Four Hundred and Forty-Seven: Truth

Boston, no matter how many times I come here, I hate this exclusive city. "

When the Grizzlies fended off Boston, it was snowing lightly. Sleet, to be precise.

The cold weather further deepened Link's bad impression of Boston. Boston's winters are windy and snowy, so while the average January temperature of 2.1 degrees Celsius isn't too low, Boston definitely has one of the coldest winters in the nation.

Link and his teammates were wrapped in padded coats and walked to the airport lobby tremblingly. These guys, who were originally big and wrapped in thick clothes, really looked like grizzly bears that were hunting.

"Nobody likes Boston, Link. But tomorrow night, we should have a good time. You know what? The Boston Celtics have dropped to ninth in the East. They've lost 23 points per game over the past three games. Well. Play it easy and walk away. Trust me, we won't have any trouble in Boston this year."

Randolph said, rubbing his hands, and then he took a breath of heat into the palm of his hand.

"I hope so, Zach, I hope so. Or, will we meet their desperate resistance? After all, you said, they've lost three straight. I think the Celtics are thinking about it. How to beat the number one in the league."

"Come on, shut your crow's mouth, Link. I don't want to be exhausted every time I play at North Shore Gardens."

"I don't want to, but everything has to be prepared for the worst. This place in Boston is never peaceful."

Link glanced at the gloomy sky and stepped onto the team bus.

Ninth in the East, well, doesn't sound like a threat. Teams that can only rank ninth in the East are generally not very popular.

But the thought of the Celtics, Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce made Link feel uneasy.

The Celtics may not be ranked high now, but after all, it was the team that just played the Eastern Conference finals last season and reached the tiebreaker with the defending champion. You know, the Oklahoma City Thunder didn't make it to Game 7.

At noon, the Grizzlies players arrived at the hotel, and in the afternoon, Stevens took everyone to the North Shore Gardens for training.

As soon as they stepped into the training hall at North Shore Gardens, the Grizzlies players were dazed. No way, the training hall is covered with pennants of honor, it is hard not to make people curious.

17 championship pennants, as well as countless eastern championship pennants, circle the walls of the training hall. Although it is only a fake, the real one is hanging above the official competition arena. But even so, it was enough to show the honor of this ancient team.

As for the division championship, the Celtics simply made a big flag with a row of numbers on it, which is the year they won the division championship.

It's not for anything else, it's just because there are too many division titles. If every division champion comes out with a pennant, the training hall will not be enough. So, let's just make a big one and count the years.

The Boston Celtics are just that wayward.

Link's eyes fell on the championship pennant of the 2007-2008 season. In his impression, it seemed that the Celtics won the championship not long ago. But if you think about it, five years have already passed.

5 years, Garnett and Pierce are no longer young,

The Celtics' big three have gone their separate ways. Rajon Rondo, who was scolded by Kobe and didn't dare to fight back, has also become the hottest point guard in the league.

Will a team that just won the championship five years ago put down their pride and surrender? Link guessed that there is a high probability not.

When you step into the arena and see the championship pennant, as a Celtics player, you know how to fight.

Tony Allen had the same view as Link. In the locker room, Tony Allen showed everyone a blood-stained Celtics jersey, which was when Tony Allen was with the Celtics. Passed during the finals.

Don't forget, he was also a member of that championship team that year.

"The Celtics will never compromise. Even if they fight to the end, they will not surrender. I know the Celtics are in a bad situation this year. They have lost all three of their three games in a row. Lost badly and are now out of the top eight in the East. But even so, we can't take it lightly. Like I said, they're not going to surrender themselves. So guys, cheer up and don't underestimate it. take them, okay?"

Tony Allen's speech had an effect. During the training afterwards, everyone had a very correct attitude and practiced very seriously.

Facing the ninth in the East, the Grizzlies, the league's first, did not slack off. After all, two years ago, they also defeated one formidable opponent after another as the ninth place in the West. at last. Finished fifth in the West.

