Superstar Tyreke

Chapter 45 The Last Chance for the Playoffs

After defeating the powerful Orlando Magic, the Kings came to San Antonio from Sacramento the next day to prepare for the game against the Spurs.

This season, the San Antonio Spurs have been advancing all the way, and now they have won 52 wins, beating last season's championship Los Angeles Lakers and firmly ranking first in the Western Conference.Although the core lineup of the Spurs is relatively old, Gregg Popovich will lead the veteran Spurs to slap the underdogs in the face whenever people think that the Spurs will go downhill.

In the away game against the San Antonio Spurs, Tyreke's fighting spirit was still high. With the aftermath of the best performance of the season in the last game, Tyreke caused a lot of trouble for the Spurs.Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and George Hill cannot completely limit Tyreke, but facing a team team like the Spurs, one person's performance cannot determine the outcome of the game.

At the same time, in the last game against the Orlando Magic, after a whole game of high-intensity defense, the players of the Kings have not fully recovered in terms of physical fitness. In addition, this is another away game, the spirit of the Kings team is not high. good.

The hard power of the Spurs is above the Kings, and the fatigue of the Kings has affected their performance to a certain extent. Although Tyreke's performance is still impressive, the Spurs successfully defended themselves relying on their wonderful teamwork. San Antonio Spurs beat the Sacramento Kings 107-100.Tyreke scored high scores again in the whole game, scoring 35 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists, but still did not prevent the team from losing.

After the loss to the San Antonio Spurs, there was no time to fret, as the team traveled to New Orleans the next day for back-to-back games against the Hornets.

The New Orleans Hornets are currently ranked eighth in the West, and the Memphis Grizzlies, currently ranked seventh in the West, are the Sacramento Kings' main competitors for the playoffs.After the loss to the San Antonio Spurs, the Kings are 8 games behind the Hornets and 7 games away from the Grizzlies.But unfortunately, when they played against the Spurs, the team already had a problem of lack of physical strength. It was ugly to not lose under Tyreke's excellent performance. In addition, the super strength of the Spurs once again weakened the Kings. state of physical fitness.

Back-to-back games are already a great challenge, and with the test of two strong opponents, even Tyreke could not continue to play strong. In the end, the Sacramento Kings swallowed a two-game losing streak in New Orleans, and Tyreke won 18. There are 3 boards and 5 assists.

This two-game losing streak is not just a two-game losing streak. Losing to the biggest competitor to enter the playoffs has once again increased the difficulty of entering the playoffs.

Fortunately, the Kings adjusted their status in time after returning to the home court. Facing the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers, who ranked last in the league this season, the Kings easily won two consecutive victories.Then in the last game of the three-game home game, after an overtime contest, they defeated the visiting Philadelphia 76ers and welcomed the three-game winning streak after two consecutive losses.In the three games, Tyreke performed well, averaging 26.3 points, 8 rebounds and 9.3 assists per game.

The next schedule for the Sacramento Kings is not easy. Now there are 15 games before the end of the regular season of this season, which will encounter a 5-game streak and a 4-game streak. For the New Orleans Hornets, who are still 8th in the West, they have 2.5 wins For the Kings on the court, the challenge is not insignificant.

However, the group of young people led by Tyreke is indeed hardworking. It is everyone's dream this season to enter the playoffs. Now that they have the opportunity, they must do their best to fight.In the 5 consecutive away games, except for the Chicago Bulls, the opponents in the remaining 4 games were not strong, and the Kings won all of these 4 games!

In the face of the Chicago Bulls, the super strong team led by Derrick Rose this season, the Kings are not opponents at all.Although the away game was defeated by the Chicago Bulls, Tyreke also played his own style in the contest with Derek Rose, the most powerful contender for the regular season MVP this season.

Windy Rose, like Tyreke, is good at breakthroughs but weak in shooting ability. In this game, the two can be said to be explosive opponents. You can't guard me, and I can't guard you.However, the overall strength of the Chicago Bulls far exceeds the Kings after all, and it is not difficult for the Bulls with 8 players to score in double figures to win a big victory.

Then in the 4 games before the 4 consecutive away, the Kings scored 2 wins and 2 losses. With 6 games left in the regular season, the Kings had a record of 41 wins and 35 losses.Although the Kings' record during this period has been considered excellent, the New Orleans Hornets and Memphis Grizzlies have not fallen behind, and the Hornets' record even surpassed the Grizzlies.Although the Kings are still ranked 9th in the Western Conference, the gap between them and the 8th Grizzlies in the Western Conference has narrowed to only 1 game.

Facing the last four away games of the season, the Kings' opponents are the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, Memphis Grizzlies, and Golden State Warriors.

In the first two games, the Kings steadily defeated the Rockets, but facing the Spurs, the Kings tried their best, but still lost to the powerful Spurs.The third game came to the FedEx Arena in Memphis. The two direct competitors for the playoffs are bound to win this game. Whoever wins will occupy a large part in the final competition for the playoffs. The advantages.

But maybe God was not on the side of the Kings. The bloody battle between the two teams reached the last moment. At the critical moment, Cousins ​​made a wrong catch and finally ruined the entire game.After losing to the Memphis Grizzlies, the Kings' playoff hopes have become a little slim, but there are still three regular season games, and everything is not over.

In the last road trip, pack up your mood, and the Kings defeated the Golden State Warriors cleanly.Fortunately, after the Memphis Grizzlies defeated the Kings, they faced the Hornets, ranked 7th in the West, and finally experienced a tug-of-war. The Grizzlies also lost at the Smoothie King Center Arena.

At this time, both the Kings and the Grizzlies have two regular season games left. The Kings ranked 43th in the West with 37 wins and 9 losses, and the Grizzlies ranked 44th in the West with 36 wins and 8 losses. The two teams played a total of 4 times. The Bears have a 3-1 lead.In the next two regular season games, as long as the Grizzlies win one game, even if the Kings win both games, the Grizzlies will be the last to enter the playoffs.Now the Kings can only fight for victory in the last two games, and at the same time pray that the Grizzlies will win both games.

The last two opponents of the Grizzlies are the Portland Trail Blazers and the Los Angeles Clippers. The opponents are strong but not too strong. The opponents of the Kings are the Oklahoma City Thunder, which is No. 4 in the West, and Los Angeles, which is No. 2 in the West. lakers
(End of this chapter)