Chapter 372 Tim, do you have an unspeakable addiction?

On the morning of the 30th, He Zhongqiu conducted track and field training as usual.

His track and field training venue in New York is at New York University, which is nearby, in Manhattan.

In the afternoon, he came to the Knicks' training base for training again.

This season, track and field and basketball training are equally important, so time is very tight for him. Fortunately, his physical fitness is at level 100, so it shouldn't be a problem.

In basketball training, he will focus on the basic skills of ball handling and dribbling.

Now this basic skill is at level 77, which is definitely enough for a center, but far from enough for an outside player.

In the past, due to limited physical fitness, he did not continue to train this basic skill, but now his agility, balance, and flexibility have improved, so he wants to improve this basic skill.

The reason, of course, was for the 08 Yanjing Olympics.

Before the regular season began, major American media evaluated each team and selected five championship teams.

Unlike last season, this season, there are only two championship-level teams in the Eastern Conference, namely the defending dynasty Knicks and the Heat.

The other three are in the Western Conference: the Mavericks, Spurs, and Lakers.

Last season, the media had already recognized the pattern of the East being strong and the West being weak, but after just one offseason, the pattern has returned to being weak in the East and strong in the West.

Of course, many media also admit that the East is weak and the West is strong only in general. The Knicks should be half a level stronger than the other four championship-level teams.

The reason why the media believes that the current situation is that the East is weak and the West is strong again is because the Lakers have become a championship-level team again and the West has become strong again.

At the same time, the Cavaliers did not receive enough reinforcements, and the Pistons lost their core player Ben Wallace and no longer had the strength to compete for the championship. As a result, the overall strength of the Eastern Conference weakened.

In addition, the Heat's super center Shaq suffered some injuries during the offseason. His performance this season will depend on the development of the injury, so the Heat have only reached the championship level on paper.

2006年10月31号，NBA联盟2006/2007赛季常规赛正式拉开帷幕。

The league has only scheduled two opening games, the Knicks at home against the Spurs and the Lakers at home against the Suns.

Both opening games will be broadcast live across the United States, the Knicks' game will be broadcast on TNT and the Lakers' game will be broadcast on ESPN.

At half past six, He Zhongqiu drove to Madison Square Garden.

It only takes a few minutes to drive from the villa to here, which is much more convenient than before.

Tang Yan and Bai Bingbing did not come. They have never appeared in Madison Square Garden since they came to New York. It’s not that He Zhongqiu didn’t want to take them, but they themselves didn’t want to.

Especially now, both of them intend to give up their acting careers and want to enter the group's management level in the future. They no longer need attention, so they don't want to come even more.

Starting at seven o'clock, fans entered the stadium, and it only took half an hour to fill the huge stadium.

Today is the opening game of the new season. There are a lot of stars and celebrities coming. David Stern also came to the scene with his championship ring.

At eight o'clock, both sides announced their starting lineups.

Spurs: Oberto, Duncan, Bruce Bowen, Ginobili, Tony Parker
Knicks: He Zhongqiu, David Lee, Shane Battier, Josh Howard, Nash
The live broadcast time is up. After Barkley made a few opening remarks, he said:
"The Spurs signed Michael Finley, who left the Knicks, and promised him a rotation starting shooting guard position. It seems that the reason why Finley was unwilling to renew his contract with the Knicks was because he was not satisfied with his playing time."

Kenny Smith said: "After winning the championship, his goal in playing now is to enjoy basketball. How can he enjoy it without playing time?"

Barkley laughed and nodded, "In addition, the Spurs also brought in center Francisco Elson. Rasu and Muhammad left last season."

Kenny Smith said: "Although the inside line has been changed, it has not been strengthened. Elson is still a fringe center.

So I think it is still very difficult for the Spurs to beat the Knicks. GDP cannot beat the combination of Wolverine + Son of the Wind. "

Barkley laughed and said, "The biggest headache for the Spurs is probably how to stop Wolverine's fast break."

Kenny Smith laughed out loud, "Playing basketball with a fast-break guy who can compete in the 100-meter race is really deadly."

