The white center, with long curly hair and tattooed arms, was sitting next to Malik Rose as he watched his four-year team tie the Mavericks 23-23 with no emotion in his heart. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

At the end of the first quarter, he silently applauded his teammates who were off the court, and when the players gathered around Jeff Van Gundy to listen to the tactics, he stood unhurriedly at the outermost of the crowd.

He didn't care at all what Jeff Van Gundy had set up, not because he wasn't focused, but because he knew he wasn't going to get a chance to play.

Drafted by the SuperSonics in '04, he didn't play 82 games in the first three seasons of his career combined. This season, he didn't even get a chance to play. If it weren't for the current outbreak of injuries on the Thunder team, the rigid Van Gundy might not even make the 13-man roster.

"The Last Hope for White American Centers!"

"Another high school genius. ”

"The SuperSonics finally have a backbone on the inside. ”

This is the very high opinion of him when he first entered the draft in '04. If he hadn't chosen to skip college and go straight to the draft, he would have been more than just 12th.

With a height of 2.13 meters and a weight of 123 kilograms, this guy's physical condition is excellent enough and his talent is quite good. However, he, like most fallen geniuses, was eventually defeated by endless injuries.

The torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee turned him from a genius to mediocrity, and he went from being the interior pillar of the SuperSonics to being a fringe figure for the team.

Since entering the league, his hair has grown longer and he has more and more tattoos, but his performance on the basketball court has become worse and worse.

Kostic and Collison are too slow! The two of them can't switch guards with Anjie quickly, but they can't risk putting Marik Rose, who is only 2.01 meters tall, into the number four position. Although Marik Rose is positioned as a swingman, with Jeff Van Gundy, a small lineup will never be used.

Jeff Van Gundy glanced at the players around him, who else could effectively partner with Anjie to limit Nowitzki's play?

Finally, Jeff Van Gundy's eyes fell on the No. 31 white center, who was just a head shorter than Anjie. Since they've brought it all, it's better to let him go up and try it.

"Robert!" shouted Jeff Van Gundy, a name that surprised all the players present.

"Huh!?" Even Robert Swift himself didn't expect Jeff Van Gundy to call his name. He was still standing at the outskirts of the circle, looking at his teammates for some reason.

"You play the starting center in the second quarter!" Jeff Van Gundy said this, and everyone's mouth opened in shock.

"Hu......h? Oh, okay......" Robert Swift slowly leaned towards the center and played, he hadn't heard such a command in a long time.

If nothing else, the Mavericks will definitely have Nowitzki and Dampier resting at the same time at the start of the second quarter. Because if only the Germans play alone, Anjie, who lacks Dampier to contain him, will be in front of Nowitzki inch by inch. In order to get the best out of Nowitzki, Claire will definitely let the two guys rest and play at the same time.

And now that the Mavericks don't have a real No. 5 spot on the bench, Brandon Buss at 2.03m will be the guy most likely to play at center. Although this skilled power forward has performed well after moving to the Mavericks, the huge height disadvantage should not allow him to beat Robert Swift to the ground. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Jeff Van Gundy decided to put Swift on the court to see how he was doing.

"Robert, what you have to do is very simple, defend the restricted area, scramble for rebounds, block and dismantle teammates, you don't have to fight for rebounds in the frontcourt, I want you to defend quickly so that you don't let the Mavericks play a fast break. "A few basic arrangements are all Van Gundy gave Swift a task.

Robert Swift nodded silently, and he moved his arms, which were completely covered in tattoos, in a way that meant "birdman" Anderson.

"Audience friends, the second quarter of the game began, and Coach Jeff Van Gundy really followed the rotation plan and let Anjie rest first. The person who replaced Anjie was not Collison or Kostic, this guy was ...... Robert Swift?"

Not only the commentators, but even Mavericks head coach Rick Clare and the Thunder fans at the scene did not expect Van Gundy to play this card.

55 games have been played this season, and the number 31 is making his first appearance this season. It is precisely because of the hard-won opportunity to play that Robert Swift does not dare to be sloppy, and his positive attitude is enough in Van Gundy's opinion.

