in2ebook Chapter 159 Summer League Begins, China vs. Thunder
Chapter 159 Summer League Begins, China vs. Thunder
The first day of competition started with a highly anticipated match.
Rockets vs. Magic.
Jabari Smith Jr. vs. Ben Kerr.
最后班凯罗上场25分钟，12投5中，三分球3中2，得到17分的同时，还有6个助攻和4个篮板。
Ben Kerr fully demonstrated his versatility, and it seems the Magic have once again made the right choice with a big man.
火箭的探花郎小贾巴里史密斯出战31分钟，投篮10中4，三分球3中1，拿到10分7个篮板和3个助攻。
17th overall pick Taurean played 25 minutes, recording a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Both players brought some changes to the Rockets' defense, but their efficiency on offense didn't seem particularly high.
Taliysen, in particular, took 17 shots, second only to Christopher's 18, but only scored 14 points.
The first day of the competition was just an appetizer.
The second day's game, featuring the Chinese men's basketball team, was the most anticipated.
……
The next day, at 6 PM.
Before the game between the Chinese men's basketball team and the Thunder started, the arena was already full.
Summer League venues typically host two or even three games.
So you can buy a ticket for a dozen dollars and sit from morning till night.
This is the second game for the Chinese men's basketball team.
The previous game between the Lakers and the Celtics just ended.
The players from the Chinese men's basketball team and the Oklahoma City Thunder began warming up.
As usual, Wang Xiucheng walked at the back, holding a basketball in his hand.
As soon as they entered the stadium, a huge cheer erupted from the crowd.
Everyone noticed that in just three months, Wang Xiucheng had grown his hair long.
Wang Xiucheng looked up and saw that there were many fans with Chinese faces in the stadium.
They were wearing either Rockets jerseys or China team jerseys, and some were even holding up signs with Wang Xiucheng's name on them.
The Summer League isn't as strict as the regular season, so these ridiculously large signs were allowed in.
Not only fans, but also parents of the Chinese men's basketball team players came from China to the scene.
Besides these Chinese players, Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., Talisca Ethan, and another rookie this year, Talisca Washington, were all sitting on the sidelines.
Even Silas and Stone were sitting nearby, watching the game live.
On the second-floor stands, there were many scouts from various teams, each carrying a camera and laptop.
They certainly weren't there to see Wang Xiucheng; they had already missed Wang Xiucheng, but they didn't want to miss the next Chinese player who could make it to the NBA.
After a half-hour warm-up, the competition began quickly.
The Thunder's starting five are Aaron Wiggins, Earl, Holmgren, Mann, and Kidd.
Of these five, only Holmgren is a rookie this year; the other four were rookies last year.
The starting five for China were Wang Xiucheng, Zeng Fanbo, Yu Jiahao, Zhang Zhenlin, and Zhao Weilun, who was only 17 years old.
Thunder head coach DeGnott did not personally coach the team in this game, but instead sat in the stands.
He frowned slightly. He had expected the other Chinese players to start, but one person was unexpected: Zhao Weilun.
The information he obtained showed that although Zhao Weilun grew up in Italy, he was short and thin.
Upon seeing the child on site, Degnot believed that the child was only 180 cm tall and weighed no more than 150 catties.
With that weight and height, in the NBA, where strong players abound, he would almost certainly be sent flying with a single touch.
Besides, with that height, he can only play point guard.
What about Wang Xiucheng?
The answer was soon revealed.
As the referee blew the opening whistle, Yu Jiahao, who is over 220cm tall, and Holmgren, who is 216cm tall, jumped for the ball.
There is no doubt that the ball was touched by the more athletic Holmgren.
Aaron Wiggins received the ball first, and then saw Holmgren overtake the big man from China and rush towards the basket.
Aaron Wiggins threw the ball directly towards the basket, and Holmgren jumped up on one foot, caught the ball, and dunked it into the basket.
Bang!
The Thunder scored their first point in the first possession.
The Thunder's bench players all stood up and applauded Holmgren.
Alexander in the audience nodded repeatedly.
Holmgren fully demonstrated his unique characteristic: a mobility that shouldn't be present for someone his height.
Especially compared to Yu Jiahao, who is about the same height.
Yu Jiahao had just arrived under the basket.
Yu Jiahao picked up the basketball and passed it to Zhao Weilun at the center line.
Aaron Wiggins immediately stuck to him.
If it were Wang Xiucheng, Aaron Wiggins would still be wary of Wang Xiucheng's speed and feints.
But what's so special about Zhao Weilun's height and weight?
Aaron Wiggins saw an opportunity and instantly reached out to steal the ball, while also intentionally offering his shoulder to create physical contact.
