Vol 3 Chapter 172: A promising future

Although he lost the game, Donovan was not in a bad mood. To be precise, he was slightly excited.
Paul George's powerful ability is beyond doubt. But in the decades of NBA history, many stars have fallen because of the inability to integrate into a new team. So when all the Thunder fans were celebrating, Donovan was quite worried. Although he has experimented countless times during the training camp, actual combat is different after all.
Now he was relieved!
In this game, Paul George played 22 minutes and scored 26 points, plus 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. In these 22 minutes, he scored 16 shots and scored 10 of them efficiently, hitting 62.5%. Among them, he made 4 of 8 three-pointers and hit 50%.
He is not the only Thunder player to shoot more than 50% of their three-pointers. Another is An Luo. He played 24 minutes, surrendering 28 points, 3 assists and 3 steals. With 6 of 11 three-pointers, he still maintained his style as the league's leading three-pointer last season.
Two people who played almost half the game contributed 54 points! Although the defensive intensity of the preseason is not very high, this combination is enough for everyone to maintain high expectations for the future of the Thunder.
It's no wonder that Donovan, who has always been cautious, couldn't help being proud. Facing reporters, he said confidently: "Paul's addition made up for the weaknesses in our lineup. I believe this season, we will do better."
As a veteran player, An Luo also spoke highly of himself and his new teammates at the press conference: "Paul is a very good player. He is a great threat anywhere on the field. Breakthrough, Mid-range, three-pointers, he has everything that can cause damage. More importantly, he can also restrain the opponent's strikers very well. He is perfect! I can't wait to start the new season. ."
A preseason game, let everyone see how wise the Thunder have made this summer. The happiest one is probably the Thunder fans. They fell on the way to the championship a year ago and lost some of the best players in the team. When I thought the Thunder would go through a long period of reconstruction like other teams, God gave them a huge surprise.
Because of the appearance of An Luo, the Thunder not only did not sink down, but also played the league's third record. And reached the second round of the playoffs. Now the arrival of Paul George has directly evolved the Thunder into a championship-level team. Even in everyone's opinion, this is a team that is completely comparable to the "Three Thunder" team that reached the finals.
After a two-day break, the Thunder ushered in the second preseason game. The New Orleans Pelicans also have the Twin Towers at home.
Westbrook, who was absent in the first game, returned in this game and formed the "Big Three" with An Luo and George. However, Westbrook didn't have much playing time, only playing nearly 10 minutes, and An Luo also only played 17 minutes. George is the protagonist today, he blossoms inside and out, stealing the limelight from the court.
The Thunder had the upper hand with 53:44 in the first half. At the beginning of the third quarter, the Pelicans succeeded in three consecutive points to narrow the gap. George stood up at this time, he scored 10 points in a row from inside and outside, once again widening the difference. In the last quarter of the game, the Pelicans chased the score to 77:79. At this time, Westbrook and An Luo were both on the bench. At this time, it was George who stood up again and successfully attacked the basket. After 9-0, he stabilized his position at 88:77 and then firmly controlled the situation.
In the end, the Thunder defeated their opponent 102:91, reaping the first win of the preseason.
Soon after, the Thunder attacked again, defeating the visiting Melbourne Tigers at home. This team should be said to be an old friend of the Chinese men's basketball team. They are the most visited foreign teams in China. The strength is not bad, the team has David Anderson and others who have played in the NBA.
Although the opponents of this game are not NBA-level teams. But what is surprising is that the Tigers demonstrated a strong competitive state, which posed a great threat to the Thunder. The audience has been playing inextricably and inextricably, leaving the Thunder's "big three" faceless.
As the party concerned, An Luo felt that the biggest problem was not the lineup or tactics. Thunder is a little arrogant! Facing a team from Australia, they simply did not take the other side in their eyes. Sure enough, the first quarter suffered. In desperation, I had to increase the playing time of the main force.
Even so, the Thunder still played hard. In the final moments, George made two free throws and Adams scored from the basket, and the Thunder regained the lead. But the Tigers still have the ball, but Paul George's big cap 5 seconds before the end of the game extinguished the flame of the opponent's lore. In the end, the Thunder narrowly beat their opponents 86:85.
NBA teams have a record of losing to European teams, but it is indeed surprising that a strong team like the Thunder has played so hard against a team from Australia. I also have to sigh with the progress of world basketball.
On October 10th, the Thunder visited the Denver Plateau to challenge the Nuggets who suffered last season.
Maybe it was because the last game almost lost to a non-NBA team that left the players dull~EbookFREE.me~ So, the Thunder played very strong at the beginning of this game. Under the outstanding performance of the "Big Three", it once achieved a 30-point advantage. As a result, Donovan placed a pure substitute lineup to fight the opponent in the third quarter.
But the Nuggets did not give up this game because it was a preseason. They all came out, and they soon chased the score to single digits. It can be seen that after Anluo entered the starting lineup, the bench that the Thunder were proud of last season has become much weaker. The regular season may be fine, but it may be a big problem if you face the Warriors in the playoffs. Of course, they still have time to slowly strengthen the lineup.
Seeing that the situation was not right, Donovan replaced his main force again. Under Anluo and George's consecutive three-pointers, the Nuggets quickly surrendered. In the end, they defeated their opponent 103:89. Won a three-game winning streak in the preseason.
It can be seen that there are still many problems with this new Thunder. How Westbrook and Paul George should be compatible still needs to be adjusted slowly. But An Luo is okay. He doesn't need the ball to defend and shoot, just do his own thing.
However, this does not affect them to become a championship-level team. Whether it is the player's personal ability or the potential of the lineup, there are still few teams in this league that want to find a stable and stable Thunder.