NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 110 Your desire is above mine? (daily chapter)
On May 1998, 5, although there was still G22 in the Western Conference Finals that night, most sports media were still reminiscing about the Bulls' loss.

This season was indeed difficult for the Bulls, but with Pippen returning in the second half of the season, the dominance of the old guys seems to be back.

Before the start of the playoffs, the Bulls were the favorites for the championship, and most sports media also sang their praises, thinking that Michael Jordan would lead the team to complete the second three-peat.

In the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Bulls and the Pacers reached the tiebreaker. They made 25 of 9 dunks and finally won the game. However, some media became fools.

And after the Bulls lost two games in a row in the Eastern Conference finals, the fools began to turn over old accounts after the fact:
"Perhaps Krause, the general manager of the Bulls, is right, they should insist on rebuilding this season!"

"Michael Jordan's arrogance ruined the Bulls and he should consider the front office's opinion."

"Phil Jackson's tactics have been figured out, and the Bulls should fire him during the offseason!"

"."

Since last night, the ball critics and columnists have fallen into a carnival moment. Everyone seems to have amnesia, and they have forgotten how to tout the Bulls' dominance before.

To these TV shows and newspaper articles, Lezi fans have only one reaction:
"Turn it up please! We love to watch!"

Ratings increased, and so did newspaper sales. This melon-eating feast for the media continued until the next day.

Naturally, TNT will not let go of this hot spot, but as a professional sports media, it is natural to show the data to make sense:
"During the regular season, he averaged 96.7 points per game and ranked ninth in the league;"

"Limit opponents' scoring average to 89.6 points per game, third in the league;"

“场均出手82.9次，投篮命中率45.1%排在联盟第15，场均在三分线外出手是11.7次，三分球命中率32.3%排在第23。”

After briefly introducing the basic data of the Bulls, McHale said:

"I never said the Bulls were dominant this season!"

"Maybe they were affected by Pippen's injury, but judging from the basic data, I am not surprised that they encountered difficulties in the playoffs!"

The host Ernie Johnson looked weird. If he didn't lose his memory, the legendary star was optimistic about the Bulls before the start of the playoffs.
Kenny Smith on the other side insisted on his position and said seriously:
"The regular season is completely different from the playoffs. I believe the Bulls will regain their form after two days of rest!"

"Michael Jordan will not give up easily. The Bulls have a lot of game experience. They have experienced too much."

"As long as we defend two home games, it's hard to say what the outcome of this playoff round will be."

Maybe because he didn't want to see the second three consecutive championships, McHale also continued to output seriously:

"No one can beat time, and the Bulls are no exception. Even if it's the tiebreaker, it's still the Knicks' home court."

"Maybe young players lack game experience, but their physical condition is better. Do you think Lee will suddenly play out of order?"

"This is the second year of his career. Some players can't look at it with ordinary eyes. Look at Tim Duncan. Although he is only a rookie, he averaged 2+20 per game in the playoffs. This shows that game experience is not a problem."

Seeing that the two insisted on their own opinions, and each said their own things, the host Ernie Johnson suddenly said:
"Maybe we should pay attention to tonight's game between the Lakers and the Jazz!"

McHale, who was typing, couldn't stop at this time and said casually:
"The Jazz will get the match point, O'Neal can't defend the opponent's pick-and-roll, and the Lakers' perimeter will not respond."

"I think the Bulls' perimeter is the same. Even if they go back to the home court, they can't solve the shooting problem."

"."

Due to the cancellation of the video class in the morning, Li You also saw the scene where TNT and ESPN collectively suffered from amnesia.

The thick-skinnedness of these media is still beyond his imagination. Li You clearly remembers that when the Bulls won the tiebreaker, they were the ones who bragged about Michael's buckle.

He also watched those few episodes. He thought there would be some dry analysis, but it turned out to be all bragging, and by the way, he stepped on Reggie Miller.

After Starks got his big contract, he moved to another luxury apartment on Manhattan's Upper East Side, which is popular with New York socialites.

In the afternoon, Li You drove to the training hall alone. The Dodge Viper GTS-R was a new car given to him by the manufacturer.

In the 97 Le Mans Endurance Race, Dodge's performance was not bad. In order to advertise the race in early June, this limited-edition street car, which has not yet been released, became Li You's new car.

