Slam Dunk: My Study Abroad Career in Northern Hunan

"Hey, kid, you're not in the right mood!"

"Can you play a whole game against me with this kind of defense?!"

Wu Dao's defense against Michael was quite intense. Michael Jordan, whose speed of advancement was curbed, stopped repeatedly and quickly retreated with the ball to widen the distance between himself and Wu Dao.

Wu Dao did not chase after Michael Jordan, and when Michael Jordan retreated to the three-point line, he did not press forward again.

Jordan's three-point shooting ability is not outstanding, and there is no need to press too tightly when defending a player like him. Michael Jordan, who realized that Wu Dao's defense was very different from that in previous games, looked at the young man in front of him and asked back with a cold face.

There was some sarcasm and provocation in his words, as if he was trying to force Wu Dao to give up his current defensive method.

"If you can play a full game, I can play a full game, too."

Wu Da seemed not to have heard the implicit meaning of Michael Jordan's words. He moved his mouth slightly and uttered these words.

What Jordan meant by that was that Budo's defensive style might result in him not being able to stay on the court for a long time because of fouls.

But when Wu Dao answered, he seemed to have overlooked the fact that his defense was walking on the line between foul and no foul.

Maybe this referee did not blow his whistle because of Wu Dao’s defensive action, but as the situation changes, the standards of these referees’ penalties may change.

At that time, Wu Dao's defensive action would probably be directly called a defensive foul.

Jordan reminded Bu Dao of this not because he had a good heart, but simply because Bu Dao's defensive moves gave Michael Jordan huge resistance.

When facing martial arts, Jordan seemed to have returned to the time when he fought against those bad boy legions.

Michael Jordan was at his peak at the time and was young enough to still deliver an amazing performance even under such defensive pressure.

But the Michael Jordan of today is probably not on the same level as he was back then.

Although Michael Jordan's basketball skills are better than his younger self, when facing such iron-blooded defense, I am afraid that his younger self is more effective.

Michael Jordan actually has some understanding of his physical condition.

Although he was very reluctant to admit it, Michael Jordan himself knew that he was no longer at his peak.

The defeat to the Timberwolves made Michael Jordan realize this deeply.

If he could be five years younger, he would be able to hold on until the last moment of the game even in such a fierce competition.

At this time, Michael Jordan's mind was full of thoughts. Looking at the martial arts in front of him with a cold expression, Michael Jordan actually chose to pass the ball and directly gave the ball to Pippen in the bottom corner.

"Um?!"

Michael Jordan's choice was really beyond Wudao's expectations. The basketball flew directly past Wudao's side, and Wudao did not make any defensive response to Jordan's pass to try to steal the ball.

Pippen's position to receive the ball was not actually very good, and being in the corner, Pippen did not actually have many offensive options.

The right hand is the baseline, and even if he chooses to break through Pippen, there is only one way to choose.

Although Pippen did not have many offensive options when he received the ball in the corner, he was fortunate that the player he faced in this game was Timberwolves substitute Chris Kyle.

Compared to Chris Kyle, Pippen has a huge physical advantage.

Because Coach Philip intended to punish Tom and others, Tom, who had always been the team's starter, was now pressed on the bench by the coach, and he was replaced by the young Chris Kyle.

The Timberwolves have both Marbury, a defensive loophole, and Chris Kyle, a substitute-level player. Their defense is much weaker than their previous regular lineup.

Facing a substitute, Pippen naturally had no intention of passing the ball and went straight to the singles with full confidence.

As the ball landed with his left hand, Pippen's body had already leaned against Chris Kyle. The huge force directly pushed Chris Kyle back, leaving him no way to the inside.

Pippen didn't hesitate at all and quickly dribbled past Chris Kyle.

However, Pippen, who easily broke through Chris, was unable to successfully get into the Timberwolves' basket. Almost at the same time when Pippen passed the ball and broke through, Garnett in the inside quickly came up to Pippen's direction to defend.

Garnett moved very quickly, and without giving Pippen much time to react, he appeared in front of Pippen and blocked Pippen's way.

Facing the backup defense, Pippen was also very decisive and directly chose to make a quick stop jump shot.

The basketball almost flew past Garnett, and under the gaze of all the players, Pippen's shot went straight out of the basket.

Michael Jordan seemed to have anticipated that Pippen's shot would not go in, and he tried to get into the inside the moment Pippen shot to help the team grab the frontcourt rebound.

However, his intention was seen through by Wu Dao. Just as Jordan made a move, he suddenly noticed that Wu Dao "inadvertently" leaned on his body, and a sharp pain came directly from his chest.

暗肘
Wu Dao also learned a lot of defensive techniques in the NBA. When facing a superstar like Michael Jordan who has been famous for many years, he used "defensive" moves that he had almost never done on the court before.

Michael Jordan had also had several fights with Wu Dao. This hidden elbow was beyond Michael Jordan's expectations and he was hit hard by Wu Dao.

Feeling the spoiler on his chest, Michael Jordan's advancing steps also paused. By the time he reacted, Wu Dao had already rushed to the basket and grabbed the rebound.

"This guy."

After getting the rebound, Wu Dao quickly passed the ball to Marbury, and the Timberwolves immediately launched an attack.

Michael Jordan rubbed his chest and quickly returned to the Bulls' half court. Before leaving, his eyes swept angrily over Wu Dao's body.

Jordan did not protest to the referee on the sidelines, nor did he throw up his hands to call a foul. That kind of wimpy behavior was not his style.

Yes, in today's basketball environment, players who suffer losses and then throw up their hands and ask the referee for a foul and justice will be seen as softies.

In today's competition arena, the referee's whistle is the standard of fairness.

