vncnus Chapter 136 Please call me Copy Ball Player Kakalin!
Chapter 136 Please call me Copy Ball Player Kakalin!
Chapter 136 Please call me Copy Ball Player Kakalin!
"What else did Anfernee say? That his playing style is unique and I can't play like that?" Lin Tian said with a smile, "He needs to realize one thing: it's not that no one can imitate his playing style. His playing style is actually very simple."
"I could play the same style of game as him with my eyes closed, but there's no need for it. Why would I use an inefficient, boring, sluggish, and weak style of play?"
"You're saying you can imitate Anfernee's playing style?" A reporter stood up and asked, "Lin, are you sure?"
"Of course, I'm absolutely certain I can do everything he can do. It's very simple. If you want to see, how about the next match? Who are we going to face again?" Lin Tian said, flipping through the match schedule, then casually added:
"It's an old friend; we're about to play the Seattle SuperSonics on the road."
"Well then, let's wait and see!"
After saying this, Lin Tian ended the press conference. As he said, the Bulls will play a series of away games next, against the SuperSonics, Nuggets, Clippers, Kings, Suns, Mavericks and Spurs. They will play seven games in a row in the Western Conference!
After these 7 games, it will be January 31st, and the whole month of January will be coming to an end. If everything goes well, Jordan will make his comeback around that time!
Similarly, these 7 matches are extremely important for Lin Tian!
The good news is that, apart from the first game against the SuperSonics, the remaining opponents are not any strong teams. The strongest ones are the Suns and the Clippers, both of which have a winning percentage of barely 5%. The other teams are all tanking teams aiming for next year's number one draft pick!
Therefore, if the Bulls can play well in their first game against the SuperSonics, they are very likely to continue their winning streak and achieve a seven-game winning streak during this long road trip!
For Lin Tian, if he can play well in these 7 games, he will basically secure his position as an All-Star starter!
Hardaway will never be able to make a comeback!
In January, the temperature in Seattle is generally around minus ten degrees Celsius, which is still very cold. But this cold is nothing to Seattle, which is almost the most basketball-loving city in the United States!
The fans' enthusiasm is enough to warm up the whole city again!
The SuperSonics have made almost no changes to their roster this season. They have retained their top five scorers from last season: Kemp, Payton, Schrempf, Hawkins, and Perkins. The only difference is that "Fake Magic Johnson" Alvin Jensen, who used to play the starting center position, has joined the Nuggets.
Their new starting center is a 213cm tall white man named Jim McIlwain.
Aside from having a name so long that Lin Tian suspected he was Greek and couldn't remember it even after trying 10 times, this guy had almost no special talents.
He has averaged only 3 points and 3 rebounds per game this season. The only thing worth praising is that he contributes 2 blocks per game. With Kemp focusing on offense and neglecting defense, this pure blue-collar and defensive center is actually a good fit for the team.
The only thing that doesn't match up is the 6-year, $2700 million contract he signed with the SuperSonics this summer!
In this era, there are quite a few star players who only earn 2-300 million a year. For example, Kemp's salary this season is only 290 million, compared to Jim Mark...
Jim McIguain...
McIlraw...
Forget it, whatever!
Anyway, Jim's salary is higher than Kemp's, but he can only contribute 3 points, 3 rebounds and 2 blocks per game. It would be a miracle if Kemp could get along with him.
At least during the offseason, Kemp had a lot of arguments with the team's management over this issue. After all, his good partner Gary Payton had signed a 7-year, $8700 million contract extension with the team this summer, but the management was unwilling to extend his contract early and insisted on waiting another year.
This made Kemp very unhappy, and he was far less focused on the court than last year, giving the impression of going through the motions. As a result, the SuperSonics were unable to continue their dominant performance in the West last year, and their current record is only third in the West and sixth in the league.
But no matter what, even though Kemp isn't playing as hard as he did last year, the SuperSonics still have a strong core. Their roster is still very complete and their strength at each position is still considerable! Underestimating them will definitely lead to disaster!
In particular, the leader of this Supersonics team, Payton, harbors unparalleled hatred for Lin Tian!
That night in Game 4 of last year's Finals was definitely the worst night of Payton's career!
