I'm good at basketball too

Chapter 208
After the Thunder's three young players are all in place, they have obviously started to exert their strength this season.

They are now 10 wins and 5 losses, ranking fifth in the West.

You know, last season, the Thunder's total record was only 23 wins and 59 losses, ranking third from the bottom in the Western Conference.

Durant's progress in the past few seasons has really jumped up a big step every year.

In the first season, he averaged 20.3 points per game. In the second season, last year, he averaged 25.3 points per game.

This season, Durant has averaged 32.5 points per game so far, ranking first in the league!

Overall, the Thunder are not strong yet. Whether it is Harden in the first grade or Westbrook in the second grade, they still need to level up.

Therefore, most people in this game still think that the Grizzlies will win the victory relatively easily.

But the ease of the team does not mean the ease of Li Ran. He is responsible for defending Durant. If Durant explodes and scores 5 or 60 points in a single game, it is not impossible for the Grizzlies to overturn unexpectedly.

Standing on the floor of the Ford Center, Li Ran looked at the slightly thin No. 35 opposite.

"Stephen, the official height of the guy opposite is 6.75 feet, do you believe it?"

6.75 feet is 206 centimeters.

Curry gritted his braces and shook his head, and even the braces had the word unbelief written on them.

"He's not six foot nine and I ate the braces in my stomach."

As he spoke, he turned his head and glanced at Xiao Jia, the big white bear next to him.

Xiaojia's height is 213 centimeters, and Durant is obviously only three or four centimeters shorter than Xiaojia.

"It's normal for Durant to have a height of about 210 when he wears shoes. The point is that this guy seems to have risen a little in recent years?"

Li Ran thought silently in his heart.

The most unbelievable thing in the NBA is the player's height, such as Iverson's 183 and Durant's 206. .

Whoever believes is a fool.

Li Ran helplessly looked at the opposing player who was ten centimeters taller than him.

In this game, the Thunder sent Durant, Westbrook, Jeff Green, Sevilla center Nenad Krstic, and the hope of the Swiss village Sabo Sefolosha.

In the past two years, Jeff Green has been a member of the real Thunder's three young men. He will not replace him until Harden gets the best sixth man.

Sefolosha is an excellent wing defender, has height, has a certain three-pointer, has a breakthrough, and is a qualified team puzzle player.

But he can't take advantage of Iverson.

Although old, but the answer is not everyone can bully.

Don't worry about Curry and Westbrook, just watch them pull their hair on the court.

The key lies in the matchup between Li Ran and Durant and Randolph and Jeff Green.

Krstic jumped over Xiaojia's head to get the ball, and Li Ran stood on the flank and focused on defending Durant.

According to team practice, the first ball should be played for the boss.

But Westbrook controlled the ball and suddenly passed Curry hard at the top of the arc.

Curry was unprepared for this.

In other words, there is no way to prepare.

In terms of the impact of the breakthrough, now maybe only the little fat guy on the Utah Plateau is better than Westbrook.

Seeing this scene, Li Ran grinned involuntarily, gave up on Durant without hesitation, and rushed to the inside.

"It's time to check your homework, my big Westbrook."

Westbrook, who is still one-sided, will basically not choose to pass it out as long as he rushes in.

I have to say that Westbrook's physical fitness is really against the sky. Facing Randolph who was supplementing the defense, Westbrook accelerated again and passed the black fat man again.

But, that's all.

Westbrook jumped high in the penalty area, his whole body stretched into a full bow, and it looked like a slam dunk that was enough to enter the top five goals.

It's a pity that this goal did score five goals, but the protagonist is not him.

Li Ran, who had been prepared for a long time, stood in the reasonable collision zone and jumped up when he saw the opportunity.

His big hand pressed perfectly on the ball that Westbrook held up high.

Li Ran exerted all his strength.

"boom!"

Westbrook almost fell flat from the sky.

Westbrook, struggling to sit up, found that the basket was empty.

Curry got the ball that was thrown by Li Ran, and sprinted to the frontcourt together with Iverson and Li Ran.

This is the most familiar scene to Grizzlies fans this season. In almost every game, the same scene will happen several times.

The three played a fast break together, not to mention a young team like the Thunder, even the Pistons, which are known for their defense, were at a loss in their first game.

In the end, Li Ran received the rebound ball that Curry hit on the backboard, and dunked the ball into the basket with a one-armed posture almost the same as Westbrook just now.

Durant stood near the middle circle, watching the scene helplessly, and at the same time quietly glanced at Westbrook with a dejected face next to him.

In this attack, when Durant deliberately came out to ask for the ball, Westbrook finally came to his senses and passed the ball to Durant.

Facing Li Ran's defense, Durant unhurriedly dribbled the ball at the top of the arc.

Li Ran was highly concentrated and did not dare to neglect at all.

He knew that, like Nowitzki's Golden Rooster Independence, although Durant's shot rate was a little lower, it also belonged to that kind of "undefensible" move.

Whether he can get in or not depends entirely on Durant's touch.

Thinking of this, he stuck it tighter.

Now if you want to beat Durant, it seems that you can only rely on your body.

Sure enough, Durant was not used to Li Ran's candy-like defensive strategy. He tried to get rid of Li Ran's defense while protecting the ball.

Li Ran refused to budge.

After another two dribbles, Durant suddenly dodged to the side, his two long legs seemed to be teleporting, and he stepped out almost two meters away.

Li Ran followed without hesitation, and took off to block the shot in a predictive manner.

The two have similar wingspans, but Durant is ten centimeters taller than him, and the only way to perfectly prevent him is to rely on anticipation.

Sure enough, Durant was like Li Ran, jumping up and shooting after taking a side step.

However, the moment he jumped up, Durant found that Li Ran's hand had come in front of him.

In desperation, Durant could only be forced to raise his shot point for this ball.

In this way, it is a matter of course for the ball to strike the iron.

Small plus card position, Randolph lightly jumped the ball into his arms.

Li Ran, who had just started and was about to repeat the trick, sighed and slowed down.

If Randolph was stuck just now and Xiaojia grabbed the rebound, it should be a wonderful long pass across the half court now.

But Randolph won't, he will. . .

After a few clumsy dribbles, Randolph obediently handed the ball to Iverson beside him.

The answer is bouncing and dribbling forward. The Grizzlies' backcourt duo has no problems except defending the black hole.

With the help of Li Ran's pick-and-roll, Iverson broke into the inside and scored a wonderful small throw over Krstic's head.

It seems that after the start, the young Thunder was suppressed by the Grizzlies.

Especially on the defensive end, Li Ran's defensive experience made Westbrook and Durant uncomfortable.

Obviously Li Ran played about the same amount of time as the two, but everyone felt that Li Ran's performance on the court was more sophisticated than Thunder's twin stars.

(End of this chapter)