Basketball's No. 1 Anti-Fan

Chapter 367: Kuzma

In the Pelicans' offense, James continued to play pick-and-roll with Davis.

This time TT retreated to the basket early, and Davis's cut did not directly create an opportunity.

But at this moment, James made an unexpected choice. He did not call for Davis' pick-and-roll, but directly broke through Covington and went to the basket, causing Jokic to commit a defensive foul.

This foul was called a bit reluctantly.

But that’s not the point. The point is that Covington, the “James Terminator”, couldn’t keep up with James’ speed!

Is this... a new drug?

Han Sen thought about the feeling James gave him tonight, and then thought about what James said this season and his performance this season. It was hard for him not to come to this conclusion.

However, all speculations are subjective judgments, and the truth still needs to be tested in practice.

While James was at the free throw line, Hansen and Covington said hello.

James made both free throws, and the score was 2 to 6, and the Pelicans still had the advantage.

Hansen dribbled the ball across half court and continued to play pick-and-roll with Jokic, who also played outside.

This time the Pelicans chose to double-team Hansen, but Hansen passed the ball to Jokic without looking at anyone while moving.

Jokic made a realistic fake shot after seeing Davis returning to defense, and after Davis jumped up, he quickly broke through.

His breakthrough speed is not fast, but he is smart enough.

After successfully initiating a breakthrough, he used his hips to block Davis, preventing Davis from returning to his defensive front.

And his hand skills are not only reflected in passing, he also controls the ball very well, which allows him to quickly approach the basket while blocking Davis.

This ultimately forces players near the penalty area to move toward him.

Just after reaching the free throw line, Jokic, who was already trapped from both sides, threw the ball directly into the sky.

While Jokic attracted the Pelicans' defensive attention, Hansen had successfully trapped Holiday behind him.

With the ball in his hand, Han Sen leaped into the air, grabbed the ball with one hand, and then performed an alley-oop slam dunk.

There was a commotion in the place.

The slow motion shows that after Han Sen jumped, his head was level with the basket, creating a full visual impact.

This scene somewhat reminds people of the thrilling dunk contest two years ago.

Hansen high-fived Jokic while retreating.

Although this is only the third season that Hansen and Jokic have been working together, and not as long as JR and TT, they are both players who can simplify the game, and the chemical reaction between the two is beyond imagination.

Especially after Jokic's strength has improved qualitatively this season, that will become more and more obvious.

This is also the reason why the Cavaliers' record still looks good despite facing internal and external troubles this season.

Pick-and-roll is just a way of presenting tactics, but the root of it is the strength and tacit understanding between the two players.

Back on the defensive end, the Cavaliers adjusted their defense and Hansen faced James.

Davis set a pick-and-roll and Han Sen used puppy steps to go around him from behind, but Davis's movement speed was really fast and he successfully blocked Han Sen when he went around him.

It was at this moment that James accelerated and attacked the inside.

TT couldn't keep up with James at all, but Hansen chased James from behind after getting rid of Davis.

He did not succeed.

Before Han Sen's block, James broke through to the inside and performed a two-handed dunk.

This dunk instantly ignited the New Orleans arena.

James also seemed very excited after landing. He turned around and made a "strong" celebration gesture towards Hansen.

Han Sen was now certain that James was really using the new medicine.

This past summer, in addition to wearing a crown, another hot news related to James was that ESPN revealed that James invests more than one million US dollars every year in his body maintenance.

Han Sen had seen this news before he traveled through time, and his attitude at the time was half-believing and half-doubting.

But when this incident happens again now, as an NBA player who has played in his ninth season in the NBA, he can only say that it is complete bullshit.

Things like hyperbaric oxygen storage and cryotherapy are not used very often, and the cost is far from reaching the million level.

Either the numbers were exaggerated to create a persona, or the money was spent elsewhere.

The Cavaliers' offense, Hansen signaled Covington to come up for a screen.

James didn't push Holiday this time, but went straight to Hansen, looking eager to try.

The scene seemed familiar, and Han Sen became more and more certain of his previous judgment.

The fans also started to boo at the scene.