As long as the referee does not blow the whistle, everything the players on the field do is legal and compliant. If the players can do small tricks under the supervision of the referee, that is also the player's ability.

In this day and age, I wonder how many players can survive in the NBA by relying on this ability.

Compared to a villain like Karl Malone, this hidden elbow of martial arts was just a small reminder to Michael Jordan.

During the transition between offense and defense, Marbury quickly brought the ball into the Bulls' half court. The basketball was passed to Garnett who was in a small open position. After getting the ball, Garnett turned around and shot a fadeaway jump shot against Rodman's defense.

Relying on his excellent physical condition and soft shooting touch, Garnett easily shot in front of Rodman. Facing Garnett's offensive style, Rodman didn't have any better solution. He could only jump with all his strength and try to interfere with Garnett's shooting accuracy.

"Dang~~"

I don’t know if it was because the basketball hoop at the Bulls’ home court didn’t recognize Garnett, but Garnett, who had a very high mid-range shooting percentage, was unable to score the ball this time, and the basketball bounced out of the basket.

Rodman's reaction speed was very fast. He turned around and went straight back to the basket. At the same time, he quickly opened his arms to block the players who might enter the basket to grab the rebound behind him.

"got it!!!"

Rodman jumped high and grabbed the ball with both hands. He showed a bright smile on his face after grabbing the rebound. After landing, he quickly scanned the half court, looking for Michael Jordan.

For a player like Rodman, what he has to do on the court is actually very simple.

Defend, rebound, pass to Jordan.

In summary, all Rodman needs to do are these three things. Although Rodman has such a big name, in the Bulls, he is essentially no different from a role player.

Of course, Rodman's value is far from being simply summarized by the four words "role player".

It's not just about the commercial value, nor is it just about Rodman's ability to grab rebounds. What's more important is his fighting spirit and his "loyalty" to Michael Jordan.

If you only look at Rodman's performance on the court, fans who don't know the truth would think he is a loyal bootlicker of Michael Jordan.

But in fact, Rodman and Michael Jordan did not have as much contact in private as fans imagined.

If there was one person on the Bulls who could speak louder than Michael Jordan, it might have been Rodman.

If Rodman's personality wasn't so eccentric, his position in the team might be even higher than that of Pi.
Rodman had a special obsession with rebounding, and when he was quickly looking for Jordan, Wu Dao's face suddenly appeared in front of Rodman, and his figure was reflected in his pupils.

"?!"

The appearance of martial arts was somewhat beyond Rodman's expectations. While he was surprised, he also felt a huge force in his hands.

Before Rodman could tighten his arms, Wudao's powerful arm had already hooked on the basketball, and then he used one hand to snatch the ball directly from Rodman's arms.

"!!!"

This sudden scene made the Bulls fans stare with their eyes wide open. Under the gaze of all the fans, Wu Dao grabbed the basketball and jumped up, dunking the ball into the basket with both hands.

"Dangdang!"

The loud noise of a slam dunk was heard in the stadium, and the Bulls' basketball hoop began to shake violently under Wu Dao's violent slam dunk.

The reporters at the sidelines were also holding cameras, sticking their heads out, staring blankly at Wu Dao, as if they couldn't believe what they had just captured with the cameras.

In the stands, the Timberwolves fans reacted quickly after a brief silence, and thunderous cheers filled the stadium.

Wu Dao, who scored the slam dunk, glanced coldly at the dazed Rodman, then looked at the Bulls fans in front of him, raised his index finger, put it to his mouth, and made a gesture of silence.

The arrogant attitude immediately ignited the anger of the Bulls fans, but Wu Dao's arrogant appearance at this time made the already excited Timberwolves fans even more fanatical.

The cheers of a few thousand people actually drowned out the curses of the Bulls home fans.

At this moment, the Timberwolves players who had been with Wu Dao day and night finally realized that Wu Dao's condition seemed to be very different from before.

If previous martial arts in competitions showed calmness and restraint, then the temperament displayed by martial arts at this time was arrogant and domineering.

It’s hard to say which competition has better temperament.

But for these Timberwolves players, martial arts at this time can help them get into the game faster.

At the sidelines, Stanley and Tom, who were watching Wu Dao returning to defense, couldn't help but look at each other, then silently withdrew their gazes and fell silent.

On the court, Ron Harper quickly advanced towards the Timberwolves' half with the ball.

Tom glanced at Chris Kyle who was on the left wing and frowned slightly. He took a deep breath, stood up, walked to Coach Philip, and said nervously:

"Coach, I already know what my problem is."

"I promise, I'll change."

"Please give me a chance, I want to play."

In fact, when Stanley told him what Wu Dao said yesterday, he was still a little bit unconvinced. Because Wu Dao did not show that side of himself when he was with the players. Most of the time, he got along well with other players and did not seem like the kind of player who would influence the management's decision-making.

But after watching Wu Dao's match today, Tom had a bad feeling in his heart.

He felt that if he couldn't prove his worth in the team, Wu Dao might really find a way to kick him out of the team.

He had no doubt that Wu Dao had such ability, but he had always thought that Wu Dao was not that kind of person.

After all, in the minds of European and American players, Asians are synonymous with humility.

However, the competitive state displayed by martial arts at this time made Tom realize that his previous view of martial arts was completely wrong.

Wu Dao is not a weak player, he just knows clearly his position in the Timberwolves team at different stages.

Today, Wu Dao's position in the Timberwolves has been thoroughly consolidated, and his fangs have been revealed.

At this point, Tom couldn't help but feel that his previous views were a bit naive.

How could a player like Budou be the obedient type?
A player like him will never be content with the status quo.

Moreover, Wu Dao, like many NBA star players, probably has a strong desire to control the team.

(End of this chapter)