At this time, Phil Jackson replaced Scott Williams as a substitute inside man. Williams' defense and offense were average, his rebounding was not bad, 208 centimeters, 104 kilograms, he moved quickly and could play the fourth and fifth positions.
"You confront Seikali, keep him away from the penalty area, pay attention to his movement, and protect the rebounds." Phil Jackson warned.
The game restarts and the Bulls attack.
Zhou Quan injured the main center on the first goal, which dealt a certain blow to the Bulls' morale. At this time, the atmosphere in the United Center was not as hot as before. Bulls fans were waiting for Jordan's counterattack. They believed that Michael Jordan would not let They were disappointed.
BJ advanced with the ball, and Jordan and Pippen were on the left and right to support him.
Zhou Quan defended and retreated from the front, looking like he was ready to steal at any time. The nerves of the Bulls' three perimeter players were all tense. No one dared to underestimate his steal king.
Zhang Lili laughed and said: "Look, this is Zhou Quan. With him alone, the Bulls have to keep three people in the backcourt, including the current number one player like Jordan and All-Star small forwards like Pippen. "
At the men's basketball station, Adijiang and all the men's basketball members couldn't help but feel ashamed when they saw this and heard these words.
Think about last year's Olympic Games. Whenever they were pressed by the opponent in the backcourt, they would panic and make mistakes again and again.
Liu Yumin was also here and said at this time: "When Xiao Zhou comes back, invite him to come to the capital. Maybe you can go to Changsha and practice with him so that you can get used to this intense competition style."
"Uh-huh."
Hu Weidong and other outside players nodded.
BJ faced Zhou Quan, and Zhou Quan's momentum was so overwhelming. He was like facing a tiger ready to pounce, cautiously advancing to the frontcourt, giving the ball to Pippen, and then he breathed a sigh of relief.
At this time the Bulls players started to move.
After Scottie Pippen passed the ball to Williams in the low post on the left wing, he immediately bypassed Ulrich and cut inside toward the basket.
After receiving the ball, Williams pretended to attack. When Pippen cut in, he suddenly passed back. Pippen caught the ball, entered the paint area from the left waist, and flew towards the basket.
Rodman quickly returned to defend the basket, and Pippen seemed to pass the ball. The ball flew over the head of the former and flew to the right side of the basket.
At this time, Grant cut into the basket from the weak side along the baseline, followed Rodman, received a pass from Pippen, and scored a goal with a small throw.
Zhou Quan came down from above to help defend and was a step too late.
Pistons offense.
Zhou Quan advanced with the ball in the backcourt, while Jordan defended and retreated from the front, retreating very slowly, deliberately suppressing the former's advancement speed.
His purpose is not to steal, but mainly to prevent Zhou Quan from rushing up, because with Zhou Quan's speed and explosive power, as well as his tonnage, once he rushes up, he will be like a full-gas pickup truck. Just like before, he brakes statically. The center will be knocked over.
At this time, Joe Dumars entered the right wing of the frontcourt, directly crossed the three-point line, and went deep into the flank to ask for the ball.
Facing BJ, he has a height advantage of 3 centimeters and a tonnage advantage of 7 kilograms. The height advantage is not big, but the tonnage advantage is huge, so the position is very deep, just outside the right waist. He does not run, but stands. Determined to get the ball.
In the frontcourt, Zhou Quan was going to follow Chuck Daly's arrangement and let Joe Dumars play first to see if he could take advantage of the misplacement on BJ's head.
If Joe Dumars can create a strong mismatch advantage like he did against Bogues in the first round series, you can let him attack.
At this time, BJ went around to defend, and Joe Dumars didn't hesitate. He immediately turned around and cut in, stepping on the right waist with one step, while looking towards the top of the arc.
Zhou Quan advanced two steps beyond the top of the arc. Jordan was in the front position to the right, mainly guarding his right hand, blocking the passing angles downward and to the right.
His eyes immediately turned to the left wing, as if he was about to pass the ball to Ulrich, but he was actually preparing to pass the ball to the right wing.
