NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 770: "Awards" in Advance! (No Protagonist Chapter)

On Tuesday, December 2010, 12, close to Christmas, Sports Illustrated special writer Jack McCallum quietly broke the news on Twitter:
"The Heat players have already secured the Athlete of the Year award, and Lee will be the presenter of the award next year."

Jack McCallum is known for writing in-depth stories on NBA history and celebrity features. Over the years, he has focused on reporting the stories behind the New York dynasty and has won the trust of fans.

Cloud fans may not be sensitive to this information, but the Heat's die-hard fans were excited after seeing the news. The championship is secured!

Although it was not revealed who would win the award, considering that all the NBA players who won the award in recent years were members of the championship team, Miami fans automatically imagined the champion.

Some fans who like to "borrow" even started to divide the FMVP trophy in advance. Before Christmas, James and Wade's die-hard fans even had a quarrel on social media.
On Reddit, the Heat section has seen an explosion in traffic. Although it is still far behind the crazy Knicks section, the discussion is much better than in the previous two years, with championship fans contributing steadily to the popularity.

Many basketball commentators also forwarded this news. No one questioned the accuracy of Jack McCallum's information. People in the industry all knew that he was Li You's "mouthpiece".

Since Marvel was acquired by Disney, it officially moved to the Sports Illustrated Building in Midtown in October this year. Li You's Inno Film and Television Studio also recently moved here, and many staff members have recently posted photos.

Gossip always wins the trust of the crowd, but there are still many fans who oppose the Big Three winning the award, and the reasons given are very simple:
"How can those who stick together still participate in the selection of awards? This insults the sportsmanship that basketball represents!"

The Lakers played their last game before the Christmas game tonight. In a few days, they will face the powerful Heat at home.

Naturally, the sports media in Los Angeles fanned the flames when the young man won the award. In the past two months, the Mamba and the championship forward were almost in a public boxing match, and the two sides have completely "torn" the locker room apart.

With 16 wins and 11 losses, the Lakers' record is not ideal, which is inseparable from the instigation of local sports reporters. Tonight, facing the Bucks with 10 wins and 15 losses, most people did not take it seriously, after all, the home team is stronger!

Even if the two star players don't have any chemistry, they can still win by relying on singles, so before the game everyone came to the stadium with the mentality of "just having fun".

At 18:, Kobe had just gotten out of the car in the parking lot and was spotted by reporters, which attracted a crowd of onlookers.

The Mamba has had a hard time recently. Ever since Vanessa formally filed for divorce, the previous nanny case has not been settled. The two are now completely separated, and it seems that it is only a matter of time before Kobe explodes with gold coins.

His family life was not harmonious, and the Lakers were also in a mess. Since the role players found out that Jim Buss was determined to send Kobe away, everyone started to turn their backs on Mamba.
Kobe had only experienced this kind of treatment during his rookie period, so he was naturally pissed off by these guys. This indirectly led to a lot of tension in the training sessions, and every internal game was like a fight.

The insiders didn't care about what happened to Mamba and leaked "rumors" from time to time, which made more and more Los Angeles fans dislike Kobe.

According to media reports, the championship guard has become a cancer in the locker room!
When he came to the passage, Kobe, wearing sunglasses, could not help but quicken his pace, but the local sports media did not want to let Mamba go, and asked questions actively and persistently:
"Kobe, what do you think about Sports Illustrated giving the Sportsman of the Year award to a Heat player?"

"Vanessa revealed that you have mistresses in the double digits? Is this the root cause of the breakdown of your relationship?"

"If you leave the Lakers, where will you choose to play in the future?"

"."

Kobe ignored the voices around him and had a long face. This happened in every game and no one respected him.

With the help of the staff, Mamba finally got rid of the entanglement of the unscrupulous reporters. When he came to the locker room, his mood became even worse. Stoudemire and others were dancing to the music.
Old teammate Odom was not there, and no one was paying attention to Kobe. Barnes glanced at Mamba and continued to share with everyone the news from Sports Illustrated that had just been published yesterday:
"We've been playing against the defending champions for the last few years, and the Eastern Conference Finals is the Finals."

"Some stars are just luckier. They have MVP-level partners since they entered the league, but we can only rely on ourselves. Even if we form a team, we still choose to stay in the East."

"Everyone is underestimated. In fact, we are better than some well-known stars. Whether it is team performance or personal data, we are the better side."

"Now we are going to win the first championship in the history of the Heat. The whole city is eager for the championship, and everyone is working hard every day for it."

The column Barnes shared was an exclusive interview with LeBron James and others by Sports Illustrated.

There is no doubt that James and Wade are comparing Kobe. This is not the first time they have done this. Everyone knows that most players in the East have always looked down on those in the West.
"These guys are still making excuses for forming a team. They should be more honest!"