Even after that match, his nickname changed; many people started calling him "the fingerless glove"! This meant that his gloves were full of holes, making him impossible to defend against!
Therefore, he had absolutely no good feelings towards Lin Tian!
Now, with the media adding fuel to the fire, the conflict between Lin Tian and Hardaway has been shifted to the Supersonics.
In the media's mouth, Lin Tian's words changed from competing with Hardaway to looking down on the SuperSonics and being able to easily defeat them with any playing style!
Payton and Kemp are neither easy to deal with. They haven't gotten revenge for last season yet, and now Lin Tian is provoking them again this season.
These two people will definitely not give Lin Tian a good time!
Therefore, in the SuperSonics' final pre-game meeting, half an hour before the game, head coach George Karl did not deliver his usual morale-boosting speech.
There's no need for that.
Payton, with a swagger on his face, stood in the middle of the locker room, looking at his teammates, and said fiercely, "Let that sophomore know what the real NBA is like! He thinks he can beat us with any style of play? Let's see how he does it!"
After Peyton finished speaking, he slammed the round table in the middle of the locker room to the ground. His action immediately pushed the atmosphere in the locker room to another climax!
The resentment from being beaten in the regular season last year, the frustration from losing in the finals, and Lin Tian's arrogance before the game, which completely disregarded the SuperSonics team, mean that the entire SuperSonics team doesn't need any extra encouragement now!
Even Kemp, who has been somewhat half-hearted this season and only thinking about his big offseason contract, is now full of murderous intent, wishing he could immediately step onto the court and settle things with Lin Tian!
"I don't think I need to elaborate on how difficult this game was," Jackson said casually, sitting on the middle table in the Bulls' locker room, his hands outstretched and eyes narrowed. "Michael's not here, there's the grudge from last year's Finals, the brawl during the regular season, and Lin just provoked them."
"Not to mention, it's an away game. This game might be our toughest one of the season! Honestly, I'm prepared to lose. Your most important thing tonight is to stay healthy! Because I'm 100% sure the Seattle team is fully prepared!"
"They'd rather injure one or two of us, even risk suspension themselves, than give us their most ferocious and powerful performance! So, I think it's appropriate to show weakness and hold back, and..."
As Jackson spoke, he kept squinting at Lin Tian and winking at him. Lin Tian knew exactly what the old fox was up to. Seeing that Jackson's act was about to fall apart if he didn't play the good cop, Lin Tian finally interrupted Jackson.
"Coach! What are you saying? In the past few games, without Michael, have we lost? Without Michael, do we not play? What do you mean we're prepared to lose? When I step onto the court, no matter who the opponent is, I never think about losing!"
"Win! Win! My only goal when I'm on the field is to win!"
"As for the SuperSonics' thorough preparation and their resentment? Which of the other 28 teams in this league doesn't resent us? Which one hasn't been thrashed by us? Are we supposed to hold back every single time, to show weakness every single time?"
"They were swept by us last season, and they'll be swept by us again this season! We may be missing Michael, but we're still very strong! We're number one in the league! We'll never surrender to anyone!"
"Finally, are they ruthless? Will they cripple one of our people?"
Lin Tian glanced at everyone in the locker room and declared confidently, "They can do whatever they want, but I guarantee here and now, if they hurt one of our brothers, I'll cripple all three of them! If they dare to throw a punch at us, I'll smash their noses!"
"I won't even spare their head coach! George Karl? If he dares to implement this kind of tactic, I'll smash his nose in the process!"
"I can do all of this. I'm not afraid of suspensions or fines, and I'm not afraid of any image damage! The people who buy my shoes are the fiercest guys on the street. My shoe sales are third in the league! Beating up a Seattle guy will only boost my shoe sales even further!"
"Lin, what you said before was good, but we don't need to say the last thing. Our shoes aren't selling very well." Rodman casually raised his hand, shaking his head, and said, "However, I agree with everything else! Seattle guys want to hurt someone? Heh heh, that's the kind of opponent I like best!"
"I'll show them what real Detroit bad boys are! I'll show them who the worst bastards in this league are!"
Although Lin Tian and Rodman's speeches completely overturned Jackson's previous arrangements and speech, they successfully reignited the excitement in the locker room!
