The team's offensive tactics laid out by Flip Saunders tonight are completely centered around the Wolf King.
Not only will Lin Fei have less shot power, but the team's second scoring point "Madman" will also do the same.
As the coach of the Timberwolves, Flip Saunders knows very well that the Wolf King has always been the soul and absolute core of this team.
After the first two finals, the Wolf King indirectly revealed some thoughts in front of the coaching team, suggesting that the offensive tactics should be more tilted toward him.
Although Phillip Sanders didn't say anything, he was still thinking about the Wolf King. After all, no matter how much he liked Lin Fei, Lin Fei would never be able to keep him, and the Wolf King was the one who allowed the Timberwolves to win the championship and even establish a dynasty. cornerstone.
Therefore, the changes in offensive tactics tonight, as well as a little selfishness from Flip Saunders, allow the Wolf King to produce better data and win the coveted Finals MVP, so that he can be more willing to serve the Timberwolves forever.
Timberwolves general manager McHale reminded Flip Saunders of this before the finals started. The finals MVP must go to the Wolf King.
Even "Madman" is also an outsider. He cannot win the FMVP unless he really performs an incredible performance in the finals.
Of course, the premise of everything is that the Timberwolves want to win the championship.
Naturally, Flip Saunders didn't listen to McHale's advice at first and always put winning first.
But now that the Timberwolves are leading 2:0, Flip Saunders has come to life and gives the Wolves more ball rights on the premise that it is beneficial to the team's offense.
In fact, judging from the situation in the first two finals, the Wolf King has always been the superstar with the most ball rights in the Timberwolves. He took a total of 42 shots in the two games, but his shooting rate was less than 43%.
As for the Wolf Kings who started tonight, even though they were on the road, they obviously felt better.
After the entire first quarter, the Wolf King made 6 of 8 shots, plus 2 of 3 free throws. He scored 14 points, 5 rebounds and 1 block in a single quarter, which indeed showed the style of the new MVP.
If he plays well on the offensive end, he will work harder on the defensive end. The Wolf King's physical talent is too outstanding, and the defensive end fully demonstrates DPOY's super high level.
Timberwolves (26): (21) Pistons.
They also led by 5 points in the first quarter.
This made Flip Saunders even more convinced that his tactical adjustments tonight were very worthwhile.
It's just that Lin Fei's side was a little worse. Not only did he not make a single shot on the offensive end in the single quarter, but he was also beaten 3-for-4 defensively by Hamilton, which resulted in another foul.
The overall opening performance was quite different from the previous game.
So Flip Saunders let Lin Fei play only 9 minutes in the first quarter, and then asked Trenton Hassell to replace him to adjust his mentality.
Lin Fei also knew the offensive strategy of the Timberwolves tonight before the game. Even if he didn't say it in name, Lin Fei, who was very thoughtful, also knew that this was obviously because he was afraid that he would steal the Wolf King's finals MVP.
Lin Fei has no objection to this. When he plays, he tries his best to play his role, obey the head coach's arrangements, and position himself correctly.
To be honest, Lin Fei really didn't expect to win FMVP this year.
The Timberwolves are not Lin Fei's team. There is actually not much difference between winning the FMVP and not winning the FMVP. It may be a bit embarrassing to have one more "Iguodala Award".
Lin Fei's only goal in the last game was to do his best to help the team win.
If Lin Fei is a master of holding the ball, then having the ball rights reduced will indeed be very uncomfortable.
But he is now a player without the ball, and he is not the core player of the team. If the boss doesn't pass it to you, you have no other way.
Moreover, Lin Fei is a rational person. Even if the offensive strategy arranged by Philip Sanders tonight is meant to take care of the Wolf King, it is definitely a very good change.
With the Pistons' top five players on the court at the same time and with plenty of physical strength, even if Lin Fei wanted to catch the ball and shoot more, the whole team would give him a wedding dress, and it would be difficult to get a chance.
At this point, the reason why Lin Fei does not fight or grab is because
First, he can position himself correctly and will not get carried away and think he is a superstar just because of a 29-point game.
