basketball pope

Chapter 887 [The top three in the alliance, the uncrowned king]

All teams have a consensus. Against the team led by LeBron James, we must guard James alone and guard against others.

James' breakthrough attracts double-teamed shots, and peripheral teammates can easily get good three-point shooting opportunities, and once a teammate makes a three-point shot, the Mavericks have a great chance of winning.

Paul and Matthews both shot over 40.6 percent from three this season.Experts believe that the Mavericks have a chance to beat the Clippers because James' three-point shooting rate also reached [-]%. He will make adjustments according to the situation on the court. During a certain period of time, he will play without the ball, and Paul will play with the ball and inside. pick and roll.

This adjustment is very effective. After James has worked hard to shoot, it can help the team even more.The opponent's way of defending against James is to prevent breakthroughs but not shots. In order to break this defense, the Mavericks must let Paul hold the ball in addition to expecting James' perimeter feel.

In order to deal with James, Yang Rui adjusted the lineup in the first game of the Western Conference finals, Jokic came off the bench, and Whiteside started.

Whiteside can't help pass the ball and can't shoot three-pointers. The advantage is that he has a strong defensive ability near the penalty area. To deal with a power forward like James who likes to rush to the basket, a defensive center is needed.

The Clippers' tactic is a mixed defense, with Curry guarding Paul, Antetokounmpo guarding James, and the other three are zoned.In addition to Curry, the Clippers start with four defensive experts, all of whom have the strength to be selected for the best defensive team, and the defensive system has also brought out their own advantages.

This season, Antetokounmpo's talent has begun to materialize, and he is strong enough to be the envy of other teams.

There are only a handful of people in the league who can PK James one-on-one. There are even fewer people who can exchange data with James. There are only two people who have been against James many times. One is Durant and the other is Alphabet. elder brother.

In the past two seasons, Antetokounmpo has always performed well against James' teams. Many people already think he is the top three small forwards in the league. Although the data is not top-notch, his potential is much greater than Leonard's. .

In Yang Rui's previous life, Antetokounmpo had fought against James in more than a dozen games. Although the Bucks lost most of the games, he was not beaten by James in terms of statistics.

詹姆斯出场35.9分钟，25.8分7.3篮板6.4助攻0.9抢断0.6盖帽，投篮命中率53.7%，三分命中率43.8%，罚球命中率69.4%。

字母哥出场34.7分钟，20.7分7.6篮板4助攻1.1抢断1.2盖帽，投篮命中率54.2%，三分命中率36.7%，罚球命中率80%。

In the rookie season, Antetokounmpo was a substitute, and in the second season, he was only a role player, and the data suffered.The two can basically explode each other by the 15-16 season.As James grows older, the data will definitely decline gradually. Brother Antetokounmpo is still in his peak period for a long time. In a few years, he will overtake James in terms of data sooner or later.

The Clippers have a very tight flank defense. Except for Paul and James, the other Mavericks players have been blocked. Nowitzki can't help Draymond one-on-one now. He is always close and pushed away from the penalty area.

Draymond's offensive end is also the axis, responsible for the organization in the middle.Jokic couldn't get up, and he couldn't play the triangle offense after covering. Instead, Whiteside made an empty cut inside.If Curry doesn't have a direct chance to get the ball, he will dribble the ball in the middle, find Draymond and then play the pick-and-roll, and throw or score the ball to Whiteside himself.

Dabaibian's low-position attack became a highlight of the Clippers. It was difficult for the Mavericks to defend the penalty area, and the three centers were average.

In the first half, the two sides were evenly matched. In the second half, the Clippers began to take the initiative and gradually opened the score.

Nowitzki, 39, still averaged 14.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game in the regular season. In March, his career total points exceeded 3, becoming the sixth person in history to achieve this achievement.

Nowitzki can still play a role in the playoffs, but his physical strength can no longer support it. He averages a maximum of 25 minutes per game, and no more can guarantee efficiency, and the Clippers are young people, and the strongest is physical strength.

In the last quarter, the difference in physical fitness between the two sides became more obvious.Yang Rui can let Curry, Antetokounmpo, and Draymond rest for a while, but Mavericks coach Carlisle dare not replace James.The Clippers, relying on the backup lineup of LaVine, Booker, Baa Motte, West, and Jokic, withstood the Mavericks' counterattack.

The highlight of this quarter was the fringe man Baa Motte, who limited James with his single defense. In 5 minutes, James made 4 of 1 shots.

Baamut's excellent defense is not accidental. The unknown and dedicated prince's data against star small forwards can be said to be very eye-catching every time.Like Prince, the nickname "Prince" seems to be destined to be a long-armed anti-monster.

Jokic, Booker, and LaVine guaranteed offensive firepower and kept the score difference above 15 points, and the Mavericks were forced to stop.

After that, Antetokounmpo, Curry, and Draymond came back, the Clippers attacked stronger, and the Mavericks relied on Paul and James to play, fell into singles, and failed to narrow the point difference.

In the final 118 to 96, the Clippers easily made a good start.

In the second game, the difference was even bigger. The Mavericks lost 25 points. They had a good offense, but they couldn't prevent the Clippers from running and shooting.

Due to the lack of attack power and range of the Mavericks center, the Clippers can pair Antetokounmpo and Draymond on the inside, which can not only protect the rebound, but also open up space for positional battles. The fast break is especially sharp.

Antetokounmpo can only be defended by James, and he is out of position with other players. When he encounters a slow-moving inside line, he directly "letters step" to break through. When he is not tall, he can make emergency stop jumpers and play with a low back.

In order to increase the mobility of the interior and the ability to empty the air, James can be a cameo power forward at a certain time, but in this way, the small forward position of the Mavericks is not strong enough, and Aminu and Jack Crowder have been poached with high salaries.

In the third game, the Mavericks returned to the home court and tried their best. At the end of the three quarters, they led by 10 points. They were taken away by the Clippers' fast break in the final quarter, and finally lost 14 points.

In order to break the Clippers' zone defense, Nowitzki played 35 minutes, but was blocked as a blacksmith in the distal quarter, and the defense couldn't keep up with the speed of the counterattack.

In the fourth game, the Mavericks finally pulled back a game at home, relying on home advantage plus role player Wesley Matthews to break out.

Matthews is one of the most successful undrafted rookies in the NBA, averaging 16.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game for the Blazers at his peak.He's an excellent 3-and-D player, and he can occasionally convulse from the perimeter. In this game, he hit 6 26-pointers and scored [-] points.

Even if the three are 20+, the Mavericks only beat the Clippers by 8 points.

Back at home, the Clippers won 123-100, eliminated the Mavericks 4-1 on aggregate, and advanced to the finals again.

In the decisive battle, Curry played 40 minutes, made 28 of 18 shots, 17 of 11 three-pointers, 6 of 5 free throws, scored 52 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals, playing a dominant performance.

Curry is not as good as last season this season, but as long as he gets windy, he is invincible.

Paul had only 14 points and 8 assists in the game. Who is the first point guard in the league can be concluded. Paul was at a disadvantage throughout the series.Curry's play style can't be defended by Paul, and he can't actively chase the pick-and-roll. Curry can make a shot when he has a little space, and he must be defended by a big teammate.

The Antetokounmpo series data is only slightly inferior to James. He always has a way to score, he has advantages in height and wingspan, and a direct jumper is an opportunity.

At the post-match press conference, James refused to answer questions from reporters and remained silent throughout.The Mavericks don't have the cap space to sign another big-name star, and he really can't figure out how to beat the Clippers.

James is so depressed, is he destined to be the uncrowned king for a lifetime?

(End of this chapter)