Fifty-Two: The Perfect Substitute

Linas Kreza, a member of the Lithuanian national team, is 2.03 meters tall and can play two forward positions.

Kleiza first entered the NBA in 2005 as the 27th overall pick in the first round. In 2009, Kleiza left the NBA and returned to Europe to play for a year. It wasn't until 2010 that the Raptors who sent Bosh away signed him.

Although this guy is not very famous in the NBA, he is very famous in the international basketball world. In the NBA, he also once won the honorary record of 40 points in a single game.

Although Kleiza is averaging only 11.2 points per game this season, his occasional highlights in a few games still impress fans.

Once this shooting forward gets his touch, he can score like an All-Star.

And there is no doubt that Kleiza is feeling very hot today. Under Gay's passive defense due to physical impact, Kleiza led the Raptors to a 16-8 stunner. In this regard, Grizzlies coach Jane Triano is undoubtedly very satisfied. A good start will sometimes directly affect the trend of the game.

"Keep it up, Kreza! I'll set up a few pick-and-rolls for you, try to get out of the way, and shoot when you get the chance! The Grizzlies are back-to-back on the road today, and they're exhausted! Get those guys from the west in one go. Go to hell, guys!"

Triano looked at Kreza as if he was holding on to a life-saving straw. He knows very well that giving the ball to the best person is a tactic. And he believes that if Kreza can continue to torture Rudy Gay on the offensive end, Gay's offensive efficiency will definitely be affected.

Just like that, the electronic buzzer sounded, the pause ended, and the two sides continued to fight.

At this time, the game has only been played for a few minutes, and it stands to reason that it has not entered the rotation time. But when the Grizzlies players reappeared, it was discovered that the Grizzlies had changed!

"Link, the rookie forward who scored 18 points in the last game is going to play. This time, he's replacing...he's replacing O.J. Mayo! Lionel Hollins. The coach actually asked him to play the second position! What's the situation? Did Mayo have any injury problems?"

The commentators were dumbfounded. They really couldn't figure out why Hollins let Link play the second position. Kleizha didn't understand at all. It was his own that made Guy unable to lift his head, why did the other party replace O.J. Mayo?

But it doesn't matter, as long as he can win today, it is his business who the other party wants to replace.

After returning from the timeout, the Grizzlies had their first offense. Link looked at his matchup on the offensive end, DeMar DeRozan, the most popular athlete in Canada in the future.

I didn't expect that I would play against future stars so soon. In fact, DeRozan's numbers are starting to look good this season. As a sophomore, he is now averaging 17.2 points per game, which is a very important point for the Raptors.

But DeRozan's scoring in this period basically relied on dunks and layups, and his mid-range shots were not stable enough. As for the three-point shot... You may not believe it when you say it. This season, DeRozan's average three-point shooting percentage is only 9.6%...

Therefore, with the black and white bears guarding the inside line, DeRozan, who focuses on breakthrough scoring, should not be able to set off any storms today. As long as Kleizha is strangled, it is basically equivalent to strangling the Raptors.

While thinking, Conley has passed the basketball to Link. As a No. 2, Link needs to make some transition points.

In fact, O.J. Mayo also needs to play the role of a transfer point under Hollins' system, but that guy often attacks on his own when his mind is hot, which makes Hollins worry.

But with Link, such an accident would never happen.

Link sideways put the ball behind him, waiting for Conley to run over and hand him over.

At the moment of handing over, Link took advantage of the situation and blocked the Spanish point guard Calderon.

Conley broke through with the ball, and Link immediately followed. Sure enough, Conley, who had a wide passing vision, threw the ball out again after attracting the defense, and Link, who was in the middle distance, received the basketball firmly.

"Beautiful partial duo cooperation, and having two guards with high IQ to play together is really a kind of enjoyment."

If Mayo listens to the speaker, he will definitely be furious, meaning that his game IQ is not high?

Link takes the ball and shoots, which is his favorite offense. But in the air, Link's wrist turned slightly, turning his throw into a pass!

