Injuries and absences of key players are inevitable in the regular season.
In fact, in this Clippers lineup, from the starting lineup to the substitute rotation, no one is a true iron man.
Not to mention super model workers like Karl Malone and Stockton who have been full attendance for more than ten consecutive seasons, or who have only missed one or two games. Even if there are players who play more than 75 games in a season, the Clippers have only a handful of players.
After all, only Paul George played 80 games in one of his first three seasons.
One reason is that the Clippers engage in a major rotation, and some players are often rested and not included in the lineup.
Another reason is that the young people of the Clippers are really not strong enough.
Some players in the league, such as Russell Westbrook and Dwight Howard, are physically strong and played every game in the past few seasons.
Russell Westbrook played all the regular seasons in the first five seasons of his career until he was injured in the playoffs last season. His attendance rate this season will definitely be affected.
In Howard's first nine seasons, he also played in 82 games in five seasons and more than 75 games in eight seasons. The only season that did not meet the standard was the 2012 season because of the shortened season.
This type of player does not have no injuries, but does not have major injuries. He can't get out of the firing line even with minor injuries. His body can withstand and produce, and he has a high attendance rate and loves to work.
To be honest, there are really not many veterans on the Clippers. After Baron Davis was traded and Ricky Davis retired, the only real veteran left in the Clippers is Randolph.
The remaining Curry, Harden, Leonard and others have not even reached their playing years and are still in the growth stage. Leonard and Butler are only in the third year, George is in the fourth year, and Curry and Harden are also in the fourth year. But the fifth year.
Star players generally can barely be called veterans in their tenth year after entering the league and when they are over 30 years old. At that time, they can get the maximum proportion of the maximum salary contract.
With such a group of young people, all kinds of injuries occur one after another. It is already very good to play about 60 games each season, and they are all playing in and out.
If Min Congda hadn't insisted on letting Curry have ankle ligament repair surgery earlier, Curry doesn't know how long he would have been troubled by his ankle injury.
Even after repair surgery, the old ankle injury is still prone to relapse. Once there is discomfort, the team will let Curry put on a suit and rest on the sidelines.
As for Leonard, he has been enjoying the treatment of veteran cadres with the Clippers since his third grade. As long as he has some physical problems and he says he feels uncomfortable, the Clippers will let him rest.
The rules were originally set by Min Congda, and they are considered one of the benefits of the Clippers. Take a good rest when you are sick, and work hard when you work.
After the start of this year's season, the Clippers' state has been up and down. They lost the first game to the Lakers, then won against the Warriors cleanly, and then won several games in a row very easily.
However, when they played against the Heat and Thunder, they lost in a tough conversation, which made people doubt the Clippers' competitive level this year.
At the beginning of last season, the Clippers were in full swing and didn't lose a game throughout October and November.
The reason is that the mentality of the Clippers players this year is indeed different from the past.
He lost a little bit of effort and began to better allocate his physical condition, and tactically gave Curry the ball.
In the new season, Curry's scoring average soared from 22.5 points last season to 30.7 points, becoming the current league's scoring leader.
The playing time has also been increased to 35 minutes, and the number of shots and time holding the ball have been greatly increased.
In the first nine games, the Clippers' post-game reports were basically "Curry's 30 points + so-and-so's 20 points xx rebounds xx assists..."
Anyway, the No. 2 player takes turns, and the No. 1 player is Curry. The typical goal is to give Curry more data to help him win the MVP.
However, everyone is not used to playing like this, and Curry's performance at critical moments in games against the Heat and Thunder can only be described as so-so.
Curry also blamed himself for losing these two games. He felt that in order to win the MVP, he hurt the team's tactical understanding and wasted the opportunity.
Tyronn Lue told him, "What you should really blame yourself for is why you missed those shots, rather than blaming yourself for taking away the power to take the shot."
This sentence gave Curry an enlightenment. He knew that it was not wrong to want to win the MVP. Not only did he want to win it, everyone wanted to win it, and he was the first to take the lead.
If everyone gives you their full support and you can't get ahead, then how can everyone get ahead in the future? You are the one who rushes first.
