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Chapter 292 Tragic Cousins

Since being selected by the Kings with the fifth overall pick and regarded as the team's rising hope, Cousins ​​has felt that he has reached the sky in one step.Of course, he was also a monster when he was a student at the University of Kentucky. He averaged 15.3 points and 10.1 rebounds per game as a freshman. He was selected to the All-NBA Team at the same time as his teammate Wall, and was the only player among the best five to average a double-double per game. .

After landing in the NBA, Cousins ​​performed very well in team training, summer league and preseason. He did not deserve his high pick. Created a tactical system with him as the core, I hope he can mature as soon as possible in the continuous games, lead the king back to the glory when Weber, Peja and Bibby led the team, and even go further on this basis—— Help the team win the O'Brien Cup!

When he learned that the team's first game of the regular season was to face the Timberwolves, who were eighth in the Western Conference last season, Cousins ​​did not take this opponent seriously at all.Although Love and DeAndre Jordan are considered a promising pair among the league's young interior combinations, Cousins ​​is full of confidence in the upcoming matchup. In his opinion, the Timberwolves' interior players only play more games than him. It's only been one or two seasons, and he's probably not as good as himself in terms of talent. As long as he can perform normally, he should have no problem winning.

But what he didn't know was that the entire Timberwolves team was relieved for the opponent in the opening game. For them, this was obviously an opponent they could easily handle.Xu Hao even felt that he could play more in the game. The Kings' starting inside combination of Udrih and Garcia were not ranked high in the league at all, and they must not pose much of a threat.

This game is the home game of the Timberwolves. They can sit back and relax in Minneapolis. The Kings players coming from afar will also consume some of their energy, which is very beneficial to them.For this reason, the day before the game, McHale gave everyone a day off, allowing them to take a good rest and face the opening game with the best physical and mental state.

After bringing the team to Minnesota, Westphal did not let the players train immediately, but gave them a half-day of rest.Cousins ​​is confident in defeating the Timberwolves, but Westphal is not a rookie. He knows how terrifying this young team is. When they explode at full strength, no team dares to say they will win.

Of course, Westphal will not directly raise his hand and surrender. In order to win a good start, he sent the five best players in the team: Udri, Garcia, Dante Green, Landry and Cousin Well, it was the best card he could play.If he can't win the game even like this, he feels that he must ask the management to think about the bad performance.

Although they got half a day's rest, when the game started, the only ones among the Kings' starting five that looked normal were Energizer Landry and Cousins, who had just joined and didn't know how to vent his energy. .

At the beginning of the game, Cousins ​​beat Jordan in the jump ball, but Udrih was in a trance and made a very low-level mistake. The basketball flew out of his armpit and went out of the sideline. West watched from the sidelines. Farr's face darkened.Damn, isn't this a lie?Westphal already had a bad premonition after something like this happened at the beginning of the game.

The Timberwolves naturally accepted the gift with a smile. Ellington served from the sideline and handed it to Xu Hao for halftime.Udrih's face is not very good-looking. It is a very speechless thing to make a low-level mistake under the eyes of everyone, but now is not the time for him to be upset.Facing the menacing Xu Hao, all he has to do is to immediately stick up to defend, and it is best to complete the steal.

However, Xu Hao had already lobbed the ball inside before Udrih took action, and Love received the ball in a relatively shallow position.It's not that he doesn't want to catch the ball closer to the baseline, but it's hard for him to squeeze in with Cousins ​​behind him.But this position is already Love's offensive area, and it's no big deal to catch the ball here.

Xu Hao passed the ball very comfortably. Love sat back after receiving the ball. Cousins ​​was caught off guard and took half a step back.Love felt the change in the force on his back, turned around and jumped out of the space, and then easily hit the hook.

Seeing that Love scored under Cousins' defense so easily, the other players of the Timberwolves were not far behind. They began to trouble Cousins ​​on the offensive end, which made the No. 5 pick a headache.There is no good way for Westphal. Cousins ​​​​is a player designated by the management to be reused. If he is replaced at this time, the management will definitely find trouble.In desperation, Westphal could only continue to let Cousins ​​stay on the court, facing the tide of attacks.

Relying on the advantage of the inside line, the Timberwolves established a double-digit lead in the first quarter.Although Xu Hao only contributed 2 three-pointers, he also sent 4 assists and completed the task well.But the biggest hero is Love. He frequently used his footsteps under the basket to tease Cousins, scored 11 points and 5 rebounds in a single quarter, and performed very well.

In the second quarter, Xu Hao consciously controlled the rhythm of the game. He still hopes that his teammates can adapt to the intensity of the game as soon as possible. After all, he has rested for several months. If the rhythm is raised from the beginning, it may be difficult for everyone to accept it.

Even so, the Timberwolves were not caught up by the Kings, and there is still a clear gap in the hard power of the two sides.Cousins, who was full of confidence before the game, has put away all his arrogance. Although he hasn't become listless, he has become more cautious.

It's a pity that caution is not enough to allow Cousins ​​to defeat his opponents. At most, it can reduce his mistakes and unnecessary fouls.Cousins ​​was basically suppressed in the paint throughout the game. He couldn't help but love Love when he was on defense. He was guarded by DeAndre Jordan when he was on offense. He played for nearly 40 minutes but only scored 14 points and 7 rebounds. This was obviously not enough. Help the king win.

In the end, the Timberwolves made a good start at their home court, and they easily defeated the Kings 110-92.Xu Hao played soy sauce for almost the whole game. For him, 18 points and 11 assists can only be regarded as quite satisfactory. On the contrary, Love scored a large double-double with 28 points and 13 rebounds. Pie scored 10 points, but also grabbed 18 rebounds. These two guys teamed up to almost block the entire basket. Xu Hao didn't need to exert any strength at all to make the team win.

However, for Xu Hao, it is not a problem to reduce the statistics a little. As long as the team can continue to win the game, it does not matter even if the statistics of each game are all zero. He has always considered himself a firm victoryist.

(End of this chapter)