NBA: Goat is actually me

Chapter 85 Who is the next victim?
"WTF!? Meng, what the hell is this pace of yours?"

During the team training on December 12, teammates shouted.

It’s not just one teammate, it’s not just two teammates, it’s a group of people shouting at the same time.

Turn the clock back 10 seconds.

During an offense-defense transition, Meng Jin held the ball in his right hand, drove straight in, and started directly facing Grant's defense half a meter inside the three-point line!
This distance is normal for Meng Jin, but what surprised his teammates was his footsteps.

The moment Meng Jin received the ball, he took a step to the right with his right foot, then took a step to the left with his left foot, and at the same time, he kicked the ball over Grant's head.

"Bang!"

The final finish was the familiar one-arm slam dunk.

Before Meng Jin even landed, his teammates were already excited.

"Traveling! Traveling!" Oakley put his fists on his chest and spun around wildly!
"What are you doing?" Grant looked back at Meng Jin speechlessly.

"You're not normal today, Meng!" Paxson shouted.

Gilmore also came over and said, "Where did you learn this kind of footwork? Just rush in normally. Who the hell can stop you?"

Meng Jin spread his hands and said, "This is a good ball!"

Meng Jin has discovered that some NBA teams have begun to study defensive tactics against him. In the future, such tactics will only become more and more common. Opponents are changing, and he cannot remain unchanged. He must constantly enrich his arsenal.

Shooting is what Meng Jin has always focused on, and he has been practicing it. In addition, Meng Jin feels that breakthroughs also need to be improved, so he had a sudden idea this morning and did a European step.

Jordan walked over with his hands on his hips: "I saw European players use this step when I went to the Olympics. Yugoslav players especially like to use it. But don't use it in the NBA, because you will definitely be called for traveling."

Meng Jin picked up the ball again and discussed with Jordan: "One step, two steps, is this a traveling step?"

Meng Jin demonstrated his actions in slow motion.

Jordan said nonchalantly: "Don't tell me that, I'm not a referee."

What Jordan said was correct. Although this practice had become popular in Europe during this period, it was not recognized in the NBA.

Americans like to make up their own set of rules for everything they do, which are not in line with international standards. When it comes to on-the-spot referees, American referees also tend to be more "conservative" and "follow precedent."

Meng Jin did not continue to argue. It would be a waste of time to say more. He decided to try it out on the field.

So, two things happened that night in the game between the Chicago Bulls and the Washington Bullets, two things that suddenly raised the decibels of the fans.

The first thing was that 6 minutes into the second quarter, Meng Jin took his ghostly steps in a surprise attack.

Facing Cartlidge's defense, Meng Jin took one step to his left side, and the second step was a fierce step to his right side, then he soared into the sky and glided to dunk!
There was an uproar at the scene. The fans had never seen such an operation!

There were not many Europeans in the NBA during this period, and American players would not use this kind of footwork.

"What is he doing? Dancing?"

"Fuck! This is definitely a traveling violation!"

"How does he manage to take two steps in different directions and still take such long strides?"

The players on the court and on the bench of the Washington Bullets put their fists on their chests and rolled them wildly, shouting excitedly: "Traveling! Traveling!"

The referee called a traveling violation on Meng Jin without hesitation.

The commentator laughed and said: "This ball shows Meng Jin's coordination and explosiveness, but he really traveled."

Meng Jin walked up to the referee to explain and told the referee that this was in accordance with the rules. The rule for a layup on the basketball court is to take two steps. It doesn't say that you can't take steps in different directions, right?

The referee didn't listen at all. He shook his head and told him to stay away. People usually find it difficult to accept things beyond their own cognition. "Shit!"

Meng Jin cursed and walked away.

The referee whistled again and gave Meng Jin a technical foul.

Meng Jin received the first technical foul in his career.

Meng Jin was speechless. In this era, people who shouldn't be criticized for traveling were criticized, and in that era, people who should be criticized were not criticized. Sometimes the world is so magical.

The second thing happened two minutes later.

Meng Jin was very angry about the referee's decision.

Coupled with the laughter and sarcasm from the fans at the scene, Meng Jin's anger has exceeded 100%!

During a counterattack by the Bullets, Meng Jin intercepted the ball in mid-air, broke Manute Bol's pass, then took one dribble and took off directly towards the 231cm big man!

Manute Bol's height is intimidating, but he is very poor in confrontation. He is 231cm tall and weighs only 91kg, which is more than 20kg lighter than Meng Jin. Meng Jin is not afraid of him at all when he rushes at full speed.

Aerial confrontation!

Carry it away!

Stay in the air!

Then force Manute Bol!

The scene was completely silent, with only sporadic discussions from fans being heard, because this was Washington's home court. But the audience in front of the TV were all going crazy, as this dunk was the ultimate enjoyment for the fans' eyes!
The commentator exclaimed: "Why does this rookie want to ride on everyone he sees?"

Another commentator nearby added: "The key is that it was done."

Jordan played steadily in this game, scoring 30 points, 6 assists and 2 rebounds.

Meng Jin also played steadily, with full-game statistics of 25 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists.

The rest of the substitute players also performed stably, so the Bulls won the game steadily.

The final score was 109 to 99.

The score did not reflect how intense the game was, as the two sides did not decide the winner until the middle of the fourth quarter. Moses Malone's injury had a significant impact on the team's offense and defense, but head coach Kevin Langley was unwilling to give up, so he made a major adjustment to the starting lineup.

Kevin Langley put Bernard King in the second lineup. Bernard King refused at first. I am the king of New York. Who am I looking down on if I play as a substitute?
But in the end, Bernard King compromised and scored 38 points in one game. That was awesome!

Bernard King, who tasted the sweetness, secretly asked his coach after the game if he could continue to be a substitute in the next game. He tasted the sweetness of off-peak travel tonight, and this feeling is really addictive.

After the game, Meng Jin admitted in an interview: "It's not easy to dunk over Manute Bol."

The reporters nodded in agreement. Of course it wasn't easy. He was a giant over 230cm tall! Although he was as thin as a bamboo pole, he was still a giant no matter how thin he was!

The next second, Meng Jin continued, "Because he only played for four minutes in this game, it was really difficult to dunk over him in such a short time."

The reporters were all dumbfounded. Damn, is this why you said it’s difficult?
At this moment, Boll was calling me a beast. I'm only going to do it for four minutes, and you want to ride me too?
The next day, the photo of Meng Jin dunking over Boll was published in major sports newspapers and magazines. His popularity is now huge. Stern intends to promote him, and the media also likes him because he is very explosive both in playing and speaking.

"New York Today": His explosive style of play quickly swept North America. In the past, everyone watched the Bulls play for No. 23, but now there will be one more person added to the roster.

"Philadelphia Inquirer": Mark Eaton, Sampson, Bill Laimbeer and Ball. Meng has been in the league for just over a month, but he has already dunked over many big men. His appearance has brought panic to the big men throughout the league.

The Chicago Tribune even published a headline: "Who is the next victim?"

(End of this chapter)