Thinking of this, Curry no longer regards "I want to win the MVP" as a joke, nor does he blame himself for his poor performance. Instead, he reminds himself that he must be serious and move towards this goal. Not only his own ambition, but also everyone's ambition, and he cannot let down everyone's trust.
Of course, Curry can only sit on the sidelines in tonight's game against the Nets. James Harden starts the game and faces Kobe in the game.
After the game started, the Nets took the lead in gaining the right to attack. Pierce took the ball, handed it to Kobe, and then joined Garnett on the wing to create a cross-screen cooperation to disrupt the Clippers' defense.
Garnett seized the opportunity and suddenly turned around and cut inside. Kobe passed the ball in place. Garnett shook off Randolph's defense and rushed to the basket.
But facing Gasol's defense, Garnett chose to make a pull-up jumper. As a result, the ball was short and missed. Gasol got the backboard.
Min Congda saw Garnett's attack and said: "You weakling, you don't even rush in to dunk the ball. If it were me, I would dunk it!"
Garnett's ball is indeed a bit soft, but there is nothing to be done about it. He is older and has no advantages in explosiveness, speed, and strength.
Although a good opportunity appeared, he still didn't dare to challenge the opponent's big center and used a weak shot.
However, Garnett immediately showed his toughness on the defensive end. Dragic broke through in the middle, and George slipped to the baseline and had a chance to catch the ball and layup.
But Dragic's pass was interfered by Garnett's long arm. Blatche won the ball and the ball was transferred. It was still the Nets' offense.
Pierce dribbled across half court again and handed the ball to Deron. Deron held the ball with his back at a 45-degree angle on the right side, attracting the attention of the Clippers defense, and then passed it to Pierce at the top of the key.
Pierce suddenly made a pass from the center to Kobe who was cutting to the basket - Kobe didn't know how the ball got into the basket. Facing Gasol, Kobe first made a fake move and then made a basket. He dribbled the ball from the right to the left with his own footsteps, then switched to his left hand and made a light rebound to pick up the basket, hit two points, and scored the first point of the game.
After scoring the goal, Kobe did not forget to educate Garnett, "This is how you should play under the basket!"
Garnett grinned, "You'll get the rebound later!"
The two are considered veterans among veterans, but they still bicker.
The Clippers immediately responded with Dragic's breakthrough from the middle. This time he chose to rush directly to the basket and hit two points with a throw to Garnett.
The Nets' opening defense was obviously unfocused. The Clippers took advantage of the spread of the formation to open up space in the middle and on the bottom line, giving Dragic the chance to break in directly from the middle.
It can be seen that both sides attach great importance to this game. Both teams have made a lot of arrangements and preparations before the game. Dragic will replace Curry in the starting lineup and will definitely play a different role.
The NBA regular season is actually divided into many levels. This kind of powerful dialogue, broadcast live across the United States, is not much different from the playoffs in intensity.
Before the game, coaches and players will prepare carefully, conduct some tactical rehearsals, or arrange some targeted strategies, hold a pre-game preparation meeting and so on.
But if it is some ordinary games, or some fish vs. fish games, such as the Rockets playing the Magic, the 76ers playing the Bucks, etc., the ratings and attendance will be very low, and the coaches on both sides will not work desperately overtime. Make a plan. Anyway, the purpose of the season is to improve the performance and train the newcomers. Play according to the established strategy. The most important thing is to be able to bring out the abilities of the newcomers or improve the record.
The two sides played against each other in the opening rounds. Both teams played very methodically and did not rely on their star players before the start.
Kobe didn't hold the ball much in the opening game, and Harden was also taking a walk, seemingly paving the way for the following showdown.
At the first official timeout, the battle between the two sides was 7:6, with the Clippers leading the Nets by 1 point.
Paul George's three-pointer gave the Clippers a slight lead.
The opening shooting percentages of both sides were not very high, and the defenses of both sides were also quite tough.
Butler directly blocked Pierce's mid-range jumper in one-on-one defense.
However, Pierce quickly used his flexible steps to teach Butler a lesson with continuous fake moves, and hit a throw after breaking through the baseline.
However, after a short trial period, the Nets took the lead in showing their fangs after an official timeout.
