I feel hot in the NBA

Chapter 189 Youth Army

The biggest dark horses this season are undoubtedly the Mavericks and the Bulls. These two teams have secured the No. [-] in the East and the No. [-] in the West so far. Before the start of this season, no one thought that their two teams could reach their current heights.

And under these two teams, there is another team that brings surprises to NBA fans, and that is the Thunder!

From Seattle to Oklahoma, from the Sonics to the Thunder.

Durant was selected in 07, Westbrook was selected in 08, Harden was selected in 09, and Brooks officially took over in 10.

The rise of the Thunder can be easily described in a few words.

After several years of waiting, the "three young men" of the Thunder finally fulfilled their talents and successfully led the Thunder to rank second in the Western Conference.

This rebuilding team, which only made it to the playoffs last year, has become a big hit this year. The improvement is actually not much worse than that of the Bulls or Mavericks. However, due to the obvious talent of this team, although such a big improvement is somewhat beyond expectations, it can also be said to be expected.

This is why there are not many fans surprised by the Thunder's rise this year. In the eyes of these fans, it is inevitable for the Thunder to reach their current heights.

Not just fans, even in the eyes of many experts, the Thunder with Durant, Westbrook and Harden can definitely dominate the league for N years in the future.

Chances are... this is the year that the prelude kicks off!
"No one knows how strong this Thunder team is! Because no matter which team they face in the league, they are likely to win, even against the Mavericks who have only lost 2 games so far!"

……

"Many fans are looking forward to tonight's game. The Mavericks, who have played impossibly perfect performances so far, are welcoming the Thunder, which can create unlimited possibilities, at home. There are too many reasons to prove that this game is worth looking forward to!"

This game is also a game that is broadcast live across the United States, and the major live broadcast rooms have begun to analyze this game early.

In the auditorium of the Airline Arena, many Dallas fans also came to the arena early. There was still half an hour before the start of the game, and the auditorium was already full of fans. These fans were not idle after entering the arena, and booed frantically at the Thunder fans who were already warming up on the field.

"This arena is really vibrant this year!"

This is Westbrook's third visit to this arena. Compared with the previous two years, this time he felt the vitality of Cowboy City more clearly, but the boos at the beginning seemed to drown him out!
"We'll silence this arena!"

A black player whose figure looks thin but has very clear muscle lines, and whose height seems to have exceeded 2 meters also glanced at the auditorium on the sidelines, and then asked for a ball from the ball boy next to him.

This is somewhat surprising.

A player who is more than 2 meters tall actually dribbled skillfully, and even hit a shot from beyond the three-point line.

This is exactly how an outside player plays, but now it appears on a guy with inside height.

This guy is Kevin Durant!

In the NCAA, he is known as the super genius of "the strongest scoring machine in history after Jordan".

There are subjective factors and objective factors. In short, his arrival allowed Lewis and Ray Allen to be traded directly. From the moment he was selected, he was regarded as the future cornerstone of this team.

And now his growth proves that his potential is worthy of such expectations.

He entered the league in 07, so far he is one of the league's highest-level scorers.

He successfully won his first scoring trophy last season.

And this season, after many giants chose to team up, Kevin Durant temporarily led the league with an average of 29.47 points per game, and continued to attack the second scoring trophy of his career.

Strong personal strength also makes Kevin Durant's current self-confidence the best. He believes that he can lead the Thunder to accomplish anything, including winning the Mavericks today!
"Hey, James, your form was a bit poor yesterday. I hope to see your previous performance in this game!"

On the sidelines, a man with a beard almost catching up with a beard, staring at a pair of innocent big eyes, a black player who looks like a boss of a certain organization is receiving the teachings of Thunder coach Brooks.

His name is James Harden, and he was unexpectedly picked by the Thunder with the third overall pick in 09. The reason why he was unexpected is that he had to talk about the 09 NBA Draft. The first and second overall picks were both inside players, and 09 is currently recognized by the league as a big guard draft year. In this year, many young talents on the guard line came out, such as Evans, Jennings, DeRozan, and Stephen Curry.

But among so many guard talents, Harden can be ranked first, which many people did not expect before the start of the draft.

However, James Harden used his performance to prove that the Thunder management's vision is still vicious. His immediate combat ability and growth adaptability are the best among the entire 09 rookies.

In his rookie season, he averaged only 22.9 minutes per game, but he still contributed 9.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.

This year, with a slight increase in the average playing time per game, Harden's data has been greatly improved. So far, he has averaged 12.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, and further will be the league's top sixth man.

The most important thing is that James Harden is very compatible with Kevin Durant and Westbrook. While the team leader and second leader both desperately need the ball, they can attract off the ball very well on the court and form a good chemical reaction with Westbrook and Durant.

"These three guys plus Jeff Green and Serge Ibaka, these five guys, except for Jeff Green's income from sending Ray Allen, the rest are all obtained by the Thunder's management in the draft. With the management's vicious vision, the Thunder that moved to Oklahoma has become the most talented young team in the league in just two or three years!"

In the commentary booth of ESPN, Reggie Miller was introducing the players of this Thunder team one by one. Although this young team has done well this year, some players are not yet familiar to all fans.

Just like Ibaka!

"Seriously, you'll only understand how good he is, especially on the defensive end, if you've actually seen this big man play, and he's expected to be one of the best rim protectors in the league!"

"It can be considered that at least four of the players in this youth team will become All-Stars in the future!"

(End of this chapter)