Chapter 238 Friends

Tang Tian showed a surprised look when he saw the news report the next day.

To be honest, he didn't really treat Durant as a friend. All he did was what a good boss would do for his employees.

But Durant regarded him as a friend.

This transformation came a little too fast.

But after thinking about it, it seemed understandable.

Durant had played in the NBA for so many years, and there were very few players he had a good relationship with.

Lawson and Beasley, whom he had known since childhood, George and Ibaka after entering the NBA, plus Curry, and that was it.

Westbrook used to be one, but later they became enemies because of his defection. Even if they reconciled later, they could only be superficial brothers.

So in other words, Durant's desire to be recognized by others was largely due to a lack of love.

Since Tang Tian poached him to the Pelicans, the World Cup, the beginning of the season, the All-Star game, and the playoffs, all his actions were to help him.

Everyone's personality and growing environment are different, which makes them need different degrees of "love" from the outside world.

Durant felt that it had reached the level of "love," so he regarded Tang Tian as a friend.

Tang Tian was a little flattered after understanding this. This was the first time someone had treated him like this.

But since Durant regarded him as a friend, he would also treat the other party as a friend.

Everyone in this league is a multi-millionaire, which also means that many people have their own personality and are self-centered when doing things.

Durant like this is rare, and this may not be a bad thing.

The Pelicans eliminated the Rockets 4-1, but on the other side, the Lakers and Kings series had not yet ended.

Andrew "Gets Energized When Facing LeBron" Wiggins exploded for 40 points, helping the Kings reverse the score on the road and making the score 2-3.

The next game was played at the Kings' home court, and the Kings had a chance to drag the game into a Game 7.

This was the most unexpected matchup in the first round this year.

Looking back, the deal the Kings made at the trade deadline not only helped them get back into the playoffs, but also had a chance to advance to the second round, which was really a steal.

The Pelicans waited for the winner between the two teams. For the live broadcast of the sixth game, Stevens also arranged for the players to watch the live broadcast during the video session.

In the end, the Kings still had a gap in overall strength and lost the game 93-103, and were eliminated 2-4.

But they had already won glory in defeat by playing like this against the Lakers.

Then, the Pelicans' opponent in the second round was also determined, the old rival Lakers.

After watching the video, the players left one after another.

Tang Tian stopped Durant and called him to his office.

Durant was a little surprised, but also a little expectant.

"Are you nervous now? You're playing against LeBron in the next game."

Tang Tian asked Durant to sit down, chatting while making coffee.

"I haven't thought about it yet."

Durant was quite honest, and it could be seen that he regarded Tang Tian as a friend, just like he said in front of the media.

"I think this is an opportunity for you."

Tang Tian handed the coffee to Durant while speaking.

Durant took the coffee and looked at Tang Tian in confusion.

"Putting me aside, you've never beaten LeBron before, even though LeBron is 35 years old, the media and fans still rank you after him."

Tang Tian said, sitting down and looking up at Durant.

The words were a bit harsh, and Durant frowned slightly, but nodded anyway.

His career was really full of failures, first suppressed by James, then by Curry, and then by Tang Tian.

"To be honest, the Lakers this year are not as strong as last year, so if you can beat them, you can change this situation and even become the number one."

Tang Tian's words made Durant's breathing stagnate.

When he was in the Thunder, he was high-spirited and went to challenge Kobe and challenge James.

But at this age, he was once desperate after last season, because he found that he failed when he was young, and he had no chance at all during his peak.

Even if he stayed in the Lakers, he would always be the second in command, just like in the past.

Until Tang Tian retired, poached him to the Pelicans, and he overcame himself to play the best season of his career.

This was an opportunity for him.

Beat James, beat Leonard, beat Antetokounmpo, and he would be the number one player in the league.

"This is your battle of destiny."

Tang Tian concluded for him.

"You have to show all your fighting spirit, because no one knows what will happen next season, maybe this is your last chance."

Tang Tian didn't want to give Durant a pep talk, he just told Durant the reality.

Because Durant said he regarded him as a friend, then as a friend, he had to do this reminder.

Durant looked at Tang Tian for a while, then nodded.

The game between the Pelicans and the Lakers was in two days.

At this time, the Eastern and Western Conference playoffs also entered the semi-final stage one after another.

On the Eastern side, the Bucks swept the Bulls 4-0. After DeRozan was traded, LaVine and Booker became the new garbage brothers in the East.

The Celtics eliminated the Magic 4-1. Vucevic played better in this year's playoffs than last year, but the Magic's overall strength was still different from the Celtics.

The Pacers defeated the Nets 4-3 in Game 7. The Nets lost a bit unfortunately, but the good news was that Yi Jianlian could rest early to prepare for the Olympics.

The Raptors lost to the Pistons 2-4, and the Pistons completed an upset.

Jaylen Brown proved that he was really not good, and Lowry's contract with the Raptors also officially expired, and they were basically going to enter a rebuild next season.

The Eastern Conference semi-final matchups also came out, the Bucks vs. the Pistons, the Celtics vs. the Pacers.

The Bucks and Celtics both advanced, and there were no surprises in general.

On the Western side, the semi-final matchup between the Pelicans and the Lakers has been determined.

In the remaining two first-round games, the game between the Spurs and the Warriors was unexpected. Curry was in excellent form, and the Warriors once tied the Spurs 2-2.

However, the Spurs' overall strength was still strong, and they finally eliminated the Warriors 4-2 to advance to the second round.

The game between the Mavericks and the Clippers was also unexpected. Doncic's performance in the second year was even better than last year, and the Clippers directly eliminated the Mavericks 4-1.

This was the real NBA version of the younger generation pushing the older generation forward, killing the older generation on the beach.

According to this rhythm, Antetokounmpo hasn't really become the number one player yet, and Doncic has already caught up.

Not to mention that Tang Tian may make a comeback again, and Tang Tian now knows about Lin Yi, who also has a system from Davidson.

The NBA is really going to usher in a new golden age.

Of course, those are all things of the future. As the teams finished the first round of the game one after another, the second round of the game was about to begin.

The day before the game, the Lakers team arrived in New Orleans. Following last year, the second season of the Lakers and Pelicans was about to begin.