Chapter 923 922.MVP's Glimmer of Hope (Asking for Monthly Votes)
A glimmer of hope for the VP (please vote for me)
Coach Sloan never expected that his attempt to prevent Liu Mang from scoring would turn Liu Mang into the "assist king"!
Is this still the "atypical point guard" whose assists per game have dropped to 2.9?
After the start of the second quarter, the Jazz really had no choice but to start blocking the shooters. The Eagles were going crazy with three-pointers!
Coach Kruger didn't even expect that his team's three-pointer was so accurate today! Normally, scoring twelve or three three-pointers in a game is the limit. In games where I can score ten three-pointers, except for the game against the Suns, I won all the other games. Today, I made seven three-pointers in a single quarter!
Coach Kruger decided on the tactics in the second quarter. Liu Mang added two pitchers, a center, and an inside line with excellent physical fitness.
In the second quarter, Liu Mang found that the opponent did not dare to double-team anymore, so he immediately started a singles mode combining sudden shots. After the opponent started to double-team, he started passing the ball.
Liu Mang scored 13 points and 4 assists in the second quarter, 7 points and 4 assists in the third quarter, and 4 points and 2 assists in half of the fourth quarter. When double-teamed on the outside, he directly split the ball to the outside line. When breaking through, he passed the ball. Inside, a simple and rough style of play, mainly accurate outside shooting. With the addition of a three-point shooter, in addition to Liu Mang, the Hawks have Korver, Calderon, Persson, and Jason Terry. Three-point masters, whoever is not accurate will be replaced, and if they are accurate, they will take more shots. In three and a half quarters of game time, the Eagles made a total of 17 three-pointers!
In the first three quarters, the Jazz could rely on Boozer and Kirilenko's ability to score and pass, as well as Halprin's singles to keep the point difference within 15 points. Except for the point guard, the Jazz's starting lineup had all the strength. It was so strong that it didn’t completely collapse in the third quarter. However, in the first half of the fourth quarter, although Liu Mang only scored 4 points and 2 assists, Jason Terry scored two consecutive three-pointers and hit a single. Three-pointer, the Eagles scored 18 points in the last half of the quarter. The main players of the Jazz barely rested and couldn't hold back. They completely collapsed and only scored 7 points in the half.
The Eagles opened the score to 119-95 in one fell swoop, widening the point difference to 24 points!
Coach Sloan reluctantly replaced all the main lineup and announced his surrender.
Trying to use Liu Mang to rebuild the team's confidence failed!
Although Boozer had 33 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists, Kirilenko had 15 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 blocks, Okur had 22 points and 4 rebounds, Halprin had 18 points, and Raul Lowe came off the bench. Pats both scored 18 points. It was the first time this season that five Jazz players scored in double figures. However, relying on Liu Mang's 31 points, 24 assists and 6 rebounds, he broke the team's record of 17 three-pointers in a single game. Beat the Jazz 131 to 110, a score difference of 21 points!
Liu Mang got his third career double-20, and at the same time improved his single-game assist record in Eagles history by three more, from 21 to 24!
"Ding... The Rogue's Wrath mission is completed, and the reward is 10,000 superstar points."
At the end of the game, sitting on the sidelines and watching Calderon finish the garbage time with the first- and second-grade lineup, the referee blew the final whistle. Liu Mang's moderately difficult task worth 10,000 superstar points was completed. The data exploded today, and I got more than 2,300 superstar points. I earned back all the superstar points I spent on replenishing medicine reserves before the game!
"If you want to use me as a stepping stone, I'll give you a pounding every time I see you next time!"
…
Liu Mang got brutal data in two consecutive games, but... the direction was completely different!
In the last game, he was a scoring maniac, but in the second game, he became a passing master!
People said they really couldn’t guess Liu Mang!
What kind of data Liu Mang produces, people now seem to find it acceptable.
I scored 60 points in three quarters, and I once had a performance of almost 30 or 20 points.
Moreover, people's focus now is not on Liu Mang's data and the Hawks' victory. In the eyes of the fans, it is natural for the Hawks to win against the Jazz. This game was not broadcast live. The fans only saw the data, not the Jazz. Seeing why Liu Mang changed from a scoring maniac to a member of the "rejection" team, many fans didn't even notice that the Eagles rested so many people. After all, it was a game where the league's No. 1 team was playing against the league's third-to-last team. Take a look. The result will be fine.
For Liu Mang, 31 points is less than his average score in the past two years, which is why people feel that Liu Mang has become a member of the "rejection" group today.
