Chapter 621 Twists and Turns (First Update!)

In the second quarter, both sides started with one starter and four substitutes.

The Cavaliers are led by Love, and the Pelicans are led by Davis.

The situation on the court remained deadlocked.

Tang Tian saw that the seat next to Whiteside was vacant, and sat down directly.

Whiteside forced a smile when he saw Tang Tian coming over, but he could feel that he was not in a very high mood.

Since returning from suspension, he has been in a bad state, and the first quarter of this game is a microcosm.

Tang Tian didn't care about him before, but now he has to.

"You are the team's starting center, you have to have this understanding."

Tang Tian's first sentence made Whiteside turn his head.

"As long as you play well, it is impossible for Coach Williams not to let you play."

Tang Tian continued.

"As for the future, let alone a player's career, life is very long. No one knows what will happen. Concentrating on playing this season is what you should do."

Tang Tian knew that Whiteside's recent poor performance was only due to a problem with his mentality, so his enlightenment was also on the psychological level.

Whiteside didn't speak after listening, he should have expected these.

"You know what I told AD when he couldn't make a shot?"

Tang Tian didn't stop, and continued talking.

"Keep shooting. If you don't shoot, you don't get a chance."

Whiteside replied that as a teammate, he knew something about Davis after his return from injury.

"That's just what I said. In fact, what I want him to do is to maintain confidence. Now you are the same. Are you worried that Jokic will be squeezed out of the starting lineup in the future, or is it now?"

Tang Tian continued.

Whiteside didn't speak, it was a tacit agreement that Jokic played better than him during this time, which is why he was anxious and worried.

"You are wrong, just like what I told you right away, you are now the starter, not going to compete for the starter, are you not confident that you will be the starter? Or is it just that you said to me that you want to buy a big house? Just say it casually?"

When Tang Tian mentioned the big house, Whiteside's face obviously became firm.

People have motivation to do things, and they also need motivation. The big house is the motivation of Whiteside.

And what Tang Tian said is right, he needs to be more confident, because now he is the starter!

Seeing the change in Whiteside's expression, Tang Tian knew that what he said had worked.

The principle of persuading people is the same as pouring chicken soup. When it comes to the other person's heart, it will really work if you make the other person feel that what you ask him to do is for his own good.

The second quarter played for more than four minutes, and the two sides began to switch back to the main force one after another.

Jokic was early in the first quarter and was the first to be replaced by Whiteside.

Whiteside went up and gave Love a big hot pot.

After one defensive round, it can be seen that his competitive state is completely different from that in the first quarter.

This is his playing characteristic, somewhat similar to Cousins, a top insider with a calm mind.

Whiteside's recovery is very important to the Pelicans, and his defense is unmatched by Jokic.

He made the Cavaliers' scoring efficiency in the paint significantly lower.

And in the second quarter, the Cavaliers' outside touch also dropped.

The Pelicans took the opportunity to open the score a little bit.

At halftime, they in turn led the Cavaliers by 10 points, 56-46.

Counting the point difference in the first quarter, they beat the Cavaliers by 23 points inside and out.

The Cavaliers have the Big Three, but the Big Three need to run in, and the performance of the role players is also average.

On the contrary, the dual-core lineup of the Pelicans has almost run in, and role players such as Ariza, Whiteside, Holiday, and Jokic have performed better than the Cavaliers.

As O'Neill said, nothing can be seen in the 7-minute game, and the difference is only reflected in the half-time game.

It was noticeably quieter on the hotline by this time.

After halftime, James had 14 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, and Tang Tian had 16 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists.

Statistically speaking, the two are similar, but the Pelicans are now leading the Cavaliers by double digits.

Not to mention Tang Tian's performance in the second half of the first quarter when he led the team to turn the situation around, the part where he enlightened Whiteside off the court was also very crucial.

It was not until then that the fans refuted the words of James fans on the hotline before they were collectively illuminated by the fans.

The last time the Pelicans lost, it had a lot to do with Davis just coming back from injury.

The score in this half just showed that Tang Tian was worthy of the MVP ranking.

Following this momentum, the Pelicans have great hope of avenging the Cavaliers.

Back from halftime, Tang Tian's long shot and Whiteside's dunk helped the Pelicans widen the point difference to 15 points.

But at this moment, Irving from the Cavaliers stepped forward.

He continued to break through and increase the difficulty of the three-pointer, and personally played a wave of offense. After playing for about 5 minutes in this quarter, he forcibly narrowed the point difference to single digits.

Teammates around James are always under pressure, let alone an All-Star like Irving.

His performance in this section responded well to outside doubts.

And in this wave, he also fouled Whiteside twice in a row.

Whiteside is so black and tough, what he is most afraid of is a guard like Irving who can play the ball well.

Jokic mentioned his debut again.

However, this time his touch was obviously not as good as in the first half, and he failed to make two consecutive open three-pointers.

This is the instability of big men's outside shooting.

Not to mention big men, it is also difficult for ordinary shooters to maintain a high shooting percentage throughout the game.

Jokic couldn't make a shot, and his space-stretching effect was gone. Mozgov shrank the basket to protect the penalty area, completely leaving him outside.

Jokic failed to make consecutive shots and was anxious to prove himself. After getting the ball, he directly broke through from the three-point line to the basket and beat Mozgov with his footsteps.

Mozgov was swayed, and Jokic successfully scored the ball.

But at this moment, an accident happened. Mozgov was too heavy to control his body, and fell directly on Jokic's feet.

One second of joy before Jokic's goal turned into pain the next, and he fell to the ground.

It was a total accident.

The team doctor came up to inquire about Jokic's condition, and finally called the staff to bring a wheelchair, and let Jokic sit and leave the field.

Big players' knees and feet are the most vulnerable parts to be injured. Mozgov's weight is heavy, so the injury is not light.

Jokic's sudden injury caught the Pelicans off guard, and Williams could only call Biyombo.

Biyombo's defense is not weak, but his offensive role is very weak, and back to the defensive end, Irving continues to be hot and continues to score.

At about 9 minutes into this quarter, with Irving's 18-point performance in a single quarter, the Cavaliers had tied the 15-point gap.

This game was really full of twists and turns.