Chapter 373 372. The regular season comes to an end, and the youngest scoring champion in history is born!
In the afternoon, the Bobcats came to Chicago.

Zhang Yang learned that the Bulls had no training scheduled, so he dropped off his luggage at the hotel, picked up a change of clothes, and headed straight to Yao Ming's house to play World of Warcraft together and have a good rest.

Felton did not come to Chicago directly. He had originally planned to stay with the team, at least to cheer on his teammates.

But American reporters dare to ask anything. They ask whatever topics the fans are interested in, and even ask more in-depth questions than the fans.

When Felton was interviewed last night and asked about coming out, he cursed the reporter for coming out, and he cursed very badly. The reporter also believed that he had not come out. The reporter has seen many people who have really come out, so they can't curse like that. Then, today he was bombarded by the media for sexual discrimination.

He finally understood. It turned out that no matter whether he spoke or not, denied or not, the media would always find something to hype up, and he would be the one who suffered in the end... If he couldn't afford to provoke, he could at least avoid it. He stayed at home, drawing circles and cursing the head coach for losing money when he went out.

Okafor knew very well the nature of the media and simply ignored them. He brought his nephew Jahlil to Chicago for a trip and asked the Bulls for tickets for his nephew to watch the game.

One of the three core players didn't come, one took his nephew to visit tourist attractions, and one went to the Little Giant's house to play...none of them was doing their job properly, but the other players on the Bobcats were different.

Alan Anderson, Afflalo, Pietrus, Millsap... and others found Hill, Brad Miller, Tyronn Lue to discuss how to play tomorrow's game and how to better cooperate with Zhang Yang.

The team's second and third scorers are not playing, and Brad Miller and Mike Miller's playing time is reduced to less than 20 minutes. This is a very good opportunity for others to show their abilities.

Alan Anderson and Pietrus both want to move up from the edge of the rotation, and Afflalo also hopes to be in the coaching staff's field of vision.

Millsap is even more ambitious and wants to replace Brad Miller.

He doesn't need to hide this. One of the important purposes of the team trading back Brad Miller is to let him learn to play like Brad Miller. The team also made it clear that as long as his strength surpasses Brad Miller, the starting position will be his. He also knows that he can't replace Brad Miller now, but he's a young man and he wants to try when he gets the chance.

Hill is happy to lead young teammates. He is a person who likes to be a leader. Another similar person is Rahim.

Although Hill almost died during his playing career and lost interest in his status on the court, and Rahim lost his passion for basketball due to playing on bad teams for many years, they have always wanted to be leaders.

In the original time and space, Hill retired and joined the National Basketball Association after a few years of rest. At the age of 49, he became the general manager of the US men's basketball team and a candidate for the next chairman of the Basketball Association.

Rahim did not follow the official career path, but returned to work in the NBA a few years after his retirement. On his 42nd birthday, the birthday gift given to him by Joke was to appoint him as the president of the NBA Development League. If he was promoted to this position, he would become the vice president and successor to the president of the NBA.

Zhang Yang's playing style is simple and clear, which is shooting. He doesn't need him. Hill, Brad Miller, Tyronn Lue and a few young teammates can also discuss effectively...

On the other side, in Carlisle's room, the coaching staff was also holding a small meeting, but they were not discussing tomorrow's game, but the opponents in the first round of the playoffs.

Yesterday, after the Hawks defeated the Wizards, although the top eight in the Eastern Conference has not been completely determined, the ranking has been determined.

Upper half: Bulls, Bobcats, Pistons, Magic; lower half: Cavaliers, Wizards, Hawks, Raptors.

The Hawks' record has reached 42 wins and 39 losses, and the Raptors currently have a record of 40 wins and 41 losses. The Hawks have fought back from being a bottom-ranked team to secure the seventh place in the Eastern Conference one game in advance. The Bobcats coaching staff cannot afford to be careless.

