5:5, Bulls attack.
On the right wing, Jordan moved without the ball and took advantage of Grant's pick-and-roll to get the ball from his right elbow. Pippen, the ball holder on the left wing, seized the opportunity to pass the ball across.
Zhou Quan also took advantage of Jordan's opportunity to catch the ball and chased after him. The two took off together. Jordan leaned back sharply in the air, and Zhou Quan jumped up sharply, almost covering Jordan.
"rebound!"
Jordan still took action, but it didn't feel good. He landed unsteadily and stepped back while shouting.
"boom!"
Jordan's hunch was quite accurate, the ball was short.
"No one can take it away, this is mine."
Rodman jumped up hard, grabbed the rebound with all his teeth, and immediately threw it to Zhou Quan outside.
Zhou Quan caught the ball and immediately started a fast break, accelerating against Jordan in front.
Kendall Gill came down from the top of the key and was still in front of Zhou Quan, but BJ was also chasing him.
When Zhou Quan reached the three-point line on the left wing, he suddenly braked and stopped there.
Jordan didn't expect Zhou Quan to want a three-pointer at all. Although Zhou Quan had just made a mid-range shot, the feel of one-for-three was definitely not good, so when he reacted and stopped, he was far away from Zhou Quan. A distance of two meters.
The next moment, Zhou Quan, with no wave in his eyes, made a jump shot with determination.
"Big open seat!" Sun Zhenping shouted excitedly and expectantly.
"Three points!"
Zhang Lili shouted at the same time, his eyes fixed on the orange basketball thrown by Zhou Quan on the screen.
"brush!"
"Oh ho!"
When the crisp sound of washing baskets sounded, the entire central gymnasium instantly burst into joy.
"This is Iron Fist. He is extremely determined. It doesn't matter if he misses the second shot. It's a child's play. He immediately made a two-for-one shot." Magic Johnson said with a smile.
"2-for-4 shooting, defensive difficulty escalates, Michael is going to have a headache." Larry Bird said.
"brush!"
Michael Jordan's response was very simple. He turned around and hit a pull-up jumper over Zhou Quan's head.
7:8, SuperSonics offense.
Zhou Quan came to the top of the arc again. This time, Jordan did not dare to defend the breakthrough. Instead, he focused on breaking, shooting, and passing, and he could not relax at any one of them.
Zhou Quan feinted and changed direction to break through. After Jordan's center of gravity shifted, he immediately broke through from the left. When he reached the left end of the free throw line, Pippen's help arrived.
There was Pippen on the left, Jordan on the right, and human shield center Luke Longley staring at him. He faced three sides, but Zhou Quan saw an opportunity.
Because Pippen double-teamed him, Schrempf got an open space. He was moving to the left sideline, widening the distance from Pippen.
"squeak!"
The next moment, there was an emergency stop. Zhou Quan pushed his left hand outwards, and the basketball flew towards Schrempf.
"not good!"
Pippen turned around and ran, but before he had time, Schrempf had already moved to the left sideline, four or five meters away from him.
Schrempf caught the ball, dribbled back one step, and retreated to the three-point line before taking off and shooting.
"Clang!"
The rim hit the inside edge of the rim, it had gone in, but it popped out again.
"ah!"
Schrempf roared in anger.
"well!"
Countless home fans also sighed with regret.
Luke Longley controlled the backcourt rebound and the Bulls attacked.
"Kendall, limit BJ's passes to Jordan."
The Bulls did not play a fast break. Zhou Quan ran to Kendall Gill and said a word, and then immediately ran to Jordan.
"OK."
Gill understood what Zhou Quan meant very well. Pippen was the organizer of the Bulls, but the Bulls played a triangle offense. Many times, Pippen did not have the angle to directly pass the ball to Jordan, so BJ needed to make a transition to form another triangle on the weak side. , as long as he limits the passing angles of BJ and Jordan to a certain extent, Zhou Quan will have a better chance of targeting Jordan.
"What a great opening. It's as big as the Pacific Ocean, but it's a pity that I missed it. It might have been better to just shoot the ball two points away." Sun Zhenping said.
Zhang Liyi nodded and said: "It's possible, but the feel is hard to say. Schrempf can shoot three-pointers. It's because there is so much space that he wants to shoot a three-pointer."
Pippen attacked with the ball on the left wing, attracting the defense. Jordan ran on the right wing and used Grant's pick-and-roll to get rid of Zhou Quan. Then Grant cut outside and Jordan cut inside, but Zhou Quan bypassed Grant and Perkins in time and came from the top. Caught up to Jordan and cut off his catching angle.
