Don't talk trash to him.

Chapter 262 Even if he is a substitute, he is still the "chosen one"

The game was ended with boos from the entire stadium.

But the game was quite normal at the beginning. Although there were boos at the scene, the atmosphere on the field was not intense.

The Heat's overall strength is much stronger than the Cavaliers.

Without LeBron making trouble on the court, the Heat quickly established a 10-point lead.

However, after LeBron came on the court, the atmosphere suddenly became tense, and the Cavaliers players also became more aggressive.

LeBron stumbles almost every time he catches the ball, and the defenders actively exert force on him in every confrontation.

The Cavaliers made some trades this summer, but most of them were not so easy to clean up, and they were still the faces who once called LeBron "Big Brother". And it was also these faces who were really ruthless, and some of their moves didn't seem to be aimed at the ball at all.

LeBron was grimacing after being beaten, but the player who was fouled raised his hand nonchalantly to indicate that he had committed a foul.

At this time, there will be huge cheers at the scene.

Cleveland fans seemed to be acting like, "As long as you beat LeBron, you are a good player for our Cavaliers."

At the end of the game, the Cavaliers lost by 21 points, but LeBron's exposed arms were covered with scratches, which were clearly visible. This scene stimulated the Cleveland fans in the audience, and they booed LeBron again.

LeBron walked past them victoriously.

Barkley looked at his arrogant appearance and said speechlessly: "If I were LeBron, I might not have such confidence!"

Does this guy really not think he did anything wrong?

After the game, LeBron complained about the Cavaliers players: "They are not playing, they are just venting their anger!"

Perhaps he felt that it was not enough, so he posted another update on Twitter: "I know that a boy from Akron will never be truly recognized by Cleveland. I have always known this, but I still had expectations. As it turns out, I was wrong!"

A strong smell of tea.

Shaquille O'Neal tweeted the next day: "If I were from Cleveland, I would never forgive LeBron!"

When Su Wan saw this tweet, he thought about his original Cleveland fans and smiled and shook his head.

He once thought about going to Cleveland to cut off LeBron's escape route.

But now think about how ridiculous that idea was.

First, he is not from Cleveland and has no connection with Ohio. Second, he has been abandoned by this city. If he chooses to go back just to slap LeBron in the face, it would be too much of a sacrifice.

the most important is……

Even if he went back.

He also shouted "Cleveland, this is for you", which successfully disgusted LeBron.

Then leave Cleveland.

Turn around and you'll see Cleveland welcoming back LeBron James.

Then it's his turn to be disgusted!

So he never considered the idea of ​​returning to Cleveland last summer.

On January 1, the New York Knicks traveled to Chicago to challenge the Bulls, currently ranked first in the league.

Before the start of the new season, when Derrick Rose announced that he would make a bid for the regular season MVP award, the media were still skeptical even with Suwan's stamp of approval.

But when the new season started, Derrick Rose's increasingly eye-catching performance and the Bulls' seemingly transformed team combat effectiveness made his remarks about the regular season MVP gradually become a reality.

And this season, Derrick Rose's popularity has also skyrocketed.

The All-Star starting lineup voting has entered the third round.

Ranked second on the Eastern Conference guard list is Derrick Rose.

Even Dwyane Wade was pushed behind him.

This shows how strong his momentum is.

However, in addition to the transformed Derrick Rose, the Bulls' ability to achieve such a record also requires thanking one person, that is, the new head coach Tom Thibodeau who just joined the Bulls last summer.

It was his arrival that brought the Bulls' overall defensive capabilities to a higher level.

Regarding Thibodeau's coaching style, there is absolutely no difference between him in 2011 and him in 2024.

One sentence to describe it is:
Think of yourself as a "farmer" and turn these black players into their ancestors.

The only difference is that their ancestors were picking cotton in the fields, while these players are playing on the court.

In the playoffs, it is common for core players to average more than 40 minutes per game.

