One Thousand and Thirty: There Is Really No Opponent

The opening game on the first day of the 16-17 season allowed fans to experience the biggest charm of this season-uncertainty.

Because none of the three games on the opening day was what the fans expected.

After the defending champion Golden State Warriors accepted their championship ring at home, they were immediately beaten to the bone by the Duncan-less Spurs.

In this game, Aldridge and Leonard scored 26 points and 25 points respectively. One has a 50% hit rate, and the other has a 47.6% hit rate.

Efficient, simple, and able to win, the "double German combination" seems to have really carried the Spurs flag from Duncan's shoulders.

Looking back at the Warriors, the team's three-point shooting percentage of 21.2% is astonishing. Although Durant and Curry scored 27 and 26 points respectively, the efficiency of the Warriors team was too low.

Today, the Warriors feel very relaxed, so relaxed that they underestimate the enemy. It seems that they think they can destroy the Spurs by just hitting them casually.

However, when they were beaten by the Spurs and wanted to get serious, they could no longer burst out with that energy.

In the end, the Spurs beat the defending champion 129-100 on the road.

Facts have proved that even the Warriors with an abnormally strong lineup cannot take it lightly.

Once they relax even a little bit, they will be kicked off the altar!

Another game, the Cleveland Cavaliers versus the Toronto Raptors, also surprised fans.

Although the Eastern Conference champion Cavaliers won the game as expected, their process of winning the game was extremely bumpy.

People thought that James, with Irving and Love, could easily win the Raptors.

However, DeMar DeRozan suppressed James, Irving and other superstar players today, scoring 32 points in the game!

And among these 32 points, not a single one came from beyond the three-point line.

DeRozan is a second position who doesn't like and is not good at shooting three-pointers. His scoring method that focuses on mid-range is very retro.

But facts have proven that as long as you are strong enough, you can still cause trouble for your opponents even if you use retro methods.

Thanks to DeRozan's outstanding performance, the Cavaliers were forced to the last 2.4 seconds. They only narrowly escaped death with Irving's life-saving three-pointer.

Before the game started, everyone agreed that the Cavaliers' status as the leader in the Eastern Conference would not be shaken.

But in fact, it has already begun to falter.

But what surprised fans the most was the game between the Grizzlies and the Knicks.

As the earliest game in the opening game, this game had the highest ratings.

Phil Jackson's outspoken words, Link's war of words with the New York media, and fans' curiosity about the Knicks' new lineup all made this game a highly anticipated one.

As a result, this game was also the most unexpected.

Before the game started, many New York fans thought the Grizzlies would lose. Most neutral fans think that the two sides may fight a 50-50 draw.

As a result, the Grizzlies won without a fight in Madison Square Garden.

Link didn't even show much performance, and the Grizzlies won. Wade, who has always been considered to have little gas in the tank, scored 35 points in his first game after joining the Grizzlies!

All the fans watched this game with their mouths open. The gap between the Grizzlies and the Knicks is really huge!

None of the three games went as the fans expected.

The 16-17 season has been exciting from the beginning. These three games are a reminder to fans - don't think everything is finalized.

After the game between the Grizzlies and the Knicks, Phil Jackson became the object of rejection by everyone.

Even many Knicks fans began to attack "Zen Master".

"If the Grizzlies are as bad as you say, then who are the Knicks?"

"Stop doing those useless things, Phil. Before you came, we were still a playoff team. But now, we are playing for lottery picks!"

"It's hugely disappointing that Phil's magic will never be repeated in New York."

Sure enough, if you go against Wade, even if you are a "Zen Master", you will not get any good results.

The critical New York media unanimously pointed their guns at the Knicks, making all kinds of criticisms.

Link sometimes feels that the Knicks players are really miserable. The media in most places will support the local team.

But in New York, you can never expect the New York media to be gentle with the Knicks.

If this is what New York calls big city exposure, then Link would rather not have it.

In any case, the game between the Grizzlies and the Knicks made the entire league regain respect for championship players.

Facts have proved that a duo with a total of five rings is indeed not easy to mess with.

