Chapter 1 Tang Tian's Choice

When Tang Tian said his first pick, the TNT studio suddenly fell silent.

The fans in front of the TV were also stunned, all thinking they had misheard.

Tang Tian, chose Durant as his first pick?!

Of the eight people, the least likely to be chosen was Durant!

There are many stories in the NBA, and many grudges, such as the one between Kobe and O'Neal, such as the one between James and Wade…

But between Tang Tian and Durant, there is no grudge, only hatred!

Since entering the league, Durant has been unhappy with Tang Tian because of Nike, and has been using a small account to criticize Tang Tian ever since.

Even his free agent choices and several changes in his personality are related to Tang Tian.

Tang Tian has never praised Durant in public or in private.

But now, Tang Tian chose Durant as his first pick!

"Did I hear that wrong?"

Barkley confirmed with Tang Tian.

"No, I choose Kevin Durant."

Tang Tian nodded and repeated.

"Can you tell us why?"

Barkley asked, which is what everyone was curious about.

"No reason."

Tang Tian didn't explain.

In fact, before the real selection, he hadn't thought about choosing Durant, but when it really started, he chose him.

It may be related to the change in Durant's personality when he played against the Lakers last time.

It may also be because he and Durant have always been opponents, but have never played on the same team, and he wanted to experience the feeling of the two playing together.

Or, like he said, there was no reason, but he just wanted to choose him.

Barkley saw that Tang Tian didn't seem to be lying, although it sounded strange, but he chose him.

A suburban mansion somewhere in Los Angeles.

The Lakers didn't have training scheduled this morning, and Durant was alone in his manor.

Smoking a cigar, holding a high-imitation Scarlett Johansson, drinking red wine, and logging into his Twitter alt account, watching the draft live.

He's not only a little handsome, but his quality of life is also a bit high.

But when he heard Tang Tian's first pick was him, he was completely stunned.

His emotions at that moment were indescribably complex.

There was doubt, shock, anger, unwillingness, and indescribable emotions.

If you had to describe his mood at the moment in one sentence.

What is this all about!

That's probably the best description.

But when he calmed down, he felt a little bit of joy in his heart.

After so many years, this was the first time Tang Tian had recognized him, especially after surpassing him.

When this emotion appeared, his emotions became even more complicated.

Tang Tian! Why did it have to be like this!

…

The draft live on TNT continued.

Antetokounmpo's first pick was Irving, as he said before.

Tang Tian's second choice was Walker.

This choice wasn't too strange, apart from the brotherhood of hard training, Walker was the only point guard left among the remaining six.

And this year's All-Star Game is in Boston, Walker is the host, so he had to choose him.

Antetokounmpo followed by choosing James.

Tang Tian then took Leonard.

It has to be said that the benefits of being the first pick are many.

Antetokounmpo followed by choosing Harden. Of the remaining two guards, Harden's strength is clearly stronger than DeRozan's.

Tang Tian's fourth choice was Horford, not because he wanted to grab Antetokounmpo's teammate, but because the lineup he had chosen before was more perimeter-oriented.

Antetokounmpo finally took DeRozan.

After both sides finished selecting, the starting lineups for the East and West were also determined.

Team Tang Tian: Walker, Tang Tian, Durant, Leonard, Horford.

Team Antetokounmpo: Irving, Harden, DeRozan, James, Antetokounmpo.

Compared to last year, this year's lineup is obviously much more balanced.

Last year, fans saw a good show of underdog winning at the All-Star Game. This year, they can watch an evenly matched contest.

After the starters, Antetokounmpo and Tang Tian also successively selected the bench lineups.

Like the starters, the strength of the bench is also relatively balanced.

Team Tang Tian: Davis, Jimmy Butler, Westbrook, Drummond, Beal, Russell.

Team Antetokounmpo: Curry, George, Embiid, Lillard, Lowry, Hayward, Randle.

Such a balanced lineup makes fans look forward to the regular game again.

The draft live broadcast has ended, but fans are still discussing it on social media.

Tang Tian's first pick of Durant is naturally the focus of fans' discussion.

Some people say that Tang Tian is purely for the sake of the show, and some people say that Tang Tian is deliberately trying to disgust Durant.

Some people even speculate that this is Tang Tian's psychological warfare, wanting to disrupt the Lakers' team atmosphere!

There are various opinions, but Tang Tian didn't pay attention to them.

Because on the day after the trade deadline, the Pelicans will be at home, ushering in the second game of the season against the Lakers.

The last time the two teams played was two months ago, when Tang Tian scored 82 points and hit a three-pointer to kill the Lakers.

That game was epic, and now that they are facing each other again after two months, fans are full of expectations for this game.

For the Pelicans, this game has advantages and disadvantages compared to the last time they played.

The advantage is that this game is played at home.

The disadvantage is that because the trade medical examination has not been completed, Gasol has not yet reported to the team.

In addition, with Dedmon already leaving the team, the Pelicans only have Harrell and Robinson available as centers in this game.

Amid the anticipation of the fans, the game kicked off at the New Orleans Arena that night.

The venue was packed, and the ratings of major sports channels were also high.

The Pelicans-Warriors battle of the past was the focus of fans' expectations, but now it has turned into the Pelicans-Lakers battle.

Every game has the same level of attention as the Finals.

This time, the Lakers clearly had the upper hand.

From the start of the game, they had been pressing the Pelicans.

All the way to the fourth quarter, they had already extended their lead to 15 points.

But with Tang Tian on the Pelicans, it was obviously not easy to lose.

In the most critical quarter, Tang Tian showed the strength of the NBA's number one player in history, scoring 23 points in a single quarter, and forcibly led the team to tie the score at the last moment.

The two sides entered overtime.

In the first overtime, Tang Tian's state picked up and his offensive momentum didn't diminish, but the Lakers didn't show any weakness either.

Durant's buzzer-beating three-pointer at the last moment helped the Lakers tie the score again.

The two teams entered the second overtime.

In this overtime, the Lakers frantically double-teamed Tang Tian. The Pelicans originally had a chance to kill the game at the last moment, but Alexander, who received the ball, failed to make the shot.

The final score between the two teams was fixed at 121 to 119. This time, the Lakers had the last laugh.

James and Durant combined for 82 points, accounting for two-thirds of the team's points, demonstrating the superstars' individual abilities to the fullest.

On the Pelicans' side, Tang Tian scored 61 points, and Davis had 20+10.

Following the Christmas game, the two teams played another epic game.

But the most excited were the Lakers fans.

The last time the Lakers lost in the Christmas game under the spotlight, but this time they won it back!

They completed their revenge!

After the game, the slogan "Lakers Champions" resounded through social media.