nycdaug Chapter 627 Spring Chapter Zhou!
Chapter 627 Spring Chapter Zhou!
The Clippers went scoreless for a full five minutes after the whistle blew.
December's Western Conference Coach of the Year, Tyronn Lue, used two timeouts in a row, finally allowing the Clippers to score their first point with almost six minutes remaining.
The Clippers quickly got back on track and traded points with the Nets.
If you ignore the score, the two sides were evenly matched.
Looking at the score, the Nets maintained a double-digit lead throughout.
Whenever the Clippers are about to close the gap, someone from the Nets always manages to step up and go on a mini-run to widen the score again.
Thomas, who performed well in the last game, scored 20 points again in this game.
Westbrook, who rested in the previous game, put up a well-rounded stat line of 23 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists in this game.
Towns played adequately, scoring 18 points and grabbing 6 rebounds in 25 minutes of playing time, which can be considered as half-hearted effort.
Even more of a slacker than Towns is Wang Xiucheng.
With a double-digit lead from the start and strong performances from Thomas and Westbrook, Wang Xiucheng only took 10 shots throughout the entire game.
Of those 10 shots, 7 were three-pointers.
Fortunately, Wang Xiucheng's 4 out of 7 three-pointers allowed him to maintain his terrifying efficiency.
In the end, Wang Xiucheng contributed 18 points, 7 assists, and 3 steals.
The Nets ultimately defeated the Clippers 125-114 on the road.
Wang Xiucheng didn't score many points, but the Nets, with their all-around attack, easily defeated their opponents thanks to their overall performance, especially the performance of their bench players.
The Nets' bench contributed 48 of the 125 points tonight.
Besides Thomas's 20 points, Cui also scored 8 points in this game, Claxton scored a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, and Oubre and others helped the Nets easily win the game.
After the game against the Clippers, the entire Nets team flew back to New York on a private jet that same night.
The Nets' next game will be at home against the New York Knicks in two days.
A few years ago, or even two years ago, the Nets and Knicks games didn't attract this much attention.
After all, whether looking at history or results, the Nets can't compare to the Knicks.
The Knicks' name is prefixed with "New York".
This represents orthodoxy, status, and identity.
The Knicks and Celtics are the only two teams that have never moved cities since the NBA's predecessor, the BAA, began. The Nets, on the other hand, were previously known as the "New Jersey Nets."
The Nets later moved to New York, settling in Brooklyn.
The Nets were called the New York Nets for a period of time, but later moved back to New Jersey.
Perhaps for this reason, the Nets have never been seen as a true New York team by New Yorkers.
The gap between the Nets and the Knicks is much larger than that between the Lakers and the Clippers, which is evident from their names.
However, this situation changed a few years ago.
The Nets got a new owner of Chinese descent, and he's very willing to spend money.
The Nets began building their superstar basketball team around that time.
The combination of Durant, Harden, and Irving stunned the league at the time.
However, the fact that the Big Three only played 16 games together shocked the league.
Afterwards, the Big Three fell apart, with Harden leaving first, Irving not renewing his contract, and Durant requesting a trade.
Everyone is speculating that the Nets will never recover and won't even have the chance to tank.
In the Harden trade, the Nets gave all their future first-round picks to the Rockets, and their tanking was also for the Rockets.
However, just when everyone was watching the spectacle, the Nets made a trade that drew protests from all the league's owners.
Wang Xiucheng makes a surprise appearance in Brooklyn!
The Nets paid only the price of Kyrie Irving's decision not to re-sign and two protected first-round picks.
This trade even included John Wall, who later freed up a lot of salary cap space for the Nets.
There seems to be something fishy about this deal.
Then, thanks to Wang Xiucheng, the Nets retained Durant and won the championship that year.
This has propelled the Nets' brand recognition and even the team's value to new heights.
A height that could threaten the Knicks.
This year, the Nets made another big signing, trading for Towns to form a Big Three once again, with their sights set on defending their title!
Against this backdrop, the two teams began their match tonight.
The Knicks, who had been looking to make a trade, finally acquired Anunoby on the last day of 23 by trading Barrett as the main player.
This significantly changed the Knicks' record.
After Anunoby arrived, the Knicks' perimeter defense improved significantly, resulting in a 10-2 record.
But tonight, facing the Nets' perimeter defense with Wang Xiucheng, Anunoby had to leave the game early due to foul trouble.
Throughout the game, Wang Xiucheng played at a leisurely pace, and the Nets and Knicks seemed to be neck and neck in terms of score.
But this is on the premise that Wang Xiucheng reduced the number of times he took the shot.
However, as soon as Anunoby enters the game, Wang Xiucheng will dribble the ball and attack Anunoby one-on-one.
Although he was blocked twice by Anunoby and got blocked twice, Anunoby quickly fouled Wang Xiucheng again and then went off the court to continue biting his nails.
Then Wang Xiucheng disappeared again, squatting in the corner and drawing circles.
The Nets ultimately defeated the Knicks 108-105 at home, bringing their record to 27 wins and 16 losses.
Despite losing this game, the Knicks still have a record of 27 wins and 17 losses, ranking third in the Eastern Conference, just behind the Nets.
After a short road trip, the Nets won their first home game against their derby rivals, getting off to a good start for the rest of the season.
In the following matches, perhaps due to the approaching Spring Festival, Wang Xiucheng's performance fluctuated.
This gave the Nets a record of 2 wins and 6 losses during this period.
The Nets' overall record has improved to 29 wins and 22 losses, placing them fourth in the Eastern Conference.
On February 8th, the Nets hosted the Mavericks.
The Barclays Center was decorated with a Chinese New Year atmosphere for the game.
Brooklyn Knight, the Brooklyn Nets' mascot and a superhero created by Marvel and the Nets, also donned a red cape.
All the staff were dressed in red tonight, even the tall stadium security guards, who usually wore black suits, had changed into red ones, which made people feel a little uncomfortable.
As always, Wang Xiucheng was the last to leave the locker room.
As soon as I stepped out of the player tunnel, my name was uttered in Chinese from both stands.
Wang Xiucheng looked up and saw a large group of people gathered there, holding up their phones and waiting for him.
"Wang Xiucheng, Wang Xiucheng..."
Fan Chengcheng craned his neck and shouted, completely disregarding the stares of those around him.
Wang Xiucheng was also somewhat helpless. No matter what, Fan Chengcheng was an idol, and this was somewhat disregarding his own image.
Wang Xiucheng reached out and took a pen, quickly signing several jerseys.
Two burly men in red suits stared at the fans, as if afraid they might do something else.
After signing three jerseys and a hat, Wang Xiucheng walked onto the court.
Ben Sullivan saw Wang Xiucheng appear under the basket and immediately threw the basketball over.
Wang Xiucheng, still wearing his jacket, received the ball, one foot still on the sideline, and casually tossed it with one hand. The basketball swished through the net.
Wang Xiucheng was stunned for a moment, then burst into exaggerated laughter, pointing at Ben Sullivan and shouting, "See that? I made it in, see? You still dare to say I slacked off during warm-up?"