Yeah, one's the league's fighting king, the other's number one bad boy. With these two on the team, fighting? Causing trouble? Anyone who dares to clash with the Bulls is out of their mind!
With these two backing us up, what are we afraid of about our opponents' dirty tricks!
The opponent should be afraid of them!
As for Jackson, he certainly wasn't upset that his speech had been refuted. He had been watching Lin Tian the whole time, waiting for Lin Tian to stand up and refute him, to stand up and eliminate the fear and apprehension in everyone's hearts.
After all, sometimes what the players say is much more effective than what the coach says!
The only thing Jackson felt was a little regretful was that he originally wanted to give this opportunity to Pippen. He hoped that Pippen could stand up and give a speech to unite the team, which was something Jackson had been trying to teach Pippen during the two years Jordan was away.
Unfortunately, Pippen never had the idea to stand up and speak, nor did he have the courage to rally his brothers to follow him.
Ultimately, while his skills are undeniable—he was undoubtedly the best small forward of the 90s, bar none—there was something missing deep down.
Something called leadership qualities.
Inside KeyArena, 19000 fans faced their old rivals from last season's Finals, the Bulls, who had defeated them to win the championship and lifted the trophy on their home court. Just like their own team, they were filled with hostility and hatred towards the Bulls!
The Bulls are absolutely the least popular team in Seattle right now, without a doubt!
After all, who would like a team that knocked them out of the Finals last year?
Therefore, when the Bulls players entered the arena, they were met with a barrage of boos and curses that seemed to never stop!
"Without Michael, you're not even worth a pile of shit!"
"With Michael around, you're nothing but a pile of shit!"
"Lin! You're dead meat! Gary's going to teach you a lesson tonight!"
"Scott, you're as soft as noodles! Any one of us could beat you to a pulp!"
"Phil! You're washed up! This year, our Karl will win Coach of the Year!"
"You bunch of Chicago trash! Go back to the sewers!"
……
Seattle fans have been waiting for a championship for a full 20 years! But when they finally made it to the Finals last year, they were completely outmatched by the Bulls and could only watch as their opponents lifted the championship trophy on their home court!
So from this perspective, it's understandable that Seattle fans would criticize the Bulls players relentlessly!
Perhaps feeling that it was understandable for the fans to criticize him, Lin Tian was very cooperative with the fans' insults at this moment.
He walked to the logo in the center of the stadium, raised his hands to his ears, and listened to the fans' jeers as if he were appreciating some magnificent symphony.
"Kid, I really hope you're still this arrogant after the match." Peyton, chewing gum and sporting a cocky grin, walked up to Lin Tian, looking at him provocatively. "I'll teach you a lesson and show you how terrifying I am!"
"I know, I know, you'll definitely teach me a lesson like you did in Game 4 of last year's Finals, right?" Lin Tian looked at Payton and waved his hand impatiently. "By the way, Gary, I heard you have a new nickname? Something like 'Fingerless Glove'?"
"I love this! A six-hole glove! Just like your defense, it's full of openings, I could blow it up with my eyes closed!"
"That's much better than your nickname. What do you mean, 'traverse your soul'? Tonight, I'll take your soul away and put it in my bathroom to clean my toilet!" The trash-talking master, Peyton, certainly wouldn't hold back, and he also mocked Lin Tian about his nickname.
"If you were this tough during last year's Finals, I wouldn't have gotten this nickname! Have you forgotten that I earned this title because I faked you out eight times in one game? There was one play where I think I faked you out twice in one go?"
"Gary, if I were you, I would definitely print this image on a poster and hang it in your living room, because this is the most glorious and greatest moment of your life! Make it my backdrop!"
"Even Michael wouldn't dare talk to me like that! And this is in Seattle!"
"But I dare, and I don't care if this is Seattle or Chicago, I'll curse you, I never care about the time or place! And it's the same when I'm crushing you! Gary, here's one last piece of advice before the game starts!"
"If any of your family or friends are coming to the game, send them home immediately. That way, at least they won't witness the horrific way I beat you!"
Lin Tian and Payton's trash talk went on and on. Before the match even started, the two of them couldn't wait to have a real face-to-face PK!
