Heat coach Spoelstra hesitated for a moment, frowning, but still had no intention of calling a timeout so soon, but chose to continue to trust the players on the field.
When the Heat attacked, Dragic moved continuously at the top of the arc and made passes inward, but after finally getting rid of Lillard, he suddenly made a step-back jumper from mid-range.
This is an offensive method that Dragic liked very much in his career. In the past, due to his slow frequency of movements and flaws, he was rarely used. But after continuing to improve in the past few seasons, his mid-range two-point shots this season accounted for a career-high 18.7%, nearly 20% of his shots, which is enough to show his confidence in this technology.
"Wha—!"
Dragic hit a goal to help the Heat open the scoring.
2:5, the Heat are still behind.
"boom!"
At this time, the sound of the Heat's basket being exploded came from the court, and the cheers of the audience suddenly stopped.
7:2, the Trail Blazers lead.
"Beautiful fast break! The king's charge is unstoppable, and his charge turns the Heat's defense into nothingness..."
Yu Jia's roar sounded instantly.
Just when the ball entered the frame, Wang Zelin launched a fast break.
This time, the Blazers all stayed in the backcourt to receive the serve. Batum reached the baseline quickly and executed a quick serve. Instead of giving it to Lillard, who was entangled by Dragic, he gave it to Jokic. Jokic quickly passed the ball to Wang Zelin, and the fast break started.
When the Heat attacked, coach Spoelstra remembered Whiteside's poor offense just now and shouted to him: "Hassan, remember your duty is to defend Wang Zelin!"
In this way, Whiteside can only give up the idea of continuing to get the ball in isolation, and be honest and ready to eat the cake at any time, and lean directly to the basket.
His mobility is not as good as before, he is far away from the basket, and his shooting percentage is not high under Wang Zelin's defense, so he simply moves closer to the basket, which can not only attract Wang Zelin's defensive attention, but also improve his shooting percentage.
Whiteside squatted directly under the basket, and Wang Zelin certainly couldn't ignore it. In that case, the former only needed to catch the ball and step up to dunk, and he would not have time to return to defense.
As a result, Wang Zelin lost the opportunity to lift up, and Whiteside took one step forward, only to close up.
Seeing this, Spoelstra understood that the team's tactical goal had been achieved. Whiteside's rim shooting percentage of more than 70% for three consecutive seasons was not something to be covered.
This season, without much drop in efficiency, he has also achieved an increase in scoring, successfully containing Wang Zelin close to the basket, greatly reducing the latter's chances of assisting in defense from the outside.
But it doesn't matter. There are always some tactics that can limit some of Wang Zelin's abilities. Since he can't implement external defense, Wang Zelin can be a guardian in the penalty area, grabbing rebounds and blocking the opponent's inside attack.
There are gains and losses. Although Whiteside can contain Wang Zelin in the penalty area, his movement is too slow to keep up with Wang Zelin's current movement in the penalty area. The overlord is far inferior to Wang Zelin in terms of covering the team's interior offense and controlling rebounds. .
In this way, the Heat lost their interior offense and completely became a perimeter team.
On the other hand, Wang Zelin frequently grabbed rebounds and played fast breaks, which improved his efficiency. At the same time, in positional battles, he frequently provided offensive screens in the low post, allowing Jokic and Lillard to easily break through and score, making the Trail Blazers' offensive efficiency far higher. Higher than the Heat.
Coupled with rebounding control, the shots accounted for a higher proportion. After the first quarter, at 35:21, the Trail Blazers led steadily by 14 points.
Zhang Lili said in surprise: "You must know that the Heat are not weak. Dragic + Whiteside are dual-core from outside and inside, and there are so many role players who can shoot three-pointers. The strength of the lineup is definitely playoff level. Unexpectedly Are you actually so far behind the Trail Blazers after one quarter?"
Yu Jia laughed and said: "Mainly because the Heat's starting power forward Luke Babbitt's ability to protect the basket is worrying, and his career rebounds per game are only a little over two. Whiteside couldn't grab the king in rebounding, and the king in the first quarter I just grabbed 8 rebounds, the Trail Blazers had 15 rebounds, and the Heat only had 9 rebounds. This is the most important reason."
Then he added: "Secondly, the offensive efficiency of the two sides is very different. The Trail Blazers' overall shooting rate reached 58%, while the Heat only had 43%. Taking into account the number of shots, it was 14 points behind in the first quarter, which is actually reasonable."
