"We are tenacious, tough, iron-blooded, and we are fearless!"
Before the game started, as usual, their fighting shouts rang out in front of the Pistons' bench.
At half past eight, the game officially started.
Jump ball, Knicks offense.
Mark Jackson advanced to the frontcourt and saw John Salley coming around to defend Ewing in the low left wing. He immediately called McDaniel's pick-and-roll, and then lobbed the ball to Ewing's backhand.
Ewing caught the ball with his right hand and turned around, but the drop ball gave Rodman the opportunity to come from the right waist to help defend. As soon as he turned around, he was blocked by Rodman and couldn't get in.
"brush!"
But this didn't bother him. The center's offensive skills were too comprehensive. He blocked Rodman with his right elbow and threw with his left hand, scoring the first attack for the Knicks.
"Mark Jackson was very cautious today, and his passes were all called pick-and-rolls," Robert Guida said.
"It's best to be cautious. Iron Fist's steal ability is still good. In the first three games of the series, there were a total of 11 steals." Ringo Wilson said.
0:2, Pistons attack.
Zhou Quan advanced to the left frontcourt and was observing the movements of his teammates on the field and reading the Knicks' defense.
At this time, right wing Joe Dumars went in and circled, made a pick-and-roll with Rodman, then shook off Wilkins and suddenly ran towards the three-point line.
"Whoosh!"
Zhou Quan saw this movement and without hesitation, he held Mark Jackson with his left elbow and threw the ball with one hand with his right hand.
It was close to a straight pass. The ball was very fast. When Joe Dumars just ran out of the three-point line, it reached his chest.
"Snapped!"
He put his hands together, caught the ball, turned around and shot a jump shot. After the ball flew out, little Wilkins who followed him jumped in front of him.
"brush!"
The water splashed and he hit a three-pointer.
Robert Guida said: "In the previous era of the Assassins, Joe Dumars was still the second core ball-handler. In the first half of this season, he was also the second core ball-handler, holding at least 35% of the ball. But after the All-Stars, As Tekken improves, he has less and less possession of the ball, and now he basically plays without the ball."
Ringo Wilson said: "Because Tekken's organizational talent is getting better and better, the Pistons' training efforts are also increasing."
Robert Guida suddenly asked: "Linger, how many seasons do you think it will take for the Pistons to return to championship competition?"
"this?"
Ringo Wilson hesitated and then said: “If the Pistons want to return to this series, as the core of the future, the strength of Iron Fist is crucial.
Although he averaged 19.1 points per game in the regular season, his shooting percentage was only 43.2%, while the Pistons' overall shooting percentage was 46.5%.
With a shooting percentage of 43.2%, his offensive efficiency is not very high. In terms of this data, he is still not up to the level of the league's All-Star point guards, and is even further away from the level of top point guards.
Let's give a few examples. Magic Johnson's career shooting percentage is 52%, the Assassins are 45.2%, John Stockton is 51.8%, and Jerry West is 47.4%.
If Iron Fist does not have much offense, as a scoring supplement, we can ignore his hit rate, because it has little impact and is not the main scoring point.
But he takes a lot of shots. He is currently second on the team and the second scoring point, accounting for a lot of shots, so we must consider his offensive efficiency.
If the shooting rate is too low, he will definitely affect the team. He must achieve at least 45% shooting rate so that he will not waste his shots and truly become an excellent point guard. Only then can the Pistons return to the championship competition. Opportunity. "
The game lasted three minutes, 6:6, the two teams were tied, and the Knicks had the ball.
Advancing to the top of the front arc, Mark Jackson called a pick-and-roll again.
Today, he played well in pick-and-roll tactics, which also allowed the Knicks' offense to go smoothly. Four attacks actually turned into three.
But just when McDaniel came up, Zhou Quan suddenly took a step forward, adopted a close defense, and directly entered the confrontation.
The powerful strength and tonnage advantage forced Mark Jackson to turn around to protect the ball, and then planned to turn around McDaniel.
But Zhou Quan's close defense failed his plan. Zhou Quan directly faced him and forced him to leave McDaniel. The pick-and-roll failed and he had to pull to the left wing.
Zhou Quan quickly followed up, forcing Mark Jackson outside the three-point line, and waved his arms to block his downward passing space.
There was not enough time, so Mark Jackson could only force a three-pointer.
His three-point shooting skills are average and he rarely shoots three-pointers. Under Zhou Quan's strong defense, his technical movements were deformed.
"boom!"
The basket hit the basket and rebounded, but was caught by Rodman.
