NBA: Rising Superstar!

The Warriors launch another attack.

This time, Durant finally receives the ball, and Zeng Xingyang immediately shouts at Durant: "KD, you're just a coward, a wimp who can't take a challenge!"

If anyone else had said these words, Durant might not have cared, but coming from Zeng Xingyang, they sounded particularly harsh.

As top players, being so underappreciated by an opponent is undoubtedly a huge blow for Durant.

Durant suppresses the anger in his heart and doesn't respond to Zeng Xingyang.

He takes a step to the right with the ball and suddenly stops for a jump shot at the high post.

This shot carries a bit of rebelliousness, somewhat forced.

Zeng Xingyang jumps up quickly, doing all he can to interfere.

"Bang!" The basketball hits the rim and bounces out.

Bogut and Jokic fiercely fight for the rebound under the basket, and Jokic jumps high to secure it.

The Nuggets launch an attack.

Jokic passes the ball to Butler, who quickly hands it over to Zeng Xingyang.

At this moment, Jokic comes forward to set a screen for Zeng Xingyang.

"Bang!" Thompson is blocked behind, and Bogut quickly switches defense.

Zeng Xingyang accelerates with the ball, breaking through from the right.

Green and Durant rush forward to double-team him.

At this critical moment, Zeng Xingyang keeps an eye on the court and spots Gordon open in the corner. He decisively throws the ball to Gordon. Gordon catches it and shoots a three-pointer without hesitation.

"Bang!" Unfortunately, the basketball hits the rim and doesn't go in.

Green quickly jumps up to grab the rebound.

After securing the rebound, Green shouts at Zeng Xingyang: "Play like a man, f*ck! Stop trying to pass the ball to your teammates; they can't help you. If you have the guts, challenge me!"

Green had heard Zeng Xingyang's trash talk to Durant earlier and decisively stood up for his teammate.

Green is famous for his trash talk ability, often able to disturb opponents through his words, causing them to lose their composure.

But Zeng Xingyang doesn't get angry at Green's remarks.

In his eyes, Green is just trying to "defend" Durant, like a loyal "sidekick."

Zeng Xingyang responds disdainfully: "Don't f*cking talk to me. I only communicate with your master."

Saying this, he turns back to his own half of the court, leaving Green with a puzzled expression.

After a while, Green finally reacts, wanting to retaliate, but Zeng Xingyang has long since run off, leaving Green deeply annoyed. He can only suppress his anger, dribble past half-court, and pass the ball to Durant.

Durant tries to break through Zeng Xingyang's defense with dribbling changes, but Zeng Xingyang's defense is said to be impenetrable.

Not only does he possess excellent height and wingspan, but his speed, agility, and ability to withstand confrontations are also outstanding, with a defensive range covering from the 1 to the 5 positions.

Under Zeng Xingyang's tight defense, Durant can't find a breakthrough opportunity, forcing him to pass the ball back to Green.

Green, after catching the ball, doesn't look at the basket but instead focuses on Thompson, who is positioning on the other side.

Using Bogut's screen, Thompson successfully frees himself from Butler's defense on the right side, gaining space for a shot.

Due to not being able to help in time, Jokic fails to catch up.

With quick eyes and hands, Green swiftly passes the ball to Thompson.

After receiving the ball, Thompson doesn't hesitate to jump and shoot.

"Swish!"

The basketball goes through the net cleanly, changing the score to 4-7.

Although Butler's individual defense is excellent, even he can't escape distractions when faced with such exquisite screens from the opponent.

And Jokic's slower defensive speed allowed Thompson to seize this excellent opportunity.

The Nuggets attack again.

Zeng Xingyang dribbles to the frontcourt, and just upon receiving the ball, he's double-teamed by opponents.

He quickly surveys the court situation and passes the ball to the open Butler.

Butler, with the ball, takes a step intending to break into the interior, then suddenly stops and jumps to shoot.

"Bang!" This shot bounces off the rim.

Actually, Butler's best option might have been to shoot for three, but he lacks confidence in his three-point shot.

This season, his three-point shooting percentage is only 33.2%, which isn't very reassuring in tonight's game.

Bogut leaps high to snag the rebound, and the Warriors successfully complete a defense.

Green dribbles to the frontcourt and passes the ball to Thompson, who had run off the screen.

This time, Jokic rapidly rushes out to defend.

Under pressure, Thompson hastily shoots, missing the three-point shot from the right.

Compared to Curry, Thompson employs relatively fewer technical variations before shooting threes, which can impact his offensive efficiency to some extent.

After catching the ball, he often has to make a one-to-two-dribble move to complete the shot; if these few dribbles don't shake off the defense, the offensive chance might instantly vanish.

The Nuggets continue their attack.

Zeng Xingyang dribbles to the frontcourt and passes the ball to Jokic.

Jokic hands the ball back to Zeng Xingyang while setting another screen for him. Utilizing this screen, Zeng Xingyang makes a low-hand ball-handling direction change, quickly breaking through the defense. Green and Durant attempt to double-team again, but Zeng Xingyang displays impressive explosiveness, accelerating his sprint, successfully breaking through their pincer attack, and arrives at the basket for an easy layup.

6-7, Zeng Xingyang uses his excellent personal ability to once again narrow the point difference for the Nuggets.

In the following minutes, both teams fully demonstrate their respective team characteristics.

The Warriors, relying on their seamless pass-and-cut cooperation and precise three-point shooting, continuously attack the Nuggets' defense; while the Nuggets primarily depend on the pick-and-roll tactics initiated by Zeng Xingyang and Jokic to create scoring opportunities.

Both sides' defensive intensity reaches its peak, but their offense also exhibits immense power, such that, for a while, neither can completely limit the other.

On the sidelines, coaches Mike Malone and Cole are closely watching the court situation, constantly making tactical adjustments and player rotations. As substitute players gradually take the court, the pace of the game begins to change, and both teams' offensive efficiency slightly declines.

With 3 minutes and 12 seconds left in the first quarter, the score stands at 18-18.

At this point, the lineup changes on the court, with Butler and Zeng Xingyang leading three rookies to continue the battle.

The Nuggets attack, with Butler executing a pick-and-roll with Zubac on the right.

After the pick-and-roll, Butler gets a decent mid-range shot opportunity.

However, instead of shooting immediately, he waits for Iguodala to come up for defense, initiating physical contact before choosing to shoot. "Bang!" Despite the contact, the referee determines that this doesn't constitute a foul and doesn't blow the whistle.

Butler's shot hits the rim heavily and bounces out, but Butler reacts quickly to grab the rebound again.

This time, Butler doesn't choose to shoot again but decisively passes the ball to the outside Zeng Xingyang.

Zeng Xingyang catches the ball at a 45-degree angle, and the rest of the Nuggets players quickly spread out.

Seeing this, Iguodala and Durant immediately rush forward for a double-team.

At this crucial moment, Siakam keenly senses the opportunity and quickly makes an inner cut.

Young and vigorous, he's unafraid facing Green under the basket. He jumps high, both hands grabbing the ball, preparing to dunk over Green. Siakam leaps exceptionally high, and Green, unwilling to concede, raises his hands high, attempting to block.

"Bang!!" With excellent physical quality, Siakam successfully slams the ball into the basket, also causing Green to fall. This impressive slam dunk over Green momentarily quiets the atmosphere, while the Nuggets' bench erupts with howls.