But in the regular season, it is really rare to see an average playing time of more than 40 minutes per game. Except for people like LeBron who regards "brushing stats" as his lifelong career, generally speaking, core players playing around 36 minutes is considered a relatively high amount in the regular season.

Derrick Rose has averaged 37.4 minutes per game this season, and he has used Luol Deng even more harshly, averaging 39.8 minutes per game.

These two people are also the "one offense and one defense" of the Bulls' outside line.

The entire Bulls' style of play basically revolves around these two people.

The Bulls' offensive play this season is very similar to the Philadelphia 01ers in 76.

In 01, the Philadelphia 76ers concentrated all their shooting rights in the hands of Allen Iverson.

This season, the Bulls have concentrated all their shots in the hands of Derrick Rose.

Therefore, if we really talk about shooting percentage this season, Rose is not as efficient as in the previous two seasons. This season, he averaged 44.5% shooting percentage, which is nearly 4% lower than last season!

But his lower shooting percentage resulted in the Bulls' better record.

Just like Allen Iverson in 01, his personal offensive efficiency was also low, but the Philadelphia 76ers eventually made it to the finals.

So, not all playing styles on the basketball court are based on hit rate and efficiency.

The accuracy of Gatling gun is definitely not as good as that of ordinary sniper rifles.

But in terms of firepower coverage, the sniper rifle is not as good as the Gatling.

Using specific tactics in specific situations is the charm of basketball.

This is also the reason why LeBron is often criticized for passing the ball to his teammates at the last moment.

Does this make sense from a tactical perspective?

Of course it’s reasonable!

Through personal containment, teammates in open positions can be allowed to shoot.

There's nothing wrong with it.

But tactics are dead.

When it comes to the last moment of shooting, it is not only a test of whether there is a defender in front of you, but also the psychological pressure and various other factors.

Horry is more successful and earns more than the average role player.

what is the reason?
Isn’t it just that he has a “big heart”?

And if you let LeBron shoot an open three-pointer at the last minute, his hit rate may not be as high as that of ordinary role players.

No matter what, as long as it can win the game, it is a good tactic.

Moreover, you, LeBron, are good at playing "data cake", but if I put you in the position of Derrick Rose and Allen Iverson in the past, and let you keep playing offensive balls, can you bring the team to that level?
This is also why Derrick Rose is not very efficient and his statistics do not seem to be that explosive, but his voice of winning the regular season MVP is so high.

If you put someone else in his position, they really wouldn't be able to do those jobs!

Unique and also the regular season MVP!

Just like Steve Nash back then...

Before this game, the New York Knicks added a new member to their assistant coaching staff:

Mike Malone!

His arrival has a lot to do with Su Wan.

Recently, Suwan received a call from Brandon Malone, who hoped that his son could join the New York Knicks' assistant coaching team. As the first head coach Suwan met in his career, Brandon was very caring towards him when Suwan was still a young player. In the early days of joining the Cavaliers, it was he who helped him stabilize his starting position by getting in touch with Paul Silas.

Besides, Suwan is also familiar with Mike Malone, a guy with real talent and who also has the buff to restrain LeBron James, even though his current coaching ability is not as good as it will be in the future.

But relying on his father's connections and this buff, Su Wan had no reason to refuse.

In this way, the New York Knicks' assistant coaching team has gathered two future "god-level assistant coaches", Tyronn Lue and Mike Malone.

Suwan felt somewhat embarrassed for D'Antoni.

Can he really afford this team of assistant teachers?

Mike Malone also participated in the defensive targeting of this game.

He shares the same opinion as Tyronn Lue, both of which are to limit Derrick Rose...

D'Antoni already felt that he was being sidelined.

Tyronn Lue and Suwan always have the same opinion.

Now, with the addition of newcomer Mike Malone, he has even less say.

What D'Antoni meant was that no matter how well Derrick Rose performs, he is alone. As long as he can overwhelm the other players on the Bulls, he is destined to not be able to cause any waves.

From this we can see that D'Antoni really doesn't know much about defense.

Mike Malone said: "Derrick's way of leading the team as a point guard is through his personal offense. As long as he can continue to attack, he can lead the entire team!"