Zhang Lili looked at Wang Zelin's data and said: "Zelin's offense was quite restrained in the first quarter. His scoring was mainly based on cutting into the penalty area or sporadic one-on-one attacks. He made 4 of 4 shots and 2 of 2 free throws. He scored 10 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal. His offensive desire seems to be average today!"
Countless viewers in front of the screen couldn't help but roll their eyes and listen, are you talking in human language?
The 10 points and 8 rebounds in the first quarter were almost a double-double. Wang Zelin was also said to have a mediocre offensive desire. If other centers in the league could get such data, I am afraid they would be happy by now.
But when they think of Wang Zelin's average performance of 40+ per game this season, everyone feels that Zhang Liyi's words are true. Not only does it not contain the elements of Versailles, but it is quite convincing.
There is no way, the strength is there.
This season’s Wang Zelin can’t be exaggerated no matter how much he praises him!
Wang Zelin continued to play in the second quarter. Coach Terry also noticed some recent unfavorable remarks about the team, and he also felt angry.
So, is there a way to vent the fire?
It really does exist, and Coach Terry's tricks are quite simple and unpretentious, and can even be said to be popular all over the world, that is - close the door and let Wang Zelin go!
For the Heat, Whiteside was sitting on the bench. When he saw Wang Zelin coming on the court, he was so angry that he yelled: "Damn it, that Asian guy actually came on the court so quickly? Is it possible that he wants to increase his data? How shameless!" "
However, others could easily detect a sour taste in his words.
If you think about it carefully, it's actually no wonder that he is sour.
Gaining weight has further enhanced Whiteside's protection of the basket and dominance of the penalty area, but the sacrifice is also not small.
So far, Whiteside, who is the starting center of the Heat, has averaged only 28.5 minutes per game, unable to maintain the 29.1 minutes he reached last season.
You know, the 2016-17 season in Wang Zelin's previous life was Whiteside's peak year. This year, he not only averaged 17+14+2 per game, but also set a career-high average of 32.7 minutes per game in playing time, which is almost 33 minutes.
However, another adverse effect that gaining weight has brought to him is that it accelerates the rate of physical energy consumption. As a result, he now has hardness, but it is difficult to last.
After all, the difference between 28.5 and 32.7 is a full 4 minutes.
4 minutes is really not too short!
Spoelstra frowned again, but in order to ensure that Whiteside got enough rest time, he could only refuse Whiteside's request to play early.
In his opinion, the game against the Trail Blazers is already difficult to win. If Whiteside is unfortunately injured due to such a game again, it will be a big loss.
In the second quarter, without the restrictions of Whiteside, although Wang Zelin still didn't attack much, his energy on the defensive end completely exploded. Even if the Heat were all shooting from the outside, he could still frequently help defend and interfere with the outside.
Not only were the assists successful on many occasions, but they also forced the Heat's offense to move further outwards, and naturally the efficiency could only decline further.
In a single quarter, he scored 7 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals.
At the end of the first half, Wang Zelin had already scored 17 points, 18 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 blocks and 3 steals, a terrifying 4×5 data.
Barkley immediately jumped out and shouted: "In my opinion, this kind of data is far from enough to show how good Wang Zelin was on the defensive end in the first half. Let me briefly mention a few data:
First, in the first half, Wang Zelin allowed his opponent Hassan Whiteside and the rest of the substitutes to make 2 of 9 shots from the field, 3 blocks and 2 steals, directly blocking the Heat's interior offense.
Second, Wang Zelin completed 8 successful defense assists in the first half, including 2 blocks and 2 steals, causing 4 turnovers from the Heat's perimeter, allowing the Blazers to successfully gain 4 more fast break opportunities and score a goal. 3 of them.
The last one, Wang Zelin based on defense, showed his dominance at a glance, forcing the opponent step by step away from the basket, and the shooting rate continued to decline. This is the reason why the Trail Blazers had as many as 23 rebounds in the second quarter, and Wang Zelin even single-handedly He grabbed 10 rebounds in the quarter, ensuring that the Blazers crushed their opponents in the number of shots they took. "
Kenny Smith also expressed admiration: "Now after halftime, the score is 41:75, and the Trail Blazers are already 34 points ahead. Even if they are facing a team with playoff potential, the Trail Blazers Still, it took only half-time to push the game into garbage time.”
Barkley said: "In Wang Zelin, we once again realized the strategic significance of defense in victory. When a person's defense is strong enough to a certain extent, he can really support a team's defense by himself. system."
Kenny Smith once again made a shocking statement: "With all due respect, Wang Zelin's defensive performance completely destroyed the balance of the league team. A 2.16-meter center has the speed and agility of the outside. Coupled with top-level defensive awareness, it creates an unprecedented help defense monster in the NBA!"
