NBA: Back to 97, to be the Jagged Bishop

Chapter 318

With two big victories in a row, the Charlotte Bobcats were all in the limelight for a while, and various media all used a lot of space to report on this new army.

After Jordan returned to Charlotte, he was interviewed immediately.

"We chose Grant Hill in the military expansion draft, which was a risk assessment from a professional perspective. Both Comb and I felt that if Hill was in our hands, he would definitely be able to return to the top."

"No, he will even be stronger than the Pistons, because we have specially created a system for Hill that suits him best."

Jordan was as calm as he was bragging. He may have forgotten the scene when Combe was rolling and disagreeing when he wanted to choose Hill.

"As for the six rookies we won in this year's draft, you have also seen that each of them has good strength."

"Barbosa will be the second Richmond in my eyes, and David West will be the second Elton Brand. No, I feel that West has more potential than Brand. higher."

"Josh Howard is going to be Gerrard next on the perimeter."

"Korver has the demeanor of Larry Bird back then. I believe that as long as he is given a chance, he will grow up quickly and become an All-Star swingman."

"Kapono is excellent in three-pointers, he is definitely a super three-pointer of a cross-generational level."

"Chris Bosh, the highest pick in our draft this year, actually planned to pick Carmelo Anthony from Syracuse University."

"But we have Hill after all, so I suggested choosing Bosh. Facts have proved that I have a good vision. Bosh will definitely become the top three insiders in this league in the future."

Jordan's boastful talk fooled the reporters for a moment, and those who didn't know it really thought that Jordan's draft vision was very good.

After the Bobcats won the Washington Wizards, they moved on to Denver Heights to challenge the Denver Nuggets.

After Bosh arrived in Denver, he saw Jordan's interview in the newspaper, and found Comb angrily.

"Coach, is what Michael said true? You originally planned to select Anthony with the No. [-] pick?"

Bosh's character is more sentimental, he is not the kind of black man who bluffs. Hearing that he is not the first choice of Comb, he feels a little aggrieved.

Kumbu also watched Jordan's interview and knew that Jordan's big mouth caused trouble again.

With Bosh's temperament, if he knows that he is just a substitute, it will definitely affect his mentality. This is definitely not a situation that Combe is happy to see.

"Of course not, Chris, do you believe me, or the old rascal Michael?"

"You'd better not believe a single punctuation mark when he says that."

Kong Bu said angrily.

Bosh laughed, "Of course I believe in you, coach. In fact, since I graduated from high school, I have dreamed of playing for you one day."

"On the day of the draft, when you learned that I was selected by you, you will never understand the excitement in my heart at that time."

Kumbu shook his head, "No, you are not playing for me, but for yourself."

"For yourself to become the most dazzling star in this league, win the championship, win the MVP, sign a maximum salary, and reach the pinnacle of life."

Bosh nodded solemnly. After he was convinced that he was the first choice of Kumbu, he felt a lot more at ease.

After chatting with Bosh, Combe got a call from Mike Malone inviting him to dinner.

Of course, Kong Bu would not refuse. Ma Long's life should not be very easy right now, and it happened that he could give him some advice.

Sitting in the position of the Nuggets coach, Ma Long looked radiant, and when he saw Kong Bu, he quickly greeted Kong Bu to sit down.

Malone's father, Brandon Malone, was also present. The old father is now working as an assistant coach for his son, which can be regarded as a wonder in the NBA.

"Brandon, I'm afraid you never dreamed that one day you would work for your son?"

After Kong Bu sat down, he made fun of Ma Long.

The two know each other very well, and many experts even classify Comb and Old Malone into the coach Chuck Daly's faction. If we really want to talk about it, Old Malone should be regarded as Comb's uncle.

"Then I still have to thank you. If it wasn't for your training, this guy might not even be an assistant coach, let alone a coach."

Old Ma Long's expression was full of pride and pride. After living most of his life, he was indeed proud of having such a promising son.

