"Holyshit!"

Barkley exclaimed from the commentary booth.

As TNT's ace commentator, he'd seen more dunks than the average person had seen jump shots.

Very few things could elicit that kind of exclamation from him.

But Tang Tian's dunk just now definitely belonged in that category.

It wasn't just the difficulty, but also the visual aesthetics.

Watching this kind of dunk was simply a pleasure!

On the Timberwolves' possession, Towns posted up Siakam in the low post.

Siakam was a player who could swing between the three and four positions, while Towns could swing between the four and five, but Towns actually couldn't push him!

Towns' skills were top-notch among interior players, but his strength was simply lacking.

He could only choose to turn and shoot, but Siakam's long arms covered him, and his vision was obstructed when he shot, preventing him from making the basket.

Back on offense, Tang Tian drove into a triple team and immediately passed the ball to Brogdon, who was open.

Brogdon hit the three-pointer cleanly, giving a preview of the Three-Point Contest.

The Pelicans started the game with a 5-0 run against the Timberwolves.

This was also expected, as the Pelicans were much stronger than the Timberwolves in terms of pure strength, even without Walker and Davis.

With a little over seven minutes left in the first quarter, the score was 18-6, and the Pelicans had already taken a double-digit lead.

The Pelicans made a substitution, with Kuzma and Rose coming in to replace Siakam and Brogdon.

It's worth mentioning that this was also Rose's first regular-season game for the Pelicans.

When the Pelicans signed Rose, they said they would let him recover from his injuries, and he really spent most of the season recovering before finally coming out.

In the Pelicans' frontcourt tactics, Kuzma didn't have many opportunities and seemed a bit rusty. His first touch resulted in a turnover, stolen by Towns.

Rubio reacted quickly and grabbed the ball, seeing LaVine already streaking ahead, and threw a long pass from the backcourt.

LaVine caught the ball and sprinted to the frontcourt.

He hadn't scored yet tonight, and now he finally had an opportunity.

He took off a step inside the free-throw line, swinging the ball around and slamming it into the basket.

A mirror windmill!

"Woah!"

Barkley exclaimed again.

Although this dunk didn't have the aesthetic appeal of Tang Tian's earlier dunk, the takeoff point was far, showcasing his hang time to the fullest.

The crowd cheered and whistled continuously.

Although they were trailing by a significant margin, the dunk contest they had been anticipating since the beginning of the game had finally arrived.

Moreover, LaVine's use of the same move as Tang Tian clearly showed his competitive spirit.

Tang Tian sensed it too. He dribbled at the perimeter, and after his teammates cleared out, he crossed over and shook Wiggins, bursting into the paint and leaping up.

This dunk was extremely fast, and Towns and Gibson didn't have time to help.

Tang Tian, eager to try out his new skill, went for a between-the-legs dunk.

The movement was still incredibly smooth, and the key was that he also showed his hang time.

"Boom!"

When the ball was slammed into the basket, the cheers from the crowd were even louder than before.

Barkley raised both hands and abruptly stood up from the commentary booth.

This was a dunk-off against LaVine!

"I don't know if it's just me, but I have a feeling that Tang's dunking ability has gotten stronger?"

Kenny Smith suddenly said, always observant in his commentary.

"No, I think he wants to dunk, he's responding to the fans' expectations."

Barkley immediately retorted.

It had to be said, Tang Tian, the league's number one player, was really down-to-earth!

James used to be able to fly and dunk, but the fans always wanted him to participate in the dunk contest, and he always made excuses to refuse.

In contrast, Tang Tian not only participated twice, but if the fans wanted to see it in the game, he would really dunk!

Smith nodded.

That seemed to be the only explanation, after all, dunking was about talent, and it was difficult to train to this level.

Tang Tian, after all, was the former dunk king.

With the talent there, a little practice and he could unlock new moves.

On the Timberwolves' possession, LaVine wanted to respond, but he couldn't get past Tang Tian, and therefore couldn't dunk.

The difference in overall strength between the two determined that their dunking opportunities in the game were unequal.

The ball eventually went to Wiggins, who drove at Butler, but lost control of the ball and dribbled it out of bounds.

The fans were now a little unhappy, and scattered boos could be heard.

Although Wiggins had been slow to improve in the past few years, he had at least shown some progress.

But after signing a big contract extension this summer, he had been lukewarm and stagnant.

The Timberwolves had originally hoped that he and Towns would rise to prominence, but now it seemed that their hopes would definitely be dashed.

Now, after being crossed over and dribbling out of bounds, it was really unbearable.

The boos from the crowd finally made Wiggins look up, and he even frowned.

On the Pelicans' possession, there was a pick-and-roll switch in the frontcourt, and Tang Tian was matched up against LaVine.

Although it was a switch, they were actually the same position.

LaVine lowered his center of gravity, his expression focused.

If he didn't have a chance to dunk, he at least couldn't let Tang Tian have a chance to dunk!

But ideals and reality always had a gap. Tang Tian cleanly got past him with a flurry of crossovers, accelerated into the paint, and was about to dunk again.

This wasn't just an itch, but a bit of playing around.

Towns was pulled to the baseline and couldn't get back, and Dedmon was also boxing out Gibson, so this looked like another highlight dunk.

But at that moment, something unexpected happened.

Wiggins rotated over to help!

After being booed by the home fans, Wiggins finally smashed his thermos and was going to be tough for once!

Moreover, his defensive position and timing of his jump were excellent.

Even if he couldn't block it, he could still likely prevent Tang Tian's dunk!

But the next second, something even more unexpected happened.

Tang Tian performed a small pump fake in the air, suddenly bringing the ball back to his chest from overhead, and relying on his glide, he managed to avoid Wiggins' interference in the air.

And even more unbelievably, he then brought the ball from his chest back over his head.

Then, he slammed the ball into the basket with both hands!

"Boom!"

The moment the ball went in, everyone in the arena was stunned!

This, this could be dunked too?!

Jordan's move of changing a dunk into a layup had been talked about by fans for years.

Tang Tian had changed a dunk into a dunk, taking it to the next level!

The only thing comparable to this was probably a similar move by James!

However, unlike James' move, Tang Tian's pump fake was clearly larger, and the movement was more extended!

This was also perfectly reasonable, as Tang Tian weighed much less than James, so his hang time was definitely longer, giving him more time to complete the move!

The cheers from the crowd exploded instantly.

This was no longer about home or away, Tang Tian's dunk was too explosive!

If LaVine's earlier dunk was about ability, then Tang Tian's series of dunks were art!

Barkley was already jumping excitedly, just short of jumping onto the commentary booth.

O'Neal then showed his goofy talent, spreading one hand open and making a fist with the other, making a score of 10 with his hands to the camera.

He was treating the game like a dunk contest!