Because it was a preseason game, the Warriors' starting lineup, or several starting players, did not play for too long, including two new players who joined the team, Wang Feng and Blaylock, and they were only symbolic.
After playing for a few minutes, he sat down early and watched the excitement.
As for Garnett, as a first-year rookie, the team wanted to give him more opportunities to train and adapt to the NBA, so he stayed on the court.
Garnett did live up to the team's expectations of him. He showed off his talents that are visible to the naked eye on the court, flying through the air and on the ground, alley-oop dunks, smashes and blocks, which made 2 Warriors fans watch.
They were very excited.
After two months of targeted training by Wang Feng, Garnett is already stronger than the rookie Garnett who originally played a full season, and his strength has fully matched the standards of a starting player for any team in the league.
, he is naturally more comfortable in situations where he mostly plays as a substitute player in the preseason.
Garnett finally scored 21 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals in his first preseason game.
The Warriors also defeated their opponents and got a good start in the preseason.
Although no team takes the preseason games seriously, and it doesn't matter whether they win or lose, but no matter what, who likes to lose if they can win?
In the next few preseason games, Garnett was no exception. His average playing time per game remained at just over 30 minutes, and he averaged around 20 10 5 per game with extremely high efficiency.
The entire San Francisco was pleasantly surprised by Garnett's ability.
"Garnett used his strength to prove that the decision-making and judgment of the Warriors management were correct. This high school player not only has top-level talent in history, but also has first-class learning and adaptability. Although it is only a preseason game, he has obviously already
He is ready to face the more rigorous challenges of the NBA. At least at this stage, his performance is not inferior to that of Joe Smith, or even better than him!"
"Kevin Garnett's registered height is 2.11 meters, but his height is visually estimated to be at least 2.13 meters. Coupled with his excellent wingspan, this is a good prospect for an excellent inside line. If he can gain about ten kilograms,
If so, there is the possibility of becoming the next Hakeem (Olajuwon)."
The above is the advice given by a so-called authority figure in a local San Francisco sports newspaper.
In this era of center supremacy, for any big man, people want to make them gain weight and increase their confrontation and lethality to become a big center.
It was precisely because Garnett didn't want to run inside and wrestle with those guys that he lowered his height and became a power forward instead of a center.
Wang Feng is very clear about Garnett's thoughts. He also feels that a player like Garnett is definitely much better as a mobile power forward than as a center.
Moreover, Wang Feng also hopes that the team will have more insiders who can maintain mobility, rather than cumbersome big centers that affect his fast break rhythm.
After the Warriors' coaching staff saw Garnett's strength, it was inevitable that they would have the idea of letting Garnett gain weight and develop him into a top center like Olajuwon and David Robinson.
They provided suggestions and persuaded him to gain weight and switch to center...
Garnett was quite shaken. Although he didn't want to play the center position, if he could really become the second Olajuwon...
The current Wolf King does not know that his future career will also be very brilliant. Although the championship is not as good as Olajuwon, the honors in other aspects are not much worse.
Fortunately, Garnett did not waver for long because Wang Feng stepped forward.
"I have a mature and long-term plan for Kevin's future development. You don't need to worry about it. I don't think it is necessarily a good thing for him to imitate those centers. What is outstanding about him is his top-level jumping ability. Gaining weight will make him better."
Reduced bounce and maneuverability are not worth the gain."
Wang Feng takes action, one against the other two.
After the Sprewell incident, Wang Feng's name became completely famous in the Warriors.
Without playing a single game, the team kicked out the team's leading scorer on the first day of registration. This ruthlessness is rare in the entire league.
Almost everyone in the Warriors team knows that Wang Feng is not easy to mess with.
Moreover, the matter itself was the assistant coach and trainer giving advice to Garnett, not head coach Adelman, so Wang Feng solved the problem directly with one sentence.
Even if Adelman heard about this later, he would not say much.
