bookrandom Chapter 85 Alexander: Here I come, $14!
Chapter 85 Alexander: Here I come, $14!
With three minutes remaining in the first quarter, Wood collided with an opponent and twisted his ankle.
The game was stopped by the referee, and Wood limped back to the locker room for a check-up by the uniform staff.
Silas, who was eager to make a big splash, was now looking worried.
Wood has been playing very well in the last few games. If he can't play today, it will be very difficult for them to win against the Thunder on the road.
Fertitta hasn't contacted him these past few days, which means the team can continue to win.
Silas looked toward the bench, where Porter Jr. was about to get up and go back onto the court.
But Silas called out Wang Xiucheng, Shen Jing, and the others.
This caused a hint of anger to flash in Porter's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.
If Wood is unable to play, then Porter Jr. believes he is the undisputed first option.
Just because he got a triple-double in the last game, breaking the Rockets' record for youngest player to achieve a triple-double, he should be allowed to continue playing.
He put the towel back over his head, then drank the water in the bottle in one gulp, squeezing the bottle flat.
The game resumes.
Wang Xiucheng led Shen Jing, Martin, Christopher, and Matthews, who was on a two-way contract, onto the field.
The Thunder routinely substituted several key players, including Alexander.
The game resumed, the Rockets attacked, and Wang Xiucheng received the ball and slowly crossed half-court.
Shen Jing came over to set a screen, and Wang Xiucheng brushed past Shen Jing's body to enter the three-point line. He pretended to shoot, then knocked up the opposing defender and passed the ball to Matthews, who had just run to the baseline.
Without hesitation, Matthews received the ball and immediately pulled up for a shot.
Swish!
The ball goes in.
Matthews and Christopher have one thing in common: they only have eyes for the basketball hoop.
The difference is that Christopher led the team himself for a while, and then shot himself when he couldn't lead anymore.
Matthews is the simplified version; he doesn't carry anything, he just throws it directly, regardless of whether there are people in front of him.
The Rockets scored three points, possession changed, and the Thunder went on offense.
Big Bamboo Pole Pokushevski leaned against Shen Jing and did a lean-back, the ball bounced and went into the basket.
Shen Jing angrily slammed the ball to the ground before coming to the baseline to serve.
Wang Xiucheng did not receive the ball, but instead led the defender to the center line.
Christopher received the ball, lowered his head, and began his "bullish" mode.
Believe it or not, Christopher actually managed to break through the Thunder's defense.
At this point, Christopher couldn't see anyone anymore. He went to the free-throw line and jumped up to shoot.
Bang!
The basketball bounced off the front edge of the rim and returned. Shen Jing blocked the ball behind him with the bamboo pole Pokushevski, reaching out with one hand but unable to reach it.
Wang Xiucheng drove in from beyond the three-point line, grabbed the basketball before Christopher could reach it, and threw the ball out in mid-air without landing.
Swish!
The ball goes in.
Christopher was initially a little resentful, as it was his rebound that had been stolen.
But upon seeing that it was Wang Xiucheng, Christopher immediately put on a smiling face and said to Wang Xiucheng as he backed away, "This counts as my assist."
“Yes, that was your assist,” Wang Xiucheng replied with a smile.
In the final minute, neither side scored again.
At the end of the first quarter, the Thunder led the Rockets 26-24 at home.
The sizzling cheerleaders took the stage and began their performance.
Silas began to draw symbols.
“Pay attention to ball movement, shoot when you have the chance, you…” Silas pointed at Matthews: “Pay attention to setting screens.”
Matthews had previously played in the G League, where the style is that whoever has the ball gets to play.
Silas was afraid he would continue fighting like that, so he gave him a few more instructions.
The second quarter began quickly.
Neither side made any substitutions; the substitutes remained on the field.
The Rockets were on offense. Wang Xiucheng received the ball and accelerated to the three-point line, then glanced at Shen Jing.
Shen Jing, understanding the unspoken message, immediately moved to the outside to cover for Wang Xiucheng, and Pokushevsky followed suit.
Wang Xiucheng circled around halfway before switching to defend Pokushevsky.
Shen Jing immediately moved away from Wang Xiucheng, leaving Ma Ledong, who was defending Wang Xiucheng, with no choice but to follow Shen Jing into the paint.
Wang Xiucheng dribbled forward between his legs, and Pokushevski took a step back.
But the next second Wang Xiucheng stepped back and lobbed the ball directly to Shen Jing.
Shen Jing held the basketball high, practically pushing the 196cm tall Maledon into the restricted area, and slammed the ball in with one hand.
When the Thunder switched offense, Pokushevski also moved to the three-point line and used his more agile footwork than Shen Jing to shoot a three-pointer.
They're in.
On the Rockets' offense, Wang Xiucheng switched onto Pokushevski again, used his speed to break into the paint, then suddenly slowed down, causing Pokushevski to rear-end him, and made a layup, earning another free throw.
Pokushevsky, who was a full head taller than Wang Xiucheng, shook his head like a rattle drum.
Wang Xiucheng prefers players who are tall, have long arms and legs, and seem to be very fast.
This type of player may seem fast, but their speed is definitely not as good as Wang Xiucheng's.
Wang Xiucheng has run two or three steps. A player like him could catch up in one step, but after Wang Xiucheng takes one step, he can slow down, making it very difficult for other players to slow down as well.
Of course, if a player like Pokushevski gets the chance, he'll completely shut down Wang Xiu.
Swish!
The free throw went in.
The Thunder attacked again, but Martin intercepted the ball from Maledon.
Martin made a fast break into the paint and scored with a powerful dunk.
As he ran back, Martin smugly glanced at the Thunder's bench.
To be precise, he was looking at Alexander on the Thunder's bench.
Alexander tilted his head and licked his lips.
The Thunder attacked again, but unfortunately missed. Wang Xiucheng dribbled the ball up the court and switched to defend Pokushevski again.
This time, Wang Xiucheng used a Buddhist bow to raise Pokushevski, then entered the penalty area and threw the ball in, but unfortunately it didn't go in.
With Pokushevski off guard, Shen Jing directly dunked the ball into the basket.
Then Shin Kyung-won, sticking out his tongue and showing off his biceps, walked sideways in front of the Thunder's bench.
Mark Degnot couldn't take it anymore and called a timeout.
Pokushevski has been repeatedly called upon by Wang Xiucheng and has scored at least three or four goals.
The Thunder's offense stalled, which caused the score gap to widen rapidly.
In just three minutes, the Rockets had scored 9 points in a row, and the Rockets were now leading the series 33-29 by 4 points.
Mark Degnot looked at Alexander.
Are we going to Alexander so early?
Or should we wait?
Mark Degnot decided to wait another two minutes.
But then Alexander stood up.
Mark Degnot knew that Alexander wanted to play.
Since that was the case, Mark Degnot didn't insist any further, gave a few routine instructions, and the timeout ended just in time.
The Rockets did not make any substitutions.
This made Porter's expression even uglier, and he was already squeezing the bottle in his hand so badly that it was unrecognizable.
During the Thunder's offense, Wang Xiucheng was guarding Alexander, but Alexander, who had an advantage in height and wingspan, managed to receive the ball smoothly after pushing Wang Xiucheng.
As the ball was being passed forward, Alexander bowed slightly and looked at Wang Xiucheng.
14 million!
Wang Xiucheng's steal reward has accumulated to $14.
This price is outrageous.
But what's even more astonishing is that no one could actually intercept Wang Xiucheng's ball.
Alexander and Wang Xiucheng hadn't faced off directly in previous matches, but today he was going to get the $14 reward.