The way of the center

Chapter 403 Combine Firepower
"Ann's dunk! Oh my god! It's almost a dunk against Splitter's defense! It's so tough, Ann's goal is too tough! Listen, the whole Spurs at the ATT Center The fans were booing in response to Ann's dunk just now. Ann's aggressiveness today is very strong! I don't know if this has something to do with Split's sudden start!" Mike Breen said to Anjie just pushing Split away Te's in-situ dunk used several "tough" to describe it, and this description is simply the most appropriate word.

After the successful dunk, An Jie didn't obediently run back to his own half to defend, but rushed to the audience and beat his chest fiercely a few times.After that, Anjie glared at Splitter, as if he was going to swallow this elegant-looking Brazilian alive.

In order to deal with Anjie and Aldridge, Popovich resorted to his usual tactics of change.Use Duncan to strangle Aldridge, start with blue-collar center Splitter, and confront Anjie.In this way, at least Duncan's pressure on the offensive end will be much less, and Splitter's defensive ability is not completely useless.

But within a few minutes of the game, Splitter made Angie dunk for the second time.This is not to blame for Split's defensive problems. In fact, Split's defense has done a good job.In the two attacks, An Jie didn't get a chance. In the end, he relied on his strength to force him to score.

If Popovich wants to blame, he can only blame Aldridge.Why?If Aldridge hadn't greatly inspired An Jie's desire to win during training, An Jie would not be so cruel today.

"Damn it, this guy is eating a powder keg today!" Popovich knew how much Splitter weighed. Although he was only a blue-collar role player, Splitter's defense would not be trampled like this. .The old man knew that Anjie would be another big obstacle for the Spurs to win today.

Anjie scored a wonderful goal here, and the effect of Popovich's change has been reflected on the offensive end.

Facing Anjie's defense in the first four games, Duncan's shooting percentage was mostly horrible, and he didn't score many points.But today, facing Aldridge, Duncan seemed to be much more comfortable on the offensive end.

After receiving a pass from Tony Parker, Duncan simply shook his shoulders, then turned around and shot a jump shot at a 45° angle in the middle and short range.

Simple and basic offensive means, this is Duncan's style.Facing Anjie's defense before, Duncan couldn't have shot so easily.But facing Aldridge, who is shorter than Anjie in height, has a shorter wingspan than Anjie, and is a few tenths of a second slower in defensive response than Anjie, Duncan's simple and basic shot seems very calm.

Aldridge felt that he had been sealed to Duncan's face, but Duncan remained expressionless and calmly completed the shooting action, and the basketball also bounced into the net against the backboard.

In fact, many of Duncan's goals seemed to be shot against the defense.But that's why Duncan became a legend. If a little distraction can silence the man known as "Stone Buddha," why should he be a legend?
Aldridge's defense is naturally not as good as Anjie, but it is more than enough to compare with that.However, this level of defense still cannot put too much pressure on Duncan.Maybe only a guy like An Jie in this league can make Duncan feel as embarrassed as before.

Anyway, using Duncan to defend An Jie may not necessarily prevent him.Popovich simply let Duncan return to the fourth position he is best at. In this way, Duncan's offense is not only liberated, but also defensively, he can limit Aldridge more efficiently than Diaw.

Rickard originally thought that Popovich basically had nothing to do, but unexpectedly, this grumpy white-haired old man still surprised him enough.

Popovich's change was indeed a success, but it was only half the battle.Duncan was indeed liberated on the offensive end, but what about the defensive end?
Felton passed the ball to Gerald Wallace, but Popovich didn't worry about Gerald Wallace at all.It's not because Wallace's ability is not strong. In fact, as long as he has enough shots, Gerald Wallace can still play beautiful statistics.But it was precisely because the person in front of him was Kawhi Leonard that Popovich felt very relieved.

Not to mention Gerald Wallace, even LeBron James has to work harder when facing Leonard.

Wallace tried several times to drive in the tight corners, but was unsuccessful.Forced to help, Wallace returned the ball to Raymond Felton before he made a mistake.

Felton dribbled back a few steps to prevent Tony Parker from suddenly sprinting and stealing.At the same time, he continued to command with his hands, signaling his teammates to expand the space as much as possible.

Felton did not intend to break through by himself, but hoped that he could get a bigger gap and pass the ball inside.

However, Splitter and Duncan's defense remained impeccable.They have been desperately competing with Anjie and Aldridge for positions, so that even if they are not intercepted, Felton's pass will be difficult for Anjie and Aldridge to receive comfortably.

At this juncture, An Jie suddenly ran backwards, making Splitter, who was trying to push himself out of the penalty area, staggered.