Jordan sneered, Ulrich had a shitty offensive ability with the ball, and I was his old teammate. Didn’t I know?
He didn't bother to care about the passing angle between Zhou Quan and the left wing. Ulrich also had Pippen beside him, so it would be better to pass it over. He raised his hands and agreed. The question is, do you dare to pass the ball with an iron fist?
Zhou Quan saw that Jordan was unmoved and knew that he could not be deceived. At this time, he looked at BJ walking around to defend Joe Dumars and immediately realized that he was going to pass the ball.
The next moment, he suddenly pulled to the right, blasting the ball at the same time, and the ball also pulled up.
Almost at the same moment, Joe Dumas turned and cut inside, stepping on the right waist.
"squeak!"
Jordan quickly took a step sideways and stood in front of Zhou Quan.
But at the next moment, Zhou Quan quickly turned around and handed the ball to his left hand. He suddenly passed by Jordan and headed towards the top of the arc with the ball.
"be cheated!"
Michael Jordan was stunned. After turning around to pursue him, Zhou Quan had already passed the top of the key and was beyond his reach.
At this time, Williams and Grant returned to the penalty area from the left and right, forming a closing trend two meters below the free throw line.
Joe Dumas cut to the basket and missed the ball. When he saw Zhou Quan holding the ball and killing him, he quickly stopped and stretched out his arms to block BJ who was chasing behind him.
Zhou Quan reached the free throw line, took another step, and stopped in front of Williams and Grant.
"Bang!"
With a casual push, the sound of the basketball hitting the ground was heard, and his ball bounced off the ground from Williams' crotch and bounced into the hands of Joe Dumars.
"brush!"
After receiving the ball, Joe Dumars made a backhand layup and easily hit the ball.
In the ABC commentary box, Bill Walton laughed and said: "I can block Iron Fist's people, but I can't stop his ball. The current Iron Fist is not the same as last year's Eastern Conference Finals. At that time, he could only be regarded as a point guard, attacking He is not very strong, he barely attacks, and his efficiency is not very high, but now, he is just another assassin."
Lewis Williams said with a smile: "Michael's defensive iron fist is impossible to guard against. He has to guard against passes and breakthroughs. When he is close to the three-point line, he has to guard against shots.
Tekken's three-point shooting percentage in the regular season was 37.2%, and in the first round series it was 37.5%. The three-pointers are not weak, but they don't take them often. "
4:2, Bulls attack.
This time, Zhou Quan and Joe Dumars switched defenses, and he kept up with Jordan.
BJ was relieved when he saw it.
In fact, Joe Dumars' defense is very strong. After all, he defends one team three times, but he does not have Zhou Quan's cannibalism. Facing Joe Dumars, BJ does not have the feeling of being out of breath, and the pressure is high. Much smaller.
After he advanced to the frontcourt, he still handed the ball to Pippen, and he stayed at the top of the arc to respond, which was also conducive to quickly returning to defense.
At this time, Grant pulled up and set up a screen for Pippen. Pippen used the wall to break through, bypassing Sekali who followed, and entered the paint area.
Zhou Quan quickly went down to cover the defense, and Pippen reacted quickly. With a push, the ball flew to the top of the arc, where BJ was temporarily open.
On the right wing, Joe Dumars quickly covered the top of the arc, and Rodman, who was in the low post on the right wing, pounced on Jordan. The Pistons began to quickly rotate defense.
The Pistons' defense is not as good as last season, but Rodman, Joe Dumars, and Zhou Quan can still form the most powerful wing defense.
BJ quickly passed the ball to Jordan on the right wing.
Jordan caught the ball, singled out Rodman, first leaned in, and then quickly turned around and shot a fadeaway jumper. The entire attack was completed in only 1.3 seconds, and Zhou Quan had no time to help defend.
"brush!"
The water splashed and hit two points.
"The offense at the beginning was very good!" Bill Walton praised.
Pistons offense.
Zhou Quan advanced to the top of the arc, first passed the ball to Ulrich outside the three-point line on the left wing, passed over for a moment, and then immediately received it back.
