Chapter 874 Your Rookie Just Wants to Show Off? (Fourth Update!)
Coming back from the halftime break, both sides had starting adjustments.
Bojan felt average tonight, and Stevens put Ariza back into the starting lineup.
For the Mavericks, Carlisle also removed the targeted Nowitzki from the starting lineup and replaced him with Dwight Powell, a young but equally capable scorer.
The coaches on both sides met their opponents.
In this quarter, Tang Tian scored another 15 points in a single quarter, and his personal score has reached 35 points, which is higher than the season average.
But after this quarter, the Mavericks were still tied with the Pelicans 89-92.
Butler's fighting spirit, Harris' stability, Conley's organization, Embiid's frame protection and Nowitzki's ability to attack tough situations.
The current ranking of this five-star Mavericks really relies entirely on hard power.
Although the stars are not dazzling, they will be one of the favorites to win the championship in the new season.
The 3-point difference was still negligible, and the two teams were rushing to the final moment.
At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the coaches on both sides continued to compete. Both sides still had two main players and three substitutes, but this time the lineups had changed.
For the Mavericks, Carlisle let Butler, who played the entire third quarter, take a rest, and Harris and Nowitzki led the team on the court, plus Seth Curry, Devin Harris and McGee.
The main force of the Pelicans has not changed. Holiday and Jokic are still leading the team, but there are changes in the substitutes.
Except for Bojan, who did not start in the second half, and David West, who was in the regular rotation, the remaining players were no longer Deron, but rookie Brogdon.
Deron's performance has been average since joining the Pelicans.
Stevens had always respected him and wanted to use his game experience to control the court.
But in this first half, Deron did not score for several minutes and made two mistakes, so he finally chose to make changes.
Fortunately, he knew that Deron was in average condition and put Brogdon on the activation list in advance.
In the fourth quarter, the Pelicans took the lead. Davis beat Nowitzki under the basket and turned around for a layup.
After all, McGee has played for the Pelicans for two years and understands Davis' technical characteristics. He helped defend this ball very well.
Davis wanted to pass to the basket, but Harris switched to the inside and blocked West.
The Pelicans' tactics didn't work out, and Davis was forced to return the ball to Holiday to continue organizing.
Holiday organized another offense, calling West for a high pick-and-roll, and then passed the ball back to West after breaking through.
But as soon as West received the ball, Devin Harris's defense was in place.
Curry restricted Holiday from catching the ball, and McGee and Harris also got stuck at the basket.
The Mavericks' help defensive rotation in this period is a textbook.
Carlisle, like Stevens, spent one season turning the Mavericks into an all-around offensive and defensive team.
There was not much offensive time left, and West had no choice but to attack.
It was at this time that he discovered that after a rotation of help defense, Nowitzki was guarding Brogdon.
This is opportunity.
And although Brogdon has not played much before, he performed well on the bench in preseason games, including regular training games.
West finally chose to hand the ball to Brogdon and then pulled Devin Harris away himself.
Carlisle nodded with satisfaction on the sidelines at this time.
Although it was a small opportunity in the end, the Mavericks finally forced the ball into the hands of a rookie, and there were only four or five seconds of attack time left.
This has been a very successful defense.
Brogdon didn't panic. He showed maturity that is different from ordinary rookies since he started in the preseason.
This is also a characteristic he should have. You must know that as a rookie, he is actually the same age as Irving of the Cavaliers!
As for Irving, he is already a player who has been in the league for five years.
He faked a shot after catching the ball, but it didn't fool the experienced Nowitzki.
He took a step forward, and Nowitzki retreated.
But in the next second, he took another step back to the three-point line.
Nowitzki made the decision, but was slow.
Brogdon seized this momentary opportunity and raised his hand to shoot.
The moment after he took action, the red light on the sidelines came on.
It was a 24-second buzzer-beater.
It's hard.
"Uh-huh!"
However, before the whistle blew on the sidelines, the basketball hit the net!
The buzzer-beating three-pointer went in!
Brogdon’s big heart!
After the ball was scored, the scene was inexplicably quiet.
There was a roar of excitement from the Pelicans bench.
This goal was very handsome, and it was against the superstar Nowitzki!
Bojan was so excited on the court that he ran to Brogdon and yelled. It felt better than making a three-pointer.
On the other hand, Brogdon himself seemed very calm, but there was a hint of murderous intent in his eyes.
Carlisle coughed, and the players on the Mavericks bench shook their heads unconsciously.
This kind of ball is a great morale booster for the Pelicans, but it is a fatal blow to the Mavericks.
"This rookie is a bit Tangtian."
In the commentary box, Reggie Miller said vividly.
His description is also very appropriate. You must know that Tang Tian had a huge heart during his rookie season with the Spurs.
This goal boosted the morale of the Pelicans, and Davis defended Nowitzki's Golden Rooster Independence.
Looking back, Holiday was directing from the outside and actually played a No. 2 tactic!
The atmosphere of the Pelicans is to give opportunities to whoever plays well.
Brogdon was heavily targeted and had no chance to take action, but he successfully contained the defense. Davis cut into the basket and received the pass, causing McGee to hit the ball.
After making two free throws, the Pelicans launched a 5-0 offensive, widening the point difference to 8 points.
Carlisle turned around and signaled Embiid to come on and replace McGee.
Stevens also quickly put Jokic on the court to replace West.
Nowitzki passed the ball after playing in the frontcourt, and Harris cut in for a layup, but Jokic was blocked in front, and Davis jumped up and covered him directly!
The Pelicans are getting ready!
Carlisle stood vigilantly on the sidelines and looked up at the time.
Although the fourth quarter started not long ago, if the Pelicans continued to score, he could only call a timeout.
Fortunately, the Mavericks retreated very quickly on this ball and did not directly lead to a defensive counterattack by the Pelicans.
The Mavericks' defense did a good job in switching positions on defensive counterattacks.
Jokic's three-point line organization, Holiday and Brogdon's three-point ball-free movement on both sides.
Holiday is followed closely, and Brogdon has a chance.
However, when Brogdon made the shot in front, the Mavericks let it go easily, and Embiid switched defenses and made a thorough save.
Brogdon suddenly made a fake shot and actually got past Embiid!
It was smooth sailing in front of him, and he shot straight to the basket.
Nowitzki helped defend a little late. His block didn't arrive until after Brogdon took action, and it hit him directly in the hand!
The referee's whistle sounded and after Brogdon was fouled, he folded and adjusted his hand shape in the air and still completed the shot.
The ball barely landed on the basket, just like climbing over a wall, barely climbing in!
2+1!
Beautiful 2+1!
The scene was agitated.
Brogdon didn't play in the first three quarters, but in the fourth quarter, he had already scored two goals, and each one was more difficult than the last!
Cuban on the sidelines reached out and slapped his forehead.
He couldn't help but think of Jokic's performance in his rookie season.
Now there's Brogdon again.
The Pelicans' rookie is nothing new, just showing off!