Chapter 1000 999. A Brand New Season, the Spurs Have Always Been the "Favored"

"91..."

"Hey..."

"92..."

"93...Oh...Boss Ace is so awesome..."

The first and second graders of the Hawks gathered around to watch Liu Mang's three-point test. After 80 shots, they all gathered around to count. In the end, Liu Mang scored 93 three-pointers in 100 shots!

Stockton, who was recording, was surprised, and Korver smiled helplessly.

When Stockton was still playing, he did make more than 90 shots in 100 shots in training, but it was only once in a while, and Korver was the same.

Liu Mang took the ball and shot directly, and scored 93 shots in the first time, and he looked dissatisfied. The two had nothing to say except shrugged helplessly.

As October got closer, the teams started training camps one after another.

The league's season schedule is to start training camps on October 1, but no team will really start training camps at that time. Seven days is not enough time to practice tactics well.

September 24th is the physical test time for the Hawks players, and the 25th is the technical test.

The most concerned technical test is of course the shooting test.

In the shooting test, Liu Mang ranked second in layups, first in mid-range shots, first in three-pointers, and second in free throws, second only to Calderon, letting the new players see how powerful he is.

Without anything else, just training, Liu Mang let the newcomers know why he can become the strongest scorer in the past 40 years, surpassing Jordan.

As for the dissatisfaction with his performance and the casual look before training... it was fake.

Before the test, Liu Mang practiced hard, and he went all out during the test, but pretending... always has to be pretended, otherwise how can he control the situation.

These two days, Liu Mang observed his teammates.

The strongest helper is McGrady, without a doubt.

"Tracy McGrady: Ability rating 98, offense 95, defense 89, three-pointer 88, mid-range shot 92, layup 96, pass 90, speed 91, strength 87..."

McGrady spent more time training in the summer than Liu Mang. He arrived in Los Angeles in July and started training in August. The effect is still very obvious.

However, the team's third strongest player has changed, and it is no longer Rasheed Wallace.

"Rashed Wallace, ability rating 85, offense 81, defense 90, three-pointer 84, mid-range shot 79, layup 88, speed 82, strength 91..."

After Rasheed Wallace, who is over 30 years old, has grown another year older, his decline is very obvious. His speed has dropped from a top-notch physical power forward with a speed rating of 84, which is comparable to that of a small number of guards, to 82, which is the most obvious decline, and it has also affected his offensive performance.

Rasheed Wallace is very smart. He has begun to transform into a defensive shooting center since the end of last season, and now he has anticipated this.

Rasheed Wallace's defense is still solid, maintaining the top defensive level, and his physical fitness decline is only relative, compared with most inside players, he is still strong.

The third strongest player in the team has become Jason Terry.

"Jason Terry, ability rating 87 (peak), offense 90, defense 73, three-pointer 90, mid-range shot 89, layup 87, speed 93, strength 75..."

Jason Terry's peak period is very long. Among all his teammates, Liu Mang is least worried about Jason Terry. This guy is durable and has a long peak period.

The four first-class and above stars of the Hawks are the key to the team's victory.

Kwame Brown has also improved a lot.

"Kwame Brown, ability rating 84, offense 75, defense 89, three-pointer 45, mid-range shot 61, layup 88, rebound 92, speed 84, strength 93..."

Kwame Brown's offense is simply eye-catching. Perhaps he missed the two years of offensive polishing period when he first entered the NBA. Now his offense is really getting worse and worse. Small hands may also be one of the key reasons.

But his defense is almost at the top, and is very close to Rasheed Wallace's defense.

Among the six core players, only Prince has not made obvious progress.

"Tayshaun Prince, ability rating 83, offense 77, defense 94, three-pointer 84, mid-range 70, layup 86, speed 90, strength 86..."

Prince's defense has almost reached his peak since his sophomore year. He is the strongest player in the league in single defense against technical outside players. In addition to being at a disadvantage against players with overwhelming strength, his outside defense is unsolvable, especially against shooting.

But Prince's talent is limited. In the original time and space, the other four of the Pistons' five tigers became All-Stars, but he was the only one who didn't, and there was a reason for that.