The second team played five minutes on the court, and the Mavericks took a three-point lead thanks to Jason "The Glider" Terry. The Thunder's second team wasn't bad, especially Damion Wilkins, who was desperate to prove himself, who not only scored six points on 3-of-3 shooting, but also contributed two steals on the defensive end to put Terry's dream of pulling the score away.

Robert Swift was replaced by Jeff Van Gundy after playing three minutes, not because he didn't play well, but because he was so motivated and good fundamentals on the court that Van Gundy decided to let him down to rest and prepare for a more important mission later.

Five minutes into the second quarter, after the team was down by three points, Jeff Van Gundy called a timeout "as expected", and now it was time for his main man to come on!

"All the starters are on the field!Kostic, you just came down and rested for a while, Robert, you go play the number four position!" Van Gundy ordered, and Swift was stunned again.

He was substituted after three minutes on the pitch, and he thought the manager was dead set on him. But now, Van Gundy asked him to play with the first team.

"Your task is still not complicated! Tie up Eric Dampier for me! I want Anjie to face Nowitzki without interference!"

Although in terms of overall strength, Swift is not as good as Kostic and Collison, but in terms of positivity and mobility alone, Swift is definitely above those two guys.

Swift thought he was dreaming, but at this moment, he was really standing with the first lineup of both sides, and next to him was the most important defensive pillar of the Thunder now, Anjie!

"Hmph, isn't it just to pester that arrogant guy from the Mavericks and give my rookie teammates a chance to be in the limelight?

After the timeout, the Mavericks' offense, Eric Dampier was still aiming at Anjie and was ready to go up and entangle, trying not to let Anjie get the opportunity to defend others.

But this time, before he was about to pester An Jie, he was first approached by the big man with tattoos on his arms in front of him.

Swift was rudely "wrapped" with Dampier, and wherever Dampier went, Swift would stick to him. The stealthy but effective jersey grabbing made it even more difficult for Dampier to get out of the entanglement.

Kidd dribbled to the three-point line and immediately made a grounded pass for Dirk Nowitzki to get possession of the ball from the designated position.

The German received the ball and turned to face the frame, only to find that the defender had become the Thunder No. 16 who had been hot recently.

Nowitzki's offense is plentiful, and a mere rookie center isn't enough to make him dumb. But compared to Collison and Kostic, Anjie's defense has obviously brought him a lot more pressure.

On his first step-back jumper, Nowitzki lost his head to the point of being distracted by Anjie's terrifying defensive height. Nowitzki is not incapable of completing difficult shots, but the sudden increase in defensive intensity has obviously made him not have time to adapt.

"The Thunder team finally executed a successful position! Anjie's first defense made the German tank return in vain!"

"Everybody throws it sometimes. Charles Barkley said disapprovingly.

On the defensive end, Robert Swift helped Anjie contain Dampier, and on the offensive end, Jeff Van Gundy did not intend to misplace Dampier and Anpier, although Dampier's defense is indeed good, but Anjie's offensive ability is not enough to even pass Dampier's level.

However, the hot-blooded Swift was on the offensive end, but he still couldn't move Dampiel. Nowitzki is tall and has long arms, but his defensive ability is not outstanding. With a soft style of play, he only weighs one kilogram more than An Jie, but his strength is not comparable to An Jie.

An Jie relied on Nowitzki a few times and forced himself into the penalty area with a back-hit, An Jie turned around and raised his hand, Nowitzki thought that the Asian kid was also going to use a step-back jumper to return the color.

Unexpectedly, when the German pounced, An Jie threw a bow at the waist, flashed past Nowitzki, and made an easy layup.

So far in the game, An Jie has only scored his first point in the game, but his performance has made Thunder fans very reassured.

On the Mavericks' next offense, Nowitzki picked the offense outside the three-point line. The big man with range, Anjie, is not unguarded, from Coulvers in college to the current German tank, he has met several such opponents. Most of the centre-forwards are at a loss for outside defence, but it is clear that Anjie is not one of them.

