Chapter 120: Super God in the early stage, super...soldier in the later stage!
The second half of the game has been going on for more than a minute, and the two sides are tied at 40:31.
Trail Blazers offense.
After Lillard came to the frontcourt with the ball, he handed the ball to Wang Zelin, and Cousins on the opposite side followed Wang Zelin every step of the way.
The Kings' 4 points after the timeout were all scored by Cousins, while the Trail Blazers' 2 points were scored by Wang Zelin. Cousins knew that the opponent must be thinking of scoring a comeback.
Because in addition to the team's record, this game is also about the battle for the strongest center of the new generation.
At least in Cousins' view, winning or not is not that important. Anyway, the team probably won't make the playoffs this year.
The most important thing is to defeat No. 36 on the opposite side, because only in this way can he be happy.
"Big-headed baby, you are definitely going to lose this game. There is no point in struggling anymore."
After receiving the ball, Wang Zelin half-turned to face Cousins, preparing to face the frame for singles.
"I don't want to argue with you."
Cousins knew his weakness of not being good at talking, and decided to follow the coach's instructions to him before the game and never talk trash to the No. 36 player on the opposite side, as that would not do him any good.
"Are you afraid? Oh, that's normal. Anyone who has worked hard for two years and is overtaken by others in just over a month will feel unwilling to do so."
"But so what, this is the difference between geniuses and ordinary people, you won't understand!"
"..."
Cousins does not respond, but it does not mean that Wang Zelin will let him go.
The most important thing is that Wang Zelin knows very well that with Cousins' temperament, he can't endure the first grade of junior high school but the fifteenth grade.
"I see!"
Sure enough, facing Wang Zelin's ten-shot attack per second, Cousins broke through the defense and shouted coldly.
Back in the NCAA, I was also a highly regarded super center seed in the United States.
Wang Zelin glanced at the time - 11 seconds - and smiled very steadily: "No, you can't understand."
"I said I could understand!"
Cousins opened his mouth wider.
"You know...a ball!"
Wang Zelin suddenly shouted, grabbed the basketball with one hand and reached behind Cousins.
Oops!?
Although he was unhappy with Wang Zelin, Cousins was still convinced by the opponent's first-hand pass.
Because he is also a big man who likes to pass the ball very much, we can naturally see Wang Zelin's talent and skills in this area.
The moment Wang Zelin made the move, Cousins quickly turned his head. Behind him, Aldridge, Trail Blazers No. 0 and No. 33 did not have the ball in their hands.
Damn, I got scammed.
Just as Cousins thought, the moment he turned his head, Wang Zelin pulled his hand back, and the ball was still in his hand, motionless.
No wonder Boss Joe likes to hold the ball with one hand so much. Not only can he pretend to be a good hand, but he can also show off his big hands to female fans.
?"Shua!"
Wang Zelin raised the ball, shook his wrist, and hit the ball steadily.
At 42:31, the point difference exceeded 10 points.
"You are so mean!"
Cousins, who was a little aggrieved, muttered, but he was unexpectedly cute.
It’s your third year in the league, how can you still be naive?
"Thank you for the compliment!"
Wang Zelin immediately showed an attitude of "I am despicable, I am glorious!"
"..."
Cousins was stunned.
I reported it to the referee, someone is shameless.
After receiving the ball, Brooks strolled forward and called a pick-and-roll just after halftime. Cousins hurriedly pulled him high.
Although Cousins does some bizarre things off the court from time to time, thanks to the training of the college NCAA league, he is indeed a very dedicated athlete on the court, and his basketball literacy is also good.
At the very least, Cousins will never be like a certain high school No. 1 pick who regards pick-and-roll screening work as a bad thing that lowers his worth.
Just pick up the bowl to eat and then put the bowl down to curse!
After the pick-and-roll is completed, cut inside in both directions.
Cousins was two steps away from the paint on the wing and received the ball and hit Wang Zelin with his back.
Cousins, who has matured his post-up skills, swayed left and right twice, then suddenly turned around and shot a jump shot, his movements were very coherent.
Wang Zelin reacted quickly, taking half a step ahead and reaching out to block the shot on his face.
Cousins' vision went dark, but the arrow was on the string and he had to fire it.
"Rebound!"
Wang Zelin caught Cousins, and he knew the ball was short, so he roared in Aldridge's direction.
"boom!"
The ball landed on the edge of the rim, and Aldridge in the left corner had already grabbed the rebound.
The Blazers went on the fast break.
Lillard reached the frontcourt and missed a three-pointer, but Wang Zelin succeeded in making up the dunk.
It's time for the king to attack again.
The ball was still handed to Cousins, but Wang Zelin could clearly feel that the opponent's breathing was much heavier than in the previous two quarters.
As a traditional heavy tank center, unless you are as talented as the four major centers in the 1990s, you will be more or less affected by your physical strength.
DeMarcus Cousins is no exception.
In addition to enjoying the convenience brought to him by his weight tonnage, excessive physical energy consumption has also become a major difficulty in Cousins' career.
Throughout his career, he has never averaged more than 35 minutes per game in a season. In the first three years after entering the league, he averaged only 30 minutes, and his two or three peak seasons were only 34 minutes.
This time, Cousins leaned against Wang Zelin and did not move. Instead, he quickly turned around and caught his opponent off guard. He came to the basket and easily hit the board.