Just as the atmosphere between the two was becoming increasingly tense, Rodman walked up behind Lin Tian and said, "Should I give Lin an elbow during the game? I guarantee I can break three of his ribs! Not one more, not one less!"
"Whose ribs are you going to smash?" Kemp, whose relationship with Payton had slightly soured this season, walked up to the group and said just as menacingly, "How about I just smash your skull?"
"Hey Sean! Long time no see!" Lin Tian waved and greeted Kemp like they were old buddies. "I heard they'd rather give a guy who averages 3+3 for 6 years and $2700 million than give you an extension? Why don't you just come to Chicago next season!"
"I'll take charge. I'll give you a super contract of 3000 million over 6 years! I guarantee you'll be able to hold your head high and won't be outdone by some 3+3 guy! How about it? You've never seen so much money in your life, are you too excited to speak?" Lin Tian winked at Camp repeatedly with a cheeky grin.
That look was absolutely infuriating!
If it were anyone else, Kemp would have gone up and attacked them directly. He has a fiery temper and doesn't care about the game at all!
But his fiery temper made him question whether he could actually beat Lin Tian.
As one of the earliest victims of Lin Tianquan's fist, Kemp, even though his veins were bulging and his fists were clenched in anger, still held back. After cursing, he pulled Payton and turned to leave.
"So soft! Dennis, next time you buy toilet paper, buy Sean brand toilet paper! It's so soft and tender, it must feel so comfortable to wipe with!" Lin Tian shouted at Kemp's back again, but this time Kemp didn't turn around. There was nothing he could do; he couldn't out-argue Lin Tian, nor could he beat him. What was there to turn around for?
The only way to determine the winner is through the competition!
With the two teams' key players exchanging trash talk, both sides' tempers had reached their peak.
For example, Kemp vented his anger on the rim, turning around and throwing several powerful dunks at it, making the rim creak and groan.
Fortunately, the match time was approaching, and the referee quickly walked to the center of the field. The starting players from both sides also took to the field, and the match was about to begin!
The fans at the stadium and those watching on television were all completely focused, eagerly anticipating this rematch of last year's finals!
This highly anticipated game was once again broadcast live by CBS! Marcus and Smith, two familiar faces, had been hyping it up on television for a long time. Now, with the game about to begin, Marcus excitedly exclaimed, "A rematch of last year's Finals! The Seattle SuperSonics, burning with anticipation, versus the Bulls, eager to prove themselves—who will emerge victorious?"
"Can the SuperSonics take advantage of Jordan's absence to successfully avenge their loss to the Bulls, and can the Bulls once again prove to the world: we are still strong without Jordan? How will the rivalry between the two teams continue tonight? I have to say, this game is truly something to look forward to!"
As Marcus's voice rang out, the referee completed all the pre-match preparations and moved to the center circle to prepare for the jump ball.
"Get out of the way! You big idiot, do you even know how to contest for the ball?!" Kemp rudely ignored Jim Jiliwa, who had just walked to the center circle to jump for the ball, and took the position himself.
Poor Jim had no idea how he had offended this seemingly menacing teammate. He was just a nobody, and when he saw Kemp trying to contest the ball himself, he had no choice but to obediently step aside.
Well, it's not that there aren't any suggestions; for example, someone is giving him advice right now.
"Go ahead and beat him up! You're so big, are you afraid of him? Give him an elbow right in the nose! See if he dares to bare his teeth at you again!" Lin Tian's eyes were wide open like copper bells. His indignant expression could easily lead people to mistakenly believe that the one being bullied by Camp was Lin Tian's long-lost brother.
"Huh? I... I'm fine, I'm just... really fine." Jim was caught off guard by Lin Tian's sudden act of upholding justice. He wasn't a particularly stubborn person to begin with, and now he really didn't know what to do.
"What? You really want to hit me? Come on, charge here, listen to this guy, charge here!" Kemp shoved his head in front of Jim, extremely arrogant.
Even if I can't beat Lin Tian, I can still bully you, you big coward?
Why does someone as weak as noodles and vegetables deserve a higher salary than me?
