Chapter 144 Ryan Anderson and Yi Jianlian

Popovich's words immediately lightened the atmosphere in the locker room again.

Even though he's getting old, Popovich is still so mischievous.

Popovich then glanced back at Duncan, his eyes showing a different expression.

Duncan turned his head somewhat embarrassed. This was probably the first time he'd ever been shy in his career.

The league at this time wasn't like it would be later, with dedicated awards ceremonies. The league would announce the results of some awards every once in a while.

Besides announcing the Coach of the Year, they also announced the Defensive Player of the Year and Most Improved Player awards together.

Tyson Chandler ultimately ended Dwight Howard's three-peat reign as Defensive Player of the Year. He also beat out Ibaka, who had a standout season, to win the award for the first time in his career.

Interestingly, he didn't win the award last year during his championship season with the Mavericks, but he won it right away when he went to the Knicks.

But this season, the changes he brought to the Knicks' defense were immediately apparent.

The Knicks ranked second in the league in forcing opponent turnovers, tenth in limiting opponent field goal percentage, and eleventh in limiting opponent scoring.

This was in stark contrast to the Knicks' terrible defense last season.

Chandler deserved the award.

"Serge deserved Defensive Player of the Year more, you can't deny him just because he's done so well in the past."

"Twitter addict" Durant immediately spoke out for Ibaka.

Although Ibaka's average points and rebounds this season weren't as good as Chandler's, he averaged 3.7 blocks per game, leading the league.

Durant's defense of Ibaka this time wasn't unreasonable.

However, Chandler's score of 311 points was only 17 points more than Ibaka's 294. Either one could have won the award, it was just that Chandler was luckier.

The Defensive Player of the Year award was controversial, but relatively minor. The result of the Most Improved Player award selection was what really stirred up a storm of controversy.

The award ultimately went to Ryan Anderson of the Magic.

He averaged 16.1 points and 7.7 rebounds this season, a significant improvement from last season's 10.6 points and 5.5 rebounds.

His vote share was also as high as 24%.

The Most Improved Player award was highly competitive this year, and this was also well-deserved. In theory, it wouldn't cause so much controversy.

But the problem lay with another person.

Jeremy Lin.

It could be said that the Knicks were able to advance to the playoffs as the seventh seed in the East this season, and the person they should be most grateful to, besides Chandler, was Jeremy Lin.

Because of continuous injuries, the Knicks were once without any available guards.

Jeremy Lin, who was on the verge of being cut, suddenly rose to prominence, putting on a performance that stunned everyone and sparked "Linsanity," which swept the globe.

It's no exaggeration to say that Jeremy Lin's popularity this season was even higher than Tang Tian's.

Last season with the Warriors, he averaged 2.6 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists. This season with the Knicks, he averaged 14.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 6.2 assists.

If you really calculate it, Jeremy Lin should have been the Most Improved Player.

But as a result, he only received 8.39% of the vote in the Most Improved Player selection, ranking sixth among all players.

"This is the most incredible selection result I've ever seen, man, he sparked Linsanity! Now you're telling me he's ranked sixth?"

"This result is indeed..., although considering his number of appearances and his defensive shortcomings, but sixth is too..."

"I remember the league even officially tweeted about him before, thinking he was the undisputed choice for Most Improved Player, but now this is the result?"

"Maybe it's an early consolation prize?"

"Hey! You have to understand, the votes were selected by media reporters, not designated by the league."

"Are these reporters eating dry rice? Or did they make the decision with their asses?"

"They obviously used their brains, bro, it's just that you don't understand. You probably didn't notice that Anderson is white, and Jeremy Lin is yellow."

"The second-place Ilyasova is also white, and the third-place Peković... although they are not native American whites, but you probably grasped the key to the problem."

"This is a sensitive topic, stop discussing it!"

"This is unfair, sports competition shouldn't involve these elements!"

"Then you have to ask those reporters, although I don't want to admit it, but how many of them do you think will think highly of a yellow person?"

"It's really infuriating!! ┻━┻︵╰(‵□′)╯︵┻━┻"

"I'm a little worried about the Godfather now. He's performing so well, will he also suffer this kind of treatment in the Rookie of the Year selection?"

"Very likely. Although Irving's performance this year is outstanding among rookies, considering Tang is on the Spurs, he should also be competitive, but Jeremy Lin's treatment makes people have to worry."

…

No one dared to explicitly mention the words "racial discrimination," but the content of the discussion was quite close.

Even Yao Ming back then, the whistle problem he encountered in the league was very obvious.