The second is that Lin Fei can clearly realize that his catch-and-three-point characteristic does not have much advantage in the face of the unlimited switching defense of the Pistons' five tigers.
Mike Breen in front of the courtside commentator praised the Wolf King's tough performance in the first quarter and believed that if the Pistons did not limit the Wolf King's subsequent performance, it would be difficult to win at home.
Reggie Miller and Ray Allen, who are guest commentators, can only talk about the Wolf King and analyze the playing styles of Billups and "Madman".
But as the two most famous three-point shooters in the league, they were invited to the scene by ESPN tonight. Wasn't it to analyze Lin Fei's three-pointers?
But Lin Fei not only didn't score a point in the first quarter tonight, he didn't even take a shot. How can we explain this?
"Tonight the Pistons' five defensive changes restricted Lin very well, and the Timberwolves seemed to be handing more offense to the Wolf King!"
Listening to Nowitzki's words, Nash sitting next to him had sharp eyes. As a top point guard, he understood the current situation:
"There were at least three chances in the first quarter. The Wolf King and 'Madman' could pass the ball to Lin Fei. With Lin Fei's ability, he would definitely have time to take action!"
"But this opportunity is so secretive that even Jason Kidd and I would have a hard time grasping it, let alone them!"
"If you don't take the risk and give it a try, how will you know the result? The infinite defense changes of the Pistons' five tigers are really terrifying. They really deserve to reach the finals!"
After the start of the second quarter, the Pistons quickly increased their defensive intensity. The pick-and-roll of Wolf King and Lin Fei was not effective, and the shooting touch gradually declined.
The Pistons took advantage of their home court advantage to launch a crazy counterattack to chase points. They blasted a score of 27:15 in a single quarter and overtook the Timberwolves by 7 points at halftime.
The Palace of Auburn Hills was filled with cheers, and the Pistons fans were so enthusiastic that they disrupted the rhythm and state of the Timberwolves' main players.
Lin Fei got a chance to catch the ball at the end of the second quarter, but the quality of the "Madman's" pass was not good, and Hamilton also completely defended him.
Lin Fei could only choose a difficult shot for this ball, but he missed the ball.
"Clang!"
In the entire second quarter, Lin Fei only scored 1 point through one technical foul.
On the defensive end,
The Pistons used more pick-and-roll mismatches against Lin Fei in the second quarter. Targeting the gaps that the Timberwolves could not catch, Billups and Prince both hit shots in front of Lin Fei.
Although his mentality was good, the first half was so frustrating that Lin Fei was naturally not angry during the halftime break.
Even though the defensive attributes have improved from 46 to 52 compared with the previous game, this defensive attribute is still vulnerable to the Pistons' targeted play style.
You must know that this is the finals where the bayonet is red.
Reality poured cold water on Lin Fei's head. It seemed that G2's passable defensive performance in the finals was really just luck.
During the intermission, Mike Breen’s commentary was merciless and to the point:
"I have to admit that Lin's defensive performance is far from the finals level. His physical fitness and defensive skills still need to be greatly improved!"
"Especially in terms of confrontation, Lin hardly took any advantage, and his defensive skills were once again demonstrated!"
"If the offensive end cannot catch the ball and hit a three-pointer through running tactics, Lin has really lost the role of staying on the court!"
"Let's leave it to Flip Saunders and see what he does in the second half!"
During halftime, Flip Saunders' coaching staff was deeply divided over the hiring of players for the second half.
One side argued that the suspect should not be used and Lin Fei should continue to be on the court.
The other side advocated abandoning Lin Fei in the second half, strengthening the overall defense and steadily chasing points.
Flip Saunders knows very well that the Pistons' offensive tonight is too fierce. Lin Fei's absence is not actually the key reason for the team's lagging behind.
But he was constantly targeted on the defensive end, which indeed affected the team's defensive confidence.
Only now does Flip Saunders understand how powerful the Detroit Pistons are. G2 in the finals was a victory stolen from God.
Before the start of the third quarter, Flip Saunders adopted the method of using Lin Fei in the Western Conference Finals, often on the offensive end and off on the defensive end.
