Jordan: I thought he was there to help me!

Chapter 1138 When I joined the League, you were at your peak, and I was already starting to decline.

For a full 25 years! For a full 25 years, the Lakers have achieved nothing except losing in the Finals time and time again, becoming the biggest loser in the league time and time again, and coming within one step of the championship only to be eliminated.

Los Angeles residents are really going stir-crazy!

Until today! Until today, they have finally raised the championship banner once again.

The long-awaited 13th championship banner!

And this was in front of their arch-rivals, the Celtics.

Yes, the Celtics have lost a lot over the years, but they did win a championship a few years ago, while the Lakers have been losing all the time.

It feels so good to finally get revenge on your old rival!

Los Angeles residents, let's unleash our fury tonight!

Tonight, they will finally release the pain of not having a championship for the past 25 years!

What excites Los Angeles residents even more is that the Lakers have almost forged a dynasty, a brand new dynasty.

The Celtics? Impossible!

They can't defeat us. They're a thing of the past. They're finished!

With double the joy and the ebb and flow of happiness, Los Angeles residents will probably be grinning from ear to ear tonight.

Of course, this is all on the premise that the Lakers can win tonight; if they lose, it won't be perfect.

The fans have already hyped up the place to the max; now, it's up to the Lakers players themselves!

The referee walked to the center of the field and looked at the players from both sides.

The Lakers' starting lineup remains the same as the one they used most often in the regular season last year: Lin Tian, ​​Kobe, Durant, Barnes, and Bynum.

This is the most comfortable regular lineup they use, and it's also likely to be the starting combination the team will continue to use throughout the regular season.

The Celtics' starting lineup: Tim Duncan, Brandon Bass, LeBron James, Avery Bradley, and Tony Parker.

Because Garnett is injured and unable to play, his starting position is temporarily taken over by shooting power forward Bass. The Celtics' roster will be fully complete once Garnett returns and starts at the power forward position.

At that time, the Celtics will also enter their strongest mode.

But before that, can they secure a victory tonight without Garnett and get off to a winning start?

"Beep beep!"

Suddenly the referee blew his whistle, and Bynum and Duncan jumped almost at the same time. Duncan, with his experience and long arms, beat Bynum to the ball and slapped it to James.

"Tony, you've switched to the shooting guard position?" Before James had even gotten a firm grip on the ball, Lin Tian's trash talk had already begun.

They started by trying to sow discord.

"Boss, we've fought together for so many years," Parker said helplessly. "Let's not cause any more trouble between us."

"Oh, I forgot, we even played ball together before!" Lin Tian said with a look of sudden realization. "What about Manu? Aren't you two always inseparable, like brothers?"

"Is he injured?"

"Didn't I say that already?" Parker sighed again. Wasn't Lin Tian implying to Parker that his good friend Hou Mi had been traded because of the guy who was currently controlling the ball?

This new guy took your point guard job, made you the shooting guard, and then forced your brother out. If you, Tony Parker, were any man, could you tolerate this?

Parker: I can tolerate it.

"Your wife, Eva..."

"Boss, we're divorced, it's been two years." Parker couldn't help but say, "What did I do to you? Why are you only targeting me? Go find someone else, boss!"

"I'm the fourth-best player on the team now! You'll have to go and trash-talk our leader to show your true strength."

"Kid, you've grown up." Lin Tian looked at Parker and nodded with satisfaction. "Your trash talk resistance has improved a lot. You're not easy to deal with anymore."

While Lin Tian and Parker were exchanging insults and chatting, the offense on the other side of the court didn't stop either. James accelerated past Durant and drove into the paint for a powerful one-handed dunk!

This powerful dunk also gave James his first field goal of his Celtics career.

After scoring, James excitedly pounded his chest and roared.

"How about I call a timeout for you?" Lin Tian saw James smugly and immediately switched his focus to James, saying, "Then we can get everyone to sign the basketball so you can take it home and put it in your trophy room?"

"Anyway, besides a few broken silver medals, there's nothing else worth remembering in your showroom."

"Oh right! Yes, there is, and there's also the commemorative ball for your first field goal during your Spurs and Mavericks careers! I'm so envious of you, having so many good things."

Ignoring Lin Tian, ​​James glanced at him and decisively turned and ran away. Not arguing with Lin Tian was the best approach he had learned from playing against him over the years.

You can't win an argument by arguing, and it will only affect your mindset.

Rather than humiliate himself, James chose to remain silent.

Trash talk without a response naturally loses much of its power, preventing Lin Tian from continuing to use it as an excuse.

"I guess he's missing the wonderful San Antonio. Maybe he's waiting, waiting for San Antonio to accumulate three number one draft picks, and then he'll go back to where his dream began." As soon as Lin Tian saw James run away, he continued to keep an eye on Parker.

