No.1 in basketball scoring-Chapter 836 - 358. Harden on Top

Less than 24 hours after finishing with the Toronto Raptors, on the night of the 4th at 8 PM, the Bobcats faced their second back-to-back home game against the 76ers.

Zhang Yang looked at the 76ers’ record of 34 wins and 39 losses and said, "Sometimes, doing nothing at all is the best move."

Hill: "Basketball is so wonderful; that’s why I love it so much. The Phoenix Suns and Toronto Raptors work so hard to change their situation, but the more they try, the worse it gets. The 76ers didn’t do anything from last summer to now; a few young players have smoothly developed, led by Miller, and naturally, they’ve risen."

Felton: "I didn’t expect Miller to get a year older and have the best season of his career. Last season, when he was with the Nuggets Team, he averaged 13 points a game, the lowest in seven years, only lower in his rookie season. After joining the 76ers, nothing changed, and his shooting percentage dropped. Last summer, the media said his remaining two-year, $20 million contract would become trash, but this season he’s averaging 17 points, a career high, and his 50% shooting percentage is also a career high. He’s become the core player of the 76ers; even I can’t handle his post play."

Andre Miller, someone Zhang Yang was very familiar with from his previous life, wasn’t considered a star player but had a long-lasting career. He remembered that the original Karen Mok had a remarkable achievement—missing only four games in his first 14 seasons, two of which were due to mismatched game schedules when he was traded.

After turning 37, old Miller’s health began showing issues, yet he ultimately achieved his draft-day dream—to play until he retired at 40.

Zhang Yang responded: "Miller’s post-up game is really impressive, and no point guard of similar height can guard him..."

Felton’s eyes lit up: "Jack, do you mean...?"

Zhang Yang: "I mean... Boss, you and Jarett have to work hard!"

Fatty: Where’s the human center? I want to pinch it, I’m going to be pissed off!

Hill: "But the rise of the 76ers may not be what their front office wanted."

Zhang Yang: "Last summer, they let Korver go without even an attempt to keep him, and they made no new signings."

Hill: "Their plan then was probably to tank; there are so many talents in this year’s draft. But they’re not as extreme as Ainge; although they didn’t strengthen during mid-season, they at least didn’t hinder the team by trading away capable players."

Zhang Yang: "From the perspective of building a strong team, what Ainge did would be the better choice."

Hill: "Jack, do you prefer Ainge’s approach?"

Zhang Yang: "No, if he were the general manager of our team, I’d definitely run when my contract is up to avoid being traded by him in the end."

Hill: "Uh... haha, I remembered when I saw him suggest to the Red Priest to trade Big Bird before his injuries flared up..."

At 7 PM, the Bobcats’ second back-to-back game began.

Yesterday, facing the Raptors, who fell to the playoff brink, Zhang Yang showed no mercy. He boldly took 25 shots, scoring 30 points, fully exposing his nature as a scoring freak who bullies weaker teams.

Tonight, facing the 76ers, who were closest to the playoff spots outside the playoff brink, Zhang Yang treated them equally, unleashing full firepower!

Iguodala’s defense this season got worse as it went on, even falling below his rookie season level.

He sacrificed defense to maintain his all-around performance, but couldn’t fully hold it, with his current average score dropping below 20, shooting percentage falling below 45%, down to 44.7%, and the assists he worked hard to maintain in the 20+5+5 range dropped to 4.9.

Under Iguodala’s defense, Zhang Yang shot 13 out of 24, including 2 out of 5 from three-point range, plus 7 out of 7 from the free-throw line, efficiently scoring 35 points.

Iguodala himself shot 7 out of 16, along with 4 out of 5 from the free-throw line, got 18 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals; it’s very all-around, but watching him on offense seems pretty exhausting.

Andre Miller, tonight, shot 7 out of 12, along with 5 out of 7 from the free-throw line, scoring 19 points and 9 assists.

Felton couldn’t guard old Miller, so he went hard on offense, shooting 8 out of 18, including 3 out of 8 from the three-point range, plus 4 out of 4 from the free-throw line, scoring 23 points and 5 assists, barely counting as a mutual explosion.

The 76ers’ three major substitutes, Willie Green from the class of 03, steadily scored 12 points tonight;

And Louis Williams, the last generation of high school players who graduated in the same class as Zhang Yang, broke out big when facing the two big guards from the same class, scoring 20 points and 4 assists;

Thaddeus Young, the rookie power forward often compared to Yi Jianlian this season, took advantage of the Bobcats’ focus on rebounding protection being on the rebounding fanatic Reggie Evans and the Haitian Dalembert, grabbed 14 rebounds, plus 10 points, 1 steal, 1 block, getting a double-double.

The 76ers had five players scoring in double figures tonight, with overall good offensive performance, collectively scoring 106 points.

But outside of the Bobcats’ Double Guns, the other players performed well too.

Okafor shot 6 out of 12, plus 3 out of 5 from the free-throw line, scoring 15 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks;

Mike Miller 11 points, Brad Miller 6 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, Millsap 5 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, Hill 7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, Jarett Jack 6 points, 2 assists...

to 106, the Bobcats beat the 76ers by 9 points, improving their record to 56 wins and 19 losses!

