135 Beware of This Guy

Laga Bell shook his head with certainty and said: "I can't pass the ball like that."

The Suns, who failed to launch a bombardment attack, were forced into a positional battle. Stoudemire's strong inside attack forced Joel Przybilla to fail to score.

"Good defense, keep fighting like this."

After successfully defending this round, Zhang Jun immediately encouraged his teammates.

Luo Yin and Joel Przybilla were also very excited, raising their hands to high-five.

The Trail Blazers' sudden defensive change surprised Mike D'Antoni off the court, but it wasn't uncomfortable.

He led the Suns to see many good defenses during the regular season. They have even faced the defense that the Trail Blazers are now facing countless times, so they are very experienced and can handle it calmly.

The Suns then launched Nash's offensive tactics.

Because Zhang Jun came from the weak side to help defend, it took some time, so Nash broke through more decisively after borrowing the pick-and-roll, so that he could complete the offense in advance before the Trail Blazers formed a defensive encirclement.

Of course, there is also a problem with such an offensive choice, that is, the Trail Blazers' inside man Joel Przbilla did not come out and was still sitting in the penalty area.

In other words, Nash has to face Joel Przybilla's defense to complete the offense.

Uh-huh!

Nash scored the goal with a floater.

"There's nothing you can do about it. It's entirely up to the player's personal ability."

Zhang Jun shook his head helplessly and said.

But even with this result, the Suns still changed from the overall offense they were used to to Nash's personal offense they were not used to. This is already a very good defense.

Regardless of whether the defense has direct results, it is very comfortable to make the Suns and Nash unhappy.

Zhang Jun was replaced at 8 minutes into the first quarter.

The Trail Blazers trailed the Suns 20:24.

Not long after, Nash was also substituted. At the end of the first quarter, the Trail Blazers trailed 30:32.

The second quarter begins.

Zhang Jun led the bench alone, and the opposite Suns bench was also led by Nash, as well as Grant Hill, Gordon Jirisek, Brian Skinner and Linton Johnson III.

"The Suns' bench is still very good at attacking. Compared to their starting lineup, the Suns really have no defense at all under this lineup."

"To be honest, I'm more worried about the Suns during this period."

Kenny Smith looked at his old partner curiously and said, "What are you worried about?"

Barkley said seriously: "I'm worried that they won't be able to do anything against Zhang Jun."

On the court.

Trail Blazers possession.

Steve Blake advanced with the ball and handed the ball to Zhang Jun immediately.

The Suns didn't even arrange any double-teaming or defense against Zhang Jun. Steve Blake was stunned by this scene.

"There is a team that doesn't use double-teaming, help defense and full-court press against Zhang Jun?"

Looking at the only defender in front of him, Gordon Jirisek, Zhang Jun felt that he needed to let him know the price of being so arrogant.

The same conversation rang out from Barkley and Kenny Smith in the commentary box.

"Is Gordon Girisek arrogant?"

"Very arrogant!"

"To defend Zhang Jun alone is simply unforgivable arrogance."

boom!

Zhang Jun first made a tomahawk dunk after a quick break, then he made a 2+1 layup with Gordon Jirisek driving to the basket, and then he made a fadeaway jumper in the penalty area. ...

In 4 minutes, Zhang Jun made 7 of 7 shots, shutting down the Suns with a terrifying 100% shooting rate.

Mike D'Antoni looked at Zhang Jun who was ignoring defense on the court, and there was absolutely nothing he could do against him. The key is that the Trail Blazers' players on the court under this lineup are more flexible than their starting lineup.

In addition, the overall strength of the Suns' bench is far weaker than that of the starting lineup, so their scoring performance is not outstanding.

"We can't guard Zhang Jun, we can only attack with the Trail Blazers."

Mike D'Antoni took on the team's two best defenders, Shawn Marion and Raja Bell, in order to restrict Zhang Jun.

With only defensive players and no systematic defensive tactics, even Shawn Marion and Laja Bell would be hard-pressed to greatly restrict Zhang Jun's offense.

The Suns did not use double-team tactics, so Zhang Jun's passes were very few and almost all were personal attacks.

With 7 of 7 shots from the front, Zhang Jun became more decisive in his offense from behind.