Just when the Raptors players were about to rebound, the basketball unexpectedly fell into Rudy Gay's hands. Gay catches and shoots, and he finally gets a comfortable mid-range open shot.

The reason why Gay is extremely inefficient in some games is because he likes to wave when he is in a hurry. To put it bluntly, his inefficiency is a matter of shot selection, not ability.

And this kind of mid-range open shot is not difficult for Gay at all. The basketball is hollowed into the net and hits steadily. As soon as the timeout came back, the Grizzlies broke their scoring drought.

Seeing the team score immediately after the timeout, Hollins was extremely proud of his decision. He knew that it was right to replace Link on the court!

"Beautiful assists and finishing, Link's passing is really unexpected. It's unbelievable how a small Fresno University can develop two outstanding forwards, George and Link at the same time? You know, Fresno doesn't even qualify for the NCAA Division I game."

The commentators instantly collectively transformed into "Lin Chui". Now no one dares to underestimate that Chinese. He can always create value on the court.

"Damn!" Seeing Guy scoring goals in his own way, Kleiza pouted. This summer, he signed a four-year, $20 million deal with the Raptors. Even so, he knew very well that if he couldn't continue to perform well, he would also have the possibility of leaving.

After turning around in Europe and coming back, he didn't want to leave again.

So, he decided to use the most violent attack to counterattack on Guy's head!

However, Kleiza can't even count it. When he stepped into the Grizzlies' half court, it was no longer Gay who was defending him, but the No. 0 forward!

"Link actually went to defend Linus Kreza himself! Was this shift arranged by Coach Hollins?" With the narrator shouting in surprise, the scene shot to Hollins.

Hollins was expressionless, because Link had yet to prove he could defend the place.

Kleiza was not afraid of Link at the beginning. Today, even Rudy Gay can't take him, let alone an undrafted one? Moreover, he is still an Asian!

Kleiza doesn't have the racist kind of thing, but an Asian person always feels like a weaker side on the basketball court.

According to the tactics, Kleiza began to run off the ball under the cover of his teammates. He believes that his keen offensive sense and superb running skills should be enough to easily shake off the Chinese rookie.

Rudy Gay's too relaxed defense just now gave Kleiza the illusion that "I can score just about anything".

Therefore, he was very surprised when he ran to the right bottom corner according to the tactics, and then received a pass from Calderon, only to find that Link had posted it immediately.

"How is that possible!?" Kleizha couldn't believe that the slightly thin Asian man in front of him was able to keep up with his rhythm through the heavy cover.

Just when Kleiza was still surprised, Link pushed him directly and gave Kleiza a strong confrontation in the bottom corner!

"Haha, beautiful!" Off the court, Tony Allen waved the towel, that kid knows everything, and the timing of his confrontation is just right!

Keleza is a shooter-type striker, and breaking through with the ball is not his forte. Now, being guarded so frantically by Link again, Kleizha was just a little overwhelmed.

Tough, pressing, and merciless, Kreza was terrified by Link's entanglement. In the narrow corner, Kleiza can only choose to rush the ball in the end.

Under Link's interference, the ball was passed high and floating. Rudy Gay seized the opportunity to jump hard, intercepted the basketball, and then took advantage of the trend to break fast!

Gay's athleticism guarantees that he'll be a sharpshooter in transition. The Raptors' players only reacted to the defense when he had run across the halffield line.

But everything was of no avail. Rudy Gay vented all his dissatisfaction with a one-handed dunk. Rudy Gay's offense is terrifying when he doesn't have to spend his energy on the defensive end.

"Boom!" The basket made a loud noise, and there was silence in the Air Canada Centre Arena.

On the big screen, the score became 16-12. And all these changes started from the appearance of the Chinese No. 0.

"Good job, keep it up!" Hollins applauded Link, and once again the guy didn't let himself down.

And beyond defense, Hollins also found that the Grizzlies seemed to have better chemistry with Link on the floor.

Gay always gets easy scoring opportunities, and everyone else doesn't get disrupted on the defensive end.

A perfect backup forward, Hollins thinks he has found it.