"Dirk missed his second goal in a row, and Ann's defense made a clear difference!"

After the "German Chariot" struck the iron, An Jie used a big hook hand to stretch out in a posture and go to the next city.

"Angel scored four points in a row!Who would question his form now?" Even Barkley had nothing to refute Kenny Smith at this point.

Westbrook, who scored 12 points in the first quarter, scored just two points in the quarter, for the same reason as Anjie, who gave up the right to fire and gave up the right to shoot to teammates who had better opportunities and hotter hands. He made a nil of shots and scored two points from the free throw line, which was where Westbrook's scoring came from in the second quarter.

"Anjie and Nowitzki are leaning together again, and the duel between the two technical big men is really exciting!"

Nowitzki was very dead this time, and Dampier also wanted to come over and wrap it up. While Swift is able to entangle others well, it's clear that Dampier doesn't take his offensive prowess seriously.

"Dampier left Swift, who was tangling with him near the free throw line, and Anjie was trapped!"

Don't use a bag clip on An Jie, this sentence is not alarmist.

Anjie saw Dampier wrapping up, and then looked at the 2.13-meter-tall Swift who cut in and raised his hand to ask for the ball, how to end this attack, the idea couldn't be clearer.

Anjie was caught in the basket, but he made a ground-hitting pass in the gap between Nowitzki's and Dampier's legs. Swift, who was maneuverable, arrived and dunked the ball to earn his first point of the season.

"Robert Swift! Beautiful dunk! Let's see the replay, let's see how such a big target guy unknowingly got in! Oh my god Charles, did you see it, Angel's ground-hitting pass was so accurate. ”

After the powerful dunk, the Thunder fans of the entire Chesapeake Energy Arena stood up and cheered, and Giardina, who was affected by the frenzied atmosphere, couldn't help but wave her arms, at this moment, she is not a star, just an ordinary fan.

"I guess most people don't know who the guy who just dunked is, but he's already one of the veterans of the Thunder, and he's one of the few veterans from the days of the SuperSonics. Coach Jeff Van Gundy has simply sent out a surprise force, which is completely inconsistent with his previous rigid characteristic!"

In fact, Jeff Van Gundy was also forced to change his employment style. In the past, he didn't like to develop rookies, but after the Thunder came he had to focus on rookies, and in the past, he didn't like to use marginal characters, but now that there is no one available, he has to make a new attempt.

However, these two style changes of Van Gundy have brought the team better and better.

Eric Dampier must now be wary of Swift, who only needs a split second to cut into the box and pose a threat to the basket.

Dampier is excellent defensively, but he is a little weak when he doesn't have close matches.

Anjie once again held the ball and singled with Nowitzki, this time Nowitzki was not deceived, but his block hit Anjie's forearm. Nowitzki not only sent Anjie to the free-throw line this time, but also failed to prevent Anjie's hook shot. Another chance to hit three points, he knew that this Chinese would definitely not let go.

When Nowitzki scored two points with his trademark step-back jumper, the curtain came down on the second quarter.

For a star of Nowitzki's calibre, it's impossible to limit him to not taking a point. However, instead of letting the opponent easily score 40 points, it is better to put more pressure on the opponent and let the opponent's shooting rate drop.

48-44, under the leadership of An Jie, the Thunder still held on to the advantage, leading by 4 points, and did not let the Cowboys led by the Germans take advantage.

With seven points on 3-of-5 shooting, Anjie's scoring performance was a world of difference compared to the first quarter. When the team needs him to step up and score, he doesn't back down!

In addition to Anjie's excellent play, Swift's unexpected four points were Van Gundy's biggest surprise. He didn't expect the almost abandoned guy to go above and beyond the task, and it looked like he was going to continue to increase Swift's playing time in the second half.

"The last hope for a white American center. Robert Swift was cheered by the fans at the scene and remembered his past glory.

Hopeless? But being a spoiler, Swift can still do it.

Nowitzki knows that in the second half he will only continue to score harder! )