He wanted to put some intensity on this little guy.
The NBA isn't a league that just anyone can get into.
But Zhao Weilun deftly pulled the ball back, taking half a step back with both the ball and himself.
Then he moved to the right to Yu Jiahao's side, who was setting a screen.
Instead of shooting, he bounced the ball directly to Yu Jiahao after Yu Jiahao's run down the court.
Yu Jiahao, who is 223 cm tall and weighs 240 catties, chased the thin Holmgren into the paint like a tank.
Then he suddenly exerted force with his shoulder, pushing Holmgren half a meter away.
He immediately jumped and dunked the ball into the basket with one hand.
Bang!
China won 2 points.
Compared to Holmgren, Yu Jiahao, who appeared clumsy, ran straight back.
On the way, he didn't forget to give high-fives to Wang Xiucheng and the others.
Holmgren is 216 cm tall with a wingspan of 230 cm, but his problem is that he is too light, weighing only about 190 catties.
Wang Xiucheng is now close to 200 jin (100 catties), not to mention Yu Jiahao who weighs over 240 jin (120 catties).
Once Holmgren is pushed out, his long arms won't matter.
The Hebei China Fortune bench also stood up and applauded the goal, and head coach Guo Shiqiang even slapped Yu Jiahao on the butt as he passed by.
A dozen meters behind Guo Shiqiang, in the audience, Yao Ming's expression remained serious, but he couldn't hide his surprise.
What he feared most was that these young people were still intimidated.
This is, after all, the NBA, a battleground for basketball players from all over the world.
Even when he first came to the NBA, it took him quite a while to adapt.
These children are only around 20 years old, and some are even 17, much younger than I was back then.
But now, neither 17-year-old Zhao Weilun nor 19-year-old Yu Jiahao are stage-frightened.
Yao Ming looked at Wang Xiucheng, who was standing at the top of the arc, ready to defend.
He knew that all of this was brought about by Wang Xiucheng.
Wang Xiucheng appeared to be standing on the field doing nothing.
But as long as he stood there, these young people from China had a pillar of support in their hearts.
No matter when, Wang Xiucheng was always their subordinate.
Bang!
Just then, Yao Ming's train of thought was interrupted by the sound of a dunk.
The Thunder then switched their defense, with Holmgren switching to Zhao Weilun, the shortest player on the Chinese side.
Then Holmgren, who is 216cm tall, actually did a crossover dribble, then passed Zhao Weilun and dunked the ball.
Zhao Weilun looked helpless.
He is agile and fast enough, which is why he can play the point guard position.
But that doesn't mean he can stop Holmgren.
"Serve."
Wang Xiucheng came over and patted his butt.
Zhao Weilun's height and weight mean he will inevitably be targeted on the defensive end.
Upon receiving the serve, Wang Xiucheng dribbled it twice before handing it to Zhao Weilun.
Wang Xiucheng ran to the finish line himself and pulled the person away.
Zhao Weilun dribbled the ball and looked for a screen again. Then, when the opponent came to help defend, he passed the ball to Zeng Fanbo, who was open on the wing.
Zeng Fanbo received the ball, lowered his shoulder, and jumped, sending the basketball spinning as it flew away.
With a loud thud, the basketball hit the side of the rim and bounced high into the air.
Yu Jiahao blocked Holmgren, and neither of them jumped up.
Zhang Zhenlin grabbed the rebound, but instead of dribbling, he shot directly.
Swish!
The ball went in.
China has scored two more points.
The score was tied again at 4-4.
Next, the Thunder gradually got into the game.
With their superior individual abilities, they gradually took the lead.
With six minutes remaining, the Thunder led 21-15 by six points.
Of the five players on the Chinese team, Zhao Weilun became the opponent's main attacking point.
Almost half of the 21 points came from him.
However, Zhao Weilun, as the number one player, also fulfilled his duties.
What puzzled many fans was that, even though Wang Xiucheng was on the court, why was there a shorter and thinner player playing the point guard position?
Moreover, six minutes into the game, Wang Xiucheng hadn't taken a single shot or even provided an assist.
Wang Xiucheng dribbled the ball a few times and tried to grab a few rebounds, but he failed.
It seems that among the five players on the Chinese team, Wang Xiucheng is the one who just coasts along.
But strangely enough, the Chinese team was only down by 6 points.
The referee checked the time and called a timeout himself.
Both teams' players returned to the bench.
Guo Shiqiang patted each player on the backside, indicating he was fairly satisfied with their performance.
In six minutes, these five people fully demonstrated their unique characteristics.
