mountain top

Chapter 206: Veterans unite to defeat me? They're 20,000 years too early! (First update!)

As another big fish in this year's free agent market, it seems everyone is convinced that Dirk Nowitzki will definitely sign a new contract with the Dallas Mavericks and continue his cowboy career in Texas.

However.
This country bumpkin from Würzburg seems to have vanished into thin air lately.

In the past month, Nowitzki has not only failed to sign a new contract with the Mavericks, but there has also been no news about the progress of Nowitzki's contract renewal.

Nobody knows what Nowitzki is thinking.

Will Dirk leave Dallas?

"Don't joke around, he's the flag bearer of that city."

ESPN's A. Smith wrote in his personal column: "I absolutely refuse to believe that Dirk will leave Dallas."

A-Smith's opinion represents the sentiments of the vast majority of fans.

Having played for the Mavericks for twelve seasons, Nowitzki has long been a symbol of Dallas in the eyes of the world.

No one believed Nowitzki would choose to leave this summer.

After all, when have you ever seen a captain abandon his ship?
However, as time goes by
Considering that LeBron James, the "Cleveland team's soul," is willing to leave Cleveland and choose to continue his career in another city in order to contend for a championship,
Dirk Nowitzki's continued refusal to sign a new contract with the Mavericks inevitably causes anxiety among Dallas fans.

But during the time Nowitzki disappeared...
The Mavericks' management team, led by Don Nelson, completed two major trades in succession.

After trading away Haywood, Dampier, and Najera, they first acquired Tyson Chandler from Atlanta.

Lacking confidence in retaining Chandler, whose contract was expiring next summer, the Hawks' front office readily agreed to the trade when they learned that the Mavericks were willing to exchange two big centers for Chandler, despite head coach Mike Budenholzer's advice.

According to the Hawks' management, it doesn't matter if the aging Dampier can no longer recapture his former glory.

Because Dampier is currently just a center earning a veteran's minimum salary.

As for Haywood, who is slightly inferior to Chandler in terms of personal statistics?
Not
With Haywood's annual salary of only around $700 million, what more could the Hawks' management possibly ask for?

Chandler is good, but...
But with the luxury tax in place, how could the Hawks possibly afford to use Chandler?

After the trade, the Hawks' front office comforted Budenholzer with these words: "Mike, if the incompetent league hadn't stripped us of our number one pick back then, we wouldn't have blinked an eye even if we signed another Tyson, let alone one!"

Budenholzer: What you said makes so much sense, I'm speechless!

High-profile player Chandler will join the Mavericks in the new season.

Next, in accordance with the requirements set by the team's head coach Mike Woodson after last season's playoffs...
The Mavericks' front office immediately turned its attention to Tony Parker, who was making a move to leave the team in San Antonio.

Since Duncan left the team, saving money has become the Spurs' top priority in recent years.

Therefore, the Spurs put Parker on the trading block without hesitation, as he wanted to sign a high-salary long-term contract with the team this summer.

“Tony is the next Manu, and he doesn’t deserve a max contract.”

In the summer of 2008, despite the advice of the Spurs team doctor, he chose to play for Argentina in the Olympics while injured, which aggravated his injury.
That summer, the Spurs front office did not hesitate to trade Ginobili to the Celtics via a sign-and-trade.

And in the last two years
Ginobili's tragic experience in Boston seems to confirm the Spurs' management's assessment.

In the 08/09 season, Ginobili was injured again in the playoffs while playing for the Celtics, and he spent the entire 09/10 season battling injuries.

Although Parker has no injury concerns compared to Ginobili.

But in the eyes of the Spurs' front office...
A Parker who tries to get a maximum contract is destined to be poor value for money.

In addition, George Hill, whom the Spurs acquired from the Celtics in the last two years, has proven that he is capable of succeeding Parker. Therefore, the Spurs management is certainly not going to indulge Parker, who cried and made a fuss this summer.

"I've been bleeding and sweating for the team for the past few years since Tim left! How could they treat me like this?"

Upon learning that he had been put on the trading block by the Spurs, Parker finally realized the Spurs' cold-blooded and ruthless management style.

In Qin Yue's previous life, the Spurs were quite competitive during the same historical period.

Under Popovich's persuasion, Parker signed a four-year, $50 million contract extension with the Spurs almost without thinking.

then
By choosing to renew his contract with the Spurs on a pay cut, Parker missed a valuable opportunity to secure a max contract during the peak of his career.

In this life, because the Spurs are not as competitive as Qin Yue remembered, from Parker's perspective, his personal request for a maximum contract is not unreasonable.

However, since Parker currently plays for the Spurs...
How could the Spurs tolerate Parker's attempt to force the team to sign a big contract?
So, after the Mavericks agreed to trade Caron Butler, Dominique Jones, two future first-round draft picks, and two second-round draft picks, the Spurs immediately showed Parker their intentions through action:
Want a big contract? Goodbye!
At the peak of his career, Parker joined the Mavericks.

