Chapter 53 Coach’s Chicken Soup

Author: Tiamo the Withered

Chapter 53 Coach’s Chicken Soup

On November 13, the Magic faced the SuperSonics at home. This was also the first time that Li Chengming had the opportunity to compete with the second overall pick in this year's draft, Kevin Durant, although he may not be able to match up.

After all, the SuperSonics' goal this year is obviously to train and perform badly. Their record since the start of the game has been poor, and they are undoubtedly the weakest player in the Eastern Conference.

Facing such a team, if the Magic don't win easily, it will be considered a failure. Maybe it will be clocked in the third quarter again, and Durant may not be on the court during garbage time.

And according to Van Gundy's habits, even if he performed well in the last game, he might be on the bench this time.

However, I didn't expect that Van Gundy would rarely think about training in this game. He mentioned Li Chengming to the game four minutes into the second quarter.

In the SuperSonics' lineup, there are players that the Celtics made trades to form their Big Three. At first glance, they don't seem to be weak. There are also many veterans who are relatively well-known, such as Li Chengming.

Opposite backup power forward Kurt Thomas.

He entered the league in 1995, and his peak years were with the Knicks. Joining the SuperSonics this year is definitely just a transition.

In fact, he still has some strength now. Unfortunately, Thomas, who is 35 years old, 206 meters tall and 104 kilograms in weight, can no longer keep up on the defensive end.

What Thomas relies on for survival is his defense, but people can't resist the passage of time. His lateral movement is now even slower than that of Li Chengming, and his athletic ability is almost gone. Li Chengming only needs to simply press him to the basket, and he

He couldn't jump up at all, so he could only be beaten by Li Chengming.

Fortunately, Thomas is not a complete blue-collar insider. He is also good at shooting, and the older he gets, the better he gets. His judgment of rebound positioning and placement is infinitely better than that of Li Chengming.

Li Chengming used to rely on his height and size to not suffer much in rebounding, but that was against domestic college players. After coming to the NBA, he knew that in the professional arena, many players looked ordinary.

Things also require skill.

A famous neon center once said that those who get rebounds win the world. In NBA games, the higher the game, the more important rebounds are.

After Li Chengming was blocked by Thomas and grabbed two offensive rebounds in a row, Van Gundy replaced him on the court during a timeout.

Firstly, it’s time and the rotation is normal, and secondly, I need to say something to him.

He knew that Li Chengming was a very open-minded player, so he didn't mind telling him bluntly: "Your positioning is terrible. I thought you were just not fast enough in one-on-one defense. I didn't expect that you couldn't protect rebounds well."

"

The game is not only about scoring goals, but also about other details. Many players who can only score will not be able to stay in the NBA for as long as functional players.

Li Cheng has known for a long time that his single defense is a weak point, but at least he can keep up with it mentally, but there is a big problem with the protection of rebounds.

Defensive rebounds are also part of the defense of the penalty area. Otherwise, if you can defend once, you will not be able to say how successful your defense is if you let others attack for a second time. Therefore, players like Camby who do not pay attention to controlling the protection of the penalty area in order to increase the block data.

Only when it comes to the best defensive player will so many people question it.

Before Li Chengming had an absolute physical advantage, this kind of mental weakness could not be shown very well.

Therefore, it is not unreasonable to say that the more a rookie plays, the more likely his shortcomings will be exposed. Moreover, these things were something that Li did not realize in so many trainings before he became famous. After all, who would think of grabbing rebounds during training?

"I know..." Li Chengming sighed, feeling a little depressed.

In fact, it was mainly a matter of experience. He also encountered a veteran like Thomas. How could he survive in the league for so long without some tricks? As a result, he did not have enough awareness of positioning in the first place and lost the opportunity.

It's not easy to use force in this situation, because if you use a little force and your opponent cleverly knocks you down, you will be given a foul, and you, a rookie, haven't been able to deal with it yet.

Although the old man didn't do that, Van Gundy still told Li Chengming about this hidden danger.

Li Chengming was immediately frightened, and when he looked at Thomas, his eyes were full of resentment, which even the veteran was baffled by.

Seeing that Li Chengming is a teachable child - at least he seems obedient enough, Van Gundy actually feels quite accomplished.

After all, after he came to this team, whether it is Howard, Turkoglu or Lewis, they are all finished products. Redick has potential, but his advantages and disadvantages are too prominent, so there are not many opportunities.

On the other hand, someone like Li Chengming is a piece of raw jade that can be slowly refined into a talent.

This is actually why he didn't give Li Chengming too many opportunities at first. In fact, it was because he didn't want to encourage the young people to grow up, but planned to wait for the opportunity, such as an opportunity like today, to let him grow slowly.

I still have high expectations for Li Chengming and Van Gundy. What will his future develop into? At least with his current progress, he will definitely be more than a substitute seat.

"Also, you seem to want to be a hero too much?" Van Gundy seemed to talk a lot today, which was obviously the result of yesterday's game.

