The Thunder are out of contention, but the competition in the West hasn't diminished at all.

The Warriors, Pelicans, Spurs, and even the Rockets, Clippers, and Grizzlies still have the ability to compete for championships.

This year's West is definitely purgatory-level.

At a time when social media is buzzing about Durant's season reimbursement, the league has released the All-Star second-round ballots.

Tang Tian is still strong, with a total of 1.2 million votes in the second round, and has extended the lead over James (700,000 votes) to a full 500,000 votes.

He also easily became the king of the second round.

If the momentum continues, there is a good chance that he will be able to beat his vote count last year.

It is worth mentioning that Curry also has more than 700,000 votes, and he only has more than 300 fewer votes than James.

With the rise of the Warriors, this little man, who was affected by an ankle injury, finally officially stepped into the ranks of superstars.

Over the next week, the Pelicans played against the Jazz, 76ers and Suns.

They won them all, extending their winning streak to six.

It was also at this time that the league announced a new edition of the MVP rankings.

The Warriors have gained momentum, surpassing the Hawks next door to the top of the league, and Curry has also moved from third to first.

James is still in second place.

Tang Tian also surpassed Harden to move to the third position.

Harden was fourth.

Anthony and Griffin followed.

Ranking improvement is a good thing, and good things come in pairs.

Just after this list was updated, Tang Tian also received a text message from Yao Ming.

After several months of preparatory work, the Basketball Association and the Basketball Management Center were officially separated.

And at the first meeting of the Basketball Association that just ended, Yao Ming officially became the new chairman of the Basketball Association.

Because of Tang Tian's intervention, Yao Ming became the chairman of the Basketball Association earlier than in history!

This is definitely a historic moment for Chinese basketball.

Tang Tian also breathed a long sigh when he saw the news, two years was enough time for Yao Ming to do something, and he was more relaxed in dating in London than in London.

The Pelicans' next game against the Kings is the Kings.

This series of opponents is not strong, and this can be regarded as an absolutely sweet schedule.

If they can win the tournament, they will have the longest winning streak of the season.

The game was played at the Kings' home court, with the Pelicans arriving in Sacramento a day early.

The Kings are a veteran team in the NBA, having joined the NBA in the forties of the last century, but its glory was also in that era.

After winning the NBA championship as the Rochester Royals in the 1950~51 season, they failed to regain their glory.

When the team changed its name to the Kings and moved to Sacramento, they failed to make it to the Division Finals.

In the Cousins era, they had never made the playoffs.

The team brought in the famous coach George Karl this season, and the team has not yet improved, and it already gives people a feeling of rotten to the bone.

Against such an opponent, the Pelicans' only goal is to win and continue to extend their winning streak.

After the team's daily training was over, Tang Tian stayed to practice, and he found Nash coaching Dinwiddie in training.

That kind of scene has been going on for the past week, and Nash really hasn't been a three-minute hot spot for Dinwiddie.

After the training, Tang Tian couldn't help but curiously pull Dinwiddie to chat and ask about what happened between him and Nash.

To his surprise, Dinwiddie didn't know.

"You don't know? When did Nash start mentoring you? What happened that day? ”

Tang Tian was even more curious.

"Nothing happened, it was team training, I carried bags for my teammates, bought doughnuts, participated in team training, practiced and went home."

Dinwiddie recounted everything that had happened that day.

When Dinwiddie spoke, Tang Tian also remembered what day it was, Nash came that day, and his two daughters.

By the way, Nash came suddenly that day, and Dinwiddie bought less donuts, so he made another trip and bought Nash and his daughter's share.

That's not a big deal, and no one cares.

But it seems, that's what makes everything happen.

Nash doted on his daughter, perhaps because of Dinwiddie's behavior, he went to mentor him, or maybe it was because he discovered that his son was teachable.

Most things don't happen earth-shattering, and a lot of success doesn't depend on a single thing, this kind of natural is the norm.

"Keep up the good work, with Nash to guide you, you will improve very quickly."

Tang Tian said with a smile at the end.

Historically, Dinwiddie has been on many teams, experienced ups and downs, and finally made a name for himself with the Nets.

But history has changed, and now that Nash has another kick, Dinwiddie is sure to be a lot faster.