…
More than half a month of pre-season games came to an end quickly without even realizing it.
The Warriors performed very well in the preseason, with a record of 7 wins and 3 losses in 10 games. This was despite the fact that Wang Feng and other main players averaged less than 20 minutes per game.
But despite this, as the regular season is about to begin, apart from die-hard Warriors fans, there are still not many people who are optimistic about this new Warriors team.
Everyone knows that the preseason games cannot be used as a reference at all. Both sides of the game only conducted tentative training without serious play, and they did not formulate targeted tactics and defensive strategies.
But it's different in the regular season. When the real intensity comes up, can the Warriors still be as calm as they were in the preseason? I'm afraid it's difficult...
Even Garnett, who performed very well, did the same.
No one was targeting him in the preseason. He could jump up and down the court like a spring man, but in the regular season, how dare you keep jumping so arrogantly? I want to see how many legs you have that can break you.
!
Many people are waiting to see the joke of the Warriors. Many players, including Knicks Ewing, Tim Hardaway, who was inexplicably traded away from the team, was the No. 1 pick, but was simply given up by the Warriors in exchange for Canada.
Nate added Joe Smith, a second-round pick and millions in cash... Of course, the madman Sprewell, who was kicked out in embarrassment, was definitely indispensable.
They all hope that the Warriors can stumble hard in the regular season so that the guy from China will never show that arrogant expression again.
Time soon came to the beginning of November, and the NBA regular season officially started.
The Warriors' first regular season game was on November 3, an away game, and they faced a strong enemy - the Houston Rockets led by Olajuwon.
The strength of the Rockets no longer needs a special explanation. If it weren't for Wang Feng, they would have defended the championship a few months ago, and Olajuwon would have won the second FMVP trophy in his career...
But the emergence of Wang Feng made all this come to nothing.
Therefore, the Rockets and Wang Feng can be regarded as having a grudge. Although the Finals Finals MVP went to Ewing in the end, any fool knows who is the real culprit that caused the Rockets to lose.
In this regular season opener, no one on the Rockets team wants to win. Although it is only an insignificant regular season game, they also hope to use a crushing victory to avenge the defeat of the general manager a few months ago.
Revenge in the final!
In the Warriors locker room, Adelman was doing pre-game mobilization.
"The Rockets are the top team in the league, with a deep lineup, rich game experience, and tacit cooperation. They still play at home, but everyone should not have too much psychological burden. Just show what you do in daily training."
Wang Feng sat aside, staring at Adelman non-stop.
The head coach's words clearly gave in in advance and told the players that it doesn't matter if they lose. We are already weaker than the opponent. If we can play something that belongs to us in the game, it will not be considered a loss...
Well, this may be regarded as a way to relieve the pressure of the players. For a new army that has just been put together, it blindly uses "we must win the game" and tells them who is the best team.
It may not be good, but Wang Feng, who is very competitive, feels awkward no matter what.
Because he could see that Adelman really didn't have much hope for the team to win. He didn't think the Warriors now had the strength to compete with top teams like the Rockets.
"I'm still underestimated..."
Although Wang Feng's daily training does not show any slack and shows his complete strength in front of everyone on the team, training and games are different after all. No one, including head coach Adelman, still has any confidence in his strength.
Have a correct and intuitive understanding.
"It doesn't matter, let's use this game to announce that NBA, your emperor is back!"
…
The main players of the Rockets have not changed much from the finals a few months ago. They are still Olajuwon, Drexler, Robert Horry, Kenny Smith and others.
This summer, in order to retain Drexler and ensure competitiveness, the Rockets offered him a three-year contract of US$20.81 million. The first-year salary was as high as 9.81 million, ranking second in the league in annual salary.
This contract directly completely locks up the Rockets' salary space, making it impossible to introduce any capable players in the free market.
However, for the Rockets, maintaining the current lineup will at least maintain sufficient competitiveness in the next few years. And as this year goes by, Drexler's contract annual salary will also increase from 9.81 million to 9.81 million.
