Chapter 404: Chapter 316, Zeng Xingyang and Durant’s superstar showdown!!
In the intense confrontation within the paint, Green fell to the ground.
However, the referee did not blow the whistle.
Green never expected that the Nuggets’ rookie, Siakam, would be so fierce.
Siakam glared down at Green, and with a face full of anger, Green crawled up from the floor and charged straight at Siakam.
The atmosphere on-site instantly became tense; the audience held their breaths, their eyes locked on the two of them.
Butler and Zubac reacted quickly, stepping forward immediately to separate Green on the left and right.
Butler shouted loudly at Green: "F*ck, can’t you handle losing?"
But Green remained relentless, veins bulging on his neck as he threatened Siakam: "Rookie, don’t leave after the game!"
His eyes were filled with provocation, as if he wanted to swallow Siakam whole.
Siakam, unfazed, retorted sharply: "I’ll be waiting for you!"
A brawl between black players wouldn’t cause racial issues; if it were between black and white, who knows.
Siakam was much darker than Green.
Siakam unwaveringly stared into Green’s eyes, displaying the fearlessness of a young calf not afraid of a tiger.
Zeng Xingyang stepped forward, patted Siakam’s shoulder, and encouraged the rookie, his eyes conveying support.
The referee, seeing the situation, quickly stepped forward, pointing fingers sternly at both Green and Siakam, warning them.
At this moment, the fans at the scene were stirring, with shouts of curses and cheers rising and falling.
This was destined to be a match full of sparks.
At this moment, the scoreboard showed 20 to 18.
At the commentary desk, Barkley laughed: "Drummond can’t handle losing; his defense is passive to begin with." He shook his head while teasing.
Smith agreed: "Probably can’t handle being dunked on by a rookie; it’s hard on his pride."
The two exchanged glances and then burst into laughter.
On the court, the game quickly resumed.
The Warriors gained possession, and Livingston steadily carried the ball across half-court before accurately passing it to Green.
Green swiftly surveyed the situation on the court and passed the ball to Durant on the right.
Zeng Xingyang, like a shadow, continued to tightly wrap Durant, the two engaging in fierce competition within the second string.
McGee quickly came up to set a pick for Durant, executing a solid screen action, blocking Zeng Xingyang.
Durant seized the opportunity to change direction, dribble once, and swiftly enter the paint, finally shaking off Zeng Xingyang’s defense.
Then, Durant slowed his pace and took a mid-range shot.
The basketball sketched a beautiful arc in the air.
"Swish!"
The basketball swished through the net with precision!
The score became 20 to 20.
At the start of the match, Durant was heavily guarded by the Nuggets, limiting his performance.
Cole, seeing this, allowed Durant to stay with the second unit in hopes he could find his rhythm, as without Durant’s offense, challenging the Nuggets would be extremely difficult.
After making the shot, Durant turned back to nod provocatively at Zeng Xingyang.
Next was the Nuggets’ offensive.
Zeng Xingyang dribbled quickly into the frontcourt, and Iguodala immediately came up to tightly tangle with him.
Zubac came up to set a screen for Zeng Xingyang, and McGee also quickly brought the defense up.
Zubac, after setting the screen, quickly rolled, taking Iguodala with him.
Zubac, capable of finishing at the rim, kept Iguodala cautious and tightly following.
McGee switched to guard Zeng Xingyang, waving his long arms high, attempting to disrupt Zeng Xingyang’s offense.
McGee, with excellent height and wingspan, strong bounce, and impressive athleticism, stood under the basket like an insurmountable mountain, posing a significant threat in both rebounding and blocking shots!
Zeng Xingyang, facing McGee, used a simple yet effective offensive technique.
He tapped the ball to the left, then extended his right hand over, feigning to gather the ball with convincing action.
McGee’s body balance was instantly deceived, and Zeng Xingyang seized the moment, quickly tapping the ball to the right, performing a hesitation dribble. As his dribbling rhythm suddenly changed, McGee’s defensive footwork was thrown off.
