JJ Hickson's ability to catch mismatches is still very good. No matter how good Hinrich is, he is only a defender after all. Facing the fourth position that is nearly a head taller than him, he tried his best but still couldn't resist.
The Wizards made their first attack of the second half. Hinrich held the ball through half the court, intending to retaliate in kind. After picking and rolling with Li Kaiming, he went inside and forced the Cavaliers to switch defense.
However, he did not expect that the two defenders of the Cavaliers directly chose to double-team Li Kaiming without switching defenses at all. In desperation, Hinrich took the ball to the penalty area and bullied Varejao two-on-one with Blatche under the basket. , Brachi scored two points.
Seeing that the team's tactical execution was like a lip position when he was away, Arenas, who was sitting on the bench, doubted himself. Did I really break the balance of the team?
No, impossible, absolutely impossible!
Arenas' eyes were a little red, and he clenched his fists. I just feel bad today. As long as I get back to my form, this team is still mine!
Wizards coach Saunders, who was watching the game from the sidelines, did not expect that his good intentions not only failed to help Arenas find himself, but also encouraged him to go down the wrong path...
Halfway through the third quarter, the Wizards still maintained a double-digit lead. Sanders felt that the starting lineup had played enough time, so he took advantage of the official timeout and added Li Kaiming, Hinrich and Bulla. Odd three people were substituted.
Trevor Booker was directly abandoned by Sanders in this game because of his defense in the first half.
To a certain extent, Booker's mistake can be regarded as a disaster. Sanders was obviously a little irritated by Arenas. It happened to be that Booker made a mistake. If not you, who should take it out?
Seeing that he finally had a chance to prove himself on the court again, Arenas immediately stood up from the bench.
Sanders pulled him and said, "Gilbert, don't force yourself to take action, play smarter!"
These words were originally very reasonable, but when they were heard in Arenas' ears at this time, they changed their taste.
What's the meaning? Didn't I play smart enough even for you? Why can that guy fight however he wants? I used to play like this too, why don't you?
Arenas has gone crazy! What he feels now is that after he returns from injury, the whole world is targeting him!
People who get into trouble are very scary. At this time, Arenas got into such a corner. Others criticized him just because he was in a bad state. As long as he can get back to his state, all problems can be solved.
So Sanders's kind reminder did not make Arenas regain his sanity, but instead served as an accelerator for his crazy shots on the court!
Before the injury, although Arenas played relatively independently and was not the kind of player who liked to lead his teammates, he averaged 5 assists per game, which shows that his passing skills are still there.
In this game, Arenas simply didn't want to pass the ball!
Larry Drew also finally gave Mo Williams a rest. The latter has not played since the beginning of the game. Without Jamison, he has to take the lead alone.
The Cavaliers took on a backup point guard, Ramon Sessions, who averaged 8 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists per game last season. He may be the only player on the Cavaliers' bench who can perform well.
When the game started, Sanders on the sidelines observed the situation with his hands on his hips and said to himself, "Gilbert, I can only help you so far. If you don't play well, I won't be able to help you anymore..."
But Arenas gave him a job in the first round. He watched Li Kaiming break quickly and directly pull up from outside the three-point line. As a representative of difficult three-pointers, how could he do it in front of him? Losing to a rookie in his specialty event?
So after receiving the ball, Arenas dribbled to the frontcourt. His teammates had just settled into position and were preparing to run according to the tactics practiced before the game. As a result, Arenas pulled out directly from outside the three-point line!
After seeing this scene, Sanders on the sidelines couldn't bear it anymore. He turned around and slammed the tactical board on Lin!
Fortunately, Arenas actually scored the goal and did not cause greater losses to the Wizards. However, scoring the goal did not change Arenas's view in Sanders' eyes.
Whether the ball is scored or not is a matter of personal ability, but whether the ball is played according to tactics is a matter of player quality.
This is why most coaches hate players with thorns. They watch videos, formulate tactics, and work for several days before the game, but everything is disrupted after they come on the field!
This is an insult to the coaching job!
