basketball pope

Chapter 688 [The competition of perseverance, stalemate to the end]

Yu Jia said: "Kidd was highly rated in the first round, people said he defended Kobe, but in the second round, Kidd had nothing to do with Westbrook, he was afraid of speed guards who were good at breaking through, Germany is clearly at a disadvantage against Paul."

Zhang Lili sighed: "Yeah, he didn't succeed in defending Curry for two rounds. Don't look at Curry as a child, he really dares to shoot the ball, and he really dares to fake Kidd." (Curry: I am 190CM child...)
When Barea played, the Mavericks had someone who could break through on the outside; Marion was in charge of defense, defending Gay alone and changing pick-and-rolls, all very well.

After two rounds, Gay pulled a foul into the dead ball when defending Barea's breakthrough, Yang Rui also made a substitution, and Jordan played in place of Gay, sending the twin towers inside.

In this way, the lineup of the two sides has become mutually exclusive.

Jordan was responsible for the middle screen, and he could cut and dunk after the pick-and-roll. Griffin could directly hold the ball and single against Marion. The focus of the offense shifted to the inside, and it was still Paul who launched the offense.

Marion went to defend the pick-and-roll in the middle. He was half a head shorter than Jordan. Once he was led away by Paul, it would be difficult to guard against the inside cut, and he might not have time to turn around and foul.On the side, Dirk Nowitzki defends Griffin and Curry's off-ball screening, which is a test of the veteran's mobility.

Marion went to the side to defend, Dirk Nowitzki defended Paul and Jordan's pick-and-roll just as hard, he can keep up with Paul's breakthrough, thank goodness, can't protect the penalty area, he can't foul, if you get into foul trouble, the Mavericks will Bad fight.

Barea also struggled to defend Paul one-on-one. He has a bad physique, a big head, a short neck, short shoulders, and a registered height of 183CM, which is actually 178CM. His 180CM wingspan makes it difficult for him to interfere with shooting.In the regular season, Barea played 82 games, averaging 20.6 minutes per game, and contributed a block in total.

As long as he faces Barea's single defense, no matter what position the player can shoot, he doesn't have to worry about being blocked by his short hand.

The Clippers’ defensive tactic is man-to-man, which is not easy to mess up. Terry needs to force out the 4th position in time to prevent him from making three-pointers; Nowitzki catches the ball low, and the flank players retreat in time to form a double-team.

This will free up Marion, Barea, and Prince. If they can guarantee their shooting percentage, it is difficult for the Clippers to win. Very fatal.

In the first quarter, the two sides fought fiercely, and the Clippers relied on 8 three-pointers to lead 38-30.

保罗单节6分7助攻，库里打满了整节，11投7中，三分球7中4，得到18分2助攻。

小牛诺维斯基单节11投7中，三分球2中1，罚球4中4，得到19分3篮板1助攻，其他人表现一般。

Prince made 2 of 0 shots in the first quarter and didn't play it, and Marion didn't score a single point.

After Marion arrived in the Mavericks, he increased his low-post back play. He could lean on his opponent, turn to the right and in the middle, and score with a high release point. It is effective against general 3 and 4 positions, but not against Griffin.

Griffin is not useless on the defensive end. He is afraid of players who can break through. He has an advantage in defending his backside. He can push opponents away from the basket, and he can interfere with shooting by his bouncing ability.

In the second quarter, Curry took a break, and Paul continued to play. To deal with the Mavericks, Paul's playing time must be increased.

With the Hornets, Paul led the team like that, averaging more than 40 minutes per game in both playoffs.

The other four Clippers are Tony Allen, Guy, Dunleavy, Mahinmi.

After a 7-minute break in the first quarter, Gay returned to the court with a substitute, guaranteeing two three-pointers and four defensive players.

The defensive end Gay is responsible for dealing with Marion; Dunleavy defends Stojakovic, who is easier to deal with. The two are similar in size and are both shooting types; Mahinmi's opponent is Gasol Jr. Block-and-roll.