The frequent substitutions during this period, in addition to timeouts, were to create dead balls at the expense of Ben Wallace.
This method did not achieve the desired results. On the offensive end, Lin Fei and the Wolf King's high pick-and-roll have been thoroughly studied by the Pistons.
Even two consecutive elevator door screens did not give Lin Fei a chance to catch the ball.
Instead, the Wolf King and "Madman" made mistakes in two passes and were intercepted by the Pistons and turned into a fast break.
On the defensive end, replacing Lin Fei with Trenton Hassell did have a significant effect. The strange thing is that Hamilton did not actively move without the ball while Hassell was on the court.
On the contrary, the number of shots is reduced.
The most intuitive feeling given to the Timberwolves coaching team since then is that,
Trenton Hassell's defensive effect is significantly better than that of Lin Fei, because Lin Fei's best defensive advantage of chasing players without the ball has completely lost its use.
Flip Saunders was forced to completely replace Lin Fei in the second half of the third quarter and put him on the bench.
The Detroit Pistons, who were defeated in G2 of the finals, broke out in full force. In the third quarter, the defensive end changed endlessly and turned into a iron barrel formation, forcing the Timberwolves to make 7 turnovers in a single quarter and scored 12 points in the counterattack fast break alone.
At 3 minutes and 12 seconds of the third quarter, the Pistons attacked. Billups called Ben Wallace's pick-and-roll screen in the high post.
In the misplaced breakthrough, he supported Olowokandi and sent a high throw, assisting Ben Wallace, who was walking quickly down the court, to complete a flying dunk.
"Boom!"
After scoring, Ben Wallace beat his chest and roared, shouting to the Timberwolves bench:
"Guys, this is our home court, and you are destined to die!"
Seeing Lin Fei being benched and abandoned, Hamilton, who had almost no desire to attack in the third quarter, suddenly broke out.
Facing Trenton Hassell, who had little experience chasing the ball, he made three consecutive runs on the offensive end to catch the ball and made all 3 shots, including an outside three-pointer.
Flip Saunders was helpless. He called two timeouts in a row but couldn't contain Hamilton's explosion. Replacing Lin Fei still wouldn't have any good results. The Pistons would immediately change their offensive tactics.
After the entire third quarter, the Pistons once again shot a crazy 29:15, beating the Timberwolves by 14 points in a single quarter.
Three quarters are over.
Timberwolves (52): (73) Pistons, already 21 points behind their opponents.
In the final quarter, the Timberwolves had no way to make a comeback. Lin Fei only took the opportunity to hit a three-pointer when Rasheed Wallace was replaced, but there was no other gain.
In the end, driven by Hamilton's 31 points, 2 assists and 2 steals, Ben's 10 points, 15 rebounds and 4 blocks, Billups 16 points and 10 assists, all the Pistons' top five scored in double figures.
The Detroit Pistons defeated the Timberwolves 92:69 at home, rewriting the finals score to 1:2.
"Wolf King" Kevin Garnett scored 30 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal. Lin Fei made 1 of 2 shots and 1 of 1 free throws, and only scored 4 points.
When the fourth quarter entered garbage time, Mike Breen also asked the two commentators for their guidance regarding Lin Fei's cliffhanger performance tonight.
"Reggie and Ray are both defenders who are good at three-point shooting. As two experienced seniors, what advice do you have for Lin?"
"Or when you two face the Detroit Pistons tonight, with unlimited defense changes, how will you break the curse of being unable to score?"
Reggie Miller was the first to speak: "I am not surprised that Lin performed abnormally tonight, because after all, he is a rookie and undrafted, and we cannot give him too high expectations!"
"But I must admit that Shan Lunlin's off-ball movement and three-point shooting skills have surpassed my peak!"
"But such a single style of play has great limitations. Once you are completely studied by the opponent, you will be in an isolated and helpless situation like tonight!"
"If it were me, I would try to attack with the ball, or cut into the basket, and grab rebounds to create a second offensive opportunity, but Lin obviously doesn't have such ability yet!"
