Navarro is not physically strong among guards, weighing less than 80 kilograms, but he has rich experience in competitions. Although he has not played in the NBA, he has been famous in European leagues for a long time.
The Euro-Zhuhai Basketball League is the second basketball league in the world under the NBA, and is naturally much better than the CBA.
Navarro's skill and level as a defender is obviously not comparable to that of Liu Wei. A pressing press made the opponent very nervous and almost made a mistake.
Dayao suddenly frowned and could only quickly move to the center line and stick up to create a pick-and-roll for Liu Wei.
Liu Wei took advantage of Dayao's cover and accelerated his dribbling away from Navarro, arriving outside the three-point line in the left frontcourt.
Dayao accelerated down to the penalty area, and generally moved up to the top of the arc, creating a high and low screen between the two towers inside.
Liu Wei gave the ball to the top of the arc. Facing the 2.08-meter-tall Spanish power forward Felipe Reyes, Liu Wei took a breakthrough step behind the basket with his back to the basket.
In an instant, Reyes retreated quickly, and with the help of the space created by this realistic breakthrough fake move, he made a decisive three-pointer from the top of the arc.
"Uh-huh!"
A solid hit.
At this stage in 2004, FIBA's three-point line was only 6.25 meters from the basket, which was a full meter shorter than the NBA's top-of-arc distance from the three-point line.
Generally speaking, it is quite easy to shoot a three-pointer from this distance.
But for Lin Fei, it took him a long time to adapt to one end of the court after returning to China, but in the end he still preferred to shoot from three-point and one-step distance, and his shooting rate was also higher.
When the ball was transferred, Navarro used Gasol's pick-and-roll in the high post, broke through one step, stopped decisively in the mid-range, and the basketball hit the net.
"Uh-huh!"
Looking back, Liu Wei's pass was too risky, and Fernandez stepped forward to complete the steal. The Spanish team counterattacked on the fast break, and Navarro took the lead. He caught the ball during the fast break and easily layup for another two points.
"Uh-huh!"
Liu Wei came over to play a pick-and-roll with Dayao. Navarro quickly bypassed the screen, but the effect of this pick-and-roll was not realized.
Zhu Fangyu in the left corner ran up to catch the ball and shot a three-pointer from a 45-degree angle.
Regardless of whether it was scored or not, Zhu Fangyu shot the ball very decisively and confidently.
"Clang!"
Amidst the sound of the iron, Dayao withstood Gasol in the penalty area, flew to grab the offensive rebound, squeezed into the basket with a leap step, and jumped directly for a dunk.
"Boom!"
China (5): (4) Spanish Ya.
Lin Fei, who was sitting on the bench, could see clearly that the Tianchao side, which had both Dayao and General, had a clear advantage on the inside, but in the competition on the outside, Xiban Ya was obviously stronger.
Liu Weigang was obviously a little nervous when he came on the court. If it weren't for Dayao's continuous pick-and-roll screens, it would have been difficult for Liu Wei to dribble the ball to the front three-point line under Navarro's defense.
The head coach of Spain, who is from Italy, stood on the sidelines with his arms folded and a strategizing expression. It seemed that targeting the backcourt of the Chinese men's basketball team at the beginning was the established tactic of the Spanish coaching staff.
Lin Fei suddenly felt that the passing and receiving cooperation he had practiced with Hu Xuefeng for more than a month might not be of any use in the face of Spain's oppressive backcourt.
After all, it is difficult for Liu Wei to calmly dribble and pass the ball in front of Navarro. Hu Xuefeng is even worse against Navarro and Calderon.
It seems that it is simpler and more crude to use Dayao and the ball pick-and-roll in the high post.
While chatting with Hu Xuefeng and Ah Lian who were sitting next to him, Lin Fei quickly summoned the personal system panel from his consciousness and used the 1620 free attribute points accumulated in the past two months.
Once again it's all added to the defensive attributes.
[Ding, all 1620 points of free attributes have been added to the defensive attribute, and the defensive attribute value is +12, raised to 68 points]
The defensive comprehensive point increased from the previous 56 to 68, which was well above the passing line. This made Lin Fei quite satisfied.
At least in this Olympics, Lin Fei's defense will never be targeted again.
Lin Fei quickly clicked on five defensive items:
[Single defense: 68]
[Assisted defense: 68]
[Defense change: 68]
[Steals: 78]
[Blocks: 58]
The 78 steals is still the highest among the five defensive categories. This value should allow Lin Fei to have a good defensive steal performance in the Olympics.
Of course, it is not a wise choice to risk losing defensive position in order to steal data.