After this game, no reporter dared to criticize the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies also fulfilled Link's words with a series of victories, "This is just the beginning."

On October 29, the Grizzlies ushered in their home opener at FedEx Arena. Their opponent was the Minnesota Timberwolves, who were third from last in the Western Conference last season but are considered the most likely dark horses this season.

The Timberwolves signed the famous coach Tom Thibodeau this season, and it is generally believed that Wiggins, the No. 1 pick in 2014, LaVine, the No. 13 pick in 2014, and Towns, the No. 1 pick in 2015, can realize their talents this season.

Speaking of which, the Timberwolves' lineup is really talented. Among the starting five, four are high-draft picks. From the "Spanish Golden Boy" back then to Towns now, this is enough to make most teams drool.

But after so many years, the Timberwolves have been unable to convert their talent into results.

Therefore, people are looking forward to Thibodeau's arrival to change the status quo.

But unfortunately, in the first game of the season, the Timberwolves encountered the Grizzlies.

In this game, Link suppressed Wiggins in all aspects and did not allow the No. 1 pick who was originally known as the "next James" to achieve any results.

Towns played well, but the way he scored on the court was surprising.

On the court, Towns showed off his superb skills.

Three-pointers, low-post turnaround jumpers, face-to-face breakthroughs... Link has to admit that the comprehensiveness of these new era big men is unmatched by the veteran insiders of the past.

But as a big man with a height of 2.13 meters, Towns is completely unstoppable in the low post!

Several times, he hit Harrell from behind, who was just over two meters tall, but he couldn't hit him!

But Harrell, an engineer who relies on eating cakes to score, hit Towns with his back twice in a row and crushed him to the basket to score easily...

Seeing this, Jokic on the bench chuckled and said, "Coach, why don't you go up and try it for me?"

After that, it’s a series of sad stories. The No. 1 pick in 2015 was brutally beaten in the low post by the second-round pick in 2014.

Towns and Wiggins, the two most talented players, were suppressed, and the Timberwolves' scoring burden could only be shifted to LaVine.

LaVine is indeed an excellent dunker, but at this stage, he is not yet an outstanding scorer.

110 to 98, the Grizzlies once again defeated their opponents. If Joger hadn't replaced all the main players in the last two minutes, the point difference might have been even greater.

Link scored 25 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in an understatement, but still didn't seem to exert much effort.

But even so, he made Wiggins autistic.

Wiggins scored 6 points in this game. It's not that he didn't work hard, but he really couldn't beat Link.

In an interview after the game, the Timberwolves' No. 1 pick kept shaking his head, "Link is very strong. There are probably not many players in the league who can take advantage of him. Playing against him makes me feel desperate."

The Grizzlies have won two games in a row, and their momentum still shows no signs of stopping.

On October 30, the Grizzlies faced the Wizards in back-to-back home games. Although Wall, the No. 1 pick in the same class as Link, scored 22 points and 13 assists, he still could not prevent the Grizzlies from winning 114-101.

Three consecutive wins!

As time enters November, the Grizzlies and Timberwolves meet for the second time this season.

Only this time, the battlefield became Minnesota.

At home, the Timberwolves lost even more miserably. The Grizzlies went even harder, 116-80, humiliating the Timberwolves at home.

The Timberwolves started the season with three consecutive losses, including two losses to the Grizzlies. It seems that Thibodeau has not figured out how to convert talent into results.

So far, the Grizzlies have had a perfect start with four consecutive wins.

What's even more frightening is that after four games, people found that Link didn't seem to use his full strength in any game.

He is like James who has been "recuperating" in the regular season over the years.

The difference is that Link can win the game even if he maintains his health. And he didn't mean to keep healthy, he really didn't meet an opponent that required him to exert his full strength.

At this moment, an exciting team appeared in front of the Grizzlies.

ESPN declared, "This is the first test between the Grizzlies and Link this season!"

The Milwaukee Bucks, the upstarts in the Eastern Conference, are about to meet the Grizzlies.

"The Greek Freak" is ready to break ground in front of the King of Memphis.