Chapter 17 [Touchstone, stunned]
Jack Leman looked ugly on the sidelines. He was both a first-year rookie. He firmly believed that Guo Xu's personal abilities were not as good as his. He believed that Guo Xu had the upper hand in these rounds because he was cheating.
He was so jealous that he didn't know that the other party wouldn't take him seriously for a long time. If Guo Xu had a good fight with him for 5 minutes, he would be so cruel that he would be crying without tears.
Guo Xu walked to Cliffs and said seriously: "Mating, don't show mercy. I hope you will do your best so that the training will be effective."
Cliffs was stunned for a moment and smiled, "As you wish, but don't talk trash to me."
"I expect you to cover me on the court and pass the ball more to me. He offended me several times before I hit back." Guo Xu smiled.
In this group confrontation, when Cliffs faced Guo Xu, he would unconsciously leave some strength. In this way, he would deal with it easily and be very face-saving, but not much help in improving his strength. Recently, he would remind him before the fight, even if he couldn't help it, he would be willing.
Guo Xu regards Cliffs as an important "touchstone". If he wants to enter the NBA, he must at least play back and forth with him. Because in his previous life, Cliffs, who is very famous in the NCAA, did not succeed after joining the NBA. He played a total of 167 games, started 10 games, and did not participate in the playoffs.
The 2000 NBA Draft was called the worst draft in history. If he and Cliffs were far behind, it would be difficult to be selected no matter which draft he participated in 01, 02, and 03.
Cliffs has excellent physical fitness, is good at changing direction breakthroughs, is average in mid- and long-distance shooting, is average in organizational ability in the No. 1 position, and is too short in the No. 2 position. His style of play is easy to be injured. He only played in the NBA for six seasons and was seriously injured three times. He was forced to go abroad to find gold.
Guo Xu's only specialty at the moment is shooting, soft wrists, and can shoot in every position.
There is an embarrassing butterfly effect now. Guo Xu told his friend Jason Richardson that the Spartans cannot win the championship next season, Richardson said that he wanted to participate in this year's draft, and asked Guo Xu to persuade him to leave the team at normal times.
If the Spartans don't have Richardson next season, it will be difficult for Guo Xu and first-year freshman inside Zach Randolph to achieve good results unless his strength has improved significantly. Guo Xu has no way out and must participate in the NBA draft this year.
At the beginning of the match, the Red Team's ball was strong. Under Cliffs' press, Guo Xu dribbled the ball over the half-court with the width of the court and passed it to Richardson, who received the ball and scored a three-pointer, and scored a jump shot against Peterson. 7-0.
Coach Izo puffed up a few times for Guo Xu on the sidelines. Today he performed well and cooperated with his teammates very well.
Cliffs dribbled the ball to the frontcourt and played pick-and-roll with center Randy. Guo Xu had seen this move many times. He judged the timing of the opponent's screening accurately. He retreated and bypassed the cover in time, followed Cliffs who had the ball and broke through, and completed his close body.
If it was against Lehman, he would be half successful in close proximity. Cliffs was not impatient and protected the basketball with his back and leaned against Guo Xu. He turned around and took three steps to the right and rushed into the basket.
Guo Xu was not removed from the side, but his height and strength gap were obvious, so he couldn't jump up because he was squeezed. Cliffs scored 7 to 2 with his right hand.
Guo Xu's defensive ability has improved significantly compared to when he was reborn, but he is still not good enough to play against NBA-level players.
His defensive skills and experience are ineffective. Cliffs is a point guard who is very good at taking advantage of his physical advantages. He is 20 kilograms heavier than him. He is 188cm taller than 8cm, and his wingspan is 193cm relatively ordinary, which is enough to deal with people shorter than him.
All Guo Xu can do today is to fight for attack.
The Red Team attacked, and he led the center Hughes to play pick-and-roll with the center Hughes over the half, dribbled the ball to the right and got rid of Cliffs at full speed. Randy replaced the defense slightly slower, Guo Xu pulled the ball three steps, and passed Randy on the right with speed and scored a layup. 9 to 2.
After more than a month of training, he is becoming more and more daring to break through with the ball. He is very confident when facing the big man's defense in dislocation and will use his speed to get rid of the defense.
When the White Team attacked, Guo Xu kept a two-step distance and let Cliffs shoot. Unfortunately, Cliffs and Lehman were different. He knew his weaknesses and did not try to shoot from a long time. He liked to dribble the ball to a sure position before shooting.
Guo Xu had to wait for the opponent to start the heel to prevent interference. If Cliffs breaks under the basket, his teammates can assist in defense, but Cliffs stops and jumps in the right horn position, and Guo Xu's short weakness will be exposed. His jumping ability is not as good as the opponent, and even if his judgment is accurate, he can't even block his eyes.
Cliffs failed to make a three-pointer, and the mid-range shot near the penalty area was sure to hit a steadily. 9 to 4.
No, if the distance is too far, you can't cover it. You have to fight closely to disrupt his shooting rhythm. However, the weight gap is too big, how can I withstand my lack of strength?
Guo Xu shook his head. If he wants to limit Cliffs on the defensive end, he can only continue to improve his physical fitness. This is not a matter of one day or one night. He must be mentally prepared to practice hard for a long time in the time cycle. Even Chris Paul does not rely entirely on technical defense. He is very strong and can often withstand some swingers in conjunction with small movements.
The Red Team attacked, Guo Xu dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, gestured to greet his teammates to cover, Randy changed defense more actively. Guo Xu dribbled the ball to the right, attracting Randy and Cliffs to attack from the front and back. Without much thought, he turned around and passed the ball to Hughes in the middle.
Hughes, in the third grade, is a very soft white insider, 207cm tall and weighs 100 kilograms. He often hunched his back on the field, looking like a big shrimp. He is light in weight, but he doesn't move fast, and he is still a floor flow. The only thing he can attract the coach is a stable mid-range shot.
Hughes didn't adjust much when receiving the ball, and made a quick move at high positions, and entered the net hollowly. 11 to 4.
Knowing yourself and your enemy, you will never be defeated in a hundred battles, playing in the same practice game in succession, Guo Xu can predict the next step for his teammates and opponents in many rounds. His organizational ability today is at Stockton level, but he cannot control his teammates' actions and prevent his teammates from making mistakes.
The White team attacked, and it was also a pick-and-roll in the middle. Cliffs broke through with the ball. Hughes let go of his defender and went out of the penalty area to replace the defense, and was easily overwhelmed by the opponent with an acceleration.
The center came out of the penalty area, and Guo Xu bypassed the cover and blocked the defender's breakthrough route, and it was useless. Cliffs threw the ball into the sky, Randy cut the ball in the middle and jumped up, and dunked the ball with both hands. 11 to 6.
The Red Team attacked, Guo Xu dribbled the ball to the frontcourt to play pick-and-roll, Randy blocked him a little, and Cliffs chased after him from behind.
He did not pass the ball to Hughes in the middle this time because Hughes chose to cut the ball, and the speed was too slow. After passing the black inside Randy could return to defend and was unable to make the shot.
Guo Xu stopped in an emergency and turned around and quickly moved out of the three-point line with his left hand. He avoided the attack. Randy retreated to the penalty area to defend Hughes, and the outside became a point guard one-on-one.
Guo Xu turned around and dribbled the ball under his crotch to his right hand, and gently tapped his right shoulder. Cliffs stepped forward and took a step closer to the left. Guo Xu held the ball with his right hand and suddenly changed direction to the left and successfully passed. He stopped and jumped from the three-point line in the middle, and the ball was hollowed into the net! 14 to 6.
Chapter completed!