On the court, Dayao missed Gasol's hook and missed the basketball frame.
"Snapped!"
The rebound was protected by Gasol, and the pass passed very quickly. Navarro took the ball and quickly launched a counterattack.
Fernandez went down the right wing, received a pass from Varo, and threw away Li Nan for a flying dunk.
"Boom!"
Although not as spectacular as the dunks of NBA guards, the 19-year-old Fernandez has shown his calmness and composure in the international arena.
With the twin towers on the inside, the Tianchao men's basketball team has stronger offensive strength, but the speed of returning to defense cannot be guaranteed. It is still roughly the same boy who chases the wind, but he is a 2.14-meter inside player after all.
The first quarter lasted for 5 minutes, and the two sides were basically evenly matched.
China (12): (11) Xibanya.
The opening 12 points of the Tianchao men's basketball team were all scored by Dayao and Dalu. They were indeed slightly better than Spain in the paint.
But Gasol showed stronger silhouette ability in positional battles and sent out two assists in a row.
It can be said that the outside line of the Chinese men's basketball team was basically destroyed by Spain.
Li Nan played more as a small forward in the CBA, and now he is a shooting guard. His three-pointers are sharp enough on the offensive end, but he suffers from speed and mobility on the defensive end.
"Silver Fox" Del Harris called the first long timeout, replaced Liu Wei and Li Nan, and let Lin Fei's partner Hu Xuefeng come on.
After returning from the timeout, watching Lin Fei step onto the court, Liu Xiang, Guo Jingjing, Tian Liang, Sui Feifei and others sitting in the audience also had their eyes twinkling and applauded.
In Tianchao’s five live broadcast rooms,
The live broadcast of this focus battle is still directed by Zhang Lili and host Yu Jia.
"Although we are temporarily leading by one point, the flaws in the lineup are still obvious. The backcourt obviously cannot keep up with the intensity of the Olympics!"
"Although Liu Wei made two turnovers in half a quarter, apart from him, there really is no better point guard in the Chinese men's basketball team. This is the gap between us and the powerful European and American basketball powers!"
"Okay, Lin Fei is on the court, and his partner is Hu Xuefeng. Let's look forward to it. I hope Lin Fei's three-pointers can continue to shine in the Olympics!"
After all, it is their own basketball competing in the Olympics, and it is against a super strong team like Spain, so this Olympic opening game of the Chinese men's basketball team attracted no less Chinese fans than the NBA Finals.
Of course, in terms of age structure, it will be older than the fans who watch NBA as a whole.
Many old fans started to like the China Men's Basketball Team from the golden generation of Liu Yufrog and Hu Weidong.
"Lin Fei is finally going to play. We must strengthen the firepower from the outside so that Lin Fei's three-pointers can also drive Li Nan and Zhu Fangyu. Relying too much on Dayao and Dalu is not a good thing after all!"
"With Su Yu and Lin Fei, Dayao will be able to get enough rest time and will not be exhausted at the last moment like in previous international competitions!"
"Yao Yao was very strong in front of Gasol tonight. His general steps were still so gorgeous. He completely stunned Reyes. However, the two players in the backcourt made three mistakes. This hurt morale too much!"
"Don't worry, the game has just begun. Isn't Lin Fei on the field? He will definitely explode the Spanish girl next!"
My eyes returned to Yadian Capital Gymnasium.
The game continues after the timeout.
Tianchao attacked and Hu Xuefeng dribbled the ball forward.
Sure enough, under Navarro's upward pressure, Hu Xuefeng almost made a dribbling error.
Lin Fei decisively brought it up and set a screen for Hu Xuefeng near the three-point line at the top of the arc, delaying Navarro's pressing.
Hu Xuefeng accelerated around the screen with the ball, and Lin Fei also took a big step back from the center after the screen was completed, ready to catch the ball and shoot a long three-pointer.
Navarro immediately chased Hu Xuefeng, and nearly two months of repeated training finally came in handy. Hu Xuefeng turned around and passed the ball quickly, and the ball was accurately passed to Lin Fei.
Even though Fernandez knew that Lin Fei had made several long-range three-pointers in the NBA Finals, he still took a chance and did not fully defend.
By the time Lin Fei caught the ball and pounced on it, it was obviously too late.
Lin Fei was close to three meters outside the three-point line at the top of the arc. He jumped decisively and shot Fernandez with his bow and arrow.
After all, he is a 19-year-old young man. Fernandez's blocking shot was very decisive, leaving no escape route for himself.
"Whoosh!"
But he obviously underestimated the speed of Lin Fei's shot. The basketball flew past Fernandez's fingertips and whizzed away towards the basket.
