The annual All-Star Weekend is approaching, but this time Jiang Dongbing's players are not so lucky to be selected.

The main reason is that the current record of the Trail Blazers is not very good. If they can still achieve an 80-win record like last season, then many of Jiang Dongbing's players will definitely be selected.

Now only one player, Payton, has been selected as an All-Star, and he is still a substitute, which makes Jiang Dongbing a little disappointed.

There is nothing we can do about this. The competition in the Western Conference is too fierce.

At the center position, there are at least two big Buddhas in O'Neal and David Taillon. How can Ben and Sasha be qualified to be selected as All-Stars?

At the forward position, Duncan, Garnett, Jackson, Webber and even Dirk Nowitzki, who has performed extremely well this year, and the Trail Blazers' current starting forwards are Rasheed Wallace and Maggette.

There is definitely no chance at all, and Rashid does not have any advantage, and his data is not as good as others.

In the guard position, although Reid is gradually rising, there are many strong guards in the Western Conference. First of all, Reid is not the leader of the Blazers team. Secondly, the Blazers' record is not particularly good. In addition, he is still a player.

Xinguadanzi, of course, was not selected for the All-Star list.

This is also the year that Jiang Dongbing has had the fewest All-Star players since he entered the NBA. However, Jiang Dongbing doesn't care. Having more All-Stars is naturally better, but the Blazers he built are not vegetarian.

Soon after the All-Star Game, Artest will officially return. By then, Jiang Dongbing's outside starting lineup will have reached its heyday, which will definitely open the league's eyes.

…

At the Trail Blazers' training ground, Artest, who had just returned from seeing a psychiatrist, was called to his side by Jiang Dongbing.

Now Artest has to see a psychiatrist for six hours a week, and the cost per hour is as high as 500 US dollars. The price is so high that Jiang Dongbing doubts his life and wonders whether he should change his career and become a psychiatrist.

Of course, this expense must be paid by rich man Paul Allen. According to his words, as long as it is useful for the Blazers to improve their strength, he will accept any amount spent, let alone a mere five hundred dollars an hour.

Even if it's ten thousand dollars an hour, he won't blink an eye.

"Ron, how are you feeling lately? Do you still have that kind of unreasonable anger?" Jiang Dongbing asked with a smile.

"It feels great, coach, thank you for not giving up on me." Artest said sincerely.

He was really grateful to Jiang Dongbing, especially when he learned that Jiang Dongbing left the Grizzly Bear he had built for his own reasons, he was even more moved.

"What nonsense are you talking about? You are the player I selected. How could I give up on you?"

"Now that you're here with the Trail Blazers, it's a fresh start. Work hard and try to forget all the unhappy things in the past." Jiang Dongbing patted Artest on the shoulder and said with a gentle smile.

Artest felt warm in his heart. He had never experienced a father's love. He experienced this hazy feeling for the first time with Jiang Dongbing.

"Coach, I will work hard. I will definitely help you win the championship this season!"

"I want to be the strongest perimeter defender in this league, the best! No one!" Artest shouted loudly, attracting the attention of the players in training.

Payton looked at Artest, then strolled over.

"Young man, do you want to become the strongest perimeter defender?" Payton asked with a casual smile.

"Yes, Gary, your defense is very strong, but I believe it won't take long before I can surpass you!"

"I must help coach win the championship!" Artest continued to yell.

Jiang Dongbing scratched his head. It seemed that Artest was still not very smart. This sudden shock did not look like a normal person.

Unexpectedly, Payton burst out laughing. What was his purpose in coming to the Trail Blazers? Of course it was to win the championship. Artest's words made him very happy.

"Very well, young man, come with me and let me give you some pointers on your defense."

"I also watched your previous games. To be honest, your defense was really good."

"However, you are still too impatient. You committed many fouls that should not have been committed. In addition, the defensive efficiency is not high. Let me teach you how to consume the least physical energy to achieve the strongest defensive effect!" Payton

smiled.

Although Artest didn't have any brains, he knew that Payton was going to give him some guidance, so he followed Payton onto the court excitedly.

