Chapter 2 The Turnaround

Both sides brought on their main players with substitutes to start the second quarter.

Green was subbed back onto the court by Kerr.

Green had always been the core of the Warriors' interior lineup, and his contract was also a factor.

Even though he played a bit badly in this game, Kerr couldn't easily just not use him.

He put Green on the court at several different key moments to see if Green could still be of use.

He soon had his answer.

The Pelicans' offensive possession didn't score, and Looney grabbed the defensive rebound.

After receiving the ball, Green went coast to coast and scored a layup.

Harrell's catch-and-shoot layup was interfered with again by Looney, who was also playing a bit aggressively.

The Warriors launched another defensive counterattack, and this time Green made a long pass from the backcourt to Thompson, who soared for a layup to score another two points.

The point difference was quickly reduced to 12 points.

Kerr on the sidelines nodded repeatedly.

Green was still doing a good job leading the team during the substitute rotation.

Stevens walked to the sideline at this time to remind the players to run their offensive plays properly.

The team's problems during this period were more on the offensive end.

However, the Pelicans' frontcourt tactics still didn't work.

On the one hand, the Warriors successfully launched consecutive defensive counterattacks after the second quarter started, and their momentum was up.

On the other hand, Davis's absence had a greater impact during this stage, and the Pelicans didn't have a reliable tactical finisher on the court.

The ball ended up in Siakam's hands, and he dribbled towards the inside, but the Warriors knew his shooting was unstable and quickly contracted their defense.

Siakam was eventually forced to make a bailout pass to Kuzma.

With the offensive time running out, Kuzma was basically taking a contested shot even though he was open.

As soon as the ball left his hand, the red light on the sideline came on.

It was a buzzer-beater.

The Warriors had made a successful defensive play.

An excited look burst out in the eyes of the fans at the scene.

One more defensive counterattack, and the Warriors would have a chance to reduce the point difference to single digits!

"Swish!"

But to their surprise, Kuzma's last-second contested shot went in!

Kerr slapped his forehead hard.

What was going on?

Green, Brogdon, Siakam, and now Kuzma too?

Was the Pelicans' outside line collectively erupting tonight?!

They weren't trying to let anyone live, were they!

Fortunately, Thompson showed the results of his hard training, immediately answering with a catch-and-shoot three-pointer after receiving a pass from Green in the next possession.

The point difference was still 12 points.

"Defense! Defense!"

The fans at the scene also let out a shout, Thompson's answer ball boosted morale.

Parker and Siakam ran a pick-and-roll, but there was no opportunity to break through to the basket.

He looked back and saw Siakam turning around to set another screen for Kuzma.

A small-scale collaboration between the two forwards, and this collaboration was very effective, Siakam blocked both Thompson and Green.

Parker passed the ball, and Kuzma took a catch-and-shoot three-pointer.

This was an opportunity.

Kerr stood up suddenly.

Kuzma's previous shot had a lot of luck involved.

This shot...

"Swish!"

With a crisp sound, Kuzma hit consecutive three-pointers!

His performance in the opening game was not good, but he had found his touch from the preseason tonight!

Kerr plopped back down on the bench.

The sidelines were buzzing.

In the Pelicans' opening game, everyone except Tang Tian was collectively lost, but in this game, first it was Green, then Brogdon, and now Kuzma.

They had collectively found their touch in the second game!

The fans at Oracle Arena couldn't help but have a thought pop into their heads.

Those damned Pelicans, were they messing with them?

They should know that just two days ago, many of them were still complaining about the Pelicans, complaining about Green, and complaining about Kuzma on social media.

This slap in the face had come too quickly.

The Pelicans were playing a one-star-four-shooters strategy, and they made another 6 three-pointers in this quarter, throwing in 11 three-pointers in two quarters!

This directly stunned the Warriors, who should know that the three-point rain was their specialty!