Although Lin Fei's shooting position is three meters away from the three-point line at the top of the arc, FIBA's three-point line is only 6.25 meters, and it is less than 10 meters after adding three meters.
For Lin Fei, his shooting percentage in this position far exceeds 50%.
"Uh-huh!"
The basketball hit the net and made a wonderful splash.
"Beep!"
The moment Fernandez hit the ball, the referee's whistle also sounded.
3+1.
After landing, Lin Fei waved his fist confidently and high-fived Hu Xuefeng who rushed up.
The Chinese athletes on the sidelines also cheered and applauded excitedly. Diver Guo Jingjing’s pretty face was slightly red, and her eyes were like peach blossoms: “Oh my god, Lin Fei is so handsome!”
Sui Feifei also smiled and nodded: "Yes, Lin Fei's shooting is really accurate!"
Du Li, who had just won the gold medal, smiled brightly and had a beautiful heart. He joked:
"Lin Fei is really a shooting genius who was delayed by basketball. He is so accurate!"
This is Lin Fei's first three-point shot in the Olympics. This ultra-long 3+1 is destined to become an eternal memory in the hearts of fans.
Ah Lian, Li Nan, Liu Wei, Guo Shiqiang, Zhang Jinsong and others on the Tianchao bench also stood up and waved their towels excitedly, and their spirits were lifted by Lin Fei's 3+1.
Del Harris also smiled and nodded. It seems that Lin Fei is really born for the big scene.
The head coach of Spain called Fernandez to the sidelines for the foul and gave him a few words of advice.
"Uh-huh!"
Lin Fei, who stepped to the free throw line, also took extra free throws and scored 4 points in less than 20 seconds after entering the game.
China (16): (11) Xibanya.
Spanish attack, this time Gasol continued to play pick-and-roll with Navarro in the high post, attracting Dayao's defense.
Navarro easily reached the basket against Hu Xuefeng and quickly moved sideways to cover the defense.
At this time, Gasol bypassed Dayao and slid to the left side of the basket, received Varro's pass, and directly picked up the basket.
"Uh-huh!"
Whether in the NBA or the national team, Gasol is a very useful jack-of-all-trades player, and his mid-range pick-and-rolls with defenders are particularly deadly.
Not only can he move inside to catch the ball in the penalty area for dunks and hook shots, he can also move outside to catch the ball in the high post and shoot high.
Gasol's breakthrough after the pick-and-roll was not to go straight to the inside, but to go around the outside and then slide in. His steps were very flexible, and then he caught the ball and made a layup with one move of his hand.
This move cannot be defended by a center like Dayao, which is why Dayao has never been able to defend against Gasol in the NBA.
"Silver Fox" Del Harris has naturally studied this. Next, he will try to switch to Gasol to see if there will be better results.
When Tianchao attacked, Hu Xuefeng’s passing intention was successfully predicted by the experienced Navarro, and he struck out with lightning to complete the steal again.
"Snapped!"
Lin Fei immediately turned over and returned to defense. He pursued the defense very quickly. When Navarro broke through to the three-point line with the ball, he successfully overtook in the corner and formed a block.
With a defensive attribute of 68 points, Lin Fei has greater confidence in defense. Instead of rashly blocking fouls, he retreats and defends, interfering with Navarro's fast break breakthrough.
Fernandez had already rushed to the right to respond, but Navarro had no intention of passing the ball to Lin Fei.
He would like to see how much defensive strength Lin Fei, who has been targeted defensively in the NBA Western Conference Finals and Finals, has.
After all, it seems that Lin Fei, an undrafted player from China, can shine on the highest stage of the NBA, break multiple three-point records at the same time, and attract the attention of fans all over the world.
Most NBA role players, and even talented players in some leagues in other countries, are unconvinced. More players believe that Lin Fei's success has a lot of luck.
Navarro is one of them, so in today's Olympic arena, he will naturally look for opportunities to confront Lin Feigang and expose the true face of this speculator.
But when Navarro reached the deepest part of the basket, he realized that he had underestimated Lin Fei's defense.
Lin Fei did not create a chance for Navarro to block the foul, and Navarro's European step breakthrough could not completely shake Lin Fei away.
Seeing that he had reached the basket, Navarro had to use his ball protector to block Lin Fei, and directly chose an underhand layup with his right hand.
But the moment Navarro took off to lift the ball, Lin Fei's sharp eyes successfully captured this fleeting moment. The moment the basketball was exposed in front of his eyes, his long arms struck like lightning like a scalpel.
"Snapped!"
With a crisp sound and Navarro's shocked pupils, Lin Fei slapped the basketball to the ground as he was about to take action.
