NBA: Goat is actually me

Chapter 93 Jordan changes position, they both have a bright future
On December 12, the NBA officially announced the first round of All-Star ballots.

Meng Jin ranks fourth among Eastern Conference forwards, behind only Larry Bird, Dominique Wilkins and Charles Barkley.

Meng Jin's number of votes was even higher than that of Celtics legendary forward McHale!
After all, the All-Star Game is a performance event. Fans don’t care about fame and qualifications. The most important thing is whether the team can provide them with exciting performances that are eye-catching.

The news was told to Meng Jin by his agent David Falk.

Meng Jin's first reaction after hearing the news was surprise. He didn't have much expectation of making the All-Star team in his rookie season. He felt pretty good to be ranked fourth. You know, the forward position in the Eastern Conference is the most competitive one in the league.

Falk called a radio reporter and wanted Meng Jin to shoot a video to canvass for votes.

This is how Jordan made the All-Star team in his rookie season and Falk did it.

Meng Jin and Jordan both reached their peak as soon as they debuted, so a lot of their experiences can be directly copied.

However, these operations are only auxiliary. Jordan's performance and data on the court are the most important reasons why he was chosen by fans.

Meng Jin was not satisfied with the videos he shot after shooting several. They were too dull and he didn’t seem to have any talent for acting.

After shooting a few more times, Meng Jin simply stopped shooting. He decided to let his performance on the court speak for itself. This kind of canvassing video was not his style. Moreover, his image in the video was too well-behaved, which was in stark contrast to his domineering self on the court. He felt that the fans would not like it, and shooting such a video would only reduce his image.

On January 1, the first day of the new year, Meng Jin came to the training hall, first shot to warm up, then trained with the team, and finally had a one-on-one match with Jordan.

Everything was no different from any other training session, until it was almost over when he realized Gilmore was not there.

"Have you seen that old guy?" Meng Jin asked his teammates, and the answers he got were all shakes of head.

Meng Jin didn't feel well. Gilmore had the stubborn style of the older generation. He never missed training, and even if his leg was broken, he would come on crutches.

After the training, Gilmore arrived late when everyone was packing up their equipment.

He didn't walk into the gym, but just stood at the door in casual clothes.

Meng Jin glanced at him as he walked out the door and jokingly said, "Where have you been? Do you know what the most important thing for a rookie is? That is, he cannot miss training."

During this period, the two became more and more familiar with each other, and Meng Jin often teased the 38-year-old veteran as a rookie, because Gilmore was lifeless all day long, and Meng Jin hoped that he could become more energetic.

"Pack your things, I'm leaving tomorrow, no, today," said Gilmore.

"What the hell is that?"

Meng Jin stared into Gilmore's eyes and had a bad feeling. Gilmore didn't look like he was lying.

"I was cut and I am no longer a member of the Bulls from now on. Those guys are so indecisive. I heard that they were going to cut me in November, but it has been delayed until now." Gilmore said lightly.

Meng Jin was stunned for a few seconds. It wasn't that he was shocked. Gilmore's performance was indeed getting worse with each passing day, so it was reasonable for him to be laid off. Meng Jin just couldn't accept it.

Gilmore has a good relationship with him and the two often chat together. Although they are often not on the same channel, Meng Jin still enjoys chatting with this old antique. He always shares some basketball stories from ancient times with Meng Jin.

"Do you need me to help you talk to Jerry Krause?" Meng Jin pointed outside.

Gilmore: "No, I didn't play well and I don't fit in with the current team system. If I can't contribute to the team, why should I stay?"

Meng Jin nodded and stretched out his right hand: "You taught me a lot, Artis."

Meng Jin said his final goodbye. He knew that he would not be able to see this retro big guy with the Afro, mustache and high socks in the team training tomorrow.

"Let the league teach you the rest. You will become an All-Star player sooner or later. You have to believe in yourself."

Meng Jin and Gilmore had a manly hug: "I tell myself this every day."

Without any farewell ceremony, Gilmore disappeared from the Bulls.

Most partings in life are like this.

The next day, Meng Jin continued training and competing as if nothing had happened.

On January 1, the Bulls defeated the Nets at home and got off to a good start in the new year!

After getting off to a good start, the Bulls did not get the winning streak they had hoped for. In the next four games, the Bulls suffered a Waterloo and lost three of them.

每支球队对上公牛都在用“孟进法则”，进入一月份以来孟进的数据开始下滑，场均只能拿到15.7分7.7篮板2.9助攻1.6盖帽1.1抢断。

The media have been leading the trend to say that Meng Jin has hit the "rookie wall".