Little Ma Long patted his father on the shoulder, helped him arrange the napkins, and then helped to set the knives and forks for the meal, like a dutiful son.

The more Kong Bu looked at it, the more he wanted to laugh, because he suddenly remembered an incident in later generations.

In the 2023 season, Malone led the Nuggets to win the championship. At the press conference after the game, he mocked LeBron James. ridicule.

In fact, these two people really have a grudge, but it's not Malone, but Malone and James.

The coaches that James has changed in his career are like crucian carp in the river, and the coach who was fired after the shortest coaching time is Brandon Malone. He only coached for a month and then packed up and left.

The reason why Malone was fired is also very interesting. The reason given by the Cavaliers management is that they cannot see the cooperation between him and James.

What does this mean, anyone who understands it will naturally understand.

As the saying goes, "Father pays for debts, father revenges for sons, and old Ma Long is humiliated, but little Ma Long must hold grudges in his heart, how could he not take the opportunity to retaliate.

"Mike, did you run into any difficulties?"

"I am creating a new army now, and I don't have many players that can be traded to you. If you are really in trouble, Korver or Kapono can trade you one."

Combe asked curiously.

These words directly moved Ma Long and his son so much that their eyes turned red, and Kong Bu didn't have a lot of money in his hands, so he still wanted to help Xiao Ma Long.

"Boss, haven't you watched our Nuggets game recently?"

"I'm here to announce the good news to you today."

Little Malone said with a laugh.

Kong Bu's face was flushed. He really didn't pay much attention to the current situation of the Nuggets. He has been too busy recently. How could he have that free time.

"Well, it looks like the boss really didn't pay attention to us."

"We won two consecutive victories at the beginning, and the draft and trade completed under my leadership have all been a great success."

"That Serbian kid Milicic, you should really watch his game, it's so perfect, I feel like he is a big version of Grant Hill!"

"In addition, we also traded with the Magic, using Nene Hilario to exchange Caron Butler, who the Magic just got."

"Then Caron Butler scored more than 20 points in the first two games."

"Center Camby, power forward Milicic, small forward Caron Butler, guard Voshan Leonard and Andre Miller, what do you think of this lineup?"

Ma Long Xianbao seemed to have revealed his starting lineup.

Kong Bu was shocked. He thought that Ma Long's life would be difficult, but he didn't expect him to actually make a very good lineup.

Could it be that the three years of following him really taught him something?

Seeing how Marlon was full of praise for Milicic, Combe was even more sure that Milicic should have been delayed by Larry Brown.

Malone is a coach who is willing to mingle with players, and his coaching style is more about encouragement, which is especially important for the growth of newcomers.

And Larry Brown's coaching method is definitely a newcomer's nightmare. In front of all his teammates, he scolded Little Potato Nate Robinson as a kid, and when Robinson went to Larry Brown's office crying, begging him not to insult him publicly, Larry Brown told the team about Little Potato crying again.

This is really not something that humans can do.

What Milicic has encountered under Larry Brown is even more unthinkable.

Now that he is under Ma Long, among other things, at least his self-confidence will not be frustrated. He is still the talented European striker that people look forward to.

"How about Milicic's statistics?"

Combe asked curiously.

"In the first two games, he averaged around 17 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. His defense is not good, but after all, he is only 18 years old. I think his defense still has a lot of room for improvement."

"I admit that there was a gamble in choosing him, but I won the gamble. He is exactly the kind of player I want."

Little Malone said excitedly.

Kumbu applauded, "That's right, your lineup has no problem making it to the Western Conference playoffs, and there is even a possibility of going further."

"Milicic's defensive shortcomings, Camby can make up for."

"In addition, you must have good vision in reusing Caron Butler. He was delayed by me in Philadelphia. Give him enough playing time. He is an All-Star small forward."

Comb was full of praise for Malone's operation.

Malone quickly waved his hand, "I don't have that kind of vision, I'm just because Caron Butler is the player you selected, and I'm sure he can play, even if he only averaged 3 points per game last season."

