Chapter 69 [Record Breaking MVP! Is There a Mistake? ! 】
Before the start of the fourth game, Lakers owner Jerry Buss personally called the team coach Kurt Rambis and asked him to guarantee Guo Xu's playing time.
Since the old Bass took over the Lakers in 1979, the Lakers have rapidly grown into the most commercially valuable and successful team in the league. His vision is very clever, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magician, O'Neal, Kobe and others have all blossomed in the Lakers shine. Now, the old Bass has become interested in Guo Xu again, and is optimistic about his commercial value.
Part of Guo Xu's commercial value comes from his Chinese identity, and the other part is the last rookie title he wants. With these two halos, he attracted a lot of media, and became the most exposed rookie in the 2000 class, surpassing the No. 1 pick Kenyon Martin who was recovering from his injury and did not play in the summer league.
Old Bass is willing to contribute to the flames and help Guo Xu further enhance his commercial value and achieve a win-win situation.
Statistics show that in the United States, more than half (57.6%) of Chinese people live in New York (19.2%) and California (38.4%). Although not all Chinese are in Los Angeles, this does not prevent them from liking Guo Xu and supporting the Lakers.
As long as Guo Xu puts up super data in the summer league and the management promotes him again in the summer, the Lakers will be even more popular in the new season. In addition to the OK combination, there will be new highlights.
Guo Xu has absolute privileges, and it is difficult for others to show off.
John Celestand, who averaged just 15 minutes per game, left Long Beach in a huff, refusing to play the next two games for the Lakers. The Lakers coaching staff didn't say polite words to keep them, and let them fend for themselves.
In fact, John is lucky, but he does not know how to be satisfied and grateful. He didn't make the playoff roster last season and won a championship ring, which is an honor that most players can't get in their lifetime.
In the fourth game, the Lakers defeated the 76ers 101 to 85.
Guo Xu played against Speedy Claxton, the 20th overall pick in the first round, and scored 30 points, 11 assists and 3 steals in 36 minutes.
Speedy only had 7 points and 3 assists. Not only was he entangled by Guo Xu, but he also left the game with a sprained knee in the third quarter. He was unable to stand in pain after a forced layup and was taken directly to the hospital.
What's even more sad is that after the game, no one cared about Spidey's injury. The sports media and online fans all raised a question-why did Spidey rank ahead of Jason Guo in the draft?
Compared with age, Speedy was born on May 8, 1978, three and a half years older than Guo Xu.
In terms of stature, Speedy is 180cm tall and weighs 75kg, which is similar to Guo Xu, but he is obviously at a disadvantage in the confrontation.
Compared with technology, Speedy is good at speed, a little faster than Guo Xu, but his offense depends on breakthroughs, and his mid-range and long-range shots are unacceptable. Guo Xu puts two steps away to defend and break through. Dare to shoot.
Compared with the record, the Flying Dutchman team led by Speedy was eliminated by the University of Oklahoma in the first round of this year's NCAA tournament.
After the comparison, it was found that Guo Xu was disadvantaged only in skin color, while Speedy was black and shiny, which made the scouts think he was awesome.
The next day, the 76ers officially announced that Spidey needed surgery for a serious knee injury and would be reimbursed for his rookie season. The two sides have signed a four-year 4.68 million rookie contract, and 76ers fans have expressed dissatisfaction, feeling that it is a big loss.
In the last game of the Lakers against the Spurs, Rambis arranged for the whole team to help Guo Xu create opportunities and let him let go.
Guo Xu lived up to expectations, and severely cleaned up the Spurs' two second-round rookies, Corey Hightower and Chris Carravel.
Hightower is an international player, a point guard with a height of 190cm and a weight of 88kg. He averaged only 6.3 points and 4 assists per game, rarely took shots, and the offensive end was too selfless. On the defensive end, he moves slowly, can't keep up with smaller guards, and has obvious weaknesses.
Chris Caravel is a top student at Duke University.
He was named the best player in the Atlantic Coast League this season. He has range and rebounds, but he moves very slowly. He is a colander in pick-and-roll defense, and Guo Xu broke into a sieve.
Guo Xu scored 37 points, 10 assists and 2 steals, leading the team to beat the Spurs 101 to 82, ending the summer league journey with a record of victory.
He averaged 36 minutes per game, scored 35.4 points, 1.6 rebounds, 11 assists, 1.6 steals, 4.2 fouls and 3 turnovers. He shot 56.4% from the field, 46% from three-point range, and 90% from free throws.
His scoring average created a record in the history of the summer league, with 45 points, 42 points, and 37 points taking the top three points in a single game in the history of the summer league. He was elected the Long Beach League MVP without any suspense, leading the best team.
Reporters who followed the Lakers game all had a feeling after knowing Guo Xu's statistics-is there a mistake? !
Iverson failed to average 30+ per game in the summer league, and Guo Xu did it. He is not the No. 1 pick, not a lottery pick, but the last rookie. Is this the rhythm that will make the scouts of the other 28 teams resign collectively?
Guo Xu's record of this kind of data is caused by many factors.
One is that he has strength, he dares to shoot, and he is in good condition; the other is that his teammates are not good at attacking with the ball, and no one competes with him for possession of the ball. He has an average possession rate of more than 40% of the ball per game; the third is luck. There are no masters in the league, and the overall level is a lot worse than in 1996, and the statistics are easy to brush.
In any case, he has created a terrifying record, and this achievement is enough to become a household name in Los Angeles.
Guo Xu did not accept any exclusive interviews from reporters after the game. He briefly talked about his impressions, and then said according to the requirements of the management: "If you want to interview me, wait for the press conference when I officially join the Lakers. Answer every question carefully."
The Lakers are preparing to sign contracts with a number of rookies, and they will show off their jerseys for the new season together. Madsen, Medvedenko and others can take advantage of Guo Xu's record-breaking enthusiasm and facilitate publicity.
The next day, the major media in North America were full of Guo Xu's news. Los Angeles reported the most positively. He made the headlines of the Los Angeles Sports News. The article described him as "the last rising star", saying that he completed the counterattack in five games.
Fans on the Internet had a heated discussion. Some people said that he will become a big player in the future, some people said that he is just a stat brush, and some people laughed at the Hornets, saying that they missed another star.
Kupchak reported to boss Jerry Buss with the data sheet in the morning, and sighed: "I am going to provide Jason Guo with a 1+1 contract and a team option for the second year. I am sorry that I made a mistake. Should have taken him with the No. 29 pick in the first round, so he could have signed him to the maximum four-year rookie contract."
Jerry Buss shook his head and said with a smile: "It's not your fault. Who would have thought that he could do this before? If he didn't intend to join the Lakers, we wouldn't have chosen him at all. Since he likes the Lakers, the two We will have a way to keep him after the next year."
Kupchak nodded and analyzed: "He is very economical. In Los Angeles, his commercial value is greater and his exposure rate is higher. I will use this to find a way."
Renewing a player's contract is not an easy task. With the OK combination, the overall salary of the Lakers is already very high. Even if they want to keep Guo Xu in the middle class, they will have to trade Derek Fisher away in the future.
Buss said with a smile: "Let's do this first. What you have to consider now is signings to help the Lakers defend their title and build a dynasty. Jason Guo is confident that he can do it. We must complete it."