"Hit him! Hit his mother! You can tolerate this? When faced with bullying, backing down only leads to one outcome: being bullied again!" Lin Tian, once again acting as a champion of justice, instructed, "Give him an elbow! Give him an elbow now, and you'll never be bullied again! This is your best chance to show your toughness!"
"A good opportunity my ass!" The referee for tonight was Fox, an old acquaintance of Lin Tian. He had witnessed Lin Tian beating people up and knew very well that Lin Tian was not a champion of justice at all. He looked at Lin Tian and said:
"In all my life, I've never seen anyone as insidious as you!"
"It's being broadcast nationwide today, and you're instigating two of their teammates to fight on the court?"
"Think about it carefully, Fox. Putting aside the fact that you're the referee, isn't this something that could be done? Isn't it interesting? Isn't it something that makes you really want to watch?"
"That's true." Fox nodded unconsciously, then suddenly realized, how did he end up being led astray by this kid? What does it mean to disregard the fact that I'm a referee?
Realizing what was happening, Fox quickly looked at Kemp and said, "You two, calm down! If you dare to cause any trouble on the field, I guarantee you'll be in big trouble!"
"No, don't worry!" Jim lowered his head and quickly explained.
Then they quickly retreated to the side, as if afraid that things would escalate further.
"That's for the best! None of you are allowed to cause trouble in my matches, understand? And you! Lin, if you keep stirring up trouble here, I'll give you a technical foul right here and now!"
After Fox made his threats and seeing that no one else would say anything more, he glanced at his watch and finally walked to the center circle. With a whistle, he threw the basketball into the air!
"Give it to me!" Kemp shouted, his still-peaked jumping ability exploding instantly. Even though he was almost a head shorter than Longley, he easily passed the basketball to Payton with his speed!
Payton dribbled the ball and quickly moved up the court, and Kemp immediately stepped up to him and executed Seattle's signature pick-and-roll!
Lin Tian didn't expect the two of them to set a screen two meters outside the three-point line. Payton held him firmly in front of him, and then Kemp and Payton started running at the same time, charging into the Bulls' interior!
After driving all the way to the basket, Payton suddenly released the ball and threw it to the other side of the rim.
Just as Langley was about to jump to contest the ball under the basket, he suddenly felt an immense force coming from behind, which forcefully pinned him down!
"boom!"
A loud bang was heard!
Kemp has completed a powerful alley-oop dunk!
He gripped the rim with both hands, swaying and roaring in mid-air!
The Supersonics played incredibly tough on the very first ball!
The entire KeyArena was completely energized by this play, with 19000 fans cheering for their team's star duo at the top of their lungs!
"It's only 2 points, it's okay! We'll come back." Lin Tian raised his hand, slowly dribbling the ball towards the frontcourt while calmly directing his teammates' positioning.
Meanwhile, far away in Orlando, Hardaway was watching the game on television, but his expression was very serious, and his brows were furrowed tightly.
Because he was all too familiar with the way Lin Tian dribbled the ball!
That dribbling motion, with a slight jump while lowering the center of gravity and making small hand-switching movements, is exactly the same as mine!
No way...
Is this kid really trying to imitate my playing style?
A few beads of sweat appeared on Hadaway's forehead.
If he can completely copy his own playing style, then this kid's talent is simply terrifying!
"His dribbling form is just similar; this kid is bluffing! How could he possibly imitate my playing style? He couldn't! Dribbling form is easy to learn, but playing style—no one can imitate me!"
Hardaway tried to comfort himself while slowly smoothing out his furrowed brow, but what happened in the next few seconds made his eyes almost pop out of their sockets!
Lin Tian dribbled all the way to the waist area, and then suddenly made a quick back turn dribble, successfully leaving Payton behind him. Just as Payton mustered all his strength to regain his defensive position and try to block Lin Tian's shot, Lin Tian's basketball slammed heavily on the floor!
Then, Lin Tian did a reverse spin, completely bypassing Payton. Then, Lin Tian jumped up and threw the ball out. The basketball flew through Jim's fingers, drew a beautiful arc, and then obediently went into the basket!
"Whoosh!"
2: 2!
Lin Tian's two points were Hardaway's signature move: a double spin move followed by a jump shot!
"This kid is really imitating my playing style!" Hardaway stood up in disbelief. If you stuck Lin Tian's jersey to him and covered his face, Hardaway would really wonder who was showing his highlight reel!
