NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 214 Most Improved Player

A player scoring 30 points in a playoff game doesn't necessarily mean he's that good, but against a defensive team like the Bulls, Jia Fei has scored over 20 points in three consecutive games, and he's been the top scorer for both teams in those three games. You can't say that it's all just luck.

Even Barkley, who had always looked down on Jia Fei, said after the game that Jia Fei had earned his respect a little, and that the Bulls were indeed too weak.

The better Jia Fei performed, the more the Thunder were mocked. No one could imagine that the Thunder would let go of such a talented young player who excelled on both offense and defense.

If Jia Fei stayed with the Thunder, forming a new "Thunder Big Three" of Durant, Westbrook, and Jia Fei, who in the entire league would they fear? Then truly, the sky's the limit for them!

In the post-match interview, Jia Fei appeared very calm, showing none of the excitement one would expect from someone who wins a match and can't sleep. It was as if everything was under his control, and he seemed to have predicted the outcome of the match.

The happiest people were undoubtedly head coach Budenholzer and Jia Fei's close friend, Art Mayork. This game was crucial for both of them. Coach Budenholzer was under pressure; he had adjusted his rotation, and if Art Mayork performed poorly, he would inevitably face a barrage of criticism after the game. Art Mayork's pressure stemmed from the need to prove himself, to show that he didn't get his rotation opportunities solely because of his connection with Jia Fei. He had already proven himself in the regular season, but not in the playoffs.

For the Hawks, everything is moving in the right direction. If they overcome the Bulls and reach the semifinals, regardless of the semifinal outcome, their record this season, both in the regular season and playoffs, will be better than last season. This is despite their star center, Al Horford, being sidelined for the season.

Many Hawks fans are already expecting this team to achieve even greater success. Jia Fei has undoubtedly become the team's biggest surprise this season; he has truly become a star, and he's only 22 years old. He hasn't reached his peak yet; he still has a lot of room for improvement.

On April 27, the NBA officially announced that Jia Fei of the Atlanta Hawks was named the NBA's Most Improved Player for the 2013-14 season.

这个消息之前一直有媒体在传，但直到官方确认，这事才水到渠成。本赛季的贾飞在场均34.7分钟的上场时间里，他场均得到22.9分6.7个篮板4.2次助攻2.1次抢断1.6个盖帽，而上赛季，他的数据为8.8分5.4个篮板3.5次助攻1次抢断0.8个盖帽。

These are all significant improvements, so Jia Fei's election is well-deserved.

According to the final vote count, Jia Fei won 100 out of 126 first-place votes, leading second-place Dragic by more than 400 points, the largest gap in the last four years.

The prestige of this award isn't that great; many fans can't even remember which player has won it. But that doesn't diminish a player's historical standing, especially since Jia Fei needs it to complete his mission!

Having won the Most Improved Player award, Jia Fei finally completed the task of "winning the Most Improved Player award" in the system's task list. And that wasn't the only task he completed; he also completed another one: "starting in the playoffs."

He had actually completed the task of "starting in the playoffs" a long time ago, but he hadn't checked it and had forgotten about it. He quickly went to claim his reward, which earned him 2000 points, while the task of "winning the Most Improved Player award" earned him 5000 points.

Adding the points in his account, he now has a total of points.

He spent a point to increase his "Iverson Peak Skill Integration" from 60% to 62%!

Jia Fei was speechless; the points required for upgrading were getting higher and higher...

There was nothing he could do but accept more quests. He went to the quest list to check the available quests. He saw a quest and realized why he hadn't accepted it before.

The task was to "score 30 points in a single NBA playoff game." He had already scored 30 points in the game that just ended. If he accepted the task, wouldn't he have completed it?

What a pity!

Fortunately, he firmly believed he could score 30 points again in the future, so he didn't think too much about it. He then accepted two similar assignments: one to score 40 points in a single NBA playoff game, and the other to score 50 points in a single NBA playoff game.

Who says I definitely can't finish it? Hmph, anyway, I don't have to pay taxes if I take it on, so I'll take it on, Sister Bo from Jinzhou!

After accepting the task, Jia Fei went online to browse things with satisfaction.

The Hawks' official website is definitely paid to do things right; the news of Jia Fei winning the Most Improved Player award is pinned to the top and occupies an entire column. In terms of media exposure, he has clearly become the team leader, with a commanding lead.

On April 28th, Game 4 of the Hawks vs. Bulls series continued at the Hawks' home arena, Philips Arena. Before the game, the NBA arranged a simple awards ceremony in the middle of the arena to present Jia Fei with the Most Improved Player award.

Jia Fei accepted the trophy with great composure and struck a pose.

After the ceremony, the two sides began Game 4 of the series.

The starting lineups on both sides were the same as in the previous game. Thibodeau is known for not liking to change formations, and his tactical and personnel arrangements have been criticized for a long time. He often makes decisions about who to trust, and he can do it now.

Not only did the roster remain unchanged, but the Hawks' offensive and defensive strategies also remained the same in this game, and the rotation was still the same three players: Gibson, Augustin, and Snell, for a total of eight players in rotation.

The Bulls continued to double-team Jia Fei, but he had clearly adapted to their tactics. The Hawks capitalized on the opportunities created by Jia Fei, improving their offense and ultimately securing a comfortable victory, taking a 3-1 lead in the series!

With the Hawks leading the series 3-1, the Bulls are on the verge of elimination. It's widely believed the Hawks will advance to the second round, while the Bulls will be knocked out in the first round.

Unless a prime Michael Jordan were to join this Bulls team, you simply don't see the potential for them to win three straight games and advance to the second round. Even if Doc Rivers replaced Budenholzer as the Hawks' head coach, he couldn't have done it.

Jia Fei maintained his consistent performance, contributing 24 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals throughout the game, demonstrating stability and efficiency.

Game 5 of the series will be played in Chicago. If the Bulls lose this game, the series will officially end.