RNP Chapter 120
Chapter 120
After a simple greeting, Chang Tiancheng and Wembanyama greeted the other stars present one after another.
This time, the star line-up is a little bigger than the friendly we organized when Wembanyama first arrived in the United States. On the one hand, because Cuban's appeal is still much stronger than Wembanyama, the main reason why the star can come that time is out of curiosity about Wembanyama himself, and this time it is more to sell the big boss a face.
On the other hand, because Wembanyama organized that training match during the playoffs, many superstars were preparing for the playoffs, so it was naturally difficult to find time to play such friendly matches. It's off-season, and most of the players are staying at home with nothing to do, so it's much more likely to be there.
In addition to the Spurs twin stars of Chang Tiancheng and Wembanyama, the stars on the court were: Embiid, the star of the 76ers and the MVP of the regular season last season. Although his MVP is often criticized, it can at least prove that his regular season performance is impeccable.
Suns core guard Devin Booker. In the regular season last season, Booker has already shown terrifying offensive power, and in the playoffs, he played a shocking individual performance, and when another star of the Suns, Kevin Durant, repeatedly missed shots, it can be said that the Suns completely relied on Booker's offensive firepower to continue to advance in the playoffs.
Jaylen Brown, one of the Celtics' twin stars at front. Although his final performance in the playoffs was somewhat unsatisfactory, Jaylen Brown still showed a lot of superstar potential in the regular season, and also played many games that can be used as masterpieces, and even faintly surpassed the other twin stars - Tatum. I heard that he seems to be having some trouble with the Celtics right now and wants to go to Houston to join his former head coach Udoka. As a striker who is both offensive and defensive and has the intention of leaving, Cuban asked him for the purpose of this friendly match.
Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo. To be honest, his appearance still surprised Chang Tiancheng, after all, in Chang Tiancheng's heart, the superstar of his playing year looked almost impossible to leave the team. Although there are many rumors that he wants to go to the Warriors to play with Curry, Chang Tiancheng still prefers that he will end up with the Bucks. As for the reason why Cuban called him over, Chang Tiancheng felt that on the one hand, it was to test whether he had any intention of leaving the team, and on the other hand, it was also possible to see if a player like Giannis was suitable for Doncic.
Kings center Domantas Sabonis. An interior player who made a name for himself last year, a three-time All-NBA All-NBA player last season, and a rebounding champion and All-Star last season. The purpose of coming to him is self-evident, this year is the last year of his contract, and the degree of tradeability is theoretically the highest, if he can be traded to the Mavericks, it is indeed a weak interior line that can greatly not be strong for the Mavericks. After all, Wood, one of their few interior players in the previous game, had just been suspended. However, the Kings do not seem to have any intention of trading him at the moment, and he just entered the playoffs with the Kings last season after many years, and even if the contract expires, the Kings are expected to directly offer a high contract extension.
Suns center Deandre Ayton. Although he has just signed a contract extension with the Suns for less than two years, anyone with a discerning eye can see that he does not like to continue to play with the Suns, and the reason why he can renew his contract with the Suns is only because the Suns have the highest bid at that time. Now he is completely clocked in to work with the Suns, which is obviously unacceptable to the Suns who are aiming to win the championship. Especially the Suns just traded the old point guard Paul this season to bring in the Wizards' star Bradley Beal, obviously wanting to take advantage of Durant's last bit of peak to attack the championship.
Add Doncic himself and James, and that's all the players on the floor today. Compared to the friendly match organized by Wembanyama last time, the lineup is indeed more luxurious.
And even Chang Tiancheng, who usually doesn't focus on team transactions, can see that most of the players that Cuban found this time have rumors or intentions to leave the team, and these players can greatly strengthen the current shortcomings of the Mavericks.
"It seems that the management of the Mavericks is not as bad as I thought. Chang Tiancheng said to himself in his heart. When the Mavericks traded to Irving before, Chang Tiancheng felt that it was not a good deal, because although Irving was able to release the pressure on Doncic on the offensive end, it also made the Mavericks' outside defense completely collapse. And most of these stars who are here today are both offensive and defensive, plug-and-play.
Of course, this is something that most of the stars present can see. The two sides quickly divided the lineup. Chang Tiancheng, Booker, Wembanyama, Sabonis Jr., Embiid on the first team, James, Doncic, Jaylen Brown, Giannis, Ayton on the first team. It can also be understood as: one team with the possibility of trading, and the other team without the possibility of trading.
As for why James was assigned to the team with trade possibilities, it will start with Irving recruiting James in the offseason. Although James ended up staying with the Lakers, Cuban still believes that anything is possible before the trade deadline.
Both sides couldn't wait to start this high-quality game, so there were no extra steps, and after warming up, they went straight to the game.
Although Embiid was in charge of the team that had no possibility of trading, after several people discussed it, they still sent Wembanyama to jump the ball, after all, his height and arm span did give him an advantage over Embiid on the jump ball.
On the other hand, Giannis was dispatched. Although they have Ayton at center, Giannis' height, reach and bounce will allow him to compete with Wembanyama.
However, in the end, it was Wembanyama who came out on top, and after the two jumped, Wembanyama immediately moved the basketball to his side, giving the team the offensive initiative in the first round.
After Booker received the ball from Wembanyama, he directly gave the ball to Chang Tiancheng behind him. This move also made Chang Tiancheng feel some feelings in his heart. Once upon a time, he was just a backup guard for the Lakers, but now, he has been recognized by many stars for his on-court performances.