Grab Curry at the start

Chapter 140 Tactical Targeting
After the Timberwolves won the first game of the second round of the playoffs, the Spurs' vigilance towards them increased significantly.

Duncan said that the Timberwolves' offensive and defensive transitions are so good that whenever they are close to the score, someone from the Timberwolves will always stand up and score.

Ginobili also expressed his disappointment. He believes that facing the Timberwolves, a group of confident players, they cannot be distracted in the slightest.

The Timberwolves didn't feel complacent just because they won the next game. Love said, "It's not time to relax. We all know what kind of opponent the Spurs are. If they don't pay attention, they will counterattack successfully."

Curry also said: "No one can predict the game, we must always maintain the desire for victory and a strong desire to attack."

Of course, a victory is a victory, and the Timberwolves players are more eager to play.

Zhang Sixin also hopes that the team can strike while the iron is hot and keep the second home court in two days.

In the second game, the starting lineups of the two sides did not change at all.

The Spurs did not directly come up with the strongest starting lineup as they did in the second half of the first game.

Their head coach Popovich likes to engage in Tian Ji's horse racing tactics. Of course, if they continue to hold them down, Popovich will still have to change the lineup.

However, this time the Spurs have changed. One is that Duncan went crazy when he came up, and the other is that after the Timberwolves' pick-and-roll tactics, they gave priority to restricting Curry.

"I knew it would be like this, but Duncan's efficiency is really high..." Zhang Sixin sighed.

After the Spurs are frustrated, Duncan will definitely come out and be tough. This has been a routine for many years.

So the Timberwolves will attack Duncan when he catches the ball in the low post, but Duncan still hit a few.

Even Duncan, who is already 34 years old, is hard to stop when his physical strength is about to explode.

Love has tried his best to resist Duncan, but Duncan's touch in the first quarter is also very soft, and he is not good at directly interfering with Love.

And Love's offensive efficiency is only average, and he can't make quick shots like Curry.

When the Spurs prioritized defending Curry, his performance was about the same as on the field.

Zhang Sixin didn't blame the players either. This is the characteristic of Love. He can't reach Curry's level.

On the contrary, McDyess was beaten again for this, and Duncan had to go over to help from time to time.

The Spurs will also suffer inside losses, and their regular season record this season generally shows the problem.

There is a weak point, so the Spurs' defense is also focused.

It is also necessary to guard against Curry. Their choice is to release DeRozan's three-pointer.

DeRozan's three-pointers are better than the original history, but not particularly good, he is better at killing inside.

If there is an open space, Zhang Sixin asks the players to shoot decisively.

DeRozan also took a few shots and made a hit, but only one.

But if he kills inside with the ball, he won't be able to pass Duncan's level.

The current DeRozan's strength is not bad, but the advantages and disadvantages are still quite obvious.

Relatively speaking, Matthews is better at shooting from the outside, and it is easier to use when encountering the Spurs.

In the second game, both teams were more targeted, both offensively and defensively.

In this case, it depends on the efficiency of the team. There is no doubt that Duncan is the most efficient player on the court.

Because he was a little afraid of the Spurs' three-pointer, Zhang Sixin didn't let the team attack Duncan in an all-round way for the time being, so he still gave the opponent some opportunities, and the Spurs took the lead.

"I hope it will have an effect on Duncan's attrition tactics." Zhang Sixin said.

Incomplete flanking is also to let Duncan play more with the ball on purpose, and then accelerate the consumption of him. After all, it is not very easy to directly challenge Duncan on the offensive end.

Now the Spurs play comfortably with Duncan, but if Duncan's physical strength declines, single defense may be able to play a role later, and the Spurs' offense will be restricted by the Timberwolves.

But whether it will be successful or not, the Timberwolves are not 100% sure, and we can only see the effect on the court.

If a tactic can handle the opponent, the NBA head coach will not be able to get such a high salary.

Even a head coach with poor on-the-spot command will use multiple tactics in a game.

It is a choice for the Timberwolves to consume Duncan and hold on to the opponent's three-pointers. The benefits of this choice will depend on the following games.

In fact, before Duncan had a problem, the Spurs' troubles came.

The Spurs led by Duncan at the start, but their outside performance was not good.

Hill and Ginobili's partnership in the backcourt offense has never been able to flourish, and it will be better when Parker comes up.

Ginobili has been on the bench for too long. He is more used to holding the ball and playing by himself. The Spurs' offensive system is often initiated by Parker and Duncan. You may not notice the obvious difference when you encounter ordinary teams, but obviously the Timberwolves are not ordinary teams.

Parker came up and things were normal, but soon it was time for Duncan to rest.

As soon as Duncan went, the Spurs had a problem, and they couldn't do anything inside.

In addition, the Timberwolves' bench lineup is still more threatening than the Spurs' side. Frye came up with two three-pointers, which instantly helped the Timberwolves catch up with the score.

Duncan chiseled in the low post for almost a quarter to help the team gain the lead. The Timberwolves chased them with two three-pointers casually. It feels like the difficulty is not the same. Who can stand it!
The Spurs also went to Bonner accordingly, but unfortunately Bonner didn't hit a three-pointer.

The key is that the Timberwolves have a lot of people. Although they can't all have the opportunity to perform in the playoffs, they have room for adjustment. The Spurs obviously don't have this kind of wealth.

Seeing that the situation was wrong, the Spurs could only play Duncan again.

Popovich, a master tactician, can only go to Duncan when he encounters problems. In fact, he is not much different from those head coaches who only know how to fuck core players, but he is smarter.

This is also very important. Key players should be reserved for key games before they are used vigorously. Zhang Sixin also has this idea.

However, sometimes it is not the core players who can solve the problem on the court.

Duncan can definitely score when he comes up, but his efficiency is not as high as in the first quarter.

There is no way around this, and the Timberwolves have not exploded, but the team's offensive efficiency is relatively stable.

Again, the Timberwolves have more offensive points than the opponent.

When the Spurs clearly want Duncan to score, the Timberwolves will limit the wheel battle with all their strength.

The other party wanted to rely on Duncan to kill them alone, but it was probably a little easier.

Zhang Sixin's confidence also increased, and he smiled more, "This is good, we don't need to consume Duncan to the point where he can't move, as long as there is a problem with his efficiency, we will succeed."

The Timberwolves' offensive end is still the same, try to stabilize the shot, and then attack the weak link of the Spurs.

At the last moment of the first half, Love received a pass from Curry and hit a layup. The score was tied, and the two sides stood on the same starting line again.

(End of this chapter)