Chapter 84: [Experts are not optimistic about the road opener]

The Lakers coaching staff determined the 15-man roster for the new season, and the injured Fisher also occupied a place.
Centers: Shaker O'Neal, Greg Foster.
Power forwards: Mark Madsen, Horace Grant, Robert Horry, Medvedenko.
Small forwards: Rick Fox, Devin George.
Shooting guards: Kobe Bryant, Bryant Shaw, Isaiah Leder, Mike Pampsey.
Point guards: Guo Xu, Ron Harper, Derek Fisher.
The media collectively looked at the declining Lakers, and ESPN pointed out their three major flaws.
First, the Lakers are the old No. 4 who is little and lacks athletic ability. Robert Horry was injured in the preseason and will miss the opener against the Blazers.
Second, the offensive end is too dependent on Kobe and O'Neal singles, lacking a third attacker, Isaiah Leder is not suitable for triangle offense, and the bench attack is particularly weak.
The third is that the Lakers have a fatal weakness in position 1. In addition to two guest appearances in position 1, a veteran of the guard who is not good at breaking through, there is only the last rookie Jason Guo. He seems unable to adapt to the rhythm of the NBA. The defender is easy to be targeted on the court, just like Tyron Lu.
Now the media generally believe that Guo Xu's strength is overestimated. The summer league played well because of the poor overall level this year and low defense intensity. On the NBA's official website, fans also have little hope for Guo Xu.
If he has the strength, why has he been a marginal man in the preseason?
Everyone likes to think about the bad side. He may have an offensive instability, poor performance during training, or his defense is too poor and he will be hit on the court. No one thought it was because of Leidel, who was dissatisfied with the ball's right, and Jackson hid Guo Xu, preparing to let him be the secret weapon of the opener.
A reporter in Charlotte specifically interviewed the Hornets general manager Bob Bass. This time he did not talk badly about Guo Xu. The old man is 70 years old and has poor mental capacity. He does not want to fall twice in the same place.
The one who knows you best is not your friend, but your enemy.
Bob Bass would like to watch Guo Xu's joke, but he anticipates that things are not so simple. Those who can break the summer league scoring record, if they must focus on training in the Hornets, they can never be only marginal people.
Negative evaluation has indirectly helped Guo Xu. Jackson has decided to reuse him in the next quarter to speed up the offensive rhythm. The Lakers can't rely on the OK combination to attack. Others must stand up.
The Bulls have won three consecutive championships. Jordan and Pippen have played a lot of time, but the role players are equally critical. Jackson likes to let the core play more. Other players share their playing time. On the surface, their data is very common. In fact, the playing time combined with the data is not inferior to the opponent's star.
No. 1 Jackson has no choice but to use Guo Xu. With Fisher's long absence, Harper and Brian Shaw's offensive stats may not add up to an ordinary starter.
Guo Xu was hidden in the preseason. Training Jackson always let him play his special skills.
As long as Guo Xu, Leder, George, Horry, and Madsen play together, the offense is not bad, not only can quickly counterattack, but also open the space to open the pick and roll offense, they have a good defense on the outside and they will not be easily hit burst.
After three weeks of running-in, Leder was no longer troubled. He admitted that Guo Xu was more suitable for holding the ball. When he counterattacked, he received a pass and could attack. The position battle opened and other opportunities. However, the hit rate is guaranteed.
Jackson also tried to make veteran Foster as a backup center, playing better pick-and-roll effect, but his speed, confrontation, rebound control ability is not as good as Madsen.
Foster is the NBA's famous "soft egg" insider. He has been a substitute since entering the league in 1990, averaging 12 minutes per game.
He is 211cm tall and weighs 109kg. He has experienced two finals with the Jazz. He is good at helping his teammates to cover and create opportunities. He has a good field goal percentage and occasionally shows three points. Last season, he made 5 three-pointers and 2 of 5 playoff three-pointers.
After training on the afternoon of the 29th, Jackson asked Guo Xu to talk alone.
"I plan to increase your playing time in the regular season. How long you play depends on how well you play, how to control the rhythm on the offensive end, and be determined to break through. On the defensive end, I don't need you to make up for defense and assist defense. Especially after the cover, chase and defend quickly. I hope you can share the core pressure, understand? "
"Understand, I promise to complete the task." Guo Xu paid a military salute to Jackson.
Jackson was amused and patted his back. "Don't practice further tomorrow, we have to catch the plane at night, don't be late."
"Okay, thank you coach."
The Lakers challenged the Blazers in their first game away. In this era, David Stern has already made the gimmick of the rival showdown. The Blazers were reversed and eliminated by the Lakers in the last quarter last season, and the players were holding back their vengeance.
On the evening of the 30th, Guo Xu rushed to the airport after dinner, and boarded the team's "Sky One" special plane with his teammates.
The benefits of players playing in big cities are not just exposure. They are also more comfortable when playing away from home. It is important to know that NBA games often fly across several time zones. Poor player rest will affect their performance. Not all teams have special planes, and most teams use charter flights to fly away games.
This black plane from the Lakers was modified ~ EbookFREE.me ~ The seats are spacious and comfortable. After the aircraft is powered on, the seats are in Jincancan's color, which is very gorgeous and corresponds exactly to the Zijin Army.
The inside of the special plane adopts the ring seat design. There is no problem with eating a lunch on the table and putting a cup. The folded part can be spread out to form a large table for players to play poker for a while.
There is a small locker between the sofa and the backing template on the back. There are toilet paper in it. Things like the Walkman can be temporarily placed inside. On the other side is the first-aid kit. The staff is fully prepared.
Guo Xu sat with Mad Dog Madson and talked about the game all the way.
Information about opponent players. Scouts are sent to players before boarding the plane. The coaching staff hopes that everyone can understand their opponents, even the substitutes should carefully read the information, it is best to watch the game video.
Madson looked excited, saying: "Hopefully I can fight for a while, don't make me powerful and useless, I think I can deal with Rashid Wallace."
Madson is eager to play, eager to confront. Guo Xu found that this man was really a lunatic. When he was training in the team, he was often arranged to defend O'Neal alone. He was very excited about this.
His playing style is very similar to Guo Xu's 198CM center Chuck Hayes of the previous Rockets, but he is taller than Hayes. Madsen's non-offensive blue-collar can mix for 9 seasons in the league, it has to be said to be a miracle. His offensive end is not as good as Hayes. Haiye can occasionally show tosses and free throws. At the peak, he also responded to the pass and made three doubles.
After reading the information, Guo Xu felt that he had a chance to explode. The Trail Blazers' starting and backup point guards are all similar in size to his body. He is not afraid of this kind of guard, even if it is "Little Flying Squirrel" Damon Stardam Yeah.