Chapter 701 Walker Quit the Group Chat (Fourth Update!)
The attendance at the New Orleans Arena that night was full, the fans were enthusiastic, and the atmosphere was comparable to that of the playoffs.
The team's opening game of the new season, coupled with the team's strong performance in the preseason, has made fans look forward to the new season.
Of course, Tang Tian's contribution to the New Orleans Hurricanes also brought fans' support for him to a new level.
Signs in support of Tang Tian can be seen almost everywhere in the arena.
Tang Tian's contribution to the city before was limited to the stadium, but since then, he has become the real hero of the city.
During the opening ceremony, when Tang Tian was introduced, the cheers were so loud that they could lift the roof of the arena.
Tang Tian felt the enthusiasm of the fans and waved, only to receive even bigger cheers in response.
The Pelicans players couldn't help but raise their heads. The decibel level was even higher than last year's playoffs.
This phenomenon also gives them more confidence. They must not let the fans down again this season!
After the opening ceremony, the starting lineups of both sides were announced one after another.
The Pelicans have their regular starting five.
For the Hornets, Walker and Batum partnered in the backcourt, with Michael Gilchrist and Marvin Williams on the front line and center Al Jefferson.
The Hornets' biggest signing this summer is Batum, the original all-around forward and guard swingman of the Trail Blazers. Together with the original Walker and Jefferson, as well as the fourth-year rookie McGeege, the paper strength has been significantly enhanced.
After the opening ceremony, there was a few minutes of warm-up time. Tang Tian went over to say hello to Walker and also chatted with Jeremy Lin for a few words.
In addition to signing Batum this summer, the Hornets also made another very important signing: Jeremy Lin.
"Don, I am more confident than ever."
Walker spoke to Tang Tian.
He is not Thompson's brother who likes to "yell" with Tang Tian before games. When he said this, he was really full of expectations and confidence for the new season.
Tang Tian smiled and patted his shoulder without saying anything.
After saying hello, the warm-up ended quickly, and the starters from both sides started to appear one after another.
Davis easily moved the ball from Jefferson's head back to the Pelicans half, officially kicking off the new season.
Holiday took the ball to the frontcourt, saw Jokic in position and gave the ball in.
The Pelicans' style of play is similar to that in the preseason, and the preseason is also a process for them to adjust.
Tang Tian broke in with the ball, and the Hornets chose to double-team. He returned the ball to Jokic who ran to the top of the arc. Jokic caught the ball and threw it with his hand raised.
Stevens continues to give him verbal encouragement, and his three-point shots are obviously more decisive than last season.
"Uh-huh!"
Jokic's long-range turret hit and scored the Pelicans' first goal in the new season!
The scene burst into cheers.
The Pelicans' offense is like mercury pouring down the ground, extremely smooth.
This looks much more comfortable than last season.
The camera was shown to Stevens, who loudly reminded the Pelicans players on the sidelines to retreat.
Walker organized with the ball on the outside, called on Jefferson to pick and roll, then broke into the basket and faced Jokic's difficult throw.
Jokic's defense on this ball was very good and caused enough interference, but Walker still threw the ball into the basket.
He roared with his hands arched after scoring.
He told Tang Tian that he was more confident than ever, and he definitely didn't just mean it, but he had to stand up first.
"Walker's condition looks better than last season, and the Hornets will make a splash in the new season."
In the commentary box, after seeing Walker's performance, Breen sighed.
His partner Jeff Van Gundy nodded.
When the Pelicans arrived in the frontcourt, Tang Tian held the ball. Jokic pulled to the three-point line. He and Davis played a pick-and-roll. After the separation, he broke into the basket.
The Hornets did not dare to double-team this time. Tang Tian directly lowered his body and dribbled the ball, then accelerated past Marvin Williams and flew for a layup.
Jefferson did not squeeze past Jokic and watched Tang Tian score a layup.
The Pelicans scored in their first two attacks, scoring 5 points in a row.
Looking back, Walker and Jefferson played a pick-and-roll. The Pelicans double-teamed Walker. Walker passed the ball to Jefferson, and Jefferson's mid-range shot missed.
Jokic protected the defensive rebound, and the Pelicans played a defensive counterattack. Tang Tian was in the middle, and Holiday and Ariza were on the left and right for a three-point line fast break.
Tang Tian broke into the basket to attract the defense and distributed the ball to Ariza who followed up on the right wing.
Ariza caught the ball and shot a three-pointer.
"Uh-huh!"
The three-point shooter makes a move!
The scene burst into cheers.
The Pelicans started off with no miss, scoring 8 points in three attacks!
Walker and Jefferson cooperated again in the frontcourt. This time Jefferson swayed and attacked Holiday, then turned around and released the basket.
"Bang!"
However, his movements were too slow, and he was slapped directly by Davis who was assisting in defense and flew out of the field.
Davis blocked the ball beautifully, but Jefferson's competitive state, whether defensive or offensive, is far worse than last season.
The Hornets' sideline ball came out, and Walker was double-teamed with the ball. He passed the ball to McGee from the double-team, and the latter was hit by a three-pointer one meter away.
Davis collected a long rebound.
The Pelicans launched a defensive counterattack again, and Tang Tian took the lead this time, holding the ball and dunking one step inside the free throw line.
"Bang!"
This dunk was so powerful that it set the entire New Orleans Arena on fire.
10 to 2, the Pelicans had a perfect start.
Hornets head coach Clifford reached out and called a timeout.
Although the game had only started for more than four minutes, he had a hunch that if a timeout was not called, the game would take one quarter.
After the timeout, Walker broke through for a layup and drew a foul to continue the Hornets' scoring.
But that was the Hornets' only score over the next two minutes.
The Pelicans' single defense, assist defense, and double-teaming were all impeccable. No one on the Hornets except Walker could score points at all.
And the Pelicans felt very good tonight. The Hornets guarded against this and missed that, and guarded against that and that. It felt like they were being shot to death.
Halfway through the first quarter, the score on the field was 21 to 6. The Pelicans directly defeated the Hornets.
And this situation has not improved in the substitute stage.
The Pelicans were full of morale, while the Hornets were obviously out of breath after experiencing a collapse in the first half of the quarter.
After the first quarter, the Pelicans already led the Hornets by 19 points, 32-13.
Clifford called a timeout in the first four minutes to prevent the game from being wasted in one quarter, but he called a timeout and the game was still wasted in one quarter.
During the break in the second quarter, the players all stood up from the bench to listen to the coach's tactics.
At this time, Walker looked up at the score on the court, and then at Tang Tian, who was standing next to Stevens at halftime next door. He felt an indescribable feeling in his heart.
He also said before the game that Tang Tian has unlimited expectations for the new season, but now this scene.
The QQ group of Brothers of Hard Training reminded that Walker had withdrawn from the group chat...
ps: I have to go home to pay homage to my ancestors and visit the graves in the next two days, so the updates will be unstable. I will try my best to update as much as possible.
Thanks to Xingfeng Xiaoye for the reward.