against the front

Chapter 85 O'Neal and Olajuwon
"These two guys are hooked!"

After the start of the second half of the game, Greg Oden showed a very good state and a very efficient offensive efficiency. He scored all three consecutive offenses and scored 6 points in a row. Yan Hua was not to be outdone. In the first two possessions of double-teaming him, Yan Hua assisted Kevin Martin and Spencer Hawes to make shots, and then scored on Greg Oden with the ball after the Blazers relaxed their defense. , While helping the Kings maintain the lead, it also opened the prelude to the confrontation between him and Greg Oden again.

"It's unbelievable that these two guys can fight like this!"

"I have to admit that the talents and abilities of these two guys are really outstanding. If Greg is compared to Shaq O'Neal, then the king's boy is Hakeem Olajuwon!"

"O'Neal and Olajuwon? Your metaphor is a bit interesting, maybe in the future they will really be called O'Neal and Olajuwon's level of players!"

Just when Yan Hua and Greg Oden were fighting fiercely on the field, the press box on the sidelines also exploded, because before this game, they never thought that today's game would be Beat like this.

Before the game started, among all the reporters present, except for the local media in Sacramento, the rest basically supported the Blazers. After all, one was the second in the Western Conference and the other was the seventh in the Western Conference. In the last matchup, the Trail Blazers without Greg Oden beat the Kings by as much as 21 points at home. However, the Kings fought inextricably against the Blazers, and even had a slight upper hand, which was beyond everyone's expectations.

Another thing that surprised everyone is the performance of Greg Oden and Yan Hua in this game. Yan Hua is a rookie this season, and the Kings selected Yan Hua with the 12th overall pick in the first round, which is also one of the draft picks this season. , the most controversial choice, but after the start of the new season, Yan Hua successfully proved his strength with his performance and talent, and also proved the excellent draft vision of the King's management, and even relied on his excellent talent Performance, was crowned "the future's number one center" by the outside media, this title is full of expectations and hopes.

As for Greg Oden, that is a player that is more optimistic about by all the media. Before entering the NBA, he had the title of "Oden the Great" and was considered a combination of David Robinson and Patrick Ewing. , another dominant center after Shaq O'Neal, and what's more, Oden will change the league.

Although Oden was a rookie last season, Greg Oden only made his NBA debut this season due to injuries. However, Oden’s playing time was not A lot, but in the only 20 minutes of playing time, Greg Oden has fully proved his talent and potential, so the outside media have higher expectations for Oden than Yan Hua.

Therefore, all the media reporters who came to the Arco Arena were looking forward to the duel between Yan Hua and Oden before the start of the game, but they also knew in their hearts that Yan Hua and Oden were both rookies, even if the management The upper echelon is focusing on training them. At best, they can only be regarded as the third leaders of their respective teams. In a crucial game where neither side wants to lose, it is not certain how many opportunities they will get.

So expectations are expectations, these reporters also know that the confrontation between Yan Hua and Oden will not become the mainstream of this game, at best it is just an embellishment in a feast, and Brandon Roy and Kevin- The soaring points battle between Martin is the key to determining the outcome of the two sides, but to their surprise, Yan Hua and Oden both got a lot of opportunities in this game, especially at the beginning of the second half. The field almost turned into a performance between Yan Hua and Oden.

Since Brandon Roy and Aldridge are very aware of Oden's strength, and the two of them also played very difficult in this game, so when Oden started the second half, he showed a very good touch. And after the state, whether it is Brandon Roy or Aldridge, they don't mind letting Oden stand up and play a few more shots, so as to share some pressure for them on the offensive end.

As for Yan Hua, although Yan Hua has not obtained the unlimited firepower of Kevin Martin and John Salmons in the king, Yan Hua's current status in the king is also real, whether it is Kevin Martin It was still John Salmons, and they all knew very well that Yan Hua's outstanding performance was inseparable from the king's current record, and if the king wanted to continue on the road to victory, it would undoubtedly need to continue to rely on Yan Hua's performance. Hua's performance, so it doesn't matter whether you rely on it or win over it. In short, the two big brothers of the king, Kevin Martin and John Salmons, are very conniving in their attitude towards Yan Hua. Mind if Yan Hua scores more points and grabs more rebounds, because Yan Hua's main offensive range is under the basket, and he will not squeeze their possession of the ball at all, let alone take up their shot opportunities.

So as long as Yan Hua has an opportunity on the court and asks for the ball, whether it is Kevin Martin or John Salmons, they will basically give the ball to Yan Hua, plus Greg who is playing against Yan Hua -Oden started to get angry, and even roared at Yan Hua after scoring consecutive points to provoke Yan Hua, the kings and generals on the court also couldn't understand this rookie, and hoped that Yan Hua would go back. As for the way of attacking, it is natural Instead of letting the spectators watch an extra boxing match, it is to attack it with a goal on the offensive end.

So for a while, the game between the Kings and the Trail Blazers became a one-on-one match between Greg Oden and Yan Hua after the start of the third quarter. There was nothing to do, but overall, Yan Hua could no longer hold down Greg Oden as steadily as he did in the first half, and Greg Oden gradually took the lead in the confrontation with Yan Hua. upper hand.

However, as time went by, the one-on-one battle between Oden and Yan Hua gradually came to an end, because of the continuous attack with the ball and after going all out to deal with the opponent on the defensive end, the physical fitness of the two of them They are all being consumed rapidly. Whether it is Yan Hua or Oden, they are now at the end of their battles. In the past one minute or so, they attacked twice in a row, and neither of them could score.

In the end, after Greg Oden missed a hook at the basket, Trail Blazers coach Nate McMillan called a timeout in advance, preparing to adjust the tactics on the court, and let Greg Oden rest by the way. It's been a while.

After Greg Oden came back, in order to prevent him from being injured again, the Blazers management also made a decision to limit Oden's playing time when making a recovery plan for Oden. From Oden's comeback to the present, in In nearly 20 games, Oden's playing time has been limited to about 20 minutes, but in today's game, Oden's playing time has obviously exceeded the standard, so Nate McMillan wants to let Oden Take a break after the game, and by the way, observe Oden's physical condition to see if he can continue to play in the next game.

(End of this chapter)