In the NBA's official power rankings, the San Antonio Spurs have quietly ranked second.

They surpassed the Golden State Warriors, who had a better record, and were second only to the Memphis Grizzlies, who are on a 15-game winning streak.

Many people were surprised by this result, after all, the Spurs really didn't have much of a topic this year.

The whole world is waiting to see the war of words between Link and Durant, and the battle between the Warriors and the Grizzlies.

In this era when even James's attention has suffered, the popularity of the Spurs has plummeted.

Therefore, the Spurs' appearance in the second place in the power rankings is somewhat unexpected.

However, in fact, Spurs have been playing well this season, but everyone has not paid much attention to it.

In the opening game of this season, the Spurs defeated the defending champion Warriors by a huge margin of 29 points, which is enough to show that their strength is not weak.

Although after that, the Spurs were silent for a while and did not play such a hearty big win again, but this is understandable.

The Spurs' squad changes this season are far greater than people think.

In addition to Duncan's retirement last summer, Dior and West also left one after another. This season's big Gasol, David. Lee, Dedmon and Bertans, among others, are all new signings.

In this case, it is actually normal for the Spurs to get into the groove a little slower, after all, everyone needs to run in.

Although the Spurs have been winning, they have played very few dominating games, and most of them have relied on extremely high key shooting percentages to get a single-digit advantage.

But things began to change in December, when the new Spurs finished running-in, and since December, the Spurs have ranked third in the league in offensive efficiency, behind the Warriors and Grizzlies.

The defensive efficiency simply surpassed the Grizzlies and led the league!

Quietly, the Spurs have completed their awakening.

It is not surprising that such a good team can reach the second place in the power rankings.

The night before the match, when the world suddenly reacted that it was a blockbuster matchup, Link was no longer surprised and excited.

Because he's ready for this game!

And even if these are aside, the mere fact of opposing Leonard is enough to attract Link's attention.

It is true that there were not so many war of words before the start of this game, and there were not so many contradictions between the two sides.

But Link knows that Leonard wants to overcome the Grizzlies and his obsession, but he is no worse than Durant.

Just because that guy doesn't like to talk doesn't mean he doesn't want to win.

On television, many people think that the Grizzlies' 15-game winning streak is to blame the Spurs. Others believe that the Grizzlies will be able to defuse the crisis as they have done countless times before.

In any case, the game is sure to be tough against the team that ranks first in the league in defensive efficiency.

The thought of Leonard's expressionless face made Link cover his head.

Tomorrow's game is estimated to be another grinding tug-of-war.

※※※

On the afternoon of Feb. 6, when the Spurs players stepped onto the court to warm up, the Grizzlies fans in the stadium didn't even react.

If it's the Rockets, the Thunder, or the Warriors or Cavaliers who are warming up at this time, the boos in the Federal Express Arena will definitely break through the dome of the stadium.

But against Spurs, most fans didn't react much.

In everyone's subconscious, it seems that the Spurs are still not in the championship ranks. Even though the Spurs have climbed to the second place in the power rankings, there is still little talk about the Spurs' championship prospects.

Hubi. Brown also noticed the problem, so he put together a lot of stats for fans to remind everyone of how strong the Spurs are.

"In the case of the Spurs' offense, it's no coincidence that they rank third in the league in offensive efficiency. Dedmon and Aldridge both provide space for the Spurs on the inside. Green's three-point shooting percentage has also improved significantly from last season. ”

"When both interior players can shoot and the number one wing becomes punctual again, the biggest benefit is naturally the Spurs' ball-handler - Leonard."

"Leonard's offensive efficiency this season has reached the level of the league's top stars, and his pick-and-roll singles have become superb. Even his long-criticized three-point shooting has improved this season. While averaging as many as 5.2 three-pointers per game, Leonard was able to shoot 38% from three-point range, which is a remarkable improvement! ”

What's more, the fact that the Spurs were eliminated by the Grizzlies in the tiebreaker in the playoffs last season will greatly increase their desire to win today. No one doesn't want revenge, let alone defeat when they tie seven. So, brace yourself, the Federal Express Arena is in for a tough battle today. ”

Hubi. Brown's analysis has somewhat made fans in front of the TV pay attention to the Spurs as an opponent, and under their mediocre shell, there is an incomparably strong power buried.

After the warm-up, the referee signaled that both starters were ready to play.

Link brought everyone together before the game and reminded his team-mates of the importance of the game.

