Chapter 83: A man is better than a fast one
The place was actually full.
The fans at the scene were very enthusiastic, and many of them held up signs with "X" written on them.
"Wrong? Why does that high school student have the right?"
Listening to Damon Stoudemire's words, the veteran players smiled or made quiet jokes where he couldn't see.
This kind of mentality... they don’t think it’s a big deal, because they all went through the same thing in the past.
Players from the same class who play well and receive more attention will develop a similar mentality in the early stages of their careers.
This kind of thing, over time, you'll naturally get used to it.
But Damon Stoudemire may be different. This team's "real core" may become an All-Star...
Damon Stoudemire looked at the dark player tunnel opposite, with envy and jealousy visible on his face!
The Raptors' market is in a slump. As a new team, they don't have no presence in Toronto, but compared with ice hockey teams, their popularity is at most similar to that of the local secondary league teams. Compared with the Toronto Maple Leafs, a veteran powerhouse in North American ice hockey, they are at most a budding green leaf.
It was only after the Magic-Birds rivalry and the Chicago Bulls dynasty that Canadians' enthusiasm for the NBA increased greatly, allowing the newly formed Raptors team to compete in popularity with Toronto's minor hockey league teams.
Not to mention the Vancouver Grizzlies, whose home opener was barely half full, with half of the 19,772 seats empty.
When Damon Stoudemire came to New Jersey to play for the Nets, he knew the team quite well. After all, the Nets had been a member of the NBA for many years and was once a strong team in the ABA league. As a talented player who had played basketball since he was a child, he had a deep understanding of the NBA and knew that the Nets were also a team with low popularity.
When he came to Rutherford and saw the desolate environment here, he liked it very much. He believed that Zhang Hao would receive the same treatment as he did in Toronto.
But the situation is quite different!
The visiting team players came out first, and the main target of booing for the Raptors was the Flying Squirrel!
When the home team players came out, when Almon Gilliam came out, there was cheering, but it was not loud.
When the Nets' second starting player Zhang Hao came on the court, the cheers and screams at the scene exploded!
Many fans came just for Zhang Hao.
This made Damon Stoudemire even more envious. The Class of 1995 showed talent beyond expectations in the preseason, but that was just a display of talent.
The regular season is the real test to see whether they have the ability to transform talent into strength.
He played well enough in the first game, with 26 points and 11 assists!
However, Zhang Hao scored 44 points and became the first player to win the 95th class!
Also because of Zhang Hao's 44 points, he only was said to have "played well" despite his 26+11 data.
Zhang Hao scored 44 points. Even if Zhang Hao plays badly and shoots poorly afterwards, people will still have high expectations for Zhang Hao. There will be a lot of backlash against him if he plays poorly, but the expectations may not be cut off in a short time.
Because he already has a representative work.
This made Damon Stoudemire extremely envious and jealous.
On the other side, Almon Guillem was also envious and jealous when he heard the cheers Zhang Hao caused, but his emotions were more positive. After Zhang Hao stood next to him, he said sourly: "Aix, you have to thank me. You can score so many points thanks to my containment!"
Zhang Hao felt helpless, but he said, "Of course, Almon, you are the strongest singles player on the team."
Almon Gilliam was very satisfied with Zhang Hao's answer.
Even Kenny Anderson would not deny this statement.
Almon Gilliam has a straightforward personality and easily offends people, otherwise he would not have been abandoned by the 76ers that year, nor would he have fallen out with Kenny Anderson after coming to the Nets, and also had a conflict with Coleman, forcing him to play as a substitute for two years.
Others, including the team boss Kenny Anderson who played last, thought there was nothing wrong with the cheers for Zhang Hao being much louder than those for others.
Zhang Hao scored 44 points in the opening game, and the ones who suffered the most were not others, but his teammates.
At the same time, Zhang Hao also felt that even though the team was developing in a good direction, there was not harmony within the team and there were still various small conflicts and contradictions.
After all, they are a group of people with different personalities, life experiences... When they get together, it is impossible for them to become a close family so easily.
But due to many complex factors, Zhang Hao can feel the wonderful harmony among his teammates...
After entering the venue, Zhang Hao felt the hostile gaze of the short guy who was the favorite for the best rookie on the opposite side.
