Chapter 258: Victory in IQ
When the atmosphere on the court was harmonious, the three commentators from ESPN Sports Channel, which exclusively broadcast the All-Star Game, also commented on Yang Mo's crazy performance.
"Yang now has the potential to be the top star in the NBA. I feel like he is even more famous than LeBron James." Hollins started the conversation first.
At this time, Chris Webber next to him took over the conversation. He said very seriously: "In terms of popularity, Yang is indeed the top star. But in fact, most of his popularity comes from outside the court. His fans either gathered because of his life-threatening battles in Miami or because of his scandals with so many female stars. Basketball has become secondary. In terms of basketball skills, he may only be considered a second-rate star. Among the ten starting players, he should be the weakest."
"Well, Yang has too much spotlight on him now. He is more like an idol, similar to Beckham in football, and is loved by everyone. However, his ability on the court is not enough to match his super popularity." Reggie Miller also said it very conservatively. Ever since the last time he brought his family and stuttered to Chris Webber, the friendship between the two has become closer.
"But he scored 101 points last night, which is the highest single-game score in NBA history." Hollins said puzzledly: "He is already the best player in history, how can he still be a second-tier star?"
"Last night's game was actually a coincidence that cannot be replicated. It doesn't prove that Yang's level has reached that level." Chris Webber shook his head and counted on his fingers as he analyzed one by one: "First, Yang dunked Wilt Chandler out of the court last night. Later examinations found that his lungs were hit hard, causing some bleeding in the lung lobes. Although it was not a serious injury, it also caused a strong psychological shadow to other defensive players, so they no longer dared to defend Yang's sprint breakthroughs. I looked at the statistics. Yang scored 36 points through breakthrough dunks last night. If it was a formal game, he would be lucky to get at most 10 points. Secondly, his three-pointers created 54 points for him, and all of these 54 points were obtained under Durant's defense, which means that Durant could not cause any defensive obstacles to him at all. In a formal game, he would definitely not let someone who could not defend him defend him all the time."
After Chris Webber finished his long speech, Reggie Miller added two more points: "In an official game, it is impossible to give 90% of the team's shots to the same person. Also, Yang's three-pointers cannot be so accurate every night. In fact, he only used his only two scoring strengths to the extreme last night. Apart from the breakthrough dunk and three-pointers, Yang has no other scoring weapons that can be used. So, last night was really just an accident. All the coincidences overlapped, and he completed the feat of 101 points."
After hearing this, Hollins scratched his head and muttered in confusion: "Hearing what you said, I feel that Yang doesn't seem to be that great."
"Compared to his popularity, his skills are indeed not at the top level." Chris Webber nodded, agreeing with Hollins.
"That's not the case. All we can say is that Yang now has only two tricks on the offensive end, one is the long-distance sprint dunk, and the other is the three-pointer. These two tricks plus his contribution on the defensive end and rebounding are enough to make him a star player averaging 18+12 per game." Reggie Miller added.
"Then... why did Nike give him the largest endorsement contract in NBA history?" Hollins asked, still puzzled.
"Do you think there is any athlete in the world who is more popular than Yang?" Chris Webber said unhappily, "Look at those crazy fans in the stadium. They are all potential consumer power."
"It can be said that Super Yang is the first idol player in the NBA. He is so idol-like that even if he plays like shit on the court, there will still be crazy female fans screaming for him. What's more, Yang is one of the players in the league's history who is best at adjusting the atmosphere on the court." Reggie Miller added with a smile.
"Please remove 'one of'. There is only one basketball player in the world who can turn a game into a rock concert, and that's Super Yang. I think that as long as his skills improve a little bit, he will naturally top the list of the world's highest-earning athletes for at least ten years, and Tiger Woods won't be able to match him." Chris Webber is very confident about Yang Mo's financial prospects.
At this point, Hollins couldn't help but ask, "So? Since he's so popular, why doesn't he just go into show business? He can make a lot more money there than here."
"This?" Chris Webber shrugged: "I don't know either."
"I can feel Yang's love for basketball, and I think he will continue to improve despite his huge popularity. When he first entered the league, he could only shoot three-pointers in open space on the offensive end. Later, after my coaching, he can now face defense and throw in one three-pointer after another. I believe that as long as he keeps working hard, his basketball level will get higher and higher." Reggie Miller did not forget to praise himself when praising Yang Mo.
"That's true. He can occasionally score by taking advantage of Michael's back-to-the-basket mid-range turnaround jump shot. If there is a chance, I can also teach him some of my experience on the court, such as passing," Chris Webber said with a smile.
"Well, his passing skills are indeed very bad. He is now more of an offensive finisher rather than an organizer who connects the team. If you can teach him your passing skills, he will definitely be more at ease. By then, maybe he can rise from a second-tier star to a first-tier star." Reggie Miller also said so.
"Okay, now I have a rough idea of what kind of player Yang is. He is just like a super popular movie star who puts on a jersey and plays basketball, but his basketball skills are not very good, but he still has great potential for improvement, right?" Hollins finally understood Yang's current situation.
"That's about what it means." Chris Webber nodded.
"Well, let's talk about LeBron James." Seeing that the conversation was almost over, Hollins quickly brought the topic back to the game: "In the few minutes we were chatting, he had already dunked 5 times. But the cheers he enjoyed were still far different from those of Super Yang who grabbed rebounds. Yang only needed to grab a backcourt rebound to set off a wave of screams and cheers from the whole audience, while LeBron James only received sparse applause even if he dunked the basketball. "
"That's the difference between movie stars and basketball players," Chris Webber said with a smile.
"No matter what, they are fans who bought tickets. No matter what others say, David Stern will love them. It's all money!" Reggie Miller laughed.
"Wow!" Hollins suddenly screamed and shouted, "Look, the number of rebounds for all the players on the Eastern team is 11, and all of them were taken by Yang. My God, the first quarter is not over yet, and he has already taken so many rebounds."
"Really? Let me see." Chris Webber hurried over. At this time, Yang Mo jumped high again to grab a backcourt rebound, then passed it to Iverson to launch an attack.
At this time, Reggie Miller suddenly slapped his thigh and exclaimed: "Super Yang is indeed Super Yang! Now everyone in the Eastern team is thinking about scoring and dunking, but he is doing the opposite and playing with rebounding skills. No one will compete with him. When the game is over, he can break a new record. So smart! So wise!"
"So that's how it is!" Chris Webber also reacted. He shook his head helplessly: "Yang is indeed a natural public opinion maker. He was able to create such a big surprise when he was not particularly strong. When he really grows up, what will happen?"
"This is a victory of IQ! If they continue like this, it won't matter who gets the highest points tonight, because Yang's number of rebounds is enough to cover up any scoring data. So creative and sharp!" Reggie Miller praised Yang Mo highly.