Shortly after, the Mavericks signed DeShawn Stevenson and Peja Stojakovic to free agency with a mini mid-level exception and a minimum salary contract.
Dirk Nowitzki, who seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth recently, has finally signed a new contract with the Mavericks.

When Qin Yue arrived in Constantinople, he learned that Nowitzki had signed a new contract with the Mavericks with a "1+1" structure, totaling only $2000 million.
Qin Yue knew very well that this Dallas Mavericks team, which was far stronger than he remembered, had quietly become the Warriors' number one rival for the next few seasons.

"Has Dirk gone mad? He actually chose to take a pay cut to renew his contract at the peak of his career?"

Evans, Qin Yue's personal general manager, was very puzzled as to why Nowitzki would choose to renew his contract with the Mavericks with a pay cut.

But Qin Yue, who came from the future, was not surprised by this.

Because Nowitzki is not the only player on the Mavericks roster who chose to take a pay cut to re-sign.

In fact, as early as the summer of 2009, Marion and Kidd had both renewed their contracts with the Mavericks by taking pay cuts.

Indeed, the reason why this Mavericks team, which staged a fairytale in 2011, is so formidable is largely due to the fact that these like-minded veterans made huge sacrifices in terms of salary in order to win the championship.

Qin Yue knew that Nowitzki's "1+1" contract this year was mainly to help the Mavericks re-sign Parker and Chandler next summer.

To preserve the Mavericks' future championship hopes, this country bumpkin from Würzburg has been patiently waiting for the Mavericks to complete their final reinforcements over the past month.

"That's outrageous! They're totally teaming up!"

After Qin Yue explained the situation, Evans, who had learned the whole story, said indignantly.

Qin Yue nodded and said, "That is indeed excessive."

Qin Yue never expected that his appearance would bring such enormous pressure to his contemporary group of NBA stars.

However, the more these stars tried to struggle, the more Qin Yue looked forward to seeing what kind of expressions they would make when he personally destroyed their basketball dreams.
……

The World Championships officially kicked off on August 28.

As the top favorite in the tournament, the Chinese team, assigned to the Constantinople venue, easily defeated the Slovenian team with a score of 108-81 on the opening night.

There's not much to say about the course of this match.

Although FIBA ​​extended the three-point line from 6.25 meters to 6.75 meters at this year's World Championships.
But on the international stage, Qin Yue, who can make three-pointers look like long two-pointers and throw them around, remains an unshakeable god in FIBA.

That night, Qin Yue, who had successfully crafted the "The.Zone" badge after the previous season, experienced the feeling of freely entering and exiting "The.Zone" for the first time in an official match. Qin Yue discovered that when he was in "The.Zone," his focus during the game was significantly higher than before.

However, in Qin Yue's view, there is no need to over-mythologize the so-called "The Zone".

Because when that mysterious feeling ends...
On the field, Qin Yue destroyed the Slovenians' fighting spirit in just three quarters. The game was in "The Zone" for no more than two minutes at most.

For Qin Yue at present, the freedom to enter "The.Zone" is clearly more like icing on the cake.

Qin Yue knew very well that the length of time he would spend in "The Zone" each time would depend on his own condition on the day.

Therefore, the [The.Zone] badge only becomes his best asset on those nights when he is in top form.

After the opening match, what truly interested Qin Yue were the Slovenian fans in the stadium whose morale he had shattered.

Qin Yue was very curious whether Luka Doncic, who would later become famous, was watching this game.

If he sees this, will it inspire him to fight for the rise of Slovenian basketball in the future?

Another point worth mentioning is...
As Qin Yue recalled, before the World Championships began, many superstars, led by LeBron James, were busy dealing with their expiring contracts, which led to the American team, with Durant at its core, not being favored by the public.

However, the American team, which was assigned to the Ankara division, thrashed the host team Turkey 110-84 in their opening game.

Durant had a phenomenal game, shooting 9-for-14 from the field, including 6-for-9 from three-point range, and adding free throws to total 30 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists for Team USA.

On the FIBA ​​stage, Durant, who also received a huge boost, is practically a carbon copy of Qin Yue.

This gave the American media, who had not been optimistic about the US team's ability to redeem themselves before the game, a glimmer of hope.

Will 'KD' be the answer for American basketball on the international stage?

During the group stage, the US team, led by Durant, won all five of their matches, undoubtedly giving American fans a huge surprise.

Furthermore, after leading his team to consecutive defeats in two major tournaments, Coach K, who has a better understanding of FIBA ​​rules, has made significant differences in his lineup and strategy for this World Championship compared to previous ones.

