Basketball miracles

Chapter 33 [A Bunch of Useless Trash]

The game continued, and Daly drove to the basket on the left, changing direction to get past Magic Johnson and scoring a layup. 17-10.

The Lakers were on offense. Xiao Tu set another screen beyond the three-point line, making it harder for Johnson to shake off the defense. Jordan, however, was very fast and kept his distance from Johnson, cutting off his driving route by going around the screen from inside the three-point line.

Johnson wasn't good at outside jump shots; his three-pointers were mostly guesswork, and Jordan's defensive strategy was excellent. Johnson's explosiveness wasn't enough to overpower Jordan either. He dribbled to the right corner and passed to Xiao Tu on the three-point line in the middle.

Greenwood, who had just entered the game, did not closely guard Xiao Tu, but defended him as usual. In the 80s, players on various teams did not have the habit of closely guarding three-pointers; if the opponent stood outside the three-point line, they would generally leave them two steps.

The league as a whole has a very low number of three-point attempts. Three-point tactics are usually only adopted when the team is desperate to make a comeback, and the success rate is pitifully low. It is currently considered a flawed change to the format.

When the three-pointer was first introduced to the NBA, the league averaged only 2.8 three-point attempts per game, and even in the 1993-94 season, the average number of three-point attempts per game was less than 10.

In Game 6 of the 1993 NBA Finals, Bulls' reserve John Paxson hit an open three-pointer to seal the victory against the Suns. Nobody cared!

Commissioner David Stern had no choice but to shorten the three-point line to encourage players to shoot threes; otherwise, it would be too unsightly for a bunch of players to crowd around the paint and take turns posting up.

Nowadays, interior players all look down on three-pointers, considering them a sideline, and believing that hitting the basket is what tough guys do.

Xiao Tu ignored all that and immediately pulled up for a jump shot after receiving the ball. Greenwood stepped forward but didn't jump, only extending his hand.

Xiao Tu is on fire today, the ball goes in cleanly! 20 to 10.

After scoring, Xiao Tu raised his arms in a flamboyant celebration, drawing enthusiastic applause and cheers from Lakers fans.

Stockton exclaimed, "My God! Shaw hit another three-pointer, bringing his quarter total to 10 points!"

Heinson laughed and said, "His playing style is so unreasonable, but Riley doesn't say anything to him."

This is more than just unreasonable; there are currently no interior players in the NBA who can shoot three-pointers. Previously, those who shot threes were mostly weak guards with poor physicality and limited driving ability; there wasn't a single player over two meters tall.

Larry Bird only started taking more three-point shots this season; last season he averaged 0.2 made out of 0.9 attempts, a 24.7% success rate. Even a floor-based player who relies heavily on jump shots doesn't take as many three-pointers as Xiao Tu.

When the Bulls are on offense, all the players without shooting range are pulled out to create one-on-one opportunities for those with shooting range.

Jordan didn't look for a screen, directly facing the basket and driving past Cooper. He then drew Xiao Tu's help defense before passing the ball to the left baseline. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was pulled back too slowly on defense, and Greenwood dunked for the win. 20-12.

Whenever Xiao Tu saw Kareem Abdul-Jabbar going out with an opposing blue-collar player, he felt the rules were ridiculous. The league was going to any lengths to make it easier for players to score, turning the NBA into a one-on-one game.

In the future, if a center forward like Korcin were to stretch out to the perimeter, you'd be giving him a second glance. Opposing center forwards would absolutely adopt a "playing it safe in the paint" style, giving him two meters of space wouldn't be enough.

In the 80s, a bunch of useless idiots didn't need to practice their shooting; they could create space simply by exploiting bugs.

The most outrageous thing is that there's a group of armchair fans who will praise these players as useless, claiming that future all-around stars wouldn't have been able to compete in the 80s. Their reasoning is that the defense was stronger in the 80s, and tough guys could easily grab and pull people down, so players like Curry and Harden wouldn't be able to shoot three-pointers.

Anyone with internet access and a little research will know that professional boxing in any era would never allow boxing to involve others. The exception is the Philippines, where boxing matches aren't as purely ethical, and some boxers bring basketballs to their matches.

The Lakers were on offense, and Greenwood, no longer daring to let Xiao Tu shoot, followed him out. Magic Johnson passed the ball to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who isolated against Kelsen on the left low post, turned towards the middle, entered the paint, and scored with a close-range hook shot. 22-12.

Coach Longley watched helplessly as the Lakers scored repeatedly, sighing on the sidelines. Even after adjustments, the Bulls still couldn't stop them; he was completely at a loss.

Even when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was skinny as a stick, he could still easily score against Korzan. This white center didn't engage in close defense, allowing his opponent to make any moves he wanted.

