NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 179 Adds to the All-Star Game

Paul and Griffin were both dissatisfied with Jia Fei; how could this guy always find something they disliked?

Possession changed, Teague dribbled the ball across half-court and passed it to Jia Fei.

Jia Fei has the ball, and Horford comes up to set a screen!

DeAndre Jordan was delayed this time and immediately teamed up with Dudley to double-team Jia Fei!

Jia Fei calmly bounced the ball to Horford!

Horford dealt with a 4-on-3 situation and passed the ball to Korver in the corner!

Wideopen!

For Korver, a top shooter in the league with a three-point shooting percentage of over 40%, such opportunities are as easy as eating and drinking.

A three-pointer swished through the net, the crisp sound like heavenly music!

"Bang—Kyle Korver hits a three-pointer, Los Angeles Clippers call a timeout!" Mike Breen's voice was as impassioned as ever.

2:9, the Hawks went on a 7-0 run, forcing the Clippers to call a timeout!

The atmosphere at the Philips Arena suddenly became lively, and you could even hear occasional shouts of "MVP," clearly a tribute to Jia Fei, who had the best performance of the night.

"Jeff, do you still think Ja doesn't deserve to be an All-Star player?" Mike Breen brought up the sensitive topic.

Van Gundy chuckled and nodded, saying, "Yes, I still stand by my opinion! The game has only just begun, and I don't think Ja can maintain such a high shooting percentage."

After the timeout, the game resumed.

Paul came back and immediately hit a pull-up jumper to stop the bleeding for his team!

He dribbled the ball over and passed it to Jia Fei.

Jia Fei received the ball and used Horford's screen, so the Clippers immediately switched onto him.

DeAndre Jordan was pulled out to defend against Jia Fei!

Jia Fei lobbed the ball to Horford!

Horford punched Dudley, drawing a foul from the latter!

The Hawks inbound the ball from the baseline, and Teague's pull-up jumper misses!

After grabbing the rebound, Griffin continued his fast break, executing a series of behind-the-back and between-the-legs dribbles before driving to the basket and finishing with a layup against Mills' defense...

Jia Fei suddenly appeared from the side and delivered a powerful block!

Griffin commits a foul while attempting to steal the ball!

"He interfered!" Griffin yelled at the referee.

"Alright, you've committed two fouls, it's time to go and rest!" Jia Fei said with a forced smile.

Griffin was furious. How could this guy have such a foul mouth?!

Unexpectedly, Jia Fei weakly added, "Who told me my arms are longer than yours!"

Griffin instantly lost his temper and was about to start a fight, but Paul quickly pulled him back.

Paul also unleashed a torrent of trash talk at Jia Fei; his vocabulary was clearly far greater than Griffin's.

The atmosphere was getting tense; the fans were no longer sleepy, and Old Li on the sidelines looked somewhat lost—Where am I? What should I do?

The assistant coach reminded him that Griffin had already committed two fouls and told him to come down immediately!

Old Li realized what was happening and replaced Griffin with Jamison.

Mike Breen exclaimed, "Jeff's defense is truly outstanding. He's quick on the defensive end, can steal the ball, and can block shots. Jeff, if we're just talking about defense, do you think he could make the All-Star team?"

Jeff Van Gundy nodded: "Defensively speaking, he's good!"

Hawks head coach Mike Budenholzer applauded. Jia Fei's performance on both ends of the court tonight was simply outstanding. It seems that inviting him to his room for a detailed discussion had been effective. He was really lucky to have such a good player in his first time as an NBA head coach!

Jamison has come a long way in his career, eventually joining the Clippers. But clearly, he's no longer the dominant force he once was at the 3/4 position. His prime is over; he's now a complete role player.

With Jamison on the court, the Clippers' offense relies even more heavily on Paul. While Griffin has his flaws, his individual offensive threat and ball-handling ability are the best among the starting five besides Paul. With the team's mediocre performances at the 2 and 3 positions and DeAndre Jordan only capable of finishing at the rim, the team's offense heavily depends on him and Paul. If one of them is off the court, the defensive pressure on the other increases dramatically.

Jia Fei played very proactively in the first quarter, with many ball-handling attacks. Whether it was one-on-one against Dudley or pick-and-roll against DeAndre Jordan's drop-to-the-basket play, he made things extremely difficult for the Clippers.

The Clippers aren't most afraid of small guards with explosive scoring abilities, because Chris Paul is one of the best defenders against them in the league, and they're not afraid of strong interior players either, because DeAndre Jordan's defense is quite good. However, they are extremely afraid of star wing players; they always struggle against teams with that type of player.

贾飞首节轰下13分3个篮板1次助攻1个抢断1个盖帽，强势的个人进攻让现场球迷感受到他当下的实力。

Driven by his strong performance, the Hawks led by 9 points, 22-31.

Jia Fei's increased individual offensive efforts are partly due to the team's coaching staff's decision to increase his tactical role, and partly because he wants to increase his chances of winning All-Star votes.

His agent, Jeff Schwartz, had contacted him beforehand to analyze his current situation. Based on the All-Star voting feedback, his vote count is quite good, and fans are very emotional; they are deeply impressed by a player's explosive performance during the voting period and will unconsciously vote for that player. Therefore, Schwartz advised him to perform well during this period and strive to make the All-Star team.

Making the All-Star team won't bring Jia Fei any bonuses from his contract, but it will greatly boost his commercial value. Many businesses will choose to collaborate with him. A 21-year-old All-Star player, currently the only Asian All-Star in the league, with amazing looks and a fan-favorite playing style, his commercial value is sure to skyrocket.

An agent's business acumen is naturally far superior to that of a player like Jia Fei. Since Jeff Schwartz wants him to showcase his abilities more, he naturally won't refuse. His offense felt good tonight, so he'll play more; his shooting percentage is high, and he plays hard on defense, so his teammates and coaches won't have any complaints.

At the start of the second quarter, Griffin returned to the court, and he, Crawford, and Collison led the team on an offensive surge, catching up in the score.

Jia Fei was sent up early. The Hawks' second unit has always had problems this season, with neither offense nor defense being outstanding, and the team is heavily reliant on its starters.

Mike Brin said, "Jarf is up here, Jeff, do you think he can help the Hawks control the situation?"

Van Gundy did not give a clear answer: "It's up to him!"

With Jia Fei on the court, Hawks fans seemed to have found their pillar of support, placing all their hopes on him. Those who opposed signing him to a big contract earlier are now gradually accepting him. Even disregarding his offense, just his 21 years old and such outstanding defense make him worth the price, even if he's just a 3-and-D player.

此时场上比分为35:36，距离第2节比赛结束还剩9分08秒。