The King attacks.
This time, Cousins did not stupidly advance from the outside, but honestly entered the paint area and wrestled with Wang Zelin.
Thomas took the ball and came to Sacramento in his third season. From a second-round pick, he gradually secured his starting position with the Kings.
Just one summer later, his scoring jumped from 13.9 points last season to breaking the 20-point mark. This short guard, who is only 1.75 meters tall, is very likely to be selected as the most improved player this season.
Thomas Jr. has completely gained confidence this season. He regards himself as the core of the Kings' outside line. He feels good tonight and is not timid when facing Lillard.
He controlled the ball sideways and leaned against Lillard. Lillard took half a step back and performed the eye-sealing technique with one palm. However, Thomas swayed to the left, turned to the right, made a fake shot, and broke through the defender in one step.
A series of breakthrough movements were extremely smooth. In a world full of giants, Thomas Jr. gave full play to his height characteristics. He was as unpredictable as a slippery loach.
At this time, Cousins followed the tactical requirements and ran back towards the basket again, compressing the Blazers' defense and forcing Wang Zelin to return to the basket, creating a good shooting space for Thomas.
This is an offensive tactic used by Thomas in the Kings - a mid-range shot after a breakthrough.
If Wang Zelin doesn't follow up to defend the basket, Thomas can play Cousins, who will make a strong shot or dunk under the basket.
Wang Zelin was really pulled towards the basket. He didn't want to test his finishing ability. He must not miss the basket area.
He has no choice whether to let Thomas take an open shot or let Cousins get an open shot at the basket. He must consider the basket with a higher shooting rate.
He chased inside, and Thomas's sprinting steps suddenly stopped. He made an emergency jumper from the high post on the left, and shot from mid-range in the open space.
Lillard, who was chasing after him, reached out to block the shot, but failed.
"Uh-huh!"
The Kings scored two points and were temporarily behind 2:4!
Trail Blazers offense.
Wang Zelin looked like he was taking a leisurely stroll, rushing towards the frontcourt unhurriedly.
There are no players with old arms and legs in the Kings starting lineup. The athletic ability of their starting lineup is not necessarily worse than that of the Trail Blazers.
After passing the three-point line, Wang Zelin ran directly to the basket, and Cousins stepped out from his position.
"Bang!"
There was another violent collision.
After several consecutive rounds, Cousins could not compete and retreated continuously. Although his upper and lower body strength of 91 and 94 were already at the top of the league, not long ago, Wang Zelin's strength took another step forward.
The strength of the lower limbs reached 98, and the strength of the upper limbs reached 96. Looking at the entire league, no one can withstand Wang Zelin's impact one on one.
Even Cousins only resisted for a while at the beginning, and then retreated continuously.
After a while, Cousins was stuck in the reasonable collision area, that is, under the basket, and Wang Zelin succeeded.
At this time, Batum and Lillard were doing a pick-and-roll on the outside. Lillard accelerated and slowed down after the pick-and-roll, and Thomas passed the ball in.
"Bang!"
After receiving the pass, Wang Zelin immediately exploded, and the force of his hand suddenly went to Cousins behind him. The latter took a big step back. Wang Zelin got the opportunity to take off, then turned around and took off.
"drink!"
Hold the ball with both hands and pull it behind your head.
"boom!"
He pushed hard into the bottle and the basket trembled.
"Beep~"
The whistle sounded.
After Cousins was knocked back, Wang Zelin's bullet speed was beyond imagination. He had no time to dodge, and the latter got an extra penalty opportunity.
"Bah bang bang!"
The Chinese fans at the scene burst into applause and roared like waves.
"That's awesome, Your Majesty! Just fight like this!"
Wang Meng shouted excitedly.
"I've already scored 4 points, but you haven't scored 1 point. I'm curious how you can fight me? Just rely on your mouth..."
After landing, Wang Zelin walked towards the free throw line while chattering at Cousins.
Cousins pouted his mouth depressedly, with three big words written all over his face - unhappy -. They even deducted two points and caused him a foul, which made him feel very aggrieved.
When Wang Zelin raised the ball to trace the frame, he found that Cousins still had a criticizing face. Damn, when did this guy's psychological quality become so good?
In my impression, my cousin does not have such ability to withstand pressure!
"Uh-huh!"
Extra penalty hit.
"Come on, baby, attack me quickly!"
When retreating, Wang Zelin spread his hands and continued to challenge Cousins.
"Isaiah, give me that damn basketball later!"
I have to score one, I can't be laughed at anymore, Cousins thought hard in his heart.
"oh!"
Little Thomas squeaked in displeasure.
He couldn't understand it. Cousins could obviously be so inefficient, but he was greatly cultivated by the team. If he had the latter's unlimited firing rights, his score would have exceeded 30.
When he arrived at the frontcourt, Cousins walked in with all his strength. The power of his double 90+ was somewhat beyond Wang Zelin's expectations, allowing the former to reach his position.
"here!"
There was a roar from the inside.
At this time, Thomas could no longer pretend to turn a blind eye. No matter how unhappy he was, he finally sent the ball over.
"Snapped!"
Cousins caught the ball and began to push forward.
"Fuck! Are you a pig? This is so damn greasy!"
After the confrontation, although he was slightly surprised by Cousins' strength, it was still within his tolerance, but the former's greasy appearance after gaining weight made him feel extremely uncomfortable.