You can't just think that because he is an offensive guard, you can leave him open and suppress the offense of others.

But in fact, he is the offensive engine of the Bulls. If he is not suppressed, the Bulls will be able to launch a steady stream of attacks.

You know, he also averaged 7.7 assists per game this season.

This average number of assists per game ranks tenth in the entire league.

He can attack on his own and pass the ball. If we really let him play more and more excitedly, the result will be that all the Bulls players will go crazy.

And he also has a weakness that can be targeted, which is his unstable shooting.

As long as they stifle his breakthrough and let him solve the problem by shooting, the New York Knicks can win.

The result was also smooth...

With the defensive targeting of Suwan and Tyson Chandler, as well as the help of the whole team, Derrick Rose had a very difficult game.

If his personal offense can't get going, the Bulls need to find another ball handler.

but……

Where can the Bulls find a second ball handler?
Coupled with the improved form of Stephen Curry and Gallinari, the New York Knicks launched a ferocious offensive wave right from the start.

In the end, the New York Knicks won by 109 points, 94-15, at the Bulls' home court.

The Chicago media was a little frustrated. They portrayed this game as a battle for the "regular season MVP" before the game.

This is really shooting oneself in the foot...

苏万在这场比赛砍下了39分7篮板5助攻，德里克-罗斯的数据仅仅22分6篮板4助攻4失误。

If this game decides the regular season MVP, then Suwan will win over Derrick Rose.

Apart from Suwan, the best performer of the New York Knicks was Stephen Curry, who made a total of 5 three-pointers in this game and finally scored 24 points.

It was only in the second half of the game that Stephen Curry made New Yorkers sweat.

He fell during the confrontation and sprained his ankle.

The painful look at that time made Knicks fans think that he was going to be injured again. Barkley joked: "Stephen Curry's ankle is as tender as his face!"

Fortunately, the final result was safe and sound. Stephen Curry tied his shoelaces, stomped his feet, and was fine again.

Suwan is already considering adjusting Stephen Curry's performance this summer.

He knew that Stephen Curry would suffer a serious ankle injury in the third season of his career. The injury was so serious that the doctor gave him an "ankle death notice". Then, by changing the way he exerted force, Stephen Curry "rose from the ashes".

In Su Wan's opinion, spraining his ankle all the time is a sign of...

He couldn't just watch Stephen Curry's season be over.

It's not just from the perspective of a team leader, the more important thing is... he promised the New York fans that he would win the championship in two years at most.

If Stephen Curry is out for the season next year, it will definitely not be good news for him.

This alone was enough for him to start the plan to "save Stephen Curry's ankle."

In fact, as early as last summer, Suwan was considering whether to change Stephen Curry's power method in advance. But then he thought, he had never met Stephen Curry, and the first thing he said when they met was "Come on, Stephen, let's change your power method." Wouldn't this make people think he was "crazy"!

But now, Stephen Curry's frequent ankle sprains are a very good opportunity.

On the bus from the United Arena to the airport, Suwan deliberately sat with Stephen Curry.

Curry's foot was already wrapped in a thick bandage.

Although the examination showed no major problems, it was inevitable that the ankle would feel uncomfortable. Stephen Curry's face was wrinkled. He had just played a good game, and immediately encountered an injury warning. It would be strange if he could feel better.

Su Wan pretended to say something unintentionally: "Stephen, have you ever considered changing the way you exert force to reduce the burden on your ankle? Maybe you won't sprain your ankle so frequently!"

Change the way you exert force?

Stephen Curry was clearly interested.

Su Wan struck while the iron was hot: "You can give it a try. I have a good relationship with Tim Grover. You should also know that he is a very good trainer. How about I take you to meet him this summer?"

Curry nodded slightly, but his expression was still a little struggling.

Su Wan knew what he was worried about.

He was afraid that if he changed his way of exerting force, he would not be able to catch up with the new season.

Su Wan didn't say much about this.