In addition to defense and open three-pointers and cutting with speed and body shape, there is basically no other means of scoring. Three-pointers are not particularly good, and they are not at the level of being a main pitcher.

But Prince is perfect for the Hawks.

Not greedy for credit, good character, and mainly... loyal.

I don't know if this is an advantage, but Prince is surprisingly loyal to the Hawks.

The new season is the fourth year of Prince's rookie contract. The Hawks don't know how to negotiate with Prince and how much contract to give him, but Prince took the initiative to find the management and ask for a contract extension.

Prince is not a player from Liu Mang's agency. He usually has a cold personality. Except for dancing, which can arouse his interest, he usually spends time at home with his wife and daughter besides training. He rarely goes out to play with his teammates. He used to say that Liu Mang is 21 Before the age of 20, he was an insulator in nightclubs. In fact, Prince was the insulator in nightclubs, but his presence was so low that no one noticed.

The six players in the core lineup are all at least near-first-class stars. Apart from the Hawks, only two teams in the league, the Mavericks and the Bulls, can compare.

With the two superstars Liu Mang and Tracy McGrady, perhaps only the Heat's core duo can match them.

Of course, the combination of one inside and one outside is structurally much better than the combination of two outsides.

Apart from Jason Terry, the strongest player on the bench is Iguodala. His ability evaluation has improved from 73 last season to 79, which is close to a quasi-first-class star.

Then there is Josh Smith, whose ability evaluation soared from 69 in his rookie season to 78, a terrifying improvement!

Although they are not comparable to the top five picks of the 2003 generation, the two are among the rookies in the past two years. Apart from the top five picks of the 2003 generation, their talent can be considered one of the best. They are not the core of the team, and they are not even the top picks. Several training objects still have such a big improvement.

Iguodala is progressing towards an all-around forward and swingman. Josh Smith mainly improves his finishing ability and defense at the basket, as well as his advancement and passing during fast breaks. The Eagles coaching staff focuses on Josh Smith. Smith is physically gifted and has excellent hand skills, so he has carried out targeted training.

Mourning's ability evaluation has dropped to 78, with an offense of 70 and a defense of 86. The defense is okay, but the offense has declined the fastest. After all, he is at this age and has experienced such a serious illness. At the age of 35, he is already very good at this level. It's still possible to be the second or third center.

Korver's progress is amazing, his ability evaluation has been raised to 70. It's really okay to start in some strong teams that need pitchers, because his three-point ability evaluation has reached 88. He is only in the third grade, and there is Tracy McGrady. He is now at the three-point level, and because he is a pure shooter, catching the ball and shooting, his shooting percentage is definitely higher than McGrady's shooting percentage when he pulls up against the defense most of the time.

However, except for three-pointers, Korver's layup rating was only 79, his overall offensive rating was only 70, but his defensive rating was as high as 76!

Liu Mang remembered that in the original time and space, the 37-year-old Korver was still the Cavaliers' best outside defender.

Very different, quite strange.

Calderon's ability evaluation has been improved to 72, which is more than enough to serve as Liu Mang's substitute. His three-point evaluation is 86, and his passing ability is 92.

There is still a big gap between the rookie Granger and the Pacers spirit in Liu Mang's impression. His ability evaluation is only 68. He needs to be trained well. He may be able to take on a big role in the next two years. He doesn't need to make too many contributions now. Godala and Korver have grown up, and now Barry and Horry.

On the contrary, David Lee, a rookie ranked much lower in the draft, has excellent combat power, an ability evaluation of 72, and an offense of 83. The Hawks' strongest interior offensive player is actually a rookie, but his defense is a pitiful 62. Mainly due to the issue of enthusiasm, he is seriously distracted on the defensive end. When using him, he must be equipped with an inside gate.

Barry's ability evaluation is 75, and his skills are comprehensive. At the age of 34, his physical fitness has declined a lot, but his shooting is stable, which is enough. Horry's ability evaluation is 73. His shooting is usually not as accurate as Barry's, but this guy has great characteristics.

