After Tatum delivered a high-level performance, the fans saw the true strength of the Kings for the first ti.
Or more accurately, they saw the long-range firepower of this Kings team.
Hansen, Mitchell, and Tatum took turns attacking the Warriors’ inside, putting imnse pressure on their interior defense while also disabling their efficient defensive rotations.
Hield also seized the opportunity on the periter, hitting consecutive three-pointers.
However, there is a reason the Warriors managed to take the top spot in the West this season. The Splash Brothers plus George on the periter provide equally formidable firepower.
The fans who ca to Golden One Arena tonight, including so who specially traveled from the Bay Area to watch this "derby", were in for a treat as they witnessed a high-scoring duel.
The third quarter saw both teams evenly matched, and by the fourth quarter, they were still neck and neck.
With just one minute left in the ga, the score was tied at 135.
The emotions of the live audience reached their peak at this mont, with this derby being intensely exhilarating.
In this final minute, everyone present understood why Hansen is considered one of the greatest in history.
It’s not about how many points he scored or how many championships he won. It’s the fact that, at such monts in a ga, he can secure victory through his personal ability.
Curry hit a crucial three-pointer in the final minute, but Hansen scored 7 points in the sa tifra.
A ga-leading three-pointer, two free throws after breaking free and causing Green’s sixth foul, and a mid-range jumper to seal the ga at the end.
When the final buzzer sounded, Golden One Arena erupted.
It was the first ti they’d witnessed such a buzzer-beater ga on ho court, and the first ti they truly felt Hansen’s dominance in critical monts.
Not to ntion earlier gas, when even as opponents, they couldn’t feel this way because the Kings couldn’t reach such stages!
The Kings’ players began celebrating around Hansen, and even Tatum seed to have forgotten what happened during the ga. He was there shouting excitedly.
At the post-ga press conference, Hansen and Tatum attended together.
Hansen achieved a triple-double with 54 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists; Tatum scored 26 points, setting a new season high, with 18 points in the second half.
"Jason played an aggressive ga. I’ve always believed he’s the best player of the 2017 class and will beco an All-Star level player in the future."
When reporters asked about Hansen’s and Tatum’s performances, Hansen didn’t hold back on complints.
This made Tatum’s eyes widen in surprise beside him.
It’s hard to imagine that just at halfti, Hansen had scolded him in an almost humiliating way in the locker room.
"I just realized I needed to be more decisive in my shots, play more aggressively, and most importantly, we won the ga."
Afterward, Tatum talked about the reasons for his improved performance in the second half when facing reporters.
After the press conference ended, as Hansen left the venue, he noticed Tatum didn’t follow him, but he didn’t care.
Just like he had previously told Lue, he didn’t care what Tatum thought as long as Tatum perford as he should; he wasn’t concerned about anything else.
This also reflected a mindset change in Hansen.
When he first entered the league, due to limited ability, he needed to think about how to unite the team for good performance, even if they were troublemakers or scoundrels.
But now, with his extraordinary skills, he only needs to focus on winning.
That doesn’t an he will beco arrogant. He treats players like Jokic and Mitchell with kindness and respect.
As for others, even players like Tatum who aren’t fond of him, as long as they play well, he won’t hold back on praise.
However, he obviously won’t go and individually conduct "psychological counseling" like before; that’s sothing Lue needs to handle.
After this ga, the external world had a field day reporting on it.
A primary rule of dia reporting is exaggeration. The Kings, described the previous day as a team even God couldn’t save, overnight surpassed the Warriors, Pelicans, and Rockets to beco the West’s most likely title contenders after defeating the Warriors.
Most fans just watched those reports, but one thing ntioned in those reports caught attention.
The Kings have played 5 gas, Hansen appeared in 4, scoring over 50 in 2 gas, one being a 60-point ga, averaging 52 points per ga!
Although the sample size of gas is small and the non-continuous 50 gas may not make a strong impression, such statistical data is still astonishing.
As ti flew to mid-December, the NBA season had been underway for more than a month.
During this month, many fan perceptions of basketball have been overturned.
One of the most shocking was the scoring explosion.
In the past, a 130 ga was rare and might be seen once or twice a season, but this season it beca commonplace.
The 14-second reset for second-chance opportunities seed to only increase the ga’s pace, but invisibly it prompted coaches to simplify tactics.
In the earliest basketball rules, there was no 24-second shot clock. Even today, the NCAA still operates under a 40-second shot clock, aning a 40-second limit per offense.
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