Chapter 50 Even if we take a step back, doesn’t his shooting posture look good?

Game 2 between the Mavericks and the Kings is scheduled for April 4, the day after Game 20.

After the first game, Zheng Yang was really exhausted. When he went from the locker room to the team bus, he still asked the rookie Da Chou to carry him on his back.

It feels a bit like the veterans in the team bullying the rookies!
Hmm...it seems like I'm a rookie too?

It’s okay, I’m not bullying the rookie. This is called giving Da Chou a chance to perform.

The scene was also captured by reporters, who later praised the Mavericks' locker room atmosphere for being so united and harmonious, and the players for being so friendly and enthusiastic.

Anyway, just praise it as much as you can!
After G1, Nelson gave everyone half a day off so that they could have a good rest, but he repeatedly reminded them not to go out and mess around during this time.

Everyone knew the importance of this round of competition, so even Fat Monk stayed in the hotel and slept obediently.

……

Zheng Yang's wonderful performance in G1 is still continuing to ferment, and American reports mainly focus on Zheng Yang being the "key man" of the team.

However, under the "fact-based" reporting of the Chinese media, it became "Team leader Zheng Yang led the Mavericks to win the game, and second-in-command Nowitzki performed well."

Do you dare to say he is wrong?
Everyone has watched the CCTV live broadcast. Coach Zhang said, "It is most reasonable to give the ball to Zheng Yang." Who would believe that a player like this is not the leader of the team?
Are you trying to say that Coach Zhang is lying to us?

Before Game 2, the Mavericks did not make any major changes. Nelson simply summarized the Princeton system that the Kings players often ran, hoping that it would help their defense.

The team owner Mark Cuban also came to the hotel where the team was staying and told them to just tell him if they needed anything and he would arrange it for them immediately.

I have to say that Cuban is quite willing to spend money on the team and is not stingy.

But his enthusiasm still had some discrimination. For example, for Nowitzki, he directly arranged his hotel room next to his own room, asked him about his well-being along the way, and even wanted to sleep in the same bed with him at night.

But he seemed a little cold towards Zheng Yang and old Nelson.

Zheng Yang also knew that Cuban didn't like him very much, but he didn't care. He came here to play basketball, not to sell backdoors. No matter whether he liked it or not, he didn't plan to stay here for the rest of his life.

The match against G2 is coming soon. Zheng Yang has the deepest impression of G2 in this series because this match has the lowest score in this series.

The two teams known for their offense ended the game with a score of 79:83.

To put it nicely, the intensity of this game was very high. To put it bluntly, both teams were very strong in this game.

The basket was crooked throughout the entire game.

Therefore, before the game, Zheng Yang had decided that he would focus more on offense in this game. The opponent's touch was not good in this round. As long as he could suppress the opponent in offense, he could win in the end even if his defense was a little worse.

Of course, the direction of the game will not be determined by him. How to play will depend on the situation of the game.

Before the game started, Sacramento fans shouted slogans to tie the game back to 1-1, but the louder the slogans were, the more it showed that they lacked confidence.

After watching the G1 game, they were really scared of Zheng Yang. That young man seemed to be able to do anything.

These fans already regard him as a devil!

Of course, there is also a group of fans in front of the TV who regard him as a true god and are looking forward to his performance in G2.

On CCTV Sports Channel, Yu Jia and Coach Zhang are still partners, although being partners with Coach Zhang makes Yu Jia feel a little tired.

But the leader said that their commentary had given good feedback, so he continued to let them be partners.

Coach Zhang also smiled at the beginning.

"Hey, the Mavericks' top star Zheng Yang is on the court. Let's see what kind of amazing performance he will put on in this game."

Yu Jia didn't dare to respond at all. It seemed that it was you who caused the domestic media to praise Zheng Yang as the leader of the team?

Let’s take a look at the TNT studio. The host is still Barkley and the special guest is still Pippen.

After Game 1, Pippen was ready to reject TNT's invitation to be a commentator, but TNT offered him more money.

He rejected it at first!

But TNT continued to add, and Pippen suddenly realized that Barkley's sarcasm was not that unbearable to hear. Since he had the time, he might as well explain it.

Of course, this is definitely not about money.

Mainly as a senior in the league, he is still very concerned about the young players in the league.

It is the responsibility of a veteran like him to be able to commentate on their games and see how they grow.

It would be a pleasant surprise if you could earn a little money in the process.

Of course, TNT also has a requirement, which is that Pippen should stick to being himself and not be influenced by Barkley.

If Barkley has no one to output, then the show will be useless, right?

Pippen patted his chest and assured that he would take care of it.

When it comes to the ability to withstand pressure, having been the second-in-command beside Jordan for so many years, he says he is second, and no one dares to claim to be first.

After the game started, in such a highly anticipated game, the two teams first gave the fans a big surprise.

They were just taking turns to hit the iron, one after another, you hit the timer and I hit the basket, in any case, neither of them would give in.