"As for Milicic, I was very close to you during the draft. I saw that you kept staring at Milicic on the draft list, thinking that this young man might have something special, so I just took a gamble."

Old Ma Long answered from the side: "To put it bluntly, this kid is still in your favor."

The three of them laughed at the same time. During the draft, Kumbu did stare at Milicic's name for a while, but he wanted to see which unlucky team would choose this human-shaped victory cigar.

Unexpectedly, Ma Long was selected by mistake. This may be Ma Long's fate. He was born with a predestined relationship with European insiders.

……

The game started on the second night, and the starters of both sides appeared on the field.

After playing for a while, it was obvious that the Bobcats had the upper hand in the situation.

This advantage is mainly reflected in the outside line of the Bobcats. The Nuggets' outside offense is no problem, but the outside defense is a bit eye-catching.

The first position is ATM Andre Miller, which directly lowered the overall defensive level of the Nuggets outside.

As for the inside, the Nuggets have no disadvantages at all, and even played some advantages.

Camby played against Bosh. Anyway, Camby is also an experienced veteran. He is the gatekeeper of the inside defense. Even though Bosh has been trained by Combutte, his game experience is extremely lacking, and he is not Camby's opponent on the court.

Milicic's performance made Kongbu even more astonished. He found that Malone had made a mistake. Milicic was not a big version of Grant Hill at all, but a young version of Yi Jianlian.

Of course it's not Yi Jianlian under normal circumstances, but Yi Jianlian who won the regular season MVP last season.

Milicic's basic skills are extremely solid. Like the United Arab Emirates, he can definitely play the third position or even the second position. His flexibility is also very good. Ignoring his big man of about seven feet, he can break through the dribble with outside players. no difference.

The shooting is also good, and the overall situation and passing ability are also quite outstanding.

The key is that his temperament seems to be very low-key and introverted. Not long after the opening game, he dunked on David Xi's head.

Low-key and introverted with confidence, his shots are extremely decisive, and he is not afraid of confrontation at all.

Kong Bu looked amazed that a person in different environments could produce such a terrifying difference.

From this point of view, many parallel imports in the history of the league may not be real water, but were delayed by the team coach or management or even the team boss.

Among other things, at least in the Bulls at the helm of Jordan at his peak, it is almost impossible for a rookie to make a name for himself.

Fortunately, Kumbu himself is an encouraging coach. He has coached for so many years, and despite some situations that are really too muddy to support the wall, he has hardly said harsh words to the players.

When the game ended, the Bobcats narrowly beat the Nuggets by only six points.

Winning also comes from the perimeter. The Nuggets' perimeter, especially the duo in the backcourt, has a passable offense and almost nothing defensively.

Barbosa faced Andre Miller. This guy seized the rare opportunity to withdraw money from the ATM and scored 32 points, becoming the highest scorer in the game.

In the first three games, Barbosa's scoring average was a bit scary, and he even ranked No.4 in the league's scoring average list. No one could believe that this was the statistic of a bottom rookie in the first round.

Even Kumbu was deeply surprised. He chose Barbosa, which was more of a helpless move. If there is a suitable point guard candidate in this draft, then Kumbu will definitely not choose Barbosa.

Who would have thought that the helpless choice would be so effective. Barbosa and Hill seemed to have a natural chemical reaction. When Hill was on the court at the same time, Barbosa felt like a three-pointer to Kumbu. Curry with a relatively low frequency.

After the game started with three consecutive away games, Charlotte fans finally waited until their home team returned, and they could finally cheer for the Bobcats at their home court.

Now Charlotte doesn't have any Hornets fans anymore, and all of them have become Bobcats fans. Some fans even raised money to place advertisements in newspapers, asking Comb and Jordan not to inherit the history of the Hornets.

The Hornets did not bring any glory to Charlotte fans, only the hatred of the scum boss and the helplessness of the garbage record.

You must know that the Hornets have built a team for so many years, and they have not even scored in the playoffs once.

(End of this chapter)