After practice, Link and Jimmy Butler stayed for a while. Link is now strictly following his training plan every day. In order to be able to upgrade again at the end of January, he does not dare to relax for a day.

Jimmy Butler, on the other hand, is uncomfortable without practice. Stevens has gradually increased Butler's playing time since he was a blockbuster in that Thunder game. Playing time has increased and Butler has practiced harder.

"I can't live up to Stevens' expectations of me." These are the words of Jimmy Butler.

At 8:30 in the evening, under the urging of assistant coach Elston Turner, Jimmy Butler was finally willing to leave the training hall. And Link still has 50 sets of dribbling and shooting drills. He told Turner and Butler, "I'll leave after practice, you don't have to wait for me."

As a result, Link became the last Grizzlies player to leave the practice facility.

The sweaty Link was walking in the player tunnel, but saw a person walking from the opposite side not far away. And the guy, like himself, was wearing a jersey, sweaty, and obviously just finished training.

After the man approached, Link realized that it was Paul Pierce!

"Did you just finish the extra training?" Pierce stopped and greeted Link. But he's expressionless, and you don't know if he's friendly or hostile.

"Yes, how about you?"

"Me? It's all about activities. It's getting late, boy, go back quickly. At this time, it's best not to wander on the streets of Boston." Pierce waved his hand and walked away from Link.

Link and Pierce didn't know each other personally, and the two were going to play tomorrow, so the atmosphere was a little awkward. Link didn't know what to say, so he continued walking on his own.

However, just a few steps out, Pierce suddenly spoke again.

"Hey, do you know what my nickname is? Boy."

"Ah? The truth?" Link didn't know what the old Jianghu wanted to say.

"Hahahaha, it seems that today's children have not forgotten our original glory. So, do you know why I call it the truth?"

"Uh..." Link scratched his head, he really couldn't say why.

"Okay, go back, see you on the court tomorrow, Link." Pierce finished, turned and left. This time, I didn't stop.

With doubts, Link returned to the hotel room and turned on the computer to search for a lot of information about Pierce. Most of them were about him getting back on the court a month later after taking 11 knives.

Everyone knows this, and Link is no exception. But the incident of being stabbed 11 seems to have nothing to do with the nickname "Truth".

Finally, Link finally found something related to "truth" in a very old article.

※※※

On March 13, 2001, Paul Pierce was not yet an All-Star or a champion.

The Celtics visit Los Angeles to challenge the sworn enemy Lakers.

Pierce, who had played 184 games in the NBA by then, had no idea how much that night would reverberate for him.

That night, the Los Angeles natives unleashed their greatest firepower. Shaquille O'Neal swept the basket, swiping away 28 points and 11 rebounds. Derek Fisher, who was still young at the time, blew up 1991 second-round pick Randy Brown, scoring 26 points, 8 assists and 5 rebounds.

Rick Fox, a 4, made three 3-pointers that night with 21 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds.

It seems that the Celtics simply can not resist the impact of the defending champion. Then, Paul Pierce stood up.

In the face of O'Neal's supplementary defense, Pierce deftly picked the basket and hit.

Turned over and jumped on Brian Xiao's head, hollowed into the net!

After receiving a pass from a teammate, the long-range three-point shot still hits!

Paul Pierce was amazing all night, showing his omnipotent offensive skills to the fullest.

In the end, Pierce scored 42 points with a high shooting rate of 68.4%! Let the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, who have an absolute advantage, take off their skin!

After the game, O'Neal pushed aside a group of reporters and shouted at Celtics coach Jim O'Brien, who passed by the Lakers locker room, "Paul Pierce is the fucking truth, and you should call him that from now on!"

Subsequently, the nickname spread rapidly in the league like a virus.

Before that "Battle of Truth", the Celtics had just lost to the 76ers and dropped to ninth in the Western Conference. So, Paul Pierce became the truth.

After reading this article, Link swallowed.

Why did Pierce say that to himself? Will the truth resurface at North Shore Gardens?

Link found that he seemed to have come to the bottom of a big mountain again.