The zone defense employed by various teams when facing the United States.
Coach K, who always ensured that the US team had at least two pitchers on the field, changed the embarrassing situation where the US team would become helpless whenever they faced a zone defense.

Regarding the outstanding performance of the US team in the group stage.
Yao Ming, who was determined to win his first World Championship title with Qin Yue, couldn't help but feel nervous.

"Why do I feel like this American team is stronger than the 08 team?" Yao Ming said with a worried look. "Old Qin, do you think we're going to upset them?"

A rollover?

It's not impossible.

Although the biggest star on this US team is Durant, the second biggest star is his Knicks teammate Westbrook, and the third biggest star is Rose, who plays for the Bulls.
But compared to the 08 US team...
This US team, centered around Durant, is not only more united, but also, because the star players are easier to manage and willing to follow Coach K's tactical arrangements, they have actually shown greater fighting power in actual games.

However, after carefully studying the lineup of the American team, Qin Yue remains optimistic about China winning its first World Championship title.

Because of the absence of many star players, just as Qin Yue remembered, this American team actually only brought two inside players.

One of them is named Kevin Love.

One of them is named Tyson Chandler.

Qin Yue was fully confident that he could handle the former in the competition.

As for the latter?
As is well known, the reason Yao Ming believed he could play in the NBA was because he utterly humiliated Chandler at a training camp before entering the NBA, which led to a question that has been passed down through the ages.
"If even a player of Tyson Chandler's caliber can become the second overall pick in the NBA draft, then wouldn't I be the number one pick if I went to the NBA?"

Qin Yue knew very well that when Chandler faced Yao Ming, it was like a brat finding his favorite toy.

of course
Before facing the American team, the Chinese team still needs to deal with their current opponent.

The group stage has ended.

The Chinese team, advancing to the round of 16 with a perfect record, easily defeated the Angolan team.

Next, in the quarterfinals, facing the aggressive Russian team, the Chinese team advanced to the next round with a score of 94-80.

In the semifinals, led by Qin Yue, the Chinese team faced its biggest test since the start of the World Championships.

Qin Yue was on fire in this game.

However, on the field, the Chinese team was unable to widen the score gap with the Turkish team.

That night, the Turkish team, playing 8 against 5, demonstrated the true meaning of home advantage.

In the fourth quarter, with Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian, and Wang Zhizhi all fouling out, Qin Yue withstood immense pressure and scored 14 points for the Chinese team in the final moments, leading them to a narrow victory over the host nation.

The final score was 95 to 90.

In a post-match interview, Qin Yue said, "Turkey seems to have transformed into a world-class team overnight. I hope they can continue to perform so well in future major international tournaments."

An outstanding performance?
If Qin Yue remembers correctly, apart from the 10 and 14 World Championships, the Turkish team had never participated in a single major international competition before he transmigrated.

Turkey's outstanding performance in this World Championship is certainly related to the arrival of their golden generation, including Hedo Turkoglu and Ilyasova.

But once Turkish basketball loses the help of referees, it will eventually reveal its true colors.

On the evening of September 11, the Chinese team, having defeated the host country, advanced to the final as desired.

On the other hand, the US team's easy victory over Serbia in the semifinals has restored American basketball's confidence in returning to the top of the world this year.

Because the US team had easily defeated the host team, which had posed a huge challenge to the Chinese team in the semifinals, many American fans believed that the US team, led by Durant, was clearly the stronger side.

just
On this night when Durant and this group of rising NBA stars rekindled American basketball's confidence, LeBron James, busy developing his own "Nightmare Shake," simply couldn't understand.
Why do these American fans who are praising Durant's performance in FIBA ​​games have to kick him while he's down?
"Unlike the disappointment LeBron brought us in Japan in 06, this US team led by 'KD' brings American basketball a hope as precious as a diamond!"

In the eyes of American fans, even though this young American team lost to the top favorite, China, in the final, their performance this summer was still quite surprising.

After all, before the tournament started, American media generally believed that the American team should be grateful if they could make it to the semifinals.

"I believe that with KD leading the way, we have a real chance to beat the strong Chinese team."

Before the final began, Westbrook said, "KD has been carrying the whole team on his shoulders throughout this World Championship, and I have no doubt that he will lead us to the end."

In addition, Billups, one of the few veterans on the US team, said: "'KD' is not the kind of player who only steps up to steal credit from his teammates when we win. In the games when we didn't play very well, 'KD' would always take the initiative to take responsibility, which made us an incredibly united team."

The American team, eager to return to its peak, will face the Chinese team in the final battle in Constantinople a day later.

"I know they did well in this World Championships." Before the match, when asked about his thoughts on the final, Qin Yue laughed, "But if they want to beat me, they're 20,000 years too early!"

……

PS: First update! Begging for subscriptions and monthly tickets!
(End of this chapter)