While Zeng Xingyang was busy spending money, the Nuggets completed another trade.
The Nuggets sent a first-round pick from 2018 to the 76ers to acquire Jerami Grant, while simultaneously cutting fringe player Yakar Sampson, who had a salary of only 290,000.
Zeng Xingyang remembered this guy, quite friendly and cheerful in the locker room, seemed to have a good relationship with everyone, but his talent and ability were just average, no status in the team, so being cut wasn’t surprising.
NBA teams allow some savvy people not to play on the court, but hang around in the locker room. However, when sacrifice is needed, they have to sacrifice.
Surviving here, hard strength is most important, high emotional intelligence is at most just a bonus.
Zeng Xingyang thought the previous claims that Ah Lian’s personality issues prevented him from staying in the NBA were very far-fetched.
Anyone who has played basketball knows that truly outstanding players, as long as they aren’t too annoying, can basically survive in the team because the team needs them.
If you can’t stay, it’s either because your ability is insufficient or you’re simply not suitable for that team; most of the time it’s not about so-called emotional intelligence.
The 76ers being willing to trade Jerami Grant wasn’t surprising.
The current 76ers are crazily stockpiling draft picks, and aside from Okafor, they might even be willing to package the head coach for picks.
Unfortunately, no one wants their head coach, otherwise they would sell him, even for a second-round pick.
Apart from sparking some discussion and reports domestically, these two trades by the Nuggets didn’t cause much stir in the United States.
Mainly because the Nuggets are a small-market team, and the NBA is currently in an active trading period, such small transactions aren’t uncommon.
After three days of rest, the Nuggets at home faced a challenge from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Both Wiggins and Towns erupted in this game, repeatedly attacking the Nuggets’ inside, causing a lot of damage.
Mike Malone’s attempt to use a double-center combination of Jokic and Nurkic didn’t have a good effect; instead, it made the inside very crowded.
Neither Harris nor Zeng Xingyang could make inner cuts.
As a result, the Nuggets’ offensive means were severely restricted; neither Jokic nor Nurkic had space for one-on-one plays, and Jokic’s playmaking was also hindered by his teammates.
Oftentimes, the Nuggets could only rely on outside shots to score.
Zeng Xingyang’s state from the outside was average, not the explosive form like before; both Harris and Nelson found it difficult to shoulder the responsibility, hitting less than 30% from three-point range.
Ultimately, the game ended with a 91 to 99 loss, the Nuggets losing to the Timberwolves at home, ending their winning streak.
After the game, Towns, who scored 28 points, 15 rebounds, hugged Zeng Xingyang’s shoulder and laughed: "Zeng, you look like you’ve gotten a girlfriend, feeling a bit drained huh."
"Drained, my ass." Zeng Xingyang retorted.
Although he had played two friendly matches with Song Xue in the past few days, it didn’t affect his stamina; tonight his shooting was just average.
Even if his performance was average, Zeng Xingyang still collected a versatile stat line of 18 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks, with a three-point shooting rate of 33%.
"I got to know quite a few black girls; just say which one you want."
"Haha, can your little frame handle it?"
Towns and Zeng Xingyang caught up for a while.
After being in the NBA for a while, both had adapted to the rhythm and life here.
Both cherished the friendship established during their college days more; compared to Kentucky Wildcats, in the NBA there is more backstabbing, and the sense of crisis is heavier.
Friendships between players are less pure than in college due to differences in age, status, salary, etc.
Although the Nuggets led by Zeng Xingyang lost to the Timberwolves and ended their win streak, it didn’t hinder him from earning the West’s Player of the Week.
Zeng Xingyang performed exceptionally well the previous week, leading the Nuggets to victories over the Warriors, Lakers, and Magic; last week his average scoring even suppressed Durant and Harden, reaching first in the West.
After losing to the Nuggets, the Warriors went on to win three straight, which to some extent underscored the value of the Nuggets’ victory in that game.
If it weren’t for the Nuggets, the Warriors probably would still be winning consecutively.
"Zeng is becoming a qualified leader."
"His performance on the court is increasingly stable, especially in shooting."
"Zeng is developing into an All-Star level player,"
"Zeng makes the general managers of the teams that could have selected him suffer criticism from fans."
After receiving Player of the Week, the media continued to praise Zeng Xingyang.
Zeng Xingyang’s average stats for the season have reached 26.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 6 assists, 2.8 steals, 1.5 blocks, which for a rookie is quite astonishing.
Scoring ranks sixth in the league, steals third.
These represent two sections favoring both offense and defense.
Such data categorically indicates an All-Star level, and this has kept Zeng Xingyang consistently ahead of stellar performers like Towns, Porzingis, and Okafor on the rookie leaderboard.
With a significant increase in team performance and explosive individual stats, Zeng Xingyang has achieved a gap-lead among peer rookies!
Open-Air Stand Newspaper reporter Charlie even composed a special report for Zeng Xingyang.
Charlie wrote: "Zeng Xingyang has the height and wingspan of a small forward; his shooting feel is exceptionally good, his release speed very quick, shooting steadiness has reached the level of top shooters, though his ability in holding ball for offense isn’t particularly strong, of course, sometimes he can mismatch against big players or slower forwards and guards, when penetrating the inside he often uses the stop-and-jump shot to finish."