At this time, Link also eliminated the last trace of the possibility of the Grizzlies being underestimated.

After Standing in his position, Link found Leonard staring at him.

Leonard was still expressionless, but Link could feel the fierce desire to win from the guy.

After all, there are sometimes more emotions in the eyes than in the face of memes.

"Link." At this moment, Leonard spoke without warning.

"Are you calling me? It's a rarity. Link smiled, but quickly felt embarrassed.

Nonsense, smiling at a guy with a blank face, can you not be embarrassed!?

'We almost won last season and I won't miss a chance to win again this season.'

After Leonard finished speaking, he looked away from Link and fixed his eyes on the basketball.

Link gritted his teeth and clenched his fists.

Leonard, a taciturn man, actually took the initiative to say this to himself before the game...... You can see how much he wants to win!

The impact of last season's tie-break loss on Leonard was bigger than one might think.

Yes, after so many years, only the Spurs last season could force the Grizzlies to a tie-break.

is only one step away from defeating the king of the alliance, Leonard must be very unwilling. From last summer to February this year, Leonard is estimated to have been suffocated.

The referee walks into the center circle with the ball, and the battle is about to begin.

The starting five Tigers on the Spurs' side are indeed not as bright as the four All-Star Warriors.

35-year-old Tony. Parker is no longer the "French sports car" that lifted the FMVP trophy 10 years ago.

Danny. Although Green's role is similar to Clay's, the coffee rank is much lower.

Starting center Dwayne. Dedmon is a blue-collar insider who is not good-looking.

Aldridge's stats have also plummeted this season, averaging just 17.3 points per game, and his scoring stats are only better than in his rookie year.

It's really hard to convince people that they're strong with a team like that.

The Spurs' lineup on paper doesn't look as good as the Grizzlies, who have always been considered a single-core team.

On the Grizzlies' side, Conley and Gasol are both All-Star level, and Wade is once the top five or even top three players in the league!

But Link is well aware that basketball is not data analysis. Just looking at the surface, there is no reference value.

In the scrum phase, the more athletic Dedmon secured the first attack for the Spurs.

The Spurs were very patient on the first offense, and they found Aldridge first and let him single in the low post.

But it's a pity that Jokic, the Grizzlies' No. 4 position today, is an out-and-out center. Aldridge singled with his back in front of him, and he still suffered a little.

With Jokic's interference, Aldridge hit the iron on his first shot.

Aldridge's back-turn jumper percentage this season has slipped to 41.9 percent from 45.8 percent last season. In the face of a defender like Jokic who doesn't shake but can always cover you, Aldridge has even more headaches.

There is no doubt that if Aldridge can show the dominance of the Trail Blazers, the Spurs' record may be terrifying.

But there is no way, Aldridge, who entered the industry in 06, is also 32 years old after all. What's more, at Spurs, he is no longer the first point of attack, and it is reasonable that the offensive feeling has regressed.

Gasol grabbed the rebound and immediately launched a counterattack with a long pass!

Although the Grizzlies play a retro twin-tower lineup, the Grizzlies will never deliberately slow down when the pace should be fast.

Defending and counterattacking, this is what the Grizzlies do best!

Link tacitly received Gasol's long pass from the back, and he looked behind him and saw that Leonard was very close to him.

Sure enough, Leonard's defensive awareness was outstanding. Most players are caught off guard by a sudden comeback from the Grizzlies.

But Leonard didn't, and he rushed back as soon as possible.

Link ran wildly, hoping to shake off Leonard with speed.

And he has already planned to use a lever in the air to avoid Leonard's pursuit.

When it was too late, Link had already burst to the basket and jumped up for the basket without hesitation.

But just as Link's feet were off the ground, Leonard did everything with precision!

"Smack!"

The basketball got out of his hand, and he also hit Link and flew out of bounds, and the Spurs had the ball!

"He actually stopped Link's counterattack! Oh my God, I think this is the first time Link has missed on a counter-attack this season! Kawaii. Leonard, he deserves to be the best defensive player on the best defensive team! ”

Hubi. Brown's eyes widened, Link had seen a lot of other people's balls, but this was the first time he had been cut off!

Link gritted his teeth and shook his head, careless!

Leonard's defense is not on the same level as everyone else.

Spurs No. 2 didn't celebrate wildly and didn't touch trash talk.

He only silently picked up the basketball and handed it to Dedmon, who came to serve.

His composure makes people shudder.

Dogs that don't bark often bite the hardest.