Spurs offense.
Parker advanced to the frontcourt and looked for Duncan first.
Duncan took up the position and opened his hand to ask for the ball. Parker took advantage of the situation and dealt the card.
I saw Duncan leaning against Aldridge, sitting and hitting inside, and instantly turned around to prepare for the hook.
But at this moment, Wang Zelin on the right and Batum near the free throw line pounced at the same time. Together with Aldridge, Duncan was surrounded from three sides.
Duncan was shocked. The Trail Blazers were attacking so fast and so decisively.
But the Stone Buddha is the Stone Buddha!
After all, he is no longer in his prime, and his rich experience is still beyond the reach of a young man.
At this time, Danny Green made a sudden reverse run on the right wing three-point line, threw away Matthews, and moved quickly towards the top of the arc. Duncan distributed the ball in time. Danny Green took off the moment he received the ball and shot a three-pointer.
"Uh-huh!"
The water splashed and he hit a three-pointer.
3:2, the Spurs took a one-point lead at home.
"From this ball, we can see that the Spurs players only saw exquisite ball coordination. It is hard to imagine that this team was still known for its defense a few years ago." Zhang guided.
"Yes!" Yu Jia sighed with emotion and continued: "After being blacklisted in 2011, the Spurs selected Kawhi Leonard, transferred Danny Green from the Development League, won Split, Mills and other strong players; and in 2012, they won Boris Diaw. Unknowingly, the Spurs have completed the transformation of the team around Duncan's strong inside play and high position."
"I have to say that among the 30 teams in the league, the Spurs' smooth offense can definitely rank in the top five. Perhaps this is what David Stern dreams of."
"Ha ha ha ha!"
"Ha ha ha ha!"
Yu Jia and Director Zhang laughed tacitly.
Of course, the 2005 NBA Finals between the Spurs and the Pistons is known as one of the greatest finals in NBA history; similarly, that round of finals was also the most ugly finals in NBA history, if not one!
How brutal was that series?
For the Spurs, Duncan at his peak was blocked by double-blockers and only shot 49.1% from the field. He only averaged 20.6 points per game, the highest scorer on the team. The highest scorer for the Pistons was Chauncey Billups. Averaged 20.4 points per game.
After the entire series, the two teams averaged over 80 points per game...
In light of all of the above, the league began to heavily encourage offense because David Stern never wanted to experience that nightmare again.
Under such a trend, the first ones to be affected are undoubtedly the inside players, and as time goes by, there is gradually less and less room for the big men to survive.
Therefore, it is no wonder that there are fewer and fewer high-quality insiders. Leaving aside some other factors, the biggest reason is the change in rules.
Back on the field.
Trail Blazers offense.
Wang Zelin walked to the basket again, but Split did not do anything to hinder it.
Aldridge pulled to the left elbow, Duncan let him go and looked back at the edge of the paint.
When I saw Wang Zelin carrying Split to the basket, my nerves were tense and I didn't dare to relax at all.
At this time Lillard passed the ball.
Parker wanted to stop it, but the young No. 0 player in front of him was a group of fast players that he could not stop.
Seeing the ball coming in, Duncan shrunk his steps and entered the paint area.
Aldridge followed up with two steps and stopped at the left elbow, trusting his teammates to make the right move.
For the Spurs, the zone defense formation began to flow. Leonard outside the left three-point line quickly pounced on Aldridge inside, and Danny Green covered Batum.
But since there are two double-teams, there will inevitably be an open opportunity.
It's just that the Spurs' zone defense changes very quickly. How big this opportunity is depends on the ball handler's processing ability and adaptability.
If the offense wants to seize this opportunity, the ball holder must have a wide enough passing vision and good passing ability, and pass the ball in advance when the double team is about to take over.
And Wang Zelin happens to have this ability!
Seeing Duncan rushing in decisively, and when a physical confrontation was about to begin, he carried Split with his right arm, reached out to grab the ball with his left hand, firmly grabbed the ball, and quickly threw it to Matthews in the left corner.
Matthews was completely left open and had gotten outside the left three-point line.
Parker, who had just reached the free throw line, quickly returned to defense, but was it too late?
The open opportunity has come to the final step, and what is now tested is the shooting ability and mental endurance of the open shooter.
Many times, in the playoffs, for a pitcher, pure shooting skills are no longer so important, and what is more important is a big heart.
The typical representative is Steve Novak, a small forward who once played for Mosaic!
She has reached the level of proficiency in three-point shooting. The most impressive thing is that during Mosaic's 22-game winning streak, Sister Li made a three-pointer today. Along with that, there was the classic training interview: "I didn't feel good today, so I shot it." 300 three-pointers, two missed..."
But even such a three-point master has not been able to gain a foothold in the NBA.
In addition to physical talent factors, mental quality is also inseparable.
After all, the regular season is different from the playoffs. There are many cases where the regular season is stronger than a tiger, but the playoffs are as soft as a worm.
Matthews is not as fierce as a tiger, but he is definitely not a worm.
He picked up the ball and shot a three-pointer from the left side from a zero angle.
"brush!"
Another splash of water appeared.
5:3, the Trail Blazers lead.
"Back to defense! Back to defense!"
Wang Zelin roared.
In the last round, they put too much energy into Duncan, which made the Spurs shoot too smoothly. He was not satisfied with the defense last time.
"Beautiful three-pointer, Matthews responded with his three-pointer. He is telling the Spurs: Hey, man, we are not easy to mess with either!"
TNT commentary desk, Barkley smiled.
"Oh, both teams feel good coming up."
Kenny Smith said.
Spurs attack.
"LaMarcus, switch defense!"
Wang Zelin roared again under the basket, Aldridge nodded slightly and went to Split.
At the top of the arc, Parker made a tactical gesture.