But Arenas didn't think so. On the contrary, the goal just now greatly strengthened his confidence, so in the next round he once again chose to put aside tactics and solve the problem himself.
But tonight's basket didn't give him face. What he took was a loud strike, and the Cavaliers used this backcourt rebound to successfully score a fast break!
…
Within 5 minutes after Arenas came on the court, the Cavaliers slowly approached the score again, while the rest of the Wizards were reduced to complete tool men. On the offensive end, they could only run back or serve as screeners, or go to the outside to pull To open up space, the defensive end must help Arenas wipe his ass.
Five minutes later, Sanders, who was livid on the sidelines, had to take the initiative to call a timeout again!
At this time, the score between the two sides was 77 to 70. It was not the most important thing that the point difference was getting close, but that he really couldn't bear to see Arenas dominating the field alone!
Xiu'er, stop showing off, come down and I'll reward you with my favorite big mouth!
If he could beat Arenas, Sanders would definitely give him a slap in the face without hesitation!
After being a coach for so many years, this is the first time that a player like this can allow Sanders to break through the defense to such an extent in just one game. Maybe Sanders will measure it after the game and find out that Arenas With the help of the doctor, he was cured of the low blood pressure he had suffered for many years...
So as expected, Li Kaiming led the starting lineup and went into battle again. Three strikes, five divided by two, opened the point difference to 15 points in the next 7 minutes!
Li Kaiming's strength is one thing, and the Cavaliers' weakness is another important reason. After the third quarter, the Wizards scored 97-82 at home, almost sending the game into garbage time.
Li Kaiming has already scored 30+ in three quarters. The commentators and guests at the scene couldn't help but sigh. They had been watching football for so many years, and this was the first time they had seen a rookie score so easily.
When other rookies enter the league, not only do they not score high, but their shooting percentages also drop significantly, but Li Kaiming is better. Both of them improve at the same time. This is simply a miracle in their eyes!
In order to ensure that the victory was secure, Sanders let Li Kaiming lead the team for a while at the beginning of the fourth quarter. It was not until Larry Drew took the initiative to replace him as a substitute that the outcome of the game was completely overturned. Conclusion.
Arenas on the bench, after seeing Sanders preparing to come on the bench, was excited that he could go on the field again to find his form, but he didn't expect that Sanders didn't even look at him and directly Let Ryan Hudson, who hasn't appeared for a long time, come on!
After seeing this scene, Arenas was stunned for a while, and then sat down on the chair dejectedly...
Time passed by minute by second, and soon the game ended at the referee's whistle. The Washington Wizards defeated the Cavaliers 112-96 at home, winning their fifth consecutive victory since the start of the game and still maintaining the myth of being undefeated. , the top spot in the Eastern Conference is also firmly occupied by the Wizards.
Li Kaiming played for 33 minutes and made 14 of 18 shots, including 3 of 5 three-pointers and 4 of 4 free throws. He scored 35 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 1 steal. Hinrich's performance remained stable, scoring 10 points and 8 steals. With assists, Nick Young regained his form and scored 15 points and 4 rebounds, and Blatche scored another double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
There is only one person in the team whose shooting percentage is less than half, and that is Arenas, who took crazy shots during the game. He was basically a substitute, but he took 15 shots in the game, second only to Li Kaiming, but he formed a strong relationship with the latter. In sharp contrast, Arenas only hit 3 goals in the whole game, and all of them were three-pointers. In other words, Arenas scored 9 points with a 20% shooting rate, and also made 6 turnovers!
During the post-match reporter interview, Arenas was directly absent. He did not even return to the locker room.
Li Kaiming appeared in the post-match interview, but he rejected all questions related to Arenas. He believed that after this game, the management should know who to choose...
At the end of the interview, a reporter asked him a question, "Li, why do you score 30 points in every game? Is it easy to score in the NBA?"
Li Kaiming shrugged his shoulders, "Isn't it? On average, 30 points in a quarter is less than 8 points. Isn't it enough to throw two three-pointers and a layup?"
Reporters:...