After the coaching staff meeting, Vincent mentioned Hill's meeting with the young players and sighed, "It's a pity that Jack scored 46 points last night. He was in such good shape. If we had played with all the main players, we would have a high probability of winning. Then we could have won more than 10 games twice like the Bulls did. We may also win tomorrow night and end the winning streak. Morale in the playoffs will definitely be higher."

Carlisle: "High morale is good, but it is not as important as ensuring health and physical strength."

Vincent: "Haha, it's you. You decide to do what you think is right. No matter what others say, you will firmly implement it. That's why you can succeed, and that's why I will always follow you..."

...

After a night's rest, on April 4, the penultimate game day of the NBA regular season this season, the day of the Bobcats and Bulls' regular season finale arrived.

At 8 o'clock in the morning, Zhang Yang and Yao Ming began to perform, facing the camera of the imperial court, performing a show of "friendly brothers and respectful brothers".

It is no secret that when Zhang Yang and Yao Ming go to each other's city for away games, they will stay at each other's homes. The agents of both of them have taken the initiative to talk about this in interviews, and it has been hyped up many times by the domestic media.

Well, the media speculated on the content of their private conversation...Anyway, when they saw the news, they realized that they were so serious and so devoted to basketball.

Just like that, during the interview session after breakfast and before leaving, Su Qun, who came to interview them this time, asked them what they talked about during their meeting about the playoffs.

First define the scope for them, regardless of whether they are within that scope or not.

It is definitely impossible for the two of them to say that they didn't talk about anything related to basketball at all, so they just made it up.

Yao Ming racked his brains. Since lying was not a good idea, he decided to use official language that sounded plausible. But before he could figure out how to say it, Zhang Yang spoke first.

"We have been discussing how to fight Warcraft since we met yesterday."

Su Qun: "Have you considered your opponents in the second round? You are full of confidence! I also believe Yao Ming can make it to the second round. The Magic is indeed more likely to be the Bulls' opponent in the second round. You two have a lot of experience playing against the Magic. Yang Yang, you have won the last two games against the Magic, and Yao Ming has basically never lost to the Magic... Yang Yang, how many games do you think Yao Ming needs to play against the Magic to end the series?"

Zhang Yang: "We practiced it many times last night. With Brother Dayao, the giant tank, leading the way, we were able to run through it quickly every time."

Su Qun: What does "jutan" mean? Does it mean Yao Ming is tall and mighty? What is the drill method?

Yao Ming: “…”

This probably, should, perhaps, isn't considered a lie, right?
When talking about "playoff related topics", Su Qun asked very directly. Because the Bobcats and the Bulls did not have a chance to play in the first two rounds, the questions he asked in this regard were limited to the second round.

In the past, people could brag about "championship" at will. Since the Rockets' lie about championship was exposed, domestic fans have looked at the performance of domestic players in the NBA more calmly. However, they have also "overcorrected". When talking about their own players, they are more objective than anyone else.

Also, with the increasing popularity of the Internet in China, the remote breeding technology of the Eagle Sauce family has become better and better, and they can find opposing points to stir up trouble in everything...

When talking about tonight's game, the questions Su Qun raised were very routine, including that two of the three core players of the Bobcats were unable to play and the gap in strength between the two teams was too big.

It was clear from the game the day before yesterday that if the Lakers just played normally and didn't let down their guard, they would have easily defeated the Bobcats team where Zhang Yang had a big outbreak.

At 9 o'clock in the evening, the game between the Bobcats and the Bulls started at the United Center.

This was the first time since the team was founded that Jordan did not attend the game when the Bobcats played away against the Bulls.

From an emotional standpoint, Jordan didn't like Carlisle's decision to rest Okafor and Felton after the Lakers had won 61 games and were three games ahead of the Pistons with two games left.

But from the boss's perspective, he supported Carlisle when he made this decision.

As for whether or not to come to watch the game in person, he followed his heart and decided not to come.

After the game started, the Bobcats took the lead in the early stages and led the Bulls by 16 points with 12 to 4 in the first half!
Tyronn Lue controlled the rhythm well, Millsap was firm in assisting, cutting in and shooting, Perkins was very active in carrying Yao Ming and setting inside screens, Hill organized the offense well, and Zhang Yang... just shot.