...

On the afternoon of April 5th, the Bobcats arrived in Orlando.

In the evening, after arriving at the hotel and having dinner, Zhang Yang, Felton, Okafor, Alan Anderson, and Hill gathered in Felton’s room, with snacks, fruit, and drinks prepared, each with a bottle of beer, not much alcohol, just enough for a taste while waiting for the live broadcast of the NCAA final.

While waiting, Zhang Yang checked the news, feeling frustrated: "We’ve tied the best record in team history, but from last night till now, there have been hardly any news articles about us.

We lost our key attacker, the core of our line defense. Last summer, the prediction was we’d win at most 50 games, and now we’re eyeing 60 wins."

Hill laughed: "Indeed, our young players have improved so much, and the coach’s performance has been excellent. Tying the team’s best record is worthy of praise, but it’s unfortunate we coincided with the NCAA finals. Since the semifinals, media and fans have focused all their attention on tonight’s game, discussing whether Harden or Rose, the two outstanding NCAA freshmen, can achieve their dreams and enter the NBA without regret."

Felton: "Yeah, this is the NCAA final after all. Even the NBA pauses for a day to give them space, and Harden and Rose are so outstanding that they seem even better than when I was a junior, honestly makes me envious."

Zhang Yang: "I know, just venting a bit... these two remind me of Anthony and Syracuse University in ’03."

Felton: "Huh? Hey! You’re right, our school and the University of Memphis had a solid overall strength last season and had a great record, both reaching the Elite Eight. But when it came to facing truly strong opponents, no one stepped up in critical moments to win the games. This year, we have Harden, and Memphis has Rose, both in the finals. Who do you think will win tonight?"

Zhang Yang: "It’s hard to say; our four core players are stronger, and the University of Memphis has better roster depth."

Hill: "I think North Carolina can win, it’s a single game to determine the outcome, the role of star players outweighs depth..."

This time, Hill predicted correctly. The game started at 8 PM; North Carolina led the first half with a 55-40 score, forcing Rose to attempt three-pointers, none of which succeeded in 3 attempts.

In the second half, North Carolina’s offense waned, scoring only 34 points, but the University of Memphis managed only 38.

to 78, North Carolina easily defeated the University of Memphis by a 12-point margin.

Zhang Yang and Felton’s cheers echoed down the hallway—the new ’Four Young Stars of North Carolina’ delivered a dominant performance!

Throughout the six games of the March Madness stage, North Carolina won each game by more than 10 points! This performance is exceptional even in the long history of March Madness.

Three years ago, when Zhang Yang first joined the Bobcats, he didn’t have much sentiment towards North Carolina; it was simply close, and he chose to study there, with the added perk of being a ’Jordan’s alumni,’ hoping to use that to get closer to the owner.

But with scholarships, retired jerseys, and many alumni supporting him in early games...over time, his sense of belonging to the North Carolina Blue Devils grew significantly, especially after Harden and Tatum joined North Carolina, he became a fan of this team.

In the final, Rose’s performance was decent, 18 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists, shooting 10 of 6 within close range, free throws 5 of 6, excellent at attacking the basket, but sorely lacking in three-point shooting, scoring just 1 of 7 attempts throughout the game. His number of three-point attempts this match was only one less than the total of the previous 5 games, truly having no other option.

Hansbrough with 12 points, 12 rebounds, 4 blocks; Lawson with 9 points, 5 assists; Wayne Ellington scoring 16 points including 3 three-pointers, not to mention Harden!

By halftime, Rose was stumped on how to win.

Harden didn’t attack the basket as well as Rose, scoring 4 of 9 in close range shots, but he excelled in mid to long-range shots, making 2 of 4 mid-range shots, and scoring 3 of 6 three-pointers. Playing for 35 minutes, he made 9 of 19 shots overall, plus 3 of 3 free throws, earning 24 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and was named MOP of the 2008 NCAA Final Four!

...

With the school winning the championship, the next morning, Zhang Yang and Felton joined Jordan in Orlando at the Amway Arena for interviews and short videos, congratulating North Carolina for their victory.

This wave of popularity, the three of them from the Bobcats overtly rode on, and no one could say anything against it, since all three are ’team legends’ with retired jerseys at North Carolina.

After riding the wave of the school’s popularity, Jordan said to the two younger teammates: "Get back to training, March Madness is over, now it’s time to focus on our own games."

With that, Jordan coolly turned and left without giving anyone a chance to provoke him.

This was purely misjudging someone’s motives, as Felton had no intention of provoking the owner at all, even fearing him greatly, wishing to avoid him altogether.

Moreover, Felton had already said similar things to Zhang Yang last night after watching the broadcast.

They still have 7 more games left to play, facing teams that, except for the Kings, are all in the top four of East and West divisions; getting 4 wins to challenge 60 victories and contest with the Pistons for second place in the East isn’t an easy feat!

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