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Chapter 380 - 177. Why does this slogan sound so familiar?_2

Chapter 380: 177. Why does this slogan sound so familiar?_2

After being selected as a starter for the All-Star game last season, Gerald Wallace was signed by Jordan for an average of 3 million US dollars a year, and being selected as a starter could net him an additional 1 million dollars, equivalent to one-third of his endorsement fee. How could he not be happy?

Although Okafor guessed the outcome and received Zhang Yang’s consolation, he was still somewhat upset. Fortunately, he rarely showed his emotions, so his three teammates couldn’t feel it.

The four of them talked about the last 4 games before the All-Star weekend and then went to have lunch together to celebrate Gerald Wallace being selected as an All-Star starter.

Even though they were divided into two factions within the team, they would still be happy for each other when it came to honors like this.

As for Zhang Yang also being selected as a starter, and moreover, having the second highest vote count in the entire league, the other three didn’t care too much.

With the precedent set by Yao Ming, as long as Zhang Yang was on the voting list and played decently, he was certain to start.

Unless Iverson didn’t leave the East or James was moved to guard, there was still a tiny bit of suspense.

...

On February 1st, a new month arrived, and today the Charlotte team would face their 49th regular-season game against the Pistons.

With the All-Star weekend holiday approaching, and after enduring a tough month, the players of the Charlotte team were all somewhat in the mindset of ’let’s just finish this week and go on holiday,’ lacking the focus they had before.

Before the start of the morning pre-game meeting, Felton actively motivated his teammates, leading the chant.

"We can’t give up halfway, stand firm till the last post!"

"Perseverance is victory, hold on to second place, strive for the first, we cannot slack off!"

"If we don’t try hard to play ball today, we’ll be working hard to find a game tomorrow!"

"..."

"..."

"After the last 4 games of the first half of the season, our All-Star starters, Gerald and Jack, will treat everyone to a trip to Las Vegas!"

The cameraman sent by the Imperial Court to Charlotte for long-term filming of Zhang Yang’s team life heard the slogan led by Felton and felt it strangely familiar?

The teammates chanted along for a while, but it wasn’t until the last sentence that they truly got excited.

Everything before was too empty; only the last sentence could really motivate them.

Of course, the words before were not useless; they knew what they had to do to be taken out by the two All-Star starters.

This was a method thought of by the four Charlotte core players before yesterday’s lunch to motivate their teammates.

The cost of treating teammates would be split between Zhang Yang and Gerald Wallace, and if Okafor successfully made the All-Star reserves, he too would receive a bonus from endorsements; then the cost would be split three ways.

Of course, they would definitely only cover the cost of travel, accommodation, dining, and entertainment. If the teammates wanted to spend money on gambling or other activities, they’d have to pay for it themselves, which everyone also understood.

Last year, some teammates went to Houston to watch the All-Star game, and Zhang Yang and Gerald Wallace also reimbursed them for their travel and accommodation.

By noon, the league announced the monthly awards for the new period.

No one from the Charlotte team expected the monthly award; last month they only had 10 wins and 7 losses, dropping from a record of 21 wins and 10 losses to 31 wins and 17 losses, which was quite a slide. From leading the Pistons by half a game on January 1st, today they fell behind by 2.5 games.

But the situation wasn’t what the Charlotte team’s players expected...

Rondo played an average of 23 minutes in January, in 17 games he got 6.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.1 steals, and won the Eastern Conference’s Rookie of the Month!

Zhang Yang averaged 36 minutes per game in January, playing 17 games and scoring 27.53 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.7 blocks, securing the Eastern Conference Player of the Month!

Rondo, Zhang Yang: With these stats, I actually got Player of the Month?

The two exchanged a look: You actually got the award!

They went to the locker room and checked the performance of other stars on the computer.

Well... both of them were indeed the best performers in their own tracks!

Adam Morrison, the top rookie in the East for November and December, played 13 games in January. Not only did he suffer from injuries, but his form also plummeted, averaging only 8.7 points and 3.3 rebounds, with a field goal percentage of just 30%, a significant drop from the previous two months where he averaged 18 points with a 44% field goal percentage and a 42% three-point percentage!

First overall pick Bargnani averaged 7.5 points, indicating a disappointing rookie season.

Apart from Bargnani and Adam Morrison, no other rookie in the ’06 class from the East could compare to Rondo.

The competition for Eastern Conference Player of the Month.

James had a rough January, mainly because the Cavaliers lost a lot of games, achieving 7 wins and 8 losses in 15 games, with a 5-5 record in the first 10 games and a losing streak in the last 5 games of the month, resulting in two three-game losing streaks for the month. The Cavaliers’ record had slipped from 18 wins and 14 losses in December to 25 wins and 22 losses.

The significant mid-season decline in the Cavaliers’ record was mainly due to injuries affecting Big Z and Hughes, with Big Z missing 4 games and Hughes missing 9 games, leading to a breakdown in the Cavaliers’ defense.

The Pistons and the Chicago Bulls had the best mid-season performances in the East, but neither had any standout individual players. Although their records were the best, they didn’t have as wide a margin over other Eastern Conference teams as the top three in the West did.

The Nets and the Wizards had stars with good personal stats, but both had winning rates below 50% in January.

Wade, on the other hand, was plagued by injuries in January...

The third-best performing team in the East, the Toronto Raptors, had a record of 10 wins and 5 losses in a month. Bosh also performed well personally, averaging 25.4 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 2 assists. He was the only competitor for Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang narrowly beat Bosh with 3 votes to become Eastern Conference Player of the Month.

Over in the West.

Roy received the Rookie of the Month award, playing 12 games averaging 15 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1 steal, with a 44% field goal percentage and a 38% three-point percentage—a very mature rookie from the get-go in the NBA.

Nash was named Player of the Month, playing 16 games with a record of 15 wins and 1 loss, averaging 18 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 13 assists, with a 55.4% field goal shooting, a 45.7% three-point shooting, and an 84% free throw percentage.

His competitors included Kobe, who had a good team record for the month; Nowitzki, whose team had the second-best league record; the Western Conference’s fastest-rising "Golden Duo"; and Duncan, who for the first time in his career achieved a 60% field goal percentage for a month.

Zhang Yang was astonished by Nash’s performance.

Teacher Nash really wants to compete with his old teammate for MVP! He’s playing so hard, almost 33 years old and averaging 40 minutes per game for the first time in his career, which is unprecedented for him—this is the run-and-gun style!

Although Nash’s free throw performance was slightly ’subpar’ this month, the sum of his shooting percentages still far exceeded 180. It’s simply impregnable.

The Suns weren’t just performing well in January; since Christmas, they’ve only lost one game. From December 26 to January 27, they went on an impressive 17-game winning streak, solidly outpacing the Mavericks, who had great season performance, pressuring them firmly.

Unfortunately, on the 28th against the Timberwolves in a back-to-back game, they were flipped by Garnett, who blazed 44 points and 11 rebounds, hindering the Suns from achieving an 18-game winning streak.

Speaking of the Mavericks, they also had a 12-game winning streak post-Christmas, but they encountered the Lakers in mid-January. Kobe didn’t play too aggressively that night, only shooting 20 times for 26 points, but the entire Mavericks team was watching him, and the Lakers easily ended the Mavericks’ 12-game winning streak.

With the Western Conference’s Nash, Nowitzki, Kobe, the Golden Duo, and Duncan vying so fiercely for Player of the Month, Zhang Yang looked at his own competition... and couldn’t help but feel cheap and coy. The less intense competitive environment made awards easier to win, benefiting his growth.

...