Carrying an old science teacher with him

Chapter 27 Does This Even Need Training?

"A generous gift, thank you, Waterfa..."

"What a generous gift, Kines! How the hell did you manage that?"

"It's so damn beautiful!"

When Wang Kai's three-pointer swished through the net with pinpoint accuracy, the entire Warriors' home arena erupted in cheers.

In this era of the NBA, some players can fly high and dive deep, some can move like butterflies, and some can even split mountains with their bare hands.

However, Wang Kai's height and wingspan, his ability to outmaneuver the Jazz's defensive stalwarts like a guard, and his highly entertaining dribbling skills immediately hit the sweet spot for Warriors fans.

After shooting the three-pointer, Wang Kai deliberately raised three fingers as he ran past the home team's bench, where he saw Montgomery's gloomy face.

Kirilenko, who was thoroughly outplayed by the rookie, was not convinced and immediately called for the ball after the Jazz advanced to the frontcourt.

Kirilenko can be considered the first generation of the "non-scorer" Kirilenko. He rarely took the initiative to attack with the ball because his ball-handling offense was not very good. Most of the time, his points came from second-chance opportunities after offensive rebounds and shots after receiving the ball.

However, Kirilenko was still quite unhappy to be outplayed by a rookie who was deeply embroiled in controversy and was considered unteachable, so he decided to test the rookie's defensive abilities.

Wang Kai plays as a small forward, which is exactly where he is matched up against Kirilenko.

Kirilenko posed a three-pronged attack after receiving the ball, but his probing step proved ineffective, and he directly broke through Wang Kai's weak side of defense.

Wang Kai shifted his center of gravity quickly, and with a single lateral step, he blocked Kirilenko's breakthrough path.

Kirilenko did not expect Wang Kai's lateral movement to be so quick, and he could feel that Wang Kai's defensive continuity was very good. He not only blocked Kirilenko's breakthrough line, but also moved his left foot up a little bit, which blocked Kirilenko's change of direction.

In other words, this lateral movement completely disrupted the rhythm and trajectory of Kirilenko's subsequent two moves.

Unable to break through, Kirilenko collected the ball and then passed it to Matt Halprin, who came over to receive it.

Matt Harpring was the precursor to the "3-and-D" type of player that is not yet fully popular in the league. He had fierce defense, but his three-point shooting percentage was very inconsistent. When he was highly efficient, he could achieve a three-point shooting percentage of around 40% in the 2002-03 season, but in the regular season of the previous two seasons, Matt Harpring only had a three-point shooting percentage of around 20%.

Harprin, who received a pass from Kirilenko, missed a three-pointer. Wang Kai once again shielded Kirilenko from behind, but Ostertag grabbed the rebound.

At 2.08 meters tall, Foyle was no match for Ostertag at 2.18 meters. The Warriors struggled to maintain their rebounding efficiency when facing the Jazz, whose interior players were taller than them.

Ostertag grabbed the offensive rebound but didn't dare to shoot; his technique was too rough, he could only score easy baskets under the basket.

The ball was returned to Giricek on the perimeter, who then executed another pick-and-roll with Okur.

Giriceko used Okur's screen to break through Jason Richardson's defense.

Jason performed well on offense, but often lost focus on defense.

Troy Murphy, who was guarding Okur, had to switch to guard Giriseko.

Giriceko cleverly passed the ball to Okur, who had moved to the three-point line, but at that moment, Wang Kai suddenly appeared on the passing lane, intercepted the ball, and then sprinted forward.

Before the game, Coach Kobe gave Wang Kai some extra lessons. During his time with the Pistons, Okur was strictly forbidden from shooting three-pointers by Larry Brown, but after joining the Jazz, Coach Jerry Sloan encouraged the Turk to shoot three-pointers boldly.

Standing at 2.11 meters tall, Okur had a high release point and a good three-point shooting percentage. In the following seasons, Okur became one of the Jazz's important outside scoring options.

Wang Kai, who was familiar with his opponents, gradually moved toward Okur when he saw the Jazz run a pick-and-roll.

After intercepting the ball, Wang Kai launched a counterattack without waiting for his teammates to get into position. While his speed isn't the fastest among the league's top guards, he's definitely a fast forward.

Kirilenko did not give up and stayed close behind Wang Kai.

Wang Kai rushed to the vicinity of the three-point line without considering Kirilenko behind him, or Montgomery, who had stood up angrily on the bench and was about to berate Wang Kai. He chose to shoot directly from beyond the three-point line.

Kirilenko originally thought Wang Kai would drive to the basket for a powerful dunk, and he never expected that this rookie would be so bold as to choose to shoot a three-pointer during a fast break.

Wang Kai's shot was steady and quick, and Kirilenko rushed past him without having time to defend.

The basketball swished through the net once again, and the cheers from the Warriors' home crowd erupted once more.

Wang Kai scored 6 points right after entering the game, helping the Warriors take a 17-18 lead.

The Jazz immediately called a timeout to make adjustments. Coach Jerry Sloan's in-game command may have been a bit rigid, but he was definitely experienced. He knew that he couldn't let the rookie maintain his hot streak.

Back on the bench, Wang Kai ignored Montgomery's angry glare, and after high-fiving and laughing with his teammates, he returned to his seat.

Wang Kai originally thought that Montgomery would definitely bench him for his direct slap in the face, but Montgomery substituted him with the team's reserve lineup, but did not take Wang Kai off the bench.

At this point, Wang Kai realized that the team's management was putting enormous pressure on Montgomery.

After the game restarted, the Warriors' bench defense simply couldn't keep up with the Jazz's offense.

At this point, while the Jazz's pick-and-roll tactics were not yet fully refined, the Warriors' bench defense was even worse.

Wang Kai excels at one-on-one defense and can limit the Jazz's offensive spearhead, but he lacks experience in team defense. There is still a significant gap between high school basketball and NBA-level games.

However, Wang Kai carried the Warriors on offense.

The Warriors' other bench players didn't fight with Wang Kai for the ball. They were just going through the motions and didn't need to clash with the team leader's underlings. Besides, they knew how outstanding Wang Kai's offense was.

After receiving the ball, Wang Kai immediately began his dominant ball-handling style of play, while the others created space for Wang Kai to exploit Matt Harprin.

Standing at 2.01 meters tall, Matt Harpring had previously guarded many of the league's superstars, including Tracy McGrady and Kobe Bryant. He felt that while these players were undoubtedly excellent and each had their own unique skills, it was difficult for them to shake off his defense using only dribbling. However, now, facing Wang Kai, the opponent's extremely smooth dribbling made Harpring feel like he was facing a formidable enemy.

Wang Kai's dribbling at this moment is not simply fast, but rather a rapid change in rhythm, and his dribbling is extremely deceptive.

Wang Kai, dribbling the ball, made a simple change of direction, which drew Harprin's defense. Without hesitation, Wang Kai broke through Harprin's defense and made a mid-range shot from a step inside the three-point line.