As Vincent said, Zhang Yang was in really good shape towards the end of the regular season, his touch was always hot, and with the help of the adjusted offensive system, his scoring performance was above average.

However, although the Bulls were trailing by 4 points at halftime, their defense was actually pretty good.

Bulls head coach Skiles learned the lesson from the last defeat and gained experience from the Pistons, Spurs and Hornets, who defended the Bobcats the best in the past three weeks. He no longer expects to lock down the Bobcats' tactical coordination and just plays it conventionally, blocking the Bobcats' strong scoring points and releasing those with weak scoring ability when necessary.

If Tyronn Lue had missed the three-pointer after being left open at the top of the arc and receiving a pass from Hill, the Bobcats wouldn't have led by so much.

In the second half of the first quarter, as the young players of the Bobcats slowed down their momentum at the beginning, the Bulls regained their advantage and scored 13 to 11. At the end of the first quarter, the Bulls narrowed the score to 25 to 27, only two points behind.

In the second quarter, Zhang Yang came up and threw several balls in a row, trying to lead the team to a climax again and expand the advantage, but this was exactly what Skiles expected. The Bulls did a great job of interfering with his shooting, and he missed every shot. During this period, the Bulls scored 9 to 4 and overtook the score 34 to 31.

In the following time, the Bulls gradually widened the gap, and by the middle of the fourth quarter, the Bulls extended their lead to 13 points!
In the second half of the fourth quarter, the Bobcats fought back, but Hinrich and Yao Ming also started to attack fiercely. The Bobcats played well during this period, but they only fought back and forth with the opponent.

At the last moment, Zhang Yang and Jarrett Jack each made a three-pointer, narrowing the gap by 6 points...but only narrowing the gap by 6 points.

The game ended at 11:22 pm.

姚明17投9中，加上9中7的罚球，拿到25分9板3助攻2盖帽；罗尔-邓21分5板2助攻2抢断；辛里奇19分8助攻；本-华莱士8分16板4盖帽……

The Bulls defeated the Bobcats 104-97 and ended the regular season with the third-best record in team history at 68 wins and 14 losses!
张杨今晚算是高开低走，最终25投11中，其中三分球9中3，加上7中6的罚球，拿到31分10板3助攻2抢断。

Jarrett Jack played well tonight, scoring 9 points on 4 of 12 shots, but the only good thing about him was the three-point shot, making 4 of 3 shots, and only making 5 of 1 shots from medium and close range, plus 2 of 1 free throws. His assists were almost zero, with 1 assist and 2 turnovers.

Millsap proved with his strength...that he was not qualified. He played well at the beginning, but then fell behind. He had 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block in the first quarter, and 8 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 block in the whole game. He only made two goals in 6 shots. With him as the core, the Bulls quickly figured out his ways.

It was Hill who made people's eyes shine. His hit rate of 15 out of 6 shots was a bit miserable, but there was nothing he could do. Zhang Yang's offense was limited tonight and he didn't get enough shots, so he and Jarrett Jack had to come. But apart from the unsatisfactory 40 points from 15 shots with a 13% hit rate, he also had 8 rebounds, 8 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. The style of the all-around warrior back then was still visible!

After Millsap's offense was frustrated, it was Hill who took over the organization of the offense.

穆罕穆德的7分8板、帕金斯4分5板2盖帽……都还可以。

Overall, the Bobcats played well tonight, but just when Zhang Yang needed someone to help him share the offensive pressure, or to attack together, the ones who stood up were Jarrett Jack and Hill, who couldn't make any shots, and their offense was sluggish.

The regular season is over, and the Bobcats' best record in team history has also been set, 61 wins and 21 losses, the first 60 wins in team history!
There is good news for King in this game - to be the scoring champion, he does not need to increase the score required in the final game. He can get two points less, 99 points will be enough, and there is no need to break the historical record.

...

