The Legend of the Hungry Wolf in Basketball

Chapter 222 [Great victory over Jazz, successful revenge]

The Utah Jazz faced the Clippers in their home opener, and the pressure was huge.

Originally, the Jazz thought it was worth fighting for, but after hearing the score of Staples' opening game, both head coach Sloan and general manager O'Connor felt that there was little hope of winning.

What O'Connor wants to do most now is to poach the Clippers scouts.The entire league knows that the Clippers have never failed in the process of rebuilding and selecting players. Everyone in the team is useful, not well-known, but suitable for a variety of tactics.In the first game, the Clippers' substitute players scored 68 points, more than half of the team's points, while the Lakers' substitutes scored a total of 21 points.In other words, the main force of the Lakers can compete with the Clippers, and the reason for the big loss is the substitute.

The Jazz's bench players are not as good as the Lakers.Playing against the Rockets last season, they lost in this regard.The starting five will not suffer any team in the league, and they will not be able to stand up as soon as the substitutes come on.If there are good role players, maybe they won the championship last season.

If you want to dig a Clippers scout, you can, but it won't work.The Clippers' number one scout is Ye Feng, who cannot be poached.No one has a better eye for selecting people than a reborn future man.

The Jazz has weakened inside this season. Boozer moved to the Bulls and lost the low post offense.Although Okur has good statistics and was selected as an All-Star, he can only play pick-and-roll cooperation on the outside, catch passes from teammates and jump shots. Low-post offense is not his specialty. The 203cm Millsap will be the starter at position 4. He is only 203cm tall, lacks bounce, and is not a good low-post attacker.The only substitute inside players are Kirillo Feschenko, Costa Koufus, and the veteran Jerome James recruited by the free market. They are not popular at all.

The Jazz's perimeter strength has only been slightly strengthened. Wesley Matthews, who entered the NBA without being drafted, and North Carolina point guard Eric Maynor, who was selected with the 20th overall pick in the first round, did not introduce big names.The Jazz have freed up cap space and are ready to grab people in 2010.

In this game, Miles was still injured and unable to play, and Kirilenko could only serve as the starting small forward, which made their bench lineup even worse.

The playoffs have greatly promoted the growth of players. When the Jazz were at home last season, the young players were nervous and did not speak much. Now in the locker room of the visiting team, everyone is talking and laughing, overcoming the psychological pressure.Playing the Jazz with an uneven lineup can win two games.Now that the most troublesome Boozer is gone, everyone feels that they will win.Anti-Bone Boy is really strong. Playing against the Clippers, Boozer is always the one who plays the best.

The atmosphere in Salt Lake City's home court was still the same. The fans cheered for the home team and looked like a group of thugs who might rush down to fight at any time.Ye Feng scored 82 points when he played against the Jazz, so the home fans hated him very much. When he played, the audience booed him.

The Jazz reached the Western Conference Finals twice in three years, but unfortunately they couldn't get any closer.Last year, the Jazz missed the best chance to win the championship. The fans knew that it was difficult for the team to achieve results this season, and they vented their anger in boos to the visiting team.

The fans are still fanatical, but what they can help the players is limited to moral support.Millsap is not as good as Ye Feng, and another advantage, Deron Williams, is also difficult to show his prestige.Veteran Kidd is afraid of a speedy point guard like Paul. When he meets Deron, he will not be easily blown up in single defense.Deron's lateral movement is not fast enough to fight muscles, and Kidd is not bad.

The Jazz started with Okur, Millsap, Kirilenko, Brewer, and Deron.

Faced with this group of strong guys, the Clippers changed their lineup again. It is impossible for them to let Curry fight against Brewer.

Thibodeau sent Love, Gortat, Barnes, Ye Feng, and Kidd.

Gortat entered the starting lineup, not just for defense. The Jazz have the advantage of being strong and deploying players with a height advantage. In the opening game, Gortat and Ye Feng were arranged to attack Millsap in the low post on both sides.Not being tall is a disadvantage in low post defense, and Millsap simply can't block the shots of the two.

The Clippers made the Jazz unable to eat at the beginning.Kidd, Love and Ye Feng form a triangle with each other, and the ball is dropped to the low-post Ye Feng to attack.He hit Millsap with one move, dribbled a few steps, turned around and leaned into the basket, shot with one hand, and scored three goals in a row.

Millsap couldn't cover him no matter whether he turned to the bottom line or the middle. Love pulled to the outside and had a height advantage. The person he passed to Ye Feng formed a wonderful dislocation.

Love showed his three-point ability in the last game. Brewer dared not let Love go to defend Ye Feng, and Deron could only defend Kidd, who was running outside.The Jazz used last season's mixed defense in the opening stage, shifting the defensive focus to one side. Kirilenko blocked shots from the side and used rotation to defend.

But this trick didn't work, and Barnes and Gortat also cost the Jazz a comeback on the weak side.The ball was first passed to Barnes, and Okur went to defend Barnes' three-pointer after the position change.Barnes then passed the ball to the inside Gortat, and after the rotation changed, it became Kirilenko's low-post defense.