A head-on conversation between the world's strongest (self-proclaimed) and the league's strongest.

Han Sen held the ball with one hand, took a falling step and broke through on the left with swift movements.

But James kept up.

Just when James was in high spirits and thought he could defend Han Sen, Han Sen suddenly changed direction to the right side and lowered his center of gravity instantly.

It was like a car suddenly changing gears. The ultra-low center of gravity allowed Hansen to accelerate again and directly throw James away.

"Oh!"

Hansen didn't give other Pelicans players any chance to assist in defense. He rushed into the inside and made a quick gliding dunk.

All the fans at the scene were stunned by this simple breakthrough in violent aesthetics.

After swinging on the rim and landing, Hansen turned around and spread his hands to James.

The strongest in the world, is this it?

James looked angry.

Turning around, he directly...set a screen for Moore.

After the switch of defense, he asked for the ball with his back to Korver and then started to play one-on-one with his back to the basket.

Korver tried his best but couldn't hold on. James turned and rushed to the basket, making a quick layup and scoring two points before Jokic could help defend.

James: You dare to target me? See if I will target your little brother!

It must be said that James plays very "smartly" on the court and can always find the worst defensive player in the opponent's lineup.

Han Sen was also made to laugh by his success, and he continued to call on Covington to set a pick-and-roll.

This time Holiday chose to double-team Hansen with James.

And at this time, Moore was also rotating defensively to make up for Covington.

Hansen looked in Covington's direction and then passed the ball to Korver.

This pass without looking at the player was very beautiful. After Korver received the ball, he had an opportunity and made a three-pointer.

After Korver joined the Cavaliers last season, his three-point shooting percentage was 48.5%.

This season, his condition, like everyone else, has declined significantly, with his three-point shooting percentage dropping to 42.5%.

There is no way, the original level was too high and there is a lot of room for decline.

Although his defense is not good, he can really throw the ball in when he gets the chance.

However, the Pelicans' defensive choice in this ball also had a big problem. They would rather let Covington go than Korver.

But considering that their head coach is Gentry, there is no problem. Looking back, James continued to target Korver, and this time he directly hit Korver into the 2+1.

There was a reason why the Cavaliers' role players were in such poor condition before and Malone didn't start Korver.

After hesitating for a while, Ma Long finally stood up.

He turned around and moved his eyes back and forth between JR and Kuzma, and finally signaled Kuzma to come on the bench.

Kuzma was already eager to try. After seeing the gesture, he immediately jumped up and ran to the technical table while taking off his coat.

James heard the whistle and turned around, and was stunned when he saw Kuzma coming off the bench.

Ma Long's substitution was unexpected.

But soon, he couldn't hide the smile on his face.

He previously announced that he would quit social media, which meant that he would no longer post status updates there.

But not posting it doesn’t mean he won’t read it.

After Kuzma was selected by the Cavaliers and the "poem" he wrote in his early years was exposed, he wanted to beat the opponent to death.

Not to mention that Kuzma later made a "decision" and said something like "The Kings cannot live without lights", every word of which hit me right in the heart.

Moreover, Kuzma is a rookie and has few opportunities to play in the Cavaliers. He is like a child hiding behind an adult and cannot play even if he wants to.

Now, Malone has helped him a lot, he will definitely make this kid regret coming to the NBA!

James' free throw missed and the rebound was secured by Jokic.

After receiving the ball, Hansen quickly advanced to the frontcourt, then rushed directly to the basket, catching the Pelicans' defense off guard.

The Pelicans instinctively retreated, and Hansen passed the ball behind his head to Jokic at the top of the arc.

Jokic saw the wing player rushing towards him to defend, waited a moment and then passed the ball to Kuzma.

With the continuous mobilization of Hansen and Jokic, the Pelicans' defensive formation has completely collapsed, and Kuzma got a wide open opportunity.

Of course, even if it is a wide-open space, it is also a test for a newcomer who has to shoot before he has even warmed up on the court.

Kuzma didn't seem nervous, but adjusted his three-point shot.

His shooting speed is not fast, but the rhythm is smooth enough, and you can tell at a glance that he has worked hard in training.

"Shh!"