At the end of the first half, the Pelicans had already widened the point difference to beyond 25 points.

This fake Pelicans team was completely different from the real Pelicans team in the opening game!

"I was wrong, damn it, Tang is a ruthless guy, and the Pelicans are also a bunch of tough guys, the slap in the face came too fast!"

"Barkley: I learned my lesson after being slapped in the face a few times, I'll never bet against the Pelicans again, if I bet, I'll firmly stand on the Pelicans' side!"

"Are there still people who say the Pelicans, Lakers, and Spurs aren't in the same tier? This is still the no-Davis Pelicans, and they're hanging the Warriors up and beating them!"

"Tang is too imba! One star and four shooters is invincible!"

"Why do I automatically add the word 'set' whenever I see 'no Davis'?"

…

In the second half, the Pelicans' outside shooting touch declined somewhat, and the Warriors took the opportunity to launch an offensive.

The Splash Brothers combined for 25 points in this quarter, and the Warriors won 10 points in the third quarter alone, entering the final quarter with a 15-point deficit.

A 15-point point difference still meant there was a chance, and the fans at Oracle Arena rekindled their passion.

However, Tang Tian stood out in the final quarter, scoring 20 points in a single quarter and single-handedly making the game lopsided again.

In the earlier part of the game, Tang Tian was mostly passing after driving, and his scoring wasn't particularly high, but his performance in this quarter reminded the fans at the scene of what had just happened.

Tang Tian had scored a whopping 73 points in the opening game!

In the end, the Pelicans swept away the sluggishness of the opening game and defeated the Warriors 121-99 on the road, ushering in a two-game winning streak to start the season.

Curry had 31 points in vain, Thompson had 21 points, and Green had 16 points, 5 rebounds, and 10 assists.

Siakam had 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists, Green made 5 of 8 three-pointers and scored 17 points, Brogdon had 12 points and 6 assists, and Kuzma had 11 points and 3 rebounds.

The Pelicans made 22 three-pointers in the game, almost breaking the NBA record for three-pointers made in a single game.

Green, Brogdon, and Kuzma, the Pelicans' group of shooters, had each made the fans eat their words.

If the game hadn't been made uncompetitive by Tang Tian in the final moments, breaking the record would have been a certainty.

Tang Tian scored a game-high 42 points, plus 10 rebounds and 12 assists.

In the first game, he broke his career single-game scoring record with 73 points, and in the second game, he directly had a 40+ triple-double.

Tang Tian had received some criticism for getting the MVP last season, and he was responding with an absolutely explosive performance.

And he averaged 57.5 points in two games.

More and more fans agreed with what O'Neal said in the commentary booth.

With Walker and Butler gone, and now with Davis out due to injury, they could really see the Tang Tian who scored like crazy two years ago.

After taking down the Warriors, the Pelicans' morale was high.

After a two-day rest, they flew to Dallas to face the Mavericks.

Although the Mavericks lost Jokic in the summer, their strength was still strong, and they were still a strong contender for the championship.

In the eyes of the fans, this game would be even harder than playing the Warriors.

However, the process of the game once again exceeded their expectations.

The Pelicans' outside shooters still had their touch, and Carlisle didn't have many ways to deal with the one-star-four-shooters strategy.

The Pelicans pressed the Mavericks from the start to the end, and eventually easily defeated their opponents 110-97, ushering in a three-game winning streak to start the season.

Tang Tian scored another triple-double with 40 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists.

Two days later, the Pelicans returned to their home court to welcome the Pacers, led by Ball and Bogdanovic.

This was also their relatively weakest opponent since the start of the season, and the game was decided in three quarters, and the Pelicans also successfully achieved a four-game winning streak to start the season.

Tang Tian, again scoring a triple-double with 31 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in three quarters!

After four games, he averaged 46.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 11.5 assists!

When Walker and Butler left, and Davis was out, everyone realized how terrifying Tang Tian's current strength was!