When summer comes, everything will be solved. He knows very well that the league will enter a bad state this summer.

Especially last year, the appearance of Su Wan made the league earn hundreds of millions more in a year, and it was destined that the league would enter a lockout. ——Because the reason why the league's bosses often ask for a lockout is very simple, that is, they feel that they earn too little.

The 98 lockout was like this, and the 2011 lockout was still like this...

When they are making enough money, they won’t do a lockout.

The year 2006 is a great example!

Even though the bosses earned an extra 3 million this year, since players' income accounts for 56% of the total revenue, what the bosses earned is far less than what the players earned.

Do you think the capitalists would not be jealous?
The current profits are better than those in the same period. I’m afraid these capitalists can’t wait to stop operations right now and redistribute the profits!
Mike Malone's joining has significantly improved the New York Knicks' defensive tactical arrangements.

The New York Knicks' defensive strategy is now very clear, which is a defensive lineup with Suwan and Tyson Chandler as the core.

This is a big change compared to the original core of Artest and Tyson Chandler.

Artest is really old now, and his slower pace makes him effective against outside ball handlers like LeBron who don't have many ways to get rid of the ball, or wing attackers like Kobe who increasingly rely on "back-to-the-basket".

Artest is not very effective when defending other wings with faster legs or those who prefer to move without the ball.

As the first line of defense, his defensive quality was not high, and even Tyson Chandler was unable to play to his defensive ability.

But after adjusting the organizational structure, the New York Knicks' defensive efficiency suddenly improved.

Don't forget that the New York Knicks are a team that mainly relies on defensive counterattacks.

The defensive efficiency has improved, and their offensive firepower has become more fierce.

In the remaining games of January, the New York Knicks had a "1-game winning streak". During this period, the New York Knicks averaged 5 points per game and limited their opponents' points to around 109 points per game.

After several months of adjustment, the New York Knicks' offensive and defensive systems are now beginning to show signs of strength.

The most important thing is that the team's condition has gradually stabilized.

This shows that people like Stephen Curry and Gallinari have become accustomed to their current team positions.

The New York Times: "This is Su Wan's ability to lead!"

It's just the end of January, and the New York Knicks are still ranked third in the Eastern Conference.

In addition to the Bulls, who are ranked first in the Eastern Conference and are still fierce, the Heat also showed a very terrifying momentum after putting LeBron on the bench. They did not win a single game in the first half of January, but after LeBron entered the bench, they did not lose a single game and directly went on an "1-game winning streak."

The fierce momentum suddenly purified the previously turbulent public opinion environment in Miami.

Most media outlets have forgiven LeBron for "kneeling" at the New York Knicks' home court, believing that he is now an integral part of the Heat and plays an important role off the bench.

This makes sense. Currently, the Heat is the team with the most powerful bench firepower. In the second half of January, they averaged 1 points per game, ranking first in the league.

Of course, most of those points came from LeBron James.

他场均可以拿到22.5分5.5篮板4.5助攻，投篮命中率50%，三分球命中率38.6%，罚球命中率78.4%。

The scene that Su Wan was most worried about finally happened.

After playing the Heat's last game in January, LeBron James expressed his views on the Heat's current "winning streak": "I can play any position on the team. As long as it can make the team win, I can make any sacrifice, including playing as a substitute. To be honest, I am still one of the most capable people in the league, but in order for the Heat to win, I am willing to maintain my current role in the team!"

Personal strength and spirit of sacrifice are the words that LeBron has been talking about recently.

It can be seen from here that he actually doesn't want to be a substitute.

What might be done?

He has such a bad reputation now, and the Heat haven't won a single game in such a long time as a starter. Pat Riley doesn't want to sell him at a loss in a hurry.

In addition to being a substitute, he was also kept on the bench.

There was no other way, he could only choose to endure the humiliation.

Facts have proved that the "Chosen One" is the "Chosen One", even if he plays as a substitute, he is still the "Chosen One"!
If an ordinary star plays as a substitute in the rotation, can he have such explosive data as mine?

snort!
LeBron believes that his performance during this period has proved himself.

