The longest river

Chapter 176 Who did Jordan sit at the same table with after his five championships?

杨帅最终在自己的开拓者队首秀里出场了28分钟，17投10中，三分6投3中，外加罚球5罚全中，高效得到28分5板3助攻。

It was clear that the Jazz were somewhat unprepared to defend against Yang Shuai.

But you can't blame Sloan for this, after all, no one could have imagined that Yang Shuai would come back with an evolution after getting injured.

However, judging from his playing time, Carlisle was still holding back in his use of Yang Shuai.

After all, it was his first match back from serious injury, so he couldn't really go all out.

Thanks to their overall strength, the Jazz ultimately defeated the Trail Blazers 102-92.

They just won't be happy even if they win.

Russell's post-game medical report revealed a fracture of the transverse process of his lumbar vertebra, ending his season.

Although Russell has been relegated to the bench by Sloan this season, his importance to the Jazz as the team's primary perimeter defensive anchor is self-evident.

Compared to the outcome of a regular season game, such a loss is undoubtedly enormous.

But as the referee ruled after reviewing the video, Yang Shuai was only called for an offensive foul, not a flagrant foul.

Because Russell wouldn't have gotten injured if he hadn't pulled on Young.

As the saying goes, if you walk by the river long enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet; if you do too many bad things, they'll eventually come back to haunt you.

Of course, in Portland, apart from the doctors at the hospital, no one paid attention to Russell's condition.

Fans are cheering for Yang Shuai's debut.

Although Yang Shuai still told reporters after the game that the statistics on a losing night were meaningless, Portland fans didn't think so.

Because they saw Yang Shuai's "superstar" level influence in the game.

Despite the Jazz's strong defense making several defensive adjustments to prevent Yang Shuai from performing, they were still unable to contain his performance.

This is completely different from my time with the Pacers.

With Miller drawing most of the defense, even after his injury in the playoffs, the Pacers can still hold the defense on the weak side. In addition, with Mark Jackson as a super support, Yang Shuai has a great scoring environment.

However, with the Trail Blazers, Yang Shuai is the primary defensive target on the opponent's perimeter, and coupled with Anderson's less-than-ideal passing ability, his scoring opportunities are much worse.

However, even under these circumstances, Yang Shuai still managed to score a high number of points efficiently.

This is the first time they've seen a Trail Blazers player do this since Drexler.

what is this?
This is hope!
Of course, this is just one game, and it's too early to draw conclusions.

Two days after their game against the Jazz, the Trail Blazers flew to Sacramento to challenge the Kings.

Besides the long-standing feud between Yang Shuai and the Kings, another player to watch in this game is the Kings' rookie, Tracy McGrady.

With Yang Shuai as a successful example, just like Kobe, McGrady, a high school rookie who is also an outside player, will naturally receive extra media attention.

Not to mention his lucrative signing with Nike and his statement at the draft that he "didn't want to be compared to Yang Shuai and Kobe, but wanted to strive to become the next Jordan."

The Kings also gave McGrady plenty of opportunities to develop, and after five games into the season, they promoted him to the starting lineup.

Moreover, the Kings' development method for McGrady is exactly the same as that of Yang Shuai, having him responsible for guarding the opponent's offensive spearhead in the starting lineup, and then developing his individual offensive ability during the bench transition period.

To be fair, the Kings' copying of the team's strategy was quite successful.

McGrady's physical talent was even better than Yang Shuai and Kobe, and although he was a rookie, his defensive habits were exceptionally good, and he wouldn't easily fall for fakes or fouls.

The Sacramento Kings recently pulled off a stunning upset against the Hornets, and Tracy McGrady's defense against Glen Rice played a crucial role in that victory.

However, in this game, McGrady was outmaneuvered by Yang Shuai.

Carlisle's coaching ability is significantly inferior to Bird's, but his tactical skills are exceptionally high.

Right after Yang Shuai's debut, he noticed the chemistry between Yang Shuai and Sabonis, and added a hand-off tactic between the two during the next training session.

McGrady had no way to deal with this handoff play because he couldn't get around Sabonis's subsequent pick-and-roll.

Or rather, whether it's Yang Shuai, Kobe, or McGrady, those who went straight from high school to the NBA didn't have many solutions for NBA-level high pick-and-rolls.

Yang Shuai also beat McGrady to a pulp, and he was also collecting points while hitting him.

To be honest, McGrady was one of the basketball stars he disliked the most in his past life.

This guy not only lives in the world of "if" all the time, but also keeps saying that he could average 40 points per game in modern basketball, that he could win three consecutive championships with Shaq, and even said that "I have never played with a superstar."

This guy has never even made it past the first round, and the only time he did was when Yao Ming's team carried him into the game. I really don't know where he gets his confidence.

