The next day, after defeating the Memphis Grizzlies, the Los Angeles Clippers faced the Cleveland Cavaliers again.
Due to their continuous hot streak, the Cavaliers adopted a double-team strategy against Kai Chen from the start of the game.
This highest-level defensive treatment right from the opening made Kai truly unaccustomed to it at first.
The Cavaliers' perimeter defense strength was undeniable.
After a brief period of adjustment, Kai quickly used his strong breakthroughs to toy with the two defenders.
Carmelo's performance also significantly improved today.
After joining the Clippers this season, Carmelo successfully experienced a resurgence.
So far this season, he has averaged 18.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 3.1 assists with a nearly 50% field goal percentage.
His 49.8% field goal percentage is a new career high for Carmelo.
And his average of 18.6 points per game is also his highest scoring output since leaving the New York Knicks.
Ultimately, the Cleveland Cavaliers could not hold on for long, losing to the Clippers by 88-110 at Staples Center, a 22-point deficit.
"Kai Chen only scored 34 points today; it seems the Cleveland Cavaliers' defense still had some effect."
"Indeed, it's worth noting that Kai's average scoring this season is 42.8 points, and he even scored 81 points in the game against the Houston Rockets!"
"And he only scored 34 points today; the Cavaliers' defense deserves credit!"
At the end of the game, the two commentators seemed a bit regretful.
They also wanted to commentate on the epic showdown between the Houston Rockets and the Clippers!
But unfortunately, they had no chance for such a nationally televised event.
On the other side, after losing to the Clippers and returning to their home court, James Harden once again had a huge outburst!
Amidst the MVP chants from the entire crowd, the Beard once again scored a high of 58 points, marking two consecutive games of 50+!
The Phoenix Suns, visiting Houston, were practically in tears!
Why is it always them who get hurt??
Was drafting Ayton as the first overall pick truly cursed???
It's worth mentioning that after this game, Ayton, who was suspended for performance-enhancing drugs, and the team's starting shooting guard Devin Booker, had an intense argument in the locker room!
After the incident, Devin Booker directly went to the Suns' general manager and said, "It's either him or me!"
Of course, Ayton leaving the Phoenix Suns is a certainty.
But, no one expected it to happen so quickly.
At this moment, Suns General Manager Griffin had a lot of bitterness to express.
He finally managed to secure the first overall pick through tanking, gathering the pieces for a new era's OK combination.
But damn it!!
Who knew he would use the first overall pick to choose a germaphobe center?
You say you're a germaphobe, fine!
But damn it, what's with you taking performance-enhancing drugs??
Even if you can't compare to Kai Chen, you shouldn't resort to taking performance-enhancing drugs, right?
Besides Ayton, the other high-ranking draft picks from the 2018 class have all put up very good numbers.
Kai Chen, Luka Doncic, Jaren Jackson Jr., and Trae Young, and even Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who was selected 11th by the Charlotte Hornets.
They have all proven with their strength that they will become the core of their respective teams in the future.
It's tough!
And most importantly, even though the Phoenix Suns are already so miserable, their fans are not buying it, constantly spewing criticism!
Not just General Manager Griffin, the entire Suns' management is exhausted.
They even have thoughts of resigning.
Damn, cleaning toilets now would have a better reputation than working in the Suns' management!
That night!
The NBA officially announced the results of the first round of voting for the NBA All-Star Game main event on its official website.
First, for the Eastern Conference.
In the guard position, Kyrie Irving received 1.2 million votes, ranking first among Eastern Conference guards.
The second place went to Giannis, the core player of the Milwaukee Bucks.
Embiid and Kawhi followed closely behind.
It is worth mentioning that Trae Young, the fifth overall pick from the Atlanta Hawks, ranked fifth among guards with 480,000 votes.
The impact of this guard, dubbed "Little Curry," on the popularity of the Eastern Conference guards is evident!
There were no major surprises in the Eastern Conference, and fans' attention was focused on the star-studded Western Conference.
Where would Kai rank in the first round of votes?
The NBA's official website was also quite mischievous; they first announced the voting results for the Western Conference frontcourt.
Among the Western Conference frontcourt players, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers led with an absolute advantage, ahead of Kevin Durant and Paul George.
There's no way around it; being in Los Angeles allows one to do whatever they want!
The guard selections followed closely.
Before this, the Western Conference guard All-Star votes were always polarized.
Stephen Curry was in a league of his own, followed by Chris and Westbrook.
But this year, in the first round of All-Star voting for Western Conference guards, an astonishing three-tier split appeared.
Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook, at the forefront, could only rank in the third and fourth positions in the voting.
Their vote count was extremely unoptimistic compared to previous years.
And the third place for Western Conference guards was occupied by a rookie!
Luka Doncic, the rookie point guard for the Dallas Mavericks, ranked third among Western Conference guards with an astonishing 1.18 million votes, far ahead of Chris and Westbrook.
Above Luka Dončić, the name of the Golden State's adorable god, Stephen Curry, was prominently listed!
Curry truly lived up to his name, garnering nearly 1.5 million votes in the first round, ranking second in the Western Conference and also second in the entire league.
He had already pulled ahead of the third-place Luka Doncic by over 300,000 votes.
However, this year, above Curry, there was another player's name, in a league of his own!
Kai Chen amassed a terrifying 3.2 million votes in the first round, dominating the Western Conference guards' first position.
He was first in total votes in the Western Conference and first in the entire league for the first round of voting!
His 3.2 million votes also broke the historical record for first-round votes.
The NBA's historical All-Star vote king was the record of 3.1 million votes set by Dwight Howard in 2009.
Now, Kai easily surpassed that with just one round.
The exaggerated vote count also sparked heated discussions among fans worldwide!
"God, why is Kai so popular!?"
"First-round votes are a historical record; are you kidding me!?"
"Don't forget, Kai is from China!"
"That makes sense, they have a shit ton of people!"
"Even if he's from China, it shouldn't be this exaggerated!!"
"My goodness, what is going on? Is there a problem with the voting!?"
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