Chapter 736 The Pelicans Are Very Strong! (First Update!)

Just before the game, news broke that Davis was severely dehydrated and unable to play due to diarrhea.

This is undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for the Pelicans.

It would have been difficult if Tang Tian and Ariza couldn't play each other, but now three main players were missing. The Pelicans had already lost more than half of the game before the game even started.

But the interesting thing is that Stevens put Ci Shiping on the active list this time, and everyone knows the meaning.

In the worried mood of Pelicans fans, the game between the two teams officially started at the New Orleans Arena.

Fans were worried, but the Pelicans came out with momentum as soon as they took the court.

The person who exerted this momentum was Jokic.

He made a three-pointer from the outside at the beginning. After pulling Embiid out, he used his speed advantage to break through to the basket and score.

Embiid suffered a season-ending injury last season and this is his rookie season.

He was educated by second-year Jokic.

Jokic beat rookie Embiid, and after Bojan experienced the slump in the last game, he found his touch as he said.

He made three three-pointers in the first quarter alone and had a hot touch from the outside.

At the end of the first quarter, the Pelicans, who were short of major generals, not only were not defeated by the Mavericks, but led the Mavericks by 5 points 26 to 21.

In the second quarter, Pachulia came on as a substitute after his suspension, and the crowd was booed.

Interestingly, for the Pelicans, Ci Shiping was also replaced by Stevens as the substitute fourth position.

If the league chooses a player who least wants to fight, apart from James Johnson, who was a former professional boxer, it would be Metta Shiping.

Johnson is professional, Ci Shiping is notorious.

Pachulia played very honestly in this game, even if he was elbowed under the basket, he didn't say a word.

His nose was still aching after being beaten by Tang Tian in the last game, and he really didn't have the courage to face Ci Shiping.

As a result, in this period, the Pelicans, who were originally at a disadvantage as substitutes, widened the score even further.

At halftime, the Pelicans were 48-38, already leading the Mavericks by double digits!

In the second half, the Mavericks launched a crazy offensive led by Butler and Nowitzki.

But with the outstanding performance of Jokic and Bojan, the Pelicans finally defeated the Mavericks 97-93 at home, extending their winning streak to 7 games!

Jokic scored a triple-double with 26 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, playing his strongest game of the season.

Bo Yang scored 23 points and 5 rebounds with 7 three-pointers.

Tang Tian and Davis are not here, Jokic and Bo Yang step up!

"I had some luck against the Spurs in the last game, but this time we beat the Mavericks without the three main players. I can only say that the Pelicans are really strong now!"

"Bojan is underestimated. His defense is not as bad as expected, but his offense is much better than expected. He is a top shooter!"

"Not only Bojan, but Dinwiddie and Aminu also completed their tasks well in more time. The Pelicans really have many people who can play and fight hard!"

"This is the effect of Stevens' expanded rotation. This is the performance of a strong team!"

…

With this wave of seven consecutive victories, the outside world's support for the Pelicans has reached a new climax.

They can still win consecutive games despite being short of major generals. As fans said on social media, the Pelicans have grown into a truly strong team.

The outside world also has a new understanding of Stevens' coaching ability.

The Pelicans' decision to change their head coach in the summer was praised by the media as one of the best operations in history.

The only one who was not surprised was Tang Tian. He knew that Stevens in history had done similar things with the Celtics.

In fact, this thing is simply a system.

Similar to the Spurs, if players perform their part of the task well within the system, they will naturally perform well and the team will win the game.

Consecutive wins over the Spurs and Mavericks have boosted the Pelicans' morale.

In the following week, Davis returned to the team, and they successively defeated the Suns, Kings and Wizards.

After their 25-game winning streak was ended, they ushered in another 10-game winning streak!

It's just like Stevens said, the end of the winning streak freed the players from the psychological burden, and they started a new wave of winning streak!

What's even more gratifying is that Davis averaged 27.5 points, 12.3 rebounds, 3.6 blocks and 2.1 steals per game in the past week, and his shooting percentage was as high as 57%!

With this performance, he won the first weekly award in his career!

In Tang Tian's absence, Davis performed absolutely responsibly!

But this is already the fourth year of his career, and he should perform like this.

It was a double blessing. After Davis won the Best of the Week, the Pelicans also welcomed Tang Tian's comeback.

The five-game suspension is not long, but it is not short either. Tang Tian has been away from the court for nearly half a month.

At the first training session after returning, a lot of media came to the scene.

"Does it bother you that the team continues its winning streak during your suspension?"

Most reporters ask the usual questions, but there are always those who like to be unique, and FOX Sports reporters have always been that way.

This is a standard question: "Winning is not terrible, but whoever is missing is embarrassed."

"Of course not. I saw Davis' progress, saw Jokic's performance, and saw Bojan's three-pointer. I'm happy for them."

Tang Tian was in a good mood and did not quarrel with reporters, and these words were also true.

If it were last season, or even last season, if he didn't play, the Pelicans would definitely struggle, and Davis wouldn't be able to perform like this.

Now that his teammates have improved in strength, the Pelicans have a greater chance of winning the championship, and he must be happy.

An interesting thing is that Tang Tian's opponent in the first game after his comeback was the Trail Blazers.

The Trail Blazers ended the Pelicans' 25-game winning streak last time. Now the Pelicans are ushering in a new wave of 10-game winning streak, and the two teams are playing against each other again.

The Trail Blazers are still in hot form recently, and their record is even better than that of the Thunder.

Playing against them will definitely not be an easy game.

But just like the state Tang Tian showed in the interview, the Pelicans are now very confident and have a good mentality when facing any opponent.

The next night, the Pelicans faced off against the Trail Blazers for the second time at home.

Live footage was given to Lillard before the game started.

In the last game, Lillard killed everyone to help the team win, and the scene of celebrating with his hands raised after the game is still vivid in my mind.

Now that the two teams are meeting again, it is bound to be another fierce battle.

The game started soon, but after the game started, it was different from what many people imagined.

Perhaps it was because he hadn't played a game for a long time, but Tang Tian seemed very excited after the game started.

He took the initiative to guard Lillard and went all out. Lillard was forced to have a hard time getting a shot.

On the offensive end, he knew that Davis was in good form recently, so he gave more shots to Davis.

Davis also lived up to expectations. On the offensive end, he played Vonleh and Plumlee accurately.

The Trail Blazers rely on two guns to remain competitive this season.

But after Lillard was locked up by Tang Tian, ​​McCollum lost Lillard's restraint, and coupled with Holiday's defense, he was in no condition to play.

Both guns misfired, and the Trail Blazers struggled.

The Trail Blazers ended the Pelicans' 25-game winning streak in the last game, but this time they didn't have many chances from the start.

Leading by 15 points at halftime, the game ended early with a 25-point deficit at the end of three quarters.

In the end, 7 Pelicans scored in double figures and beat the Trail Blazers 115-91, winning their 11th consecutive victory.

Davis continued his hot touch and scored a team-high 23 points, 7 rebounds and 4 blocks.

Tang Tian only played three quarters in the first game after his comeback, and only took 11 shots. He efficiently contributed 17 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks on 7 of 11 shots.

ps: Special thanks to 545023624 book friends for their generous reward! !