Having not played basketball for more than two months, Lin Tian now has inexhaustible energy to release. Just like when he was young, he is still thirsty and full of vitality.

"Are you missing Indiana, Tony? Or are you thinking about the distant past? Like, somewhere like Marseille or something?"

"Boss..."

Parker was about to speak when Lin Tian abruptly interrupted him.

Forced in a physical sense.

"Bang!"

Lin Tian turned to the side, shoving his shoulder into Parker's, delivering all the words Parker wanted to say, and then drove into the three-point line over Parker's shoulder.

"Tony, were you about to say something?" Lin Tian asked as he continued to press Parker, relentlessly pushing towards the paint. "Oh, right, I forgot to ask, your trash talk resistance has increased."

"Has your defensive ability improved?"

At this point, Lin Tian had almost reached his most comfortable offensive position. He suddenly turned halfway and charged towards the baseline, then took a small hop to completely shake off Parker before heading straight for the basket.

Duncan's defense never disappoints his teammates. Even though his offensive ability has declined significantly, his positioning and timing in help defense are still among the best in the league.

In this round, his help defense was just right. If he arrived too late, Lin Tian would have already jumped and there would be no time to defend. If he arrived too early, Lin Tian would have spotted him in advance and given him plenty of time to handle the ball.

In that instant, Lin Tian, ​​who had just received the ball, was unable to launch an attack directly, nor could he continue dribbling to find another opportunity.

If it were any other player, they would most likely have to awkwardly gather the ball at this point, then turn around to avoid Duncan's defense and find their teammates.

Those with quick reflexes might be able to pass the ball out in time to reorganize the offense, while those with slow reflexes will be double-teamed by Parker and Duncan, and will most likely make a mistake, or at the very least, have to contest for the ball.

Parker and Duncan have played together for so many years, so of course they know that at this moment they need to rush in front of Lin Tian and double-team him.

But he had only taken half a step forward, and before his left foot had even touched the ground, Lin Tian had already made his judgment.

Lin Tian actually took another step towards the baseline, and then suddenly threw the basketball out, almost from outside the boundary, flying towards the other corner.

Barnes is standing in that direction.

Barnes, who was defending him, had just driven to the basket to cover Bynum, who was left out by Duncan's help defense against Lin Tian, ​​giving Barnes a pretty good three-point opportunity.

So, with a swift and decisive move, the veteran Barnes, of course, wouldn't miss such a golden opportunity, and the three-pointer went right into the pocket!

"Whoosh!"

The Lakers' first possession was another classic Lin-style play.

A fierce attack, seemingly driven to the brink of defeat, was followed by a brilliant pass and the teammate's perfect seizing of the opportunity!

The Lakers' new season has officially begun!

The Celtics once again entrusted Parker with advancing the ball in the second possession. However, as soon as Parker dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, Lin Tian's defense closed in. Knowing the gap between himself and Lin Tian, ​​Parker did not hesitate and immediately passed the ball to James.

Parker was no match for Lin Tian even in his prime, let alone now that he's starting to decline.

What annoys Parker is that when he entered the league, Lin Tian was at his peak, and when he was at his peak, Lin Tian was still at his peak. Now that he has declined, Lin Tian can still win two MVPs in a single season.

Still at its peak.

Are you trying to kill us?

However, Parker is clearly not the worst off among point guards.

He felt the worst off were the previous generation of players like Payton, Kidd, and Nash, and the new generation of players like Paul and Deron.

Payton and Kidd were forced by Lin Tian to never win a championship in their entire lives, while Paul and Deron entered the league with amazing talent, but now they are about to play 10 seasons.

He has achieved nothing, and he hasn't even earned the empty title of "the best active defender".

Who allowed Lin Tian to make a comeback?

Who can do something about this?

And Parker? He knew that regardless of whether Lin Tian was there or not, he could never become a top point guard or anything like that, so he kept a very calm mindset.

In addition, he won several championships with Lin Tian with the Pacers in his early years, and after joining the Celtics, he stole a championship that Lin Tian had finally managed to get during his retirement. His career was quite successful.

And the reason why his career was so successful is thanks to Lin Tian.

He won the championship early on by relying on Lin Tian, ​​and later won the championship while Lin Tian was retired.

I heard that Lin Tian recommended him to join the Pacers back then?

Thinking about it, if the Pacers hadn't drafted him back then, Parker wouldn't have won a single championship before Lin Tian retired.

If Lin Tian hadn't retired for those three years, Parker wouldn't have been able to keep the championship he stole from the Celtics.

Thinking of this, Parker's gaze towards Lin Tian couldn't help but darken slightly.

My benefactor!

"Fuck you." But Lin Tian's response to Parker's "affection" was a vicious elbow: "Don't look at me like that, I'm not interested in men!"

While Lin Tian and Parker were flirting, the Celtics quickly got into the game after the ball came into James' hands.

