Chapter 312 [Autobots and Decepticons]

Guo Xu stole all the limelight. Not many people cared about the confrontation between Stoudemire and Yao Ming. They were just role players.

The Suns had five players score in double figures and the Rockets had six players, but their scores were all relatively average.

At the press conference, in addition to expressing his thoughts on 40+10, Guo Xu also commented on Yao Ming. "I don't think he should be questioned and should take more shots per game. Knowing that he averages less than 10 shots per game, I find it incredible that he is too selfless."

Yao Ming's shooting percentage is very high, and his scoring efficiency is much higher than that of the two outside cores who mess around with each other. Give him 15 shots and he can score 20+ in his rookie season.

Combining the inside and outside of the Rockets is a must. It is understandable that the two guards take a lot of shots. However, Griffin and Taylor, two power forwards with a shooting percentage of about 40%, also took about the same number of shots as Yao Ming. Both of them took more than 8 shots. Moreover, their playing time is less than that of Yao Ming, and their shooting frequency is much higher.

A Chinese reporter asked: "What height do you think Yao Ming can reach in the future?"

Guo Xu said: "He will definitely be one of the top five star centers in the league. He has flexible footsteps, a soft shooting touch, and his shots are almost impossible to be blocked. Although he cannot dominate the penalty area like O'Neal, he can use another method. Way to help the team.”

A black reporter asked: "Don't you think Yao Ming is not tough enough?"

Guo Xu laughed and said: "Except for O'Neal, star insiders all have excellent jump shots. There are several players who are called tough guys who rely on jump shots. How come Yao's jump shot becomes a sin? I think the toughness of players is mainly reflected in defense. Against the Rockets, all teams will consider taking more shots outside the penalty area. Do you still want him to be tough? Turn into a big truck to lead the Autobots? "

There was a burst of laughter in the venue, and the Houston reporters were very happy to hear Guo Xu praising Yao Ming.

Stern was also very happy to watch the press conference on TV. Yao Ming is the target of the league's strong support and is a bridge for basketball exchanges between China and the United States. It is also a bridge for cultural exchanges between China and the United States. He also felt that Yao Ming did not have enough ball rights now, and some things he was not comfortable saying publicly were said by Guo Xu.

Among the Chinese players who come to play in the NBA, Wang Zhizhi is average and can only be regarded as a pioneer. Yao Ming is the key to the NBA opening up the Chinese market.

The Yao name effect has begun to appear. As he gradually establishes a foothold in the NBA and beats O'Neal in the All-Star voting, there are more and more Chinese basketball fans, and they are becoming more and more crazy.

High school students began to save money to buy basketball newspapers and magazines and circulate them almost throughout the class. College students began to skip classes and go to Internet cafes or return to their dormitories to watch live broadcasts on the Internet. Office workers would secretly watch them with a working attitude when their bosses were not paying attention. live streaming.

Almost everyone in China knows Yao Ming, and countless people have become Yao Ming's fans, thus becoming die-hard fans of the Rockets and considering the Rockets as China's home team.

Praising Yao's name is now politically correct in the NBA.

Of course, Guo Xu would not forget to praise his teammates. When the reporter asked him to evaluate his teammates, Guo Xu smiled and said: "Today we are the enemies of the Autobots, the Decepticons. Please ask me to buy a bed!"

The whole audience burst into laughter again. Since the floor-beating Yao Ming was described as Optimus Prime, a group of guys from the Suns team who could run, jump, and seemed to be able to fly were described as Decepticons. The English name of the Decepticon boss Megatron is "buy a bed".

Almost everyone knows about the "Transformers" animation, and everyone knows it. Guo Xu uses this to describe the game and players, which is much more interesting than other players using official language that they have said hundreds of times to deal with the media.

A female reporter asked: "The Decepticons are villains, why don't you give a decent example?"

Guo Xu replied: "We are the villains this year because we are the youngest team in the core. If we win the championship, we will create history and create miracles. Other teams will definitely try their best to stop us. Our ambitions are great and our goal is to dominate here! "

The reporters applauded together. Guo Xu's words were often full of contagion, and even using animation as an example showed domineering.

Guo Xu said loudly: "My assists are much higher than when I was with the Lakers. I cannot do without the help of the team's tactics and teammates. Thank you everyone for your hard work. I will also work hard to pass the ball better to help you." Fly higher!"

"Flying higher" here refers to the improvement of the player's status, not to alley-oop dunks. The audience applauded together. Guo Xu's words made them feel the greatness of team basketball. Young people in the Suns are in charge. The secret to success is unity and mutual achievement.

Guo Xu thanked his teammates from the bottom of his heart. Stoudemire and other rookies are crucial. It was very obvious 21 games before the game. He really couldn't lead the team if his teammates were not strong enough.

In the past life, many people said that without Nash passing the ball, Stoudemire, Marion and others would not be able to do it. It is wrong. Long before Nash joined the Suns, the two of them were already star players averaging 20+ per game.

No matter how strong your core ability is, you can't do it without the help of your teammates. Your opponent's double-teaming will kill you. Guo Xu had a hard time facing double teams, not to mention Nash, whose offensive ability with the ball was inferior to him?

At this time, the Suns' first- and second-year players all felt that they were very lucky. It was not easy to meet a selfless core when they first entered the league. Guo Xu did not have the airs of a star and was considerate of others. He was a great boss.

After the game, the media praised Guo Xu wildly, but also questioned that Francis was not a qualified core and was not good enough on both offense and defense.

Doubts are inevitable. Francis is indeed often beaten. Although he has excellent physical fitness, he is not active enough in chasing defenders when defending. When the Rockets faced the 76ers in 2002, Iverson scored a career-high 58 points and got many mismatch opportunities. Today, Guo Xu beat Francis again and lost his temper.

The Rockets management still has great confidence in Francis and will not choose to trade him just because he has been beaten several times. It is almost impossible for them to trade for a guard who is stronger and more popular than Francis.

Guo Xu's words gave Tomjanovich some inspiration. He planned to increase Yao Ming's shooting rights. It was also a catch-and-shooting shot. Yao Ming was more accurate than Taylor and Griffin. The two shot twice each. With Yao Ming, the Rockets' offense will be better.

The Rockets also have to change their habit of not passing the ball to Yao Ming. Yao Ming has the highest field goal percentage on the team, but his main role is to cover and open up space to create opportunities for the two defenders. This is overkill.

The next day, the saying "Guo Xu is the strongest 180cm player on the planet" began to circulate on the Chinese Internet.

Guo Xu usually browses Chinese websites. After reading it, he felt very happy. If his reported height at that time was 183cm, no one would give him such a title if he was only a few centimeters taller.

Some fans have very strange ideas. In their opinion, players who are 180cm or below must be weak and have no future. Obviously, players who are 183-185cm still suffer on the defensive end and cannot defend in a misplaced position. The benefits of having an extra 5cm are negligible, but these people feel that they are much stronger.

In fact, the height of many NBA players is around 180cm, but they like to round up the figures when they are sideways. 183cm is exactly 6 feet, and if it's shorter, it's 5 feet or so, which is a lot different in terms of perception. This is why when players participate in the draft, there are a lot of people who are 183cm, and for those below 180cm, you can’t see the numbers 181 and 182 appearing.

This caused an interesting problem. After Guo Xu grew taller, he underreported his height during the draft. His actual height was more than 180cm, and many 183cm players in the league were shorter than him.

He won't change his height, which would be more gimmicky.

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