Eighty-Five: When Chaos Is Going On

On January 13, the Memphis Grizzlies played against the Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills Stadium in Detroit.

Link is no stranger to the Detroit Pistons. After all, when he was with the Rockets, the first opponent he played was the Detroit Pistons.

Speaking of which, Link almost forgot that he also played for the Houston Rockets.

There is no suspense in today's game itself. After the downturn in the previous game, the Grizzlies finally showed their strength today. Randolph turned upside down inside the Pistons. He not only made 10 of 17 shots, but also won 17 opportunities to stand on the free throw line, hitting 14 of them.

Randolph, who had 34 points and 17 rebounds, was like an unstoppable beast. He has scored 30+ points for the fifth time this season, and this guy seems to be more powerful than he was when he was young.

And Rudy Gay's performance was much better than the last game. He wrapped the thick protective gear around his shoulders and played a very efficient game.

Whole game Gay shot 13 times, hit 10 of them. Gay scored 26 points, which undoubtedly made things worse for the Pistons.

Because both Guy and Randolph have shown excellent performances, Link has few opportunities today. 12 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists is Link's report card today, although it is not as amazing as the 28 points in the previous game. Overall, though, he did his job well.

On the Pistons side, the most dazzling thing today is McGrady. McGrady played 36 minutes today, a season high. In 36 minutes, McGrady scored 16 points on 6 of 11 shots, which was the only consolation for Pistons fans.

In the end, the Grizzlies defeated the Pistons 107-99 on the road, winning two straight. The entire game has been controlled by the Grizzlies, Randolph and Guy's offensive pressure overwhelmed the Pistons. Overall, there's not much to say about the game itself.

Therefore, in today's game, one of the most talked about questions among the commentators at the Palace of Auburn Hills Stadium is: "Why didn't O.J. Mayo play today?"

In this game, Mayo sat on the bench all night in a suit. Tony Allen started instead of Mayo, and there was no Mayo in the bench. No media in the league knows why, and no news of Mayo's injury has been received during this period.

After the game, many of the Grizzlies players were interviewed by reporters. But the reporters were basically not asking about the game. Their question was: "What the hell happened to O.J. Mayo?"

Link, as a very present member of the Grizzlies team, was naturally interviewed by reporters.

Before the start of the game, Hollins explained to everyone that Mayo and Tony Allen's fight on the plane must not be disclosed to the media. He knew it would be shaken out sooner or later, but it couldn't be the Grizzlies players shaking it out themselves.

Link remembered Hollins' instructions, so he pretended to be stupid in front of the media, "I don't know what happened, it's the coach's decision."

However, the media with supernatural powers did not give up their pursuit of the truth. After Link and the others returned to the locker room, Yahoo Sports broke the news that Mayo and Tony Allen were on the plane because of the poker game. Hit it!

"Damn, so fast!" Hollins covered his forehead, as if it was the Grizzlies who lost the game today.

Hollins had known for a long time that even if the Grizzlies didn't talk about it, it would still get out. After all, there were many crew members on the plane at the time. They're not part of the Grizzlies, and if a reporter is willing to pay them for news, they're naturally more than happy to share what they've seen.

It's just that he didn't expect that this matter would be discovered so quickly.

Fighting incidents are definitely not good for the team. This news is sure to dominate the front pages of sports websites and newspapers for days on end.

The players will be devastated by this, too.

But don't underestimate the impact of off-court events on the team. Arenas' "gun door" almost destroyed the Wizards and Arenas himself. The feud between Kobe and O'Neal also indirectly led to the "Lakers F4" defeat in front of the O'Brien Cup.

When the atmosphere of a team begins to collapse from the inside, can you still expect how strong the team is? After the victory in this game, the Grizzlies finally tied with the Hornets. If anything goes wrong, they'll be thrown out of the top eight again.

But now, things have happened, and Hollins has no good way. The only thing he can do is make amends.

"Today's victory is worth celebrating, but what happened on the plane yesterday is a disgrace to us!"

Hollins still has a lot of authority in the Grizzlies, and when he yelled, he didn't let him stand up.