5.5 million, the Rockets' lineup will still have room for maneuverability by then.
In fact, the Rockets will introduce Charles Barkley next season to form a Big Three combination to challenge for the championship. Unfortunately, everyone knows the result. This is not a very successful signing, nor can it help the Rockets regain the championship.
Return to the finals stage.
Back to business.
The Rockets' lineup has not changed much, and the Warriors' starting lineup also continues the arrangement from the preseason.
Wang Feng appeared on the stage together with Garnett, Blaylock, Mullin and other players.…
The moment Wang Feng came on the court, the Houston home fans immediately booed and cursed Wang Feng.
Houston is located in the famous state of Texas, which is famous for its "simple folk customs". Especially in the 1990s, the habits and atmosphere of western cowboys were quite strong. It is completely conceivable that these Texans felt that Wang Feng had taken away their original... What kind of sweet greetings will be given to the guy who belongs to their championship.
After all, the current Rockets are not the Chinese home team that will draft Yao Yao in the future. Who cares if you are Chinese or from other countries, you can still criticize them.
As a veteran who has been playing in the NBA for many years, Wang Feng has never seen the Devils play at home. He has long been accustomed to this, and can act calmly and calmly as if he has not heard anything.
But Garnett is different. The young man has never even played in the NCAA. The atmosphere of the high school league is simply the difference between heaven and hell.
Wang Feng could clearly see Garnett's nervousness. He was completely frightened by the atmosphere at the Rockets' home court.
There is nothing we can do about it. Although Garnett is known for his iron-bloodedness in his career, his nickname of "fighting and retreating" is not groundless. He is the Wolf King we all know by assessing the situation and knowing how to advance and retreat.
What's more, Garnett is now out of high school for less than half a year, so we can't ask for too much from him.
Wang Feng took the initiative to pat Garnett's shoulder and comforted him: "Don't be nervous, they are all here for me, because in the finals I smashed their idols and took them away under their noses. Championship trophy.”
"These are the guys. The noise here during the finals was much louder than it is now. Do you think there is a reason to be afraid of them?"
"Um." Garnet nodded, his eyes lighting up. "Boss, you are really awesome."
"Haha." Wang Feng smiled: "That's it? When the game starts, you will immediately know how good I am!"
With all the starting players from both teams on the field, the referee took the basketball to the center circle and prepared to jump the ball.
As the tallest and best jumping player in the Warriors' starting lineup, Garnett naturally assumed the responsibility of jumping the ball. He stood face to face with Olajuwon, and all the muscles in his body were tense. When the referee moved the basketball The moment it was thrown up, Garnett jumped up suddenly.
Olajuwon, standing opposite Garnett, was shocked.
"So high!"
Olajuwon is also a jumping expert. He is 2.13 meters tall and has a wingspan of 2.2 meters. He has won 2 rebounds and 3 blocks in his career. His jumping is naturally not bad, but the real strength of Olajuwon is Technically, in terms of static and dynamic talent, Garnett is obviously superior. Moreover, Olajuwon, who is now 33 years old, has no way to match the explosive power of the young and strong Garnett.
During the scrimmage, Garnett easily won the ball and turned the ball toward the Warriors.
Point guard Blaylock got the basketball and quickly controlled the ball for half the court. Then, just like in daily training, he passed the ball directly to Wang Feng, and then he ran to the bottom corner and acted as a fixed-point fort. .
To put it bluntly, Wang Feng's current playing style is really a bit like a combination of James Kobe and Curry. The most suitable playing system for him is to shoot all over the place.
As for the Rockets, when they saw Wang Feng holding the ball, Drexler immediately came up to him.
This old fritter also kept talking and started talking rubbish.
"You guys from Asia, don't think that you are still in the Knicks and you don't have Patrick to share the pressure for you! See how I teach you a lesson!"