Stoudemire, who had headphones hanging around his neck, grinned at this time, and spoke of the Heat's Big Three with disdain. The atmosphere group also spoke out, and Steve Blake began to pretend to be "rational" and flattered:
"If we can achieve better results, Amare should be in the top three of the MVP rankings, and the Heat players should not participate in the selection of the award!"

"They took a shortcut, which bored sports journalists always ignore"

After changing into training clothes, Kobe sat in his seat expressionlessly. Barnes did not even look at Mamba's dark face, but continued the previous topic, adding with gloating:

"LeBron is a smart guy, he would never go against Lee!"

"I think he should have given some advice to his good brother. Wade finally stopped speaking for Iverson this year. It's so fun to see him grow!"

Raymond Felton laughed out loud, as if thinking of Wade's recent absence from the second game against the Knicks due to injury, and subconsciously joked:
"If it were me, I would have surrendered long ago! Iverson? Who still remembers this poor guy? The Reebok contract saved him!"

"Without that contract, he would be bankrupt by now, and could only numb himself with leaves every day."

Iverson was recently reported by the Philadelphia media to have borrowed money to pay for his daughter's medical treatment. Finally, Reebok lent a helping hand and helped the former scoring champion pay the bill.

This incident had a significant impact in the NBA circle, but most role players were gloating. Everyone had a "hatred of the rich" mentality, and they felt extremely comfortable seeing a superstar get into trouble.

Hearing everyone ridiculing Iverson, Kobe couldn't help it, and after a "death stare", he angrily said:

"Shut your stinky mouths! What qualifications do you have to judge Allen? Just do your job well."

"Ni Ge, who do you think you are? Are you going to leak the brothers' chat to reporters again?"

As soon as Mamba finished speaking, Stoudemire stood up for his younger brother and glared back. News in the locker room can always be known by the media. The championship forward was furious and determined that Kobe was the traitor.

When Odom entered the locker room, he saw two core players "fuck" each other, an angry Kobe started "map cannon", and the atmosphere group also began to join the "war" and followed the sarcastic tone.

Antonio McDyess, who was traded to the Lakers, sat awkwardly in his seat. The Spurs locker room was not like this. Although Parker slept with Barry's wife, the French were still good to their brothers.
Ginobili always united everyone, and with the rookie coach Budenholzer, McDyess felt comfortable in the team at that time.

The Lakers' locker room was terrible no matter how you looked at it. This kind of verbal abuse had become a routine operation. Seeing Odom shrug his shoulders and sit down, McDyess also showed a helpless look on his dark face and whispered:
"Bro, you have to help Kobe. If this continues, we'll have to have a boxing match."

Busy interacting with the big-butt girls, Odom focused on his married life. Looking at the two people who kept scolding each other, he casually responded:
"It's going to get better, man. Don't hold onto your championship expectations. It's also good to finish the regular season early."

"We'll see the results in the offseason. In short, this is not something we can decide."

Punch in on time, this is Odom's current mentality, champion? Go to hell, it's better to go fishing early, lying down is the right choice
Luke Walton and Vujacic did not speak up for Kobe at this time. During the training sessions during this period, the furious Mamba attacked indiscriminately and scolded everyone.

The two had had enough of this high-pressure environment in the past few years. Compared with the Knicks team, which has seen a big explosion of role players this season, the two also had some complaints about Kobe in their hearts. Mamba never helped them get playing time. The quarrel between the two core players did not stop until Byron Scott showed up with the coaching staff. Assistant coach Brian Shaw was numb and would not be surprised even if the two punched each other.

"I need everyone to stay focused! Don't underestimate any opponent!"

Scott knew that the players had been a little relaxed these days, and seemed to have entered the Christmas vacation early. After a brief reminder, he began to exhort:

"Cut off the opponent's inside connection and control mistakes"

Stoudemire took the lead in responding, and soon everyone in the locker room spoke up. Kobe, with a sullen face, responded and then fell silent. Mamba was also a little dissatisfied with this "predecessor".

Letting go of the locker room, playing pick-and-roll, advocating speed and three-pointers, Scott swept the past triangle offense into the "garbage dump", which made it difficult for Kobe to get into the game immediately in some games.

After the game started at 19 p.m., more fans appeared in the Staples Center holding “Kobe Out” whiteboards. The newspaper articles still influenced the fans’ judgment.

Throughout the first half, the best performance was from the left-handed magician Lamar Odom. The two core players had no chemistry, so Odom had to take on some of the organizational tasks.

50:46, Ersan Ilyasova of the Bucks broke out, the Lakers fell behind by 4 points, and the boos in the Staples Center could not be stopped.

