This Forward is Not Serious

Time flies, and in a blink of an eye, it has been a month since the NCAA started.

Durant and Lin Ying's defensive ability has improved rapidly.

As Springman said, defensive skills and physical talent determine the defensive ceiling.

They are learning skills. In terms of talent, the most important thing in defensive talent is wingspan, which is exactly what they all have.

And what's interesting is that since Durant started practicing defense, one of the things he must do after every game is to ask Springman how his defense is, even on nights when he scored 30+.

Springman is sometimes dumbfounded by him.

But this also just shows Durant's character. Barnes criticized him for not defending well, so he just studied defense.

On this day, the University of Texas will face the Iowa State University Cyclones at home.

Barnes announced in the training session that Dj Augustin and Lin Ying will start the game!

After his announcement, his teammates congratulated Lin Ying and Augustine.

In the past month, the University of Texas played a total of 8 games, with a record of 4 wins and 4 losses.

Counting the 1 win and 2 losses in the opening game, their subsequent record is 3 wins and 2 losses.

After gradually adapting to the intensity of college competition, the freshmen of the University of Texas began to gradually show their talents, and the team record improved.

In addition to Durant's visible defensive progress, Lin Ying and Augustin's performance is also very impressive.

Lin Ying is improving steadily, getting more and more playing time, and her performance is getting better and better.

And Augustine's scalpel-style breakthroughs, precise three-pointers, and excellent breakthrough ability have also begun to show their glory.

However, the performance of the University of Texas so far can only be regarded as OK.

Because big12 itself is not a major league, winning the championship is almost the only way to enter the crazy three.

And according to the rules, the big12 teams only play a total of 22 games in the official regular season, and after 8 games, it means that one-third of the season has passed.

Now their record ranks 7th in the big12 league.

If they can't improve their ranking in the following games, they are likely to encounter Kansas early in the playoffs.

Once out of the game early, let alone winning the championship, the chances of getting a wild card are very slim.

This is also the reason why Barnes adjusted the starting lineup earlier than expected, and adjusted two people at once.

Every next game will be critical for the University of Texas.

Let's talk about Barnes's choice of timing.

The Iowa State University Cyclones are named after an NFL game played in the 1950s.

At that time, the whirlwind was blowing in the state of Iowa, and the team also bloodbathed the opponent 36-0 in the game that night, hence the name of the whirlwind team.

As you can tell from this history, the sports strength of this college is football.

In terms of basketball, it is much weaker in comparison.

In one sentence, this ancestor is poorer than the Texas Tech team that played in the opener.

The only thing that can be done is Jeff Hornacek, whose future daughter is more famous than his father.

So far, Hornacek still maintains the Cyclones' record of eight majors, which further proves the mediocrity of this college.

Even in Lin Ying's memory, this college has never produced an All-Star player in the future.

Even now, Iowa State University has only one point guard named Mike Taylor, who is a rookie at the end of the second round.

So this choice of Barnes is also reasonable.

There was no class on the game day, and Lin Ying and Durant spent the whole day in the training hall again.

Even the security guards at the door are used to them, and sometimes they will give them the keys to let them practice opening the door in advance.

"It's your first start, are you nervous?"

After the training, the two sat on the ground against the wall to rest. Durant wiped his sweat and turned to look at Lin Ying.

Lin Ying nodded.

Although his overall performance in the previous games was on the rise, starting and subs are different.

The biggest difference is that opponents are likely to study him before the game, which will make him much less room to play.

"It's okay, just play a few more games."

As Durant spoke, he bumped Lin Ying's shoulder, which had become a habitual action between him and Lin Ying.

But he is also telling the truth. In the first game, he played power forward, and his first shot was almost a non-stick.

But now, his performance on the court can be regarded as more than enough.

"And with you around, it's a lot easier for me to score."

Durant laughed.

Although Randy Williams, who started before, was good, his passing vision and ability were too poor.

But Lin Ying is different. Apart from personal ability, the tacit understanding they cultivated in the training ground and high school is unmatched by anyone else.

"Then help me get a triple-double."

Lin Ying took the conversation.

Durant's smile stopped suddenly, and then he looked at Lin Ying blankly.

Lin Ying looked a little weird at him, and touched the corner of her mouth.

