Chapter Fifty-Nine Rebirth

  New weekly goal, click list and recommended list into the top four, last week's click was second, recommended sixth, it is considered to have achieved the set goal, this week, hope book friends continue to support.

  February 11, 1999, Minnesota Target Center Arena, an NBA regular season game will be held here, Timberwolves vs Lakers.

  The current Minnesota, after the arrival of Zhu Fangyu, has changed the scene where fans and teams were harmonious last season. Now in Minnesota, the first thing fans do when they come to the Target Center is not to cheer for the team, but to boo Zhu Fangyu and Nash, one who sent away their second favorite player from last season's Big Three and their leader Tripovich, and the other being the scapegoat for their dissatisfaction with Zhu Fangyu's introduction of players.

  What's even more ridiculous is that the old heaven also played a joke on the Timberwolves, and the Timberwolves actually encountered a devilish schedule in their first four games, which also dashed Zhuang Fei's hope of using an excellent start to block the fans' media doubts. After losing two games to the Spurs, today's encounter with the Lakers is not much worse than the Spurs.

  Under the leadership of coach Harris, the Lakers have achieved a record of 3 wins and 1 loss in the four games this season. Their schedule is also tough, but except for losing to their old rival Utah Jazz in the second game, they maintained a winning streak, and in the last game, they even defeated the Spurs away from home. Currently, they rank second in the West, only behind the Utah Jazz.

  What's been giving Shaquille O'Neal a headache is that his old rival, the Lakers' center who usually appears to be smiling and laid-back, only erupts with huge resentment when it comes to Wang Zhizhi or Duncan. O'Neal has long been waiting for revenge for 3 years, but had no chance until now, finally meeting Wang Zhizhi again, he excitedly expressed before the game.

  "He might drop out of class? I don't know about that, but I wouldn't mind taking him back to college, I'll let him know the difference between NBA and NCAA"

  "Shaq has warned us that he's going to erupt in this game, you know, Shaq doesn't always give his all in every game, but in this one we're going to try to get him the ball until he's satisfied," Lakers' other core player Eddie Jones said with a smile.

  Zhuang Fei did not slack off in this game, and even if the team lost, Zhuang Fei would not be benched as described by the media. Although his relationship with Timberwolves fans is very poor, owner Glen Taylor does not mind these things. Glen Taylor knows that as long as Zhuang Fei is there, the Timberwolves' national live broadcast games have increased by nearly double compared to last season. It's naturally better if Zhuang Fei can bring good results to the team, and even if he can't bring good results, as long as the results are still passable, Zhuang Fei will not face a benching crisis. Glen Taylor is a shrewd businessman who knows what he wants.

  "Hey, I heard that O'Neal gave Duncan the double finger salute after defeating the Spurs two days ago, meaning he's ready to take on both you and Duncan of the Knicks." DeAntoni said with a smile as he looked at O'Neal warming up on the court, but his eyes were fixed menacingly on Zhuang Fei.

  "Isn't Duncan not making any sense?" Zhuang Fei also smiled slightly, after Duncan entered the NBA, O'Neal directly targeted him, last year the two clashed several times although due to David Robinson's presence they didn't directly face each other, but he also didn't gain any advantage in his battles with Duncan, and every time facing O'Neal's provocation, Duncan was very calm, which made O'Neal feel uncomfortable. This season's away win against the Spurs was an unexpected joy, now again facing the Timberwolves, for O'Neal, a three-year grudge can be fully repaid.

  "Mr. Erving, today Coach Z might face three consecutive defeats, what are your expectations for this game against your old team Lakers?" said ABC commentator Al Michaels to the special guest of tonight's game, Magic Johnson.

  "I think this game for the Lakers just needs to play their own strength, Timberwolves are still in the running-in period, can't blame Coach Z, the shortened season is like that, and they have many young players, even if these young players are excellent, but young players after all are just young players, Coach Z still needs time"

  "Do you know Nash, the most criticized player in the current Timberwolves team? He is also a point guard. As the best point guard in history, what advice do you have for him?"

  "I don't know much about this young man, I watched the last game of Forest Wolves against Derby County, to be honest, the impression given by this controlling defender is not good at all, too lacking in confidence, maybe it has a lot to do with what you said about being widely criticized, but that player from Forest Wolves named Pearce left a deep impression on me"

  Paul Pierce is one of Michael's successors

  "It's always Michael's successor, I wonder when there will be a successor to the magician," Magician Johnson joked.

  "Both teams have finished warming up and are ready to jump ball. The starting lineup for the home team, the Timberwolves, remains unchanged: center Garnett, power forward Rashad Lewis, small forward Paul Pierce, shooting guard Stephon Jackson, point guard Steve Nash. For the Lakers, center Shaquille O'Neal, power forward Robert Horry, small forward Eddie Jones, shooting guard Kobe Bryant, and point guard Derek Fisher."

  The game started with a jump ball, Garnett won the tip against O'Neal, and the Timberwolves gained possession. The ball ended up in Nash's hands, but the Lakers were clearly prepared and retreated quickly on defense, not giving the Timberwolves any chance for a fast break.