Jordan fought closely and put one hand on Zhou Quan's body.
But Zhou Quan used his left elbow to push against Jordan to prevent him from getting close to him, and raised the ball high with his right hand, preparing to pass the ball.
Although Jordan's current strength is stronger, it is still very limited. If he is withstood, he will not be able to stick to his body.
At this time, BJ continued to go around to defend Joe Dumars, who immediately turned around and cut inside to the basket.
The Bulls only had Grant on the right side of the basket in the penalty area, and substitute center Williams was on the left midfielder. There was no gap under the basket, but there was a chance.
At this moment, Zhou Quan suddenly turned to the right, grabbed the ball with his right hand, and made a passing motion.
Jordan was fooled. When he moved sideways, Zhou Quan quickly passed the ball with his backhand. The ball instantly followed an unobstructed channel from top to bottom and flew from his back to Joe Douma who was cutting in. Sri Lanka.
After receiving the ball, Joe Dumas took a step across the basket, came to the front left side of the basket, and then turned around for a layup. Grant missed the shot and once again easily hit a goal under the basket.
"The elusive back pass! There is no way to guard against this kind of pass. No matter how good the defender is, he can't guard against this kind of pass." Zhang Lili praised in admiration.
Jordan then missed a shot under Zhou Quan's defense, and then Zhou Quan assisted Joe Dumars again.
In the 3rd minute of the first quarter, 8:4, the Pistons led away from home, and the Bulls called a timeout.
"Jordan didn't take many shots in the first quarter, 1 of 2. After Iron Fist dunked the first ball, he sent out three assists in succession, and Joe Dumars made 3 of 3 shots. Did the two of them make an agreement not to use force in the first quarter? ?Tekken averaged 32 points per game in the first round and even played better than Jordan. He should be the Pistons' best scorer now." Lewis Williams said.
Bill Walton laughed and said: "Michael Jordan was out of shape today, so Iron Fist sent three consecutive assists on his head.
With so many assists, Tekken didn't even have to take action himself, Joe Dumars could beat the Bulls. So I bet Phil Jackson is going to change his lineup, take away his point guard, and let Pippen or Jordan handle the ball. "
In front of the Bulls bench, Phil Jackson called out the backup point guard, John Paxson, last season's main point guard.
He doesn't want the lineup to lose speed. The inside line is already very slow. If a forward is added to the outside line, the overall speed will be even slower, so changing to a defender who can carry Joe Dumars is the best choice.
In the last two games against the Pistons in the regular season, he didn't do this well. He played as a forward in order to paralyze the Pistons.
John Paxson did a good job guarding Joe Dumars in the Eastern Conference Finals last year. He has been playing as a substitute in the regular season this season. He is indeed injured, but not that serious. He deliberately set off smoke bombs to prepare for the playoffs.
"John, I don't ask you to guard Joe Dumars. You don't have to go around. You just need to reduce his offensive efficiency after he catches the ball." He warned.
"Got it, coach." John Paxson nodded.
The head coach's intention is very clear, which is to let Joe Dumars catch the ball and focus the Pistons' offense on his hands, so that the defense will be more purposeful.
Joe Dumars' scoring is not explosive. Unlike the previous assassins, who scored 25 points in a single quarter, that is the explosive scoring that can kill people in one shot.
The pause ends.
"Oh, John Paxson was really replaced?" Bill Walton said a little surprised.
"Two point guards?"
Lewis Williams smiled and said: "Actually, Joe Dumars is also the height and tonnage of a point guard. He can play at the first and second positions. The Pistons also play dual point guards. Now the two sides are matched up.
Last year in the Eastern Conference Finals, Joe Dumars played John Paxson in isolation, but the effect was average and there was no mismatch advantage. So what about this time? "
When Chuck Daly saw the Bulls replaced John Paxson, he immediately shouted to Zhou Quan: "Zhou?"
Zhou Quan, who had just come on the court, immediately ran over. Daley said: "Pick and roll, switch back with Joe, and you go and beat Paxson."