"Mr. Clutch Level 4: The bigger the game, the more accurate Robert Horry's three-point shot becomes."

Last season was probably the peak of Horry's career in the finals. Liu Mang checked and found that in six finals games, Horry averaged 2.2 three-pointers per game with a three-point shooting rate of 47%. points, second only to Liu Mang who averaged 2.7 three-pointers per game in the Finals, more than Jason Terry's 2 three-pointers per game.

Normally, the Hawks might not be able to use Horry much, but in key games, he might be as effective as Jason Terry.

This lineup... taking into account the supplementary players, the progress of young players, and the adjustments of each player's playing style in the direction the team needs, compared with the top-heavy structure and recruits at the beginning of last season Liu Mang is so satisfied with the lineup that is so tender that it makes your balls ache!

Moreover, the biggest difference Liu Mang felt among his teammates was that it was not a matter of a few veterans, but mainly young people, whose mentality had changed a lot!

Iguodala and Josh Smith are in their second year. In their rookie season, they know how to develop themselves and work hard to improve in the direction the team needs. They want to secure their positions on the team in the new season, and even... …The bottom overcomes the top!

Although this mentality is strong, it is not offensive. It is very disappointing that young and talented players have no desire to defeat their superiors.

Next season is the season for the two of them to renew their contracts in advance. Both of them want to renew their contracts in advance. Whether they can do it depends on their performance in the new season.

Prince is in his contract year and has to work hard to express himself.

Kwame Brown finally won the core center position, and naturally he will not allow the opportunity that he finally seized to slip away.

Tracy McGrady, who had just won his first championship, was deceived by Liu Mang into wanting to help build a dynasty, and he was also very active in training in the summer.

Many fans and media thought that the Hawks would slack off after winning two consecutive championships, but they ignored that McGrady only won the first championship. McGrady was striving to establish a dynasty with the mentality of only winning one championship, which was much stronger than the mentality of completely slacking off after two consecutive championships.

Iguodala, Josh Smith and other talents are in their second year, and Korver is only in his third year. This season, they have a real chance to become the main rotation, and they can't slack off.

Liu Mang watched his teammates continue to do tests. The old players are at their peak or at the end of their peak, and the young players are positive and motivated. This feeling makes Liu Mang eager to start the new season!

…

As time goes by, October is here, and the Hawks' training camp continues.

This season, the Hawks have not made much tactical changes. The core lineup and the main rotation are all players from last season. The newcomers, including Horry and Barry, are just reserve players. Young players have improved, so they should be used more naturally, otherwise what's the point of training them.

In October, it was less than a month away from the start of the new season. The Hawks had 7 preseason games in 16 days from the 8th to the 23rd, and the regular season started on the 28th.

On October 7th, at 12 noon on the last day of the training camp, it was the day when major authoritative media announced the rankings of the major lists every year.

The Hawks only had training sessions in the morning today, and the players who had been in training camp for more than ten days rested in the afternoon. The preseason will start tomorrow.

After Liu Mang finished the morning training, he went home to accompany Alexia, who was already in the maternity period.

Originally, the two elders planned to let Alexia go to the hospital to wait for the birth, but... Levia made a phone call, and the obstetrician and gynecologist of Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, the best obstetrics and gynecology hospital in the South Coast, came to Liu Mang's house with an assistant to vacate a room and set up a temporary emergency room...

The disinfection work and professional equipment made Liu Mang feel that it was worth spending this money!

Liu Mang didn't know what to say. Girls with buildings are just willful.

Therefore, Liu Mang spent more time at home, and did not need to run between the hospital, the stadium, and his home as expected.

At 12 o'clock, Liu Mang and the little girl were browsing the news online, waiting for the ranking to come out.

Liu Mang was of course very concerned about this matter!

There was a new rookie list before the season this year. In the past, it was only available after the start of the season, but this time, all major media outlets used the performance of the summer league to make a new rookie list.

The first thing to be announced was the rookie list.

Contrary to Liu Mang's expectations, the first rookie was not the three highly anticipated point guards, nor the No. 1 pick, but the Bobcats' short and fat power forward Sean May!