"What's wrong?"

"nothing."

Durant smiled and said nothing.

Lin Ying is more and more different from when she was in high school.

...

There are only about two hours left before the start of the game.

Lin Ying and Durant ate something, took a short break, and then went to the basketball court.

The main venue of the University of Texas game is called the Frank Irving Special Events Center, which can accommodate up to 16,755 people to watch the game.

This is not a special case of the University of Texas. The venues used by NCAA Division I teams are basically of this level.

This is also an important reason why many people say that the NCAA games are comparable to the NBA.

When they arrived, there was still about an hour before the start of the game, but the fans had already arrived.

Two or three thousand Iowa State University fans also came to the scene and sat in the area directly facing the basket.

Although it was not the first home game, when they entered the stadium, adrenaline was still uncontrollably secreted with the atmosphere of the scene.

It's not that they're young, well, they're still young!

However, the atmosphere at the scene will make everyone's blood boil, not to mention that they are the ones who are going to play.

"Patient, careful, determined, defend your home field!"

After the warmup, Barnes turned up the volume and yelled.

His voice is loud and full of energy, and the team members feel refreshed when they hear it.

"Longhorn!"

The players folded their hands together, then pressed down together and shouted the team slogan.

Then, there is the opening ceremony!

Somewhat different from the NBA, the NCAA introduced the entire team at the opening ceremony, with the first five starting at the end.

The visiting team first, the lights on the scene are on when the visiting team is playing.

After the home team, the lights on the scene dimmed, and only the home team had the follow spot lights on at halftime.

The players played one by one, and finally the starting five.

"1.80 meters, from Missouri High Tower High School in New Orleans, DJ ~ Augustine!"

When the first starting name was read out, although the home fans were a little surprised, they cheered immediately.

"2 meters 01, from Washington Montrose Christian School, Lin~~ying!"

Then, when Lin Ying's name came out, the home fans were even more surprised, but the cheers were also louder!

With his tough defense and unique playing style, coupled with his unique skin color, Lin Ying already has many fans in Austin!

Augustin, James, Durant, Lin Ying, Wendell.

When the University of Texas starting lineup came out, the coaching staff at Iowa State University was very surprised.

As mentioned earlier, the NCAA is not like the NBA. There are not so many media and reporters paying attention to it. Iowa State University did not know about this adjustment before the game.

Moreover, Lin Ying's previous worries proved to be superfluous, because the head coach over there turned to ask the assistant coach beside him for his information.

Augustin's starting lineup seems to be a matter of course, although the talent is not as good as Durant is also a five-star high school student, and he was also selected for the McDonald's High School All-Star Game.

He played as a substitute earlier, and Barnes gave him a step-by-step process out of prudence.

But Lin Ying's high school rating is only three stars, one star with UCLA's Westbrook.

That's why when he first joined the team, Augustin didn't take much notice of Lin Ying.

Although the basketball system in the United States is very complete, just like the imperial examinations in ancient China, if you want to advance to the next step, you must be the best among your peers.

A three-star high school student obviously doesn't have the qualifications.

But at this stage, this is not a bad thing for Lin Ying.

Because at least he won't be targeted tonight!

After the introduction of the players, the head coaches of both sides followed.

Lin Ying, the head coach of Iowa State University, didn't know him, but he found a familiar face from the assistant coach.

Fred Hoiberg.

A lot of information related to Hoiberg also popped up in Lin Ying's mind.

Retired from the NBA in 2006, became the head coach of Iowa State University in 2010, became the head coach of the NBA Bulls in 2015 and briefly coached Derrick Rose, and was fired in 2018.

The timeline just matched up.

After the opening ceremony, the head coaches of both sides made the final tactical deployment, and the starters came on stage one after another.

Lin Ying took a deep breath before going on stage.

Durant bumped him on the shoulder when he saw it.

Looking at each other, Lin Ying nodded.

Opening Wendell and the opposing center's jump ball.

Accompanied by the cheers of the home fans, Wendell jumped high and turned the ball back to the half court. Augustine controlled the ball, and the University of Texas got the first chance to attack!

Lin Ying landed at the top of the arc, and Augustin handed the ball to him after advancing to the frontcourt.

After Barnes adopted Springman's suggestion to let Lin Ying start, he clarified his position as the core of tactics.

