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Chapter 352 - 166. Jordan: Is this what I mean by shooting well?

Chapter 352: 166. Jordan: Is this what I mean by shooting well?

Everyone has their double standards, and Nash was somewhat displeased with Zhang Yang after Raja Bell was beaten and carried off the court last night.

After the game last night, when he returned to the hotel and was alone, his displeasure with Zhang Yang quickly faded, as he couldn’t understand Bell’s malicious foul no matter how he thought about it.

As a player who had been on the receiving end of dirty plays, ever since Bell intentionally tripped Chris Paul last season causing Paul to get injured, Nash had taken a disliking to this teammate.

But this teammate was a good shooter, averaging 2+ three-pointers per game with a shooting percentage over 40%, and was also good on defense... Nash couldn’t bear to let him go.

When alone, one discovers the despicable side of oneself, and Nash was no exception.

Latter, he thought about how Zhang Yang first stopped the brawl from happening and then went after Bell, targeting only the person who committed the foul. He shared the same thought with the fans—this kid is responsible.

That’s why he snuck to the hospital to visit Zhang Yang alone this morning.

Originally, the chances of getting Zhang Yang to Phoenix in the future at best were about 10%, now probably only 1%. Nash had no hope for it now, but making a friend was still possible, right?

Not dragging friends down when doing bad things, just this alone, made it worth befriending him.

Zhang Yang, on the other hand, was surprised that Nash came to visit. He thought at most there would be a phone call, or maybe even a temporary halt in their interactions to avoid affecting team dynamics.

He didn’t think there was anything wrong with that. After all, a person’s own interests are naturally more important than others’.

He didn’t expect Nash to actually visit him in the hospital... off-season training invitation?

Zhang Yang had been envious of Nash’s solo plays the night before.

When Nash wanted to leave the Suns, he could try to recruit him. Even a thirty-eight or forty-year-old Nash leading the second unit in a fast break wouldn’t be a problem, would it?

In the afternoon, the Suns released information on Bell’s injuries.

Several teeth were knocked out but were put back in place, his face was swollen, but there were no serious issues, and the swelling would go down in a few days. He had a concussion and needed to rest for one to two weeks, depending on the recovery.

The Bobcats had announced Zhang Yang’s injuries in the morning.

Seeing that Bell only suffered minor injuries, not even as severe as the throat lock Zhang Yang received, netizens cursed Zhang Yang for not hitting harder.

Others reasoned that it wasn’t worth it to deal with someone like that and that what really got hurt with Bell was his dignity.

After committing a malicious foul, being slapped unconscious in retaliation wasn’t something you see in the NBA or in sports worldwide - it was a unique occurrence that would go down in sports history.

After both teams announced the injuries, the league held a press conference where Stern angrily denounced Bell’s throat lock and Zhang Yang’s retaliatory punching; Bell received a 3-game suspension and a $20,000 fine while Zhang Yang received a 6-game suspension with a $50,000 fine.

Upon hearing the news, Zhang Yang wasn’t surprised; a maximum of a 7-game suspension was expected, since his method of retaliation was quite peculiar, after all... but the combination of suspension and fine really hurt, as he wouldn’t receive his salary during the suspension.

After the first physiotherapy session in the afternoon, Zhang Yang was discharged from the hospital. The next day, after getting the doctor’s consent, he wore protective gear on his shoulder and neck and practiced passing and dribbling with one hand.

Seeing Zhang Yang training despite his condition, his teammates were no longer worried about his injuries and felt inspired.

The day before, when Zhang Yang stopped them from clashing with the opposition and went to hit Bell alone, some teammates were dissatisfied, like Felton who gave a little brother a kick in the butt.

But some were relieved. At that moment, most of the players from both sides had rushed onto the court, shoving continuously, and even the referees were knocked over. If a fight had really broken out, who knows what would have happened, with suspensions, fines... it all meant money!

The ’Big Brother Group’ in the Bobcats gained significant prestige within the team, overshadowing the Struggle Group.

In the evening, Zhang Yang went to his parents’ place to watch the live broadcast of his teammates’ game against the Lakers, as he wasn’t allowed at the game site due to his suspension.

The Bobcats had a tough time in this game.

With the full lineup, their strength was definitely a notch above the Lakers, but without Zhang Yang, losing a high-post playmaker and the team’s leading scorer, the offense started off poorly.

Kwame Brown and Bynum started together, two agile and heavy centers weighing over 120 kilograms each, made Okafor, Gerald Wallace, and Millsap look ineffective.

The sophomore Bynum began to show his talent, averaging 16 minutes per season with 6.4 points, 4 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks. His most notable strength was stability and ball-handling in one-on-one plays, having a remarkably low turnover rate for a center who handles the ball.

Kobe scored 16 points in the first quarter alone, leading the Lakers to a score of 30 to 18.

However, the situation changed in the second quarter. Felton erupted, successively hitting three-pointers off screens and turning around outside the arc, making 3 out of 4 three-pointers that quarter. Under his lead, Matt Carroll made all four of his three-pointers in the quarter, and Gerald Wallace also scored an open three-pointer, giving the Bobcats a record-breaking 8 successful three-pointers in the quarter, tying the game at halftime with the Lakers.

The emboldened Bobcats played the third quarter to a score of 25 to 26 against the Lakers and the fourth quarter at 20 to 19. After regular time, the score was tied at 105 to 105, and the game went into overtime... resulting in three overtimes.

The first overtime ended at 8 to 8, the second overtime at 7 to 7; the Lakers’ 7 points in the second overtime were all scored by Kobe alone. By the third overtime, Kobe couldn’t keep up anymore, failing to score and ending the game with 58 points.