to make a deal with the Grizzlies, who had the No. 2 pick, giving the No. 1 pick to the Grizzlies in exchange for the No. 2 pick and a protected future first-round pick.
The Grizzlies used this pick to draft the most popular player, Zion Williamson.
"After missing out on Xu that year, we won't miss out on Williamson this time." A Grizzlies fan cheered on social media.
Williams has crushed Nike's stock by $1.3 billion. He has been the No. 1 pick in the draft predictions for 12 consecutive months. Even [LOGO] West commented: "You can't miss Zion, just like you won't miss Jordan in the draft."
The Pelicans' deal was somewhat helpless because Williamson and Simmons have a high degree of overlap in their playing styles.
Although Williams seems to be much more talented than Simmons, it is impossible for them to just send away Simmons, who they have just trained.
And they also have their eyes on another talented outside player, Ja Morant, the NCAA Point Guard of the Year, the Bob Cousy Award winner, and the first player to average 20 points and 10 assists per game since the NCAA started keeping assist statistics in 1980.
This inside-outside partnership is the best model for reconstruction.
Of the two five-star high school students who were previously coached by Xu Yong, Jaylen Smith chose to play for another year, and Cam Reddish ran for the draft this year.
In the end, Reddish was selected by the Lakers with the tenth pick.
Don’t ask why the Lakers have such a high lottery pick. The reason is that the Lakers rookies didn’t play well.
Then when he learned about the Mavericks' first-round selection, Xu Yong was subconsciously stunned.
Because the Mavericks picked Jordan Puer with the 27th pick in the first round!
This ranking, this choice, is just... normal.
In the history before Xu Yong was reborn, Pu'er was picked by the Warriors with the 28th pick.
With Barea and Harris retiring one after another, the Mavericks are now short of guards on the bench, so it is completely reasonable for them to choose Puer.
Then, just after the free market opened, Nelson Jr. told him mysteriously that an old acquaintance was coming to Dallas.
When Xu Yong was halfway through his training that day, the old friend that Nelson Jr. mentioned had already arrived at the door of the training hall.
Dusty, but radiant.
When Xu Yong saw him, he was stunned for a moment, then he felt indescribable excitement and went up to him and gave him a big hug.
At this moment, only Rose's arrival can make him so excited!
"Why are you here?" After sitting down, Xu Yong couldn't help but hold Ross's hand and start chatting.
Rose's arrival did surprise him a little, because Rose just returned to the Bulls last season. Although he signed a one-year minimum salary, he played well.
"They don't need me anymore." Ross's answer sounded nonchalant, but Xu Yong could clearly hear the bitterness in it.
Xu Yong was puzzled.
"They need to give Dejounte room to grow. He's a rookie with great potential," Rose said with a smile.
Murray, he actually forgot about Murray.
Indeed, with Beverley and Murray, the Bulls already have more than enough point guards. It doesn't make much sense to keep Rose as the third point guard. Instead, separating them is a better choice.
"It's great that you can come." Xu Yong held Ross's hand tightly.
It's not just because of the relationship between them, but also because of the thing they once envisioned on the balcony.
They also have a dream of completing a dynasty together.