New York, NBA headquarters.
In the reception room, NBA President Adams is receiving guests. These guests are representatives from several major NBA sponsors. It can also be said that they are all the NBA's God of Wealth.
Facing the God of Wealth, Adams did not dare to show any slightness, so he personally received them in the reception room and listened to their opinions.
One of the sponsor representatives was heard saying: "Mr. Chairman, we have a small request. We are negotiating with ESPN and hope they will broadcast more Clippers games. However, the negotiations are not going smoothly, so I hope the NBA can help us put some pressure on ESPN."
"This is not a difficult matter. ESPN's broadcast game arrangements also need to be negotiated with us. It is not difficult to slightly change the broadcast plan of one or two games a month." Adams nodded and then asked: "But the Clippers The team is not a strong team, their record is terrible, and there are no stars on the Clippers team, so I don’t understand why your company wants to increase the number of games played by the Clippers.”
"We also know that the Clippers are not a strong team, and they do not have stars, but their games always have overtime. Our company has placed some advertisements on ESPN, so if overtime occurs, our publicity will be more It’s beneficial,” the representative said.
Adams understood immediately.
When NBA games are broadcast on television, advertisements are inserted during timeouts or breaks. And if it is an overtime game, the timeout during the period and the rest before the overtime game will also enter the advertising time period. This is something that advertising sponsors like to see.
Under normal circumstances, a game lasts 48 minutes. The number of timeouts and breaks between sections are fixed, and the number of advertisements is also fixed. If there is an overtime game, the sponsor will earn several advertising time periods in vain. , the more overtime, the more sponsors make.
And the ratings of overtime games are often higher than those of regular time.
If the two games start at the same time, they will basically end at the same time, with the end time being within a few minutes of each other. But if one of the games goes to overtime, the game will end even later. Audiences watching TV or online live broadcasts will have a much greater choice of games. After watching a game, they will naturally look at those games that have not yet ended.
Therefore, advertising during overtime can be seen by more people, which has the effect of getting twice the result with half the effort, and is also the most cost-effective deal for sponsors.
Adams already understood the sponsor's intention. He nodded: "I understand. I will make arrangements as much as possible to increase the national live broadcast of the games of the Clippers and all strong teams. This will also ensure the ratings. But next time The broadcast plan for this month has been determined and announced to the United States, so your company’s request cannot be implemented until next month.”
"I understand, Mr. President, thank you very much for your help." The sponsor representative thanked him.
However, Adams still hesitated for two or three seconds, and then reminded: "There is one thing I must remind you first. The current Clippers have to play overtime in almost every game, but this does not mean that next month, or Next month, the Clippers can still play so many overtimes."
"I understand this, the game is always full of uncertainty." The sponsor representative said.
"Not only that, but there is also the issue of physical fitness." Adams continued: "The pace of NBA games is very fast, and the physical confrontation is also very strong, so the intensity of the game is very high. If you only play one or two overtime games occasionally "Athletes' physical fitness is not an issue, but overtime is played in every game, and often two or three overtimes. I don't think any athlete has such sufficient physical fitness to continuously play overtime in every game."
…
A program about the NBA is playing on the TV.
"We have just appreciated yesterday's best dunks, best blocks and best steals. Next, let's discuss a hot topic in the NBA recently, which is 'Los Angeles Overtime'. Here is our guest, the famous Basketball commentator Mr. Blair!" The host waved his hand, and the screen was pointed in another direction, and basketball commentator Blair walked into the studio.
"Mr. Blair, yesterday's game, the Clippers played into overtime again. Now the Clippers have been given a new nickname by the fans, that is, 'Los Angeles Overtime Team.' At present, the Clippers have broken the NBA The record for the most overtimes in a single season, what do you think about this matter?" the host asked.
Blair cleared his throat and said: "If I hadn't witnessed it with my own eyes, I really wouldn't believe that a team would have so many overtimes. This is simply unbelievable, both from a technical perspective and from an experience perspective. After analyzing it, I can’t figure out why the Clippers have so many overtimes. But one thing I am sure of is that this is a short-term situation that cannot last long.”
"Why did you make such a judgment?" the host asked.
"Because of physical fitness." Blair said calmly: "The players' physical fitness cannot support so many overtimes. The intensity of NBA games is already very high. Even if they play two or three more minutes per game, cumulatively, it will have a negative impact on the players' physical fitness. It is a huge consumption. Currently, the main players of each team average playing time of about 35 to 40 minutes per game. The Clippers' main players average playing time of more than 45 minutes per game. In the overtime game, the main players' playing time reached an incredible 60 minutes. Obviously, the players' physical fitness cannot withstand this kind of long-term consumption."