The game over the past month or so has proved that Lin Ying with the ball is more threatening.

So now let's think back to what Abrams said at the beginning. Although Barnes has a bad temper, he is indeed a good coach who knows people and makes good use of them.

Lin Ying holds the ball at the top of the arc and observes the running positions of teammates on the field.

There is a big difference in the style of play between starting and coming off the bench.

When playing as a substitute, he is more of an initiator of pick-and-roll tactics on the field and a tool man to open up space.

But when starting, he is more about connecting and organizing the team.

Because it was his first time starting, Lin Ying and this group of starting players did not have a long training time, so at this time it was more up to him to perform.

His "cpu" started to burn again.

The running positions of teammates on the field and the defense of opponents have become a string of data invisibly.

Soon, he came to a conclusion and set his sights on Augustine.

Iowa State started the game man-to-man, and the defense focused on Durant.

At this time, Augustin has already used James' cover to bounce out to the bottom corner for a three-pointer.

Iowa State's defensive rotation is much worse than that of Kansas, and the people who switch defenses are obviously slower.

Lin Ying passed the ball immediately.

That position, that kind of opportunity, Augustine's grasp is at least 50%!

The ball came to Augustin like a cannonball.

Like three-pointers, passing can also be trained. Thousands of passing practice can continuously improve the accuracy of passing.

Lin Ying's current passing ability is still B in his own rating. Excellent is not considered excellent, but it is more than enough to pass this kind of ball.

Augustin's reaction was quick, and he raised his hand to shoot after catching the ball, without giving the opponent a chance to defend.

"when!"

It's just a pity that the ball hit the edge of the basket and popped out.

His three-pointer was not able to hit.

As soon as I played, my hands were still a little cold.

Iowa State immediately played a defensive counterattack after protecting the defensive rebound.

After receiving the ball, Taylor accelerated past James' defense, fast breaks to the flying layup in the frontcourt...

"boom!"

He was directly chased by James!

The University of Texas countered the fast break, but Iowa State University's retreat was timely, and the fast break failed to turn into a position.

Augustin and Wendell hit a pick-and-roll and scored.

Augustine passed the ball a little low, and Wendell failed to catch the ball and let it go out of bounds.

Then, Iowa State's wave of positions still failed to score the ball...

The two teams played for more than a minute in the opening game, and they haven't scored yet!

The new lineup of the University of Texas is running in, while the Iowa State side is limited in strength, and the two sides are a bit pecking at each other!

Iowa State is not in a hurry, but the University of Texas, which is playing at home, is starting to be a little anxious.

The fans on the sidelines were restless. Obviously, the team's opening performance was far from what they expected!

Barnes moved unconsciously at this moment.

He has greatly adjusted the starting lineup, and he is also under tremendous pressure as the head coach.

On the court, Augustin hit a sudden point and knew it was not easy to hit, so he gave the ball to Lin Ying again.

Lin Ying continued to hold the ball at the top of the arc.

That's when the Iowa State fans behind the basket started booing.

Although this era is not a big man without outside play, the more famous one this season is Ryan Anderson of California Berkeley.

With an outside shooting rate close to 40%, Anderson averaged 17+ points per game in the past January and is the leading star of Berkeley.

However, stars with this style of play are not liked by fans of this era. Generally, those who play this way will be labeled "soft".

Dirk Nowitzki in the NBA is the most typical example.

Not to mention Lin Ying's skin color.

Lin Ying, this time she made a direct shot from outside the three-point line!

Loners tend to have low self-esteem and care about what other people think.

The reaction of Iowa State University fans gave him a strong urge to prove himself.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with this choice on the field.

As I said before, Iowa State University didn't know Lin Ying well, so the guards were at least two meters away from him.

It's basically a big void.

After the ball was released, Lin Ying's heart accelerated uncontrollably, and the sound of "bang bang" seemed to explode in her ears.

Although this is not the first time he has taken a three-pointer in an official game, it is not that he has not made a three-pointer.

But this ball is still very important to him!

When he decided to practice three-pointers and passing in high school, he had already defined himself as a space insider.

If he can't make three-pointers, then his "space" is impossible to talk about.

On a small scale, it's just a ball.