Jiang Dongbing was secretly happy. Veterans like Payton are the real treasures. As the saying goes, a family with an old man is like a treasure. Payton is undoubtedly such an old treasure.

…

Artest's first game back was against the Phoenix Suns, which was still home to the Trail Blazers.

"God, I hope Ron Artest doesn't do something stupid tonight. We paid a huge price to trade him from the Grizzlies. If he is suspended for another season, then we will be completely ruined this season.

It’s over.”

"Why is it over? Isn't Maggette strong? That big muscle stick makes people drool."

"What's the point of having big muscles? He should appear in bodybuilding competitions, not basketball courts. Besides, although his muscles are big, his strength is not as strong as imagined. His bench press is far inferior to Ben Wallace."

"Big Ben is a monster, and Maggette is just a human. How do you compare humans with monsters?"

Even before the game started, the home fans started talking. What they were most worried about was that Artest made a mistake tonight and was directly punished heavily by the league.

Moreover, the Suns are also very strong. If Artest does not perform well tonight, the Blazers may suffer another loss.

"Okay, guys, I can tell you responsibly."

"The current Blazers are the complete Blazers in my mind. We may not be able to win against teams like the Lakers or Grizzlies, but if we can't win against the Suns, then we won't win this season.

Entering the playoffs will be meaningless!" Jiang Dongbing excitedly mobilized his players before the game.

Artest is as if he has been given a shot. He has been holding back for nearly a year and has not appeared. He is now eager to compete more than anyone else.

"Dududu!" The referee blew the whistle to start the game, and the starting players from both sides began to take the field.

Guessing the Blazers' starting lineup is actually a kind of fun for experts and fans, because more than halfway through this season, the Blazers have changed at least six starting lineups.

The starting players at the small forward position alone have been changed four times, from Turkoglu at the beginning, to Bonchy Wells later, to the muscleman Maggette, and now Artis.

special.

However, although the starting small forwards change frequently, the three starting small forwards have one thing in common, that is, they are all muscular.

Needless to say, Maggette is almost the most muscular perimeter player in NBA history. Needless to say, Artest is a pure beastly muscleman. Even Wells is too strong to live up to his muscles.

…

The game on the court has begun, and the Suns' lineup is actually quite good. Otherwise, they would not be able to achieve such an outstanding record this season.

The starting point guard Kidd is the top three point guards in the league. In addition, there is also the hacker Marion, the poor version of Durant Clifford Robinson, and Gugliotta. The only pity is that Penny Hardaway is only available this season.

He played four games and then suffered a serious injury that ended the season.

If Penny Hardaway had not been injured, it is hard to imagine how strong this Suns team would be.

At the beginning of the game, the players on the field started fighting one-on-one. Jiang Dongbing was actually most interested in Artest's performance. Anyway, his main job was to defend the opponent's forwards.

What really interests Jiang Dongbing is the matchup between Payton and Kidd.

Both of them are super point guards who are good at defense, but Kidd has stronger organizational ability, and Payton's offense is stronger than Kidd. I don't know what will happen when the two strong players collide tonight.

of sparks.

Kidd and Payton are also old rivals. They have played against each other countless times over the years, and they already know each other's style of play well.

But what surprised Kidd was that after the game started, Payton shot three-pointers like crazy, which was completely different from his previous playing style.

The key is to just cast as much as you can, and also cast very accurately.

Because Kidd doesn't have a very reliable offensive ability, Payton can even devote some of his energy to helping Reid with defense.

Artest's opponent is Robinson. Robinson's home team is actually the Trail Blazers. He has devoted most of his career and his peak period to the Trail Blazers.

It's just that his playing style was quite unusual in the 1990s, so Whitsett sold him at that time. If he hadn't sold him, Jiang Dongbing would definitely reuse this player.

This Robinson has the height of a standard power forward, but his flexibility is extremely amazing. Just like the later Durant, he is obviously tall inside, but he plays in an outside style.