However, people who understand basketball can see at a glance that Meng Jin's performance has nothing to do with the "rookie wall" but is mainly a point guard problem.

The "Meng Jin Rule" is not only aimed at Meng Jin. In order to prevent Meng Jin from receiving the ball, the team using this rule will find ways to limit the Bulls' No. 1 position.

The No. 1 position is a weak position for the Bulls, and being targeted in this way caused the performance of both Vincent and Paxson to decline significantly.

Especially Vincent. Before the "Meng Jin Rule" came out, his average stats in the first few starting games were 10.7 points, 6.5 assists, 3 rebounds and 2.9 turnovers.

After the "Meng Jin Rule" came out, his average stats dropped to 7.1 points, 3.6 assists and 2.6 rebounds, a visible decline. The only statistic that increased was turnovers, which rose from 2.9 per game to 3.8 per game.

Now the most common defensive method for NBA teams to deal with the Bulls is to use one person to press Vincent closely, and another person is always ready to cut off his passing line, making Vincent under so much pressure that he dare not pass the ball in the first place.

If the Bulls cannot pass the ball in the first time, their "5-second offense" cannot be launched. By the time Vincent dribbles the ball a few times and passes it again, the defenders are basically all in defensive position.

The point guard's performance made Jordan so angry that he pulled Vincent and Paxson to his side after the training and taught them personally.

"Is it so difficult to pass the ball in the first place? Just observe the position of your teammates before taking the ball, predict their next move, get rid of them after taking the ball, and then pass the ball."

Jordan's teaching made Meng Jin want to laugh. In the eyes of Vincent and Paxson, Jordan was probably just like a magician, doing this first, then that, and then it was done.

A day later, in the game against the Nuggets, the Bulls experienced what it means to have bad luck when it rains. Vincent broke his right wrist and was out for the season.

The Bulls suffered another defeat. 5 losses in 4 games and the injury of the starting point guard made Collins crazy.

The next day, he went to General Manager Krause with a list of point guards.

Collins made his attitude clear. The first thing he said when they met was: "Jerry, if you want the Bulls to get back on track, find a point guard on this list that you think is suitable and bring him to the Bulls."

Klaus didn't even look at it: "I'll try my best."

Collins was furious when he saw his attitude: "The team must have a No. 1 who can deliver ammunition to Meng and Michael. You must agree to my request!"

After hearing what Krause said, Rick was furious: "I don't need to see what level of point guard you want me to get!" Krause opened the list and said: "Doc Rivers? Fat Leaf? Dennis Johnson? Why don't you let me get you "Magic" Johnson, my God!"

Collins said expressionlessly: "It would be best if you could get the Magician."

Krause roared at Collins directly: "Yes, how about getting you Larry Bird and Olajuwon? Fuck! Do I look like a robber? If I just go to other teams, will they hand over the players obediently?"

"Strengthening the team is the general manager's responsibility!" Collins also yelled at Klaus.

"I advise you to change your style of play. If the current lineup is not enough to support the run-and-gun style, then why not slow it down? Let the two MJs show their talents in the positional battle."

"You're dreaming! You fat guy who doesn't understand football!" The two had a big quarrel and finally parted unhappily.

On January 1, the Bulls finally got a chance to catch their breath as they defeated the Pistons 16-110 at home.

乔丹49分，孟进这场状态也有所回暖，拿到25分外加10篮板4助攻3盖帽。

The Pistons were too iron tonight. Among the five starters, only Dantley scored in double digits, but that was also due to a lot of shots. He scored 19 points with 7 of 20 shots, and his shooting percentage was only a pitiful 36.8%.

A large number of missed shots gave the Bulls a natural opportunity to counterattack, and Meng Jin finally had a good time tonight.

Two days later, the Bulls lost again.

They lost to the 11ers by 76 points.

In fact, if Collins had returned to last season's style of play, the Bulls would not have been so miserable recently. The key to the problem is that he is reluctant to give up the SHOW-TIME offense. After the team played those gorgeous offensive games at the beginning of the season, Collins was intoxicated by it and has since firmly believed that this is the Bulls' future style of play.

After winning the game, Barkley walked up to Jordan and taunted him crazily, saying, "Even Xiao Meng can't carry you? If I had Xiao Meng, you would have swept the entire league!"

Barkley's words stimulated Jordan. This time Jordan did not smash anything. He decided to talk to the coach.

It just so happened that Collins also wanted to find him, so after training the next day, the two met in Collins' office.