Kuzma's three-pointer was accompanied by a crisp sound of the ball going into the net.

There was an uproar at the scene.

It’s not because Kuzma made the three-pointer. After all, it was just an ordinary open three-pointer.

The real reason was that after making the three-pointer, Kuzma turned around and faced the audience on the sidelines and celebrated by "wearing a crown on himself."

Bold!

Even Hansen was surprised by Kuzma's behavior.

This young man's behavior that attracts bad attention... is really similar to his style in his old days!

But unlike Han Sen who was fighting for his black fan points, this guy was a complete LeBron hater.

Especially when he was selected by the Cavaliers, given the feud between the Cavaliers and James, it directly allowed him to release his nature.

James was very emotional. He ran to the referee and loudly protested Kuzma's actions.

The referee had just come to his senses at this time, but he did not blow the whistle.

Even if the whistle is biased towards the Pelicans this season, he would never call a foul on Kuzma just because he was wearing a crown!

Although some celebration actions are prohibited, they are things like slitting the throat and holding the balls. Wearing a crown is nothing.

James was really angry. He went to the frontcourt and screened for Moore like crazy, then asked Kuzma for the ball with his back to him.

After getting the ball, he first elbowed Kuzma in the chest.

This time the referee took care of him and didn't blow the whistle.

After getting the ball, James turned around and broke through Kuzma head-on.

His choice gave Kuzma the opportunity to show his defense.

He blocked James' breakthrough direction with his feet, and then waited for James to walk to the other side, and then he changed his defensive posture with both feet off the ground at the same time to prevent him from accelerating.

He already had a basic understanding of the Puppy Walk, and with Han Sen's guidance, he completely mastered the essence of this walk.

But he still failed to defend against James because James simply used brute force to push him away.

Although James has not yet mastered the mid-range, three-point, step-back jumper, and fadeaway techniques to an elite level, his breakthroughs are in full swing with the help of new drugs.

He successfully made his way into the paint.

But this time, he was not able to score easily like before.

Just as he jumped up to shoot, Han Sen came to the basket to assist, and seeing the opportunity, he blocked his shot and sent it flying out of the court.

When James was playing against Korver earlier, Hansen was actually also assisting in defense under the basket.

It’s just that Korver’s defense was so bad that he couldn’t provide assists in time.

Although Kuzma's words failed to stop James in the end, they successfully delayed James and bought time.

Kuzma's next reaction was also very interesting. After seeing James was blocked, he turned around and ran to the basket and high-fived Hansen.

Han Sen couldn't help but laugh at him.

James was almost out of breath.

He continued to screen with Moore, and then continued to post up after switching to Kuzma.

Covington was ready to assist in defense, but Kuzma simply signaled that it was not necessary.

Zima's style really lives up to the fans' joke that he is "the next Hansen", because apart from talking, he is also fearless on the court.

This time, James chose to play a post-up game.

Kuzma has good defensive footwork, but poor physical fitness.

However, James soon realized that his choice was a mistake, because no matter how poor Kuzma's physical fitness is, he is still a swingman and his size is there.

And his back-to-the-basket attack is not as elite as Han Sen's.

James' shot was blocked by Kuzma and bounced out of the basket.

Davis rushed to grab the frontcourt rebound, but his hook shot after competing with Jokic failed to score.

His strength lies in mobility; this kind of low-post attack is not his specialty.

Jokic protected the defensive rebound and the Cavaliers made another fast break.

Hansen received the ball and quickly broke through to the frontcourt despite Holiday's defense.

However, he did not choose to force an attack, but instead passed the ball to Kuzma who was following behind him.

Kuzma, like Irving before, triggered his passive attributes when he met James and became extremely active on the court.

After Hansen passed the ball, he also pushed Holiday out of the baseline. Kuzma had enough time to jump and complete a two-handed dunk.

After completing the dunk, Kuzma turned around and opened his arms to face the Pelicans fans at the scene, then put his hands together and pressed them in front of his chest, and finally raised his hands again and put another crown on his head.

Sorry, I was a little nervous at the beginning and missed a step. This is the complete version of wearing the crown by yourself!
(End of this chapter)