Chapter 139 138. The rookie season comes to an end (15 extra chapters for last month's monthly pass)

Under normal circumstances, it is a great honor for a team that plays like a team to be evaluated as the Bad Boys, but they are a super combination that won two consecutive championships.

It is unprecedented for a team that is only in its second year and mainly composed of young players to receive such an evaluation.

But the guys on the Bobcats felt like they had eaten a fly.

With ESPN's capabilities, this "opposition relationship" will definitely be publicized so that all basketball fans will know about it.

This wave of porcelain hits made the Bobcats guys numb.

And ESPN has also laid the groundwork.

If the two teams meet next season and the Cavaliers lose again, it will be the same process again.

As for the Cavaliers, they spent all their salary space for the next few years to sign Hughes, Damon Jones, Donyell Marshall, and renew the contracts of Snow and Big Z last summer. The total starting salary of these five players this year is already 5 million US dollars. This summer, they will face the renewal of Gooden and the renewal of James next summer...

But the one who is really angry should be their boss.

Just as they thought, last night, Jordan was so happy that his team advanced that he had a sex tape with a Cuban model. Today, when he just woke up, he saw the ESPN article and was so angry that he was mad all day.

Zhang Yang had no time to read about how badly Boss Joe was being criticized by the Cavaliers fans. He just checked other news.

Last night, there were actually two teams that swept through and advanced.

But compared to the Cavaliers' spectacular loss, which was comparable to Jordan's, the Pistons and Mavericks advanced quietly.

The Mavericks swept the Grizzlies, the national team couldn't beat Gasol, and Nowitzki pinned Gasol to the ground in the club.

The Pistons and Bulls series…

Zhang Yang had paid attention to it before, but after watching a live broadcast of a game, he couldn't continue watching it anymore for fear of developing psychological trauma.

G1只看了比分，92比74，他看的是G2的直播，122比93……

The scores of the next two games were better, 109-98 and 110-102.

At the end of the regular season, most fans still thought that the Pistons were the same Pistons of the past two years. It was not until the playoffs that they finally realized that the Pistons were completely different. Zhang Yang saw that many people in the comment section of the series report were exclaiming how the Pistons could both attack and defend.

Zhang Yang looked at the Pistons' players' statistics for this series. The Five Tigers were indeed very strong, but one player's statistics seemed out of place.

这轮系列赛，比卢普斯场均22.5分6.7助攻，汉密尔顿场均24分，拉希德-华莱士场均17分3.5助攻，普林斯场均14.5分……本-华莱士场均2.5分14.5板1.5抢断1.5盖帽。

Zhang Yang felt full of pressure just by looking at the battle report, but he also felt very excited. It didn’t matter whether he could win or not, because he would face the Pistons’ big five in the playoffs!
...

There are new topics every day in the playoffs. At night, the popularity of the Bobcats sweeping the Cavaliers to advance was snatched away by the No. 8 player in the Western Conference.

In Game 4 of the series between the Lakers and the Suns, Kobe was choked by Raja Bell in the final quarter. Kobe went to the sidelines for ice application for a while and came back to score consecutive goals and made a mid-range shot to tie the game, dragging the game into overtime.

In overtime, Kobe scored a buzzer-beating shot to win the game when the team was trailing 7-8.

In this game, Kobe made 14 of 9 shots and scored 24 points and 8 assists, with explosive efficiency.

When the Lakers were leading 2-1, the media didn't react much. After all, the Suns only needed to win one away game to tie the game at 1-2. But when the Lakers were leading 2-3, it was different. The Lakers were already in the black seventh!
1比3落后完成翻盘，概率极低，NBA有史以来，差不多20次1比3落后能有1次完成翻盘。

However, whether from memory or watching the live broadcast, Zhang Yang felt that the Suns had a great chance of a comeback.

The three games the Lakers won had one thing in common - Kobe had a high shooting percentage, it's that simple.

In G4's double buzzer beater, Kobe made 14 of 9 shots, with a hit rate of 64.3%. For Kobe like this, there were always two people around him when he didn't have the ball, and a bunch of people surrounded him when he had the ball. When he passed the ball, his teammates had very good opportunities whether they shot or passed the ball.