"Players who are 183cm tall are just infuriating... Hey, he doesn't seem to be 183cm tall."
After muttering inwardly for a moment, Zhang Hao's mind moved, and the analysis details of the opposing player appeared in the subtitles.
weak!
Really weak!
The only one with an ability rating of over 75 is the rookie from the same class on the opposite side.
"Damon Stoudemire, 22 years old, 178 cm tall, 75 kg in weight, ability rating 83, offense 87, defense 61, passing 92, three-pointer 86, mid-range shot 85, layup 88, speed 97, strength 72..."
A bit strong!
Apart from the Flying Squirrel, the one with the highest ability rating is small forward Tracy Murray, with an ability rating of 74; also with an ability rating of 74 is an exaggeratedly sized inside player - Oliver Miller, who weighs 133 kilograms and is only 206 centimeters tall!
Zhang Hao looked through the information of the opposing players, focusing on their past statistics, and discovered that none of the Raptors' young players had ever averaged double-digit points per game in a season.
For example, Tracy Murray, 24 years old, had played for three seasons before, and his highest average score was 6.6 points per game. Houston did not include him in the 8-man reserve list, and he was selected by the Raptors.
However, Zhang Hao analyzed that Murray scored 19 points in the first game. This guy is talented, but he didn't get the opportunity in the past few years. Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to be rated 74 and not even be able to make the main rotation.
There is one veteran who needs attention - Elvin Robertson, who was selected to the All-Star Game for several consecutive years and was also selected as an All-Star starter.
After taking a look, I found that there is really nothing much that requires attention. Just play your best in this game.
In the final preparation time before the game, Randy Whitman emphasized that they should not be careless... He felt very strange when he emphasized it. They had planned a summer of tanking, and now he was telling the players not to be careless when playing...
At 5:58 pm, the game was about to begin and the referee signaled the players of both teams to get ready to go on the court.
Zhang Hao came to the technical table to apply magnesium powder and said to Kenny Anderson next to him: "Boss, that shorty might be faster than you."
Shorty? Who are you talking about?
Kenny Anderson almost got furious, but when he looked at the rookie on the opposite side who was shorter than him, he instantly felt superior.
Kenny Anderson disagreed with Zhang Hao's statement: "I am fast, not because of my height, it is a talent! Don't think that everyone who is short is fast!
Look, I'll deal with him!"
Kenny Anderson was ready to show his abilities. Zhang Hao had stolen all the limelight in the opening game. He was not jealous, but he just didn't want to fall behind.
Teach the rookie on the other side a lesson! Let Zhang Hao understand what the fastest man in the NBA is!
Kenny Anderson is very confident about his speed!
The starting lineups of both teams came onto the court.
The Raptors sent out a starting lineup of Damon Stoudemire, Elvin Robertson, Tracy Murray, Oliver Miller and Carlos Rogers.
The Nets sent out a starting lineup of Kenny Anderson, Graham, Almon Gilliam, Zhang Hao and PJ Brown.
Two lean, athletic centers, P.J. Brown and Carlos Rogers, came to the center circle.
Generally speaking, when one inside player goes for a jump ball, the other inside player should stand at his own team's free throw line, so that they can retreat if the jump ball is lost.
But Zhang Hao is standing in the center line!
He was ready for P.J. Brown to win the jump ball just off the rim.
At 6 o'clock in the evening, the referee blew the whistle to start the game and threw the ball into the air. In Zhang Hao's expectant eyes, PJ Brown lost the jump ball!
Both of them have an explosive jumping ability close to 90, and they are of similar height and weight, with the difference only a hair's breadth. Carlos Rogers narrowly beat PJ Brown.
Zhang Hao quickly retreated, and Damon Stoudemire received the ball and rushed up quickly.
Kenny Anderson kept a close eye on Damon Stoudemire and blocked him immediately, wanting to start pressure defense in the middle line.
Damon Stoudemire changed direction at high speed to get rid of Kenny Anderson and accelerated again. Kenny Anderson quickly turned around to chase him... but found that he could not catch up!
Turning around and starting is slower than accelerating again with inertia after changing direction. Kenny Anderson found that he was actually a little slower than the rookie on the opposite side!
It's just a little bit, but it's very obvious in the fixed distance space on the court!
Damon Stoudemire rushed straight to the basket, and even Almon Gilliam at the free throw line couldn't stop him.
