RNP Chapter 32 Preseason Match: The Chinese Derby!
Chapter 32 Preseason Match: The Chinese Derby!
Soon, Ruben Paterson's injury report came out.
He suffered multiple rib fractures and is expected to be out of work for 4 to 6 weeks.
This also means that the Trail Blazers' defensive stalwart will miss the season opener.
Head coach Maurice Cheeks wasn't worried, because through the past few days of training, he was pleasantly surprised to find that Hansen Lee's defensive ability was even stronger than Ruben Paterson's.
A pair of long arms is every attacker's nightmare, often resulting in exaggerated steals.
Their ability to fight back is also remarkable; when necessary, they can even hold their own against the power forward for several rounds.
This is something Ruben Paterson absolutely could not do.
More importantly, Hansen Lee's superb three-point shooting, his textbook robotic form, and his lightning-fast release speed are far ahead of the rest of the team, no, the entire league.
Maurice Cheeks is already looking forward to the new season.
Perhaps the Trail Blazers are about to usher in a brand new season, and they will make a breakthrough.
The reason for all of this was the arrival of Hansen Lee.
Of course, there are preseason games to play before the start of the new season's regular season.
Due to the immense popularity of Yao Ming of the Rockets, coupled with Li He, a player who generates a lot of buzz, the league deliberately arranged a matchup between the Trail Blazers and the Rockets in the preseason games.
This preseason "Chinese Derby" has also sparked considerable discussion.
The biggest highlight is undoubtedly the showdown between Yao Ming and Li He, two Chinese players.
Secondly, there's Hansen Lee's individual performance and whether he can adapt to the intensity and pace of the NBA.
After all, the NCAA and the NBA are two different concepts. There are quite a few players who perform well in the NCAA but fail miserably in the NBA.
Finally, there's the question of whether the Portland Prisons can deliver a strong performance in the new season and win back the fans' favor.
The Trail Blazers do have some issues with their players, but it must be admitted that their skill level is quite good.
Head coach Maurice Cheeks had also informed Li He in advance that he would start him in the preseason, and hoped that Li He would seize the opportunity.
Li He said he would give it his all because he knew this would be the first step into the NBA.
The date is May 7th.
The first preseason game was held as scheduled.
The Trail Blazers hosted the Houston Rockets at home.
Before the match, during the audience entry process, it could be seen that most of the spectators were of Chinese descent, while local fans were few and far between, even "pitifully few".
There's no way around it; the Trail Blazers' reputation has been so bad these past two years that fans are putting up signs saying "Get the team out of Portland" all over the streets, which proves that in the fans' hearts, this team is beyond saving.
It's worth noting that just a few seasons ago, the Trail Blazers' home arena, the Rose Garden, had a record of selling out hundreds of games in a row.
During the pre-match interviews, reporters naturally focused on the Chinese players.
Yao Ming is already adept at dealing with the media and can handle it with ease. With his high EQ, Yao even joked with the reporter, saying that Li He's three-point shooting ability is too strong and he wishes he had that level of three-point shooting.
When the reporter saw Li He answering questions with ease, a sensitive topic inevitably came up:
"Hansen, I heard you got into a fight with Ruben Paterson, resulting in him fracturing ribs and being recovering ever since?"
Li He smiled and said:
"Don't try to trap me. Ruben and I were just sparring in the ring. He just tripped and fell."
The reporter shrugged and ended the interview.
Compared to the gentle and highly emotionally intelligent Yao Ming, Hansen Lee is indeed somewhat unapproachable.
The warm-up match between the two teams ended quickly.
The match is about to begin.
Zach Randolph put his hands on Li He's shoulders, patted him, and said, "Hansen, relax, NBA games aren't that difficult."
"Be confident, and make your move!"
Over the past week, Li He and Zach Randolph have gotten along the best.
Because both of them had beaten up Ruben Paterson, they were somehow connected.
The enemy of my enemy is my friend, no doubt about it.
Zach Randolph isn't a bad guy, and he doesn't perform badly on the court; he just likes to have a bit of fun.
Li He got along with him fairly well.
As for Rasheed Wallace, Bonzi Wells, or Damon Stoudemire, they are only teammates who are passable on the surface.
Li He wouldn't provoke them unless they actively sought trouble.
After all, these people committed crimes, and it had nothing to do with him.
Li He laughed and said, "Of course, I'm not a person who lacks confidence. Even if I miss 0 out of 5 shots, I will still take the shot without hesitation."
Bonzi Wells suddenly said, "If you go 0 for 5, the coach will take you out."
"hehe."
Bonzi Wells's hostility towards Li He was not unfounded, because over this period of time, he discovered that the coach and this Chinese player were quite close.
The two players are in the same position, and their height and weight are similar, so there is direct competition between them.
Even more outrageous was that in this preseason lineup, head coach Maurice Cheeks put Bonzi Wells at the small forward position and let Li He start as the shooting guard.
Bonzi Wells felt his position was threatened; what team's starter would make way for a rookie?
Soon, the referee called for the starting lineups from both sides to come onto the field.
The Trail Blazers' starting lineup is quite sharp:
Position 1, "Flying Squirrel" Damon Stoudemire - a notorious drug addict who has been arrested three times in just one and a half years for flour;
Position 2, Hansen Lee – a troublesome player. Not to mention his "outspokenness" in front of the media, his chaotic private life goes on later. Since joining the Trail Blazers, he has already had fierce conflicts with two players on the team, winning both games and successfully sending Ruben Patterson to the hospital.
Position 3, Bonzi Wells – extremely hot-tempered, prone to failed attempts at brute force, fighting, verbally abusing management, and a frequent visitor to the police station;
Position 4, Zach Randolph – with a long history of bad behavior since childhood, including punching a teammate in the eye during a training argument, lying to the head coach that a relative had died, and then going to a strip club.
Position 5, Rashid Wallace – the technical foul fighter, the Donaghy terminator, he's like a bomb that could explode at any moment, and no one can guess what he's thinking.
It's no wonder that Portland fans are so disappointed that a group of extremely eccentric players have all ended up on the same team.
For the Rockets, Yao Ming is the core player, and the backcourt duo consists of Steve Francis and Katino Mobley;
The forward pairing consists of Maurice Taylor and Jim Jackson.
Jeff Van Gundy took over the Rockets in June with ambitious goals to take the team far.
But when he saw the Trail Blazers' starting lineup, he sternly instructed his own players:
"Guys, this is just a preseason game, be careful and stay safe!"