NBA's King of Talking

On New Year's Day, January 1st, the Thunder will host the Suns.

The Suns are currently not doing well. Since Nash left, the team has been completely rebuilding and is currently ranked 14th in the Western Conference with a record of 11 wins and 20 losses.

There are generally two main paths for NBA teams to rebuild. One is to collect first-round picks by tanking, trading for immediate contributors, and taking on bad contracts, then develop a group of young players and find a cornerstone for the team. The other is to clear salary cap space, sign big names in free agency, and then use the draft picks and players to trade for other stars.

The first path is the one chosen by most teams in small markets. The advantage is that rookies have a bonus period and there is no need to worry about the luxury tax. The disadvantage is that the rebuilding process takes a long time. You may develop a player and then the player leaves when the contract expires, leaving you with nothing but wasted effort and having someone else develop him. This is similar to Arsenal in the NBA.

The second path is favored by elite teams, such as the Lakers. Leveraging their large market and illustrious history, they attract star players and then use future assets to acquire immediate talent, quickly completing their rebuild. The advantage is its simplicity, efficiency, and effectiveness; the disadvantage is the large contracts of free agents, and the pursuit of star players can lead to salary cap explosions and the incurring luxury tax.

The Suns aren't a powerhouse, and no big names would want to go there. They don't have the number one draft pick, so they can't find a cornerstone for rebuilding. They can only rebuild slowly.

Fortunately, this team has an extremely high level of medical expertise. It's one thing if they can't find a cornerstone for rebuilding, but the good players they have won't be ruined by injuries, which is an advantage for the team to some extent.

This match wasn't a high-profile one, so it didn't attract much attention from the outside world.

The Thunder are taking this game very seriously. They want to climb to the top of the Western Conference, which means they can't afford to lose easily to weaker teams. "Stomping weaker teams" is one of the essential abilities of a strong team.

Some players excel in the regular season but often falter in the playoffs, yet these players still have value. The regular season is too long, and to reduce injuries to star players, these types of players need to play more during the regular season. The Rockets' Jones is a prime example of someone who dominates weaker teams.

In this game, the Thunder's starting lineup was the same old one. Jia Fei sometimes really doubted that unless any of these five players got injured or were sidelined, Coach Brooks wouldn't consider changing the starting lineup to deal with different teams. It was like playing the same old game no matter what cards you play, taking "open hand" to the extreme, really reminiscent of the "human comeback essence" of He Wenzhang.

The Suns' starting lineup consisted of Gortat, PJ Tucker, Scola, Dudley, and Dragic.

The Suns' current head coach is Alvin Gentry, and due to the team's poor record, there have been recent rumors that he may be fired.

Reggie was all smiles before the game, having received news that he would be a substitute because Meno was feeling unwell and needed rest.

With the season almost halfway through, Reggie has finally gotten a proper rotation opportunity.

After the game started, the Suns, who were clearly weaker than the Thunder, played a well-organized offense led by Dragic, and the two sides were locked in a stalemate for a while.

When the game was officially paused, Jia Fei and the Thunder came on together, replacing Durant and Westbrook.

At this time, the Thunder's five-man lineup consisted of Thabeet, Collison, Jafi, Kevin Martin, and Reggie Jackson.

The Suns' five players on the court are Dudley, Shannon Brown, Markieff Morris, Jermaine O'Neal, and Telfair.

此时距离首节比赛结束还剩下2分45秒，场上比分为20:23，雷霆领先3分。

The Thunder were on offense. Reggie dribbled the ball over, called for a screen from Collison, and started his drive, but before he could even get going, the referee called a traveling violation...

Reggie looked very surprised: "What? What happened?"

The slow-motion replay shows that Reggie's footwork is not cleanly defined, with small, shuffling steps...

"Reggie, take it easy! Don't get too excited, you're going to be a star!" Jia Fei reminded him. It's understandable, really. He'd been holding back for so long, and now that he finally had a chance, it's understandable that he might give up prematurely if he couldn't find the opening.

Ultimately, it's because we've been holding it in for too long...

Men need to release their pent-up emotions occasionally; holding it in for too long can cause internal damage, which is bad for their health.

Possession changed, and Telfair dribbled the ball to the Suns.

Telfair is the cousin of Stephon Marbury, a legend in Chinese basketball, and like his cousin, he is also a streetball star. However, being good at streetball doesn't guarantee success in the NBA. Alston, who was a god on the streetball court, had a much more mediocre performance in the NBA.

Telfair isn't a traditional point guard; he's rather short, but very fast, and Reggie struggled to keep up with him.

Jia Fei was assigned to defend Shannon Brown, an opponent he was quite familiar with. Brown had played for the Lakers and possessed explosive athleticism and a phenomenal leaping ability, making him exceptionally good at dunking. However, his weakness seemed to be that besides dunking, he wasn't good at anything else.

Telfair drove and passed the ball to Shannon Brown.

Shannon Brown was holding the ball and facing Jia Fei when the latter suddenly said, "You used to play for the Lakers, so you must have learned a lot of offensive techniques from the blacksmith!"

Shannon Brown looked completely bewildered. "Little Blacksmith"? Offensive techniques? You doubt me?

While he hesitated, Jia Fei swiftly sliced ​​the basketball out of his hands, grabbed the ball, and passed it to Reggie, who was not far away, saying, "Looks like you didn't learn anything!"

Shannon Brown was instantly emo. What the hell was this guy talking about? And where's my ball?

The Thunder launched a counterattack, and Reggie quickly advanced to the frontcourt. He enjoyed the feeling of pushing the fast break with the ball, a feeling that gave him the exhilaration of running naked on the beach!

The Suns' defense was poor, and they instantly created a numerical advantage in the frontcourt!

Reggie passed the ball to Jia Fei, who was making a quick run down the right wing!

After receiving the ball, Jia Fei passed it to Kevin Martin outside the three-point line without stopping!

Kevin Martin fired a shot from a crooked machine gun, and the ball swished through the net!

At 20:26, the point difference instantly reached 6 points!

Jia Fei's assists +1!

The Suns are on offense. Telfair drives into the paint and misses a difficult layup despite being blocked by Thabeet and Collison!

Jia Fei leaped to grab the rebound and passed it to Reggie to advance the ball!

Reggie continued his fast break, nearly hitting a pull-up jumper!

A collective sigh rippled through the crowd!

But don't worry, Jia Fei has already arrived and slammed the ball back into the net with one hand!

At 20:28, the point difference instantly widened to 8 points!

Reggie and Jia Fei excitedly high-fived. They had been teammates for over a season, trained together frequently, and had no problem with their teamwork.