The team asked him to emphasize his sacrifices and contributions to the team.

This is called going with the flow. Now the Heat's external statement is that he sacrificed for the Heat and took the initiative to serve as a substitute.

He must seize this opportunity to reverse his public opinion.

Our old James is not someone who cannot be sacrificed!

Look, isn’t it a sacrifice now?

When Su Wan saw LeBron’s remarks, he shook his head helplessly. What else could he say?

People have no shame...

On February 2, the league announced the "Player of the Month" for the East and West. The East ultimately belonged to...

Suwan!

Although the New York Knicks only had 1 wins and 10 losses in January, Suwan's 6 points in a single game were brilliant. ESPN believed that this game alone was enough to make Suwan the "Player of the Month Award" in January.

The Western Conference's "January Player of the Month" award went to Kevin Durant of the Thunder.

The Thunder had an 1-11 record throughout January.

Even more dazzling than the record is Kevin Durant's average statistics.

This month he averaged 34.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.

His outstanding scoring performance made him the Western Conference's "January Player of the Month".

It's just that Kevin Durant wasn't happy.

His goal is 83 points in a single game.

But no matter how hard he tried during this period, no matter how fierce his scoring momentum was at the beginning, as the game went on, his condition began to fluctuate, his concentration became unfocused, or his physical fitness began to have problems.

In short, for him, getting 30 plus is as easy as taking something out of his bag. If he wants to get 40 plus, it depends on whether his condition can last that night. As for 50 plus...

Anyway, he tried hard for a month and didn't succeed even once.

The highest score was 48 points, but he couldn't get the last 2 points at all.

50 plus seems to require a bit of luck...

80 plus...

When will he get it?

Seeing the gap between himself and Suwan, Kevin Durant was very frustrated. What's the point of getting "Best Player of the Month" if he can't drink Scarlett's bath water?

He's been missing Scarlett like crazy lately...

When I sleep at night, I dream about Scarlett.

On February 2, the league announced the 2 Eastern and Western All-Star lineups. Kevin Durant did not pay attention to it. Instead, he watched Scarlett Johansson's red carpet show over and over again. He became more and more excited and finally couldn't help but posted a comment on his Twitter:
"Scarlett, I want to drink your bath water!"

Suddenly the entire network was in an uproar.

When David Stern saw the news, he was almost so angry that he took back Kevin Durant's All-Star spot.

Another thing that also caused heated discussion:
LeBron James failed to make the Eastern Conference All-Star team.

This is the first time he has missed the All-Star team since 05.

LeBron's team started a trend, saying that LeBron was not selected because he did not play enough regular season games. But this was quickly refuted. Although there is a game requirement for entering the All-Star Game, as long as he plays 14 games, he is eligible to be selected.

LeBron played in all the games in January and is eligible for the All-Star selection.

There is no real reason why he was selected...

The league's head coaches felt he wasn't qualified enough to make the Eastern Conference All-Star team.

LeBron James was very angry and said: "This selection rule is shit. It is disrespectful to us, the sixth man of the team. We are also the most critical component of the team's victory, but we can't enter the All-Stars just because we are the sixth man. Is this reasonable? Damn rule!"

Shaquille O'Neal fought back at this time: "No, no, no, LeBron, stop your tricks. The reason you failed to be selected to the All-Star Game is not because of your status as the sixth man of your team. There have been precedents in NBA history where a team's substitutes were selected to the All-Star Game! I don't want to mention that guy's name, but we all know that happened!"

"The reason you didn't do it is simply because you are not qualified!"

"Stop pulling in all the sixth men on the team and trying to get them to join your side!"

"No one will fall for your tricks!"

Barkley also said: "There are many forwards in the East this season who deserve to be in the All-Star Game more than LeBron, there is no doubt about that!"

Go to hell!
LeBron broke through the defense.

He was so self-satisfied just two days ago, but at this moment he finally realized what he would lose by becoming the team's sixth man.