The next night, the game between the Kings and Pelicans officially kicked off at Arco Arena.

The arena was packed.

This is a very abnormal phenomenon, the Kings have a poor record in recent years, and the attendance should be very low in theory.

But in reality, the Kings had a very high attendance both during the Royals and after moving to Sacramento.

It's a scene that can't be understood by common sense, and the only explanation is that, maybe it's really like the name of the team, and the fans have a natural belief in the team.

The Kings Cousins is in charge, and last season he brought in Gay, and the dual-core plus a number of role players such as Collison and Landry are not bad on paper.

After the game started, the Kings also played back and forth with the Pelicans.

Whiteside, who had performed well before, was clearly suppressed by Cousins this time.

Confrontation and technology are at a disadvantage in an all-round way.

The two teams were deadlocked for nearly a quarter and a half.

The turning point of the game came in the second half of the second quarter.

In order to counter Cousins, the Pelicans fielded an interior combination of Whiteside and Evans.

Evans didn't play much after being squeezed out of the rotation by Jokic, but as a veteran, he was very professional and maintained his competitive form.

Cousins' play was noticeably less comfortable than before.

And Evans is a Kings veteran, he is very familiar with Cousins' style of play, and various positions when defending make Cousins very uncomfortable.

Cousins couldn't play well, and the mood on his face was getting worse and worse.

After being knocked away by Tang Tian in a defense and being whistled for a defensive foul, if Carl hadn't shouted at him on the side, he would have gotten up and gone straight away.

Tang Tian hit both free throws, and the Pelicans stretched the margin to double digits.

The Kings are still poor, with Cousins and Gay having a dozen lineups in the East, but they are on the verge of the playoffs if they survive in the West.

Kings' offensive round.

Cousins held the ball in the high post, the Kings' tactical run, and he saw that the defender in front of him was Tang Tian, and he played directly with his back.

The situation was unfavorable, he played fiercely, and obviously wanted to avenge the ball just now.

Tang Tian was also fierce at the beginning, and when he felt Cousins' strength reach the peak, he lay back.

He did it on purpose, but Cousins was so ferocious that he was knocked out and slid straight off the free-throw line.

The referee immediately blew the whistle for Cousins' offensive foul.

When Cousins saw the referee's gesture, his temper could no longer be controlled, and he roared directly at the referee.

Although after becoming the core of the team, Tang Tian does not need to take on too many defensive tasks, but it is not easy for anyone to fight him if he is really defending one-on-one.

Otherwise, last season's opponent knew that he was single-core, and they could grab him and chisel hard to consume physical strength.

Even an interior player like Cousins, who is not in the low post under the basket, can't take too much advantage.

Tang Tian's trick of fake wrestling actors is a sharp weapon.

The referee blew for a technical foul on Cousins in an attempt to shut him up.

But it backfired, and even with his teammates pulling, Cousins was still roaring.

Carl was on the sidelines before, but it was the offensive half, and Carl couldn't get through.

In the end, the referee couldn't bear it anymore and gave a second technical foul.

Cousins accumulated two technical fouls and was ejected straight home.

The scene was in an uproar.

Carl looked sluggish at halftime and was only two months with the Kings, but it was Cousins' third ejection this season.

The first time, he was still arguing for Cousins, the second time he could only shake his head helplessly, and now the third time, he is speechless.

After 30 years as a coach, he was the first time he had coached a player with such a short temper.

And unlike the Rashid Wallace he had seen at the beginning, Wallace was often honest after eating T, or Wallace's purpose was to motivate his teammates.

But Cousins is like a big kid who can't control his temper, the completely brainless kind.

He felt like he couldn't stand this kind of coaching.

The Kings brought him in to change the team, not to make him angry.

Cousins was ejected, and the Kings experienced the habitual collapse they used to experience.

The Pelicans won 109-88 over the Kings to snap their longest seven-game winning streak of the season.

After the game, the Pelicans were cheering in the locker room.

After this game, they will play the Warriors in their next game.

The Pelicans lost last time, and this time they're definitely going to win it back.

And Davis will also officially welcome a comeback in that game.

That would be their chance for revenge.