Joe Dumars had already moved to the top of the arc. Upon seeing this, he immediately turned around and stepped down quickly, one step ahead of Wilkins, who was returning to defense.
"Whoosh!"
Zhou Quan came down quickly, received the pass from Da Chong, quickly reached the frontcourt, and then passed the ball to Joe Dumars, who had already entered from the top of the key.
"boom!"
Joe Dumas caught the ball and completed a one-handed dunk.
"Oh ho!"
On the Pistons bench, hundreds of visiting fans cheered and shouted.
8:6, the Pistons took the lead for the first time.
Zhou Quan received his second assist.
The Knicks were in the frontcourt, with Ewing in the low post on the left wing, and John Salley moving forward to defend. The confrontation between the two was very fierce, and no one could take advantage for a while.
Mark Jackson came to the left wing, and Zhou Quan took charge of the defense, resolutely preventing the former from entering the three-point line.
Ewing had no chance. McDaniel ran back and cut inside, but was followed by Ulrich. There was no chance to pass the ball on the strong side, so Mark Jackson could only transfer the ball first.
Wilkins Jr. was moving from the right wing toward the top of the arc, and he passed the ball.
"Snapped!"
But his passing action was too obvious. Joe Dumars followed Wilkins and moved to the top of the arc. With anticipation, he quickly took a step forward and completed the steal.
The Knicks quickly returned to defense, but the Pistons failed to make a fast break and turned into a positional battle. Zhou Quan came over and took over the ball.
"The Pistons stepped up their defense," Robert Guida said.
Ringo Wilson analyzed: "There is still a disadvantage at the No. 1 position. Mark Jackson cannot create passing opportunities through his singles, and this is his main style of play in the regular season."
"boom!"
Zhou Quan's first shot was already past Mark Jackson, one step outside the left midfielder, but under Ewing's defense, he missed.
Oakley grabbed the rebound and the Knicks attacked.
Ringo Wilson saw this and immediately said: "According to the Pistons' training method, the management hopes that Tekken will become an offensive point guard like the Smiling Assassin, who can stand up at critical moments, but obviously Tekken is not good enough at the moment.
I don’t want to say that he scored points in the regular season. After all, his 43% shooting rate is not bad, but next season, he should improve his shooting percentage and make his offense more efficient, rather than simply improving his points. . "
Ewing missed a mid-range shot, and Zhou Quan rushed down and grabbed the rebound.
He first gave it to Joe Dumars outside, without making a fast break. He came to the frontcourt, entered the left wing, backed Mark Jackson, got the ball, and started to beat the opponent with his back, crushing him one step outside the paint area.
At this time, John Salley under the basket suddenly moved up, made a motion to get the ball, and took Ewing out from the basket.
Taking this opportunity, Zhou Quan suddenly turned around and slid down the baseline, heading toward the basket.
Mark Jackson retreated quickly and ran directly into him. The latter lost his footing and was knocked away. He took the opportunity to rush in.
Oakley ferociously turned around from the front right of the basket and pounced on the left side of the basket, finishing in one step.
At this time, Zhou Quan took off and threw a ball. Oakley swung his arm hard and hit the former with a slap on the head.
"boom!"
"Beep!"
The throw missed and the referee's whistle sounded.
"What the hell!"
Zhou Quan glanced at Oakley, who looked fierce, but a smile appeared on his face.
"This guy is so insidious, he must be holding back some bad water."
When Oakley saw the smile on Zhou Quan's face, it immediately reminded him of the Battle of Mount Auburn, and his face couldn't help but twitch.
But he has no regrets. This is not his defensive style. He treats the situation not the person. This is how Jordan defended when he came.
Next, Zhou Quan started to shoot free throws. He made the first free throw and missed the second free throw. Ewing grabbed the rebound and the Knicks attacked.
"Defense!"
Returning to the backcourt, Zhou Quan shouted loudly.
Under the strong defense of the Pistons, Mark Jackson controlled the ball on the outside for a long time and could not find a passing opportunity, so he had to do it himself.
Zhou Quan jumped to block the shot.
It was just a regular shot-blocking action. He did not block people or balls like Oakley. It was like fighting. Laimbeer used to defend like that, and he didn't agree with that kind of defense.
And basketball is not ice hockey. Ice hockey allows tactics that cause conflicts, but basketball does not. So in fact, he has not considered using conflict to kill the opponent's main scorer, but just to prevent the opponent from doing so.