Kobe held the ball on the outside, continued pick-and-roll cooperation, and finally used a strong blocker to allow Dragic to face Kobe one-on-one - this was a mismatch.
The Clippers like to switch defenses on the defensive end. If you don't pay attention when guarding pick-and-rolls, you can easily be misplaced, especially at the point guard position.
Facing the best one-on-one player on the planet, Dragic must have been nervous. He concentrated on defense and kept an eye on the ball in Kobe's hands.
As a result, after Kobe dribbled the ball seemingly aimlessly, he suddenly pulled up and shot a long three-pointer, which caught Dragic off guard.
The ball passed through the center of the basket and hit the target accurately!
At 7:9, the Nets took the lead by two points.
After scoring the goal, Kobe stretched his finger towards the sideline, obviously pointing it to Min Congda.
Min Congda snorted disdainfully, thinking that Kobe was really trying to get his nose in the face.
The two trained together in the summer, and Kobe lost to Min Congda in the midfield three-point gamble.
After that, Kobe asked Min Congda for another round several times, but Min Congda rejected him every time.
However, in the process, Kobe's ultra-long three-pointers became more and more accurate as he practiced more.
Min Congda reminded Kobe at this time that in the new season with the Nets, with Paul Pierce, he can completely transform and take the three-pointer route.
This surprised Kobe as to why Min Congda would give such a suggestion. At that time, Kobe and his team's initial route was to move in the off-ball direction.
Because the Nets already have two ball-handling experts in Deron and Pierce, Kobe is willing to take the initiative to seek changes and become an excellent off-ball attacker.
Min Congda directly rejected Kobe's idea when he heard it, and said disdainfully that if Kobe takes the off-ball route, it will be impossible for the Nets to reach the finals in the new season, and it will be very difficult for the Nets to even enter the playoffs.
He and Kobe analyzed that although Pierce and Deron are masters of holding the ball, Deron's current state and Pierce's age determine that their ability to digest the ball is not as good as before.
Deron no longer has Sloan's system, and he was injured in order to carry the record, and his condition is not as good as before. He is no longer able to support the entire team's offense as the number one core, and he can still be the number two deputy.
Pierce can perform at critical moments. If you give him 20 minutes in a game, he can still perform at his peak. But if the time is exceeded and he is allowed to hold the ball a lot, his efficiency will drop greatly. That's because of his age.
Even when Pierce was young, he was praised for his indiscriminate singles at critical moments. Efficient scoring in regular time was not his strong point. After all, his peak average was only 26 points per game in his peak period. He has never been among the league's top scorers. , Pierce only scored about 20 points in the Big Three era, and in the following years he scored less than 20 points.
His highlight moments were all one-on-one kaleidoscope shots with the ball at critical moments. The goals were indeed beautiful and impressed the fans, but over a long period of time, his output was not enough.
Not to mention Garnett, who can perform at an average level on the defensive end and score a few mid-range jumpers on the offensive end will be good, but forget about the rest.
Therefore, the Nets are actually very much in need of an efficient scorer who can digest the ball. Kobe is a good scorer with the ball, but the problem is that he is no longer efficient.
To become efficient, at least in the regular season, Kobe needs to make some changes. Min Congda's suggestion to him is to increase three-pointers, especially long-range three-pointers.
This is the Clippers' experience in using Curry, and there is enough data and samples to support it. Min Congda did not hesitate to share these results with Kobe.
After Kobe listened carefully to Min Congda's suggestion, he thought it was very reasonable and persuaded the team to transform into new ideas. After going to the Nets, he had in-depth discussions with Kidd.
It has to be said that with the development of the times, basketball is developing from a purely emotional and talent-based sport in the past to rationality and data.
As a representative player of the past era, Kobe grew up under top chicken soup masters and management masters like Phil Jackson. Much of his understanding of basketball is emotional, based on personal experience and genius. , the so-called "I want to play without the ball" is a typical pat-on-the-head assumption. Just like when some players lose a series, some fans and experts say they need to "practice post-ups and low-post attacks." The old experience of the basketball model of the previous era did not really pay attention to the development of basketball trends.