In the player tunnel, He Zhongqiu greeted Duncan when he saw him: "Hey, Tim, how is your wife doing recently?"

Duncan's face turned green. Shit, why are you greeting my wife instead of me?
"My wife is fine, thank you for your concern."

Feeling gloomy and depressed, he replied in a muffled voice.

Seeing Duncan's ugly face, He Zhongqiu was stunned. Do you have something to hide? It's related to my wife again. Oh, I understand.

As a man with conscience, he quickly comforted her: "It's okay, you are not good enough, I have a prescription here, I guarantee that you will regain your vigor and satisfy your wife."

Duncan's face turned dark and looked even uglier.

But Tony Parker added, "Tim, are you really not doing well? I'll recommend a blue pill to you. It's quite effective."

"Ha ha……"

In the player tunnel, both teams burst into laughter, except for Duncan and the embarrassed Parker.

Duncan felt that he had to explain it. If he didn't explain, wouldn't that be admitting that he was not capable?
He pushed Parker down casually, then grunted, "My wife thinks I'm not charming enough, not romantic enough, and not sweet enough."

He Zhongqiu immediately gave him some advice and said, “This problem is easy to solve, Tim, I suggest you go find Rick Fox.

I watched one of his movies recently. It was well made and very popular among female audiences. You can learn some acting skills from him.

He is very charming and romantic in the movie, and his sweet words can drown your wife.

I think he can help you, you can learn his acting skills, it would be best if you can make a movie with him, and then you can definitely deal with your wife. "

"Haha..." Several players laughed again.

"Rick Fox who retired from the Lakers? What are you laughing at? What movies did he make?" Duncan asked in confusion.

"Tim, he makes adult movies," Tony Parker said.

"Haha..." The laughter in the player tunnel suddenly increased.

"Wolverine?"

Tim Duncan stared at He Zhongqiu in anger.

"I mean well. Please don't take my kindness for granted, okay?" He Zhongqiu defended himself with a big smile on his face.

"Thank you for your kindness, but you are the actor, go and shoot it yourself." Duncan said unhappily.

Then he came on stage and presented championship rings to the Knicks players.

He Zhongqiu put on his third championship ring. When he raised the ring, the cheers from the audience were like a tsunami.

"Three consecutive championships!"

In TNT's live studio, Barkley stared at the screen in front of him, the envy and jealousy in his eyes almost overflowing, and he couldn't hide it at all.

"Originally, it should have been mine."

At this time, Kidd was watching TV at home. When he saw Nash wearing his third ring, his mood was more complicated than Barkley's.

Last time he asked his agent to contact the Knicks, hoping that the Knicks would trade him, but was rejected.

His agent told him that there was a very important reason: his contract was too big. The remaining three years and $3 million of his contract was almost twice as much as Wolverine and Nash's contracts. The Knicks believed that his cost-effectiveness was not as good as Nash's.

This made him very depressed. It seemed that if he wanted to join the Knicks, he would have to wait three years.

The game starts at half past eight.

He Zhongqiu jumped the ball with Duncan and said, "Tim, just a kind reminder, my jumping ability is a little stronger now than it was a few months ago, so you'd better not jump."

He was not lying. With an explosive power of level 114, his vertical jump has now reached 140 centimeters, an increase of 5 centimeters.

The increase is a bit small, but it is difficult to go further. With his weight, it is very good to increase by 5 centimeters.

His current weight has reached 120 kilograms, which is the result of the explosive growth of his muscles, bones, qi and blood.

Of course, this is nothing. It is said that goats can jump 155 centimeters, which is a miracle.

Now, his jumping ability is among the best among high jump athletes, without a doubt.

But high jump is a sport that requires more technique, so he practiced less and did not intend to waste precious time on this event until he had mastered the sprint and long jump events.

Duncan took a deep breath and thought to himself, Wolverine, thank you for your kind reminder, and I thank your mother.

"Snapped!"

The basketball was thrown high into the air and then deflected by He Zhongqiu.

Duncan jumped more than a foot high, at least a foot shorter than He Zhongqiu, and his jumping speed was far slower than He Zhongqiu's.