There were not many people in the penalty area, only Rodman and Luke Longley. In this case, Jordan was not afraid of Zhou Quan's ability to get through people's gaps. He bypassed Rodman who deliberately blocked him and ran towards the baseline. Left wing.
But he still underestimated Zhou Quan. Zhou Quan was quicker than him to get around Luke Longley, who deliberately blocked him, but still caught up with him and cut off the passing angle between him and Pippen.
Unable to get rid of the dog-skin plaster-like Zhou Quan, Jordan didn't give up. He simply ran to Pippen's side to catch the ball, and then immediately jumped up behind Pippen.
Pippen made a screen in time, but Zhou Quan had no choice but to go around Pippen a step too late. When he jumped to block the shot, Jordan's ball had already been released.
"brush!"
The water splashed and hit two points.
"ah!"
This kind of ball can also be hit, and Jordan himself clenched his fists and shouted excitedly.
"Oh, he was forced to run from the right wing to the left wing to catch the ball. He can still hit the ball. Jordan is really strong!" Zhang Lili praised.
"The shooting rhythm is too fast, there is no adjustment, it is really a catch and shoot! If it were another person, the shot would only be half a second slower, and Zhou Quan would have a chance to defend the ball with a slight adjustment in his hand. "Sun Zhenping said regretfully.
Zhang Lili said: "The Bulls were very efficient today. They only missed one shot but made two turnovers. The Sonics have missed four shots, including one blocked shot by Jordan. Fortunately, Zhou Quan and Rodman each had one interception." The ball, otherwise it will be a tough day today."
9:8, SuperSonics offense.
"boom!"
Zhou Quan broke through with the ball on the right wing, created a small opening for Kendall Gill, and then passed the ball. After Gill received the ball, he hesitated before taking the shot and missed.
"mine."
Rodman moved early and grabbed the offensive rebound before Luke Longley did.
On the sidelines, seeing the backcourt rebound lost, Phil Jackson shook his head helplessly.
"Look, as long as the rebound is not under the basket, Luke Longley's height advantage is useless. He moves too slowly." Zhang Li said with a smile.
Sun Zhenping said: "Coach Zhang, Kendall Gill's touch was not good today. He was hesitant to take action just now. Is it because of the pressure of the finals?"
Zhang Lili said: "Definitely, the finals, the pressure is enough to overwhelm ordinary All-Stars, so if you can produce extraordinary statistics in the finals, you are a true superstar.
Gil's reaction was normal. He was afraid of missing the shot and did not dare to take the shot. On the contrary, he missed the shot even more. He made the shot more decisively and the hit rate was higher. "
Zhou Quan took the ball and reorganized the attack.
This time he broke through from the top of the arc and deliberately broke through from the left elbow area, attracting Pippen's double team and then passed to Schrempf again.
He felt that Schrempf's heart was still relatively big. He wanted a three-pointer just now. Although he missed, Bigel dared to take the shot. This kind of mentality of daring to take the shot is needed at this time. It doesn't matter if he misses a ball.
"Give it to me again? What if I miss the shot?"
Schrempf received the ball, but to Zhou Quan's estimation, he hesitated just like Gill just now. This gave Pippen a chance, and Pippen immediately pounced back.
"ball."
As soon as Zhou Quan saw it, he immediately ran to the left wing three-point line, shouted, and reached for the ball.
Schrempf hurriedly passed the ball back, Zhou Quan caught the ball, and Jordan caught up with him. He immediately made a fake shot, faked a shot, and then rushed in with the ball.
This time, it was Jordan and Pippen's turn to be anxious.
Jordan was shaken up, and when he turned around to pursue the defense, he was already two steps behind. He watched helplessly as Zhou Quan burst into the paint from the left elbow.
Luke Longley sat under the basket, and Grant, who was pulled out by Perkins on the right wing, quickly returned to defend the basket and defended the Bulls' basket.
"Whoosh!"
Zhou Quan passed the ball decisively and the basketball flew to Perkins in the right corner.
Neither Gill nor Schrempf dared to make a decisive move. He wanted to try Perkins again. If Perkins still hesitated in such a wide open space, then he thought this lineup was useless. After the finals, he would To advise management on transactions.
Zhou Quan's pass was very fast. Although BJ on the right wing tried his best to defend, when Perkins received the ball, he was still two steps away from Perkins.
