msmithbooks Chapter 830 Three Soldiers from Oklahoma City
Chapter 830 Three Soldiers from Oklahoma City
Chapter 830 Three Soldiers from Oklahoma City
On February 2, the Thunder visited San Antonio and played away against the Spurs, currently ranked No. 1 in the West.In this game, Pickled Pepper, who had been on a truce for a month, returned.
The current record gap between the two teams is very small, with only two wins, so the competition between each other becomes more important.
The Spurs' AT&T Arena is also one of the league's "devil's home stadiums", and their winning percentage in this arena is very high.
Spurs coach Popovich is really a talent, and even Xie Kai admires him very much.He is a leader in the coaching field in terms of training players, adapting on the spot, and formulating tactics.A team in a small market has won 4 championships so far, which is an incredible achievement.
Not every team is fair to win the NBA championship. In the early days, it was basically a battle between yellow and green, and the championship was divided between these two teams.In the past 10 years, the NBA has only felt a bit like a pack of heroes, but every aspect of a big city is incomparable to a small city.
This can also understand why it is so crazy for a city like Cleveland to win a championship. It is precisely because it is rare and not easy that it is more precious.
The Spurs' transition between old and new is quite in place, GDP is getting old, and Leonard has played out.The old thief Bobo is really good at cultivating young people. The 15th pick with facial paralysis was abruptly trained, and those teams with high picks and rookies have been letting those geniuses waste time. They are really not afraid of ignorance. I am afraid of comparing goods.
Pickle is back in this game, but the season is limited, the coaching staff must control his playing time, and his playing time in this game will not exceed 30 minutes.
After the start of the game, the Thunder have been making balls for Pickle, so that he can recover his feeling on the court as soon as possible.The Spurs are playing step by step.
Dadai has been stable and dedicated for more than ten years, and he is so serious and stable at an age.Before the season, he was ready to retire, but he was retained by the old thief Bobo, and he had to play for another season.
Perhaps this season will be his last season, but depending on his state, it is true that he is no longer able to play the main offense. It is not a problem to play blue-collar for more than ten minutes.
Pickle obviously did not return to the state of the game, his shots were not in rhythm, and there were a lot of irons.The offense with the ball is also out of shape, feeling a little rusty.The intensity of confrontation between training and official competition is still different after all.
The Thunder team fell behind at the start, but they were not in a hurry at all, and they have been working hard to get the pickled peppers to blend in.This made Paojiao very grateful, because the team did not blindly pursue the record, regardless of the overall running-in of the team.
Xie Kai has rich experience in winning championships. He knows that the NBA season is a marathon. To win the final championship, sometimes you have to take a long-term view.The record in the regular season is of course important, but it is true that running-in is what the Thunder team needs to do most.
The Thunder finally lost this game. They ushered in a two-game losing streak, and their record came to 35 wins and 14 losses, which was further pulled away by the Spurs.
But they didn't regret it, because their goal was not to rank first in the league in the regular season, but to win the championship in June.You know, the team with 6 wins did not have the last laugh. The league's first place in the regular season is actually the same thing.
On February 2, the Thunder returned to their home court to face the Bulls back to back.In this game, they still didn't play ideally, and the state of Pickled Pepper is still slowly being adjusted.But relying on the advantage of overall strength, they defeated their opponents at home and refused to lose 2 consecutive games.
On February 2, the Thunder's official website released a photo. In this photo, Xie Kai, Westbrook, and Paojiao held their New Orleans All-Star game jerseys in their hands, and their faces were full of smiles.
There is a caption under the photo—three Oklahoma City soldiers, we are coming to the All-Star Game!
This is already Xie Kai's sixth All-Star trip in his career, and it is also his fifth All-Star start.He is grateful that the fans cast him in the starting lineup and won the vote.For this reason, he also posted his New Orleans All-Star Game jersey on his social media, and thanked the fans with a text.
The fans didn't give up on themselves, and of course they couldn't give up!
On February 2, the Thunder played at home against the Grizzlies.
In this game, Westbrook performed well, scored a triple-double and led the team to victory.Xie Kai's performance is average. In fact, his performance against the Grizzlies this season is average.
Westbrook knows the scruples of good brothers, so he played this game with extra dedication.
Two days later, the Thunder narrowly beat the Blazers at home, ushering in a 3-game winning streak.
After 3 consecutive victories, the Thunder's record came to 38 wins and 14 losses, continuing to rank third in the Western Conference.
A day later, the Thunder played back-to-back away games against the Pacers.
In this game, the Thunder was beaten by Oladipo with 3 points at the last moment, and missed the 4-game winning streak.
On February 2, the Thunder played against the defending champion Cleveland Cavaliers at home.
The two teams played against each other once last month, and the Thunder lost to each other away, missing their 12-game winning streak.
In this game, the Big Three of the Thunder will gather, and the two teams will usher in a scene of Big Three VS Big Three.
After Paojiao returned to play a few games, although he has not recovered to his pre-injury state, his time limit order has been lifted.
The Cavaliers have not been in a good state recently. Their defense has declined significantly this season. On the one hand, the veterans of the team are one year older. Pressing, but now it's good, he didn't miss a game for many consecutive seasons, he was directly injured...
Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue was almost speechless. He had the trump card of James in his hand, but he wanted to die in the playoffs. If he had to die in the regular season, what if he failed.
Of the Cavaliers' Big Three, the oldest James is the most resistant. Love and Irving, who are in their prime, not only have poor defense, but are also very fragile, and their career attendance rate is very average.
From the very beginning of the game, the Thunder played exceptionally aggressively. Xie Kai and Westbrook took the lead in attacking the Cavaliers' penalty area.
Tyronn Lue likes to play a small lineup, and when TT was there, he was not strong enough to protect the frame, let alone TT was injured.Let Love stand under the basket. This buddy is a person who doesn't even bother to use fouls. The protection of the basket is equal to 0.
The Cavaliers' best starting rim protector is James, but in the regular season, he is too lazy to help defend.
The Cavaliers' interior was blown up from the start.Not only were Xie Kai and Westbrook's breakthroughs they couldn't guard against, they also couldn't guard against duck eggs.
Love is not only unable to guard against the inside line, but also cannot guard against outside pick-and-rolls.They are still pinching the ball holder, but the rotation is too slow, and Paojiao got several open opportunities, no matter how average he is, he will not miss consecutively.
The Thunder took the initiative of the game from the first quarter, and the momentum was like a rainbow.And the Cavaliers don't seem to have the determination to win the game at the Thunder's home court. It feels like it's no matter what it hits, giving people a feeling of lack of blood.
Xie Kai knows that the old teams that have entered the finals in a row and won championships are like this. There is no passion in the regular season, but these people have woken up in the playoffs, and experience has become a priceless treasure.
(End of this chapter)