Monty Williams looked shocked on the court, but couldn't help but ask: "Zhang Jun has already played 6 minutes in the second quarter. Do you want to replace him and put him in the starting lineup?"

Nate McMillan shook his head numbly and asked: "How many points has he scored in a single quarter?"

Monty Williams turned over the statistics and said: "Currently 10 of 12 shots, 20 points in a single quarter!"

Nate McMillan did not replace anyone and continued to keep Zhang Jun and the outside turret on the court.

Facing the Suns' almost paperless defense, Zhang Jun started to fire up. He used a series of breakthroughs to easily score inside the Suns. By the end of the second quarter, he had made 14 of 18 shots and 5 free throws. 3 hits and 31 points!

"A new record has appeared!"

"Zhang Jun scored 31 points in a single quarter, breaking the records of Vernon Maxwell, Michael Jordan, and Kobe Bryant. He scored 31 points, which ranks third in single quarter scoring in NBA history!"

"Joined with the great Chamberlain!"

"Ahead of him are David Thompson's 32 points in a single quarter and George Gervin's 33 points in a single quarter."

Zhang Jun, who broke the scoring record for players in a single quarter, was slapped on the head by countless hands from his teammates.

He was still wondering why Nate McMillan never replaced him. It turned out that he had the opportunity to break the scoring record.

"If I had known I was going to break the record, I should have been more aggressive on the court. Maybe even George Gervin's 33 points in a single quarter would have been broken by him."

"I finally caught the Suns this time. I don't know when I will have such an easy chance to score points next time."

At halftime, the Trail Blazers led the Suns 66:60.

The second half of the game was still about the two teams fighting for offense, but tonight Zhang Jun's touch was too exaggerated. The Suns, which had never defended Zhang Jun, finally paid the price for their arrogance.

In the second half of the game, Zhang Jun made every sudden appearance and made every shot. He even made three-pointers.

His touch was a bit too hot tonight.

The Suns' offense also played vigorously, causing the two teams to decide the outcome in the last few minutes.

The Trail Blazers narrowly defeated the Suns 128:124.

The two teams scored a season-high total of 252 points. Nash had a super double-double with 20 points and 18 assists. Stoudemire in the paint also had 31 points and 8 rebounds. Marion had 18 points and 7 rebounds. Backboard.

But everyone's statistics were dim in front of Zhang Jun. He made 23 of 34 shots, 1 of 2 three-pointers, 4 of 7 free throws, and scored 51 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists.

With 31 points in a single quarter and 51 points in a single game, Zhang Jun broke two records in a row. 51 points in a single game is also the highest score so far this season.

At the same time, in tonight's game, Zhang Jun officially surpassed LeBron James on the league's scoring list and became the new scoring leader.

In the post-match interview, Zhang Jun was already surrounded by countless fans.

Faced with reporters' questions one after another, he responded fluently.

One of the reporters asked: "Zhang Jun, your current ranking in the All-Star voting is not very high. Carmelo Anthony's votes are much ahead of you, so it is difficult for you to become an All-Star starter."

"But with your current data and the Trail Blazers' record this year, I can't imagine any head coach of any team not selecting you as an All-Star substitute after becoming the All-Star coach."

"Congratulations, you will become an All-Star in your rookie season."

Faced with such praise, Zhang Jun behaved very calmly.

"I don't really mind the All-Stars. It would be great if I could go. Nothing is more important to me than winning."

"We are halfway through the season and everyone in the team remembers what goals we set at the beginning of the season."

"Playoffs, we're ready!"

........

Because of this 31-point performance in a single quarter and his official ranking as the first player in the league's scoring list, Zhang Jun's fame spread widely across the United States.

After Yi Jianlian was almost certain not to make the All-Star team, Chinese fans launched an attack on other players' votes.

"Has Dayao voted?"

"They all voted, and he was the first one to vote."

"Brothers, each of us can vote for 10 All-Star starters, 5 from the East and West."

"A-Lian can no longer enter the All-Stars. How about we put Zhang Jun in."

"Of course, I'm his fan."

"Those guys in the NBA prevented us, the United Arab Emirates, from entering the All-Stars, especially Kevin Garnett. How about we also send Bosh up and push Kevin Garnett down?!"

"That's it, do it!"

........

January 21st.

All three rounds of NBA voting have ended.