Seeing that Anjie got rid of the defense and stood on the basket with only a simple but fast enough footstep, Duncan also leaned towards the basket unconsciously.

If Felton chooses to pass the ball straight to the basket, Splitter, who is in front of Anjie after being shaken away, has a high chance of being able to intercept the ball midway.However, there is a case for everything.In case Felton's pass is really successful, Duncan's step towards the basket will allow him to make up the defense in time.

So just as Duncan expected, Felton raised his wrist, ready to pass the ball.Splitter is fully focused and ready to tackle.Duncan also relaxed some of his defense on Aldridge, ready to protect the rim at any time.

"Whoosh!" Felton's passing skills are still very good. The ball was passed very quickly, but it failed to hit the basket.Because of this ball, Felton had no intention of passing it to An Jie.

One moment of Duncan's defensive slack is enough for Felton to pass the ball for Aldridge.Aldridge received the basketball, and immediately there was tremendous pressure on his back.Duncan is still Duncan, old but still strong!

Seeing this situation, An Jie immediately withdrew from the three-second zone, in order to prevent his offense from violating the three-second zone.The second is to make room for Aldridge to attack, and to start running in order to better respond to him.

Aldridge glanced at Anjie, and Split thought he was going to pass again.Unexpectedly, the second leader of the Trail Blazers suddenly turned around and broke through, walking from the left to the middle.

Duncan naturally blocked it very well and didn't give Aldrie any chance.But Aldridge didn't intend to actually hit the basket. He shouldered Duncan during the breakthrough to ensure that he had a little space.After that, he took off directly on the move, with his left leg upright, his right leg slightly arched, and his arms raised the basketball high, so high that Duncan couldn't reach it.

After that, Aldridge made a shot.The ball was considered a moving shot with physical contact, and it didn't completely get rid of the defense.However, unlike the positioning shot, this kind of emergency stop and fallback jumper on the move was born specifically for the situation of not getting rid of the defense.

"Brush." ​​Duncan and Splitter were worried about Anjie throughout the defensive process, but Anjie didn't even touch the ball this round, but the Trail Blazers still scored.

Aldridge, like Anjie, is in a hot state today and has a strong desire to attack!Aldridge's actions in training not only helped Anjie, but also brought him into the state.

Popovich's change was only half successful, because on the defensive end, Duncan's did not limit Aldridge's scoring very well.

When Anjie and Aldridge, known as "the most offensive insiders in the league", both feel hot in their hands, it is difficult for the Spurs to contain the Blazers' offense.

The cooperation between Anjie and Aldridge in a small area of ​​the interior has become a unique symbol of the Trail Blazers.

"Ann's hook! No, it's not a hook, it's a pass, and Aldridge made a layup! God, Duncan was not called for a foul, thank God!"

"Aldridge picks and rolls for Ann! Andy comes out and catches the ball, how about a close-range jumper? Still got it!"

"Ambush passed the ball to Aldridge, and Aldridge began to sit and push in with Duncan. Eh? Beautiful! Aldridge passed the ball diagonally, and Angie, who was actively running after the pass, succeeded in the basket. Underhook hit!"

For a while, Anjie and Aldridge played well on the offensive end.Duncan can also score goals, but how can one person's strength compare to Anjie and Aldridge?
8 to 0, a small offensive climax allowed the Blazers to quickly widen the point difference.Fortunately, Ginobili, who was ordered to come off the bench at the end of the first quarter, lived up to Popovich's hopes for him. The Argentine stabilized the situation for the Spurs with two three-pointers and a beautiful snake-shaped breakthrough. That's why the Raiders didn't establish their advantage in the first quarter.

After that, Rickard replaced Aldridge first, and took Anjie after 2 minutes.He worried that if the Trail Blazers suddenly lost these two, they would not be able to operate.

Through the transition, the rest of the Blazers are fine taking over from Ainger and Aldridge.Jamal Crawford picked up again today, so the Spurs did not reverse the situation during the absence of Anjie and Aldridge.

Ricard heard the referee blow the whistle and patted the shoulders of the off-field players with satisfaction.

26 to 22, the Trail Blazers ended the first quarter with a 4-point lead at the ATT Center. 4 points is not too much, but the excellent quality shown by the Trail Blazers in the first quarter is what makes Ricard very satisfied.

He is very confident and leads his players to break through this place that they have never broken through before!
No matter how strong a fortress is, there are cracks.What's more, the current Trail Blazers have two pioneers who attacked the ATT center at the same time.

Bored, anxious?No, An Jie didn't even remember that he had such emotions before.Right now, he just wants to win!
(End of this chapter)