The Utah Jazz's Energy Solutions Arena has been one of the NBA's most famous devils' home arenas, with the exception of Jerry. Another reason for the toughness of the Jazz during the Sloan era was the elevation of the Energy Solutions arena at 1,297 kilometers. A lot of players can't perform at their best in such thin air.

However, the elevation of the Energy Solutions Arena pales in comparison to the Pepsi Center in Denver. At 1,606 kilometers above sea level, it is the highest home stadium in the NBA.

Many players who are new to the Nuggets will be tormented by the thin air. Among them is the legendary center Mutombo. According to him, he couldn't even finish training when he first arrived at the Nuggets.

However, once they get used to it, the Nuggets players can make this place a nightmare for their enemies in the half.

Yao Ming once said that playing in Denver would be very difficult to play for a while.

Maddie hated Denver even more, and his words were even more exaggerated: "In the first five minutes of Denver, I felt like I was going to die. ”

Let's get closer, after this season's Lakers vs Nuggets game, even the "humanoid tank" LeBron . James also said that the Denver Plateau stifled his play.

Although on the surface, it seems that there are very few cases of players underperforming when players play at PepsiCenter. But how uncomfortable it is to play in that place, only the players themselves know.

Maybe some players can adapt after five minutes, but that five minutes of adaptation is enough to give the Nuggets a huge advantage.

As a strong professional footballer, it is not too difficult to adapt to the thin air of Denver. But for Henson, a 40-year-old man with a heart condition, it was a bit reluctant to adapt to the heights of Denver.

"Boss, how do you feel?" As soon as they got off the plane, the players cared about Henson.

In the previous two seasons, whenever he came to Denver to play, Henson's reaction was very strong. After all, as an Eastern Conference team, the Pacers only come to Denver once a season. In the playoffs, Henson doesn't have to worry about meeting Denver.

But it's because he only comes once a season that Henson has struggled to adapt here.

"I'm fine, I'm fine."

Henson smiled and waved at everyone, not wanting the team to worry about himself. In fact, Henson did feel a lot more comfortable this year, not as much as he did in the previous two seasons. But to say that there was no reaction at all is impossible.

Although altitude sickness generally occurs when the human body quickly ascends to an altitude of more than 3,000 meters, Henson may be a little too sensitive to thin air.

In the first two seasons, Henson, although he reacted strongly when he was unwell, even if he handed the game directly to Becky. Hamon, there won't be much of a problem either.

But this year is different, the Denver Nuggets are no longer a lottery team, they have become one of the Western Conference dominants. The strength of the team that can compete with the Warriors in the West should not be underestimated.

Henson can only hope that he can hold on on to the court today and not be blinded by the uncomfortable reaction.

In key games, the manager's on-the-spot scheduling is very important. Especially with a team like the Nuggets, as long as they don't react at all, they will completely bury the opponent with fierce attacks.

This season, there are already a lot of teams that have suffered at PepsiCenter. Among them, including the Golden State Warriors!

In any case, this trip to Denver will certainly not make Henson feel happy.

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Nikolai. Jokic sat on the bench while the arena was empty and the Nuggets players were actively warming up.

As a team that has a chance to compete with the Warriors for the first place in the West this year, the Nuggets, like the Pacers, are unwilling to give up any game to win.

Maybe the Warriors, who have already won the championship and 73 wins, won't care about the No. 1 ranking in the West. But the Nuggets are different, they have been dormant for too long, and they are in desperate need of results and accolades to prove themselves.

Even if this result is only the first place in the West in the regular season.

At this point, the Nuggets had already done several rounds of warm-ups, and they took this game very seriously. Just as Jokic was resting, the visitors entered.

As soon as Henson led the team into the Pepsi Center, his eyes were unconsciously looking for Jokic. He had his attention to that amazing second-round pick, but with the chips at the time, he could only get Siakam and not Jokic.

Sure enough, most of the people who are favored by Henson can mix heads and faces. Now that Cousins is not as good as he used to be, Henson thinks it's not an exaggeration to say that Jokic is the league's No. 1 center.