After the All-Star Weekend, when the Bobcats played against the Lakers, after Kobe scored two goals in a row, as soon as he got the ball, there were two people in front of him, and the players under the basket were also staring at him, preventing him from scoring 60+ in three quarters or 80+ in the whole game.

But it is difficult for Kobe to maintain high efficiency with the way he plays, and it is incredible that he can maintain it for three consecutive games.

The Lakers won three games by a combined total of only 3 points. Once Kobe's efficiency declined, the Suns' double-teaming became less intense, and other Lakers players couldn't score easily, the Lakers would definitely be finished given the Suns' scoring ability.

However, although the Lakers' prospects are not bright, Zhang Yang still finds it very exciting to watch Kobe's live broadcast.

With Death God Parker and Kwame Brown, Kobe's performance was truly shocking as he beat the Suns with a score of 3 to 1.

Watching Kobe playing at this time, Zhang Yang felt that it was not Kobe's problem, but the problem of the basket and the ball...

After a day of rest, the Bobcats began training in preparation for the game on May 5.

The training atmosphere was extremely relaxed, and there was no pressure to be the best in the league. Jordan even came to challenge his outside teammates to vent his emotions because ESPN called his team the "next Pistons."

Everyone had a great time, sparring with the God of Basketball!
However, some teammates who saw Zhang Yang and Jordan compete one-on-one for the first time were shocked by Zhang Yang's crazy look and admired him a little.

This is the basketball god and team owner. How can a 17-year-old rookie be so brave!

Felton laughed when he heard his teammates' exclamations. Are you surprised?
Nine months ago, I was much less capable than I am now, but I was even more rampant than I am now.

Teammates were not surprised to see Felton and gave him a thumbs up, saying he was worthy of being the boss.

Bickerstaff did not stop the boss and the players from having fun. The difference in strength was 19 wins... Just be happy in the preparation stage. Suffering and torture are waiting for them...

...

As time goes by, the first round of series of matches are coming to an end one after another.

The series between the Heat and the Wizards was the first to end except for the three sweep series, with the Heat defeating the Wizards 4-1.

Arenas averaged 34 points per game, which was quite shocking. Unfortunately, apart from him, the Wizards were at a disadvantage in other positions. O'Neal made Haywood miss Kwame Brown.

Back then, Haywood was the one who bullied Kwame Brown the most on the Wizards, but after Kwame Brown left, he was needed to defend those giants in the low post, and he became the one who missed his fellow No. 1 pick the most in the team.

The Nets and the Pacers were the last group to finish a series in the Eastern Conference. The Pacers lived up to the evaluation of "the most likely to win over the strong". They played back and forth with the Nets in the first 4 games, tied 2-2, but in Game 5, Peja suddenly wilted, making 9 of 2 shots and 4 three-pointers... The Pacers collapsed and lost miserably in the decisive battle. In Game 6, the entire Pacers team collapsed, losing by nearly 85 points, 122-40. The Nets advanced 4-2 and met the Heat in the second round.

In the West, the Nuggets suffered a "downtrodden victory"... Actually, it can't be said to be a downtrodden victory. Although the Clippers are only sixth, they have the home-court advantage. They have 47 wins, while the third-placed Nuggets only have 44 wins.

The Clippers defeated the Nuggets 4-1 and advanced to the second round for the first time in team history.

Anthony was reduced to a 33% shooting percentage by Maggette, Kaman and Brand, and faced off against James who had a 35% shooting percentage. It turned out that the best rookie was better.

The Spurs played the Kings for 6 games, and everyone was surprised, mainly because of two people.

Offense, Bonzi Wells, defense, Ron Artest.

Artest, the favorite to defend, gave Ginobili a hard time on the defensive end.

Bonzi Wells made Duncan very tired, averaging 14.5 of 8.8 shots per game, with a hit rate of 60%, and averaged 23.2 points and 12 rebounds, the highest in the entire series. Duncan had to fight hard for position, and Duncan's rebounds dropped to 9 per game.

Fortunately, Parker averaged 51 points per game with a hit rate of 22%, beating Bibby, and two veterans Finley and Brent Barry both averaged 10+ points per game. The Spurs narrowly won 4-2. If they were really dragged into a game seven, the black eight might have happened early.

During the first round, individual regular season awards were announced one after another. Nash won the regular season MVP for two consecutive years.