Bradley positioned himself at the far corner to create space, while Bass moved around nearby waiting for an opportunity. Duncan even stepped forward to screen for James.

After a quick exchange between the two, James accelerated suddenly in front of the defense and then made a bounce pass to Duncan, who was following up beside him. Duncan dribbled the ball once and then pulled up for a very elegant one-handed layup, scoring the same goal.

"Are you playing with your life on the line?" Lin Tian mocked. "If you were 25, you'd be incredibly skilled, but you're 40. Do you really think you're a rising star?"

"A shot that scores is a good shot!" Duncan responded to Lin Tian's words, his expression remaining unchanged.

He knew, of course, the malicious intent behind Lin Tian's words, and he also knew what Lin Tian wanted to express.

It's just another attempt to sow discord.

But to Duncan's dismay, what Lin Tian said was true, and it was a fact that was happening right now!

Given Duncan's age and injury history, having him run pick-and-rolls at this age is undoubtedly gambling with his career and severely depleting his health and energy.

If it were a do-or-die moment in the playoffs, that would be fine, but to play like that on the second point of the first game of the regular season?

Unless Duncan takes some kind of magic bean or something, his knee will be ruined in two months at most.

What weight and age do you think Duncan has? You're playing pick-and-rolls, the kind of thing young big men do?

That's practically suicide!

"You're always sacrificing yourself. But unfortunately, every time you sacrifice, you don't get the outcome you want. You're almost retired, and you've barely even had a chance to be beaten by me, let alone win a championship. And you're still burning through your career?"

"You don't think you're so cool, old man!"

"You don't think your trash talk will work on me, do you?"

"You don't think your knees can withstand this kind of playing style, do you?"

"You don't think this is all we have left, do you?"

"You don't actually think you guys can win the championship, do you?"

"The fact that you ask and say that proves you're afraid of us! You can't stop my pick-and-roll with LeBron!" Duncan suddenly changed the tone of the conversation, revealing his unexpected talent.

"Nonsense, I'm guarding Tony! Look at Tony since the start of the game, has he had a single shot attempt or a single point? 0! An absolute 0-0 shutout! Do you understand the value of an absolute 0-0 shutout? Letting him play for so long without contributing anything is meaningless!"

"Boss, you're being shameless!" Parker couldn't help but interject, "The game's only been going on for less than a minute!"

"Just tell me you got shut out by me! Don't give me that nonsense." Lin Tian waved his hand, indicating that since he was shameless, he would be shameless to the end.

While exchanging verbal sparring with the Celtics players, Lin Tian quickly moved forward, rapidly reaching the frontcourt to observe his teammates' positioning.

James facing off against his old rival Durant is a matchup that can be exploited, but it shouldn't be the primary focus of the opening game. Durant may not be weaker than James in terms of offensive ability, but James is definitely the player in the league most likely to limit and best match up against Durant.

Hitting this spot is unreasonable.

If Bynum, playing in the paint, were to match up against Duncan, he would most likely be dominated by Duncan, so this position is not suitable.

Barnes is a workhorse type; he can cut to the basket and shoot immediately after catching the ball, but he is clearly not suitable to be the primary scorer at any stage of the game.

With three positions at a disadvantage, the Lakers' strategy for the first quarter becomes crystal clear.

Lin Tian and Kobe!

While Bradley, who was matched up against Kobe, was also a good defender and could be considered an elite defender, his shortcomings were also quite obvious.

His height of 191 cm limits him to guarding the point guard position. When facing the shooting guard position, his height disadvantage becomes more pronounced.

Especially when facing a one-on-one master like Kobe, he would be relentlessly attacked by Kobe who would exploit his weaknesses.

After pinpointing Kobe's location, Lin Tian didn't hesitate and quickly signaled his teammates to spread out, creating a one-on-one opportunity for Kobe.

The basketball flew over immediately, Kobe received it with his back to the basket, faked several times, then suddenly turned and pulled up for a shot.

"Whoosh!"

With a crisp sound, Kobe's mid-range jump shot went in!

It was still the Lakers' classic offense.

Strike at the opponent's weaknesses!

It targets the opponent's weaknesses that they cannot overcome.

Unless you, Bradley, grow to 198 cm tall, how can you possibly hold off Kobe, who is as strong as a tank in the backcourt, in the low post?

The Celtics clearly couldn't find another way to change this matchup.

Switching positions?

Having LeBron James guard Kobe Bryant might be effective, but what about Kevin Durant?

Given the Lakers' offensive firepower, the consequences of a mismatch would be an irreparable chain reaction.

Vicious circle.

The Celtics should either bench Bradley or Parker and bring in a tall player.

Either let Bradley stubbornly hold on until Kobe beats him to death.

Ultimately, the choice will depend on the Celtics' newly appointed head coach, the seasoned and renowned George Karl, who previously coached the Nuggets, SuperSonics, and Bucks! (End of Chapter)