Although this guy doesn't have Embiid's excellent running and jumping ability, and he doesn't have the wonderful dunk performances of Capela and others, he is the most comprehensive.

Response, Three-pointer, Ball Possession, Low Post Offense, Defense, Reading the Game...... Jokic is very balanced in every one of his abilities. Cutting off three pairs was like taking something out of his pocket.

This season, Jokic is averaging 20.5 points, 7.2 assists and 10.8 rebounds per game. Such an all-round skill, not every big guy can play.

Finally, Henson saw the amazing big man on the bench in the other half. In the first two seasons, Jokic's performance was not as dominant. And this year, the white center will undoubtedly need Henson's focus on defense.

After staring at Jokic for a few moments, Henson's eyes suddenly widened. Because he found that Jokic, who was sitting on the bench, actually had several layers of fat on his stomach......

"Uh...... That guy's body doesn't look like an NBA-level professional player at all......" Henson smiled, the nickname Human Pork Belly Essence is simply a perfect match for Jokic.

Of course, Henson also knows very well that this seemingly harmless little chubby dun is not so easy to deal with on the court. Whether or not he can contain Jokic will be the key to whether Henson can win the game today.

Unlike most interior lines, Henson doesn't need to send heavy interior players and Jokic to the low post. To really curb Jokic's power, it is precisely his passing that needs to be contained!

The Nuggets are a team that plays and cuts very well, and with Jokic as the high point, the high position strategy makes the Nuggets' passing and cutting play well.

What Henson has to do is to contain the Nuggets' offense with excellent defense first. After the Nuggets start to get tired, they use fast-paced offense to disrupt the Nuggets' own rhythm.

Jokic, despite his versatility, has always been a slow center. Once the tempo is raised, this guy will have to run back and forth.

As long as you grasp the weakness of the other party and amplify it, it is not so difficult to defeat the first place in the west.

The biggest problem facing Henson now is actually the altitude of the Pepsi Center.

As the head coach, Henson should not be in any physical condition as long as he calms down a little bit today and doesn't yell at will.

But the players are different, they need to exercise at this altitude with a high load, and their fitness will be affected to some extent.

At critical moments, hopefully fitness issues won't be a burden for the walkers.

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"Nikolai. Jokic has been in great form lately, having a near-triple-double of 15 points, eight assists and 14 rebounds in his last game against the Wizards. In the previous game against the Knicks, he had 21 points, 6 assists and 17 rebounds. There's no doubt that Jokic's form is only better today. ”

Before the start of the game, the commentators were talking about a topic - Nikolai. Jokic.

He is the key to the Nuggets' victory, and he is also the reason why the Nuggets can rank first in the West.

Of course, in addition to Jokic, Denver's thin air is a big obstacle for walkers. Eh, the starters from both sides are out. Let's see what kind of lineup Coach Henson will put out this time. ”

The on-site commentator took the starting list in his hand, and then compared the starting lineup actually sent by Henson, and couldn't help but be a little disappointed.

Brogdon, Oladipo, Paul. George, Antetokounmpo, and Brooke. Lopez, Henson didn't change lineups, but instead fielded a very regular lineup to deal with the West first.

"Hmm...... It seems that Coach Henson is very confident, he did not change the formation today, and this lineup is simply too regular to be regular. I don't know if Coach Henson's self-confidence can be translated into victory. ”

"Damn, do you look down on the number one in the West so much?" On the other side, Nuggets coach Mike Brown. Malone pouted.

He's not angry, Mike. Malone wished that Henson would look down on him. Because the more he looks down on himself, the more likely the Nuggets will win.

But in reality, Henson never underestimated his opponents. The reason why he didn't change formation was simply because he was afraid of Mike. Malone suddenly changed his playing style.

If it turns out that Mike. Malone is still fighting with conventional tactics, and Henson will be relieved to boldly carry out his plan.

The godfather of the championship will not be so easy to be careless.