Zeng Xingyang pushed off horizontally, creating space, then quickly went up with a long-range three-point jump shot.
McGee widened his eyes, staring tightly at the basketball, wanting to rush forward for a block but was too late.
The basketball, tracing a beautiful arc in the air, flew towards the basket.
"Swish!"
Another precise shot!
The score became 23 to 20.
Zeng Xingyang’s three-pointer thrilled the Nuggets fans on site, who stood up, cheered loudly, and applauded his performance.
The Warriors fans, however, looked dejected, with many shaking their heads in resignation.
Cole sat in the coach’s seat, frowning deeply, his expression heavy.
Defending Zeng Xingyang had always been a huge problem; adopting a strategy of double-teaming consistently drained the Warriors’ players’ stamina, and it wasn’t possible to successfully double-team every possession.
But if not double-teamed, Zeng Xingyang had many ways to shake off defenders. Today’s Zeng Xingyang, though not taking many shots, was in great rhythm, which posed a significant challenge for Cole.
The Warriors’ offense unfolded again.
This time, the ball was passed once more to Durant.
Durant stood at the elbow, securely receiving the ball, his eyes fixed intently on Zeng Xingyang in front of him, full of fighting spirit.
He dribbled once to the right, suddenly stopped for a jump shot.
Zeng Xingyang reacted swiftly, rushing to defend, trying his best to disrupt Durant.
However, Durant’s release point was extremely high, and this time Zeng Xingyang couldn’t disturb it.
The basketball traced a beautiful arc in the air and swished through the net.
"Swish!"
to 22.
After making this shot, Durant shouted at Zeng Xingyang: "You can’t guard me."
"Try me again," Zeng Xingyang retorted unflinchingly.
For a superstar, it’s nearly impossible to completely shut them down; you can only try to limit their performance.
The Nuggets initiated their offense again.
Zeng Xingyang dribbled to the frontcourt, a strong sense of revenge in his heart; he was determined to repay Durant in kind on this possession.
He glanced at the court, noticing Durant guarding Siakam.
So, he motioned with his hand to let Zubac leave and signaled for Siakam to come set a screen.
Siakam understood the call, quickly running up to block Iguodala, forcing Durant to switch onto Zeng Xingyang.
Durant lowered his center of gravity, his knees slightly bent, arms outstretched, fully prepared for defense.
Zeng Xingyang began to change dribble direction, the ball rhythmically bouncing under his command, emitting "thump thump" sounds; he first accelerated to the right, with Durant quickly tracking, eyes fixed on the ball in Zeng Xingyang’s hand. Then Zeng Xingyang executed a behind-the-back dribble, moving the ball to the left, accelerating again, successfully bypassing Durant.
In terms of agility and speed, Durant ultimately couldn’t keep up with Zeng Xingyang, whose defensive movements were all anticipated by Zeng Xingyang.
Zeng Xingyang completed the breakthrough, and seeing this, Green quickly stepped up for help defense.
At this moment, Zeng Xingyang displayed superb basketball skills, stepping right with his right leg, then crossing left with his left leg, instantly executing a Euro step.
Zeng Xingyang gathered the ball past Green’s head, soared into the air, gripping the ball with one hand, and slammed it into the basket.
"Bang!" This dunk sent the on-site atmosphere to its peak.
The Nuggets fans went wild, embracing each other in excitement, loudly chanting Zeng Xingyang’s name.
Meanwhile, the Warriors fans looked stunned, with silence enveloping the scene.
The score became 25 to 22.
Zeng Xingyang swiftly responded to Durant’s offense.
After landing, Zeng Xingyang, filled with excitement, shouted at Durant: "Where’s your defense? I can’t feel it!"
Hearing this, Durant’s expression turned extremely unpleasant, a wave of frustration washing over him.