Zeng Fanbo's tall shooting range and defensive tracking ability, Zhang Zhenlin's athleticism and ability to attack the basket, Yu Jiahao's ability to penetrate the paint and his disruptive power, and Zhao Weilun's agile ball-handling skills and certain vision.
Wang Xiucheng seems to do nothing, but just by standing on the court, the opposing team has to have one person defend him, and they dare not let him get away at all.
As long as Wang Xiucheng moves, he can immediately attract at least two people to come and provide early defense.
This makes it easy for the Chinese team to have open spaces.
Wang Xiucheng didn't shoot or assist, but his impact was by no means insignificant.
Furthermore, this also resulted in Wang Xiucheng hardly sweating at all.
"Good job. You guys take a break, now it's your turn."
Guo Shiqiang replaced Zeng Fanbo, Zhang Zhenlin, Zhao Weilun and Yu Jiahao.
Yu Jiahao, in particular, looked very tired at this moment.
Despite his lack of athleticism, he defended against the athletically gifted Holmgren, and one can imagine the physical exertion he expended.
Those who were called upon by Guo Shiqiang to stand up were Cui Yongxi, Yang Hansen, Guo Haowen, and David Muoka.
Only Wang Xiucheng was not replaced.
The pause has ended.
The game begins again.
Not only did the Chinese team make substitutions, but the Thunder also made a substitution challenge, with Jalen Williams, Viktor Craig, Jalin Williams, Eugene Omorui, and Dieng all taking to the court.
There are too many players who need playing time in the Summer League.
The game begins again.
Fans noticed that Wang Xiucheng has finally started playing point guard.
After receiving the serve, Wang Xiucheng took a probing step, and Jeremy Williams immediately took two steps back.
Wang Xiucheng easily dribbled the ball past half-court.
Jelin, who has Vietnamese ancestry, does indeed have Asian features in his appearance.
Yang Hansen then came out from inside to provide cover for Wang Xiucheng.
Jelin stepped back slightly to avoid being dragged by Wang Xiucheng and bumping into Yang Hansen.
But in that tiny space, Wang Xiucheng suddenly flung the ball high toward the backboard.
A black figure charged straight into the paint from the sideline, leaped high, caught the basketball like a whirlwind, and slammed it into the hoop.
Bang!
David Mullaka hung on the rim for a long time.
The referee immediately called a technical foul.
David Mullaka was completely dumbfounded.
Is the NBA that strict?
“David, there’s no need for this,” Wang Xiucheng said to David Muoka.
David Muoka's name is a bit of a mouthful, so everyone just calls him "David".
David Mullaka's height and mobility allow him to play the power forward position in the Chinese national team.
Although he lacks scoring ability, he excels at finishing plays.
Moreover, Wang Xiucheng isn't the only one in the Chinese team who can pass the ball.
Bang!
After a few rounds, David Muoka scored again with a powerful dunk.
This time it wasn't Wang Xiucheng who made the pass, but Yang Hansen who made an inside pass.
As a center, Yang Hansen has the ability to pull the opposing center out of the paint. At this time, David Muauka, with his height and speed, is like a bomb in the opponent's paint.
Players like David Muoka might be overwhelmed if they face Holmgren, who is also athletically gifted.
However, if they travel during off-peak hours, the Thunder surprisingly have no one who can match up against him at the power forward position.
Thunder's offense: Jelin's three-pointer missed, Yang Hansen tipped the ball out, David Muaka caught it and passed it to Wang Xiucheng on the wing.
Wang Xiucheng didn't accelerate; he dribbled twice and then passed the ball directly to Guo Haowen, who had just arrived in front.
Without hesitation after receiving the ball, Guo Haowen immediately launched a three-pointer.
Swish!
The ball goes in!
Guo Hao looked at his palm and could hardly believe that he had scored on his first shot.
It seems that my shooting percentage has improved a lot since I arrived in Las Vegas.
The match continued, after two rounds.
Choi Young-seok received the ball from Wang Xiucheng. Normally, he wouldn't force a shot when there was someone in front of him.
But during this month of training, he learned one thing: how to shoot hard against defenders.
Swish!
The ball goes in.
Wang Xiucheng clapped his hands, seemingly saying "Good shot!"
Thunder are on offense, Jelin missed another shot, and the ball went to Wang Xiucheng.
Wang Xiucheng hid behind David Muoka. After crossing the center line, David Muoka entered the paint, and Yang Hansen pulled him out.
The Thunder's center didn't follow out; instead, he went into the paint with David Muoka.
Wang Xiucheng flicked the ball to Yang Hansen, who was unmarked.
Yang Hansen glanced down, then took a half step back, raised the ball, and threw it almost on tiptoe.
Swish!
Three-pointer, in!