The Knicks team color scheme, the white body and the orange stripes running through the body are particularly eye-catching. The advertising effect is good. At least New York fans are familiar with this car and will say hello when they meet it.

The victory over the Bulls in two games also boosted the confidence of everyone in the Knicks, but as the playoffs came to an end, the players were also particularly concerned about the labor agreement.

This is related to the US knife, the players don't want to stop, when Li You came to the locker room, Ewing was berating David Stern:
"The league and the management are standing together, they just want to squeeze the players!"

"Fans buy tickets to watch us play. If the team makes money, we should increase our salary and the contract should be more secure."

In 95, the labor dispute lasted for more than two months, and in 96 there was also a work stoppage.

In March 98, the league's owners voted on whether to restart the labor agreement negotiations, and 3 of the 29 owners supported re-signing the agreement.

So far, the two sides have negotiated many times, and Li You knew that the eighth negotiation broke down again when he heard Ewing's complaint.
Oakley thinks the gorilla is right, the old guy also wants to make more money:

"Some guarantees should be provided for the veterans. We have played for half our lives, and we should have a big contract."

Before the start of this season, the Timberwolves offered Kevin Garnett, who had just ended his rookie contract, a six-year, $6 million contract!
$1.26 million, more than owner Glenn Taylor bought the Timberwolves two years ago
This contract not only stimulated the owners of the teams, but also confused the players:

"Salary increase! Must raise salary!"

It's just that the breakdown of the negotiations this time has released a very bad signal, and the next season may really be suspended!

For the players in the atmosphere group, if there is a lockout and the boss does not pay their wages, they will have no money and their credit cards will explode.

At this time, everyone is discussing what to do if the shutdown is really going to happen, which will have a great impact on the bottom players.

The media did not report the news of the breakdown of this negotiation at all. Obviously, the management and the league jointly wanted to teach the players a lesson.

A lockout means banning training, banning team meetings, and banning player transactions. Alan Houston saw Li You and asked in a low voice:
"Lee, if next season is really suspended, what are your plans?"

"I plan on adding some muscle to myself!"

Li You patted his biceps, expressing that he would further improve his body!
Larry Johnson doesn't care about the lockout either. "Auntie" has a contract with Converse and a lot of off-court income, enough to support his extravagant life:

"Come and practice boxing with me. By the way, go to Las Vegas to watch the game. If you win the championship, you should enjoy life during the offseason!"

Players with sponsorship are completely different from bottom-level players. Bottom-level players may compromise for their jobs, but star players will never cut their salaries.

Li You smiled and bumped fists with "Auntie". No matter how the labor-management agreement develops, he must have a big contract, and beating workers does not talk about feelings.

The labor agreement negotiations broke down again, which naturally affected the internal situation of the Bulls.

For Michael Jordan, as a role model for the players, it is impossible for him to accept a salary cut.

This has nothing to do with his personal wishes, but that the players union needs to make a statement. As a superstar, he must not compromise with the management and the league.

After receiving the news, Michael knew that this season might be the last season for the Bulls to play together.

Pippen will not give up his big contract, nor will he take a salary cut.

The current salary of the Bulls is the highest in the league, and the boss no longer wants to pay for the championship.

As reported by the media, the Bulls are about to disintegrate.

After Lian Yefei returned to Chicago, on the morning of the second day, Michael held a player meeting, and there was no need to talk chicken soup. Everyone in the Bulls knew the current situation.

"Everyone has got the news, I don't want to say too much, I just want to win the championship again!"

"Defend well, throw away those useless little thoughts, and remember, the championship will let us gain everything."

Wearing a white training uniform, Michael Jordan looked serious. He talked about a defensive issue and said nothing more.

Will the Bulls keep this lineup if they win the championship again?

Pippen didn't get a big contract and planned to run away. Rodman didn't care about this issue. Other players felt that there was still hope for retaining the lineup when they heard Mikou's words.

Everyone in the Bulls expressed their opinions one after another, saying that they will do their best in the next game, and finally the "Zun Qiao" meeting ended successfully.
On the night of the 22nd, contrary to everyone's expectations, the Lakers lost again and the Jazz got the match point!
The 10-man rotation Jazz overwhelmed the Lakers with 4 All-Star players.

At 109:98, the multi-point Jazz easily won the game.

The big score came to 3:0. Although the series is not over yet, there is no miracle. The Jazz have reached the finals!
O'Neal's brave performance could not lead the Lakers to win.