Ben Wallace won the Defensive Player of the Year award for the fourth time in five years. Some people feel sorry and some people sigh. If it weren't for Artest, Big Ben would have achieved the unprecedented achievement of winning the Defensive Player of the Year award five times in a row, and his historical status would have been raised several levels.

However, that year Artest's personal defensive performance under the defensive system of the Pacers coached by Carlisle was indeed amazing. The average shooting percentage of the players who faced him in the regular season that year was only 39.1%, which was also an unprecedented achievement.

Boris Diaw of the Suns beat Gerald Wallace of the Bobcats to win the Most Improved Player Award.

Gerald Wallace was very depressed when he heard the news, and Zhang Yang comforted him to look at it more positively...

个人表现肯定是杰拉德-华莱士更好，虽然奥卡福回归后他数据下滑，但也有场均16.4分7.2板3助攻2.6抢断2.2盖帽的表现，但他上赛季已经场均11.1+5.5+2+1.7+1.3了。

而迪奥那边，上赛季场均4.6+2.8+2.3，这赛季场均13.3+6.9+6.2。

In terms of progress, Dior is definitely the biggest.

It is May 5th, and there is still one game left in the first round, a decisive battle between the Lakers and the Suns.

When the Lakers were leading 3-1, the media were all saying that the Suns were bound to be eliminated by seven. When they were leading 3-2, the media said that the Lakers were just distracted for a moment. 3-3... All the media: The Suns are going to make a big comeback!
At the same time as the seventh game between the Lakers and the Suns began, in the East, at the Palace of Auburn Hills, the first game of the second round between the Pistons and the Bobcats started.

Zhang Yang felt sorry for not having time to watch the Lakers' live game, but watching others play a game is not as enjoyable as playing by yourself. Once he stepped into the Palace of Auburn Hills, the Lakers, the Suns, Kobe, and Nash were no longer important. The opponent in front of him was the most important!

But the game wasn't that fun...

At 10:20 p.m., the game ended with the Bobcats losing to the Pistons 87-103, losing by a full 16 points.

张杨被汉密尔顿追得要吐了都，10投仅3中，加上4中4的罚球，拿到10分4板2助攻。

奥卡福和杰拉德-华莱士在内线也惨不忍睹，奥卡福10分11板、杰拉德-华莱士11分7板4助攻……命中率都只有四成出头。

The best performer of the Bobcats was Felton!

Billups had a hard time defending this type of opponent. Felton made 19 of 10 shots, including 5 of 3 three-pointers, and 4 of 3 free throws, scoring 26 points, but he only had 3 assists.

The Pistons had strict defensive discipline and could lock down other positions, so they let Felton beat Billups. This beating did not affect the overall situation, and Billups himself scored 21 points. Although his shooting percentage was a bit low, 20 of 8, he still had 6 assists, which could barely be considered a mutual blow, and he was not at a big disadvantage.

After the game, Zhang Yang went to see the situation on the Lakers side. Kobe scored 33 points with 13 of 34 shots and missed 20 shots. The Lakers also failed to suppress the Suns offensively because of Kobe's declining efficiency and reduced restraining power. They lost 110 to 119, and their 3-1 lead was reversed... Although he felt a little embarrassed, he was indeed in a much better mood.

It’s sad to fail myself, but seeing others fail as well… No, no, I have to go back and watch the video carefully, study the game with my teammates and coaches, and I must win the next game!
...

On the 9th, a rest day, the Bobcats players did not get discouraged by losing the first game... Mainly because the gap in strength was too big, so they kept a calm mindset.

However, although they have little confidence, under the leadership of Felton, the whole team still wants to fight against the Pistons.

If I win a game, I will be happy for a long time.

Jordan also came to Felton's room and discussed with the players how to play.

Soon, on May 5, the Bobcats returned to the Palace of Auburn Hills to face the Pistons in Game 10.

In this game, the Bobcats played much better offensively.

Felton did not continue to play one-on-one, but played pick-and-roll with Okafor, using the long-range shooting threat he showed in the first game to complete pass-and-cut cooperation with Gerald Wallace and Okafor, bringing Ben Wallace to the top of the arc and pressing Rasheed Wallace under the basket.

The one who benefited the most was... Zhang Yang, who took advantage of Okafor's screen to get to the free throw line and shoot after Okafor's pick-and-roll!