Once Jabar entered the penalty area, even if the opponents double-teamed him, it was useless; they couldn't block the shot.

The Lakers maintained their lead, and James Worthy soon opened his own scoring opportunity.

The Bulls players struggled to penetrate the paint, relying primarily on jump shots for points. They completely avoided three-pointers, and their long two-point shooting percentage was also low. Xiao Tu grabbed rebound after rebound, thoroughly enjoying himself. The Lakers' fast breaks were also sharper than the Bulls', with Xiao Tu twice sprinting past Greenwood to receive passes and slamming them home with two hands. He preferred dunks to layups, much to the delight of the home crowd.

他打满首节，投篮6中5，三分2中2，罚球2中2，砍下14分8篮板1助攻2盖帽。

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar also scored 12 points, and the two of them combined for more points than the entire Bulls team.

乔丹同样打满首节，7投2中，罚球2中2，得到6分2篮板2助攻。

Jordan was targeted by Xiao Tu and didn't take many shots in the second half. The coach told him to focus on playmaking, which he was uncomfortable with but did anyway.

Defensively, Jordan couldn't contain Xiao Tu's performance. It wasn't that Jordan didn't try; expecting a shooting guard to compete with Xiao Tu for rebounds or stop Xiao Tu's drives to the basket was unrealistic.

The Lakers led 36-20 after the first quarter.

The Lakers players were relaxed on the sidelines, believing the game was already won. Only Xiao Tu seemed a little unhappy, feeling he wouldn't be able to play for much longer. At this rate, the game would likely become garbage time by the third quarter.

He clocked out before he had played enough, his playing time was less than 40 minutes, and his stats were also worse.

It's not that Xiao Tu looks down on Jordan, but this Bulls team can only play around in the regular season, and even if they make it to the playoffs, they'll be a weak team that gets eliminated in the first round.

There are only 11 teams in the Eastern Conference right now, and any team that isn't one of the worst three will make the playoffs. The significance of Jordan leading the Bulls to the playoffs is far less than what some fans might imagine.

In the second quarter, Xiao Tu and others rested, while Byron Scott and Mike McGee led the substitutes.

Bulls guard Quintin Daly and forward Ulrich led the bench unit to a scoring run that narrowed the gap to just 6 points.

McGee is 196cm tall and weighs only 86kg. He is strong on offense but weak on defense, and he suffered a great loss when matched up against Ulrich.

Scott's performance was even worse, going 0-for-4 and scoring zero points. Without star teammates to draw the defense, his ball-handling offense was inconsistent.

Lakers veteran Bob McAdu was sidelined with an injury today, leaving the bench lacking a scoring option in the paint. This gave Kurt Rambis an opportunity to prove himself, and he quickly demonstrated that he can only be a role player.

As a frugal person, Rambis was starting to consider leaving the team. With Xiao Tu on the team, he knew he would never get a chance to advance with the Lakers, and leaving was the only way to potentially get a high-paying job.

At the same time, he knew very well that he could win a championship with the Lakers and that life in Los Angeles would be more comfortable than in other cities, so he couldn't make up his mind. He was weak in ability but had too many ideas, and his performance was not as good as last season.

With the starters gradually returning, the Lakers began to dominate the Bulls, boasting stars in every position and clear division of labor.

Xiao Tu continued to run pick-and-rolls with Magic Johnson, primarily to draw the defense. The Bulls players dared not leave him open to shoot anymore, even guarding him closely at the high post.

Johnson constantly created scoring opportunities for his teammates, and Jordan, as the primary defender, was also having a headache. Johnson's lack of dribbling and his fancy passing were unstoppable for Jordan. He couldn't afford to leave Johnson open and could only rely on his teammates to contain him.

His teammates couldn't stop him, especially Korzan, who had no answer for Jabeur.

After Worthy entered the game, Ulrich was contained, forcing Jordan to frequently take on Cooper one-on-one.

Cooper tried to stay close to Jordan and avoid being beaten, jumping to contest his turnaround jump shot. If Jordan's mid-range shooting percentage was below 50%, he considered his defense successful, and the Lakers almost always grabbed the rebounds.

When Jordan occasionally succeeded in a low-post back-to-the-basket move or a drive to the basket, Xiao Tu would immediately help defend and rotate, making it even harder for Jordan to get an easy shot. Jordan didn't play as well as he did in the first quarter, scoring only 4 points from mid-range shots with a pitifully low shooting percentage.

Xiao Tu played 6 minutes in this quarter, grabbing an offensive rebound and scoring on a putback, and drawing a foul on a fast break, making both free throws. He also drew the defense on another fast break, assisting Worthy on the right side for a dunk, playing very nimbly.

他半场得到18分13篮板2助攻2盖帽，帮助湖人62比44领先18分。

(End of this chapter)