Chapter 825: Chapter 825

The new players on the Kings team are quite good, but there are just too many of them, and none have the level of talent like Jokic.

At the end of the first quarter, the Kings were trailing the Rockets by double digits, 18 to 30.

Worth mentioning, the League has implemented the 14-second rule for a second shot clock on a possession for the new season, which means that grabbing an offensive rebound in the past reset the shot clock to 24 seconds, but now it’s 14 seconds.

This will greatly enhance the pace of the game, which is a boon to teams like the Rockets who specialize in transition offense.

In the second quarter, Lue made some adjustments to the lineup, substituting Sabonis with Hield during the main phase of the quarter.

This is to counter the Rockets’ transition play, a passive adjustment, but it had good results.

Hansen also stepped up in this quarter, scoring 14 points, helping the Kings narrow the gap to 48-54 before halftime.

The atmosphere at the Golden One Arena remained high in the second quarter.

Although it’s just the preseason and they were trailing, the momentum to catch up and the pressure on the opponents were things the Kings did not possess in the past.

Or rather, although the Kings had many new players in the past, there was no sense of hope, but now there is finally a vibrant feeling.

In the second half, the main players from both sides didn’t continue playing, and the bench players and even fringe players played out the half, with the Kings ultimately losing the game 100 to 110.

There is no post-game press conference for preseason games, and the players returned to the locker room after the match ends.

Hansen didn’t go with them, since even before the game ended, Lue was discussing an issue with Hansen.

Lue plans to have Hansen play more at the small forward position in the new season.

In fact, during the training camp, when Hansen asked Lue to put Stan into the substitute team, he was already trying the "Deathly Five Small" lineup.

Having served as Malone’s assistant in Cleveland before, he naturally advocates for this tactic.

Moreover, the Kings’ configuration is also very suitable for this.

Both Stan and Sabonis can serve as the center in the small-ball lineup, the only difference being one excels at defense and the other at offense.

Then comes the crucial power forward selection, Tatum.

Tatum is the most awkward type of player in the NBA: an in-betweener. Notable similar players include Derek Williams and Michael Beasley, who were dominant weapons in NCAA but haven’t made much of a name in the NBA.

This is because all of them share similar traits, lacking the speed for shooting guard and the physicality for power forward in the NBA.

However, Tatum’s talent is better than those two, and one cannot ignore the fact that he was born in a more suitable era.

In this era, it’s not just top centers that are dwindling with the change of rules, but more precisely, top inside players, with low-post dominant weapons being rare.

This situation gives players like Tatum some survival space at power forward.

In fact, the lineup used by the Kings during the second-quarter rally was exactly this: Hansen, Mitchell, Hield, Tatum, Stan.

During which, Hansen played point guard on offense but was up against Anthony on defense, and the defensive effect was quite good.

However, position adjustment is not a simple swap, it also involves tactical changes, which is why the two have to discuss for so long.

Naturally, Hansen supported Lue’s idea.

Or rather, just as when he redeemed his wingspan talent, he has been eager to play at small forward for a long time.

Lue’s proposal was a perfect match.

Of course, to see if it works out, it will have to wait until the regular season begins.

The time quickly shifted to late October, where the Kings concluded their preseason journey with 4 wins and 3 losses.

At this time, the League officially announced the first phase of team power rankings for the new season.

On this list, the Celtics team was at the top.

Although they lost Avery Bradley this summer, they already had Smart, so the backcourt defense quality didn’t significantly drop.

And to strengthen the interior, they secured Greg Monroe with a mid-level exception contract, thus not only maintaining but actually enhancing their overall strength.

The Warriors team was ranked second on the list.

Although preseason games are not of much reference, the integration of George and the Warriors was deemed perfect.

As for Cousins’ departure, besides giving Kevin Rooney a heavy responsibility, they also resigned former player Bo Guote.

The Pelicans team is in the third position.

Despite being swept by the Cavaliers in the finals, the good news is the Pelicans’ lineup is at least stable.

Moreover, their most important signing this summer was Avery Bradley, whose addition has significantly raised the team’s defensive quality.

The Rockets, 76ers, Cavaliers, and Bucks were ranked 4th to 7th respectively.

The Kings team was ranked eighth.

Compared to the ranking of teams Hansen has been on in the past, this position is relatively far back.

But considering it’s the Kings, it’s actually pretty high (with the Raptors at ninth place). The latest_epɪ_sodes are on_the 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⁂𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖⁂𝕟𝕖𝕥

We should know that the last time the Kings made the playoffs was 13 years ago, in the 2005-2006 season, when Artest was still the team leader.

Since then, they have never made the playoffs again.

But now thanks to Hansen, they are ranked eighth in the League, fourth in the West.

This also further raised the expectations of Kings fans for the new season.

The Kings’ opening game opponent is the Cavaliers.

Silva’s arrangement on court now increasingly has that Stern-like flavor.

The Cavaliers’ championship ring presentation ceremony, Hansen’s first return to Cleveland after leaving, all these are full of topics.

When the Kings flew to Cleveland, a large number of fans appeared at the airport to welcome them.

They held signs welcoming Hansen home, and the atmosphere on scene was extremely warm.

In August this year, Hansen took some time off training to return to Cleveland and attend the unveiling ceremony of his statue.

Compared to the Grizzlies period, choosing a statue for his Cavaliers period was much easier.

Because his most prominent nickname originates from O’Neal back in the day: the Terminator at the scorer’s desk.

Therefore, his statue is of him jumping onto the scorer’s desk, pointing down with both hands and shouting "This is my house."

And the annotation under the statue is exactly this phrase.

So the fans’ enthusiasm is entirely understandable, because even though Hansen joined another team, Cleveland will always be his home.

"If I were him, I definitely couldn’t leave such fans," Mitchell couldn’t help but say after seeing such a scene.

"That’s why none of us can become him," Sabonis said, full of admiration while looking at Hansen’s back.

Leaving a championship-contending team to join a rebuilding team, an ordinary person simply does not have such courage.

Even for those who do have that courage, they might persuade the new team to trade rookies for immediate power.

"He is truly a king," Mitchell nodded in agreement, which is also Hansen’s nickname now in Sacramento.

However, Mitchell didn’t notice that while he was making that statement, Tatum subconsciously frowned.

Just as Hansen was getting into his car from the airport, Jokic called him.

He had already prepared dinner and was waiting for Hansen to get home.

Hansen returning to Cleveland made Jokic the happiest.

This past summer, Jokic signed a big contract and bought a villa in Cleveland.

The villa is located not far from Hansen’s Manor.

Although Hansen has also bought a manor in Sacramento, he still keeps the custom-built manor in Cleveland.

Natalia prepared a standard Serbian meal for Hansen, Balkan grilled meat, pie, fish, all of which Hansen had tasted when he went to Serbia with Jokic.

In addition, there were small sausages called Chevapi and a dessert called baklava.

It was clearly a thoroughly prepared meal.

Ajalee and Natalia got along well, while Hansen and Jokic talked about the events of the past summer.

"Luca is a very special player," Jokic said, also bringing up that fellow Balkan who has a completely different personality than him.

"He always tells me that scoring here (in NBA) is way easier than in Europe," Jokic said with a chortle, shaking his head.