For example, in the late years of his career, Michael Jordan strengthened his back-up ability and paid special attention to strength and confrontation training, allowing him to return to the top of the NBA. In fact, it was because he followed the development of basketball trends at that time instead of playing behind the back. , Strength is always the trend.
Min Congda awakened Kobe, and at the same time going to a new environment like the Nets made him more willing to change himself and try new ways of playing.
Therefore, Kidd and the Nets coaching team customized a new ball-holding offensive system for Kobe. More space, farther shots, a large number of pick-and-rolls, and a combination of with and without the ball gave Kobe a new game experience. .
Of course, Min Congda's advice was indispensable. Kobe Bryant often called Min Congda at two or three in the morning, sent text messages, and asked him for some tactical questions, which annoyed Min Congda.
However, Min Congda also lamented that Kobe's love and persistence for basketball are really beyond ordinary people's imagination.
Now seeing how well Kobe Bryant thrives under the new system, Min Congda thought to himself, when can I come up with a new set of gadgets for my kids, a four-in-one?
Kobe made the first three-pointer of the game, but he didn't just throw three-pointers from long distances. Another feature of the new system is the extensive use of pick-and-rolls.
When the Clippers failed to counterattack, Kobe grabbed the backboard and dribbled the ball across half court. Kevin Garnett came over to pick and roll. Kobe used the pick and roll to accelerate into the Clippers' three-second zone.
Gasol and Randolph's defense was not in place. Kobe went straight to the basket and easily made a layup and scored 2 more points.
Kobe was not a player who liked to play pick-and-roll in the past. After all, in the triangle offensive system, pick-and-roll is a marginal cooperation, and the star's low-post singles are the axis of tactical operation.
At the same time, when Kobe is playing in isolation, the pick-and-roll is a hindrance to him. There is only one defender in front of him, which is an absolute advantage for him. If you pick-and-roll, you will bring one more person over. Maybe he will double-team me, so why bother to pick-and-roll? ?
But it's different now. One-on-one without pick-and-rolls consumes a lot of physical energy. If Kobe continues to maintain his past style of play, the result will be that he will lose energy at critical moments later.
Moreover, the Nets have an excellent pick-and-roll insider like Garnett, and the cooperation between the two is quite threatening - it would be great if Garnett's offensive threat could be greater.
When Kobe starts a lot of pick-and-rolls and the space on the court is very wide, there are many things he can do, but what Kobe does the most is to cut directly to the basket after the pick-and-roll and attack the basket.
This is also a reasonable use of the current defensive rules of vertical take-off. Nowadays, the defensive intensity of the NBA basket is much easier than in the past. Kobe can complete a layup without pulling the stick or changing hands.
Because the defender who was guarding him no longer dared to press down, and even had to hide a little, why should he change his hands and pull the stick? He could just go straight to the basket.
In this way, Kobe can save a lot of physical energy and provide more efficient output on the offensive end.
At the same time, once the pick-and-roll occurs and the defense is misplaced, small defense is large, or large defense is small, Kobe will consider shooting a three-pointer directly through the opponent.
This choice is completely different from the past. In the past, once the position was misaligned, Kobe would inevitably use his singles skills to attack the opponent closer to the basket.
Times are changing, and Kobe will keep up with them.
When Kobe scored 5 points in a row, Harden also stood up, holding the ball, using Gasol's pick-and-roll to get past the defense in one step, and went straight to the basket!
The left-hand layup was successful and caused a defensive foul on Garnett, which led to an extra penalty. Harden stepped to the free throw line and made a 2+1 success.
From this moment on, the showdown between Harden and Kobe officially begins in this game.
Without Curry, Harden will be the Clippers' top core tonight, and he will have the greatest space and stage to perform.
Min Congda watched Harden's game and seriously thought about how the team should play best if Harden is the core of the tactics.
Harden is a very versatile player and has great ideas on the offensive end. He has a special sense of relaxation and will always use the fewest and most precise movements to achieve his goals.
From this point of view, Harden is very different from the super shooting guards inherited from the Jordan era such as Kobe and Wade. Relatively speaking, his style is more like Magic Johnson - although the two are different in terms of position and technical movements. They all look very different.
