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Chapter 450 MVP Battle

In order to develop a tacit understanding, the Timberwolves experimented with a lot of lineups in the preseason, which also made their record look mediocre, with a total of only 3 wins and 4 losses.But McHale doesn't think there is any problem with this. As the defending champion, the Timberwolves don't need to prove themselves through the preseason. It is more important to let the players have a chemical reaction.

After training camp and preseason inspections, McHale determined the Timberwolves' starting lineup for the new season.Rubio and Xu Hao are still partnered in the backcourt, with Kirilenko at the third position, and Love and DeAndre Jordan in the paint.The team's main rotation players include Ridnour, Shved, Ellington, Korver, Milicic and Pekovic. For a team with a very young main lineup, the 11-man rotation It's enough, and the others can only be regarded as marginal figures on the team.

In fact, in the NBA, any team is like this. There are stars on the roster, there are role players, there are also marginal people and water fountain watchers.The latter two kinds of people may be abandoned by the team at any time. They all need to prove themselves in a limited time before they can continue to stay. Otherwise, they can only be sent to the Development League for leveling up, and then wait for the team to call.

With Xu Hao in charge, the Timberwolves quickly showed their super strength. After the start of the regular season, they directly started their eight-game winning streak. They didn't encounter Ellis' breakthrough layup until the away game against the Warriors.But after that, the Timberwolves quickly regrouped, regained the rhythm of winning, and always maintained the top position in the Western Conference, leading the league in record.

For Xu Hao, there is no need to pay too much attention to the team's record. Unless he suddenly encounters a terrible wave of injuries, the top three in the Western Conference will not run at the end of the regular season. What he needs to do now is to improve his competitiveness.So far Xu Hao has won the All-Star Game MVP and the Finals MVP, and there is one regular season MVP left for him to fight for.

To be honest, as the best player on the best team in the league, Xu Hao has a big advantage in the MVP battle.Needless to say the team's record, the Timberwolves, who have completed the run-in, have been advancing all the way. No team can threaten their No. [-] position in the Western Conference, and Xu Hao's personal statistics are also very good, ranking among the top ten in the league in scoring and assists.

Every week, the NBA officially announces the new MVP rankings. Xu Hao is in the second or third place most of the time, and it is naturally James who has always maintained the top spot.Perhaps stimulated by the loss in the Finals last season, James has shown excellent form since the beginning of the season, averaging 29+9+8 quasi-triple-doubles per game.

With the Timberwolves' player configuration, it is very easy for Xu Hao to hit a triple-double in some games, but it is almost impossible to achieve a triple-double like James.First of all, their positions are different. James is a strong wing who can swing up to the [-]th or even [-]th position. Xu Hao is just a combo guard. He can play as a small forward at most, and the Timberwolves have Love and Jordan. He is a good rebounder, and it is not his turn to grab rebounds in the game.

If he wants to match James in terms of statistics, the best way for Xu Hao is to get assists.The Timberwolves have many scoring points, and they all have a certain finishing ability. Although there is Rubio who takes assists as his own responsibility, Xu Hao can also average 8.7 assists per game.However, this is not enough. Xu Hao's goal is to average double figures in assists per game, which will make him more competitive.

With the team's record and excellent personal data, Xu Hao was selected to this year's Western Conference All-Star team without any surprises. However, this time he did not over-display his strength, but created opportunities for his teammates in a very low-key manner.

As the coach of the Western All-Stars, McHale was very puzzled by the choice of his favorite disciple. In his opinion, the All-Stars are a stage to display their talents wantonly. Since Xu Hao has such strength, he should show it openly.

However, Xu Hao said to him during the intermission: "Coach, I don't have any pursuit of All-Stars anymore. A title like MVP of the All-Star Game can be won once in the whole career. To improve the historical status, you only need to be selected. That's all, I don't have too many requirements for personal performance in the game. Instead of continuing to grab the limelight, it's better to give the opportunity to show your face to others. This is the concept of our Chinese people. Sometimes you don't need to show your sharpness, and a low profile is king."

That's what Xu Hao said, and he did the same.He played 25 minutes in the whole game, scored 5 points in only 12 shots, but at the same time sent a game-high 17 assists to help the Western All-Stars beat the Eastern Conference 163-148.In the end, the All-Star MVP of this session was awarded to Durant. The lanky forward scored 42 points and 8 rebounds.

The All-Star Weekend is just a proper short vacation for Xu Hao, and his focus is still on the regular season.After more than half of the season, Xu Hao has firmly ranked the top two in the official MVP list, and occasionally rushed to the first place when James was in a bad state.In the odds list of the gaming company, the odds of the two of them are almost the same. Obviously, even the gaming company finds it difficult to choose. It is still unknown who will win the heaviest prize in the end.

Perhaps it is the intentional design of the league. The fifth last game of the Timberwolves in the regular season is against the Heat, which is also considered a preview of the finals.The last time the two sides played against each other, James was absent due to injury, and Wade and Bosh scored 63 points together, but still could not prevent the Timberwolves from retreating from the away game. However, this is not a direct dialogue between the two MVP candidates.

More importantly, the records of the two teams are ranked first in the East and West respectively. This is undoubtedly a veritable pinnacle battle.Whoever can perform better and lead the team to victory, Xu Hao or James, will be able to take the initiative in the battle.

Before the game started, it had already been hyped up by the major media, and Xu Hao VS James was the focus of attention.In an interview, James took the lead. He said: "The last time the Timberwolves were able to win on our turf, it was mainly because I could only sit on the sidelines in a suit. This time they can't even think about winning on us. "

Originally, Xu Hao didn't intend to respond, he was used to speaking with his own performance.But at the instigation of his teammates, he still accepted an interview with the local media in Minnesota, and said to reporters: "The absence of LeBron last time did reduce the difficulty for us to win, but this does not mean that we do not have enough strength. I I heard that all their players have remained healthy this time, which is good, and I will prove with my teammates who is the best team in the league!"

(End of this chapter)