But the main reason why he doesn't defend like Mark Jackson is because Oakley is just a role player, and he is not. His value on the court is far greater than Oakley, so his fouls must be controlled.
But if Mark Jackson is replaced by Jordan, he won't be polite if the Bulls defend like they did in the Auburn Hills battle.
"boom!"
Mark Jackson missed another shot.
Rodman grabbed the rebound and the Pistons attacked.
On the left wing, Zhou Quan paused after taking two steps across the center line, and then immediately broke through with a three-in-one, knocking Mark Jackson away and heading towards the left elbow.
Ewing stepped up to cover, and John Salley immediately moved to the basket, forcing Oakley to immediately return to defend the basket, and Rodman appeared in the open space.
But this open space was useless, and Rodman immediately entered the paint area from the outside, preparing to grab the rebound.
Zhou Quan reached the left elbow area and suddenly came up with a one-handed feint. He changed direction downwards, using the small one to hit the big one, and then broke out from Ewing.
Although Ewing is as agile as a small forward, he is still not as agile as Zhou Quan.
Oakley was defending one against two at the basket. When he saw Zhou Quan coming in from the left midfielder, his expression changed. He had to defend against three.
"Snapped!"
Holding the ball in his right hand like a tomahawk, Zhou Quan stepped heavily on the ground, jumped into the air, and flew with all his strength.
"Get away!"
Oakley was about to take a step forward and use the toughest defense to knock Zhou Quan down, but at this moment, Rodman and John Salley clamped him at the same time, making him unable to move, and he couldn't help but become furious.
"Bang!"
"boom!"
The next moment, Zhou Quan hit Oakley hard, knocking him over and completing a dunk at the same time.
"Get out of my way!"
Oakley fell to the ground and was about to get up when Zhou Quan landed from above and his legs were straddling him. He couldn't help but become truly furious.
Just when he was about to get up, Zhou Quan actually stepped forward and stepped over his head.
"oh!"
At the naked humiliation, Madison Square Garden immediately exclaimed, and many celebrities sitting in the front row also opened their mouths.
"Asshole!"
Oakley let out a heart-rending roar.
With his character, even if he died, he would not be able to swallow such humiliation.
This is in front of at least 10 million or more Americans. If he doesn't fight back, how can he have the dignity to stay in the alliance?
Suddenly, he got up from the floor, gritted his teeth and rushed towards Zhou Quan in front of him.
This is the playoffs, and Zhou Quan has no intention of fighting back.
He was too calm. This kind of small scene couldn't be compared with the large-scale melee with hockey sticks on the ice hockey rink, and it didn't excite him at all.
Although I don't plan to fight back, this is a pretty good opportunity and I must take advantage of it.
"ah!"
So when Oakley pounced, he suddenly leaned back and screamed in pain, as if he had been hit.
"ah!"
However, just as he leaned back, the back of his head hit something hard, and then a scream sounded behind him.
"oh!"
There were gasps in Madison Square Garden.
"Beep, beep, beep..."
Suddenly, two other referees rushed into the field, their whistles sounded sharply and continuously, and everyone at the official scorer's table stood up in shock.
Zhou Quan turned around and saw, well, the chief referee fell on the floor, covering his nose with his hand, and nosebleeds were flowing between his fingers.
"Sorry, sir, he hit me. I didn't know you were behind, otherwise I wouldn't have backed up to dodge." He quickly covered his face and said innocently.
The referee just wants to curse, who did I offend? With Zhou Quan's help, he stood up, let go of his hand, revealing his bleeding nose, and walked towards Oakley with a stern look on his face.
Looking at the approaching referee, Oakley was also confused. What should he do?
He no longer cared about causing trouble for Zhou Quan and looked back at Pat Riley on the sidelines.
At this time, Pat Riley wanted to rush onto the field and kill Oakley. When Oakley looked over, he only saw a cold and expressionless face.
"OUT!"
At this time, the referee's violent voice rang in Oakley's ears. He turned around blankly and saw the referee with a bloody nose staring at him fiercely and pointing one hand outside the court.
"It's all you!"
Oakley finally reacted, shouted angrily, and pounced on Zhou Quan again.
"Get out! Now, immediately, immediately, get out!"
The referee suddenly rushed forward, pushed Oakley away with a push with both hands, and then issued a series of orders.
"Come down."
Pat Riley also shouted angrily.
"Waiting."
Oakley shouted angrily at Zhou Quan with great reluctance, then turned around and walked out of the field, heading directly to the players' tunnel.
"Iron Fist, are you okay?" Joe Dumas asked.