What Harden and Magic Johnson have in common is that they are not pure scorers. They have a broad field of vision, a calm view of the overall situation, and a passing-first philosophy. It can be seen from their straight backs when dribbling that they are ready at any time. Observe teammates’ positions and opportunities.
For players like them, scoring is more of a means to attract the opponent's defense. Once they use scoring to destroy the opponent's defense, their teammates will definitely pass the ball when they have a good opportunity.
Kobe and Jordan are the opposite. Passing is their method of breaking away from the opponent's defense. Once the pass destroys the opponent's double-team and iron wall, they will choose to score immediately.
This is a difference in player style, which is related to the player's ability, talent, and personality. There is no good or bad distinction. It all depends on how the coach and the team use and match it.
Of course, there is also a type of player who has his own logic for passing and shooting, which is difficult for ordinary people to understand. This type of player has his own system that ordinary coaches and teams cannot figure out.
In Min Congda's view, if Harden is allowed to be a pure scorer, a scoring machine like Kobe and Jordan, it will actually be a misplacement and waste of his ability.
So looking back now, it was a very stupid decision for the Thunder to trade Harden. The combination of Harden and scoring machines like Durant and Westbrook is absolutely seamless.
Now that Harden is with the Clippers, although the partnership with Curry is very good, there are some overlaps in functions and it is not a perfect match.
Therefore, Mike Malone made a very correct decision by placing Harden in the sixth man position, which allocates team resources more reasonably.
Now that Harden is starting, the Clippers gradually began to play around Harden in the opening game.
The two sides tied the game at 24:26 in the first quarter, with the Clippers leading the Nets by 2 points.
Harden scored 8 points and 3 assists, and Kobe scored 11 points and 2 assists. Both of them showed their strong ability to hold the ball and lead the team.
As long as the ball is in their hands, the team's offense appears to be very active because it is difficult for the opponent to defend it.
At the beginning of the second quarter, as soon as Kobe came off the court, the Nets offense was a little overwhelmed, and the Clippers began to gain the upper hand.
Although the Clippers are missing two absolute main players, the thickness of the bench is still amazing.
Anthony Davis, Bonner, Livingston, Tucker and Bazemore. The offense of this lineup revolves around Bonner's three-pointer threat, Anthony Davis's offensive power at the basket and offensive rebounding. , Livingston's ball-handling mid-range shot, Tucker's fixed-point three-pointer from the bottom corner and the scramble for offensive rebounds.
Bazemore exists as an X-factor with the ball when the tactics are ineffective. If he can't play anymore, throw the ball to him and let him try.
Such a lineup with clear logic, good players, and good combat effectiveness can get a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but it is just the third lineup in the Clippers.
The only players on the Nets' bench who can play well are Terry, Thornton, and Alan Anderson. The characteristic of these players is that they are very good at scrambling and can score points.
In addition, there are no too conspicuous functions in offense and defense. The Nets' second lineup is led by Deron, trying to speed up, hoping to enter a chaotic battle and delay the time.
As a result, the Clippers did not let the game enter a chaotic point-grabbing battle at all. Instead, they stabilized their position and played ball by ball. Anyway, Curry's "cancer" is not here, and everyone does not need to think about creating opportunities for him to pass the ball. They can do it in one go. It's over.
In the second quarter, the Clippers played a 9:2 wave in five minutes, and the score was not high. However, the Nets only scored two points, which was too low. It was difficult for them to open up in the second quarter.
Deron tried to use his personal ability to get to the basket twice, but was blocked by Davis both times. Deron's explosive power has declined a lot compared to the past. His once invincible changes of direction, coupled with the heavy impact The basket is a nightmare for many interior defenders.
But after leaving the Jazz, Deron did not plan his career well, nor did he hone his playing style. He only relied on the money he had developed under the Jazz system. During the lockout, he even went to Europe to play and make money. From a mental point of view, , he is not someone like Paul or Kobe, who does not have a paranoid and crazy pursuit of victory and honor.
Of course, precisely because he is not that kind of person, Kobe can get along better with Deron when he comes to the Nets, instead of hurting each other like Paul.
Kidd called a timeout, and Kobe, Pierce and other main players reappeared. The Clippers also replaced Butler and Harden to respond, leaving Davis on the court and letting Tucker play the fourth position.