There was cheering on the Pelicans' side, but the atmosphere on the Kings' side was the complete opposite.

They have suffered a five-game losing streak in the New Year and are yet to win a single one.

Carl went into the locker room and spoke to Cousins.

The voices of the two exchanged loud and loud voices, and finally turned into a fierce quarrel.

Although the situation was quelled by the team's new vice president of operations, Divac, who rushed over, this was already heard by reporters outside several locker rooms.

Cousins was not present at the post-game press conference.

A reporter asked about the previous altercation in the locker room.

"It was an exchange."

Carl's answer was quite official.

"I want DeMarcus to learn how to approach the game right, he's the heart and soul of the team, he has to put winning first, learn to control his emotions, it's not a college game, it's the NBA."

But what he said later was not so polite.

It can be seen that what Divac has done in the locker room is not enough, and Karl is openly dissing Cousins' temper problem.

But that's probably Karl's style, and he's publicly criticized Anthony when he's been with the Nuggets before.

Sacramento is still full of storms.

Two days later, Davis officially returned, and the Pelicans, who were fully line-up, faced the Warriors again.

Tang Tian quickly got into the groove after the opening, leading the team to a 60-50 lead over the Warriors at halftime.

The Pelicans' winning streak is in full swing, and the whole team is in hot form.

The only one who didn't play well was Davis, who made just 1 of 6 shots in the first half and just returned from a wrist injury, and he didn't feel very good.

In the third quarter, the situation on the court changed abruptly, and the Splash Brothers started their daily rampage.

Curry threw two steps from beyond the three-point line, and Thompson hit Ariza with back-to-back three-pointers, and the Warriors quickly caught up and overtook the score.

They scored 40 points in a single quarter and came back to lead the Pelicans 90-80 at the end of the third quarter.

In the last quarter, Tang Tian frantically cut points, shot and hit, played a superstar style, scored 20 points in a single quarter, and led the Pelicans to tie the score.

In the final moments, he was caught by a three-man Warriors and gave the ball to Davis, who hit a key mid-range shot.

Bogut took the rebound and gave it to Curry, who threw it straight past halfway to end the game.

Curry chipped in a Warriors-high 41 points and eight assists.

Tang Tiantian scored 50 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists, but he still regrettably lost.

Both played MVP-caliber performances.

The game was played in full swing, and the fans also talked about it after the game.

"I especially found out that Tang has a tendency to become the leader of the empty slash group this season!"

"Don really tried his best, this is Davis's pot, he shot 5 of 15 from the field, which is obviously not up to par, including the last mid-range, if he throws, this game will be a different ending."

"Big love Curry, his performance this season is phenomenal, Kerr completely liberated him, that really made me wet."

"The Pelicans are also playing well, Davis just comes back and it will take time to adjust, and when he finds his touch, it's hard to say who will win and who will lose, and I'm now looking forward to the two teams meeting in the playoffs!"

"That's probably going to the West Finals, if it really happens, it will definitely be a round-and-neck game!"

……

The heat after the game was so high that even the league official tweeted.

"A matchup between two MVP players, Stephen Curry led the team to the last laugh, an epoch-making player."

This tweet supported Curry and the Warriors in an absolutely positive way.

The league seems to be desperate for a new label figure.

Office of the Alliance.

Xiao Hua's mood at the moment is really indescribably good.

Last year, he made the dream of the Heat's Big Three come true, which played a very positive role in the ball market.

But he soon discovered that the pace of the NBA game was too slow and the game was too lengthy.

This is very detrimental to the promotion of the competition, and it is easy to get sleepy.

Therefore, it is necessary to speed up the pace of the game and improve the spectacle of the game.

Curry's appearance is simply just right, the three-pointers in the midfield, and the three-pointers in the far range can not only speed up the pace of the game, but also ignite the scene instantly.

Although Curry is too old to be the next player in the league, it is very suitable to be a tag figure.

That would be a huge overhaul for the Alliance.

And that's exactly what he desperately wants to see, and he's going to make drastic reforms.

So he really can't wait to use the official to show support for Curry and the Warriors.

Although this doesn't seem very suitable, didn't Stern also support Tang Tian in this way?

At best, he just emulated.

ps: Special thanks to SeanBB for the reward!