The five Mavericks are Terry, Kidd, Peja, Marion, and Pau Gasol, and they also have no reservations.In order to strengthen the offense, Haywood and Cardinal, who had some playing time in the regular season, continued to rest.

The two sides are still unable to defend against each other.

Tony Allen's one-on-one defense was excellent, but the Mavericks completely gave up the outside ball attack, Kidd organized, and Pau Gasol gave Terry no ball cover.Peja's three-pointer from the bottom corner is accurate and can attract defenses. Terry and Marion cut one outside and one inside.

Marion's most powerful technique in the Suns was running and cutting without the ball, catching and shooting, and catching and laying the ball can guarantee the hit rate; Kidd is a guard who shoots the ball very fast, and passes the ball accurately. Launching a fast break, finding teammates is no problem; plus Gasol, who is good at cooperating, the Mavericks are running very well.

Kidd began to play a role in the system, just like Nash who couldn't run fast, Paul was handed over to Terry on the defensive end, and Kidd's defense against Tony Allen would not be a loophole.

6 minutes later Paul rested, Curry played point guard, Griffin replaced Mahinmi as a cameo center, added a low-post powerful scoring point, and turned into a small ball strategy.

The two sides played the most intense game of the playoffs, with the Clippers leading 68-62 at halftime.

During the intermission, online fans commented on the game, and the posts were swiped, full of praise.

Due to the early start of the Eastern Conference, the first game of the Cavaliers VS Celtics has already been played.The Cavaliers won 99 to 92. Both sides were mainly defensive. The scene was very dull. The Western Conference finals formed a sharp contrast.

"Today's game is two extremes. The Cavaliers played too ugly. They opened the star one-on-one. The Mavericks and Clippers will go down in history."

"No matter which team the Mavericks or Clippers make the cut, I support them to win the championship. The East team is simply not the same level."

"In the regular season, the Clippers pursued a balance of offense and defense, and the points were still too few. Now this style of play looks better."

Yang Rui praised the players in the locker room at halftime and was very satisfied with their performance. Unfortunately, the Clippers couldn't defend, and it was impossible to easily get the Mavericks in this series.

Yang Rui emphasized offense, allowing players to actively move and cooperate to reduce singles.In a game of equal strength, the main thing is perseverance, and making as few mistakes as possible can win the game.The Clippers players are young and have an advantage in physical strength, but young people play rougher than veterans.

In the third quarter, the Clippers continued to lead.

Paul rested for 6 minutes in the second half of the second quarter, and with the intermission, his physical strength recovered a lot. Yang Rui did not let Curry play, but first sent Gary Neal who hadn't played for 1 minute before.

Neal's job is the same as Curry's, with a big man's screen catch-and-shoot on the side, which can give Curry more time to rest and ensure better form.Unlike Paul, Curry will reduce the Clippers' defense if he plays too much, and his offensive efficiency will also decrease after more than 30 minutes.

Neil plays the 2 and is better against Curry, just not tall enough.He is full of stamina and has no reservations at both ends of the offense and defense. He is active against Stevenson and does not become a defensive loophole.On the offensive end, Neil showed a good touch and made two three-pointers.

The Clippers led by 14 points and entered the final quarter. Not long after they were happy, the Mavericks relied on Terry, Kidd, Prince's three-pointer and Nowitzki's singles to chase the score back.

The Mavericks averaged 39.4% three-point shooting per game in the playoffs. The more the core of the team, the more accurate the ball.

Both Terry and Kidd's three-point shooting percentages were higher than in the regular season.Terry shot 44.2 percent from the field, averaging 2 per game.Kidd shot 37.4% and averaged 2 per game.

The two sides were deadlocked to the last 1 minute and 15 seconds, with the Clippers leading by 5 points.

(End of this chapter)