Carlisle also gave Yang Shuai more playing time in this game. In the end, Yang Shuai played 32 minutes, scoring 34 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists, helping the Trail Blazers end their four-game losing streak.

The Trail Blazers then followed up their winning streak, defeating the Bucks, Celtics, and Nets in a row on their next Eastern Conference road trip, ending a four-game losing streak with a four-game winning streak.

Yang Shuai scored a whopping 140 points in five games. Although he didn't make the scoring average list due to the limited number of games played, this average is already third in the league, only behind Jordan and O'Neal.

Although this is only a small sample size, it is enough to excite Portland fans.

Because they are increasingly convinced that Yang Shuai can lead Portland to a revival, and even, as Yang Shuai said at the fan meeting, bring the team another championship.

However, amidst the praise from fans, Yang Shuai did not become complacent.

His scoring run was partly due to the relatively weak strength of his opponents, and partly due to the fact that information was not as readily available in this era, making it slower for his opponents to target him.

So he's still very clear-headed; his immediate priority is to continue improving his passing and mid-range shooting abilities.

As opponents reacted and subsequently strengthened their countermeasures, his current level of skill was definitely not enough.

So, just like with McGrady, his desire to collect points is even greater than it has been in the past two seasons.

With the points earned from these games, plus those accumulated from last season's playoffs, he once again amassed 5 points, which he then redeemed for a B-level shooting talent upgrade package.

After the exchange, his open three-point shooting ceiling increased to 95, and his overall three-point rating also reached 91.

Of course, the most significant change comes from the mid-range. His open mid-range shot has improved to 83, his receiving mid-range shot has improved to 80, and his mid-range shot under pressure has improved to 78.

He's not in a hurry to practice three-pointers; the next step is to improve his mid-range shooting.

Time flew by and it was already the end of December. At that time, the 1998 NBA All-Star voting officially began.

This year's All-Star Game is somewhat special because, according to New York media reports, the relationship between the Bulls' management and players has reached an irreconcilable point.

Pippen has yet to play a single game for the Bulls due to surgery, meaning the management is paying him a salary for nothing.

Jordan also consistently protected Pippen, preventing the management from making any trades.

There is a consensus that the Bulls will disband regardless of whether they can avenge their loss and win the championship this season.

Jordan will most likely choose to retire after the season ends.

This means that this could very well be Jordan's last All-Star Game in the NBA.

So it's not just American fans; a huge number of fans all over the world want to cast their vote for Jordan.

Although Yang Shuai didn't think so.

Based on his understanding of Jordan, after his god-like status was shattered and Jordan completed his revenge, would he be content to retire?

Jordan's two three-peats truly earned him the title of "the basketball god who is unprecedented and unparalleled," but with five championships, he can only sit at the same table as Duncan, Kobe, and Magic Johnson.

So, compared to the All-Star Game, he was actually more concerned about Jordan's final decision.

Whether it's reaching some kind of compromise with the Bulls or switching teams, those are all things that are very exciting to look forward to.

By January, Yang Shuai's mid-range shooting had reached its maximum potential.

So far, Yang Shuai's average stats have gradually stabilized. He has played 15 games, averaging 32 minutes per game, contributing 26 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 2.4 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game.

He entered the league's scoring average list and ranked fourth, behind only Jordan, O'Neal and Malone.

Thanks to his outstanding performance and a favorable schedule, the Trail Blazers' record has been steadily improving over the past month.

They have now fought their way back into the top eight in the Western Conference, ranking sixth.

However, it will be difficult for them to go any further, as the Jazz, Lakers, SuperSonics, Spurs, and Suns in the West this season all have the potential to win 55+ or even 60+ games.

Moreover, although the Trail Blazers have made it to the playoffs, there are still many doubts about them, with some believing that they are just taking advantage of the schedule.

At this very moment, the Trail Blazers are about to face the Lakers for the second time.

The last time the two teams faced off was in November, when Yang Shuai had not yet recovered from his injury, and the Trail Blazers were soundly defeated by the Lakers at home.

The Lakers started the season with an 11-game winning streak, averaging 113.9 points per game (compared to the second-best team in the league, the Suns, with 103.6 points per game). Six players on the team are averaging double figures in scoring, and they are considered to have the strongest roster depth in the league.

If it weren't for O'Neal's injury that caused the team to struggle for a period of time, they would probably be chasing the Bulls' regular season record right now.

Facing the Lakers, and playing on the road, it's easy to imagine how difficult it will be for the Trail Blazers to win.

However, this match still attracted strong attention from the outside world.

Beyond the doubts surrounding the Trail Blazers' strength, the feud between Yang Shuai and O'Neal is also a major point of interest.

(End of this chapter)