The strongest champion puzzle

Chapter 506
The Warriors trailed by 5 points and time was running out, but they did not choose to foul immediately.

They still hope to be able to defend, and then recover the score with three points.

Zhang Xiaotian controlled the time, taking it easy.

When the time was almost up, Aldridge came up to pick and roll, and Zhang Xiaotian accelerated and wiped it inside.

The two Warriors players ignored Aldridge and rushed towards him decisively.

Zhang Xiaotian, as if he had expected it long ago, pulled the ball back, made a strong emergency stop, then took a step back to the other side, and pulled it up steadily.

"Such a beautiful move, definitely a top five shot reservation."

"The action just now is really amazing. Zhang's knee is okay. He seems to have never had knee problems. He is really a strong guy."

When the commentator was feeling overwhelmed, Zhang Xiaotian's shot fell steadily into the basket.

At 117:109, the Spurs led by 8 points with only 23 seconds left.

Now the Warriors must score three points, and a miracle must happen if they want to win.

Under the defense of the Spurs, miracles are not so easy to appear, and no one in the Warriors has a chance to get a three-pointer.

Accidentally spent nearly 10 seconds, Durant forcibly appeared and missed, and the game ended.

In this crucial game, the Spurs won the final victory, and the Warriors failed to hit the second place in the Western Conference.

The Spurs will play consecutive games in the final period, and after defeating the Warriors, they will play away against the Thunder.

The Thunder is also fighting hard for the playoff rankings, and it will be another big battle between the two sides.

Although the Thunder did not meet expectations this season, their combat effectiveness is actually slightly better than last season. It is just that there are three strong teams in the Western Conference. Compared with them, they are a bit disappointing.

Now they are not only a matter of good rankings, if they are not stable, it may be difficult to get a place in the playoffs. With such a big battle last summer, if they can't make it to the playoffs, it will definitely become a joke of the league.

Compared with the Spurs, they can't afford to lose.

Because of Robertson's injury, the Thunder signed and continued to play high-level primary and secondary players.

The key to the Thunder is the lack of auxiliary three-point points, that is, three strong points to work hard, and it really depends on how well they can do it.

As far as the Spurs are concerned, playing with the Warriors is as exhausting as possible, and playing with the Thunder is about playing smart.

The Spurs didn't follow the opponent's team this time. The Warriors are too fast, and the Thunder are only average in this regard. More insiders can reduce the burden on Zhang Xiaotian and Leonard.

The pace of the game in the first quarter was slower than expected, and the two sides put up defensive positions.

Aldridge had no space inside, and he didn't feel good in this game, so in the end it became a personal attack on the front and back.

The Thunder's ability to pull the Spurs into their style of play can be considered a tactical success.

The Thunder's three strong points are that they often play tactically for a long time, and then they all solve the final link with the ball individually.

But the Spurs are not afraid of this, and their backcourt combination is also very strong.

Zhang Xiaotian, Evans and Leonard, even if Aldridge plays this point, they can make the Thunder's defense look at one thing and lose another.

Moreover, even if the pace is slowed down, Zhang Xiaotian can still lead the team to counterattack.

In the frontal confrontation, the Thunder actually suffered a disadvantage because the Spurs' defense was very good.

The Spurs' defense against the Thunder's three strong points was very successful, but this time the Thunder's role players played well and hit a few three-pointers, and the scores of the two sides were tightly entangled.

He tried his best to drag the score into his own rhythm, but found that they were not taking advantage. During the halftime break, the atmosphere in the Thunder's locker room was also dignified.

To be honest, Westbrook was too entangled in the game, wanting to pass and shoot at the same time.

Maybe he is also depressed, Anthony is crushed by Zhang Xiaotian, and Paul George's shooting efficiency is not high.

The Spurs did not change their defensive strategy because the Thunder's role players performed well.

No matter how they played before, the Thunder must be strong to solve the problem in the end.

Even if not, the Spurs have a way, the team's defense is so good.

In the third quarter, Westbrook took the initiative to increase the scene.

It's not easy to defend against a player of Westbrook's physical fitness, but this guy is not very stable. The Spurs use Evans and Murray in turns, and they won't give him a chance to explode.

The Thunder's biggest problem is that the three strengths have not formed a synergy, and the Spurs have a lot easier to defend against them.

At this time, the Spurs have taken the initiative to retract a little, preparing for the final explosion.

The score was still not drawn, and the time came to the fourth quarter, and it was time for Zhang Xiaotian to lead the rotation.

The Thunder let Paul George stay on the court to face Zhang Xiaotian, flanking when necessary, because their defense inside is not very good.

Against Paul George, Zhang Xiaotian now feels relatively relaxed.

Because among the All-Star strikers, this buddy's ability to hold the ball is relatively poor, and he is not afraid of physically confronting Zhang Xiaotian. Paul George can only rely on his height and put a little pressure on Zhang Xiaotian on the defensive end.

Zhang Xiaotian's response was very simple, that is to forcibly kill him inside.

If you can get rid of the opponent, you will attack the basket, if you are flanked, you will split the ball.

After only playing 2 minutes, the Thunder made adjustments because they found that they could not score.

Originally a small lineup, now replaced by veteran Collison.

How should I put it, it is really useful.

But the Thunder didn't trust the current lineup, and quickly replaced Westbrook, and then turned the lineup into five minors again.

They didn't even play Adams, it should be to open up space.

For example, the Spurs don't have this problem when they play a junior and a junior. Aldridge has an outside basket.

However, the Thunder have no choice, because they are behind in the score and they must be more impactful on the offensive end.

But how to put it, their five minors have three strong points plus Jerami Grant and Ablins.

For a lineup with incomplete offense and defense, Coach Donovan may be looking at the state, but the choice is still very strange, and the ability of these two to open up space is also limited.

The Spurs' juniors and juniors also take offense and defense into account, but they are higher-level than the Thunder in any way.

Paul George went to the fifth position and completely became a coolie, while Anthony was a pseudo-attack point.

Westbrook played a breakthrough ball, but the effect was not as good as Zhang Xiaotian.

Zhang Xiaotian assisted two three-pointers in a row, and the score was opened in an instant.

The Thunder had no choice, they replaced Brewer again, and continued to attack the outside line with five minors.

It's just that their outside offense is not smooth at all, and they often stop the ball.

After each of the three strong points contributed a strike, the Thunder had no hope of winning.

Coach Donovan didn't call a timeout either, so he played back and forth with the point difference until the end. The Spurs took the Thunder by 10 points.

The next Spurs will play an away game against the Rockets, which is a more critical game than the Warriors, so there is no room for loss.

(End of this chapter)