He Zhongqiu entered the restricted area, and Duncan defended him. At the moment of physical contact, Duncan groaned and was bounced away, and He Zhongqiu successfully entered the basket.

At this time, Nash passed the ball from the center line to the basket.

The next moment, He Zhongqiu jumped high, grabbed the basketball with his right hand, and then smashed it into the basket.

"boom!"

"Oh ho!"

As the basket exploded, there was a huge cheer in Madison Square Garden.

"Ooooh, an alley-oop dunk! It comes from the connection between Super Wolverine and Son of the Wind."

"This is the first ball of the new season for the New York Knicks. Tonight's performance has already begun, let's enjoy it!"

The roars of the live commentators Harry Coster and Bingo Boris suddenly resounded throughout the stadium.

"It's a great collaboration. I think Nash is the best point guard for Wolverine," Barkley praised.

"What if it was Jason Kidd?" Kenny Smith asked.

"Don't mention me, okay? I'm annoying!" Kidd said in front of the TV.

"Jason, what are you mad about? Are you mad that I stopped you from leaving the Nets?" his wife Jumana said unhappily.

"I didn't say that." Kidd defended himself aggrievedly.

"Oh!"

Seeing Kidd's aggrieved look like a little woman, without any manliness, Jumana was furious. She punched Kidd in the eye, pounced on him and scratched him, then cursed, "Asshole, that's what you think."

Kidd cried out in pain, covered his eyes, and said angrily: "Enough, what do you want?"

"Behave yourself, or I'll call the police and accuse you of domestic violence," Jumana threatened.

Kidd was furious and left the living room in a depressed mood, and went to the kitchen to get ice to put on his eyes.

"You can't blame me for this. You didn't fight back. I'm used to hitting you. In the final analysis, it's all your fault." Jumana muttered.

At Madison Square Garden, the game continues.

Popovich sat on the bench in a daze because he saw no hope of beating the Knicks.

The monster Wolverine's playing style today was different from that in the regular season last season, and similar to that in the playoffs, which was to reduce mid-range shots and increase low-post and under-the-basket offense.

Whether Duncan defended alone or let Oberto double-team him, he couldn't be stopped.

There was no other way, he had to take advantage of David Lee's weakness of average strength and lack of shooting ability, and arranged a double-team in advance to leave David Lee open.

Anyway, David Lee only has the ability to attack in the penalty area. Even if he is left alone, his activity area is only in the penalty area, so he has enough time to return to defense.

However, when the Spurs started to double-team Wolverine, Wolverine immediately left the restricted area. The Spurs did not double-team him, but immediately used a mid-range shot, double-teamed him, and immediately passed the ball to David Lee under the basket.

On the offensive end, the Wolverines played an excellent defensive performance, blocking Duncan twice, stealing the ball from Ginobili once, and forcing Tony Parker who broke into the penalty area to make a mistake, preventing the Spurs from launching their offense.

Now 9 minutes into the first quarter, 12:23, the Spurs are already 11 points behind.

"Bang!"

Duncan withstood He Zhongqiu's top defense outside the left waist position, and then made a side hook shot, which was a little off, but with good luck, the shot hit the basket.

But it was a close call, as He Zhongqiu's defense was already in place. He jumped so fast and high that he almost caught the ball with one claw, just a little bit short.

Kenny Smith sighed: "Duncan made 6 of 2 shots. Alas, he is a top-notch offensive and defensive player, but he was so embarrassed by Wolverine's hands, which further highlighted Wolverine's strength."

Barkley said with empathy: "It's just like when I met Michael in the finals. My outstanding performance just highlights Michael's strength."

"Yes." Kenny Smith nodded.

"..."

Barkley was speechless. What the hell, I'm just being humble, can't you see that?

In the second quarter, the Spurs' bench lineup and the Knicks' bench lineup fought equally.

The Spurs' substitutes include Michael Finley and Brent Barry, both former championship members of the Knicks and are quite strong.

But the Knicks' bench this season is not bad either, with Alonzo Mourning and rookie Millsap inside, and Raja Bell, Crawford and Tyronn Lue outside. The bench lineup has high defensive and rebounding attributes.