That night, Zhang Yang, who had been tense, completely relaxed after the regular season ended. He had a good sleep and woke up around noon the next day.

After taking a shower and refreshed himself, he recalled the last two games. He was unwilling but accepted it. It was over. What else could he do? When Carlisle said he wanted to rest, he guessed the result. But he was not the kind of person who would give up when he knew he could not win. Fighting to the end when he got on the court was his style of play.

He did gain a lot from these two games. For example, he felt what King felt - his teammates looked good, but when it mattered, no one could help.

Therefore, he feels even more fortunate to have two teammates, Fat Boss and Duncan Jr.

He helped these two players grow a lot. Without him, Felton would not have a clear direction for growth in the early stages of his career, and Okafor would have suffered consecutive injuries in his sophomore season and his athletic ability would have been destroyed. But these two also helped him a lot. In the early days, Okafor supported the team, and Felton actively led the team to unite the team, which he could not do. Now, Okafor is the pillar of the inside line, and Felton is his number one helper on the outside line...

In the afternoon, he returned to Charlotte with the team. In the evening, he watched the Lakers' regular season finale at home against the Cavaliers to see if King could score 99 points to complete a Jedi counterattack. As expected, he didn't.

But James played like he really wanted to take a chance...

詹姆斯全场打了46分钟，狂扔37次，刷新了他2006年2月打猛龙队时单场出手35次的个人出手纪录。

When Zhang Yang saw these two data posted on the TV screen, he had a strange expression on his face.

Harden, who was watching the live broadcast, asked directly: "King took 06 shots against the Raptors in February 2? Did he want to see if he could also score 35 points?"

Tatum was more direct: "No doubt about it, it must be. I guess he was just like today that day, shooting randomly at the end of the game."

The two grew up in Los Angeles County, are both guards, and their idol is Kobe, so they made reasonable assumptions.

In this regard, Zhang Yang felt that the two friends must have guessed correctly...

詹姆斯37投16中，其中三分球9中3，外加12中8的罚球，狂飙43分，外加9板1助攻，骑士队88比99不敌湖人队。

It was the first time that Zhang Yang saw James playing so selfishly. He almost never passed the ball, but just threw it. When he got tired of throwing the ball, he stood in the corner, which did not help to create space.

After receiving the ball, you need to dribble to find the rhythm before shooting. This habit of receiving the ball and shooting needs to be changed.

The Lakers are in the far west of the NBA. After the game between the Lakers and the Cavaliers ended, the 2007-2008 regular season also came to an end, and all the rankings and data of the regular season were completely frozen.

After the live broadcast of the game, Zhang Yang and his friends watched a follow-up program on TNT Sports Channel, which discussed the final rankings, data, and analysis of the commentators and guests of this season.

Zhang Yang was mentioned at the beginning.

He played in all 82 games this season, scored 19+ points 40 times, 4+ points 50 times, and 1+ points 60 time (the former including the latter), scoring 2683 points, averaging 32.7 points per game. He won the scoring title for the first time in his career, becoming the youngest scoring title in history, and it is almost impossible for him to be surpassed.

Kenny Smith used the words "maybe this will be a record forever sealed in the NBA" to describe Zhang Yang's winning the scoring title, just to be on the safe side.

Chamberlain was the scoring champion for seven consecutive years, and everyone thought that this streak would not be broken. But then Jordan came along, and now there is Zhang Yang. No one can predict what the future will be like.

Barkley didn't care. He said, "Jack is the best scoring player in history. Jordan can't compare to him. If anyone disagrees, come and practice with me!"

Zhang Yang and Barkley don't have much interaction. The local broadcaster signed by the Bobcats is Time Warner, and the daily interviews are conducted by Time Warner reporters. But Barkley often says good things about Zhang Yang, mainly focusing on two things. One is when Zhang Yang played against James, and the other is when he mentioned Zhang Yang's scoring talent.

In addition to being the scoring champion, Zhang Yang's performance of 5.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.9 blocks was also praised.

Kenny Smith said he was an underestimated passer, while Barkley said he would probably always be underestimated, saying that he had no intention of passing the ball and it would be better to look forward to his defense after his body is fully developed.