30中17，罚球13中5，鲨鱼砍下了39分15篮板2助攻1盖帽5失误的大号两双；
However, the Lakers' 19-of-5 and 26.3% three-point shooting percentage, which was restricted from the outside, made the Lakers fans look silly.

Facts have proved that most of the flashy players are not suitable for the playoffs. Tonight, Van Exel scored 13 of 2, 8 of 1 from beyond the three-point line, and scored 10 points.

Facing the iron-blooded defense of the Jazz, the flamboyant Lakers were powerless to fight back.

On May 5, after a day of rest, the Knicks also flew to Chicago ahead of schedule.

Unlike the Bulls who refused to interview, the Knicks are not afraid of anyone coming.

As soon as they arrived at the Hilton Hotel where they were staying, some reporters squatting around began to move towards the players.

David Aldridge, ESPN's sports reporter, interviewed Li You during the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The young black reporter often reported Georgetown University games when he was working at the Washington Post, and he had a good relationship with Ewing.

However, after joining ESPN, most of the interviews with the Knicks in the past two years will first check Li You's tone for hot news.

The gorilla didn't brag when he met the Bulls, and Aldridge didn't make it difficult for Ewing. While the team was still checking in, he smiled and moved to Li You's side, chatting casually about the upcoming game:

"Lee, two away games, talk about the Knicks' game plan."

Wearing a Hickey Freeman gray custom-made suit and pushing a suitcase, Li You looked very steady. To this reporter who often interviewed him, he replied with a relaxed expression:

"The playoffs start with road wins, and our plan is to win a road game and then go back to New York to finish the game."

"Of course this is the best plan. We all know that the Bulls will not admit defeat easily. Maybe they are very united now."

Aldridge smiled back at Li You. He doesn't know how to report on the labor agreement, but as long as he has this sentence, it is enough. He is very good at making up articles.

On the night of the 24th, the noise at the United Center Arena became louder and louder before the game started.

For Bulls fans, everyone wants to see the team complete the second three-peat!

In addition, there were rumors that the Bulls were about to disintegrate, and the fans wanted to see a perfect curtain call.

The two home games are unbeatable games for the Bulls. Once the Knicks get the match point and want to counterattack, it will be useless if God comes.
In the game that night, the Bulls started to bite wildly on the defensive end, and with the blessing of the home whistle, the action became more and more serious.

In the early days of the regular season, the performance of stretching the hips and being able to counterattack all the way, the Bulls relied on their defense.

Phil Jackson didn't pretend to be X at this time. He stood on the sidelines and yelled since the start of the game to encourage the players.

According to the game plan formulated before the game, the Bulls' outside three began to take turns to defend Li You.

The expected crush did not appear, and the Knicks still made few mistakes.

At the end of the half, 46:49, the Bulls led by only 3 points.

In the second half, the hand-to-hand combat familiar to the fans was on the line again.

Rushing for rebounds and leading the defense, the Bulls just wanted to slow down the pace of the game.

In the end, the united Bulls still protected the home court.

At 86:90, after a fierce battle in the second half, the Bulls pulled back a victory, and the big score of the series came to 1:2.

After winning the game, the United Center was completely in a state of excitement, and after two days of rest, McQueen's physical fitness also recovered a lot.

出场43分钟，25中12，罚球12中10，34分7篮板2助攻1抢断3失误，迈克尔-乔丹再次打出高效表现。

After the game, Michael Jordan, who was interviewed, also had some emotional ups and downs, panting to assure the Bulls fans:
"Thanks to the Chicago fans who came out tonight, the Bulls will finally win this series!"

"No one wants the championship more than us, we will achieve three consecutive championships again!"

"."

来到客场，李佑的效率就开始下滑，20中8，三分线外8中3，罚球7中4，砍下23分4篮板7助攻1抢断2失误的数据。

A lot of physical confrontation did affect his hand feel, but at the press conference after the game, Li You still smiled and looked very confident.

At this time, the reporters in the audience turned into megaphones, repeating Mai Kou's point of view, and Li You couldn't help shaking his head:
"The desire for victory? Maybe it will really affect the outcome of the game!"

"But basketball games are sometimes cruel. It is not only fighting spirit that determines the outcome, but physical condition is the most important thing."

"The next game, the Eastern Conference Finals will officially start, and the Knicks are also eager to win!"

"."

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(End of this chapter)