Even Steve Kerr, a commentator for TNT, had discriminatory language in his commentary.

The fans were excited, but Tang Tian was very calm.

The United States is different from China. There is indeed a problem of discrimination here, but in the final analysis, it's still a matter of respecting the strong.

Don't mention Kerr, O'Neal even said "toy-inchee" to Yao Ming back then.

But what happened later?

Kerr publicly apologized, O'Neal became a famous Yao supporter, and he and Yao Ming sympathized with each other.

The most fundamental reason is that Yao Ming conquered Kerr and O'Neal with his strength, and also conquered the American fans.

As a yellow person, it may be more difficult, but if one day he can dominate the league like Michael Jordan, then even the street vagrants will be full of respect for him.

This is the United States.

The second game of the Spurs' series against the Mavericks continued in San Antonio.

This time, the Spurs didn't give the Mavericks a chance from the start. After they spread out the space on offense, they frequently attacked the basket.

The Mavericks' collapse, like the second half of the first game, started with the collapse of the interior.

In the end, the Spurs easily defeated the Mavericks at home with a score of 108 to 91. After winning another city, they turned the score into 2 to 0.

Terry's off-court tactics didn't work.

After two games, the two sides moved to Dallas to continue the next two games of the series.

There have been many playoff games with comebacks after being 0 to 2 behind. Terry continued to cheer for the team in front of the media before the game.

"I've experienced this kind of scene in my career. It's not a problem at all. We're back home. We'll forget the first two games. The series has just begun for us here."

Terry's mouth is still a bit big, but with Tang Tian's rise, Ginobili's return, and Diaw's joining, this Spurs team is balanced on offense and defense, and its strength is much stronger than he thought.

Although the Mavericks played very tenaciously at home, they still lost 93 to 105.

Carlisle has made adjustments in this game. Yi Jianlian, who didn't get a chance to play in the first two games, replaced most of Haywood's playing time in this game. He also hit a three-pointer and played well on the defensive end, getting 5 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 block in 10 minutes of playing time.

However, the gap in strength between the two teams cannot be changed by changing a role player.

For the defending champions, a score of 0 to 3 says it all. They are going to follow in the footsteps of the Heat that year.

In NBA history, since the implementation of the 7-game 4-win system, there have been 14 comebacks from 0 to 2, and 8 reverse comebacks from 1 to 3.

But there has never been a team that has reversed from 0 to 3.

To put it bluntly, a comeback from 0 to 3 means four consecutive wins after three consecutive losses.

If you can win four consecutive games, why would you lose three consecutive games?

This is the playoffs. Unless the opponent's core is all injured, the probability of this happening is very low.

It is basically a foregone conclusion that the Mavericks will be eliminated.

Terry didn't have a big mouth this time.

As the side on the verge of elimination, every player will have a lot of pressure in their hearts.

Not to mention that they are still the defending champions.

"This is the best team in the league, and I believe they can do it."

Only owner Mark Cuban still has confidence in the team.

As the owner who loves basketball the most in the entire league, he has never lacked confidence.

You can tell this from his clothes.

Every home game day, he will wear his blue Mavericks t-shirt.

That is the jersey he believes will bring luck to the home team.

When he gave his championship speech last year, he also said that this jersey brought them luck.

He's wearing it tonight, and he's also brought his daughter, who he says is the most precious and valuable, to the scene.

Dallas fans are still enthusiastic, and among the three teams in Texas, the fans here are the most enthusiastic and die-hard.

Carlisle made some adjustments to the starting lineup tonight, putting Mahinmi directly into the starting lineup.

Haywood didn't play well in the previous few games, and Mahinmi played well. This is an active change.

Mahinmi's movement speed and scoring ability are better than Haywood's. Carlisle's adjustment is to play offense with the Spurs.

This idea is also correct.

Anyway, that's how it's going to be defended, so it's better to play the offense, so at least there's a chance.

However, after the game really started, Carlisle's intention was not realized.

Terry was basically defended to death by Tang Tian, and Mahinmi's help to the Mavericks' offense on the court was very limited.

Although Nowitzki felt very good tonight, after the first quarter, the Mavericks were still 10 points behind the Spurs with a score of 21 to 31.

If this trend continues, it is a foregone conclusion that the Mavericks will be swept.

When the second quarter came up, Tang Tian was resting off the court. At this time, Ginobili was leading the Spurs on the court, Mills, Green, Diaw, and Splitter.

On the Mavericks' side, Marion and Nowitzki returned after resting for two minutes in the first quarter, plus Delonte West, Terry, and Yi Jianlian.

