The teammates all gathered around Zhao Feiyang. Faced with their repeated inquiries, Zhao Feiyang did not answer in a hurry, but let his teammates help him to the team bench. After everyone gathered around him, he sat down on the chair and stretched out his hand to gently massage the area where his ankle was sprained.
"It's indeed twisted...but I feel like...there's nothing wrong with it!"
Zhao Feiyang said.
The teammates breathed a sigh of relief.
Team coach Eric Stotts also wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand.
That moment just now really scared him. Zhao Feiyang is the core of the team. If he hadn't been reimbursed for the season last year because he was stepped on by the opponent, I'm afraid they would be the ones who finally entered the Western Conference finals, and the president who belongs to the Golden State Warriors. The championship is also likely to be theirs.
The team is relying on him to stay healthy this season. If he gets injured again, the team's future will really become confused.
"Let's do this! Zhao, you rest first... let Raven take your place!"
Coach Eric quickly rearranged the team's lineup.
Zhao Feiyang continued to sit on the team bench from this moment on.
In order to determine his condition, the team also called in a team doctor to massage his ankle. Even though Zhao Feiyang really hopes to play, his injury is like a fog now. For the sake of future health, he can only follow the team's instructions.
The game between the two sides quickly entered the final quarter.
The Timberwolves were not brutally beaten by the Cavaliers because of the lack of Zhao Feiyang. On the contrary, the Cavaliers trailed from the beginning to the fourth quarter, even when LeBron came on to control the ball.
After several seasons of running-in, the Timberwolves have become perfect both inside and outside the team. Whether it is the level of tacit understanding or the personal strength of the players, they can be said to be quite strong.
Especially young people like LaVine and Adrian, who have grown up after several seasons of training, and can now definitely stand on their own.
Perhaps there is still a gap compared to a super core like Zhao Feiyang, but as part of the championship puzzle, they can quickly improve the competitiveness of any team when placed on it.
Compared with the strength of the Timberwolves, the Cavaliers appear chaotic.
During the regular season, LeBron has increasingly begun to try a more "health-preserving" style of play. This is not to say that he is reluctant to exert his strength, but to reduce his playing time as much as possible in the playoffs and prevent unnecessary injuries.
As soon as he hits the ball, the rest of the Cavaliers start fighting for the ball.
As the star who ranked second in the scoring list last season, Thomas is naturally not willing to fall behind anyone. He couldn't say anything to LeBron, but he was unwilling to surrender or obey Carrefour, who was apparently the second in command.
Furthermore, Thomas' contract is over this season. Whether it is for team status or to make money, he must play good data.
Therefore, he controlled most of the Cavaliers' possessions, and under such circumstances, he became more and more independent, making other teammates more and more dissatisfied.
He even got into an argument with Love later on in the team bench.
Once the team has internal strife and internal disunity, they will be further and further away from victory.
At the last moment, the game between the two sides gradually became one-sided. The Timberwolves opened the point difference to 16 points with 2 minutes left in the game. For the Cavaliers, LeBron had to step up and increase singles to help the team chase points. Unfortunately, we were unable to turn the tide within the limited time.
Beep.
When the timer ended, the fans in the audience couldn't help but let out a sigh.
The two sides scored 120 to 109.
The Cavaliers ultimately lost to the Timberwolves by 11 points.
LeBron scored a game-high 30 points, Love scored 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Thomas scored 24 points and 6 assists.
For the Timberwolves, Adrian once again posted a double-double. He scored 15 points and 14 rebounds. Howard scored 16 points, 8 rebounds and 4 blocks. Rose scored 15 points and 11 assists. Zach. LaVine scored 17 points.
Zhao Feiyang didn't play much in the second half, playing only 21 minutes in the game, but he scored a team-high 19 points.
Looking at the overall data, the Timberwolves' performance was obviously much better, especially the team's performance was very balanced. Even without Zhao Feiyang, the team's performance in the second half was very stable.
The game officially ended and the players shook hands and left the field.
The Timberwolves players all discovered that Thomas had quarreled with head coach Tyronn Lue and was arguing with Love. Maybe they said something to make Thomas angry. Thomas didn't talk to the Timberwolves players. He shook hands and left the infield one step ahead.
After saying hello, the Timberwolves players also walked towards the tunnel.
On the way back, head coach Eric walked up to Zhao Feiyang and reminded him, "Zhao, although there seems to be nothing wrong with your ankle, I still hope that you can check it carefully when you return to Minneapolis." ....”
"I think we are very strong this season and we definitely have a chance to defeat the Warriors! But the premise is that there can be no injuries in our lineup. If there are injuries, it will most likely be the ending of last season... ..."
After hearing Coach Eric's words, Zhao Feiyang immediately said that he would check it out when he got back.
Sure enough, after the Timberwolves returned the next day, Zhao Feiyang went to the hospital for a diagnosis as soon as possible.
After waiting for an hour, Zhao Feiyang received his diagnosis results.
"Zhao, there is not much problem with your left ankle...Based on your description during the examination, we think your ankle may not have fully recovered, and maybe it will be fine after some time..." ..."
The doctor's words made Zhao Feiyang a little confused.
According to the examination results, there was nothing wrong with his ankle, but he could clearly feel discomfort in his ankle at certain times. Although the degree was not deep, it did affect his speed and athletic ability.
Soon the Timberwolves' management also learned the news. As the team's general manager, John Daniel personally found Zhao Feiyang during team training.
"Zhao, if you feel uncomfortable, you can rest for a while...The team cares about your health! For us, we must ensure that you are healthy no matter what..."
"The season has just started now, and the team's performance seems to be very stable. If you need a rest, this stage is the most suitable... You can't wait until the playoffs for problems to arise. Everyone will bear the responsibility then. I can’t afford this responsibility..."