31 points, 24 assists, 6 rebounds and 5 turnovers, mainly 24 assists and 5 turnovers, a nearly 5 to 1 assist-to-turnover ratio, and the Hawks' 17 three-pointers in a single game set a new record, and suddenly the Hawks won 14 consecutive games. , has become the most discussed topic among fans.
The discussion is not about this game, but about the next game when the Eagles play the Suns!
Not many people noticed that the Hawks had won 14 consecutive games before. When the Hawks arrived, they were about to play the Suns. The major TV stations vigorously promoted the game between the Hawks and the Suns on the morning of the game. Of course, they had to highlight the strong performances of the two teams. Get the word out.
Only then did people discover that the Eagles had won 14 consecutive games without knowing when!
At this time, some people began to look forward to whether the Hawks can create the NBA's eighth consecutive championship winning streak of at least 18 consecutive games?
The Hawks have a 14-game winning streak, with 48 wins and 7 losses, and the Suns have a 9-game winning streak, with a 47-9 record. There is not much difference in the records of the two teams. Will the Hawks continue their winning streak and avenge the Suns, or will the Suns end the Hawks' streak? Win?
The last time the Hawks lost to the Suns in a scoring battle, Liu Mang and McGrady both scored brutal numbers in that game, but still lost to the Suns.
Will there be any changes this time?
Especially before the game with the Suns, Liu Mang performed brutally in two consecutive games, and demonstrated his scoring ability and the power of breakthrough passes. The Hawks also broke the team's three-point record. The pitchers are in good shape and are about to face the Suns. Will this game be a revenge for the "vindictive" Hawks, or will the Suns continue to show their strength as the defending champions?
…
…
The night after playing against the Jazz, the Hawks took a chartered plane to the hotel in Phoenix, Arizona, where the team had booked rooms for two days.
California, Arizona, and Utah are adjacent to each other, which is the place where the league takes the most care of the Hawks in this five-day four-game match. The flight time to and from the away game is at most half an hour.
In fact, although the league has arranged a tight schedule for the Hawks during this period, they have always been very considerate. Originally, the most interesting games this month were the Timberwolves, Heat, and Mavericks. Who knew that the Timberwolves collapsed and the Heat took turns to rest, but the games against the Supersonics and the Suns were the most interesting.
Otherwise, this time the four games in five days are the four teams in the bottom five of the Western Conference last season. Although it is four games in five days, if there is no core player like Liu Mang with unlimited physical strength, they may lose one or two games against weak teams, but it is already the biggest preferential treatment given by the league.
After sleeping until eight in the morning, Liu Mang got up to prepare for tonight's game. This time, the hotel where the Hawks stayed had an indoor basketball court, which was booked by the Hawks. Liu Mang ran to practice shooting early in the morning.
After practicing for a while, McGrady and Rasheed Wallace, who had rested for a few days, also came to practice shooting. They played the first game of the back-to-back yesterday, and the other players were still sleeping in to recover their strength.
The disadvantage of first- and second-year players is that they are very unstable. Korver made two three-pointers in the first quarter yesterday, and only one in the last three quarters. Jason Terry and veteran Persson are more stable. Jason Terry threw in 5 three-pointers, Persson made 4 three-pointers and a layup, and scored 14 points in his first game for the Hawks. Calderon threw in two, and Iguodala threw in one.
But the advantage of first- and second-year players is that they are young and their physical strength will be restored after a good sleep.
The Hawks have made full preparations for the game against the Suns as much as possible, but the Suns are now having a headache. How to deal with the Hawks?
Liu Mang played too aggressively in these games. Originally, Liu Mang only scored and McGrady passed the ball, but when McGrady was resting, Liu Mang actually played 24 assists in a single game!
Although the Suns have no defense and are not interested in defense, they have to score more points than the opponent to win!
Most fans don't care about the age or injuries of the players when watching a game. They will criticize if they play badly and praise them to death if they play well. However, players are different from head coaches. They knew that the four starters of the Hawks came to Phoenix in advance. After two days of rest in the hotel, the four starters of the Hawks were in good physical condition. Liu Mang's physical fitness was famously good, even Kobe and Iverson were slightly inferior.
Now the Hawks' outside shooters are in good shape, and the main players of the Hawks have rested so well. The key is that the Hawks still have a strong desire for revenge. The teams that beat them in the past two years have all been retaliated.
D'Antoni and Nash, who obviously won the first game, now feel that they are at a psychological disadvantage!
Fortunately, the young players do not have this kind of pressure. This is where the two core players of the Suns, D'Antoni and Nash, can rest assured. The core lineup of the Suns is younger than that of the Hawks. The counterattack has become a real strong team in the minds of fans and the media. The young players are fearless.
