The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball-Chapter 602 - 294 "This Will Be My Last Season" - Kobe_2

Hmm, it certainly wasn’t James who said that.

Considering his struggles over the years, the media mostly took his words as a joke now.

The "Chosen One," who had played in the League for 12 years and whose "court" had moved three times in the past five years, had become something of a laughingstock as the "nomadic king."

That statement came from Kobe.

Kobe said in front of everyone,

"This will be my last season in the NBA."

As soon as these words were out, the whole venue erupted into chaos.

Reporters knew Kobe was nearing retirement age, but this decision was just too abrupt!

Hansen was also surprised when he ended the interview and saw the news on his phone alert.

He remembered that Kobe indeed had started his retirement tour this season.

But that was Kobe after the Achilles rupture, after the serious injury.

The current Kobe was still relatively healthy, and his level last season was even above that of most All-Stars; he wasn’t top 5, but his top 10 strength was still there.

If he played normally, Kobe could probably play until 40 without a problem.

Hansen sat down courtside.

After pondering for a while, he went from initial astonishment to understanding why Kobe would say such a thing.

For Kobe, this season, win or lose, he had no reason to continue.

If he won, Kobe would achieve 6＞5, and he would lose his biggest motivation to keep fighting.

And if he lost, he wouldn’t have the face to keep playing.

Because forming an epic Big Three, as Wade had once told Hansen, was a choice with no way out.

So, against that backdrop, Kobe choosing to say this at this time was to boost morale, much like Riley’s earlier maneuvers.

Of course, more effectively.

It was as if to say, listen up, both James and Love, this is my last season, your last chance!

One could foresee that the new season’s Kobe would be unprecedentedly severe and unbridled.

Such a Kobe, up against the peak Curry, just thinking about it, one could foresee how intense the sparks would be in the new season of The West.

However, this approach amounted to burning the last of the energy inside his body, and after that, there would be no more Kobe.

As an opponent who had faced him many times on the court, Hansen had many emotions.

"Boss, what’s wrong?" Conningham came over and asked, seeing Hansen’s expression.

"Nothing, just remembering some things," Hansen shook his head.

He truly was remembering some things.

Because this season wasn’t just Kobe’s last, if nothing unexpected happened, that first generation barber, the one he called "the number one player in the League," Duncan, would also face his last season.

However, Duncan was different from Kobe; he’d be the one to quietly walk away after everything was done, quitting silently as he had throughout his career.

No, not just Duncan.

Garnett, still with the Cavaliers, probably faced his last season as well.

Unlike Kobe and Duncan, it was his age that arrived.

For most players, once you’re past 40, unless you’re on steroids, it’s truly hard to keep playing.

It seemed that the new season wouldn’t just have formidable opponents, but it would also carry extra significance due to these old guys’ last dance.

After thinking about this, Hansen’s face didn’t show sadness, but was lit with a strong fighting spirit.

Whether it was Kobe or Duncan, or even Garnett, they were the old-school players who fought to the very last moment.

They needed not pity, but a fierce and exhilarating battle.

So, in such a unique season, there would be no better farewell gift than to defeat them one by one!

In fact, while Hansen was reflecting, social media had also exploded.

Even though Kobe was no longer the number one player in the League, fans who had grown accustomed to his presence found such an outcome difficult to accept.

Many players also expressed their incredible surprise and regret at Kobe’s choice.

Even some of the team officials had already expressed plans to hold tribute ceremonies for Kobe at away games, as a gift to send him off.

Kobe’s career wasn’t as legendary as Jordan’s and was even marred by off-the-court controversy, but judging from these reactions, his performance on the court had earned him the respect he deserved in this era.

It was a kind of respect that was far more weighty than any demanded from others.

Time quickly moved to the end of October.

The NBA preseason games all came to an end.

For the Cavaliers, the biggest gain from the preseason was Joki.

As a rookie, the Cavaliers’ management initially positioned Joki as the team’s third center.

Judging from Joki’s media day interview, he seemed to think the same.

But after the preseason games, he had completely squeezed out Hawes, becoming the primary backup in the paint.

To put it in simple terms, everything Hawes could do, Joki could generally do, and he could also do what Hawes couldn’t.

More specifically, Hawes was skilled at three-point shooting and passing, both of which Joki had -- with slightly weaker three-point shooting but a super-enhanced version of passing.

And the low-post offense that Hawes didn’t have was also Joki’s forte.

Of course, Joki had also revealed many issues during the preseason.

He now lacked match experience and was easily drawn into foul trouble.

Plus, the quality of his pick-and-roll wasn’t high, often resulting in him slipping out too early, leaving the ball-handler trapped.

These issues needed to be addressed through more game play.

But all in all, after the preseason, Griffin had to revise his assessment of Hansen’s "people-reading" ability.

To put it bluntly, aside from Hansen, no one thought Joki could reach this level in just a year.

The Cavaliers got him for just the 28th pick, which was practically a steal.

Following the end of the preseason, the League’s official (Stan) traditionally ranked the teams’ strengths for the new season.

After last year’s experience, Hansen didn’t pay attention to this list.

It wasn’t until they finished training for the day, as he was sitting on the sidelines resting and discussing some pick-and-roll details with Joki, that Conningham brought it up.

"Boss, they actually only ranked us fifth!" Conningham said with a face full of indignation, as the Cavaliers had knocked out the Heat Team and made it to the finals last season!

"Are we ranked that high?" However, Joki’s unexpected remark made Hansen laugh.

Joki was a rookie, unaware of what happened last season, and his personality wasn’t the kind to actively seek out such information.

"Want to guess which teams are ahead of us?" Hansen turned to ask.

"Spare me!" Joki immediately raised his hands in surrender, as he still wasn’t clear on the players and teams.

"What were we ranked last year?" he then curiously asked.

"Tenth, but with your addition, we’ve moved up to fifth," Hansen said.

Joki was taken aback by this and scratched his head, "Am I that strong?"

Conningham couldn’t help but bring his hand to his forehead. freewebnσvel.cѳm

He went on to mention the four teams ranked ahead of the Cavaliers: the Lakers, Heat, Warriors, and Rockets.

In fact, that still seemed reasonable, except...

"Bosh is healthy again?"

If Hansen remembered correctly, Bosh had retired due to blood clots, right?

"Yeah, he played three games in the preseason, and he looked pretty good," Conningham nodded.

Hansen listened in surprise; this was truly unexpected.

Butterfly effect?

No, it was more likely his memory was off.

This kind of career-ending condition wouldn’t just disappear because you play in a different place.

Nevertheless, the rankings were just for fun; last season’s finalists were the tenth-ranked Cavaliers and the twelfth-ranked Warriors.

Speaking of which, the Cavaliers’ opening game this year was against the Warriors.

Moreover, this should be Hansen’s second time witnessing a championship ring ceremony as a non-home team player.

Last season he still got a ring, but this season, it was a genuine witnessing—and against the team that had defeated them last time.

Thinking back to what Green said during last season’s championship parade, it really fired one up!

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