Ray Allen then said: "I very much agree with Reggie. Lin's off-ball three-pointers are superb, but his scoring ability in other aspects is almost zero!"
"On such a high-profile stage as the finals, which is a best-of-seven game, players with a single offensive method are most likely to be targeted and their condition will plummet. This is Lin's predicament tonight!"
"As a qualified shooting guard, in addition to the scoring methods that you are good at, you must have comprehensive scoring methods that are at least passing the passing line. Otherwise, you cannot become a first-class NBA defender!"
After losing G3 of the Finals, the Timberwolves' odds of winning the championship quickly dropped to 52%. More and more experts and neutral fans are more optimistic about the Detroit Pistons' counterattack and winning the championship.
There were also some conflicts within the Timberwolves. General Manager McHale strongly suggested that Lin Fei be returned to the bench and the Timberwolves return to traditional offensive and defensive tactics.
Flip Saunders also feels a dilemma. Facing a team like the Pistons, Lin Fei's off-ball characteristics have been targeted to the point where he has no advantage.
Two days later, in Game 4 of the Finals, Lin Fei did not get a minute of playing time, while the Timberwolves and Pistons were inseparable.
In the end, after two overtimes, the big-hearted Billups still completed the buzzer beater and lost by 1 point.
After losing two games in a row on the road, the big score in the finals also came to a 2:2 tie.
In G3 where Lin Fei played, the Timberwolves lost by 20+ points. In G4 where Lin Fei did not play, the Timberwolves also lost, but they fought hard with the Pistons in two overtimes.
In this comparison, traditional American fans pointed their fingers at Lin Fei, believing that he had become a drag on the Timberwolves in the finals.
Against a team like the Pistons, a player of Lin Fei's style is really not suitable to stay on the court.
26 points in the first game, 29 points in the second game, 4 points in the third game, and did not play in the fourth game.
The huge contrast in Lin Fei's performance before and after the finals aroused crazy discussions across the country.
Many NBA teams pursuing Lin Fei also began to hesitate and became cautious in contract offers.
Qin Dongmei, who was already negotiating with the Heat in Miami, also took the initiative to call Lin Fei in Detroit to encourage him to cheer up and stop having negative emotions.
"Lin Fei, I believe you can rebound in the next game!"
Fans on the Chinese side also felt flustered, angry and uneasy.
"Mader, why did the Timberwolves target Fei Ge? They didn't even give him a minute of playing time in the fourth game? You guys are ungrateful. Without Fei Ge's 1.3-second buzzer beater, the Timberwolves were already 1:3 behind!"
"You are wrong. Without Brother Fei, the Timberwolves would have been eliminated by the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals 1:4!"
"The unlimited defense changes of the Pistons five tigers really made it difficult for Lin Fei to have a chance to catch the ball. They didn't take you so seriously in G1. Rasheed Wallace was sent off again at the last moment of G2. As a result, G3 and G4 After the Pistons are completely targeted, Lin Fei really has no chance to perform!"
"Be content with what you have. I feel like the Timberwolves can't beat the Pistons. After all, Lin Fei is our Asian point guard. His outstanding performance in the past few games is enough for him to sign a good contract in the offseason!"
"In the next battle at Tianwang Mountain, will the Timberwolves let Fei Ge play?"
June 15th.
The finals battle will continue at the Auburn Hills Palace Arena in Detroit.
For this crucial battle at Tianwang Mountain, whether Lin Fei should be allowed to play and what role he should play has become an urgent question for the Timberwolves coaching team.
The Westin Hotel in Detroit, in the conference room.
Phillip Sanders and the teaching assistant team were having an urgent discussion. At this moment, a call came in. Sanders picked up the phone and found that it was Sam Cassel.
The call was connected, and Cassell's steady voice soon came from the other end, as if he had considered it for a long time before making up his mind:
"Coach Sanders, please allow me to play behind closed doors in G5. Both the Timberwolves and I need this championship!"
"If Lin and I partner up, I believe he can still get the chance to catch the ball and shoot under the tight defense of the Pistons' five tigers!"
(End of chapter)