Eastern starting lineup: point guard Jason Kidd, shooting guard Dwyane Wade, small forward LeBron James, power forward Chris Bosh, center Dwight Howard.

West starting lineup: point guard Allen Iverson, shooting guard Kobe Bryant, small forward Zhang Jun, power forward Tim Duncan and center Yao Ming.

The head coach of the Eastern Stars is Doc Rivers of the Celtics.

The head coach of the Western Conference Stars is Phil Jackson of the Lakers.

Doc Rivers selected the All-Star substitute players, basically based on the number of All-Star votes.

They are Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Richard Hamilton, Chauncey Billups, Rasheed Wallace, Joe Johnson, and Antoine Jamison.

The All-Star substitutes selected by Phil Jackson are Carmelo Anthony, Brandon Roy, Amar'e Stoudemire, Chris Paul, Carlos Boozer, Dirk - Nowitzki, Steve Nash.

...........

Zhang Jun received an invitation to the All-Star Game from the league. In addition to the main game, he was also selected to participate in the Rookie Challenge.

"Nike thinks this is a great place to make your name known as your own sneaker. They have prepared a special colorway for you, the All-Star Commemorative Edition. I hope you can wear this pair of sneakers on the court."

Xia He handed over a pair of all-green sneakers, and the little girl's eyes were very unfriendly.

She was still angry about what happened last time. Now she was keeping a close eye on Zhang Jun and would never give him a chance to get out of the singles easily.

"I heard that there are many parts of the All-Star Game that are open to fans, such as memorial halls, amusement facilities, and a lot of delicious food outside."

Zhang Jun said suddenly.

Xia He narrowed his eyes and looked at him.

Zhang Jun immediately changed his mind and said, "Forget it if you don't want to go. I'll go alone."

Xia He immediately rushed over and pinched Zhang Jun's neck angrily.

"You think I don't know which goblin you are going to go with. Don't even think about it. You can only take me there."

...........

All-Star Weekend is a total of 3 days.

The first day is the Fan Carnival and the Masters Game.

Zhang Jun, who had no competition, took Xia He to visit all the facilities. He could have finished it in one morning, but because he was recognized by too many fans, Zhang Jun could only sign autographs for them over and over again.

The next day is the Rookie Challenge and other events.

Durant found Zhang Jun angrily as soon as he came up.

"Our friendship is over, do you understand?"

"Let's not talk about your promise to let me shoot a commercial with Scarlett. Until now, you haven't even received a damn letter. Okay, bear with it."

"But I absolutely can't bear the fact that you went on a date with Scarlett. Tell me where you went that night!"

Zhang Jun raised his hands innocently and said, "Which night are you talking about?"

Because Scarlett came to Portland once during the trip, and the two stayed in the hotel the whole day, Zhang Jun really didn't know which night Durant was referring to.

Durant held his breath and said: "It was the night of the Christmas game!"

"Oh, you were talking about that night."

Zhang Jun thought for a moment and said, "I took Scarlett to the rose planting base and then sent her home."

Durant naturally knew the point of this sentence and said angrily: "How can you take her to the rose planting base? Don't think about it, you must give her flowers, right?"

Zhang Jun couldn't help but pick his lips. He wanted to say that the point should not be that he sent Scarlett home. This Durant has some brains.

At the Rookie Challenge.

Zhang Jun became teammates with Durant for the second time, and this is the result of the two becoming teammates.

The first grade team defeated the second grade team 138:122.

The NBA All-Star Rookie Game was held for the first time in 1994. At that time, it was divided into talent team and passion team, all composed of rookie players.

But after 2000, it was proposed to change it to a contest between the first-year team and the sophomore team.

Except for 2000 and 2002, no first-year rookie has ever been able to beat the second-year situation so far, and this year is another exception.

Durant scored excellent data of 30 points and 7 rebounds. Logically speaking, this data is enough to win the MVP trophy of the Rookie Challenge, but Zhang Jun scored a double-double of 36 points, 6 rebounds and 10 assists.

During the selection process, Zhang Jun defeated Durant again and won the MVP trophy. Durant applauded against his will in the audience.

"How many times have labor and management been outgunned by him?"

"Fuck, you dare to send flowers to Scarlett. I have to be careful about this kid and don't get Scarlett into bed."

........