After experiencing initial nervousness, the Wizards gradually got back on track.
But after all, the Spurs are currently No. 1 in the league, and are better than the Wizards in terms of teamwork and player level.
The two sides battled to 35-31 after the first quarter, with the Spurs leading.
At the beginning of the second quarter, Sanders came on the bench.
When the Wizards switched to a five-outside lineup in the middle of the second quarter, the point difference between the two sides was still within 5 points.
I have to say that the Spurs' teamwork is so smooth. If you just look at the lineup on paper, the Wizards' rotation is much deeper than the Spurs', and there are a few more capable substitutes.
However, the Spurs used the strength of the team to make up for the lack of substitute players, and played a 50-50 split with the Wizards' rotation.
This is the true meaning of team basketball. Even if the individual players are not good enough, they can use perfect coordination to make up for their shortcomings.
At this time, the score between the two sides has reached 42 to 38, and the Wizards are 4 points behind.
Popovich on the opposite side also changed into the starting lineup.
The Wizards served, Hinrich dribbled the ball across half court, and Li Kaiming stepped up to cover.
Duncan from behind loudly reminded Parker of Li Kaiming's cover direction.
Under Duncan's command, Li Kaiming's screen did not completely block Parker, but the latter had to take a long way to chase Hinrich, and was left behind by Hinrich.
After Duncan saw this scene, he immediately took a step forward. His huge body stood in the penalty area and immediately blocked Hinrich's way to the basket.
At this time, Li Kaiming was also making an air cut, but Duncan's veteran defense had already taken this into consideration. He stood at the free throw line with his arms spread out, and everyone from Li Kaiming to Hinrich was covered by him.
In desperation, Hinrich had no choice but to use the unique trick of a point guard. While holding Parker behind with his body, he dribbled the ball slowly towards the penalty area with his low hand. Like a scumbag, he vividly demonstrated what " I just can’t get in."
Li Kaiming took big steps after the pick-and-roll, raising his hands in preparation for catching the ball.
When Hinrich saw Duncan, he didn't dare to try to take action at all. Duncan's defensive influence, even after his physical fitness declined, was still one of the best in the league. Facing such a fierce player, Hinrich couldn't produce anything. The courage to challenge.
Seeing that Li Kaiming had already run one step ahead of him, Hinrich directly hit the ground and passed the ball to Li Kaiming's hands.
And Duncan also changed his defensive target in an instant. His position was so tricky that he didn't even need to move, he just turned the angle of his torso and he was right in front of Li Kaiming!
There was not much offensive time left, and the Wizards were forced to give the ball to Li Kaiming for a one-on-one challenge as soon as they started. This shows how effective the Spurs' defense is.
In this case, Li Kaiming has to personally end the round, even if the opponent is Duncan!
Sager and Shu Ning in the commentary box both sneered when they saw Li Kaiming facing off against Duncan again.
"This is the second time Li Kaiming has faced Tim directly in this game. I thought he would never dare to play Tim alone again!" Sager showed a faint smile on his face.
"I can only say that you are brave!" Shu Ning next to him shook his head, his face full of regret.
It seemed that even before Li Kaiming started taking action, the two commentators had already begun to look down on the outcome.
The shot inside the three-point line must be as decisive and quick as possible, otherwise you will face inhumane double-teaming. Especially if you are playing a top-level team like the Spurs, your shot must be more decisive than other teams!
Li Kaiming also knew this truth, so after he caught the ball, he didn't even check if anyone was going to double-team him, and then directly threatened with a probing step, forcing Duncan to take a step back, and then directly pulled up a jumper from the mid-range!
Duncan reacted quickly and found that he could not affect Li Kaiming's shot, so he directly changed to covering his eyes to defend.
However, Li Kaiming still scored hard!
42 to 40!
The smiles on the faces of Sage and Shu Ning in the commentary box froze, and for a moment they didn't know what to say!
How is it possible that this rookie can score against Tim Duncan?
It must be luck!
Shu Ning was the first to react. He coughed slightly and said to Sage next to him, "It seems that Li Kaiming is very lucky tonight. Maybe God gave him some face!"
Your boy is getting more and more promising! This reaction is very fast!
Sager stared at Shu Ning with satisfied eyes, then nodded and responded with a smile, "It seems so, but it's a pity that this is the At&t Center. Winning is never about luck!"
The Spurs attacked, and the Wizards, in order to prevent "French Sports Car" Parker's fast break, everyone returned to the backcourt immediately after the goal and stood in their positions.
Seeing that the Spurs had no chance to switch, they naturally handed the ball to Ginobili. Since they couldn't make a fast break, they just had to fight in position. The Spurs have never been afraid of fighting with their opponents in position.
The 2005 Finals was the "ugliest" finals since David Stern came to power.
The Spurs and Pistons are both teams built on defense. In every game, both teams try their best to get inside the three-point line and spend as much offensive time as possible on shots.