They look so alike!
"This is impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Hardaway muttered, sitting back down on his sofa, his hand unconsciously reaching for the bottle of whiskey beside him.
Hadaway's alcohol tolerance wasn't actually that high, and he didn't really like drinking. Normally, one bottle of wine would be enough for him to drink for half a month, but this time, Hadaway accidentally poured out a whole glass.
He still found it unbelievable!
On the court, Payton and Kemp have once again combined, and this time Kemp forced a shot from mid-range against Rodman and scored 2 points!
"Wow, Sean! You're one of the best scoring power forwards in the entire league, you can't count more than three." Lin Tian said to Kemp while dribbling the ball up the court. "But you're the only one who only makes around $200 million a year and the team doesn't want to renew your contract!"
"Can you please stop talking? FUXX!" This time, it wasn't Kemp who retorted to Lin Tian, but Pippen, who frowned and cursed, "I always feel like you're talking indirectly! Don't you know I still have two years left on my contract?"
"Sorry Scott, I forgot. Let me change the angle." Lin Tian said that he absolutely could not damage his teammates' feelings just to criticize them, so he immediately changed to a completely new angle.
"Jim! Can I call you Jim?" This time, Lin Tian targeted the SuperSonics' center with his teasing: "You got the money you deserved, but you were bullied and mistreated by your teammates. Do you really think you're inferior to them? Do you really think you're not a qualified NBA player?"
"I'll say it again, tolerance will only embolden bad guys... FUXX! Gary, I knew you old bastard would sneak up on me!" Lin Tian's words came to an abrupt halt, because Payton, who had been lurking nearby for a long time, suddenly attacked!
He clearly thought that Lin Tian would neglect protecting the ball because he was talking trash.
But just as Payton lunged out, Lin Tian had already turned and dribbled, quickly leaving Payton behind!
Relax your vigilance?
Even if Lin Tian were to criticize something else entirely, let alone just criticize people, Lin Tian wouldn't let his guard down!
This is the self-discipline of a point guard!
After turning past Payton, Lin Tian quickly drove into the paint, using a step to shake off Kemp who was helping to defend. Facing a double-team from Schrempf and Jim, Lin Tian jumped up again!
But he didn't shoot!
Instead, after the man jumped to the highest point, he suddenly passed the ball under Jim's arm!
"boom!"
Pippen just happened to cut in at that moment!
He caught the basketball at just the right moment, pulled it up, and slammed it down with both hands!
"Beautiful pass, Lin!" After scoring, Pippen gave Lin Tian a thumbs up.
Hardaway, watching on television, looked even more distressed. He tilted his head back and took another big gulp of wine, muttering repeatedly, "This is impossible."
This move, like the double spin just now, is also one of Hardaway's signature skills.
In the following matches, Hardaway's expression only got worse and worse!
Before the match was even halftime, he had already completely finished the bottle of wine in his hand!
He stood up unsteadily and walked towards the wine cabinet.
Hardaway grabbed himself another bottle of high-proof vodka.
"It's all fake! This kid couldn't possibly fight like me exactly! Absolutely not!" Hardaway muttered to himself. "A dream! It must be a dream! When I wake up, I'll find it's all an illusion!"
Hardaway's current state is actually quite easy to understand.
No matter who you are, watching someone on TV play the exact same game as you, with 100% similar movements, style, and playing pattern!
Hadaway, who was already in a bad mood, became even more depressed!
He couldn't believe it!
Of course, this wasn't the first time Lin Tian had used a trial card. However, the ones he used before were either Kobe or Curry, who were still young and hadn't yet developed their own playing style and system, or Jordan, who was as carefree as the Pacific Ocean.
Or perhaps, it's someone like Allen Iverson, a fighter who's always full of fighting spirit, and when he sees you use his moves, he only thinks about how to retaliate and how to use them even more beautifully than Lin Tian.
Furthermore, there are only so many moves on the basketball court. It's perfectly normal for different players to use the same techniques. Otherwise, it's not like if Jordan used the fadeaway jump shot, everyone else couldn't use that technique, right?
