He had seen many players in the NBA, and at this moment, he couldn’t help but feel that Zeng Xingyang was making an impact reminiscent of Jordan during his rookie years.
In fact, he might have done even better than Jordan.
That’s the judgment Mike Malone gave Zeng Xingyang.
Since joining the Nuggets, Zeng Xingyang has consistently maintained his steady and reliable performance from college.
Especially his three-point shooting, which has always been the Nuggets’ strongest offensive weapon.
This isn’t something that can be trained.
This is a top-level talent.
If God opened a window for Stephen Curry, then another door was opened for Zeng Xingyang.
While the team was trailing by as much as 18 points in the first half, Zeng Xingyang completely exploded, dominating the game on both offense and defense.
No matter what kind of problem arises, giving the ball to Zeng Xingyang will not disappoint you.
Mike Malone deeply regretted making Zeng Xingyang a substitute at the beginning of the season.
If he had been made a starter earlier, perhaps the Nuggets’ ranking could have been higher.
In the next few plays, although the Celtics continuously scored, the Nuggets kept up with the scoring.
With 2 minutes and 12 seconds left in the third quarter, Zeng Xingyang faced Little Thomas’s defense, dribbled for a while, and took a horizontal step back to shoot a three-pointer.
Little Thomas tried his best to interfere.
The basketball drew a beautiful arc.
This three-pointer helped the Nuggets tie the score.
Stevens called another timeout.
Stevens couldn’t help but shout at Little Thomas: "Isaiah, up the defensive intensity, put pressure on the opponent!"
Stevens sounded very disappointed, and Little Thomas looked very helpless, not knowing how to respond.
Little Thomas said, "I don’t know how to defend him."
The other Celtics players looked at each other in dismay; Little Thomas’s spirit had been completely crushed by the opponent.
"Man, don’t be discouraged, he’s not that scary, stick to him." Smart patted Little Thomas on the shoulder.
Even though he competes for the same position with Little Thomas, he really didn’t want to see him so dispirited.
"Sigh!" Little Thomas didn’t say anything more.
Stevens continued to keep Little Thomas on the bench.
Smart dribbled to the frontcourt and passed to Turner.
Turner broke through and passed to Crowder in the corner.
Crowder didn’t push Galinarli aside, but took a shot against the defense.
The basketball hit the rim heavily and bounced out.
The rebound was grabbed by Zeng Xingyang in one leap.
Zeng Xingyang stepped forward with the ball, drawing all the Celtics’ defensive attention to him.
Zeng Xingyang made a wide pass to Pope.
Pope, in stride, took a conversion three-pointer!!
At this moment, Allianz Arena fell silent.
The fans at the scene were incredulous, watching the score, as the Nuggets had already taken the lead.
To know that when they returned to the locker room at halftime, they were still leading by 18 points, it’s not even the end of the third quarter yet.
What are the Celtics doing?
How did they collapse so quickly?
As Smart held the ball at the arc, boos rang out from the crowd.
The fans here were very disappointed with the home team; their star player didn’t even dare to play?
As one of the legendary teams in history, when have they ever encountered such humiliation?
Celtics fans were very dissatisfied with this.
Being booed at home by their own fans added even more pressure on the Celtics players on the court.
Smart passed the ball to Crowder, who made a quick stop for a jumper on a breakthrough.
No, Jokic grabbed the rebound and made a straight pass to Pope in the frontcourt.
Pope made an easy layup.
The pace was completely controlled by the Nuggets..
In no time, with 7 minutes and 12 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the gap had widened to 8 points.
Stevens was really out of options; the team’s offense was a mess, so he had to send Little Thomas back on the court.
"Isaiah, go up and make a run, it’s your time." Stevens said.
Every time in the fourth quarter, Little Thomas always managed to spark a run, and he hoped tonight would be the same.
In the past, hearing that he would play in the final quarter made Little Thomas very excited; he was very confident that he could go up and score.
But tonight, he was somewhat reluctant, seeing Zeng Xingyang still on the court, he felt a bit afraid.
What good would it do to go up?
Wouldn’t it just end up in embarrassment?
Just as Little Thomas anticipated, as soon as he took the court, Zeng Xingyang immediately made him his target.
On the first possession, Zeng Xingyang started posting up from beyond the three-point line, bumping to the area between the free-throw line and the three-second zone, switched speeds and scored with a mid-range shot.
In the next possession, receiving a pass from Jokic, before the double team arrived, he relied on Little Thomas to bulldoze his way to the rim for a steady layup.
In yet another play, Zeng Xingyang dribbled from the three-point line and, facing Little Thomas’s defense, made a three-point jumper.
Continuously attacking.
The fans at the venue couldn’t bear to watch this scene.
The Celtics’ leader was being thoroughly schooled by Zeng Xingyang.
No doubt, this was the most miserable game of Little Thomas’s career.
Even those games where he was benched didn’t feel as bad as this night.
As Zeng Xingyang’s offense got going, the Nuggets’ defense also picked up.
With 2 minutes and 12 seconds left in the game, Zeng Xingyang drew Little Thomas’s sixth foul, sending him off the court.
Standing on the free-throw line.
The Chinese fans here began chants of MVP.
Some neutral fans also joined in.
However, some die-hard fans still shouted, "F*ck Zeng."
"Go home, yellow monkey."
These comments made Zeng Xingyang very unhappy.
"Did I hear correctly? Zeng has won over the fans here, they’re chanting MVP." Barkley shouted loudly.
"This scene is unbelievable," Miller said.
It’s quite rare to hear the call for an away player as MVP on this court.
Unless the fans here believe Zeng Xingyang will become a superstar-level player in the future.
Zeng Xingyang is just a rookie, but he’s accomplished things many players can’t, showing how impressive his performance is tonight.
"I have to say, Zeng has caught the eyes of many fans, his performance always surprises people." O’Neal said.
"His performance tonight is at an MVP level, leading the team to complete an 18-point comeback," Smith said.
On the court, the Celtics players felt very bitter inside.
The great situation of the first half was ruined, and then the home fans turned against them, which was like rubbing salt in their wound.
Standing on the free-throw line, Zeng Xingyang calmly made both free throws, and then, he put his hand to his ear, listening to the cheers.
Little Thomas, seeing this, was very frustrated on the bench.
After a few more possessions on both offense and defense, the remaining time dwindled to the final 20 seconds.
At this point, the score was 124 to 112.
The Nuggets had completely sealed the victory.
Zeng Xingyang dribbled past half-court, ready to run down the clock.
But Smart came over, still wanting to steal the ball.
Smart knocked Zeng Xingyang to the ground.
The referee called a foul.
This foul behavior completely enraged Zeng Xingyang.
After Jokic passed the ball back to Zeng Xingyang.
Zeng Xingyang stood on the Celtics’ LOGO.
He stomped on the LOGO with his left foot, then put the ball down, stomped on the ball with his right foot, and looked provocatively at Smart.
Smart couldn’t meet Zeng Xingyang’s gaze, knew he broke an unwritten rule, and didn’t go for the ball again.
Zeng Xingyang’s provocation also expressed his displeasure with the pre-game racial discrimination, and he vented it all with this provocative action.
The referee didn’t blow a whistle but let the time run out naturally...
"The way Zeng Xingyang stomped on the Celtics’ LOGO made Nuggets fans at home and abroad go wild."
Tonight, Zeng Xingyang’s performance was so arrogant and overbearing.