The Clippers have a lineup with one big and four small, which makes it difficult for the Nets to adapt. Garnett can't even attack Tucker in the low post, but the defensive Clippers' lineup is even wider, giving Harden and Livings space. Lots of room for activities.
After Harden reappeared in the second quarter, he was like a hot knife cutting through butter, constantly using pick-and-rolls to get into the basket, layups, layups, layups again!
Harden's consecutive layups made Kobe and Garnett anxious, especially Garnett, who hit his head with the ball, hating that he was old and couldn't keep up with his legs.
However, Kobe quickly hit a three-pointer to stabilize his position, followed Garnett to catch the ball in the low post, turned and shot a jumper, and finally scored a goal, and the Nets slightly narrowed the score.
But for Harden's defense, the Nets still don't have a good way. Harden just rushes to the basket after pick-and-roll, and there is no good center to attack you. Moreover, Harden is in excellent condition tonight, and he can block anyone who comes with the touch. Can't live.
The two sides quickly scored at this stage, and the score reached 47:38. The Clippers still led the Nets by 9 points. When all the main players came on the stage, the Nets stabilized their position and were not overwhelmed by the Clippers' third lineup in the second quarter. .
It's just that the Clippers' advantage has been established. If the Nets want to make a comeback in the second half, they must find a comeback point.
At the end of the half, the score reached 57:47, and the Nets were 10 points behind. Harden scored 21 points in the half, and his shooting percentage was extremely high. He made 8 of 11 shots and only made one three-pointer. The rest were all The layup after the breakthrough is simply unstoppable.
When Min Congda saw Kidd's ability to adjust, he felt anxious for him. What has been proven effective in the Celtics, why not take it over and use it directly?
The current Kevin Garnett should not appear at the fourth position. Instead, like Anthony Davis, he should be a center at the fifth position with strong mobility and large defensive coverage.
In fact, the reason why Kidd did not let Garnett play center was mainly out of respect for Garnett's personal wishes. Anyway, when such an old superstar forms a team, the star's personal thoughts are very important.
When Garnett first entered the league, it was clear that he was a center height, which was a bit taller than many players who were listed as 7 feet. In order not to play center, he would rather report his height a little lower, so that he could live in the fourth position.
Fortunately, his peak period coincided with the heyday of power forwards, the era when power forwards were most popular, and he became one of the representative figures at the fourth position.
In the second half, I don't know if it was Kidd's enlightenment, Garnett's conscience, or some other reason, but Garnett actually appeared in the fifth position.
Blatche, who previously served as the fifth position, returned to his familiar fourth position, playing power forward and facing off against Randolph. Garnett began to squat in and confront Gasol.
Such an adjustment is very important for the Nets. After the start of the third quarter, the Nets' defense became much more stable, and Harden's breakthrough began to be double-circumscribed. Kidd asked Pierce to guard Harden, and the old ball player took advantage of his slickness. Small movements and weight suppression to restrict Harden's first step.
Kobe's defense against Harden was not very effective in the first half because Kobe lost weight in the summer and was only 90 kilograms. He could not withstand Harden's top. When Harden's first step speed increased, it would be difficult to block the breakthrough.
And Harden's breakthrough was so efficient that the Clippers' offense was completely activated. How could the Nets defend?
This problem was contained in the third quarter. Harden was very smart. He tried it once and felt it was not right, so he gave up trying. He did not hesitate and played in a different way.
Harden began to pass the ball more, giving the ball to Gasol, allowing Gasol to attack the Nets' interior in high and low positions.
The gap of about 10 points between the two sides gradually turned into about 5 points, because after Harden's breakthrough was contained, the Clippers' offensive efficiency declined.
As for the Nets, the offensive system with Kobe as the core is still running well. Kobe is in very good condition today and his three-pointers are very accurate, which makes the Clippers fans feel the fear of fans of other teams being dominated by Curry.
Of course, Curry was sitting off the court in a suit and was extremely uncomfortable. He only had a minor ankle injury and missed this important matchup.
The most important thing is, if the Clippers win the Nets in this game, wouldn't they confirm their cancer attributes?
(End of chapter)