Gortat won the duel between the two European players. Regardless of his height or strength, he has an advantage. He scored two consecutive shots, both of which were forced shots with the ball in the middle. Kirilenko cannot resist the center.

The Jazz had no advantage inside, not only couldn't defend, but also had problems with offense.

The Clippers' old-fashioned man-to-man tactics worked again.Love followed Okur out of the paint and interfered with shots, Gortat defended against Millsap, Barnes dealt with Kirilenko, Ye Feng defended against Brewer, Deron's pick-and-roll coordination lacked Boozer, and was not as sharp as before.Kidd, the shortest starter of the Clippers, also has 193cm. After switching defenses, he does not suffer and can interfere with shooting.Okur missed three shots. He has the same style as Murphy of the Pacers. His scoring mainly depends on outside shots. Once he feels bad, he will be useless.

The Clippers' strong inside play forced the Jazz to change their tactics and compress the defense to 122 zone defenses.

Love really dared to make a shot after being misplaced on the outside. He made 3 of 2 three-pointers and Kidd also hit a three-pointer.His role is like that of the Dream 8 team, organizing the offense and passing the ball non-stop, but if he doesn't guard him, he will also shoot, and he can guarantee the hit rate.Three three-pointers beat the Jazz.

The Clippers led by 34 points 26 to 8 in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Jazz's tragic substitute lineup came on the scene.Feschenko, Kufus, Korver, Brewer, Maynor.

The Clippers sent McGee, Smith, Thornton, Tony Allen, and Curry.Last season's main rusher Barea sat on the bench.

The score was quickly drawn.The Jazz's only two offensive points, Korver and Brewer, were marked to death.In order to limit the Clippers' substitutes, Sloan asked Brewer to stay on the court and play as a substitute, but it didn't play any role. Tony Allen's defense was too tight, making it difficult for him to catch the ball, turn around and shoot.

Thornton replaced Morrow.Thibodeau decided to give him a chance to see if he was a flash in the pan or he could really grab points.Thornton quickly proved that his 14 points in the game were not a sham.Thornton and McGee are better at pick-and-rolls. He is more accurate than Barea, and he dares to shoot when he has the opportunity. He can shoot from all positions without dead ends.

Both Feschenko and Koufus couldn't defend well against the pick-and-roll, and Sloan found to his dismay that Thornton, a second-round rookie, was too perverted to defend one-on-one after the pick-and-roll.The Jazz can't double-team yet. The Clippers have Curry on the outside who seems to be as accurate as he is, and he is also a rookie.

As soon as the ball is passed, Curry can perform a second pick-and-roll with Smith on the outside.Changed Brewer to guard the pick-and-roll, Curry passed the ball again, and returned to Smith's singles point guard Maynor, another misplacement...
The Clippers' substitute not only scored a goal, but also defended very well. McGee and Smith flew around the interior, and Tony Allen was on the outside to stare at the opponent's main scorer.Meno, Feshenko, Kufos and others couldn't grasp their defensive weakness.The only advantage is Korver's strong shot against Thornton.

The Clippers played an 8-0 offensive climax, extending the score to 16 points, and Sloan knew he was going to lose.They can only fight for home honors.

In the second half of the second quarter, the Clippers made another substitution. Curry, Love, Ye Feng, Kidd, and Smith were present.

Ye Feng pulled to a high position to catch the ball, the four opened up to create singles opportunities for him, and Millsap defended.Ye Feng dribbled the ball and turned around to break through, resisting Millsap and going to the right. Millsap was bullied by Ye Feng last season, enough.When Ye Feng took off, he fouled fiercely, Ye Feng shrank in the air, threw the ball behind his backhand before landing, and scored with cricket.The referee whistles, 2+1.

The results of the trampoline training are showing. His ability to make 2+1 and force shots is much stronger than last season.

In the second half, Millsap was replaced due to 4 fouls. Koufos was too slow. Ye Feng and Love started a pick-and-roll attack, continuously breaking through and scoring inside.He leaned on the opponent, dared to find gaps to shoot without completely throwing off the defense, and scored 17 points in a single quarter.Extended the score to more than 20 points.

The fourth quarter turned into garbage time again.Thornton and Barea were still fighting for points, and Morrow, who didn't play much, also scored two three-pointers.

快船118比97客场屠杀爵士，取得了两连胜。叶锋出场32分钟，20投12中，罚球12罚9中，得到33分6篮板4助攻1抢断1盖帽。快船又有六人得分上双，乐福22分15篮板完爆奥库，表现抢眼。索顿也得到了17分。基德依旧是负责组织，得到7分7篮板9助攻2抢断。

Thibodeau is ready to let Thornton take over.Although he is a rookie, still a second-round pick, he is stronger than Morrow, who can only shoot three-pointers.The substitute lineup grabs points, and his offensive methods are more than Barea's.

This guy with bushy eyebrows and a simple and honest appearance may become another second-round star who continues to write legends after Danny Granger and Monta Ellis.Ellis is also good at scoring, but not good at defense.But this does not prevent him from becoming the team's starter.Thornton has a similar style, and the Clippers have picked up the treasure.

(End of this chapter)