Start coaching the Thunder, starting with Westbrook

Chapter 170
Thunder home, the atmosphere in the locker room of the home team is a bit depressing, indeed the fans can see it, the players on the court naturally have a deeper feeling.

One of the feelings they felt when they played against the Spurs was that they were very tired, that kind of mental fatigue. It was obvious that after two days, they were not back-to-back, and their physical strength was abundant, but they just felt uncomfortable.

This is obviously because the rhythm of the game is in the hands of the opponent, and they also fall into the rhythm of the opponent, so they are led by the nose, and they cannot play their own offense.

Li Sheng originally wanted to say start with defense, but now it seems that the team has not yet reached the point where it can withstand this pressure and wait for changes.

That being the case, he had no choice but to take the initiative to make some changes.

"Starting the second half, we have to play fast, as fast as we can. I want you to run as soon as you enter the court, run out of your own rhythm, and run out of their rhythm!"

Westbrook is an expert in chaotic warfare, and now Reggie can also replace part of Westbrook's role, so Li Sheng entrusts him with great trust, and at the same time, it also cheers up Durant, and he also needs to take responsibility.

"KD, you still have to shoot when it's time to shoot. Do you want to learn how to play team basketball?"

The current Thunder doesn't have the capital to play team basketball with the Spurs.

Durant was silent. His state in this game was actually not good, so he listened to Li Sheng's words and gave his teammates more opportunities, but he didn't think that his teammates were not good enough.

Usually, either he is in full form, or his teammates are in good form, and they can support each other, but now this makes him a little flustered.

He is not the kind of person who can keep calm all the time and deal with all kinds of emergencies. He still needs someone to guide him.

"KD, at a time like this, you should play by yourself or play by yourself. You are the MVP. It's okay if everyone is not in a good state and dare not play, but if even you dare not play, then this game is really hopeless."

Durant has the habit of hitting hard with cold hands, of course Li Sheng wants to break him back, but if he encounters the current extreme situation, it would seem irrational to continue like that.

After all, as a star player, he can finally regain his touch. As long as the score is not stretched too far, he can still play back when he regains his touch later, and he can also repay his teammates.

After all, poor state is poor state, and such a poor offense definitely has a lot to do with the opponent's defense.

It was also the first time for Li Sheng to stand opposite the Spurs and feel their defense. In his opinion, the difference between the Spurs and the Warriors is that the Spurs are not afraid of playing team basketball, but are more afraid of the kind of single-point blasting.

Looking at the early Lakers defeating the Spurs, many times they relied on O'Pang's pocket and Kobe's explosion.

From then on, everyone's impression of him is no longer a thorn and a cancer, but a big bear... Bah, "black bear".

So at this time, Li Sheng, of course, thought of letting Reggie and Durant copy a wave of double-young combination. Although Reggie is not as good as Westbrook, there are still Brother Antetokounmpo and Ennis to supplement.

The Thunder are indeed different this season, but it doesn't mean they have to stay the same. Then wouldn't Li Sheng be no different from Brooks.

Adaptability is the quality that a good coach should have, especially when the road is blocked, it is better to find another way, even if it is the old way, than to continue to hit the south wall.

"I understand!"

Durant sighed, but he didn't despise Li Sheng because of his flexible bottom line. On the contrary, he was more convinced of him, because this is another place that is obviously different from Brooks.

Although Brooks is not stubborn, he is also stubborn and unwilling to make changes easily.

But now, Li Sheng is not only willing to take the initiative to change after discovering something is wrong, but also admits his mistakes, and even doesn't mind showing timidity in front of the players.

"Sir, next, leave it to us!"

……

"The second half of the game has begun! The two teams suddenly fought against each other in the last few minutes of the first half. The Thunder's state today is still relatively poor. Now the point difference is [-]%. It depends on whether the Thunder can respond in the third quarter."

Director Zhang is still looking forward to this, after all, he is standing on Li Sheng's standpoint.

Director Sun also said with a smile: "I think Coach Li will definitely not sit idly by. This is also an opportunity for him to prove himself in front of his 'old club'."

In fact, Li Sheng didn't have anything to prove in front of the Spurs, although when he met Popovich before the game, he joked that he knew that he should not let the two of them go directly.

After all, the current situation is tantamount to directly cultivating a huge competitor for himself in the west.

Generally speaking, this is the reason why strong teams are unwilling to make deals with teams in the same district. There is a relationship of direct competition, and strengthening the opponent is tantamount to weakening itself in disguise.

It's just that the Spurs and Popovich at the time would never have imagined that Li Sheng and Udoka could lead the Thunder to what they are now.

"The Thunder still had their previous starting lineup, but as soon as Durant came up, he held the ball at the top of the arc, facing the Spurs Green's defense-he made a sudden shot from outside the three-point line, Green didn't react, and scored!"

As soon as Durant came up, he made a sudden shot. It has to be said that the ability of the stars is always there. In many cases, their performance is actually related to their mentality.

It seems that Durant at this time is very determined at first glance, not like he was a little hesitant in the first half. The more he is like this, the better he is and the more accurate he is.

And what happened in the first half obviously paralyzed the Spurs a little, not to mention that he would play so "casually" when he was behind by [-] points.

Popovich on the sidelines roared immediately. This old man is a guy with a strong desire to control. Sometimes he wished that more than a dozen members of the team seemed to let him control him.

GDP was never scolded back then, and it can be said that Parker was scolded by him all the way. Naturally, they would not let go of Green and Leonard.

Then it was the Spurs' turn to attack, but this time they were blocked by the Thunder.

After landing, Duncan put up a high post and set a screen for Parker. Reggie quickly passed the screen to block his breakthrough. Parker passed the ball to Green who came out to catch the ball. Green shot an open three-pointer and missed.

The rebound was directly picked off by Durant this time, and Reggie was about to get off at this time, taking the lead and rushing to the forefront. Durant immediately made a long pass like a sniper.

"Thunder came up and scored five points in a row, the momentum is like a rainbow!"

"It seems that the midfielder Coach Li must have said something, and the effect is very significant!"

Next, Duncan caught the ball in a low position and singled Ibaka to cause a foul. He made two free throws and made one. Duncan's free throws were not as accurate as many people imagined.

But the Thunder's offensive Spurs couldn't prevent it. Durant faced Leonard at the elbow, attracted the defense and assisted Ibaka to make a layup.

Within 2 minutes of the third quarter, the Thunder scored a 7:1, chasing the point difference to only 4 points.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Popovich immediately called a timeout.

(End of this chapter)