754:I Ate My Own Melon (Fourth Shift)
After the Clippers and Rockets tie-breaker, Grizzlies general manager Chris Brown. Wallace rubbed his astringent eyes, ready to end the tiring day.
Judging by the form of the Clippers in recent games, they can indeed be considered a strong opponent. Don't think that the Clippers want to tie seven with the Rockets, which is a sign of poor strength. If it hadn't been for Sterling's accident, the Clippers wouldn't have dragged the game to Game 7 at all.
And after playing a tie-break, the Clippers have also been forced to be in better shape, which will help them play in the second round.
But even so, Wallace is confident in the Grizzlies.
As long as Link is okay and there are no injuries. Well, the Clippers still won't be able to taste the sweetness of the Grizzlies.
Wallace admitted that the Clippers might cause some trouble for the Grizzlies, but not enough to walk away with the win.
Just as Wallace was about to turn off the lights and go to bed, the cell phone he had on the table rang.
As a professional manager of a professional team, Chris . Wallace, like most of his peers, always has two mobile phones. One for public use, one for private use.
Wallace didn't expect that his public phone would ring on the big night.
After connecting the phone, Wallace realized that it was a call from the Union office.
"What!? Well, okay, I got it. Well, goodbye. In just two sentences, Wallace hung up the phone.
At this time, the TV screen is playing Chris. Footage of Paul being interviewed. Paul faced the camera, elated, after all, he had taken another big step towards his championship goal.
See here, Chris. Wallace couldn't help but shake his head.
It's a pity that Paul, who is so ambitious, will be disappointed when he wakes up tomorrow morning......
Wallace picked up his phone and prepared to call Link to inform him of what he had just learned. However, seeing that it was so late, he decided to rule him again tomorrow.
Good things are not afraid of being late.
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The Los Angeles Clippers finally crushed the Rockets, and even Link was happy for the Clippers. After all, he's been waiting long enough to be a little impatient, and Link may be more desperate than Paul for the Western Conference semifinals to get started.
After the Clippers made the cut, their entire team was looking forward to the announcement of the Defensive Player of the Year award.
A regular season award can be quite a significant boost to the team's morale. If the Clippers want to make the next mistake, they first need to have enough self-confidence and courage.
Against a team that won 74 in the regular season, a best defensive player can undoubtedly have the effect of emboldening the Clippers.
If you admit defeat directly after the first game like the Mavericks, then no matter how strong the Clippers are, it won't help.
On May 5, Link is also looking forward to the announcement of the Defensive Player of the Year award.
Although last season Mark. Gasol has only just won the Defensive Player of the Year award, but the chances of winning it this year are very slim. Because this year, a lot of good big man defenders have popped up.
Currently, the most likely winner of the Defensive Player of the Year award is Jorkin of the Bulls. Noah.
The vagabond-like center himself serves as the heart of the Bulls' defense-monstrous team. The average of 1.5 blocks and 1.2 steals per game is also very impressive. At the same time, Noah is also one of three people in the league who have averaged 10 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.2 steals per game this season.
In addition to Noah, Roy of the Pacers. Hibbert and the Clippers' DeAndrew. Jordan is the other two biggest contenders for this award.
As always, the nominees for this award are all big men. When it comes to the Defensive Player of the Year award, people usually prefer the interior line.
In the entire history of the NBA, there are only 6 outside players who can win the best defensive player. Since the beginning of the 21st century, Artest is the only outside player who can win the best defensive player.
Unless an outside player is extremely good defensively, it's impossible to compete with the big guys. Even if it's as strong as Kobe, James and Toney. None of Allen's outside defenders have tried to be the best defensive player.
Link wakes up and keeps refreshing the news page, hoping to get the first answer. However, he didn't wait for the news, but he was the first to wait for Chris. Wallace's phone.
"Chris, so early today?" Link answered the phone and looked at the clock on the wall. It was only nine o'clock, and Wallace called himself.