Perkins didn't hesitate, but his strength was just like that, his shooting rhythm was slow, and he had some bad habits.
For example, after catching the ball, he needs to make an adjustment. He squats down while weighing the ball, and then pauses before taking off. This is his shooting rhythm.
At this time, BJ had already taken off one step away and blocked the shot.
At this moment, Perkins seemed to think that there was a ball like this in the G1 game. He missed the shot that time. Can he make it this time?
"call!"
The next moment, BJ flew over from the front and jumped very high. His shot-blocking action had already affected Perkins' shot and mentality.
"Can't hit!"
Zhou Quan saw that Perkins' wrist movements were a little deformed. He quickly stretched out his arms to block Jordan who was chasing behind him.
"boom!"
The basketball hit the basket and bounced high to the front of the basket. Luke Longley, Grant and Rodman under the basket did not touch the ball.
Zhou Quan was in the right position. After jumping forward and taking off, the moment his right hand touched the ball, he swung it towards the basket. The ball flew over the heads of the three people in front of him, threw it towards the basket, and swiped it into the basket.
"Oh, I finally hit the mark." Sun Zhenping breathed a sigh of relief.
"Today's SuperSonics' state looks worse than in the last game. They are so hesitant to take action. The psychological pressure is too great." Zhang Lili shook his head.
"I'm afraid of losing at home," Sun Zhenping said.
"We can still hold on to the score now. If we fall behind, how can we fight with this mentality? It might just collapse." Zhang Lili shook his head again.
"Now Zhou Quan must stand up and use his performance to liberate the mentality of his teammates." Sun Zhenping said.
Zhang Li thought for a while and said: "Perkins probably didn't hesitate just now, but his shooting rhythm was too slow, and he adjusted it after receiving the ball.
In fact, Zhou Quan's passing was very good and did not need to be adjusted at all, but he still adjusted it out of habit. This is the gap between strength and technology. "
In the Bulls' frontcourt, Jordan received the ball, but Zhou Quan caught up with him again. He turned around and missed a fadeaway jumper.
Zhou Quan made a quick pass. Rodman grabbed the backcourt rebound and immediately passed it out. Luke Longley had no time to stop his quick pass.
Zhou Quan carried the ball to the left three-point line, stepped on the brakes and slowed down, and Jordan immediately made an emergency stop. But the next moment, Zhou Quan accelerated and stepped over, past Jordan, and entered the penalty area from the left elbow area.
Taking this opportunity, Pippen returned to the penalty area and rushed in with Zhou Quan, but Schrempf stopped at the top of the arc.
Is it a shot or a pass?
In a moment of thought, Zhou Quan exerted force on his feet again, accelerated into the air, and before Pippen was able to gain a firm footing, he launched a frontal dunk.
As soon as Pippen reached the basket, he hurriedly jumped to block the shot, but did not jump completely.
The next moment, Zhou Quan, who had reached the highest point in the air, bumped into him.
"boom!"
With the ferocious sound of the basket bombing, Pippen was knocked directly to the basket.
"Beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded.
"Oh ho!"
The Seattle Arena felt like it was exploding, and huge cheers erupted, sweeping everything.
"Dunk! Iron fist dunk Bulls small forward Scottie Pippen in the front!" On-site commentator Genem Chrisman roared with excitement.
"pretty!"
Zhang Lili and Sun Zhenping roared excitedly.
"We must return the favor, we cannot allow them to gain momentum."
Seeing the supersonic momentum like burning gasoline, Jordan's eyes flashed with a sharp light.
At the basket, Zhou Quan turned around and saw Jordan's eyes staring at him, like knives, which made him alert.
Then he hit an extra free throw, and at 9:13, the Sonics led by 4 points.
Bulls offense.
Luke Longley moves in the low post on the left wing and the basket, Rodman sits under the basket, Grant moves on the right wing, and Perkins follows the defense.
Jordan pulled to the right wing to catch the ball from the three-point line, and then others pulled away, allowing him to play alone.
In a tentative step, Jordan broke through and Zhou Quan retreated in time. Jordan retreated and Zhou Quan rushed forward again. Jordan took the opportunity to break through from the inside and reached the right elbow area in two steps. Without stopping, he entered the penalty area and went straight to the basket. Down, flying towards Rodman.
Rodman couldn't do anything about the situation and could only get out of the way.
"boom!"
The next moment, Jordan hit a tomahawk dunk, causing two thousand visiting fans to cheer.
