If I were Yi Di in the NBA

Chapter 80

The preseason began, and the first game of the Thunder continued last season. The new head coach Brooks also sought stability.

Their opponent Timberwolves, the high-level pick Love also did not start.

In this game, the inside confrontation between Love and Lopez is also one of the highlights.

After the game started, both Yi Jian and Durant scored through singles.

The Timberwolves are quite serious about the preseason, but to be honest, after the Olympic Games, Yi Jian looked down on the more casual preseason.

The Timberwolves are not strong, and the Thunder easily lead.

But then both sides entered the training stage, and they fought back and forth.

Yi Jian and Durant sat on the sidelines, exchanging ideas about the performance of the rookies, as if they were also members of the coaching staff.

"They all played a little cautiously." Yi Jian said, "But you can still see the basic skills."

"Lowry's organizational rhythm and passing are relatively stable, which is definitely suitable for the two of us."

"It was an opportunity just now, but he didn't make a shot." Durant disdainfully said.

"Haha, you can't use your standards to ask other people, he is a more traditional defender." Yi Jian laughed.

On Dragic's side, he still couldn't let go.

"It's not his character when he plays like Lowry."

"Lopez is okay, but the movement is slower." Durant was picky.

Yi Jian said: "His low-post skills are indeed solid, and he can become an immediate combat force, but the key is not speed. He must have the ball in his hand and protect the frame in general."

"It would be nice to combine the characteristics of Brook and DeAndre."

"Indeed." Durant agreed.

One has technology and the other has body, they add up to perfection.

"The team actually needs one or two better 3D players. Our backcourt players are still a bit poor at shooting." Yi Jian sighed, "For the time being, we can only take them to practice more."

"I will urge them." Durant said seriously.

He thought for a while and then said: "We have to achieve some results, otherwise, if we propose good teammates, the uniform team won't care at all."

Yi Jian nodded, "I hope the running-in of the team can be faster."

On the field, Lopez and Love.

But they are actually not in the same position, and there are not many matchups.

Both are good insiders, and both are not very athletic, but their characteristics are completely different.

Lopez's low-post skills are well practiced. Love is now a little fat man, and he often lays up with strength. In terms of tactical effect, Lopez is better, but Love has top rebounding talent visible to the naked eye. The sense of rebounding can suppress many insiders with good bounce, so his pick will be higher.

When the rotation was played, the scores of the two teams fluctuated constantly, and the Timberwolves sometimes took the lead.

But when the main players are duel, there are still two stars who have grown to the All-Star level, and the Thunder is stronger.

Especially Yi Jian, he was too stable in the preseason matchups where the defense was not particularly good.

In 20 minutes of playing, Yi Jian scored a game-high 20+, helping the team win the game.

The newcomers on the team obviously still need to adapt.

There is still no one that starts the show directly like he and Durant.

So at the beginning of the season, the Thunder will definitely have a relatively long running-in period.

Two days later, in the Thunder's game against the Kings, Lowry and Lopez got the chance to start.

The Chinese player Zhang Kai happened to be waived by the Kings before and did not play against Yi Jian in the NBA.

Yi Jian also just found out that there are actually Chinese players who played preseason games in the king's trial training. In his previous life, he didn't pay attention to ordinary players at all.

Lowry started, and Yi Jian and his pick-and-roll cooperation are still very comfortable.

Lowry passes the ball very steadily, but sometimes he himself can't grasp the opportunity to attack.

However, the Thunder does not have a good first position. As long as Lowry continues to perform steadily, he will definitely get a starting opportunity.

After Lopez started, he completely regarded himself as a support, desperately grabbing rebounds.

That's nice, but it's not really his forte.

It's just that Yi Jian and Durant are too strong, and Lopez is a bit afraid to play.

Yi Jian also said to the opponent: "Brook, if you have the opportunity to play in the low position, I believe in you."

It's not bad for Lopez to play support honestly. His offense is actually not very good with Yi Jian, but the low post is his current characteristic. If he is forced to play in a way he is not good at, it is better to train Jordan.

If Lopez attacks, the Thunder will still be stronger overall, but the team tends to attack strong and defend weakly.

But it will be better than last season. Lopez is a serious insider who can defend against the top.

Yi Jian's defensive strength has also improved, and the Thunder's defense will definitely improve compared to last season.

The Thunder fell behind in the first half of this game, but Yi Jian went crazy in the third quarter to help the team overtake in one fell swoop, and the Thunder still won the victory in the end.

Judging from the preseason, Yi Jian's proper All-Star is still relatively strong.

His three-pointer has also been verified, and it works just as well in the NBA, and the Thunder's coaching staff is also very happy.

With strong players in the team, it is much easier for the team to rise.

And this time they also verified that Lowry and Lopez played well in the starting lineup.

But they will definitely not be allowed to start directly, it still depends on the speed of their integration.

It is not easy for newcomers to come to the team to be treated like Yi Jian and Durant.

Besides, the Thunder now have a core team, and young people must work harder to have a chance.

Thunder's few rookies are not particularly amazing.

But now it can be seen that they have the strength to stay in the league.

Although no better players were selected because of the pick, it seems good to select a few of them.

Now that we have seen the regular season, can they adapt.

If someone improves the team, then they earn.

After all, with the growth rate of Yi Jian and Durant, they can indeed hit the playoffs.

Although most of them are still skeptical about their success for the time being, the West is not that easy after all.

On the Thunder side, there is no good veteran who can lead them.

In the third battle, Yi Jian didn't last long, Thunder lost to Warriors.

From the perspective of the preseason alone, the Thunder seems to have not changed much from last year.

But the preseason is often a test of the lineup and tactics, and it is impossible to see for sure.

For example, they then slammed the Rockets with the Big Three. Both sides gave the substitute players a lot of time. In many cases, the outcome of the game depends on a little luck.

After Yi Jian met Yao Ming, he also chatted a lot. Yao Ming was quite satisfied with the team's lineup configuration for the new season.

Yi Jian couldn't bear to attack the big brother of the national team, the Big Three of the Rockets, Artest didn't have the All-Star level, and McGrady also quit the All-Star ranks due to injuries.

The Rockets lost this game because no one from the outside stood up at the critical moment, and we can see a clue from this.

As for Yi Jian, who had little interest in the preseason, he was already looking forward to the official start of the regular season.

(End of this chapter)