Haywood was not only not a starter in this game, but was directly abandoned by Carlisle.

Ginobili came up and hit a three-pointer.

This is really rubbing salt into the wound, and the fans at the scene were in pain.

Nowitzki played Diaw in the frontcourt, and Green came over to help defend.

Nowitzki passed the ball to Marion, and Marion didn't go up after receiving the ball, but directly passed the ball to Yi Jianlian at the top of the arc.

Splitter was standing at the free throw line because he had to take care of the inside. He rushed out after seeing the ball passed over.

His speed was not fast, and Yi Jianlian shot after receiving the ball.

One thing that can be clearly felt is that his shooting speed is faster than it was during the regular season.

"Swish!"

A crisp sound.

The ball went into the net cleanly.

He hit the first shot, so it seems that he will feel better in this game than in the last game.

Tang Tian was delighted when he saw the shot go in.

Although he is an opponent, he is still very happy that Yi Jianlian has changed himself after listening to his advice and is now playing well.

This three-pointer drew cheers from the crowd.

It is very close to 13 points and 15 points. If it is made, the difference will be pulled back to 10 points again, which is a key three-pointer.

The Spurs attacked in the frontcourt, and Diaw's coordinating ball was given to Ginobili, whose step-back three-pointer was shot on the line, and the difference came to 12 points again.

The Mavericks attacked, West organized, and Nowitzki broke through with the ball at the high position on the right side. At this time, Splitter directly helped defend.

After Nowitzki was double-teamed, he passed the ball to Yi Jianlian again.

After receiving the ball, Yi Jianlian glanced at his feet and was outside the three-point line before shooting again.

"Bang!"

The ball hit the backboard.

But after rebounding, it still went in!

Yi Jianlian made two three-pointers in a row!

"Yi!!"

Accompanied by the live DJ's drawn-out shout, the fans at the scene exploded directly.

"I like you!"

"Sorry, Yi, I shouldn't have looked down on you before!"

"Go! Go! Yi!"

…

The fans on the stands swept away their previous contempt for him, and were now cheering for him.

This is reality. No matter what your skin color is, you can only win the respect of others if you play well in the NBA.

The Spurs attacked, and Diaw continued to coordinate. This time he gave the ball to Splitter inside.

Splitter topped Yi Jianlian and then shot.

However, Yi Jianlian reacted quickly this time, and directly gave Splitter a big block!

The fans at the scene exploded directly.

Yi Jianlian is going to become the Mavericks' surprise soldier!

Tang Tian couldn't help laughing at this time.

In fact, Yi Jianlian played well in the last game, but he didn't feel much because his playing time was limited.

His performance in this game is better than in the last game, and the two goals he scored were very valuable.

Putting aside other things, Yi Jianlian will definitely have a contract next time.

It may be hard for anyone to believe it, but he saved Yi Jianlian's career in just a few words?

The Mavericks played a fast break, and Terry made a fast break layup.

When running back after scoring, he made his signature jet action, directly igniting the atmosphere.

The Mavericks launched an 8-0 offensive wave, directly narrowing the difference to 5 points!

Popovich reached out and called a timeout.

After the timeout, Duncan, Parker, and Tang Tian were all replaced one after another.

The old man was rarely cautious, and it could be seen that he didn't want any more changes in the series.

Duncan singled out Yi Jianlian under the basket as soon as he came up. Yi Jianlian could block Splitter, but he couldn't do anything against the Stone Buddha and couldn't jump up after being blocked.

Duncan's layup under the basket scored two points to help the Spurs stabilize the situation.

When the Mavericks attacked to the frontcourt again, Diaw was defending Yi Jianlian at this time, and Duncan was defending Nowitzki under the basket.

Yi Jianlian had no chance to shoot, and Nowitzki failed to score after a strong attack on Duncan under the basket.

The Spurs advanced to the frontcourt. Tang Tian ran off the ball, and Duncan passed to Ginobili after encountering a double team under the basket.

Ginobili then made a coquettish pass through West's crotch to Tang Tian.

Tang Tian caught the ball and made a three-pointer with his hand.

A 5-0 after the timeout, and the Spurs pulled the difference to 10 points again.

The impact of losing Chandler on the Mavericks is really visible to the naked eye. Yi Jianlian's two consecutive three-pointers can be considered a surprise soldier, but it still can't make up for this point.

Carlisle kept shaking his head on the sidelines.

He really felt like a clever woman could not cook without rice.

Tang Tian suddenly felt a little distressed when he saw Carlisle's reaction while retreating on defense.

Carlisle's days as a clever woman have only just begun.