"OK."
He nodded.
Bulls offense.
Joe Dumars defended John Paxson. Pippen caught the ball across half court and broke through with the ball on the left wing. Seikali couldn't come back from the outside. Joe Dumars came down from the high post to help defend, and then passed the ball to the top of the key. Paxson in the open position.
Zhou Quan let go of Jordan and immediately defended the top of the key.
Jordan immediately cut in from the outside when he saw the opportunity, and Paxson passed to Jordan again.
Jordan entered the three-point line on the right wing, took two steps to catch the ball, met Rodman's defense, made a pull-up jumper, and accurately hit another goal.
"8:6, Jordan made two of three shots." Bill Walton said.
Pistons offense.
Zhou Quan took the ball to the frontcourt and headed to the right wing.
"Pick and roll."
Jordan knew very well that Zhou Quan must have gone to Joe Dumars to play the pick-and-roll, and then got the opportunity to play John Paxson in isolation.
Joe Dumars only had a height advantage of three centimeters against John Paxson, and a tonnage advantage of only two kilograms, so there was no mismatch advantage in last year's Eastern Conference Finals.
But Zhou Quan is different. He has a tonnage advantage of 6 kilograms and has a stronger confrontation ability than Joe Dumars. It is possible to use Paxson's misplacement advantage.
Coming to the right wing, Joe Dumars took the initiative to pick and roll, and immediately ran to the top of the arc after breaking the ball. Zhou Quan took the ball and broke through to the right wing.
Jordan did not change defense, bypassing Joe Dumars and chasing Zhou Quan, while John Paxson chased towards the top of the key, but both of them were a step too slow. No matter how fast the defense change was, they would not be unaffected by the pick-and-roll.
Zhou Quan rushed into the flank, and Jordan took a shortcut to catch up to the front.
But at this moment, he made an emergency stop, then immediately took a step back while dribbling the ball, distanced himself from Jordan, the ball was also pulled up high, and his left hand closed.
"Emergency jump shot? Or a fake move?"
This time, Jordan was in trouble. He could only choose to pounce on him and did not dare to let go of Zhou Quan's pull-up jump shot.
But the next moment, Zhou Quan once again started to break through with the ball, changed direction and accelerated to pass, and after suddenly catching Jordan who was rushing towards him, he headed towards the paint area.
When he reached the right midfielder in two steps, Grant came up from the low post to cover the defense. Rodman, who was in the right low post, took the opportunity to cut to the basket, then received Zhou Quan's pass and made a one-handed layup.
"boom!"
It missed and hit the edge of the basket.
"boom!"
The next moment, he made a tip-in.
At the moment of the tip-in, Jordan rushed in from behind and missed the ball just a little bit.
Zhou Quan stared at Rodman without saying a word. The latter smiled awkwardly and said: "Iron Fist, really, the first blow really didn't go in."
"If this goal is not scored and we lose two points in the end, Dennis, you will be my boxing partner for a month." Zhou Quan "threatened".
Rodman's expression turned bitter, "Iron Fist, I'm just rebounding the ball to save you an assist, you don't have to kill me, right?"
Jordan glared at Rodman fiercely, "You bastard, you dare to rebound in this kind of game, don't you take me seriously?"
Bill Walton explained: "This shot was very good. Iron Fist hit Jordan head-on. This was the second time he hit Jordan head-on today.
If Jordan can't prevent Iron Fist's pass and his ball-holding breakthrough, the Bulls will definitely fall into a passive position. "
Williams analyzed: "10:6, the Pistons still lead. Judging from this offense, Iron Fist wanted to use the pick-and-roll to get rid of Jordan and single out John Paxson, but Jordan did not change defense.
Judging from the current situation, Jordan did not prevent Tie Fist's pass, and twice allowed Tie Fist to complete a breakthrough with the ball. Jordan needs to be more involved on the defensive end.
So will Iron Fist give up the pick-and-roll tactics next and start a battle with Jordan? I am looking forward. "
(End of chapter)