  The Target Center, which can accommodate 20,000 fans, was still packed today. These fans wearing Timberwolves jerseys were unanimous in their opinion when they saw Nash holding the ball, and the Target Center immediately erupted in boos. Nash once again became the outlet for these fans to express their dissatisfaction with Zhu Fangyu.

  Nash's hands were shaking, even though this wasn't his first time facing such a commotion.

  "Steve, calm down," said Pierce, who was standing next to Nash and also frowned, apparently not too pleased with these fans either. But thinking of Zhuang Fei's pre-match instructions, he could only kindly remind him and couldn't help.

  "Steve, remember what I told you yesterday, you're the best point guard ever!" Nash turned around to see it was Zhu Fangyu, who had somehow already stepped onto the court. Beside him, assistant coach DeAntoni was pulling on him and the referees were also warning him, the scene was quite comical.

  "Zhuang, it's all right, you can come back now." The gymnasium, which was just filled with whispers, is now filled with loud laughter.

  "Alright, no need to drag it out, I get it." Zhuang Fei glanced around at the surrounding stands and returned to his seat with a satisfied expression.

  Nash's mood suddenly relaxed a lot after being teased by Zhuang Fei.

  Nash carefully observed the situation on the court, Fischer defended quickly, Nash immediately passed the ball to Pierce at the right three-point line. After receiving the ball, Pierce leaned against Eddie Jones, pushed twice, turned around and passed Jones, rushing towards the basket. However, facing the physically strong and intimidating O'Neal, Pierce could only choose to directly shoot a jump shot from a certain distance from the paint area. The basketball finally bounced off the rim.

  The ball that had been popped out fell into Nash's hands near the free throw line. Just as Nash was hesitating about who to pass to, a stunning scene suddenly occurred on the court. Pierce and Jackson, who were on the wing, suddenly ran towards the 45-degree three-point line on both sides, while Rashard Lewis ran towards the same side corner, and Garnett, who was under the basket, also walked away from the paint, taking O'Neal with him.

  Nash was stunned as he wanted to pass the ball.

  "Elvin, Forest Wolf, what is this?" The commentator was also stunned by the sudden change of Forest Wolf.

  "It's simple, the Timberwolves have pulled away completely, let Nash single-handedly 'conjure up' a comeback."

  "Let Nash singles?" The commentator muttered a sentence, has Nash had singles this season?

  Just as Nash was about to live for a moment, Fisher had already arrived and was ready to cut off Nash's ball.

  "Steve, be careful."

  Just as Fisher thought he had intercepted the ball, Nash made a quick retreat and dodged Fisher with great agility, retreating to the top of the three-point line.

  Nash looked at his teammates on the court with encouraging eyes, and at this moment, his nose was a little sour. He once again felt the extremely heavy trust and support.

  This time, Nash didn't want to escape anymore, and he had nowhere left to hide.

  He vowed that this ball would be scored no matter what.

  Just as Nash was in front of him, Fischer suddenly felt that the aura of this person had changed. Fischer's eyes became even more vigilant.

  Nash made a move, suddenly accelerating to the left, then under Fischer's tight defense, using Fischer's body as an axis, he made a sharp stop, turned around, and circled to the right of Fischer, leaving Fischer behind. He sped away quickly, leaving only a stunned little fish.

  Nash sped away like a flash of lightning after shaking off Fischer, who was left in his wake and thought he saw an afterimage.

  "What a speed!" exclaimed Magic Johnson. Is this the controversial point guard? When did NBA fans' vision become so high?

  "Come on, Steve!" The scene's Zhu Fei tightly clenched his fists. This was the first step in establishing Nash's confidence. Why did Zhu Fei pay such a huge price to boost Nash? It was to save Nash, whose hope was almost extinguished.

  Nash sprinted forward, the residual shadows of others fleeing in the corner of his eye, he felt as if he had taken flight, he had never felt so good.

  This ball isn't for him himself, but for all the people who trusted and included him, Paul, Kevin, Steph, Rashad, and coaches.

  "I want to score!" Nash shouted in his heart, speeding up again and rushing towards the basket.

  "Hmph, kid, you're thinking too much!" O'Neal had already moved to meet the onrushing Nash, confident that he could block this scrawny white guy with ease.

  Just as O'Neill was thrilled about the impending collision between Mars and Nash, Nash's figure suddenly disappeared from in front of him.

  "Wow, what a move! Steve Nash made a quick spin around the incoming O'Neal and still managed to make such a beautiful turn at high speed. This is my first time seeing this. Now Steve Nash has an open path ahead of him, is he going for a dunk?"

  O'Neal, sensing something was amiss, turned around to see a Timberwolves player wearing the No. 3 jersey flying through the air.

  This time Nash chose to dunk. He rarely dunks usually, but this time he was like a man possessed and had to do it once.

  With this shot, he seemed to have shattered all the shackles in his heart, and he felt as if he had been reborn.

  This shot, echoing through heaven and earth, left the crowd in stunned silence.

  "...Whoa...." After that, the target center was in an uproar again.

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