"I'm fine."
Zhou Quan shook his head.
With his current level 96 nerve reaction speed and full level sense of space, it would be impossible to hit him with Oakley's punch speed and immature boxing skills.
Of course, fighting is not boxing, and a bastard punch may kill the old master. Fighting requires a lot of force, just like the fight between him and Ranbir in the locker room last year.
"This is the end of the Knicks!"
In the TNT commentary box, Robert Guida shook his head and sighed as he looked at Oakley walking towards the tunnel.
Ringo Wilson praised: “Iron Fist handled Oakley’s conflict calmly and did not swing his Iron Fist impulsively.
He was full of wisdom in the playoffs, unlike in the regular season where he would immediately wave his fist when provoked. "
With Oakley's dismissal, the situation immediately favored the Pistons, who were already stronger. After the first half, the Pistons already led by 13 points.
After Oakley came off the court, half of the Knicks' interior defense collapsed, and Zhou Quan stepped up his breakthrough.
But Ewing targeted Oakley and blocked him twice. He made 3 of 8 shots in the half and 3 of 4 free throws. In 18 minutes, he scored 9 points, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block, 1 turnover and 1 foul. data.
At halftime, the two teams left the field and returned to the locker room.
"Iron Fist?"
As soon as they entered the tunnel, Joe Dumars, who was walking at the front, saw Oakley staring at them coldly at the corner, and immediately turned back and shouted.
Zhou Quan separated from everyone and walked at the front.
At this time, the Knicks also came in from behind. Thirty players from the two teams were crowded together in the tunnel, plus some staff and security, and it was already full.
"Don't mess around! Calm down," a security guard shouted.
"Iron Fist."
Oakley, who was almost bleeding from his fists, stared at Zhou Quan fiercely, his eyes red.
"Old Oak, this is off the field. There is no referee to protect you. You must think clearly. The consequences of using violence against me are serious."
Zhou Quan reminded with a smile.
"Charles, don't be like this. A gentleman talks but never strikes..." Joe Dumas advised.
"roll!"
Oakley scolded the good old man without giving him any face.
"Iron Fist, fuck him!"
When the assassin saw Joe Dumas being scolded, his face suddenly turned cold and he shouted at Zhou Quan.
However, Zhou Quan was not Ranbir. He always had his own ideas and ignored him.
"Boss, as long as you take action, I will help you. At most, I will be beaten if you lose."
Anthony Mason stood next to Oakley, stared at Zhou Quan, and said with hatred.
At this time, Pat Riley squeezed in from the outside, stood at Oakley, and said very sternly: "Charles, take the people back to the locker room immediately, right now."
"let's go."
Not to mention Pat Riley, with so many security personnel there, it was actually impossible to take action. Oakley glared at Zhou Quan, gritted his teeth and led the Knicks players into the corridor over there.
"Iron Fist, did he date you?"
Looking at Oakley's back, Darnell Walker asked curiously.
"No."
Zhou Quan shook his head, waved, and led his teammates into the corridor at the other end.
"Where's Larry Johnson and the Postman?" Darnell Walker asked again.
"They made an appointment." Zhou Quan smiled.
"It seems that Oakley is just like that, he has no courage." Rodman said disdainfully.
"Dachong, go and remind him now, don't forget to ask his agent to contact my agent." Zhou Quan said with a smile.
Rodman's face twitched and he said quickly: "No, that's what the younger brother did. I'm your brother. If you don't do it, you let Walker do it. He is your younger brother."
Darnell Walker was not vague, he immediately nodded and said: "Leave it to me."
Zhou Quan laughed, shook his head and said, "The media says I like violence. Those are all rumors. In fact, I really don't like it. If he doesn't take the initiative to contact me, forget it."
"Iron Fist, when you were on the UCLA ice hockey team, how many fights did you have in a season? Large-scale ones off the court?" Rodman asked curiously.
Zhou Quan laughed and said: "Generally, we don't bring conflicts on the field to the field, but there are always conflicts that are difficult to resolve, so on average in a season, there will be several large-scale fights, maybe three or four, with more than ten people. scale.”
Speaking of this, he couldn't help but sigh: "It is more civilized to play basketball. Ice hockey and rugby are too barbaric. A kind-hearted person like me is still more suitable for basketball."
Let me tell you, if it weren’t for making some money, I wouldn’t play ice hockey and it would waste a lot of my time, otherwise my basketball skills would be better. "
Isiah Thomas rolled his eyes when he heard the word good man.
(End of chapter)
