Li Yan's first game back was a home game against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Mavericks' record ranks first in the league and they are currently the best team.
After being reversed by the Heat in the Finals last season and losing the championship, the Mavericks did not recover. Instead, they exploded with amazing fighting power in the new season.
The Mavericks are currently far ahead in terms of record. They have six more wins than the second-place Suns in the league.
Under the guidance of head coach "Little General" Johnson, the Mavericks have both offense and defense.
"German Tank" Nowitzki is unstoppable, Josh Howard and Jason Terry are also at the peak of their careers, and the Mavericks' three core players are amazing.
Young player Devin Harris is making rapid progress, and veteran Stackhouse is on the bench.
Although Dampier, the "second center in the Western Conference," was taught by Yao Ming and Stoudemire in turn at the time, his defensive strength was still top-notch in the league. The entire Mavericks team can be said to be strong and top-notch.
The Nuggets, who had just lost three games in a row, no longer had the same momentum as before, and they urgently needed a victory to regain their momentum.
It will definitely be a fierce battle for the Nuggets to meet the league's number one Dallas Mavericks at this time.
In these three games without Li Yan, not only did the Nuggets' offensive efficiency suffer greatly, but their defense was also full of loopholes.
The Nuggets' scoring average dropped to 92 points in three games, while their points loss was as high as 112 points.
This allowed everyone to see the value of Li Yan. He is not a supporting role, but the "engine" of the Nuggets.
During the pre-match training, Li Yan obviously felt that the team's atmosphere was not as active as before.
But this is normal. If everyone is still happy after losing consecutive games, then something is wrong.
Li Yan practiced tactics with his teammates. Facts have proved that a good point guard is very important. With Li Yan's help, the Nuggets players obviously felt a lot more relaxed.
Things like Iverson and Anthony are fine, but for insiders like Kenyon Martin, Marcus Camby and Nene Hilario, it makes a world of difference whether they have Li Yanna or not.
George Karl also mobilized in time: "Boys, our opponent tonight is very strong. The Mavericks are number one in the league. They reached the finals last year, but we are now fully staffed. We want this victory today!" "
The Mavericks are No. 1 in the league and they are in good shape; however, after Li Yan's return, the media still believe that the Nuggets are capable of fighting.
After all, without Anthony, the Nuggets, led by Li Yan and Iverson, could compete with strong teams like the Spurs.
There is no doubt about Anthony's scoring ability. Now it depends on whether the Nuggets can handle the distribution of ball rights.
Three consecutive defeats show that the "golden guns" cannot achieve the effect of one plus one being greater than two.
Now Li Yan has become the hope of "the whole village", and Nuggets fans expect that the "Chinese Magician" can drive the "Golden Guns" to exert their true power.
…………
In the TNT studio, Barkley and Smith were analyzing the game.
"The Nuggets are not in good shape. They haven't won any of the three games since Anthony returned and Li Yan was suspended.
The losses to the Spurs and Pistons were both 20+ defeats, and they also lost to the eighth-place Warriors in the Western Conference. It was so frustrating! "
"The key to the game is whether the Nuggets can solve the problem of Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson coexisting.
I believe fans are looking forward to the golden double guns showing their true strength! "
The Pepsi Center was still packed that night, and the Nuggets' football market was at a peak.
Iverson, Li Yan, and Anthony all have strong box office appeal.
Suddenly the system prompt sounded:
"Ding! Post a mission: Lead the Nuggets to win this game, and Anthony and Iverson both score more than 25 points, and you will be rewarded with an attribute point."
What? Mavericks and King Nuo are worth just one attribute point?
"System, you are getting more and more stingy. Shouldn't it be two attribute points?" Li Yan was a little dissatisfied.
You must know that the Mavericks are a strong team that is not inferior to the Spurs. When playing against the Spurs, they got two skills and two attribute points. This is too different.
System: ╭(╯^╰)╮!
Li Yan: Oops! (⊙O⊙)…
After the appearance ceremony, the main players of both sides stayed on the court.
Nuggets: Li Yan, Allen Iverson, Carmelo Anthony, Kenyon Martin, Marcus Camby;
Mavericks: Devin Harris, Jason Terry, Josh Howard, Dirk Nowitzki, Eric Dampier;
Beep! The whistle blows and the game begins.
Marcus Camby shot the basketball to Li Yan.
Li Yan received the ball and pushed forward steadily.
Devin Harris rushed over to interfere, but Li Yan didn't stick to the ball and gave the ball to Anthony.
Li Yan wanted to see Anthony's condition.
Anthony is an advantageous matchup against Josh Howard. He has advantages in height and confrontation.
The other Nuggets players naturally cleared one side, creating room for Anthony to play in isolation.
Anthony was a standard three-threat with the ball, and then used his signature "drum washing machine" to turn away Josh Howard and hit from mid-range.
Anthony has a variety of offensive methods and is a new generation of offensive kaleidoscope. In terms of skills alone, he is much better than the "chosen son" LeBron James of the same class.
Next round.
The Mavericks also gave the ball to Nowitzki, who was asking for the ball in the low post.
Nowitzki is the best shooting big man in the league. His iconic jump shot is nicknamed "Golden Rooster Independence" by fans.
Nowitzki's jump shot comes with a fadeaway, and coupled with his height and wingspan, it is almost impossible to block shots.
There is no need to question Nowitzki's scoring ability, "Oh!"
The basketball went hollow into the net, and Nowitzki made an easy hit against Kenyon Martin's defense.
Nuggets round.
Li Yan was not in a hurry to perform. He continued to observe the situation on the court.
Li Yan gave Iverson a hand-to-hand pass at the top of the arc, and he blocked Jason Terry to one side of his body.
Iverson took advantage of the situation and rushed into the paint. Nowitzki, who was defending, could not keep up with Iverson's lateral movement speed.
Iverson hit the basket with ease.
After the opening, Li Yan's performance was quite satisfactory, and the Nuggets played steadily.
The good thing is that Iverson and Anthony attacked more resolutely. Under the arrangement of George Karl, Li Yan dominated the ball. The "golden guns" did not need to hesitate after receiving Li Yan's pass.
The disadvantage is that fundamentally the Nuggets have not gotten rid of the mode of relying on Anthony and Iverson's individual singles, and Li Yan's performance is not as impressive as before.
The Mavericks' outside firepower is very fierce, and the Nuggets cannot take advantage even with the blessing of Li Yan's skills.
At the end of the first quarter, the Nuggets trailed the Mavericks by 3 points, 27-30.
