The Bobcats coaching staff seems to care a lot about Mike Miller, but in reality, this is the biggest bias towards Zhang Yang.
However, despite being hit hard, Mike Miller can still hold on.
One reason is his experience from last season.
His performance last season was seen by many as his career-high average score, but in reality, it was a season that dealt him a huge blow and shattered his star dream completely.
Fortunately, he has a good psychological quality, and by adjusting expectations and positioning, he got through this hurdle.
Another reason is that he has actually encountered similar situations...
Today, after being hit hard by the talent of the third brother, Mike Miller felt excited after being heartbroken!
The better the talent of his third brother, the brighter the future of the team he’s on!
His shooting ability, positioning ability, tactical awareness, and ability to pass on the wings ensure that his salary won’t be low. Under similar salaries, he certainly wants to partner with stronger players.
Having played for so many years, he is experienced in many aspects and knows how to form a strong friendship with a super talent.
There are many ways, whether through the camaraderie of being in the same year or being a mainstay in the first championship... these don’t work for him; Boss already took all the benefits from this part.
But he has a way he can achieve — accompanying them during their growth phase and helping them grow.
Just like back then, when he was selected by the Magic in 2000, and the Magic also signed McGrady; he accompanied McGrady through the transformation from a substitute to a superstar, thus forming a strong friendship.
The last time he felt talent overshadowing him was during that time accompanying McGrady’s transformation, just seeing the learning speed, he thought McGrady was more exaggerated compared to Zhang Yang; it felt like McGrady learned by just watching a few times.
But regarding the deeper analysis of skill, he thought Zhang Yang was stronger than McGrady.
McGrady’s physical condition was so superior that no matter what skill, he just needed to learn its form without needing in-depth polishing; he could play at a first-class or even higher level on the court with his physical talent.
Zhang Yang doesn’t have such physical conditions, but his understanding of technique, Mike Miller felt was far stronger than McGrady, and precisely because of the lack of superior physical conditions, there’s a need and motivation to refine technique better.
In the past two years, Mike Miller felt McGrady’s talents were too good, which ’pulled down’ this friend, as his progress was too easy, leading him to overlook the polishing of technical details. With physical fitness declining due to injuries, his power also visibly declined...
At night, the Bobcats were challenged by the Jazz at home.
After entering, Zhang Yang glanced at the big screen, where the records and core player data of the two teams were displayed.
The Jazz have played 58 games so far, with a record of 40 wins and 18 losses, firmly sitting at the top of the Northwest Division, ranking fourth in the Western Conference.
Zhang Yang estimated that the fourth place in the Western Conference would probably be the Jazz’s final ranking, as they are currently leading the second place Nuggets by four wins in the division.
The Nuggets, however, have a 36-22 record, so catching up to the Jazz is quite difficult.
After acquiring Ray Allen, the Nuggets’ ceiling was raised even more exaggeratedly; on the 1st, they played against the Lakers and combined 80 points with three guns, scoring 125 as a team, stunningly defeating the Lakers, who scored 119 points.
However, after trading Camby and with Nene still out, the Nuggets’ floor also became more exaggerated. Yesterday, in the back-to-back game against the 24-34 Timberwolves, they were defeated by the stunning performance of Bynum scoring 17 points, 17 rebounds, and 10 blocks, with the Timberwolves surprisingly beating the Nuggets 98-91.
Zhang Yang estimated that Garnett absolutely cursed, as the single-game block record for the Timberwolves players was 8, set by Garnett, and it was broken less than a year after he left.
In the first half of the season, the Jazz lagged behind teams like the Lakers, Suns, Hornets, and Spurs quite a lot. Even though the Suns went 2-4 in the six games after the All-Star weekend, with the building inevitably tilting, there were still three teams leading the Jazz considerably. So, the Jazz’s fourth place in the Western Conference is very stable.
However, being unable to surpass the Lakers, Hornets, and Spurs doesn’t mean the Jazz are weak; they possess a 55+ win-level strength, just that the Western Conference this season is too exaggerated.
Deron has been fully available for all 58 games so far this season, averaging 19.1 points, 3 rebounds, and 10.5 assists, with a shooting percentage of 51% and a three-point shooting percentage of 39%.
Boozer has also not missed a game this season, averaging 21.4 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 3 assists, with a shooting percentage of 55%. This is extremely aggressive for a main, power forward.
Kirilenko has also managed to stay healthy, missing only 5 games so far, averaging 12 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.5 blocks over 53 games. His defense is still comprehensive, and his 50% shooting percentage and 37% three-point percentage are quite good.
This core lineup stands out in the entire league, and the Hornets and Spurs might not necessarily outlast them in a series, but unfortunately, the Lakers have a player who counters them completely.
At 8 p.m., the Bobcats and Jazz began their duel.
Choose different play styles for different opponents.
The Jazz’s defensive system restrains both Triangle Offense and Princeton; Carlisle didn’t stubbornly attempt to force tactical cooperation and directly employed star tactics!
After holding back for ten days, Zhang Yang unleashed his firepower, scoring 27 out of 15, with 8 mid-range shots, 3 three-pointers, and 4 close-range shots added to his 10 of 8 free throws, scoring an explosive 41 points!
His boss has a ’formula to beat the Jazz’, Zhang Yang remembers vividly how Kobe defeated the Jazz for three consecutive years in the playoffs, leading to the Jazz’s breakup; he’s all too clear on how to deal with the Jazz.
With Zhang Yang scoring consecutively at the high post, it forced Kirilenko to expand further out, benefiting most — Millsap!