The scene erupted in an uproar.
Tang Tian's choice to shoot was too sudden, too unexpected, too Curry-esque!
Yes, Curry is used as an adjective here!
The fans in the arena were stunned, the players on the court were stunned, and the fans watching on TV were stunned.
Popovich was also stunned.
From the first three quarters of the game, he could see that Tang Tian had added the long-range shot to his arsenal, but this was a logo three!
It was really frustrating when such an unreasonable shot went in!
Because it had nothing to do with tactics or strategy, it was purely personal ability!
Moreover, it was really caught off guard.
If Curry was on the court, he would definitely have someone guarding him, but it was Tang Tian who made the shot!
Social media also exploded instantly.
When Tang Tian was with the Spurs, he was just a 3-and-D player, and his biggest label was defense.
He wasn't that noticeable at that time, because defense is a very general and non-specific skill.
But after that, from the pull-up jumper to the turnaround fadeaway, fancy passes, then the butterfly step, the high-flying dunks... and finally this super long three-pointer.
Tang Tian: I can do everything you can!
Anthony is an offensive kaleidoscope, but Tang Tian is not just a kaleidoscope, he's an offensive technique manual!
A logo three-pointer is just a three-pointer, but it's a big blow to morale.
The Spurs didn't call a timeout, and Leonard dribbled the ball from the backcourt, struggling to break through Tang Tian to the frontcourt, but the buzzer-beater was difficult to make.
The shot was obviously short, and the ball hit the front of the rim and bounced out.
The final score on the court was 106 to 103, with the Pelicans winning!
Leonard had 27 points, George 20 points, Aldridge 17 points and 11 rebounds, Forbes 15 points, and White 11 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists.
Davis had 22 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks, Green 13 points, Siakam 12 points, and Brogdon 11 points and 7 assists.
Tang Tian had a game-high 41 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, his 7th 40+ triple-double of the season.
This data also allowed him to surpass Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook, creating a new NBA historical record.
And the season was only a third of the way through.
73 points in a single game, breaking the single-season 40+ triple-double record...
With Walker and Butler gone, fans weren't just seeing Tang Tian's scoring performance like Shaq said, they were seeing a super MVP performance!
It was a soul-stirring game, arguably the best of the season, and fans were buzzing about it on social media.
"One new skill per season, I only admire Tang."
"Curry: You're just being nice to me so you can steal my skill package?!"
"McGrady, Carter, Iverson, Kobe, and Nash all liked it!"
"Haha, don't say it, it's really true, Tang's abilities are all 'stolen' from people he has a good relationship with!"
"Being able to steal is also a skill! And having good people skills really can't be helped, if you let LeBron and Durant go, they wouldn't have that opportunity!"
"That's right, that's right, they were both beaten into depression by Tang Tian, and they both ran to Los Angeles to team up!"
"A lucky shot and he developed a new skill? Keyboard warriors are really keyboard warriors." A comment from the invincible Durant.
"Tang also made a super long three-pointer earlier, right? I calculated that if the last one also counts, he made 2 of 6 super long shots, which is a good enough shooting percentage."
"Who is this person, why does the tone sound so familiar! Durant?"
"No way, this ID doesn't look like it at all, I guess it's a Durant hater, right?"
"Ignore him, the Pelicans beating the Spurs proves that they are still the strongest team in the league like last season, and a four-peat is just around the corner!"
"Wait until the Pelicans meet the Lakers and you'll know what the gap in strength is, the combination of LeBron and Durant is the strongest!" A comment from the invincible Durant.
"Hehe, you're the keyboard warrior! The Lakers are the strongest without even playing? Didn't someone say the Spurs were stronger than the Pelicans before? What was the result?"
"I know more about basketball than you, you loser!" A comment from the invincible Durant.
"This... the long-lost loser missile! Confirmed!"
"That's great, I knew it, but this alt account name is really invincible!"
"I really want to see the Lakers play the Pelicans now, Tang taking down James and Durant alone, it would be so awesome!"
"It would be best if he breaks Kobe's 81-point record at the Staples Center, that would be super awesome!"
"Your ID is also very familiar! I remember you said a few years ago that Tang would steal the ball from LeBron in Game 7 to win the championship?"
"I think it's him!"
"It's him!"
"Is this another official spoiler?"
……
Fans were constantly discussing on social media, and the post-match press conference was also attracting a lot of attention.
At the Spurs' post-match press conference, someone asked Popovich about the last logo three-pointer.
"Coach, do you have anything to say about that kind of score?"
The reporter's question was very ordinary, but the other reporters were sweating.
They knew that such a question could easily piss Popovich off.
There had been similar questions before, and Popovich's answer was: What do I have to say, what can I say, you tell me what can I say.
"It's my fault."
But this time, Popovich changed his usual style of speaking and actually took the blame!
"I forgot he was Tang, even if he jumped from the three-point line to dunk, I should have made defensive arrangements in advance."
But his next words drew laughter from the audience.
It turned out that he was indirectly praising his former disciple!
But this way of speaking was very Popovich.
At the press conference on the other side, Tang Tian's answers to the questions were still very modest.
"That was just a lucky shot."
"No, no, I still have a big gap with Stephen, I'm just trying to add to my arsenal."
"The most important thing is that we won the game, this game is very important to us."
……
Tang Tian was very modest, but he was obviously doing it for a reason.
This was only his first game with the super long shot, and he didn't want to be paid too much attention by his opponents.
Adapting to new technologies requires gradual progress. If his opponents immediately defended his super long shots tightly, it would definitely be more difficult for him to adapt.
Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye it was late December, Christmas was coming soon, and the Christmas battle that fans were looking forward to was about to begin.
The Pelicans were still playing in the Christmas battle this year, and their opponent was the Los Angeles Lakers.