Not just the TNT duo, but basketball fans all over the world marveled at Wang Zelin's ultimate dominance on the defensive end during the halftime break.
As Kenny Smith said, Wang Zelin is really too buggy on the court today, completely disrupting the balance.
The half-time break ends and the second half begins.
The 15 minutes of breathing time made Whiteside mistakenly think that he was enough. He frequently moved around the basket, restraining Wang Zelin close to the basket, thus freeing up the outside.
The Heat's perimeter became active and ran wildly.
Second-year rookie Josh Richardson used a teammate's screen to shake off Batum and dive towards the basket.
As the 40th pick in the second round of the 2015 NBA draft, Richardson showed outstanding athletic talent and speed in college, and had a very fast first step to break through. Although he encountered a group of flying beasts in the NBA, , resulting in his college skills not being enough to support his independent attack. However, under the patient training of the Heat coaching staff, he developed skillful catching and shooting skills and excellent off-ball movement ability.
The rookie's scoring average exceeded double digits in his second year, causing many team management to call the Heat's management a discerning player.
Hong Kong True, if it weren't for his status as a senior in the draft, in a year or two, this guy would definitely be worthy of being in the first round.
However, good food never comes late. Richardson lives up to the high expectations of Heat fans and quickly grows into a member of the team.
At this time, Dragic was actively seeking opportunities from the outside. When he saw Richardson's position, he immediately dealt the card!
Richardson caught the ball, jumped up, raised the ball above his head with both hands, and kept accumulating energy. He was ready to use some powerful dunks to announce the start of the Heat's counterattack.
But at this moment, Wang Zelin arrived in an instant, emerged from the right side of Richardson, picked the ball behind his head, and grabbed the ball.
Richardson was a little confused. He didn't expect that this kind of ball could be defended, but Wang Zelin immediately turned around and almost played it.
Wang Zelin has no interest in saying nonsense like welcome to the NBA to this second-year rookie. He will only use terrifying defenses to make these rookies understand that the world of adults is not that easy to mess around. The NBA is not like that. So easy to get into!
Richardson reacted and chased Wang Zelin desperately.
His athletic talent is really great, and he is so fast that he can catch up with Wang Zelin.
The surrounding Heat fans' eyes lit up. Wang Zelin's defense against Richardson was called a fool's errand. But if Richardson could return the favor and give Wang Zelin a nail-biter, that would be incredible. Big news!
The first player in the current draft to be drafted in the second round... just thinking about it makes people excited.
On the court, Richardson was thinking exactly this. His eyes were burning, and he stared directly at Wang Zelin in front of him. He was already imagining the scene of him becoming famous after guarding Wang Zelin.
Of course, Wang Zelin didn't know what Heat fans and Richard Sheng were thinking. Even if he knew, he didn't care, because...looking at the basket not far away, a powerful idea suddenly ignited in his mind.
It's time for you to see the skills of the greatest dunk king in history!
Then an astonishing scene appeared. Wang Zelin collected the ball as soon as he reached the three-point line, one big step, a second big step, and then...
It's a dunk!
"Oh my god! Oh my god! Did you see it? Wang started dunking from the three-point line! This is really... hot in Thai pants!"
With the commentator's crazy roar, the entire American Airlines Arena was stunned.
Richardson, who was chasing after him, stopped at some point and stared blankly at the Trail Blazer No. 36 in front of him.
The opponent's sudden dunk from the three-point line completely wiped out all his good wishes.
This, this guy actually dunked from the three-point line? !
I knew you were a pervert, but I didn't expect you to become such a pervert?
Is this the number one player in the league and the greatest dunk king in history?
Although this is not the first time Wang Zelin has dunked from the three-point line in actual combat, watching the replay on the big screen still shocked everyone!
This guy really took his dunk game to a whole new level.
There is also a discussion on the Internet.
"Oh my God, did you see that? Someone could actually dunk from the three-point line while being chased?"
"It's so crazy! Is this the strength of the first yellow dunk champion? It's really amazing."
"I declare the game is over, so why fight? The Heat should surrender quickly."
"I really hope Wang Zelin can participate in another dunk contest. I won't watch the dunk contest without him next year!"
"Me too!"
"I second the proposal!"
"+1!!!"
…
…
In this game, the Heat were ultimately unable to come back.
To be precise, after Wang Zelin's three-point line dunk, the suspense of the game was basically killed.
There is nothing more heart-wrenching than this!
After three quarters, Heat coach Spoelstra smiled helplessly, withdrew all his main players and announced his surrender in advance.
(End of chapter)