In the first five minutes, the Mavericks scored 7 points and the Kings scored 9 points, which was evenly matched! Fortunately, there were two funny people like Barkley and Coach Zhang, otherwise this game would have been really boring.

"Oh, this is a good shooting opportunity. Why didn't he seize it? The Mavericks' No. 19...well, Zheng Yang's shot was very reasonable. Although it didn't go in, this is how the shot should be made.

If you think about it, if this ball goes in, it’s a good goal.”

In the CCTV studio, Coach Zhang performed a series of "face changing" performances for the fans.

In the TNT studio, Pippen also began to tease Barkley.

"Hey Charles, what do you think of Zheng's performance today?"

"Hey Charles, Zheng's shot just now almost went in."

"Hey Charles..."

Barkley was already in a bad mood after seeing Zheng Yang's poor performance in the first quarter, and after seeing Pippen's expression, he felt even worse.

So he started to rant.

“Hey Scotty, can you tell me what you’re happy about?

I don’t know what’s so fun about this!

Zheng's current performance is indeed not good, but so what, you are also a basketball player, you also know that every player has bad times, even Michael has bad performances.

But look at what Zheng was doing when he was not in good offensive form?
He was playing aggressive defense, he was sticking to Peja, he had three rebounds, and he blocked Mike.

Did you see the save he made just now? He flew out and hit the basketball hoop hard, but he immediately got up from the ground and continued to defend.

We like Zheng not only because of his wonderful performance on the court, but also because of his attitude towards basketball.

His love for basketball, his seriousness towards the game, and the tenacity, perseverance and unwillingness to admit defeat he displayed on the court are the reasons why we really like him.

So I really don’t understand, Scotty, what you’re so happy about.”

Barkley frowned and asked in disbelief. Pippen, who was sitting opposite him, began to stammer. He actually began to feel ashamed of his behavior just now!

What on earth was I thinking? I was actually mocking such an outstanding young man. I was really crazy!
Is this the attitude a senior should have?
Hmm...but I always feel like something is weird!
When the fans in front of the TV heard Barkley's words, they suddenly realized that there seemed to be some truth in them. Although Zheng Yang's performance in the first quarter was not good, to put it another way, he still had the courage to shoot after missing so many shots. Isn't that worthy of encouragement?
Although he didn't make the shot, doesn't his shooting posture look good?

We should be more tolerant of him!
By coincidence, the fans liked Zheng Yang even more.

Of course, Zheng Yang’s missed shots in the first quarter were not that extreme. He only made 5 of 1 shots, which is actually acceptable.

It’s just because of his outstanding performance in G1 that everyone had high expectations of him, so the gap in their hearts was so big.

In the second half of the first quarter, both teams slowly regained their touch and finally ended the first quarter with 19:21.

At the beginning of the second quarter, the ball came into Zheng Yang's hands again. The Kings' player defending him was still Doug Christie, who was also the most suitable player to defend him.

In this attack, Zheng Yang also demonstrated what talent is.

After a change of direction, he broke through to the right and then made a quick stop jump shot.

As mentioned before, Doug Christie, who defended Zheng Yang, is an excellent defensive player with rich defensive experience.

Therefore, he was not fooled by Zheng Yang's disguise, nor did he fly out when Zheng Yang suddenly stopped, but he still failed to defend himself.

Because Zheng Yang's physical talent is really top-notch.

The physical talent here does not refer to jumping and arm span, but to the control over the body.

Doug Christie did predict Zheng Yang's emergency stop, but because he was moving sideways, he couldn't stop immediately even if he wanted to.

But Zheng Yang can do it. He can suddenly accelerate to full speed when stationary, and at the same time, he can stop faster than others when making an emergency stop.

What's even more terrifying is that his center of gravity was stable, so when he made a jump shot, his shooting posture was exactly the same as his usual spot shooting and was not affected at all.

So Doug Christie really couldn't interfere with him.

Zheng Yang made the shot on his first try in the second quarter, and CCTV coach Zhang quickly smiled.

“Look, didn’t I say before that the shots just didn’t go in? If they had gone in, every shot would have been a good shot.

Look at this ball, what a beautiful shot! It made Doug lose his mind!"

Yu Jia: You seemed to have said something, but also seemed to have said nothing!

As soon as Zheng Yang scored a goal, Weber on the other side immediately returned one.

He dribbled the ball and backed up Fat Monk, then turned around and passed him directly. Nowitzki in the inside was unable to stop him, and he dunked the ball easily.

Webber is just not good at key shots, but not every shot.

He remains one of the Kings' most reliable scorers.

And Fat Monk's defense is only good sometimes, but not all the time.

If he can occasionally defend Webber, the whole team can celebrate with champagne. If the Mavericks want to rely on him to limit Webber's offense and win, they should prepare for the new season as soon as possible.

(End of this chapter)