But it was normal after thinking about it. Sean May was the MOP of the NCAA semi-finals. He was almost 22 years old and more mature than most rookies. With the body shape and confidence of the flexible fat guy, it was normal for him to perform well in the summer league.

In terms of the team strength rankings, the Hawks are undoubtedly the first, the Spurs are ranked second, the Suns are ranked third, and the Pistons are ranked fourth. The top four of almost all authoritative media lists are like this, except for the third and fourth positions. The top four are all these four teams.

But the fifth... is making trouble...

The Lakers are ranked fifth! The Heat are ranked sixth!

Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and T.N.T, the three giant media, all ranked the Lakers fifth and the Heat sixth!

This is definitely making trouble!

Not only the media, but also the league.

In the published schedule, there are only two games in the Christmas war this year.

One is the Lakers against the Heat, and the other is the Hawks against the Suns, and then there is nothing!

The Lakers' opening game is also against the Heat, and the Hawks' opening game is against the Pistons.

The league and the media are making trouble!

However, the team strength and rookie strength are not actually the most concerned. Of course, the most concerned is the star strength ranking!

In the past two seasons, Liu Mang, who has been like a tank and has been in the top five of the league's strength rankings given by the media, is now very curious about his ranking on the star list.

It's actually in reverse order!

Liu Mang searched the keyword "Hawks" and pulled up the top 50, and there is no need to look at the rest.

Kwame Brown is ranked 22nd, Rasheed Wallace is 26th, Prince is 40th, and Alonzo Mourning is just 50th as a goalkeeper.

Jason Terry is 15th. The residual power of two consecutive championships allowed Jason Terry to enter the top 15 of the league for the first time.

Jason Kidd dropped to 16th. Kidd's performance declined too much last season.

The Hawks' six main players, plus veteran Alonzo Mourning, are all in the top 50 of the league.

14th, Stoudemire, 13th, Yao Ming.

Yao Ming is one step ahead of Stoudemire, which has a lot to do with his arrival in Los Angeles.

12th place, Carter, 11th place, Wade, 10th place, Kobe, 9th place, James, 8th place, O'Neal, 7th place, Nowitzki, 6th place, Iverson, 5th place, Nash, 4th place, McGrady, 3rd place, Garnett.

2nd place... Ace Liu...

Liu Mang saw that he was only second!

1st place: Tim Duncan!

"Damn! Uncle is only second!" Before Liu Mang could say anything, the little girl learned how to curse in Chinese from somewhere, and said a swear word in Chinese and English, and then finished the second half of the sentence in English.

"How can a child say dirty words!" Liu Mang pinched the little girl's face and took advantage of her maliciously, "But Dina is right, why is that guy first? I just defeated him, and those media are too biased towards the Spurs!"

"That's right! The league and the media are the same, they are biased towards the Spurs against us!" The little girl agreed strongly.

"The Spurs must have some unspeakable secrets with the league! Duncan is too well taken care of by the league." Liu Mang continued to complain.

Liu Mang was gossiping with the little girl and complaining about Duncan when his cell phone rang.

Liu Mang took out his cell phone and the name on the caller ID was Duncan.

Liu Mang answered the phone: "What's wrong, Tim, what's the matter?"

A sinister laugh came from the other end of the phone: "I am the MVP of the consecutive championships, and I am still the first in the league... beep beep beep..."

Liu Mang hung up the phone after hearing Duncan say this, and was stunned for a while.

"Uncle, uncle, Duncan, that poker face, called me? What did he say?" The little girl asked curiously.

Liu Mang finally reacted and wanted to smash the phone on the ground in anger, but he held back. Although the price of mobile phones has dropped, and you can buy a nice-looking mobile phone for two or three hundred dollars, Liu Mang is a frugal person and will not do such extravagant things. What should I do if I smash the phone and scare the little girl?

However, Liu Mang did not expect that Duncan, who established his position as the No. 1 power forward in history, would be so bad after his personality changed!

"Dina, that poker face mocked me!" Liu Mang said as he picked up the little girl and took advantage of her. She would not be able to take advantage of her when she grows up, so she had to take more now...