He Zhongqiu played for only five minutes symbolically in the second quarter. He didn't put in much effort, but just dunked two balls. He played for a while in a performative manner.

At the end of the first half, the Knicks were firmly leading by 18 points.

In the third quarter, the Spurs played well, shooting from the outside and making three-pointers like rain. In the 8th minute, the score difference was only 6 points, forcing He Zhongqiu to exert his strength to stabilize the situation.

After three quarters, the Knicks led by 61 points, 72:11.

贺中秋三节打了25分钟，14投12中，6罚6中，轰下了30分。

Barkley said: "Duncan played 33 minutes in the third quarter, made 18 of 8 shots, a hit rate of 44.4%, plus 6 of 3 free throws, and scored 19 points."

Kenny Smith said: "But in the 8 minutes when Wolverine was not on the court, Duncan made 5 of 4 shots. When Wolverine was on the court, Duncan made 13 of 4 shots, with a hit rate of only 30.8%."

Barkley nodded and said in an affirmative tone: "The Spurs are still very strong and are one of the few championship-level teams recognized by the media this season.

But I want to say now that the Knicks should be in the real unique tier, not the so-called strong half tier. The Spurs, Lakers, Mavericks, and Heat are in the same tier. "

Kenny Smith said: "But from tonight's game, when Wolverine didn't exert his strength, no matter how strong the Knicks' lineup was, they still couldn't beat the Spurs, so I would say that the Knicks are strong, and their strength lies in Wolverine alone."

"Yes."

Barkley nodded in agreement and said, “It should be said that against an average team, even without Wolverine, the Knicks still have a chance to win.

But facing a championship-level team like the Spurs, the Knicks have no chance of winning without Wolverine.”

In the final quarter, Popovich asked the team to attack with all their strength and give it a try.

But the result disappointed him. He Zhongqiu couldn't just sit back and watch the team lose the opening game at home. He gave his all at the beginning of the quarter and defeated the Spurs with a score of 76:99.

He scored 10 points in 21 minutes in a single quarter, and had two blocks and a steal in the quarter, leading the team to defeat the Spurs in the final quarter.

At the end of the game, Zhang Heli said to the CCTV camera:
“恭喜中秋，开门红啊！35分钟，51分13篮板2助攻8盖帽4抢断，完爆石佛蒂姆邓肯。

邓肯全场打了40分钟，26投10中，末节8投2中，全场命中率38.5%，9罚5中，拿到25分12篮板4助攻1抢断1盖帽的数据。

Judging from this game, the Knicks are still strong, and the Spurs are a championship-level team, so it is not difficult for them to win.

Although Zhongqiu played super luxurious data, it seems that he did not play to his full potential. Even if his opponent was a top-notch attacker and defender like Duncan, it also shows how powerful he is now.

Whether it is physical strength, technology, physical fitness, competition experience, leadership ability, or dominance over the game, he has reached the peak.

I think he is already a unique player in the NBA, just like Michael Jordan, the basketball god in his prime.”

After the game, Duncan was stopped by some media in the player tunnel.

"Tim, what do you think of the current strength of your opponent Wolverine?" a reporter asked.

"He is very powerful, a kind of power that makes people helpless."

Duncan is a very calm person. He has a background in psychology and is mentally very stable, but at this moment there was a hint of frustration and anxiety in his eyes.

"Feel sorry!"

After saying this, he forcibly separated everyone and left.

He Zhongqiu returned to the locker room. Although he won the game, he was actually not very satisfied with the match against the Spurs.

He scored 26 more points than Duncan, and the team only won by 23 points, which shows that the performance of others was similar to that of other Spurs players.

Parker and Ginobili performed averagely tonight, which means that Nash and the others also performed averagely.

He scored 51 points alone, and the others combined for 48 points. This is definitely an abnormal situation.

In the current lineup, there are many people who can play, from the main players to the substitutes, everyone's performance is average, and no one has a standout performance. This is not a good thing.

Of course, this is just one game, and he hopes everyone can adjust quickly so he doesn't have to score 50+ in every game.

(End of this chapter)