"Hoo, ho~~you, you can't guard against me."
After a successful layup, Cousins did not forget to make a provocation.
"hey-hey!"
Wang Zelin smiled back and said nothing, lowered his head and picked up the basketball.
The centers of the two teams exchanged one-for-one operations. It was nothing for the Trail Blazers. After all, they had enough scoring points. On the contrary, for the Kings, Cousins was the only one with stable scoring points.
He scored 16 points in less than half time. This efficiency far exceeded any of Cousins' previous games. Likewise, the same was true for his physical exertion.
The little black bean is no longer the scoring expert who averaged 19 points per game. Now the Blazers only need to wait for Cousins to run out of energy, and this game is not far from garbage time.
Lillard came to the Kings' three-point line, stopped, and waved for tactics.
Aldridge came out to cover, and Wang Zelin contained Cousins in the short corner on the right.
The Kings are extremely afraid of Wang Zelin. The coaching staff has specially studied Wang Zelin's playing style and wants to find loopholes.
But what makes them despair is that in today's era, there is simply no way to guard against an inside player with superb offensive skills and comprehensive skills like Wang Zelin. The only thing that can guard against him is his own physical fitness and touch.
Maybe the Spurs' No. 21 pick can defend him, but the problem is that the Kings don't have players of this caliber.
After taking advantage of the screen, Lillard dribbled past Brooks and broke into the free throw line.
Jason Thompson on the inside stood up in advance and raised his hands high. Lillard ignored the opponent and took off, hitting Jason Thompson with a chop...
Lillard scored the 10th point of the game, scoring in double figures.
In the live broadcast rooms of major Chinese websites, Lillard's goal caused a burst of cheers from netizens.
"Damn it, this young man!"
"Are all defenders No. 0 so cool? This B looks like the turtle from the goose factory next door."
"Please give some psychological shadow to the black stick of the Kings."
"What a black stick, my name is Jason Thompson, you are just engaging in discrimination."
"No, no, no, there are two types of people I hate the most. One is those who engage in sexual discrimination, and the other is black people."
"..."
After landing, Wang Zelin stepped forward and rubbed Lillard's little head hard.
On the Kings side, Jason Thomson, who was dunked, was not depressed except for feeling a little depressed.
Anyway, I'm used to it.
Easy side to fight again.
Brooks suddenly got a cold shot from the outside and responded with one.
"Boy, remember to give me the ball later and I will deal with them."
When returning to defense, Cousins not only did not praise Brooks for his beautiful three-pointer, but instead angrily criticized the opponent for not passing the ball to him.
I** you**
Fortunately, Brooks knew that the big guy in front of him was just the target of the team's support, so he could only explain in a good voice: "Demarcus, I am worried about your physical strength. The fight is ongoing now. Wait until the next round."
Four quarters..."
?"You mean I can't do it?"
Cousins' eyes were filled with murderous intent.
"No no."
Brooks shook his head hastily.
A man can't bear to be told that he's not good enough.
"Then give me the ball, okay?"
"OK!"
Throughout the second half, Cousins, who was obsessed with singles, suffered from increasingly lower offensive efficiency due to the impact of physical strength. He played three irons in a row before the last minute and a half, and his score still stayed at 16 points.
Kings coach Keith Smart couldn't stand it anymore, called a timeout and replaced Cousins.
"Coach, I was having a great time playing, why did you replace me?"
Returning to the bench, Cousins refused to sit down and looked at Smart with a look of complaint.
Do you still want to have fun?
I'm going crazy!
However, due to the opponent's team status, Smart could only comfort him and promised to let him continue to play in the second half.
At the end of the third quarter, the score was 64:83.
The Kings trail the Trail Blazers by 19 points.
Cousins scored 11 points in the third quarter, but the Kings only scored 17 points in the entire quarter.
This means that with the exception of Cousins, the other Kings players could not score more than 6 points in total. It can basically be said that Cousins is a one-man performance with his hands on his hips.
Cousins himself felt happy now, but his teammates gradually lost their game status.
Why do you always need to warm up before playing basketball, whether it is a professional or amateur game? The reason is to move your muscles and stretch your muscles so that the player's body can gradually enter the game state.
Now, Cousins is playing well, but his physical problems are also beginning to appear, and he will definitely not be able to play in the first few minutes of the fourth quarter.
At this time, teammates need to step up and continue the firepower.
However, watching the show for a long time made other Kings players feel cold and lose their game state. Moreover, anyone who watched a one-man show for so long would feel irritable. Once people become irritated, it will be difficult to regain the feeling.
Five minutes into the fourth quarter, the Trail Blazers led the Kings by 26 points, 92:68.
Cousins, who reappeared in the second half, lost his scoring performance in the first three quarters. In the first half of the quarter, he only scored 0 points, 1 rebound, 3 turnovers and six fouls.
At the end of the game, Cousins scored a total of 27 points and 9 rebounds. Looking at the data alone, it is undoubtedly outstanding.
Only those who have watched the entire game will understand that Cousins performed well in the first three quarters and had great potential to lead the team, but at the critical moment he was completely invisible and lost the demeanor that a leading star should have.
107:75!
The Trail Blazers celebrated their return to the home court with a 32-point victory. The two teams left the court one after another amid cheers from the audience.