Cousins is not slow to begin with, and gaining weight may affect it, but it affects more of his straight-line sprinting and lateral movement. As long as he moves around in a small area, his agility attributes are still very good. of.
"Ha ha!"
Seeing Wang Zelin's suffocated look behind him, Cousins laughed out loud. He did it. He finally forced Wang Zelin back in the 1VS1 matchup.
He arched back again, and when he was about to commit a back-up violation at 5 seconds, Cousins first drew a semicircle with his left foot, then turned his body, facing the basket, and sent the ball into the frame with his left hook.
His posture seemed a bit smooth to the audience.
Wang Zelin was stunned, and Cousins really let Cousins score in a one-on-one.
"See? I told you, I'm different!"
After the goal, Cousins excitedly gestured his biceps at Wang Zelin. On a whim, he turned around and walked back to defense with the same domineering step of O'Neal.
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Countless people were amused by Cousins' actions.
At this moment, Kings No. 15 does not look as fierce as the gangster face he has, but is particularly cute.
"The center of the Kings still has two skills."
After Xu Jicheng finished speaking, he compared Howard with Cousins in his mind, and then he found that the latter was obviously more calm when facing Wang Zelin.
"It seems that there is another good prospect among the current inside players!"
After thinking about it, I can't help but sigh.
I have to say that after this round, many people really looked at Cousins in a new light:
The Kings' No. 15 doesn't just brag.
Looking back, the Blazers attack.
Lillard broke through from the top of the arc, and the disadvantage brought by Thomas' height was instantly revealed. He really couldn't guard anyone.
At the free throw line, Lillard took Aldridge's pick-and-roll and shot a jumper nearly two points away.
At the basket, Wang Zelin used his strength to trap Kausin behind him. The latter was so anxious that he directly got on the crutches and suddenly walked on the former's waist.
tnnd! You're here to play with me, right?
Wang Zelin's waist was so weak from the elbow that he could hardly stand on his feet.
Fortunately, Cousins probably didn't dare to attack with all his strength. This time he still managed to hold on, without losing his position, and still stuck Cousins behind him.
"Duang~"
The basketball bounced off the basket and Wang Zelin jumped up to catch the ball.
The moment he landed, Cousins popped up from the right side to press for him.
Not taking revenge is not a gentleman!
I saw Wang Zelin smashing the ball in front of his chest with both hands, then making a fierce right side body, "stroking" Cousins' chest with his right elbow, moving away from the basket, turning over and shooting a jumper.
"ah!"
"Uh-huh!"
Wang Zelin's ball went into the basket, and Cousins let out a painful groan and retreated.
"DeMarcus, next time you want to elbow someone, you'd better not leave any room, otherwise this will be the end!"
Amid the applause of the whole hall, Wang Zelin got an advantage and acted like a good boy, shouting at Cousins, who looked a little pale, but when he turned around~
"hiss!"
There was a burning pain in my back.
"Damn it! Today's young people don't learn well, they just learn some shady operations..."
Cousins was stunned on the spot, his heart beating wildly. It took him a while to come back to his senses and shouted at Wang Zelin's back: "Asshole! Your moves are not much better. Besides, what I just said It’s not intentional!”
In the 11th minute, the Kings attacked and Rudy Gay made a hit.
Wang Zelin collected the rebound on the right side of the basket. After Lillard controlled the ball for halftime, Coach Terry called a timeout.
Subsequently, the two sides temporarily replaced their main players and competed with rotating players.
Wang Zelin made 4 of 5 shots and 3 of 3 free throws in a single quarter, scoring 11 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist.
Cousins on the opposite side took two more shots. Facing Wang Zelin's defense, he made 4 of 7 shots and 2 of 4 free throws, scoring 10 points and 2 rebounds.
From a data perspective, the two were neck and neck, which made the Kings fans on the sidelines extremely excited.
Today, the voice of support and public opinion for "Wang Zelin = the league's best center" is getting louder and louder. Howard's performance is actually not bad, averaging 18+12 per game, and he is still among the top centers in the league.
It's a pity that the Mosaic team lost two contests with the Trail Blazers this season, and Howard's data lagged behind Wang Zelin in all aspects.
Therefore, Howard inevitably began to fall off the altar, and his position as the number one center was almost no longer guaranteed.
Now, the rise of Cousins means that another outstanding young center has appeared in the league, and Howard will be increasingly impacted.
Maybe the league has also discovered this. Recently, it has stopped advocating the "Wang Huo Controversy" and started to let the media start to stir up another wave of wind: "Ranking of the New Generation of Strong Centers!"
Tonight's ratings encounter between the Kings and Trail Blazers can be seen as the league's first attempt.
Judging from the current first quarter of the game, Cousins' performance is indeed impressive, not much worse than Wang Zelin. At least it is not as one-sided as Howard's. In addition, the public opinion on the Internet is also very gratifying. The league's top brass is more determined to build this good game. On the topic of "center duel".
Compared with defense, fans prefer to watch offensive battles. Howard, who is good at defense but not good at offense, slowly began to fall out of favor.
The new rivalry combination of Wang Zelin VS Cousins will become the new favorite of the league from now on.
Of course, the premise is that Cousins does not drop the chain.