No, he must change this situation...

He wants to fight back!

He must fight back!

But having said that, LeBron couldn't think of any way to fight back after thinking for a long time.

woohoo~
LeBron looked up at the sky, choking up in his heart.

He was homesick again.

Although the Miami media was somewhat disappointed that LeBron did not make the All-Star team, the overall atmosphere was still very strong.

Because the Heat also had Wade and Chris Bosh selected as All-Stars.

The Heat still have their star power.

Among them, Chris Bosh is the starting All-Star in the Eastern Conference!

The only pity is that Wade did not become an All-Star starter.

There was no way. Derrick Rose's rising momentum was too fierce and Wade couldn't resist it.

As for the other spot in the back line, it is even more...

unattainable!

Su Wan once again became the "King of Votes", and this time the number of votes he received reached a new high of 512 million votes.

It is said that more than half of the people in New York State voted for him.

That "83-point miracle" left New York State devastated, but it also made the state regain its passion for basketball.

David Stern said in an interview: "Michael Jordan made more people pay attention to basketball in the 90s, and Suwan made more people pay attention to basketball in the 10s!"

This was the first time he compared Suwan with Jordan in the same position.

It can be seen that David Stern has already regarded Suwan as the "face" of this league, both openly and secretly.

In fact, when Suwan came to New York, it was impossible for anyone else to be the face of the NBA...

Whether it is his personal momentum or the public opinion environment that New York State can create for Suwan, even Kobe will find it difficult to compete with him now.

Another thing that can reflect Su Wan's influence...

Stephen Curry was selected as an All-Star reserve for the Eastern Conference as a sophomore.

This year he averaged 18.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game, which is not much different from his original data in his second year.

But the difference in gold content is too obvious.

When he achieved this data, the Warriors' record was ranked last in the Western Conference.

Now he has similar numbers, and the New York Knicks are ranked third in the Eastern Conference...

Even though his qualifications were not enough, thanks to Su Wan's influence, he proudly became an All-Star.

In addition, Tyson Chandler, who averaged 13.4 points and 11.4 rebounds per game, was also selected to the All-Star team.

New York, which did not have a single All-Star last year, became the biggest winner of this year's All-Star Weekend, with a total of three players selected for the final All-Star lineup.

The Pacers also had two players selected for the All-Star team, one is Zach Randolph and the other is Chauncey Billups.

O'Neal Jr. averaged 17.6 points and 9.8 rebounds per game, but unfortunately he was not selected.

From this point of view, it is not unfair at all that LeBron James was not selected.

The competition on the Eastern Conference front line is just too fierce this year.

The remaining two starters in the East are:
Forward Kevin Garnett, and center Howard!
The Western side can be said to have undergone a complete "major change".

Except for Chris Paul and Kobe, two regular All-Star starters.

The starting lineups at other positions have changed.

The two forward positions are:
Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony.

The center position is:
Amar'e Stoudemire!
About two or three days after the All-Star starting list was released, news suddenly came from Miami that LeBron James was looking forward to participating in this year's "Slam Dunk Contest": "Yes, I suddenly had the idea of ​​participating in the Slam Dunk Contest, and this idea is very strong, but unfortunately, I know that the places have been decided, and I have no intention of replacing other people's places. I know this is also an opportunity for them, so I can only say to myself, let's see if I still have this idea at this time next year!"

When Su Wan heard this, he shook his head and clapped his hands:
wonderful!

Bravo!

LeBron's ability to create public opinion is truly at the "goat" level.

As soon as he saw that he would not have the exposure of the All-Star Weekend, he immediately found another way and mentioned the "Slam Dunk Contest."

Su Wan is well aware that there are many strong players in this year's dunk contest. If LeBron really participates, there might be some fun.

That being the case...

Of course he had to help, and that afternoon he told the media: "I think the league should make an exception for LeBron!"

The league quickly responded to LeBron: "If LeBron is willing to participate, we will certainly be happy to put his name on the list!"

LeBron: Eh? No...

(End of this chapter)