Stoudemire was in a bad mood as he walked into the player tunnel. He made 7 of 4 shots in the first half and scored 10 points with jump shots. The rhythm of the game was completely controlled by the opponent. The champion forward was angry and scolded Mamba again:

"Damn the game! Stop pursuing positional attacks! We have to speed up!"

He shot 6 of 3 in the first half and scored 10 points efficiently. No one passed the ball to Kobe. Hearing that the champion forward put the blame on himself again, Mamba was also angry:

"Fuck! Don't tell me what to do!"

The staff member wasn't paying attention and the two started pushing each other. Barnes immediately stepped forward to mediate. Fortunately, the two separated quickly enough so that no major conflict occurred.

Seeing Mamba glaring at him, Stoudemire was not polite. He tore off his jersey, pointed at him and taunted him loudly:
"This is my team! You'll be packing up and walking out next season. The Lakers will be better off without you."

Mamba was so angry that he immediately charged forward, and the player tunnel became even more chaotic. Brian Shaw, who saw this scene, stared at Scott, who angrily pulled the two apart, and whispered depressedly:

"It's over. It's all over."

-

On Wednesday, the 22nd, the news of the Lakers' crushing defeat to the Bucks swept across major sports media, and the midfield conflict between the championship forward and Mamba also became a hot topic among commentators.

108:79, after losing last night, many Los Angeles fans followed suit to boycott Mamba. The game was really ugly!
Kobe, who missed the press conference, was fined $2 by the league. After the game, Stoudemire did not deny the conflict, but the champion forward found a good reason for himself:

"I am playing strictly according to the requirements of the coaching staff. Someone tried to disrupt our tactical system. I will not allow this to happen."

"."

Since Kobe has the right to veto any trade, most basketball commentators believe that the Lakers have no hope this season. Even if they can make the playoffs, they will not be able to go further and win the championship.

Many players were happy to hear about what happened to Mamba.

The Celtics have recently continued their winning streak. Before the game against the 76ers tonight, O'Neal, the starting center, "strongly supported" his little brother:

"Knowing Kobe, he just wants to win."

"As a team leader, Stoudemire should learn to be tolerant. Kobe needs an excellent partner like him."

According to media reports, the two had a fight. Garnett had read the reports. Unlike the old Shark, Harden gave sincere advice to his friend:
"Kobe should learn to integrate into the team. The Lakers have changed their tactical system, which is indeed a challenge for him."

"I know his ability. Amare just celebrated his 28th birthday. Kobe has to adapt to playing with young players. As a veteran, this is not a difficult thing to accept."

"."

Ray Allen, who had just finished warming up, was sitting next to him and heard Harden's words. He looked puzzled for a moment. He didn't expect Rondo to really "conquer" the former core.

Pierce has been a bit depressed recently. The Heat are too strong. Even without the defending champions, they still took away all his traffic. With the lack of attention, he said in an interview:

"You know, many fans are looking forward to the yellow-green battle. Kobe's performance disappointed me. He seemed to have no leadership."

"Maybe he is more used to playing next to the MVP"

Pierce, who was showing off before the game, and Iguodala "exploded" each other in the game that night!

前者15中4，差点带崩凯尔特人队，后者11中2，关键的第4节更是4中0，怒砍0分.
80:84, after winning the game, the Celtics also ended their schedule before Christmas, and the Boston fans at the TD Garden cheered loudly for the home team.

76人队表现最好的是二年级萌新朱-霍勒迪，出场40分钟，13中6，交出15分5篮板5助攻1抢断1盖帽的全能数据。

With 10 wins and 18 losses, the team has a poor record. Holiday, who lost the game, was interviewed after the game and found that the reporter did not care about their performance, but asked about his opinion of Kobe:

"Kobe? He's very successful, he's a championship guard. I don't know if those reports are true, but the team's loss is indeed the leader's responsibility."

"I've been following Lee since I was very young. If I remember correctly, Kobe only performed well in the finals when he was with O'Neal. Later, Lee locked him down."

"Maybe he should listen to O'Neal's advice, he is the one who knows Kobe best."

In the game that took place simultaneously that night, the Knicks defeated the Bulls at home, scoring 118 points and easily completing their "revenge."

The Bulls only scored 85 points, and Rose was forced to clock out after three quarters. Like Li You, he only played for 27 minutes, which was considered a warm-up for the upcoming Christmas game.

With 17 wins and 11 losses, the team's record is not ideal, and there is a big gap between them and the first place in the Eastern Conference. After the game, Rose, who is pursuing the MVP, was asked about the Sports Illustrated trophy. The expressionless "Rose" rarely said something sour:
"I will never form a team, that's not how I pursue championships!"

(End of this chapter)