"This afternoon, we're going to have a press conference for you." Wallace didn't say hello to Link and said straight to the point.
"Holding a press conference, about what?"
"About you winning the Defensive Player of the Year award, Link! Hahaha, surprise! Wallace burst out laughing.
"What!?" Link thought he had misheard, so he asked again. Best Defensive Player? Win the award yourself!?
Wallace wasn't surprised. He had known that Link would show signs of surprise, as he had been stunned for a few seconds when he received the Alliance's notice yesterday.
"You heard you right, Link. In a few hours, the NBA will officially announce that you are the best defensive player of the season. In the afternoon, come and hug your trophy of honor, man. ”
After Link hung up the phone, he sat quietly for a few seconds, then suddenly jumped up in excitement and ran around the house with his arms raised.
Best Defensive Player, this is a very valuable personal honor! Link, like most people, defaulted to the idea that only interior players would win prizes.
But in fact, Link has been better on the defensive end this year than all of them!
At first, Link didn't expect to win this award, so now that the results are suddenly announced, Link is really pleasantly surprised!
Originally, I got up early today just to eat melons, but I didn't expect to eat my own melons!
Three hours later, at twelve o'clock sharp. Chris. Paul turned on the television with great interest, waiting for the long-awaited good news in his heart.
However, when ESPN's host announced the results of the league's selection, Paul's jaw almost didn't dislocate.
This year, it wasn't Noah, Hibbert or DeAndrew, who was expected to win the Defensive Player of the Year award. Jordan.
This year's Defensive Player of the Year was beyond everyone's expectations. Since the best coach a few days ago, the second biggest "upset" in this year's regular season awards has exploded.
As Wallace said, Paul, who was excited yesterday, immediately became disappointed today.
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"Link became the seventh non-interior player in NBA history to win the Defensive Player of the Year!"
"Since Artest in the 03-04 season, Link has finally broken the monopoly of interior players on this award!"
"The Grizzlies are the most efficient defensive player in the league, and Link is also averaging 1.2 steals and 1.4 blocks per game, and he deserves to be the best defensive player!"
Less than a minute after the news was announced, the whole world exploded.
Normally, the regular season awards are decided among a few expected candidates.
But this time, Link suddenly won the Best Defensive Player award when he had been almost ignored before, which undoubtedly took everyone by surprise.
It's not easy for an outside player to win this award. After all, interior players have a natural advantage on the defensive end, and the closer they are to the basket, they are more likely to finish the opposition's offense.
However, even so, Link still overwhelmed the crowd and stirred up the dreams and expectations of many people.
After the results were announced, the specific media voting data was also made public.
People thought that even if Link won the best defensive player, he would definitely win by narrowly, just like James narrowly beat Link to win the MVP last year.
As everyone knows, 100 out of 125 media outlets voted for Link!
Five out of six people think Link is better than the other candidates!
"Link's defense is absolutely suffocating, and if you ask top scorers like James, Durant and George, who they're most afraid of fighting against, they're certainly not going to say Joaquin. Noah, and will tell you that it's Link. ”
"Tireless physical confrontation, subtle verbal strikes, and just the right amount of distraction were all the hallmarks that Jordan won the Defensive Player of the Year award that year. And these labels, you can put them on Link, and there is no problem at all. If Jordan can win an award, why can't Link? ”
"Link's individual defense is so strong that he doesn't even have to rely on the power of the system to lock up the opponent's top scorer! And those big men, who can guarantee that they will not fall behind when defending one-on-one on the outside? But Link can guarantee that he can lock up opponents in the low post as well! ”
This time, the media was on Link's side. After all, Link was chosen by themselves.
Link was also very humble when he received the award in the afternoon, "Thanks to my team, I couldn't have won the award without the support of my teammates and coach. I'm very proud to be another non-interior defensive player. ”
It seems like everything is going well. However, just as Jogger won the best coach, other teams will certainly not be convinced. And, they'll put it to the test in the next races to see if Link deserves it!
And the Los Angeles Clippers are the most excited of them.