As the opening game, both sides made relatively full preparations before the game.
The Clippers trained a lot of new tactics and strategies in the summer, but as the defending champions, they still decided to focus on stability.
The starting lineup is still Gasol, Randolph, Leonard, George and Curry, with James Harden as the team's first substitute sixth man.
The Lakers changed their head coach, and with Kobe Bryant leaving and Paul becoming the only core, the team's system will naturally undergo major changes.
Paul chose to lose weight this summer. In order to match Kobe Bryant in the first two seasons, he enhanced his strength and singles ability, and his weight reached the peak of his career.
After Kobe Bryant left, Paul decided to return to a lighter body, firstly to reduce the pressure on his knees and make himself more durable. Secondly, as the only core ball-handler, he decided to reduce singles and increase the function of organization and series.
The Lakers' starting lineup is Paul, Joe Johnson, Iguodala, Jordan Hill and Brook Lopez.
Compared with last season, Kobe Bryant was replaced by Joe Johnson, which was obviously a weakening, but for Paul, it was a kind of liberation.
At the same time, with Brook Lopez on the inside, the team has an additional low-post offensive point, and its tactics have been enriched.
Sure enough, after the jump ball, the Lakers got the ball and asked Brook Lopez to hold the ball in the low post and beat Gasol as soon as the game started.
Lopez is currently one of the few traditional insiders in the league who has the ability to post up in the low post and can score 20 points in a single game.
He is like a dinosaur that is about to become extinct. He seems a bit out of place in a league where the style of play is becoming increasingly smaller and faster.
However, no matter how basketball develops, big men will always be a necessity, and low-post offense must have its own space and meaning.
Lopez turned around and hit a two-point hook with a hook, scoring the first point for the Lakers.
As for the Clippers, Randolph has the same ability to attack in the low post as Gasol.
Curry also gave the ball to Randolph. Randolph beat Hill in the low post and turned to the baseline and hit a jumper.
At the beginning of the new season's opening game, both sides used a very traditional low-post attack method to score their first points of the season.
This shows that in the coach's mind, the big man's low-post attack is still a good way to open up the situation.
However, as the first quarter of the game gradually progressed, the gap in offensive concepts between the two sides gradually became apparent.
The Clippers' number of three-pointers from the outside has increased significantly, with Curry and George both shooting three-pointers continuously.
As the pace of the game gradually accelerates, once there is an opportunity, he immediately takes action from the outside without hesitation.
This is also the Clippers' regular season offensive tradition. The low-post start is just for fun, and three-point bombing is the right way.
The Lakers played a more traditional style on the offensive end. Paul and his teammates used a lot of pick-and-roll cooperation. Lopez and Hill kept covering for Paul. Iguodala and Johnson responded on the wings at 45 degrees.
When the play failed, Joe Johnson would catch the ball on the wing and use his isolation as a backup.
At the same time, the Lakers' defense inherited Rivers' legacy in the Celtics, giving up fighting for offensive rebounds, quickly returning to defense, locking the center, and driving opponents to the flanks and baseline.
However, in the Celtics, Rivers has Kevin Garnett on his hands. Garnett is a very good defensive coach when he is on the court. He is a master in maintaining the defensive formation and detecting and filling gaps.
But in the Lakers, Lopez is a squatting center. His defense is mediocre to begin with, and the new season's vertical jump rules have made him suffer a lot.
Halfway through the first quarter, Lopez was called for two defensive fouls in the paint and had to take a rest. Rivers replaced McGee.
At this time, through a wave of impacts and three-pointers, the Clippers had turned the score to 19:15, leading the Lakers by 4 points.
However, Min Congda was not very satisfied with the Clippers' opening offense. He could vaguely feel that the Clippers players were working hard to provide Curry with the ball.
"What's going on? Curry's shot ratio seems to be higher than usual, right? The ball possession time has also become longer. Also, half of the first quarter has been played, why don't Curry get off the court to rest? It's time to go It’s logged in!”
As a result, Tyronn Lue did not replace Curry for Harden as he did last season. Instead, he made internal adjustments and replaced Anthony Davis and Gasol?
This is a different substitution than usual. Generally speaking, Anthony Davis replaces Randolph, and then Gasol and Anthony Davis play double-high.
But to be honest, the effect of double height is very average and not as strong as people think.
Perhaps in some rounds, the double height will make the opponent desperate through the pressure of height.
For example, continuous blocks inside and continuous offensive rebounds will make fans feel really awesome.
But if you stretch out the time line, you will find that the offensive and defensive problems caused by the slow rhythm of double height and the monotony of the offensive end will make the height advantage invisible.
Not to mention the current fast version, even in the early version where giants dominated, there were very few successful twin towers.
The Spurs' twin towers that won the championship were also the result of David Robinson becoming a functional player and a role player. They did not have good results when both were at the All-Star level.
Tyronn Lue and Mike Malone realized this and had the insight to push Anthony Davis to the 5th position and let him swap with Gasol.
Anthony Davis is a little reluctant. With his size and size, he has always been at the fourth position, like Kevin Garnett.
Is it appropriate for him, the No. 1 pick, to play the fifth position and fight with big centers?
However, Davis still followed the coach's instructions and played the fifth position. Unexpectedly, the effect was not bad.
He is faster than Gasol in the paint and has better shot-blocking ability. The Clippers' inside basket-protecting ability has reached a new level.
At the same time, he does not need to engage in physical combat, because except for Lopez, the Lakers do not have a low-heavy center, so he can just guard the basket.
The Clippers quickly launched a 7-0 offensive climax. Curry hit consecutive three-pointers in the counterattack and scored 15 points in a single quarter. The Clippers led the Lakers by 9 points at 31:22 in the first quarter.
However, when the game entered the second quarter, the situation changed somewhat. Rivers boldly used bench players in the second quarter.
Henry, Nick Young, and Blake came on the stage and started a three-point shootout with the Clippers.
Especially the little-known Henry, his three-pointers from the outside are surprisingly accurate. Facing Harden and Dragic, he hit consecutive three-pointers face-to-face.
In the second quarter, the counterattack launched an 11:2 offensive shock wave, which evened the score difference between the two sides. The Lakers' powerful substitutes and second lineup caught the Clippers by surprise.
Min Congda was happy for only three minutes and immediately began to suspect that there was a problem in the team's locker room: "Curry wants to win the MVP and messes up the team's rotation."
(End of chapter)