…
The preparation time was too short. Liu Mang felt that when he closed his eyes, it was the game last night. When he opened his eyes, it was the pre-game interview and warm-up training with the Suns.
After the tactical training in the afternoon, he kept watching the video clips of the Suns' recent games. The offensive firepower was still so fierce.
The Hawks have also scored a lot of high points recently, with the average score increased to 110.3 points per game. The Suns are still ranked first in the league with 110.6 points.
McGrady averaged 11.7 assists per game, and Nash averaged 11.9 assists per game.
As for the MVP ranking, today is Monday, and the MVP rankings have just been updated. For the first time this season, Nash has been pulled down from the first place in the MVP rankings. Liu Mang ranked first in the MVP rankings for the first time with 14 consecutive wins and two consecutive brutal performances.
After the warm-up, I was ready to enter the field. I looked at two tasks about the Suns, mainly about Nash.
"Season goal: The beginning of the run-and-gun era: The host needs to lead the development of offensive basketball, mission goal 1: The host's team must get first place in the NBA's average points per game ranking in the regular season, mission reward: 50,000 superstar points; 2. Get the regular season MVP, mission reward: a Steve Nash peak star card; 3. Someone on the host's team must get the assist king, mission reward: 1 high-level superstar value lottery."
The three mission goals of this mission are all being worked on. Originally, Liu Mang thought that grabbing the assist king and the team's score exceeding the Suns were the most difficult, but now he found that the MVP was the most difficult. Nash came to the Suns, and the Suns did not have any other reinforcements. They went directly from the bottom three in the Western Conference last season to the top three in the league. Such an improvement in performance made Nash's first MVP a sure thing!
Liu Mang had no other choice but to continuously improve his average points to compete.
However, the two items of assist king and team average points were almost completed. McGrady passed accurately, and the Hawks had many scorers, mainly because Liu Mang was the target of the pass. Nash's average assists began to decline in the middle of the season, while McGrady's average points increased as Liu Mang's average points increased.
This task is the goal of the season, and the other task is the task of the current game.
The task that Liu Mang desperately wants to complete!
"MVP battle: The host needs to defeat the team led by Steve Nash the next time they play against the Suns led by Steve Nash. Mission reward: 1 endurance fruit. Failure penalty: endurance -3."
This game involves too many things. If they lose to Nash in two head-to-head battles, it will be like the original time and space in 2008, when Chris Paul was closest to the MVP. Kobe and Paul competed for the MVP for the whole season, but when the regular season was about to end, Kobe and Paul played against each other for the last time in the regular season that season. Kobe defended Paul's hit rate to only 30%, and Paul was defended to the point that he had no space to shoot three-pointers. Kobe played against Paul with a hit rate of 53% and a hit rate of 43% for three-pointers, and defeated Paul head-on with a quasi-triple-double of 29+10+8, which completely made the MVP no suspense.
If Liu Mang loses both games against the Suns, it can be said that he has no chance of winning the MVP. With Nash "single-handedly" improving the Suns' record so much, even if the Hawks win 70 games again, it is estimated that there is no chance. Moreover, the Hawks will not fight for the regular season this season. The Hawks' players who stayed in the team last season played so many games last season. If they don't rest well this season, they will be in bad shape in the playoffs.
So, Liu Mang must win this game!
It's too difficult to win the MVP consecutively. If there is no opponent, it's okay. For example, James in 2010 and 2013 and Curry in 2016, no one can compete with them for the MVP, so it's relatively easy to win the MVP consecutively.
But Nash is in front of him, and the difficulty is different.
Only by winning this game against Nash can the hope of winning the MVP consecutively be preserved.
Moreover, playing against the Suns is a game that makes Liu Mang very excited!
Liu Mang's desperate posture easily led these teammates who have played together for almost a season, not to mention the old teammates, just follow Liu Mang.
At 7:15 pm, the Hawks entered the American West Arena. In 15 minutes, the game, which was broadcast live by two major American TV stations, ESPN Taiwan and Japan in Asia, and Imperial TV, and four or five countries in Europe, was about to begin.
A game that the world was watching!
The Hawks were treated to courtesy by the Suns fans as soon as they entered the arena, and the whole audience booed.
After the Suns players came out, Liu Mang and Nash came to the technical desk and shook hands. Both of them were full of fighting spirit.
Nash wanted to completely lock in the MVP. It was the dream of every player to win the MVP and the championship. The MVP was right in front of him, and Nash had no reason not to get it.
Liu Mang wanted to create a glimmer of life for his second MVP.
The two did not communicate much. They said hello and returned to their own half to start the final warm-up work before the game.
The battle was about to start!
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