After becoming the scoring champion and scoring 52 points against the Hornets, Zhang Yang knew that he couldn't be more stable. That night, the three of them secretly opened a bottle of wine and had two sips to celebrate. Although they are happy now, they can't say they are very excited.

What made him even happier was that he maintained his 40%+ three-point shooting percentage until the end of the season!

Including the last two games, his total three-point shots this season reached 496, and he made exactly 200 of them, with a hit rate of 40.1%, becoming the first player in team history to make 200 three-pointers in a single season.

The best three-point shooter on their team is naturally Mike Miller, but he takes more shots.

Mike Miller played in 76 games this season, shooting 52% from the field and 44.7% from three-point range, both career highs. However, his average of 9.4 shots per game was a career low, and his average of 4.7-point attempts was 2.1, with 10 hits. He ranked th in the league in three-pointers made and second in hit rate.

As for the first place... Zhang Yang was shocked when he saw the three-pointer list posted by TNT - Nash averaged 47 three-pointers per game with a 2.2% three-point shooting percentage.

However, Nash's overall shooting percentage dropped in the second half of the season, to 'only' 50.6%, which is much lower than last season's 53.4%.

Zhang San remembers that Nadal's shooting percentage was a career-high 54.6% before the All-Star Weekend, but his "rising period" was ruined by Steve Kerr.

With a 50.6% shooting percentage, a 47% three-point shooting percentage, and a 90.6% free throw shooting percentage, Nash had the best season of his career, but the team only finished fifth in the Western Conference. Zhang Yang felt it was a pity and didn't know if they could get past the Jazz.

Looking at Nash's 180 Club's huge hit rate, Zhang Yang looked at his own hit rate of 47.9%+40.1+87.3%. This is still with the bonus of the system, otherwise both the score and hit rate would drop a level. As long as a player's career continues, the struggle will never stop!
In terms of rebounding, Howard began his dominance, averaging 14.2 rebounds per game, far ahead of Camby's 13.1 rebounds and Duncan's 12 rebounds.

Okafor also made the list, averaging 10.6 rebounds per game, tied with Ben Wallace for seventh in the league.

奥卡福出战80场，场均16.1分10.6板1.9助攻0.7抢断2.1盖帽；费尔顿出战60场，场均17.1分3板5.8助攻1.1抢断，两人作为球场上的二三当家，表现都十分出色。

Odom averaged 10.8 rebounds per game, ranking sixth in the league, which made Zhang Yang feel very magical. No matter what statistics this player puts forward, it is not surprising.

In the assists list, Zhang San feels sorry for Naismith, who was originally ranked first, but now has dropped to an average of 11.1 assists per game to end the season. Paul averaged 11.8 assists per game and won the assists title for the first time.

Zhang Yang and Paul both topped their respective fields, prompting Barkley to exclaim: "No. 3 is the greatest number in NBA history."

He didn't mention that person at all, but when Zhang Yang heard this, he immediately thought of that person...

Camby still dominates the block list, averaging 3.6 blocks per game and leading the way. With Kirilenko's consecutive injuries affecting his athletic ability and Ratliff getting old, no one can compete with Camby for the block title these days.

Paul topped the steals list with an average of 2.7 steals per game, beating Artest who averaged 2.5 steals per game.

The TV station's final topic about the players was predictions for various awards.

As for MVP, the prediction is locked on two people, Kobe and Paul. Since Kobe defeated Paul in the third-to-last game between the two, the balance of victory has already tipped towards Kobe.

Best Defensive Player, Best Sixth Man, Best Rookie, there is no suspense...

After the topic of players ended, it was time to analyze the playoff matchups, and we first talked about the regular season rankings.

The Heat finished last in the league with a record of 13 wins and 69 losses.

Barkley commented on the Heat: "I can't imagine how they did it. Even if the Heat played with their eyes closed, their record wouldn't be so bad."