This is mainly because there are big brothers such as Randolph who are in control, otherwise, Mayo might really stand up and challenge Hollins.

"My decision will not change. In the future, it is forbidden to play cards on the plane. And Mayo, the team still implements the decision to suspend you for 5 games. After all, it is you who made the first move. Everyone is a teammate, you should not be so impulsive. ."

In this matter, the Grizzlies actually favor Tony Allen. As a result, Mayo is indeed the first to do it. Second, Mayo's negative attitude has long been very dissatisfied with the Grizzlies. And Tony. Allen in the Grizzlies has been conscientious, and the relationship with his teammates is also more harmonious. Third, this is not the first time that Mayo has fought with his teammates.

As early as his rookie days, Mayo had a conflict with the now-retired Darius Miles and had a big fight. This guy Mayo has a criminal record.

After hearing his punishment, Mayo wanted to say something, but after being glared by Randolph, he didn't speak again.

"Tony, there is something wrong with you. It's just a game of cards, why be so serious? The team has decided to fine you $5,000, and pay more attention in the future." Although it is in favor of Tony Allen, the team can't completely ignore him.

In order to make Mayo a little more balanced, the team also gave Tony Allen a fine.

Tony Allen nodded in agreement, he didn't want to make things bigger. If you make a mistake, you have to admit punishment, it's that simple.

"Okay, let's end this matter. In the future, don't say anything to the reporters about this matter. The team will speak. Let this matter pass. I don't want this kind of thing to happen again in the future. It happened. Finally, you guys did a great job today and we can go home with the victory."

Hollins walked out of the locker room in distress, leaving only the players looking at each other. Just when the locker room was awkwardly quiet, Tony Allen stood up, walked to Mayo, and stretched out his right hand.

"It's over, isn't it?" Tony Allen didn't want the team to be affected by this incident, after all, the team is in the critical stage of the playoffs. Therefore, he took the initiative to put down his face and befriend Mayo.

"Well." Mayo patted Tony Allen's right hand expressionlessly, without even holding it. It was obvious that he was still emotional.

"Okay, okay, that's it. This season is still very long, so we have to keep working hard." Randolph immediately came out to round the field. Link felt for the first time that the team could It's nice to hold down players in the locker room.

And just like that, the Grizzlies ended their Detroit night. Tomorrow, they'll be back in Memphis, home to their sweet home, to prepare for the next game.

Before Link crossed over, he had also heard the news that Mayo and Tony Allen had a big fight, but he didn't expect it to be this time. Unexpectedly, he actually participated in it himself.

Link can only hope that this incident will not have much impact. The Grizzlies finally got better, and it would be a pity if off-court factors affected their results.

※※※

After returning to Memphis, Link flipped through his phone and newspaper, and he could see the news that Mayo and Tony Allen were fighting on the plane.

He had to admire the reporters' ability to dig out the news, because the events that were finally reported were basically the same as the actual events.

When he was a fan before, Link also questioned the veracity of reporters' reports. But now, for the first time, he recognized the power of reporters. There are too many sources of information about them, but it is not the players who keep their secrets to avoid leaks.

One of the things Link is more concerned about now is whether he will have a chance to start after Mayo is suspended.

Although Hill is the 3, he played the 3 in the NCAA too. But Hollins has proven more than once that Link has no problem playing the second position.

It's not that Link wants to take advantage of the danger, but if there is a chance to play in the starting lineup, he will be happy to accept it.

Link shook his head, whether he was playing as a starter or a substitute, he would do his best. Just as Link was about to go to practice, he received a call from Randolph.

"Zach? What's wrong?"

"Have you heard?"

"What? What did you hear?"

"It's Mayo, he has an accident again. This time, it is estimated that the league has to suspend him."

Randolph's voice was full of anxiety, and the team's big brother was heartbroken.

"What's the matter?" Link was also taken aback, he thought Mayo and Tony Allen were fighting again.

"He was found to be taking banned drugs." Randolph replied in a self-deprecating tone. He really didn't want young players to go the same way they did.