Lin Fei quickly swatted the basketball away and without stopping, he swept past Navarro and quickly controlled the ball before Fernandez rushed forward.
Steals +1.
This can be said to be a very exciting return steal, which can be completed in the opponent's fast break 2 on 1 situation, and it is still in the hands of Navarro, the best defender in Europe.
Lin Fei's steal is of great significance.
Although Navarro did not pass the ball to his teammates and insisted on playing Lin Fei alone, he was somewhat impulsive and arrogant.
But Lin Fei's steal while retreating was truly shocking.
From the first second of the game, the Spanish backcourt was aggressive against the Chinese men's basketball backcourt. Both the starting Liu Wei and the substitute Hu Xuefeng were very uncomfortable.
The Spanish side clearly looked down on the Chinese defenders, and the Chinese defenders indeed made mistakes one after another and failed to respond adequately.
Therefore, Lin Fei's steal while returning to defense instantly boosted the momentum of Tianchao's backcourt defense. Liu Wei and Li Nan, who were sitting on the bench, jumped up excitedly, punched and roared.
Seeing Lin Fei steal Navarro and take control of the basketball, the Chinese men's basketball players who were halfway back on defense immediately turned over and jumped down, completely throwing away the Spanish players.
Lin Fei made a powerful pass from the frontcourt. Although the quality was not very high, he was still firmly caught by Yao who was running at the front. After combining the ball, he took three steps directly, reached the basket and delivered a two-handed dunk.
"Boom!"
Dayao scored +2.
Lin Fei assists +1.
Although Dayao's breakthrough dunk action is not beautiful, it is shocking.
As early as before the game, Yao publicly stated in front of the media that if the Chinese men's basketball team cannot reach the quarterfinals of this Olympics, he will never shave and become a savage.
The six teams in Group A can be said to be fighting among gods. Although there is no dream six of the United States, Spain, Argentina, Italy, Serbia and Montenegro are not easy to mess with.
There is only one New Zealand that is easier to deal with.
If the Chinese men's basketball team wants to reach the quarterfinals, it must win at least two games in the group stage. To be on the safe side, it must win three games. It can be said that it is not easy.
Therefore, Dayao knew that he would play Spain in the opening game, so he had to go all out and try his best to get a good start.
Seeing that Lin Fei contributed 4 points, 1 steal and 1 assist in just one minute, he had no obvious flaws on the defensive end.
The Spanish head coach who was standing on the sidelines did not show any confidence and quickly called a long timeout to make targeted tactical arrangements.
The front row of the audience cheered thunderously, and the Chinese fans and athletes shouted, "China will win, China will win!"
"Who said that Lin Fei is not good at defense? The steal that he quickly returned to defense just now was one against two, and Yao Ming also seized the first opportunity to dunk in front of the pass! He is really strong!"
"The defense was not good in the NBA Western Conference Finals and Finals. Now we are facing only a European defender from Spain. Isn't the defense going to get better immediately?"
"According to what you say, Lin Fei's defense is far above the level of domestic first-class defenders? The gap between NBA and CBA is really huge!"
"Yes, he was a defensive colander in the NBA playoffs. In China, he instantly killed Liu Wei and Hu Xuefeng. He doesn't shy away from Europe's top point guards in the Olympics. Lin Fei is really strong!"
"Why can't Liu Wei and Hu Xuefeng even dribble well? Lin Fei's steal should wake them up, right? Don't be cowardly, just roll up your sleeves and do it!"
"It's a pity that Lin Fei's dribbling skills are not high. Otherwise, the man and the ball are integrated, plus the twin towers of Yao and Shou inside, it would be too easy for our Chinese men's basketball team to beat Spain!"
The timeout came back quickly and Spain attacked.
Navarro held the ball and hit Hu Xuefeng's point. He continuously changed the direction of his hips and half-turned to mislead, causing Hu Xuefeng to almost fall.
Lin Fei frowned, watching Navarro easily enter the penalty area, and Gasol had already pushed Dayao outside the baseline, so he did not hesitate and quickly let go of Fernandez to cover up.
"Whoosh!"
In the NBA Finals, Lin Fei needed Wolf King, "Madman" and Szebiak to help him defend. Now in the Olympics, he has to help his teammates.
This terrible contrast really made Lin Fei couldn't help but have three black lines floating down his forehead.
There is God's will in the dark, and the cause and effect of the world is like a circle. If you come out to mess around, you always have to pay it back.
Of course, this also fully confirms the insurmountable gap between the Chinese men's basketball team and the highest level of the NBA.
(End of chapter)