Except for the Heat, the bottom four teams in the Eastern Conference and the bottom three teams in the Western Conference have all set new lows this year.

The SuperSonics, the second-to-last team in the league and last in the Western Conference, only have 16 wins.

The Clippers, second from the bottom in the Western Conference, only have 19 wins, and the Timberwolves, third from the bottom, have 20 wins.

In the Eastern Conference, the Knicks have 18 wins and the Bucks have 19 wins, both of which have not reached 20 wins.

The Celtics played very hard, with a record of 24 wins and 58 losses. Last season, they were last in the Eastern Conference and second to last in the league, but this time they only finished seventh from the bottom...

This situation occurred because the top nine teams in the Western Conference and the top three teams in the Eastern Conference had such great records.

西部：湖人队66胜16负第一、马刺队55胜27负第二、黄蜂队54胜28负第三、爵士队53胜29负第四、太阳队54胜28负因交手胜负不及黄蜂队且不是赛区头名排在第五、勇士队52胜30负第六、小牛队51胜31负第七、掘金队51胜31负第八、灰熊队50胜32负没进季后赛。

东部：公牛队68胜14负第一、山猫队61胜21负第二、活塞队59胜23负第三、魔术队49胜33负第四、骑士队45胜37负第五、奇才队44胜38负第六、老鹰队43胜39负第七、猛龙队40胜42负第八。

It is rare that the top three in the Eastern Conference have better records than the top three in the Western Conference, especially the second and third, which have much better records than the Western Conference, but this is mainly caused by the "internal friction" among the top nine in the Western Conference.

The Grizzlies didn't make the playoffs with a record of 50 wins and 32 losses, and Barkley even cursed.

At the same time, he lamented that if McGrady had not been injured, the situation in the Western Conference would have been even more dire, and all of the top nine teams would have likely dropped 1-2 wins. The Rockets were indeed strong in the early stages of the season under Thibodeau's leadership.

Kenny Smith commented on this situation: "If the Spurs, Hornets, and Jazz go to the East, they may have the same record as the Bobcats and Pistons."

Even Barkley, who is always argumentative, did not refute this statement.

Kenny Smith asked Barkley which teams impressed him the most this season. Barkley mentioned four teams, including the Bobcats, the Hornets, the Warriors and the Hawks.

The final results of these four teams exceeded or even far exceeded pre-season expectations.

The Warriors and the Hawks did it through a trade.

After Artest joined the Warriors, in order to get a contract extension or to have a team willing to give him a good salary after his contract expired in 09, he played very hard and wanted to prove himself. He carried the Warriors into the playoffs and ranked sixth.

The Hawks were more direct. They sent away two-thirds of the talents they had accumulated over the years, leaving only Horford who could be considered a genius. They traded for Pierce and Bibby, forming an outside trio that gave Kidd and Kobe a headache. They went from third from the bottom in the Eastern Conference and fifth from the bottom in the league to seventh in the Eastern Conference with one game in advance.

The Bobcats and Hornets are completely different from these two teams. The Bobcats also had a big trade, but they had already amazed people before the trade. The two teams dominated the East and West in the early stage of the season. Charlotte basketball fans even shouted the slogan "NBA belongs to Charlotte" at that time.

Coincidentally, the four teams that impressed Barkley the most are going to face each other in the first round...

When it came to analyzing the playoff matchups, Barkley stopped being funny and argumentative, and his analysis was logical and humorous, leaving the three brothers in front of the TV stunned.

Regarding the matchup between his four favorite teams, he commented: "I don't think the Bobcats and Hornets are sure to win, although I love number 4. Although the Hornets and Warriors are third and sixth respectively, the difference in their records is actually very small, only two wins apart, and their strength is very close.

The Hawks have become a very scary team and they will cause a lot of trouble for the Bobcats. Although the Bobcats have championship experience, they are still too young. However, this makes me look forward to the series between the Bobcats and the Hawks even more.

First, second, seventh, and eighth in the Eastern Conference, can the Bulls and Bobcats make it to the end in the battle of the animal world? "

(End of this chapter)