As the discussion on the Internet reached its climax, time gradually came to the pre-match preparations before the start of the game.
The Bulls' home pregame ceremony was so amazing that Li Kaiming's eyes lit up when he saw it. It is worthy of being the team of the God of Basketball. Although it does not have as long a history as the Celtics and Lakers, it still has the aura of an upstart in the league.
After the Bulls players finished playing, the starting lineups of both sides were displayed on the big screen at the United Center.
Chicago Bulls, point guard Derrick Rose, shooting guard Giesberg, small forward Luol Deng, power forward Taj Gibson, center Joakim Noah.
Washington Wizards, point guard Kirk Hinrich, shooting guard Nick Young, small forward Al Thornton, power forward Kaiming Li, center Andre Blache.
Li Kaiming stood outside the center circle and moved his knees and ankles. When he looked up, tonight's referee had already walked over from the technical stage with the ball in hand. With his height and hairstyle, he always felt that this person was a bit familiar...
Because at this time he could only see the referee's back. When the referee was almost reaching the center circle, he could see the referee's profile clearly.
Damn it! It’s Brother Tony again!
Although he hasn't fully seen the referee's face, Li Kaiming believes that he will never admit his mistake. He can't even see the guy turning into ashes wrong!
He has been playing in the NBA for less than two months and has already met the Tony brothers three times. Although the latter did not cause any trouble in the game last time, he was messed up in the first preseason game. Li Kaiming It's hard to have a good impression of this guy.
Damn it, is America's referee dead? Why do I always meet this annoying guy?
And I don’t know if it was Li Kaiming’s illusion, but he seemed to see Brother Tony glance at him from the corner of his eye, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly...
Although the air-conditioning temperature of the United Center arena is set just right, and there are many spectators in the arena, it is even a little hot, but at such a temperature, Li Kaiming actually felt a chill on his back...
As an athlete, he is not afraid of how strong the opposing players are or how rookie his teammates are. These are all problems on the court and are dynamic.
But if a third party like the referee, who controls the fairness of the game, has a subjective preference, it cannot be solved by his own strength.
damn it! Li Kaiming glared hard at the back of Brother Tony. At this time, the latter was already standing in the center circle. After the whistle blew, he threw the basketball into the sky!
Joakim Noah and Blatche started almost at the same time, but unfortunately Noah was better and the Bulls qualified for the first attack.
Rose dribbled the ball past half court, and Hinrich gave a slight step to prevent himself from being passed by Rose suddenly. After all, the speed of the two people is not at the same level.
The Bulls seemed to be a completely different team than during the preseason. After Rose dribbled the ball into the frontcourt, all the players began to move according to tactics, and the cooperation between them was even more seamless.
Rose didn't even have to do it himself in the first attack. After he went to the frontcourt to observe the situation, he gave the ball to Luol Deng, who had a chance to run without the ball. The latter caught the ball and feinted, and directly shook the chasing Elso. He paused, then took a step inside the three-point line and shot.
Uh-huh!
2 to 0! The Bulls won first at home.
After one of today's commentators, Adams Vernal, saw this scene, he said to another commentator Gus Jason next to him, "The Bulls got an open shot so easily in the first round. The Wizards' defense Where have you gone?"
Gus Jason shook his head, "Perhaps the Wizards are not a team that is good at defense to begin with. They are currently 24th in the league in points allowed per game. The biggest reason why they have won so many games before is that their offensive efficiency ranks 24th in the league. Fourth, rely on offense to kill their opponents.”
Adams Vernal asked, "Do you think the Wizards will win today?"
"It's unlikely. The Wizards' offense relies heavily on outside shooting. This offensive model lacks stability and is easily restricted by defense. The Bulls' current defensive efficiency is third in the league, second only to the Magic and Lakers. , the Wizards' offense may be blocked by the Bulls." Gus Jason shook his head.
Gus Jason's commentary resonated with most fans watching the game. Anyone who has watched the Wizards game knows that they can win not because they defend the opponent, but by scoring and beating the opponent to death!
Now the league's fourth-ranked offensive efficiency meets the league's third-ranked defensive efficiency. In a competition between spear and shield, who will win?
In the studio of Huaguo Sports Channel, Director Zhang Weiping came out again to explain the game in person, "The Bulls are really difficult to play. Their defense and offense are both above the league average. If nothing else happens, the Bulls should be better this season." In the upper half of the East.”
The other commentators also nodded.
On the court, the Wizards served to Hinrich. Li Kaiming had already arrived in the frontcourt, waiting for Hinrich to come over, and then directly went up to pick and roll.
The pick-and-roll between Li Kaiming and Hinrich is the Wizards' most commonly used and most effective tactic, and this tactic can also be connected to other tactics, with extremely rich changes.
Taj Gibson alerted Rose early, and the two cooperated very skillfully. Although Rose was still blocked by Li Kaiming, Gibson quickly stepped up and delayed, allowing Rose to return to the correct defensive position.
In this case, Hinrich followed the usual tactics and passed the ball to Li Kaiming from the blockade of Gibson and Rose. However, the Bulls were well prepared for this. Luol Deng helped delay it, and Gibson quickly returned to his position. Back to the starting point.