In addition, if it is just a mismatch advantage, then that's fine. The key is that Robinson's defense is very strong, just like Durant.

It's a pity that he was born in the wrong era. If he had entered the league twenty years later, Robinson's achievements would have been extraordinary.

Artest's defense is already strong enough, but there is no good way to face Robinson. The main reason is that Robinson just relies on his height and long arms to shoot hard, and Artest can only watch helplessly.

.

This is the way Durant played in later generations. Relying on his height and long arms, he has a height advantage when beating anyone, so it's no wonder that his shooting rate is not high.

But fortunately, Robinson is now older, and his shooting percentage is not that high. If he were to completely match Durant, Jiang Dongbing would have every one of these players in his hands, and no one would be able to guard him.

…

After half the game, the Trail Blazers led by eight points. This eight-point advantage was mainly played by Payton. Payton's three-pointer tonight was extremely brave.

Since Payton's three-point attribute has reached its limit, his three-point shooting percentage in recent games has been stable at 46.7%. When he is in good condition, it can reach 50%, and when he is not in good condition, he can maintain a 40%.

become.

With such a three-point shooting percentage and a disappointing number of three-point shots, Kidd was a little overwhelmed anyway.

In the second half of the game, the Suns adjusted their strategy and began to defend Payton tightly. After all, Payton scored six three-pointers in the first half, and if they continued to let him shoot like this, it would be okay.

But they ignored Payton's identity. He is one of the top point guards in the league. Double-teaming the point guard is undoubtedly one of the stupidest tactics.

Reid immediately got a comfortable shooting space, and he hit a few three-pointers, directly defeating the Suns.

The Suns' interior line-up is already at a disadvantage, and now the outside line has been completely outplayed by the Trail Blazers. It's no wonder they don't lose in this game.

When the referee blew the whistle to end the game, the Trail Blazers beat the Suns at home by 17 points.

After the game, Payton was very excited. He took 14 three-pointers tonight and scored 8 of them. He scored 31 points and 12 assists in the game and won the head-on showdown with Kidd.

This was enough to make Payton beam with excitement. When everyone thought that Payton was getting old and would no longer be able to become one of the strongest point guards in the league, he hit those doubters in the face with a powerful counterattack.

In the next few games, the Trail Blazers became more and more powerful, and even won a wave of seven consecutive victories, including some powerful teams like the Spurs.

Artest's return to the team has an immediate effect. The Trail Blazers now have the strength to challenge those top players.

Paul Allen couldn't smile from ear to ear. This season, his total salary with the Trail Blazers was cut by at least one-third compared to last season. It's really gratifying that he can still achieve such an impressive record.

.

And this is because they have a low-cost-effective contract with Sarah. When this season ends and Sarah's contract expires, the Blazers' total salary will definitely be further reduced. By then, no one will say that the Blazers are stupid.

It’s a team owned by wealthy locals with lots of money.

Spending a small amount of money to do big things, Paul Allen began to enjoy this feeling more and more.

However, the true strength of this Trail Blazers team still has to be examined through those top touchstones, such as teams like the Lakers or Grizzlies.

After seven consecutive victories, the Trail Blazers will challenge the Los Angeles Lakers away from home, and this game also receives special attention.

The top players in the league today are all in the Western Conference. Now the Trail Blazers are showing signs of rising. If they can compete with the Lakers, they will also become the favorites to win this season.

The Lakers players are gearing up. When Jiang Dongbing was with the Grizzlies, the Lakers suffered a lot. They were defeated by the Grizzlies in the playoffs for two consecutive years and failed to win the championship.

Now that Jiang Dongbing has gone to the Trail Blazers, this is the best time for them to take revenge. O'Neal and Kobe have been looking forward to this game for a long time.

Jiang Dongbing is also looking forward to this game. In his opinion, the Grizzlies cannot actually say that they are obstacles to winning the championship because of the uniqueness of their system. In fact, if they really face the Grizzlies in the playoffs, he has a way to defeat the Grizzlies.

A Bears player is temporarily incapacitated.
Chapter completed!