NOVPUBChapter 908: Chapter 550 The World of Important Figures_2 Chapter 908: Chapter 550 The World of Important Figures_2 In Durant’s heart, a rebellious mentality and the desire to be himself suddenly took over.
Then came their opponents, the Brooklyn Nets, who sent Howard into the game early in the second quarter, hoping to unleash his dominance as the league’s leading center.
It was an era of decline for centers and of traditions being discarded.
Howard’s arch-nemesis, Yao Ming, had become a center who primarily shot from the outside, with low-post plays as a secondary option.
When centers were required to step out, their rebounding numbers dropped. With the Timberwolves’ number two draft pick, Greg Oden, who was once claimed to have more talent than Durant, out for the season early on due to another ACL injury, the league’s talent at center was in jeopardy.
The traditionally-minded Howard was the only center currently averaging 20+ points and 10+ rebounds per game.
Yet things did not go as the Nets had hoped.
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Because the SuperSonics had fielded DeAndre Jordan, someone who could rival Howard in explosiveness, match him physically, but far less so in strength.
A repeater at the summer workshop opened by Hakeem Olajuwon called the “Dream Workshop,” Howard tried to execute the dream shake on DeAndre Jordan.
Yu Fei didn’t understand it, but was deeply impressed.
Sometimes he truly didn’t understand what those centers, who couldn’t execute a hook shot or a turnaround jumper, spent all day learning post-fade moves for.
Really, if you create a body’s distance, can you execute a hook shot or a follow-through jump shot?
Howard wasn’t completely lacking in technique. Really given the chance to squeeze to the basket, relying on his extremely developed upper body strength and non-human shoulder width, his hook shot near the basket was accurate.
But once he couldn’t reach the basket, he was out of options.
DeAndre Jordan was just a main rotation player for the SuperSonics, but the strength he displayed in the few minutes matched against Howard was enough to surprise everyone.
“Why do I say Seattle’s four consecutive championships are unstoppable?” ESPN’s Jeff Van Gundy said, “DeAndre Jordan is already the most talented young center in the league, yet he plays as a backup in Seattle. That’s the reason they will succeed—the SuperSonics have unsurpassed depth in their lineup.”
Even though DeAndre Jordan was more counter-current than Howard, it remained an era in decline for centers.
The space age demands from centers are clear: switch defenses, protect the rim, and shoot threes.
If DeAndre Jordan didn’t continue to gain weight, his speed could handle switching defenses, protecting the rim was his strong point, three-point shooting was his only real weakness.
Having two excellent strengths was enough to make him a star center of this era.
Such potential would not be obscured by being a backup, especially for a team like the SuperSonics that was scrutinized under a magnifying glass.
Therefore, DeAndre Jordan was bound to receive a max contract offer next summer.
At that time, the financial decisions that the SuperSonics, already frightfully over the cap, would make next were foreseeable.
Basketball began to lose its joy; Howard didn’t expect that he couldn’t even compete against a backup.
The Nets quickly substituted in Paul to soothe Howard’s mood.
With Paul on the court, Howard didn’t have to struggle with backcourt plays.
But the SuperSonics had also brought Yu Fei back in.
After coming back on, Yu Fei immediately implemented a strategy of double-teaming Paul.
After initial discomfort, Paul was able to steadily find open teammates.
Under Yu Fei’s leadership, the SuperSonics relentlessly attacked the Nets’ weaker side, thereby creating opportunities for outside shots.
The veteran Grant Hill was one of the surprises that evening. He was the starting player with the worst tactical treatment in the entire league, few playing minutes, and even fewer shooting opportunities, something the Nets had also counted on, frequently leaving him open.
Hill was perhaps the purest spirit within the SuperSonics. He was just chasing championships. As long as he could win a championship, he could give up anything. Team? Status? Playing time? None of that mattered.
In the 90s, he had unmatched star power, capable of being a top five player in the league during his peak seasons. Yet, how many people remember him now? What was the most significant mark Hill left on basketball history? In the winter of 2001, he became the stepping stone for Frye’s rise.
Such memories are cruel, also helpless, but this is the price paid for being linked to historical greatness.
When he came to Seattle, he found that his long-worn number 33 already had an owner. The owner of number 33 for the SuperSonics was Alonzo Gee.
Gee was willing to give up the number, but Hill didn’t accept, because he was no longer that number 33.
Therefore, he chose number 3. This meant that he was now only half of what he used to be.
The splendid early days and the decline of his later career allowed Hill to accept any outcome. He was now just an old player exploiting the residual heat, then starting to make things difficult for New Jerseyans.
He scored a three from the arch, followed by a sideline three, and finally a simple corner three; he made two in a row.
Throughout the second quarter, if one only followed the text broadcast, then fans would only remember one thing: Frye broke through and passed to Hill, Hill took a three-point shot, hit. 𝖓𝔬𝖛𝔭𝔲𝖇.𝔠𝔬𝖒
With an average three-point shooting percentage of only 36%, Hill scored 6 out of 6 from downtown in the second quarter tonight, scoring 18 points in a single quarter, nearly managing to turn the game into garbage time all by himself.
If it weren’t for Paul and Anthony scoring critical points on their own at crucial moments, the suspense of the game would have vanished before halftime.
At halftime, Hill’s face wore a smile, as time seemed to have reversed by 20 years.
The talented young star from Duke University had returned.
Yu Fei asked, “Grant, basketball is fun, isn’t it?”