Li Chengming is the only first-year rookie on the team, and he is also the youngest. Currently, he seems to have the greatest potential - Howard and the others have already become stars, and they have basically realized their talents.

Li Chengming was not indifferent. Of course, he could sense the change in the coach's attitude and immediately humbly asked for advice.

In fact, Van Gundy didn't say anything new, he just told him to watch more, learn more, and accumulate it bit by bit.

Then during the rotation in the third quarter, Van Gundy gave Lee another chance to become famous. The SuperSonics did not pose any threat to them. They also had some players who could play well. For example, Jeff Green was very efficient today, and Kurt Thomas used

Experience bullied Li Chengming, but it did not affect the overall situation.

The core of the team's training did not feel good today, and the instability of the rookies after joining the NBA was fully exposed.

Durant was very depressed after being replaced because the Magic's defense made him uncomfortable and he was never able to catch the ball and shoot comfortably.

And although the team established his status from the beginning, there were too many veterans exchanged from the Celtics, and it was difficult for the rookies to convince them before they showed enough convincing and outstanding results.

On the contrary, Li Chengming's performance has become much more stable after he has clearly defined his position.

Anyway, if he feels good, he will take more shots when he has the chance. Although he lost the game yesterday, it is still very important to him personally. Even if Van Gundy still maintains his previous ideas, the management will start to put pressure. For them, rookies are all

It's a treasure.

And with an opportunity like today, Li Chengming felt that it didn't matter if he wasted a little bit, because the point difference had already reached 30 points, and the coach would allow him to practice a little bit, as long as he didn't play randomly.

And because there was a game the next day, Van Gundy also consciously began to shorten the playing time of Howard and others in view of the previous problems. It happened to be a chance to practice with Li Chengming, and he also got more opportunities.

At 9 minutes and 47 seconds of the third quarter, Li Chengming first received a pass from Nelson in the paint area. Facing Thomas who was two steps away, he roared and shot a jumper directly, making a solid hit.

More than 30 seconds later, they were still in the same position. This time Thomas followed him. As a result, Li Chengming turned around and passed him completely. Thomas's weakness of slow movement was exposed. After being passed, he couldn't keep up at all.

, at this time experience is of no use.

After Li Chengming reached the basket, he faced the help of Szczerbiak next to him. With quick eyes and hands, he passed the ball to Redick in the bottom corner. Redick returned the three-pointer.

In the next offensive round, Li Chengming caught the ball in the low post and attracted a double team. He extended his hand to a fairy to guide the way. The two people's attention was attracted at the same time. It turned out that it was a fake fax shot. Li Chengming turned around and jumped up against Thomas.

He stretched out his hand, then switched hands in the air and hit a layup.

If it weren't for the fact that rookies are not favored, I would probably still be able to have a 2+1.

Li Chengming also knows that his experience and some technical details are shortcomings, and it is impossible to master them in a short period of time, so he might as well perform well on offense.

He now has a shooting accelerator, an iron-blooded jump shot, and Tai Sui. Coupled with the professional training with the NBA in the past few months, he is actually capable enough to gain a foothold in the rotation lineup. In addition, he is always ready, so as long as the coach gives him

Given the opportunity, he will be able to show his performance.

Opportunities always come to those who are prepared, which also made Van Gundy feel good when he saw it on the sidelines.

He actually knew that Li Chengming was available, but in his heart he still wanted to suppress him. It wasn't that he was arrogant. Li Chengming didn't have that kind of thing. He just wanted him to start with a low profile and not become a target of the media.

It would be fine if he was just an ordinary player, but there is a country's fans watching behind Li Chengming.

Van Gundy obviously knew some of Yao's situation from his younger brother, so he appeared to be more cautious when dealing with this kind of problem, although this would make it difficult for outsiders, including Li Chengming himself, to understand.

However, he is like the kind of parent who is cold-faced and warm-hearted, always feeling that "sooner or later you will understand my painstaking efforts."

I don’t know if Li Chengming will understand in the future, but he knows that he feels very comfortable playing now, even more comfortable than playing. After all, at that time, there was still pressure to chase points.

"LI! LI! LI!"

This game is still at the home court of the Magic. Fans have seen Li become famous and have gotten to know him more and more through previous games, so they naturally cheer for his performance at this time. After all, to a certain extent, a rookie

Represents the future of a team.

Including Howard, as the Magic's No. 1 pick, he has always been highly anticipated, just like O'Neal back then.

But as much as the fans love you now, they will hate you as much when you leave. They don't care about the management or not.

Li Chengming doesn't need to think about this issue now. During the timeout, he enjoyed the cheers of the home fans. Although not as good as Howard, he was more enthusiastic than other role players.

Howard, this annoying guy, actually guessed what he was thinking. He came up and patted his shoulder and said with a smile: "This little shout is not even 100% as good as mine. You have to work hard, rookie."

!”

Li Chengming immediately glared at him. He hated this kind of guy who pours cold water on others when they are happy. Will he die if he keeps his mouth shut?

Happy Beast: But it will not be happy!
Chapter completed!