But on a bigger scale, this determines the University of Texas's opening style of play!

The crazy training showed its significance at this time, Lin Ying's shot was almost perfect in terms of strength and angle.

After the ball was shot, it drew a beautiful parabola with backspin in the air.

This ball can be scored just by looking at it!

"Shua!"

There was a crisp sound.

Lin Ying hit the first open goal on the court tonight!

Moreover, it is a three-pointer! !

The booing of the Iowa State University fans was instantly covered by the even louder cheers of the University of Texas fans.

The decibels are as high as the sonic boom of a fighter jet, and the shock makes people's eardrums hurt.

NCAA atmosphere! The atmosphere at home! !

Lin Ying also clenched her fist unconsciously.

At this time, Durant even ran to Lin Ying and shouted excitedly.

He looked more excited than Lin Ying.

This three-pointer broke the scoring shortage on the field, which is really exciting!

Iowa State University's offense, Taylor used the center's pick-and-roll to break through to the basket.

Judging from the two consecutive offenses in the opening game, because of limited talent, Iowa State University basically played with the ball in Taylor's hands alone.

However, Taylor's ability is indeed outstanding, and his immediate combat power and experience can be ranked at the bottom of the NCAA.

At this moment, he passed Wendell with a breakthrough and changed direction, and made a beautiful low layup.

"boom!"

But his ball was chased by the nail board again!

This time the person who blocked the shot was not James, but Lin Ying!

Lin Ying returned to the defense in advance when Taylor broke through, and then used Wendell's body to cover and kill by surprise!

The fact that the ball was able to reach it was still the same as it was shown in the opening game. Iowa State University knew too little about Lin Ying!

Anyone who has watched the video of the University of Texas game will know that Lin Ying moves frequently on the defensive end, so he must pay attention to his first move.

Poor Taylor, the big12 star guard, was rewarded with two big hats by James Lin Ying in the opening game.

He also looked confused: Are you two playing whack-a-mole?

After nailing the board, Lin Ying took off the defensive rebound, turned around and passed the ball to Augustin.

Augustin is already out of the three-point line.

He played as a substitute with Lin Ying before, and after a month of games, he has established a good tacit understanding.

When the ball is given, he speeds up and throws off the opponent's guard, rushes to the frontcourt for a fast break layup and then scores.

5 to 0!

The University of Texas took the lead in the offensive!

The cheers of the University of Texas fans at the scene were also one after another.

They can also see the progress of the team!

In the offense of Iowa State University, Taylor finally learned to be smart after being caught twice. This time he chose a mid-range shot after a screen.

This time he finally found a chance to show his scoring ability, and the ball fell into the net bag against the basket.

Iowa State also broke the scoring drought.

The possession of the ball was exchanged, and Lin Ying continued to hold the ball at the top of the arc.

After he hit that three-pointer, Iowa State University knew that he had three-point ability, which would make the power forward who defended him follow the three-point line.

Then, the sense of space on the court came out, just like the scene against Kansas before.

A very important point. Although the NCAA court is not as big as the NBA, if some inside players are pulled to the outside, their protection against the basket will be significantly weakened.

Unless there is a dominant center who can radiate the entire basket, the opponent's air cuts are hard to defend against.

that's the truth.

Wendell stuck the opponent's center, and Durant came out with James' cover.

His running position restrains most defenders, and James cuts back to the basket from the other side, and no one cares.

Lin Ying made an alley-oop pass directly to the basket!

James showed his top physical fitness, was led by the ball into the air, and the moment he caught the ball in the air, his head was flush with the basket.

"Boom!"

A one-handed alley catch, and then one-handed into two-handed, the ball was smashed into the basket!

To apply the classic commentary description of a certain rain in the future:

This ball it is quite burst!

The Frank Irwin Center is on fire!

Even on the bench, Barnes couldn't help getting up and punching excitedly.

Although the team didn't play very well at the beginning, the performance in the past few rounds has completely exceeded his expectations!

It kind of feels like...they just used the first few rounds to complete the running-in of the new lineup!

ps: The 2 chapters add up to 12,000 today, which is equivalent to 3 more words. Please vote and give a reward (づ￣3￣)づ╭～

Thanks to Salieri's neighbors and book friends 20210620113959889 for the reward~