Spurs players did not stay in one position and kept moving.
The entire frontcourt was filled with the sound of "squeaking" sneakers, which was very harsh and tickled people's hearts. The atmosphere of the game became more and more tense. It was like a heavy hammer hitting the players' hearts continuously, making people nervous.
At this time, Danny Green ran over to do a pick-and-roll, and Parker used the wall to break through.
Lillard and Matthews switched defenses decisively, and the latter stepped on the free throw line, blocking Parker's breakthrough route.
Parker, who had just broken through Lillard, saw Matthews and immediately chose to distribute the ball.
That direction is...
"Notice!"
As soon as Parker's ball was released, Lillard secretly thought something was wrong and immediately turned around.
At a 45-degree angle on the right wing, Leonard ran around the baseline and seized the open opportunity to shoot a three-pointer.
"Bang~swish!"
Leonard hit a three-pointer.
5:6.
"ah!!!!"
The AT&T Arena boiled over instantly. Countless Spurs fans wearing gray home jerseys cheered and countless palms began to shake.
This is a carnival belonging to the home team, and it is also the most beautiful scenery in the NBA. It is also a scene that countless media reporters will definitely take pictures of every game.
Even though I have watched it so many times, it is still so spectacular every time I visit the scene.
"Kawhi!! Leonard!!!"
The heart-rending roar of the home DJ resounded throughout the AT&T Arena.
"This... the small forward of the Spurs feels good today!" Terry Stotts said depressedly.
But he still didn't take Leonard to heart.
If it weren't for Wang Zelin's God's perspective, he might never have thought that the No. 15 pick in the first round of 2011 would reach the level of the league's king in the future.
Leonard doesn't have many commendable highlights at this stage. Apart from his fierce defense and his fierceness in grabbing rebounds in the paint, his offensive methods are scarce. He only has fixed-point three-pointers and occasional small throws when he breaks into the paint area. The basket is not bad.
"Pay more attention to No. 2 and don't let him fight so easily."
Wang Zelin put his arm around Batum's shoulders, pointed at Leonard's back, and said seriously.
After all, he is also the future FMVP. Although he is young, no one can say that he will suddenly explode.
"…OK."
Batum was about to be clever, but when he saw Wang Zelin's serious face, he quickly put away his playful smile.
After receiving the reply, Wang Zelin said no more and trotted to the frontcourt.
Kawhi is still in the development stage, with GDP standing in front of him to protect him from the wind and rain. Except for a few people who have seen clearly, the outside world generally does not have much expectations for this new core of the Spurs.
He is just the 15th pick in the first round. It is not that easy to become a talent.
Come to the frontcourt and turn into position.
Lillard hoisted the ball inside and handed it to Wang Zelin.
In fact, it can be seen from here that the playing styles of the two teams have certain similarities: when attacking, they mostly focus on the inside line and then spread to the surroundings.
Wang Zelin lowered his center of gravity and dug in while pressing Split.
Split's defensive attitude was very upright, but there were still some shortcomings in front of Wang Zelin. He staggered and his center of gravity was unstable.
Wang Zelin seized the opportunity, turned around, and the two men bumped shoulders, causing the opponent to fall down.
However, the whistle did not sound. It seems that the referee believed that this was a normal collision.
"boom!"
There was a loud bang under the basket, which spread in all directions.
After landing, Wang Zelin ignored the anger in Split's eyes and shouted to Duncan who was not far away: "Hey! Tim, your little teammate is not good. I think you should guard against me!"
A naked provocation!
It is unimaginable that a rookie is openly challenging an already established superstar in the league, even if the superstar is no longer at his peak.
Arrogant!
The fans in the Holy City were stunned by this scene, and after reacting, they responded with boiling boos.
But the faces of the Trail Blazers players always remained calm, as if this was a matter of course.
After a long baptism of 82 playoff games and sweeping their opponents in two series, the Trail Blazers have developed their own confidence as a strong team from top to bottom.
This is their arrogance!
On the other side, Duncan silently raised his head, looked directly at Wang Zelin, and turned to pick up the ball.
At the same time, the players in the Holy City started to move like a clockwork machine.
Plain, silent... Under the leadership of Duncan, the Spurs seemed to have no emotions, and did not respond to the opponent's provocation.
Perhaps, they prefer to use actions to prove themselves.
This is what Wang Zelin and his teammates thought.
But soon, their minds changed.
Because, Duncan took the initiative to find Wang Zelin in the next round.
"Oh! Man, what did I see? Earth Mother took the initiative to find boy No. 36..."
Barkley fully demonstrated what it means to watch the excitement and start screaming strangely.
"Let us see now how Wang Hui will respond." Kenny Smith said.
"this……"
Aldridge and Batum couldn't believe it. It turned out that Shi Buddha also had feelings.
A showdown between the core of both sides.
After Duncan got the ball, he started attacking in the low post, once, twice, three times...
After a series of collisions, he quickly turned around and shot.
There is a saying that in the eyes of outsiders, this ball can only be described as simple and unreal.
There is no sense of excellence at all, and it has nothing to do with gorgeousness.
However, Wang Zelin failed to guard against it and watched as his opponent made a low shot.
"Chinese boy, you are very strong, and you may have a bright future, but now, it belongs to me."
After scoring the goal, Wang Zelin heard the words from Duncan for the first time and was stunned.
At 8:7, the Spurs took the lead again.
Up to now, the scores of the two teams have shown an upward trend.
After coming back to his senses, Wang Zelin looked at the retreating figure of Spurs No. 21. There was no trace of frustration on his face. Instead, he slightly raised the corners of his mouth and chuckled: "Let me just say, how can the dignified number one power forward in history not have a temper?" ?”
However, this is what makes it interesting. Just wait and see, the No. 21 rookie!
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