Billups was so nervous when he switched to defend Zhang Yang. This legendary rookie was really as brave as the legend said! No wonder Hamilton complained that he didn't want to defend this rookie anymore after the back-to-back match in the regular season.

You thought you had defended well and the opponent dared not shoot, but it seems that there is no ball that this rookie dared not shoot! As long as there is a little space, the opponent will shoot it, and the shooting speed is very fast!
Once upon a time, Billups thought he was the most extravagant person in the world. Even if he met Kobe, he felt that Kobe could not definitely beat him in this aspect.

But today when he met this rookie, he finally understood what it meant to be pushed forward by the waves behind…

In this game, Zhang Yang made 21 of 9 shots, including 1 of 1 three-pointers, and 4 of 3 free throws, scoring 22 points.

Felton's performance was still outstanding. Jordan gave him the opportunity to shoot decisively. He made 19 of 9 shots and scored 21 points. His assists doubled from the previous game to 6.

Gerald Wallace also took advantage of the high post and top arc to attack the basket and scored 19 points and 7 rebounds.

The Bobcats scored 100 points!
It's just that their offense has improved, but their defense is still not good.

汉密尔顿22分4助攻、比卢普斯18分8助攻、普林斯21分、本-华莱士9分11板、拉希德-华莱士17分3助攻、麦克戴斯19分……108比100，活塞队连赢两场，稳稳将两个主场都守住！
However, although the Pistons successfully defended both home courts, they were still frightened by the Bobcats' resilience.

These young people are so brave! They are so tough!
Rasheed Wallace under the basket felt that Gerald Wallace was like a leopard, as if he wanted to bite off a piece of meat from him!

Especially in the fourth quarter, the Bobcats scored 31 to 27. If the Pistons had relaxed after leading by 12 points after three quarters, they might have been defeated by the Bobcats.

On May 5, the Bobcats faced the Pistons in Game 13 of their series at home.

The fourth quarter of Game 2 made the Pistons break out in a cold sweat and they almost got upset.

Coming to the away game, the upset really happened!
The Pistons' offense was still sharp in this game, scoring 106 points in a single game. Except for Ben Wallace who only scored 8 points, the other four players all scored more than 15 points, and Hamilton even scored 31 points.

But the Bobcats on the other side went crazy!
They carried out more targeted defense against Zhang Yang, Gerald Wallace and Felton.

Zhang Yang scored 12 points and Gerald Wallace scored 14 points, both performing worse than in the previous game.

Felton scored his lowest score since the start of the series, scoring only 16 points on 7 of 17 shots, but had 10 assists!
Matt Carroll, Jumaine Jones, Alan Anderson and Kareem Rush, four three-point shooters, fired wildly from the outside and made 12 three-pointers together. Three of the four scored in double digits, scoring a total of 4 points!
Okafor took advantage of the opponent's empty inside line, actively cut in to receive and grab second-chance rebounds, and scored 20 points and 12 rebounds.

山猫队7人得分上双，以111比106爆冷击败活塞队，拒绝0比3！

In this game, the Bobcats played vigorously and vigorously, and the fans at the scene were excited and screamed continuously.

But it also succeeded in angering the Pistons!
A day later, on May 5, the away Pistons maintained stability on offense and went all out on defense, giving their team a sense of déjà vu of last season's finals.

Under the crazy defense of the Pistons, the Bobcats could not hold on. The team only scored 88 points and lost 88-105, falling behind 1-3...

On May 5th, at the Palace of Auburn Hills, the Bobcats and the Pistons started the fifth game of the series.

After being pinned to the ground in Game 4, the Bobcats were not discouraged in Game 5 and continued to fight on the road.

The Pistons players were not surprised at all to see the perseverance of the Bobcats players. Although they were angry about the upset in Game 3, this group of tenacious young people won their respect.

They tried their best to compete with the Bobcats, just like in Game 4.

The Bobcats players tried hard, but they still couldn't overcome the gap in strength.

At 9:23 pm, the final whistle sounded.

Zhang Yang looked at the score of 92 to 103 on the big screen. He was inevitably frustrated by the loss, but he had no regrets this season, including this round of series. He and his teammates had tried their best.

With a big score of 1 to 4, the Bobcats were eliminated in the second round, and Zhang Yang's first season in his professional career ended!
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(End of this chapter)