It can be said that under the defensive rotation of the Bulls with a clear division of labor, Hinrich and Li Kaiming blocked a lonely pick-and-roll, and the result was that the ball went into Li Kaiming's hands.
In this case, what Li Kaiming has to do is to help the team break the deadlock. The Bulls are obviously well prepared tonight. If you want to find the Bulls' defensive loopholes from a tactical perspective, it will be very difficult. After all, that guy is called Tom Thiber. Du's fat man is not a man who eats dry food.
Since we cannot start from the entire system, we can only start from one point, break the situation with one point, and lead the way with one point.
As long as he can knock out Taj Gibson in front of him, the Bulls' defense will inevitably tilt towards him, and opportunities will appear in other positions.
Just as he said, Li Kaiming took the ball outside the three-point line and faced Gibson. The latter had guarded him in the preseason and had some experience, so he stayed close when defending, fearing that Li Kaiming would shoot directly.
This kind of shooting and breakthrough can only be defended. Li Kaiming has encountered it countless times in previous games. He took the ball and circled it above his head, then suddenly took a step to his side, and at the same time quickly dropped the ball and connected with a turn. He moved his hips, then pushed his feet on the ground to exert force, and passed by Gibson in one step.
Gibson was shocked by Li Kaiming's actions. In the preseason, the latter's dribbling was not so smooth. After a month, his proficiency in dribbling breakthroughs has risen to a higher level.
However, Gibson did not give up the defense directly. He followed Li Kaiming's side, sliding to defend, trying to fight against the latter, while calling on his teammates for support.
The Bulls' defense is a whole, and Gibson has not been completely passed yet, so other outside fans did not come to help with the flanking attack, but left this job to Noah inside.
When Noah saw Li Kaiming breaking through, he immediately turned his body around, and then leaned his back against Bratsch. When Li Kaiming broke through, Noah suddenly rushed forward and cooperated with Gibson next to him, preparing to block Li Kaiming directly. In the restricted area.
Li Kaiming reacted quickly. In the moment before the encirclement was formed, he directly hit the ball and passed it to Brac, who was temporarily open. He originally thought that Noah would not have time to turn around, and this ball should be able to secure two points. Unexpectedly, the ball on the side was Gibson suddenly speeded up, rushed forward and gave Brac a big hat!
At this time, Noah had returned to the basket, and the backboard was protected by Noah. The Wizards' first offense was blocked by the Bulls.
After seeing this scene, Adams Vernal in the commentary box shook his head and sighed, "The opportunity just now was very good, and Li Kaiming's pass was just right. Blach underestimated the Bulls' interior defense, even if Carlos Boozer Er is not back yet, and the inside combination of Gibson and Noah is also very strong on the defensive end."
Gus Jason on the side nodded and said, "At present, it seems that the Wizards' game is relatively difficult."
After the Bulls got the ball, they immediately launched a fast break. Rose held the ball at full speed, and the other four people were also arranged on both sides, maintaining a three-line fast break formation and charging forward.
Only Li Kaiming in the Wizards team could reach the defensive position in time. The others seemed to be only a second late, but in just this second, the Wizards' defense collapsed.
Rose's own fast break with the ball was blocked by Li Kaiming, but Rose changed the layup into a pass during the layup and passed the ball to center Noah who was following behind. Li Kaiming blocked Rose, and Blach Still outside the penalty area, he had no choice but to foul and ruin Noah's layup.
Noah went to the free throw line and made two free throws. The Bulls beat the Wizards 4-0 in the opening game!
After only two rounds of the game, Sanders on the sidelines did not see any problems with the team. The Wizards continued to attack. This time, Li Kaiming broke through with the ball from the outside. As he approached the penalty area, he encountered Noah and Gibson again. Double-teamed, Noah's defensive position selection was very good, and Li Kaiming did not find the opportunity to directly pass the ball to Brac at the first time.
In desperation, Li Kaiming found the opportunity after squeezing out the space, but Noah was already in place at this time. Facing Noah with a defensive lineup, Blach lost his courage as in the previous games and feinted under the basket. Suddenly, Noah did not stumble, and there was not much offensive time left. Blatche turned around and threw a shot, but missed under Noah's defense. Gibson on the side grabbed the backcourt rebound.
By the time Sanders made up his mind to call a timeout, four minutes had passed. During this period, the Bulls' defense was very tough. Apart from Li Kaiming, the only other member of the Wizards' team was Nick Young who hit a three-pointer from the outside. points, and none of the remaining people succeeded.
Although the Bulls' offense was not very powerful, with their impregnable defense, the Bulls still led the Wizards by 6 points 11-5 in four minutes.
Commentator Adams Vernal looked at Gus Jason on the sidelines, "Brother, you really know the ball, and now the game is developing according to your predictions!"
On the Wizards bench, Sanders patted Li Kaiming on the shoulder and said, "Li, now it's your time to play. The team needs you to open up the situation."
Li Kaiming nodded, handed the towel and drink to the staff, then turned and walked onto the court.
