He Xi Meng had a small scoring burst in the latter half of the second quarter today, but for most of the rest of the time, he was focused on his role as an organizer!
Therefore, He Xi Meng's scoring statistics today were not particularly high: 23 points! But his assist numbers were high, 15 assists! Even more commendable, He Xi Meng also had two blocks today! Both were against Amar'e Stoudemire. One was a chase-down block in the first half, and the other was on a pull-up jump shot in the second half.
Amar'e Stoudemire was really unlucky today facing He Xi Meng. He only made 4 of his 13 shots for the entire game, scoring only 8 points and 8 assists. Not only that, he also suffered two emphatic blocks and committed 4 turnovers. In his matchup against He Xi Meng, he was comprehensively outplayed.
The highest scorer in the game was Bonzi Wells of the Trail Blazers! Bonzi Wells, having drunk his fill of "chicken soup," scored 38 points today, which was an exceptional performance! However, even with Bonzi Wells' extraordinary play, he couldn't lead his team to victory against the Spurs in San Antonio. It was a case of a great individual performance going to waste.
But Bonzi Wells' outburst was not without impact. For the Spurs' Manu Ginobili, this game was like a nightmare.
He tried his best to be his "Demon Blade," but unfortunately, he encountered the most restrictive heavy-duty shooting guard. Throughout the game, Bonzi Wells dominated him repeatedly...
As a result, after the game, Popovich couldn't bear to criticize Ginobili. He just patted his shoulder and told him to go see Budenholzer the next day to get the game footage. The coaching staff would compile his issues to help him reflect.
Reflect? Ginobili certainly needed to reflect.
But could he correct his mistakes after reflecting? He Xi Meng thought it was quite difficult. A "Demon Blade" was a "Demon Blade"; if he wasn't a "Demon Blade," then he wouldn't be the "Demon Blade."
Yao Ming's scoring and rebounds today were not as good as in the previous game, with only 13 points and 8 rebounds. However, his blocking was outstanding, with 5 blocks, almost matching that of Tim Duncan.
Together, they made David Robinson feel almost like he was being replaced!
David Robinson was bullied by Rasheed Wallace at the start of the game. Fortunately, his younger brother Tim Duncan helped him recover his composure later. The Spurs eventually won the game, but this could not mask the fact that David Robinson was not in good form.
Of course, there's also a possibility that in these first two games of the new season, the interior strength of both the Clippers and the Trail Blazers was quite strong.
Gilbert Arenas played better than Tony Parker today. Especially on defense, Arenas finally showed off his physical strength, disrupting Amar'e Stoudemire during the rotation.
After two consecutive home wins to start the season, the Spurs were about to embark on a three-game road trip.
The first game of the three-game road trip would be to Sacramento to challenge the Kings!
After being swept 0-4 by the Lakers in the playoffs last season, the Kings deeply reflected and once again optimized their existing lineup!
The Kings first signed the defensive stalwart, known as the "Scalpel," Doug Christie, with a 5-year, $29 million maximum mid-level exception contract from the Raptors!
Then, they traded the unpredictable "White Chocolate" Jason Williams for the more stable and practical Mike Bibby from the Grizzlies!
Finally, they locked up power forward Chris Webber with a record-breaking $120 million, 7-year contract!
Adding to the existing lineup of Vlade Divac and Peja Stojaković, the Kings began to enter their peak period of strength!
Although Webber had not yet returned to the team due to injury, the Kings still achieved a perfect 3-0 record in the first three games of the new season, defeating the SuperSonics, Nuggets, and Cavaliers respectively!
For the Kings, the SuperSonics, Nuggets, and Cavaliers were not strong enough opponents. To truly test their mettle, this game, facing the Spurs at home, was of utmost importance!
Before the game, head coach Rick Adelman analyzed the Spurs' recent changes repeatedly with his coaching staff to optimize the Kings' tactics, contain their opponents specifically, and strive to win this game!
Adelman did not focus his defense primarily on the Spurs' twin towers in the paint!
Unlike other head coaches, Adelman placed more importance on the flow of the tactical system. He believed that for a team to win, the system was more important than the star players.
Therefore, for the Kings, even though they had top players like Chris Webber, fans would notice that besides Webber, several other players also had outstanding performances in a game.
Vlade Divac, Mike Bibby, Peja Stojaković, Doug Christie... even the players off the bench were very threatening and had a strong presence. This was the credit of Adelman's system!
Every player played an indispensable role within the Kings' system.
Especially with Webber currently absent, opponents had no idea who would be the best-performing player for the Kings in this game.
For instance, in the first game of the new season against the SuperSonics, the best performer for the Kings was veteran Vlade Divac! Divac scored 27 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists, a return to his prime!
In the second game against the Nuggets, the best performer for the Kings was new addition Mike Bibby! Bibby scored 24 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists, proving that he could adapt well to Adelman's tactical system.
In the third game against the Cavaliers, the best performer for the Kings was once again sharpshooter Peja Stojaković! Peja scored 32 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 assists in this game, with very high efficiency!
Sacramento fans were guessing who would be the Kings' primary scorer to contend with the powerful Spurs in this matchup.
Would it be veteran big man Vlade Divac?
Would it be wing shooter Peja Stojaković?
Or would it be point guard Mike Bibby?
For head coach Adelman, the biggest issue with Webber's absence was that the Kings would inevitably face immense pressure at the power forward position!
This was because their opponents would be facing the league's current number one power forward, Tim Duncan. Both Pollard and Fonderback would likely struggle to fill Webber's shoes. Therefore, Adelman asked Divac and Stojaković to take on more defensive help duties, at least to prevent Duncan from having easy one-on-one opportunities.
From the game footage of the Spurs' previous match against the Trail Blazers, it was evident that Tim Duncan, who had recovered from his injury, had not been affected in terms of his form.
Meanwhile, Adelman arranged for guard switches, assigning "Scalpel" Doug Christie to deal with He Xi Meng and disrupt the Spurs' organization!
Compared to the Kings' "great enemy at the gates," the Spurs were relatively relaxed.
In the opinion of most Spurs players and coaches, the Kings, without Chris Webber, would lose at least thirty percent of their fighting power!
Facing a Kings team with only seventy percent of its strength, wouldn't it be a walk in the park?