"This is tit-for-tat!" Sun Zhenping sighed.
"Jordan has to do this. The Bulls have no strength advantage over the SuperSonics. If he dares to let the SuperSonics play at home, the Bulls will have a greater chance of losing." Zhang Li said with a smile.
He continued: "Although Jordan has Pippen by his side, Zhou Quan also has Rodman by his side. Rodman's role is very large and his contribution to the team is no less than Pippen.
The Bulls have no advantage in other positions. Although Kendall Gill and Perkins did not perform well on the SuperSonics side, the same goes for the Bulls. The performance of BJ and Cartwright in the last game was also very poor.
The Bulls are strong because of Jordan and perimeter defense, while the Sonics are strong because of Zhou Quan and their fierce defensive system. They all have strong points.
Mr. Sun, look at these two games, although Kendall Gill and Perkins' offense is not very good, they are still good on the defensive end, and the SuperSonics' defensive system is still functioning normally. "
At the end of the first quarter, at 24:25, the SuperSonics led by one point.
Larry Bird said: “Both Iron Fist and Michael Jordan played the entire first quarter, and the head coaches of the two teams did not dare to replace them.
Iron Fist strengthened his personal offense after the game. The missed two shots in the first quarter did not affect him. He made 6 of 11 shots in a single quarter, with a hit rate of over 50%. He also made 4 of 4 free throws and scored 16 points by himself.
And he also had two rebounds, two steals, and a block. He blocked Grant when he was cutting inside and made no mistakes.
In addition, Kendall Gill stole BJ once, Rodman stole the ball once, and the Sonics stole four times in one quarter. With their defensive performance, the Bulls were able to beat the score. "
Magic Johnson said: "Michael didn't take as many shots as Iron Fist. He made 5 of 9 shots in a single quarter, with a shooting percentage of over 50%. Plus 1 of 2 free throws, he scored 11 points. Pippen scored 5 points under Schrempf's defense. He made 2 shots and scored 4 points, which was low efficiency.
In addition, BJ Armstrong made 1 of 3 shots, hit a three-pointer, was blocked by Kendall Gill again, and made a turnover.
Center Luke Longley also had no chance. Pippen didn't pass the ball to him from behind. He obviously didn't believe him and wasted his height. "
Larry Bird laughed and said: "Actually, he can't be blamed for the passing and receiving error. There was something wrong with Pippen's passing. That was his mistake."
Magic Johnson nodded and said: "This game is still very anxious like the G1 game. Although Iron Fist adjusted his condition in time, the rest of the SuperSonics are in average condition.
As for the Bulls, Jordan is certainly in good shape, but he has not yet played a very hot state. The iron fist's marking restricted him. Every time he catches the ball, he must run repeatedly to get the chance to catch the ball.
The rest of the Bulls were not in very good shape either. Grant scored 4 points, which was not bad. Cole came off the bench and made one shot without scoring. Toni Kukoc played three minutes and scored 2 points.
In the next game, other players on both sides still have to adjust their state. Whoever comes out of state first will have a greater chance. "
Larry Bird said with a smile: "Without a big heart, it is impossible to let go in the finals. Moreover, the defenses of the Bulls and SuperSonics are very strong, so it is understandable that ordinary players cannot perform well. "
Magic Johnson said thoughtfully: "Since the strengths are about the same, I think the situation may gradually tilt towards the Bulls."
"Finals experience?" Larry Bird asked perceptively.
Magic Johnson nodded and said seriously: "Head coach George Karl is a rookie in the Finals. It can be seen that he has been in a very nervous state since the G1 game."
Larry Bird nodded and said: "Yes, he has been walking around the sidelines since the beginning of the game, making the players very nervous. Even if the Bulls are behind, Phil Jackson will sit on the bench, which will make the players very nervous." Relax."
Magic Johnson looked at Larry Bird carefully to make sure that his temporary partner was not speaking sarcastically, and then nodded and said: "The role of the head coach is so great that I won't talk about it. He is the commander, and the commander is messed up. , how can the team win?
In addition to the head coach, this Bulls lineup has played in two finals and won championships. Even if they don't perform well for a while, I believe their ability to adjust their status is far stronger than that of Perkins. Helping people. "
Larry Bird also had to admit that Magic's words were right, and nodded: "So let's see which one of them adjusts more timely. At this time, the role of the leader is very important."
"Iron Fist?"
Magic Johnson nodded, but said: "Keren's power is still limited, whether it is Iron Fist or Michael."
(End of chapter)