This kind of hard-fought battle between the two sides, with both sides scoring 70 or 80 points in every game, directly created the myth of the ratings of the finals that year.
Therefore, the Spurs are good at a variety of styles. Facing opponents with different styles, they can also come up with different tactics and never stick to one style.
As soon as the ball reached Ginobili's hands this time, Li Kaiming instantly moved forward and defended in front of Duncan.
After the first half of the competition, Li Kaiming discovered that he was not as good as Duncan in terms of strength or positioning skills.
However, Li Kaiming is not discouraged by this. Duncan can face the great shark O'Neal directly. It is normal that his strength level cannot be compared with him.
Since he was at a disadvantage inside, he put away his arrogance and went directly to defend Duncan from catching the ball!
In the NBA, if an insider chooses to go around to defend his opponent, the outside world will think that this is because the player was defeated by his opponent.
That's why in the past few years, Howard was unwilling to go around to defend Yao Ming, and was beaten.
Seeing that Li Kaiming actually chose to go around to defend Duncan, Shu Ning in the commentary box clapped and laughed, "Li Kaiming is very self-aware. If he didn't defend Duncan like this, Duncan would definitely score easily on the inside."
Li Kaiming went around to defend, and Duncan naturally would not sit still. He stretched out his arm to push Li Kaiming's waist, pushed Li Kaiming away, and stretched out his other hand to catch the ball.
Ginobili had already come in from the outside at this time. When he saw Li Kaiming extending a hand high behind him, he passed it over without hesitation!
Li Kaiming wanted to jump up in the air to intercept Ginobili's pass. The arc of the ball was not high. If it were normal, it would be 100% intercepted by him.
But Duncan once again showed his old-fashioned side. He took a step forward with both feet and suddenly gave Li Kaiming a confrontation when he was about to take off. This moment directly forced Li Kaiming to devote most of his attention to maintain balance.
So the ball passed smoothly to Duncan's hands. After he turned around, there was no longer any obstacle between him and the basket. He easily put the basket with both hands.
44 to 40!
After the ball hit, cheers erupted at the Spurs home court.
It looked like their stars completely overwhelmed the visiting team's boss.
Facing the enthusiasm of the home fans, Duncan did not make any celebrating or provocative moves. He just returned to his backcourt with an almost imperceptible smile on his face and his upper body straight like a robot.
Li Kaiming stepped out of the baseline to serve Hinrich. He was also a little helpless. This was the first time he encountered such a situation.
Facing Duncan, he was like an ordinary person meeting a middle-aged man with a particularly hard body on the field, unable to use all his kung fu.
If it is really better than sprinting, jumping, etc., Li Kaiming can hang the current Duncan. Not to mention Li Kaiming, many players in the league are better than Duncan, but if they are on the court, against Duncan, these advantages It can't be used at all!
This feeling is so strange!
And Duncan's defense is not the kind that can give you a block or a death-stealing steal, which will cause great humiliation to the opponent.
He simply judged the position, then stood there and raised his hands. Just such an action made Li Kaiming feel particularly uncomfortable when he broke through to the basket!
This feeling is like running on flat ground at high speed and suddenly getting stuck in a swamp!
Whether it's offense or defense, Duncan is the kind of person who looks ordinary but can achieve unexpected results!
Li Kaiming now understands James in the 2007 Finals. No wonder the little emperor was so ugly when he was guarded by Duncan in the Finals.
Even someone like Li Kaiming, who is almost full of perimeter offense, is so difficult to defend. Rookie James's basket is not limited to less than 20 points per game, which is considered good.
It seems I need to change my thinking!
After the Wizards reached the frontcourt, they handed the ball to Li Kaiming, and the other four people opened up on the outside.
Duncan still let Li Kaiming go a little further, using his long arm to control the ball and preparing to defend the three-pointer.
Li Kaiming knew that it would be difficult to break through Duncan and get to the basket, because his priority of defending breakthroughs would definitely be higher than guarding shots.
So if you want to beat Duncan, you have to shoot first, so that he doesn't dare to take a step, and then take advantage of his speed!
Therefore, after the ball was released from the outside, Li Kaiming did not break through to the inside. Then he took a step back under the puzzled eyes of the audience, and then directly shot a three-pointer one step away from the three-point line!
Duncan didn't expect that Li Kaiming would do this. Of course he knew that Li Kaiming was very strong in three-pointers, so he would defend him. But he couldn't imagine that someone would think that the three-point line was not far enough when shooting!
The basketball flew in the air for more than a second and then flew into the basket with a swoosh!
The Spurs' home court was quiet for a while, and then was drowned out by the noisy discussion!
"Oh no! Can you get in from such a distance?"
"It's really not Tim's fault for this shot. I don't think anyone on this planet can defend such a tall man from outside the three-point line!"
"Is this goal fake? I don't believe he can score next time?"