Therefore, at least until now, no one has analyzed Lin Tian's games frame by frame to study how similar they are to Jordan, Iverson, and Pippen.
Why waste time and effort? It's absolutely not worth it!
Given that time, the scouting and video production departments of each team in the league would rather spend their time analyzing how many shots a player takes each game, where their shooting efficiency is high, and where it is low...
They only study the more systematic details of the game that can help their team effectively contain the opponent, instead of analyzing whose actions are similar to whose, or whose actions are imitating whose.
Of course, when the internet is more developed and match recordings are readily available in the future, whether those wealthy and leisurely amateur experts will compare and study Lin Tian's matches frame by frame, and then figure out that he has a unique style in each match, so similar to everyone else, is something for the future to come.
Only Hardaway, the guy sitting in front of the TV, was watching the game with a critical attitude and the intention to criticize others later. In addition, he knew before the game that Lin Tian was going to play according to his style of play.
Therefore, he was extremely meticulous, wishing he could pause and replay every single ball, wanting to see if Lin Tian had imitated his style and whether he had captured its essence!
Before watching, he had already planned how to nitpick, pointing out what Lin Tian was imitating, and then finding various differences in details and spirit, indicating that Lin Tian simply couldn't use his own playing style.
But now... Hardaway is numb.
At the very least, he won't be able to watch the second half of the game; he's already drunk.
In the first half, the Bulls and the SuperSonics were tied at 48-50.
The Bulls, playing away, are currently down by 2 points.
In the first half, Lin Tian was undoubtedly the Bulls' strongest point, scoring 13 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals – standard Hardaway-style all-around stats.
皮蓬拿下9分5篮板4助攻，罗德曼2分9篮板。
On the SuperSonics' side, their inside and outside stars were on fire in this game. Payton scored 14 points and 9 assists in the first half, almost a double-double, while Kemp was on fire, completely dominating Rodman, scoring 22 points and 5 rebounds on 9-of-12 shooting in the first half!
From a fan's perspective, this game was definitely worth the ticket price!
The game featured a series of exciting dunks, dazzling breakthroughs, beautiful passes, and exquisite teamwork. In addition, there was the rivalry between the two sides, and even off the court, top star Hardaway was inextricably linked to the game.
The match has been incredibly close and intense so far, leaving both the fans at the stadium and those watching on television extremely satisfied and thrilled!
As the game entered halftime, Kemp once again roughly shoved Jim, who had been standing right in front of him, aside with his arm, yelling, "Get out of my way, you big idiot! Get out of my way! Don't you know a good dog doesn't block the way?"
Jim was nearly knocked over by the sudden push, but the SuperSonics players had already entered the player tunnel, and this scene was not seen by the fans and cameras.
Jim could only lower his head and admit defeat once again.
As for the rest of the team?
nobody else.
For Jim, this team has always been just him!
Whether it's Carl, Payton, Hawkins, Perkins, or the others, they're already considered pretty good people if they don't bully him.
After all, his 6-year, $2700 million contract propelled him to third place in the team's salary rankings, behind only Payton and Schrempf. Yet, his contributions were so minimal that, naturally, nobody on the team liked him.
Karl put him in the starting lineup purely because the general manager had spent so much money to bolster the team's frontcourt, and he had to give him a try, no matter what.
It's not that Jim is particularly good or well-suited for the team's position.
It was simply that Carl didn't want to make the general manager look too bad.
Jim's playing time was filled with interpersonal relationships and social interactions!
Jim, who was pushed by Kemp, received no help or comfort from anyone. Even when the entire SuperSonics team walked past him, not a single person glanced at him!
He was the most ostracized person on the team!
At this moment, Jim, who was always submissive and always forced to smile when bullied, suddenly remembered what Lin Tian had said to him in the first half of the game.
"Tolerance won't protect you from being bullied; it will only embolden the perpetrators!"
"How long are you prepared to endure this? Until you retire?"
"You're a top-tier basketball player in the world, and a multi-millionaire, so why are you afraid of him?"
"Fuck him! Fuck that son of a bitch! If he bullies you again, elbow him in the face!"
"You've already got a six-year contract, what are you afraid of? The money's already in your pocket, it's not going to fly away, is it?"
(End of this chapter)