Come back in the second half.
The power of the Thunder's Big Three was immediately demonstrated. They continuously created scoring opportunities through their personal abilities.
The Thunder's lead quickly expanded.
The Grizzlies did not surrender. Courtney Lee received Conley's pick-and-roll breakout ball from the outside and hit a 45-degree three-pointer from the right! !
The Grizzlies held on to the score.
In the next round, Zhao Chen still made the Grizzlies feel a huge pressure.
The Grizzlies did not flank Zhao Chen, so Zhao Chen suddenly broke into Courtney Lee with the ball one-on-one and rushed in to meet Randolph's throw.
In the following games, led by Zhao Chen, the individual singles abilities of the Thunder super giants were fully demonstrated at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The home fans kept shouting and screaming like a tsunami.
The Thunder's offense also came one after another.
Zhao Chen also used actions to show his attitude to the grizzly bears. As long as they don't get caught in the attack, he will become a bear killer! !
The Grizzlies did not surrender. They continued to attack the inside and clung to the score.
Zhao Chen sometimes holds the ball and sometimes does not have the ball. No matter when, the Grizzlies dare not relax their vigilance against Zhao Chen.
Zhao Chen put tremendous defensive pressure on the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies players know very well that if their offense cannot keep up, then the game is very likely to be over.
In the first half of the third quarter, Zhao Chen was still the most important core point of the Thunder. His presence forced the Grizzlies to relax their guard on Westbrook and Durant.
In the second half of the game, Brooks replaced Westbrook and asked Zhao Chen to partner with Durant.
The Grizzlies also asked Tony Allen to continue to pester Zhao Chen, but Conley did not defend Zhao Chen well.
However, Durant did not do a good job of defending the Grizzlies' forwards.
Courtney Lee, who is usually not good at attacking, scored consecutively.
For several consecutive rounds, Courtney Lee used a pick-and-roll to get rid of Durant.
This made Brooks very dissatisfied with Durant's defense and kept yelling on the sidelines.
...
With 40 seconds left in the third quarter, Zhao Chen received a quick serve from Durant. After getting the ball, Zhao Chen turned around and passed Conley at the half-court line, and then used a large change of direction to pass him at the three-point line. Randolph looking for a foul.
Tony Allen challenged Zhao Chen again. Zhao Chen first had to stay in position and fly up for a layup to score the ball.
"Farke!"
Fans in front of the TV could hear Grizzlies coach Mark yelling.
No matter how well the Grizzlies defend, they just can't guard Zhao Chen.
Zhao Chen has too many offensive methods.
Zhao Chen's quick counterattack helped the Thunder win a round.
There are 33 seconds left in the game.
The Thunder's lead has reached 10 points.
At the critical moment, Conley showed his big heart. At a 45-degree position on the right, Conley cut in with the help of Randolph's screen.
It is Zhao Chen who defends Conley, but Conley uses his brain every time he fights Zhao Chen. He never breaks through one-on-one and must use a pick-and-roll.
This makes Zhao Chen's defense very difficult.
It's very difficult to defend in the pick-and-roll.
Zhao Chen and Ibaka substituted. Conley made continuous changes of direction and missed Ibaka's rhythm for a layup.
Ibaka finally hit Conley's hand, and the referee called a foul.
Conley successfully scored 2+1.
Conley missed the free throw, but Randolph got the rebound, and Randolph scored under the basket!
The Thunder lost 4 points in the paint in one round.
So it seems that the Thunder have an advantage, but in fact the score is not much ahead.
Brooks kept yelling at Ibaka on the sidelines, and Ibaka's sweat remained.
Zhao Chen was also speechless about the defensive rebound protection. If Westbrook was there, he should be able to protect it.
Zhao Chen has more trust in Westbrook's rebounding ability than many inside players.
There are still 9 seconds left in the third quarter.
Zhao Chen advanced to the frontcourt.
Zhao Chen gave Durant a gesture that he would handle it.
Durant no longer tried to catch the ball, but continued to pull the Grizzlies defense to create good singles conditions for Zhao Chen.
When Zhao Chen arrived in the frontcourt, he did not press time. Instead, he started dribbling with high frequency in front of Tony Allen.
Tony Allen raised his center of gravity and defended Zhao Chen's step-back three-pointer.
Zhao Chen easily found the gap on the right side and broke through with the ball on the right side, leaving Tony Allen behind.
Randolph and Gasol tried to flank Zhao Chen, but failed.
Zhao Chen kicked off the ground with his right side, took off into the air, grabbed the ball with both hands, and looked like he wanted to dunk.
Gasol, who was in a good position, turned around and chased Zhao Chen. As long as Zhao Chen dunked, the ball would be blocked by him.
Zhao Chen sensed the crisis, and he pulled the ball with both hands, changing it to a one-handed right-side pull rod.
Drift in the air, showing super ability to stay in the air.
When it was falling, Zhao Chencai took the ball out with the palm of his hand!
Gasol never imagined that Zhao Chen could play like this, and his block was to no avail.
When Zhao Chen's pull ball just hit the backboard, time was up.
"knock!"
"Uh-huh!"
83 to 91.
Zhao Chen's dunk was changed to a pull-up, which also made the scene boiling.
This ball has the flavor of Jordan.
Zhao Chen showed his super waist and abdominal strength and showed his talent to the extreme.
The fans were jumping and celebrating, and Enna was screaming.
Zhao Chen played the ball very handsomely.
Although everyone was excited, Brooks was extremely dissatisfied.
Brooks is not dissatisfied with Zhao Chen, but with Durant's state.
Zhao Chen played a full game again in this quarter. It was precisely because of Zhao Chen that the Thunder gained these advantages.
This was not the plan Brooks had envisioned.
In multiple rounds, Zhao Chen used his talent and some luck to score goals for the team.
In Brooks's vision, Durant should be the main point of attack in this quarter, and Zhao Chen should be the containment point and take a short rest on the court.
But Durant failed to shoulder the responsibility he should bear. In the first half, it was Zhao Chen's crazy attack. In this quarter, it was Zhao Chen's crazy attack again. Zhao Chen's consumption was huge!
Durant's responsibility has been shouldered by Zhao Chen.
Durant was the scoring leader in the regular season and may even be the MVP, but his role tonight was far less than Zhao Chen.
Durant's shooting percentage is only about 40%. This is not Durant's normal state.
Brooks still has some concerns about what happened in the fourth quarter.
During the break, Zhao Chen sat on the bench sweating and panting.
After playing through the third quarter, he continued to encounter the Grizzlies' crazy attacks. If he hadn't been promoted to a superstar early, Zhao Chen believed that his All-Star status would have declined crazily.
This is the cruel playoffs. If the strength is not enough, problems can easily arise.
As strong as Durant, if his mentality is not adjusted tonight, his state will be lost.
Zhao Chen's physical fitness is very strong, but he is not as strong as Kobe Bryant was back then. Under such high-intensity defense, he also needs to rest.
Brooks also knew this, so he arranged for Zhao Chen to rest in the fourth quarter and let Westbrook and Durant lead the team.
Brooks did not dare to send a single giant easily, it would be too dangerous.
"I will take my responsibility." Durant emphasized to Brooks.
Durant is indeed fighting his inner demons!
Last season, he struggled alone with the Grizzlies, which was a shadow.
In the third quarter, Zhao Chen scored 20 points in a single quarter, which also put some pressure on Durant.
If he doesn't work hard, his status will most likely be suppressed by Zhao Chen.