"Now that the regular season has entered the second half, the players' bodies have entered a fatigue stage after more than half of the season. We can see that in recent times, the frequency of player injuries has obviously begun to increase. This is one of the signs of physical fatigue. Performance."
"At the same time, we all know that the games in the second half of the NBA season are much more intense than the first half, especially the last two months, which are the key moments for the team to hit the playoffs, and the competition will become more confrontational. Improvement. Under high-intensity physical confrontation, overtime is a risk for players, especially when their physical fitness is poor, players are more susceptible to injury. So if the Clippers continue to play like this, they will inevitably Encountering a large-scale injury wave, in the worst case scenario, we may not even be able to make up the rotation lineup."
Blair was talking eloquently, and Raul, who was watching the program in front of the TV, nodded frequently, obviously agreeing with Blair's statement.
"It's too much to say. If the Clippers play like this, even if they don't get injured, they will still be exhausted! That damn four overtime..."
Raul couldn't help but curse the four overtime game again. After the four overtimes, he was too tired to get up.
For Raul, it was really a nightmare. Although the Nuggets defeated the Clippers, Raul ended up with a "no move" name in Los Angeles.
"Los Angeles overtime team? Hum, keep playing overtime, I'll see when you guys collapse!" Raul thought gloatingly.
…
Clippers assistant coach Cassel put down the newspaper in his hand and smiled disdainfully.
"Expect our physical fitness to have problems? Maybe you won't see our physical fitness problems until the end of the season." Cassel said to himself.
As the No. 2 figure on the Clippers coaching staff, Cassel naturally knows the players' physical condition very well. He spends most of the day on the training field with the players, so he knows that the Clippers players There is absolutely no problem with his physical fitness.
"If it were replaced by another physical coach and the team played so many overtime games, the players would have been exhausted long ago, and maybe there would be a wave of widespread injuries. But now our physical training is Li The coach is responsible, so there are no problems with the physical fitness of the players. Having said that, there is a reason why Coach Li's physical training center is so famous. It is really famous. His physical training level is ranked first in the world. One, I’m afraid it’s not an exaggeration.”
In terms of basketball, Dai Li is indeed very good. At least in Russell's opinion, his basketball training and understanding of basketball are far superior to Dai Li. Now Dai Li, even though he has been the head coach of the Clippers for a period of time, is still an entry-level coach in basketball. Everyone on the Clippers coaching staff is better than Dai Li.
However, in terms of physical training, Cassel is really convinced of Dai Li. In recent times, the Clippers have experienced so many overtimes, but they are still able to do well in terms of physical fitness, and no one has been injured. In Cassel's view, this is simply a miraculous result, at least for Cassel. As far as I know, no physical trainer has this level of training.
Thinking of overtime, Cassel couldn't help scratching his head: "Speaking of which, since Coach Li came, we have really played a lot of overtime. The overtime games I have played in my life are not as good as those in recent times." Tianduo, I really saw a ghost."
…
Many media have given predictions that the Clippers will have physical problems. Some even believe that the Clippers will suffer widespread injuries to their players due to lack of physical fitness.
However, after a few games, the Clippers players did not show any physical problems. They were still vigorous and not troubled by physical fitness.
The Clippers players are gradually getting used to playing overtime. For other teams, overtime is the most tense and exciting, but for the Clippers, overtime is like a common occurrence. Which game? If the game does not go into overtime, it will feel uncomfortable.
As time goes by, there are less and less news in the media that the Clippers will collapse soon. Those sports commentators are not fools. Since the prediction is inaccurate, if you continue to argue, it will be like a slap in the face, but it is not as good as Change the subject and talk about something else.
Many people are also studying why the Clippers can play so many overtimes.
The NBA has very rigorous statistics, so people soon discovered that when the Clippers faced those weak teams at the bottom, they did not play overtime, but when they faced their own strong teams, they would definitely Overtime occurs. Obviously, the Clippers are specifically trying to compete with strong teams.
For a strong team, if the opponent is a relatively low-ranking team in the league, they naturally hope for a quick victory. It is best to have the main players clock out in the first three quarters, then rest off the court, and use some substitutes to exercise. Bench players.
However, when encountering the Clippers, the game often goes into overtime. In overtime, the main players will definitely have to play. Not only will they not get a chance to rest in advance, but they will also increase their physical exertion. Playing on the court at the same time also increases the risk of injury.
Especially after late March, those teams that are likely to enter the playoffs have started the "desperate mode", and the top-ranked teams are also working hard for the home court advantage in the playoffs. At this time, quickly A team like the Fleet that always plays overtime has become the opponent that all strong teams least want to encounter.
At this time, the Clippers are like a hedgehog. They don't look very strong and can be bullied casually, but if they swallow it without hesitation, they will definitely be pricked and their mouths will bleed.