Meng Jin chatted with assistant coach Bach outside.

"Will the team get a new point guard?" Meng Jin asked.

"Not that I know of," Bach replied.

"What should we do then?" Meng Jin said.

"Doug is working on it." Bach pointed to the front office.

"How to solve it?" Meng Jin was curious about the future of the team.

"He wanted Jordan to play point guard."

Hearing this, Meng Jin's first reaction was that it was impossible, absolutely impossible. How could Jordan, who was ranked first in scoring, agree to play point guard?

What Meng Jin didn't know was that in that parallel universe, Jordan had played point guard for a period of time, in a total of more than a dozen games. Although the number of games was not many, it was enough to prove that he could accept this position.

What Meng Jin didn't know was that Jordan came to Collins to ask to play point guard.

In December, Jordan played half-court point guard in the Bulls' game against the Knicks, which was very effective and successfully activated Meng Jin.

Now Jordan just wants to win. He is tired of losing the game after scoring high points every night. He is tired of the media's ridicule for his inability to make his teammates better. He is tired of the Bulls' stupid point guards who are at a loss when under pressure.

Jordan expressed his wish, Collins' eyes lit up and he couldn't stop smiling, because this was also what he thought deep in his heart.

The master and the disciple hit it off immediately!
However, Jordan also said that he would not play as a pure point guard. In the first three quarters, he would balance organization and scoring. In the fourth quarter, if the score gap could not be widened, he would take over the game.

Collins decisively agreed to his request!

This request is not only not excessive, but also a bit outrageous!

The opponent is Jordan, and his willingness to do this is already a big concession and sacrifice.

Jordan soon emerged from Collins' office.

After he came out, he looked back at Bach and Meng Jin and asked, "What are you doing sneaking around here?"

After that, Jordan left.

Meng Jin and Bach looked at each other. Jordan and Collins had just talked for a very short time. Usually, in such situations, the conversation would either go very smoothly or fail miserably.

Soon, Collins came out of the office.

Before Bach could speak, Collins made an OK gesture to him, and everything was done!
On January 1, the Bulls played against the Golden State Warriors at home.

Before the game, the Warriors coach repeatedly emphasized: "Keep a close eye on their point guard! Close up from the start! Stick to him! Don't let him pass the ball comfortably!"

George Karl was confident that other teams would use this method to limit the Bulls' fast breaks.

Just when George Karl was about to inspect the tactical results, he suddenly realized something was wrong. Wait, why did the Bulls' point guard become Jordan?
The Warriors players were a little at a loss. Should this be forced or not?

The Bulls started the game with an 8-0 offensive spurt, forcing George Karl to call the first timeout in less than three minutes.

In the first quarter, the Bulls' offense was very smooth. Meng Jin made consecutive counterattacks and Paxson moved to the second position and played well, making two three-pointers in the first quarter.

The Bulls scored 40 points in the first quarter, completely suppressing the Warriors.

Collins kept high-fiving Bach on the sidelines, while muttering, "That's how it should be played! It should have been played like this a long time ago!"

After the first quarter, both fans and players felt that they were back, everything was back.

In the second quarter, George Karl used the second form of the "Meng Jin Rule", constantly restricting Meng Jin with small moves and fouls.

But soon, George Karl found that it was useless. The second form of "Meng Jin's Rule" is only effective when combined with the first form.

The first move is to limit the Bulls' fast breaks by targeting their point guard.

The Warriors were unable to limit Jordan's passing tonight, and Meng Jin had a lot of fast break opportunities. It would not make much sense to use fouls to stop Meng Jin at this time. Instead, it would put the Warriors into a passive situation due to too many fouls.

In the second quarter, Meng Jin scored consecutive goals in the counterattack.

"Michael, why don't you play point guard earlier? What's the matter with Magic?"

"Are you a magician? How can you pass this ball?"

"Damn it, great shot! I didn't make the shot, and your great pass was wasted. I must practice shooting more when I get home!"

"God! How did you find your teammates for this ball?"

Jordan gradually lost himself in Meng Jin's praises, passing the ball more and more vigorously, and finally playing with great enthusiasm.

This game of the Bulls was not only extremely entertaining to watch, but their offensive firepower was also incredibly strong. The Warriors were disarmed after three quarters.

Collins waved his hand and withdrew all the main forces.

Garbage time was over quickly, and the Chicago Bulls defeated the Warriors 120-99!

The team won, Meng Jin scored 40+ and Jordan made 16 assists.

They all have bright futures.

(End of this chapter)