Zhang Hao rushed back to the basket and jumped to block the shot. Damon Stoudemire took a half-step jump from the left side of the three-second zone, paused in the air like a cat, dodged Zhang Hao, then leaned forward, his upper body appeared on the other side of the basket, and made a layup with his back to the basket...
Hit!
So fast! Ridiculously fast!
The Nets were all shocked by Damon Stoudemire's speed!
Kenny Anderson is fast enough, very fast, and this rookie can be even faster!
Zhang Hao's poor details in the backup defense also left his teammates speechless. His position movement in the backup defense was very good, showing his awareness of backup defense, but his defense after reaching the position was very poor.
If Zhang Hao had more defensive experience, he would not jump so easily after he was in position. The pull-up shot of the mini point guard on the opposite side after he jumped up and bent over was too easy to defend.
Zhang Hao also realized this belatedly, but there was nothing he could do. It happened in a split second and it was really just a difference in experience.
However, his teammates chose to be tolerant of Zhang Hao. Even Jason Williams on the sidelines complained about it, but he couldn't help but think of Zhang Hao's advantages - at least he was able to provide adequate defense.
The effect of "homecoming" has a subtle influence on Zhang Hao's teammates.
Zhang Hao made up his mind to try his best to defend next time.
The ball was picked up and passed to Kenny Anderson, and the Nets attacked.
Oliver Miller's huge body squatting under the basket was indeed eye-catching.
Kenny Anderson pushed forward to the front court and accelerated to break through, Damon Stoudemire followed closely! Kenny Anderson was blocked outside the three-point line!
At the beginning, he was a little skeptical when defending Kenny Anderson, but now, he is sure that the rookie on the opposite side is actually faster than him!
With a competitive spirit, Kenny Anderson made a cross step and changed direction, then broke through from the left side.
Damon Stoudemire continued to catch up, and Kenny Anderson couldn't get rid of him, but Damon Stoudemire couldn't limit Kenny Anderson's speed, and Damon Stoudemire had to move at full speed to keep up.
Kenny Anderson broke into the deep left side and suddenly stopped at high speed. At this time, the difference in strength was revealed. Kenny Anderson braked, but Damon Stoudemire couldn't stop and rushed out!
At the moment of braking, Kenny Anderson pushed the ball to his right, Damon Stoudemire passed by the ball, Kenny Anderson changed direction and rushed towards the basket, jumped from the left side of the three-second zone, and confronted Oliver Miller who came up to make up for him.
A 79kg small point guard and a 133kg giant inside player, the size difference is huge, Kenny Anderson was knocked over immediately, but he was good at handwork and had strong core strength, and threw the ball to the backboard while falling backwards...
Hit the board!
By the time Kenny Anderson threw the ball out, the referee's whistle had already sounded.
The goal is valid and there is a penalty!
pretty!
Zhang Hao rushed forward excitedly and pulled Kenny Anderson up.
This ball is so beautiful.
Kenny Anderson saw Zhang Hao's excitement and said proudly, "See, being fast is useless.
A man doesn’t have to be fast, he has to be accurate.”
Zhang Hao always felt something was weird...but what the boss said was right.
With this ball, Zhang Hao felt how good Kenny Anderson's shooting skills were. Due to his height limitation, the layup level Kenny Anderson showed on the court was only 90 in the system's judgment, but Zhang Hao felt that Kenny Anderson's layup skills were much better than his. The difference was not just 89 to 90, but definitely bigger.
Just because of his body shape, Kenny Anderson, with his excellent skills, can only achieve a 90% close-range offensive performance on the court.
Kenny Anderson made the free throw and the Nets led by 1 point, 3-2.
Zhang Hao returned to the backcourt. He was excited when he saw Kenny Anderson's attack under the basket just now, but now he is not excited anymore.
He, Zhang, showed good rim protection ability in the opening game, which is an ability that has already been demonstrated. As for assisting defense, he has talent but needs time to learn the basics and accumulate experience, so his task on the defensive end in this game is to protect the rim.
There is a player on the opposite side with similar characteristics as him, but more extreme. He can only stay in the three-second zone on both offense and defense.
but……
Zhang Hao looked at Oliver Miller, who was several times fatter than him...
"Oh my god! How can I defend against this?"
