Chapter 209 He Chose the Most Difficult Path (Tenth Update!)

"I think he should be able to endorse sports drinks."

O'Neill said with a laugh at this time.

"No, I think certain men's health products will be more suitable and long-lasting."

Barkley was full of coquettish words.

"The one Wade used?"

O'Neill said with a laugh.

At the beginning, Wade was PS on a small card of a male health care product, and he was ridiculed for a whole season.

O'Neill's words immediately made Barkley and Smith amused.

Before the start of the game, they boldly predicted that Durant would perform poorly tonight, but they didn't expect it to be true. The three of them were very happy at the moment.

The Thunder launched a strong counterattack under the leadership of Harden in the opening stage of the fourth quarter.

But Ginobili immediately played a wave of offensive to stabilize the momentum, and pulled the point difference to 20 points.

Due to the large point difference, neither Durant nor Westbrook appeared in the fourth quarter.

Durant's expression looked very sad, he raised his hand with all his strength to give Tang Tian a slap.

As a result, he returned his hand and slapped himself directly in the face, making his face swollen.

In the last few minutes of the bench players' contest, the Spurs finally defeated the Thunder 108-96 on the road.

They won their first victory after the All-Star Game and continued to consolidate their No. 1 position in the Western Conference.

The Thunder's best performer was Harden. He played 25 minutes and made 7 of 15 shots, 2 of 5 three-pointers, 7 of 8 free throws, and contributed 23 points and 4 assists.

Westbrook had 15 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists, and Ibaka had 8 points and 10 rebounds.

Although Durant also scored 26 points, he made 10 of 29 shots and his efficiency was very low.

For the Spurs, Parker scored a team-high 25 points and 9 assists on 11 of 13 shots, Duncan scored 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Ginobili scored 20 points and 5 assists.

Tang Tian's main energy in this game was in the fight with Durant, and he only took 6 shots in the game.

He made 3 of 6 shots, 2 of 4 three-pointers, and 2 free throws. He scored 10 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals and 1 block.

Of course, statistics cannot reflect Tang Tian's value in this game.

Anyone who has watched the game knows that Durant failed to "beat" Tang Tian at all this time, and was even defended inefficiently, making him a bit embarrassed on the court.

"That's what it means to blow up. Forgive me for my ignorance. This is the first time I see it."

"After watching the game, I think James Harden is more like the leader of the Thunder. Durant is like a child who is angry, completely disregarding the team, just trying to fulfill his promise, and failed."

"It's not Durant's fault. Coach Brooks has been letting him attack. From the coaching staff to his teammates, this is a team with the Kevin Durant label."

"This is definitely not the model that a championship team should have. I think Durant should learn to pass the ball, like LeBron."

"Brother, although you are right, I have to remind you that LeBron hasn't won a championship yet."

"Yeah, brother basketball hasn't been successful yet. (?⊙ω⊙)?"

"No, this season will be successful. The Heat are obviously stronger this season. They will win the championship this year."

"If I don't win the championship, I think LeBron's historical status will be questioned like never before."

"He chose the hardest path."

"Is there no more difficult way?"

"Hey! Hey! You're off topic, we're talking about Durant!"

"Okay, but it's just a regular season. This year, the Thunder and the Spurs still have a good chance to meet in the Western Conference Finals. I was thinking that if Durant played like today... and the Thunder lost the game ..."

"That's impossible. Durant is just out of shape tonight. When he feels good, the quality of defense has no effect on him."

"It's as if it's true!"

"That's the truth, otherwise wait and see in the playoffs!"

"Wait, how does this person speak in the same style as Durant's trumpet before? Is this his new registered account?"

"..."

...

Fans' buzz on Twitter made the game's aftermath extremely lively.

But this time, even though the fans made fun of Durant on Twitter, Durant didn't use his big size to show up.

But you can tell from his speech on the trumpet that he is obviously still unconvinced, holding back his strength to re-establish his name in the playoffs.

Winning the Thunder is a very good start for the Spurs after the All-Star break.

Moreover, what made Popovich even more satisfied was Tang Tian's high-intensity defense throughout the court, which made him feel at ease and put him on the court all the time.

Although Jefferson was absent due to injury, Tang Tian's performance in these two games has fully won Popovich's trust.

He's already the perfect starter at the three for the Spurs.

Time flies, and in a blink of an eye, it came to March 11. The Spurs played 6 games after the All-Star break, with a record of 5 wins and 1 loss.

Except for a loss to the Bulls, the overall performance was quite perfect, and the chemical reaction reached the highest peak after the start of the season.

Jefferson also returned during this period.

However, playing strong teams continuously, Popovich didn't immediately arrange him to play because he didn't want to destroy the team's existing chemical reaction.

It wasn't until the game against the Wizards on the 12th that Popovich decided to let Jefferson play.

The Wizards have a poor record this season, only slightly better than the bobcats at the bottom. This is a good time for a comeback.

But Jefferson directly refused, and he didn't even appear on the scene of the game.

After playing the Wizards game, Jefferson also sent an e-mail to the Spurs management through his agent.

In the email, he expressed his doubts about the team's mistrust of him and hoped to get more playing time.

Jefferson renewed a 4-year, 38.8 million fully guaranteed contract with the Spurs in the summer of 2010.

In other words, counting this season, he still has a full three-year contract on his contract, and it is impossible for the team to lay off him at this time.

And he has just returned from injury, and the transaction value is also very low, so he is sure that the Spurs will not trade him away, and will finally compromise to give him playing time.

If this is a different team, maybe it will be done, but Jefferson seems to have forgotten who in this team has the right to speak.

Spurs owner Pete Holt and Popovich have an extremely close relationship, and general manager Buford is also Popovich's former assistant.

Popovich is more than just a head coach with the Spurs.

After Jefferson's email reached front office, Popovich was instantly irritated.

After obtaining the acquiescence of the management, he directly announced an indefinite suspension of Jefferson from the team until the day he was traded and left the team.

From the perspective of the team's interests, it is unreasonable to keep a player with a contract of nearly 10 million yuan from playing.

But it's a pity that Popovich is such a stubborn person. He has been with the Spurs for 20 or 30 years, and he is really the only one who dares to do this.

And this is also a way to completely kill chickens and monkeys. This is a very clear way to tell others that this method may be useful for other teams, but it is completely unworkable for him.