Chapter 1888 The Past Goes with the Wind, and the War Begins
At the end of the 8-minute video, the audience burst into the warmest applause and cheers. Even the Bulls players applauded unconsciously. And this was not over yet. The fans in the audience, led by the live DJ, Shouting Shaquille O'Neal's name loudly together!
"Shaq!" "Shaq!" "Shaq!"
Upon hearing such a cry, O'Neal, who had already been unable to hold back his tears when the video was played, burst into tears. He turned around and waited for a long time to recover.
"I really didn't expect it. Thank you Lakers. To be honest, I didn't know about it at all. It was a surprise. I devoted my youth there. I did a great job with my brothers. Thank them. Thank you very much for being able to bless me after I retire." O'Neal turned around and wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes with a rare seriousness.
Barkley also rarely quarreled with O'Neal. He also blessed O'Neal and said: "This move of the Lakers is worthy of praise. They are a humane club."
Ji Feng, who was watching all this on the sidelines, was filled with emotion. He had to admit that what the Lakers officials did was really popular. As we all know, for a star with a distinctive personality and constant controversy in his career like O'Neal, He had deep conflicts with every team he had ever played for, and he always lingered on his former club after almost every trade. This made these teams hate the Sharks instead of love.
Among the fans, Magic fans may hate O'Neal the most. In 1996, O'Neal, who was playing for the Magic at the time, defected to the Lakers. This caused Orlando, which was aiming to win the championship, to sink. The Sharks also became the enemy and pain in the hearts of Magic fans.
The one that O'Neal is most unhappy with is the Lakers. The conflict between O'Neal and the Lakers has been going on for a long time. In 2004, O'Neal's bad relationship with Kobe, coupled with the unreasonable contract he demanded, led to him being traded to the Heat. Since then, the shark has been grudged. Yu Huai continued to criticize Kobe and the Purple Jackets, and Lakers fans began to dislike the player who had brought them three championships.
In those years, every Shark matchup was like sparks hitting the earth, and the two kept attacking each other. It wasn't until the All-Star Game two years ago that the relationship finally broke.
And tonight, the Los Angeles Lakers' actions undoubtedly sent a signal that they have put aside their original conflicts, everything has passed, and Los Angeles still remembers O'Neal's contribution to the city.
Kobe's final appearance also showed Kobe's attitude. He had also put aside his original conflicts and gave his instructions to O'Brien who had ended his playing career.
This should be the perfect ending for O'Neal.
Sensational end...
An opening ceremony that was full of topics came to an end, and the opening game, which is also the main game of the Christmas war, is finally about to begin!
In the opening match, both sides were the main players.
For the Lakers, Black replaces Lao Yu. Since Lao Yu is already 37 years old, his athletic ability has really reached the lowest point in his career. In addition, there is not enough training during the holidays, and the schedule of the new season is so devilish, so he played last season. The very stable Blake became the Lakers' new starting point guard.
Blake is not a super defender. Among defenders, his ability is quite satisfactory. He is the kind who eats grass and squeezes grass. Last season, he averaged 4.8 points, 3.2 assists and 0.5 steals in 13 minutes of playing time per game. The Cavaliers can't tell much by looking at the data alone. After all, He played too little time. Last season, the Lakers gave Shannon Brown more time, and this season, Black was directly promoted from the third point guard to the starting lineup.
Many people have questioned whether this is a bit bold and risky. After all, Black does not look very strong.
But it can be seen from the fact that Zen Master directly promoted him to the starting lineup that Zen Master still has great trust in him, and Ji Feng does the same.
Blake is a diligent, low-key, traditional point guard who never breaks through and seldom makes mistakes. He is a player who can withstand pressure and a reliable passer. His passing is simple, direct and efficient.
He is the first Atlantic Coast Conference player to score at least 1,000 points, 800 assists, 400 rebounds, and 200 steals. He has a total of 972 assists in his college career, ranking fifth in NCAA history.
He can do everything you ask him to do perfectly on the court. Although he lacks strength and speed, he is active in defense and very hardworking. Although there is a lot less passion on the court than players like Shannon, he is better than stability. , The most important thing is that his three-point ability is countless times better than Shannon. He never had a chance before. This season, he has enough room to perform.
Looking at the Lakers' tactics this season, Black is very suitable to be the starter. Besides, the old fish is still there, and there are still people who can step in at critical moments, and Ji Feng will also make a cameo in this position from time to time, so some people talk about playing point guard for the Lakers. It's the simplest thing.
The players in other positions remain unchanged. Kobe, Ji Feng, Bynum, and Gasol are unbeatable.
On the other hand, the Bulls are led by Rose, with Boozer, Noah, Luol Deng and new aid Hamilton joining forces.
The Lakers are naturally full of momentum, and the Bulls are also well-organized. The starting lineups of the two teams are very good, and there are strong players like Artest, Barnes, Korver, Asik, and Gibson on the bench. So everyone thinks this will be a head-to-head match.
The first quarter went as everyone expected. The Lakers slowed down the Bulls with a resolute positional attack. Bynum succeeded in beating Noah alone. After O'Neal retired, it was the East Monster, the West Shark, and Noah was still Quite a bit different.
The first goal is the epitome of the entire quarter. Black showed his stable dribbling ability. He and Ji Feng continued to deliver shells to the inside. Ji Feng had 4 points and 4 assists in a single quarter, Black had 2 points and 3 assists, and Bynum had 2 points and 3 assists in a single quarter. Noah scored 8 points, while Gasol also scored 5 points.
The Lakers, who had the advantage of the twin towers inside, failed to prevent the Bulls' decisive breakthrough. Rose still had the same sharp breakthrough as last season. Although Black tried his best to defend, it was still difficult to stop Rose's breakthrough.
Moreover, Rose has also developed a scoring skill package this season. Although Hamilton, the new aid, is not integrated enough and made all his first three shots, Boozer is still very powerful. He scored 6 points on 3 of 3. Plus Rose With 7 points, the Bulls only trailed by 3 points 24-27 in the first quarter.
However, in the second quarter, just as the Bulls were gearing up to continue the showdown with the Lakers, the Lakers suddenly changed their formation. Ji Feng became the main point guard, replaced new aid Kapono at the third position, and Farmar replaced Kobe.
The twin towers inside were still present, so the Bulls did not change their defensive strategy. However, on the first goal, Ji Feng suddenly scored to the new outside aid Kapono. Since Brewer, who was guarding Kapono, went to help defend Ji Feng, Kapono Bono caught the ball and hit a three-pointer instantly!