Wang Feng really didn't expect to face the Mavericks in the first round of the playoffs.
In his mind, the other first-round opponent of the Space-Time Warriors should be the Houston Rockets.
The Rockets in the 15-16 season have not yet risen. Although Harden performed well in the lineup and averaged 29 points per game in the regular season, Howard's body deteriorated further and he only failed to average 13.7 points and 11.8 rebounds per game.
The team's head coach is not Mike D'Antoni, the representative of X**D, so the Rockets are still very weak this season, ranking eighth in the Western Conference with only 41 wins and 41 losses.
But if you think about it carefully, in another time and space, the record rankings of the bottom players in the Western Conference in the 2016 playoffs are very close.
The eighth-place Rockets have 41 wins, the seventh-place Grizzlies have 42 wins, and the sixth-place Mavericks have 42 wins!
No matter which of these three teams wins one more game in the regular season, their rankings will be completely different.
Wang Feng's existence has obviously affected the original history. With the wings of butterflies flapping, the Mavericks accidentally lost one more game than in another time and space, and due to the relationship between victory and defeat, they could only be ranked behind the Rockets, who also had 41 wins.
He finished eighth.
Facing the Warriors makes the Mavericks very helpless. The entire league knows how strong the Warriors are this season. It can be said that they have no chance of winning. If they meet the Spurs or the Thunder, which are second in the Western Conference, they still have a slight chance.
So I hope I can give it a try.
…
The first game between the two teams took place at the Warriors' home court.
When the starting players of the two teams were standing on the field waiting for the jump ball, Wang Feng noticed a look full of hostility - that came from Harrison Barnes.
Although the two had no interaction before the game.
But Wang Feng read provocation in his eyes.
"This guy wants to fight with me?"
Wang Feng was stunned for a moment, and then he reacted. He couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth slightly.
Humph! Overestimating your own capabilities.
Wang Feng's current overall rating is not lower than that of Barnes, and with the bonus effect of the badge, it is much better than Barnes.
Is the other party not willing to compete with me at this time?
After thinking about it carefully, Wang Feng somewhat understood what Barnes was thinking.
Both are Western Conference teams. During the regular season, the Mavericks and the Warriors had four encounters. Almost every one of these four encounters was extremely miserable.
King Nowitzki is old and has lost his former courage. The Mavericks' lineup is aging and weak. They often surrender before they can even survive the third quarter.
The huge strength gap made Barnes understand that it was almost impossible to expect the Mavericks to perform a black eight miracle to help him get revenge!
So, since he can't complete his revenge against the Warriors, he can suppress Wang Feng in the personal ability competition and prove that he is the better one, which can give Barnes some psychological comfort.
Obviously, Barnes, who has played as the main force for the Mavericks for one season, has become a little distracted and has forgotten the scene when he was beaten by Wang Feng during the Warriors' training.
…
Players from both teams jumped the ball and the Mavericks won the ball.
Deron Williams dribbled the ball across half court and immediately spotted Barnes standing not far away and actively waving for the ball.
A few years ago, Paul was one of the two point guards who dominated the league, but now he is just an insignificant role player on the team.
As the Mavericks' future key player, Barnes is second only to Nowitzki in terms of status in the team. Therefore, when Barnes takes the initiative to ask for the ball, Deron can only pass the ball to the opponent.
Wang Feng raised his eyebrows slightly when he saw this.
"Huo, you actually dare to face me directly on the outside. You are very brave! It seems that this season with the Mavericks has really given you a lot of confidence."
"snort!"
Faced with Wang Feng's provocative words, Barnes snorted disdainfully, holding the ball and observing Wang Feng's position to look for flaws.
However, after a few seconds, Barnes had to give up.
Although they met four times in the regular season, Barnes and Wang Feng did not face each other directly many times.
Now, once again facing Wang Feng's defense head-on, that familiar feeling came over again, that suffocating sense of defensive pressure!
Not to mention anything else, just the defensive awareness of 90 and the ball defense of 85 are not something that Barnes, whose overall rating is only in the early 80s, can easily deal with!
After failing to find a flaw for a long time, Barnes could only bite the bullet and rely on speed to force a breakthrough.
Wang Feng stepped forward. He and Barnes were similar in size and there was not much difference in strength. The moment their bodies came into contact, the Death Coil Badge was immediately activated.
The long-lost feeling came over him like a tide, and Barnes staggered. Before he could reach the basket, he was already a little unable to dribble the ball due to Wang Feng's entanglement!
In a hurry, Barnes could only collect the ball and make a jump shot, trying to solve the problem using his better mid-range.
But this was already expected by Wang Feng!
Almost at the same time as Barnes took off, Wang Feng took off immediately with his arms directly in front of Barnes.
The highest level Purple Hall of Fame Defensive Awe Badge is activated!
With his vision severely disturbed, Barnes took a shot, and the basketball missed the mark. The rebound fell into the arms of the Warriors center.
"Damn it!" Barnes' face changed slightly.
"That's it?"
Wang Feng glanced back with a little disdain on his face. "I thought you would make any progress with the Mavericks this season."
The conflict between Wang Feng and Barnes has existed since the first day he traveled through time.
He still remembers when coach Cole put him on the court for the first time, the opponent's demeanor and expression when facing Barnes, that kind of undisguised disdain.
Wang Feng is not a generous person with a broad mind. On the contrary, he is also a bit petty. If someone provokes him, he will think about it for a long time!
What's more, the other party seems to come with the idea of revenge this time. How can he be polite to Barnes?
"I'll beat you in this game!"
A cold light flashed in Wang Feng's eyes.
Offensive and defensive transition, the Warriors attack.
Wang Feng, who ran to the frontcourt, also directly stretched out his hand to ask for the ball.
Wang Feng rarely takes the initiative to ask for the ball in isolation on the court. In most cases, Curry or Thompson creates a suitable opening before passing the ball to Wang Feng.
But Wang Feng, who holds the golden marksman badge, is also capable of holding the ball in singles. During the regular season, once the Warriors encounter obstacles in attacking and are unable to open up the situation from the outside, they will also try to pass the ball to Wang Feng for Wang Feng to take advantage of. Mid- and long-range shooting to open up the situation.
Seeing Wang Feng's initiative, Curry, who was holding the ball, thought for a moment, his eyes stayed on Wang Feng and Barnes for a moment, and then passed the ball to Wang Feng.
"Are you still planning to fight me alone?"
Seeing this scene, Barnes shrunk and became uncontrollably furious!