I just play ball

Chapter 462
After completing the post-match interview, Li Yue drove back to the apartment, took the fascia gun to relax his muscles, and turned on the TV to watch the news.

The ESPN Evening Express said that the fans did not have much reaction to the Lakers' victory, because the overall strength of the Lakers was too strong. On the contrary, the Mavericks resisted desperately until the last moment, which faintly moved the fans, especially Rondo in the second quarter. The supernatural performance in the second half made many Celtics fans ask Ainge to re-sign him back in the offseason.

Mavericks head coach Carlisle has been praised by many media people, not for his novel and bold tactics, but for his ability to tolerate Rondo offending himself, and everything is based on winning the game.

The Mavericks officials did not give a response to the quarrel between Rondo and Carlisle, and this matter should be exposed.

After listening to the news, continue to watch the post-match analysis, focusing on the performance of several other teams.

In the East, the Bucks returned to the ranks of the playoffs after a season. In the first round against the experienced Bulls, the young Antetokounmpo lacked the ability to devote himself, and was surrounded by the Bulls in various ways. Not to mention, he paid for 13 fouls.

Rose was in good shape, scoring 23 points on more than half of his field goals, and teamed up with Butler to blow up the Bucks' perimeter defense. On the contrary, Mirotic, who had high hopes this season, only made 17 of 5 shots in the game, failing to help the Bulls enrich themselves. tactical choice.

Another matchup in the East is the Wizards and the Raptors. Both teams have reached the playoffs in the last two seasons, and they also use young backcourt and double guns as the core of the team, but the Wizards are ranked No. The advantage of the second-tier defensive ability has been fully reflected in the big stage of the playoffs. Through high-speed rotation, they put strong pressure on the Raptors and took them away in a wave of overtime.

Another matchup in the West was the Warriors and the Spurs. Stephen Curry showed a defensive ability that was quite different from the public impression. He not only sent three steals, but also made Parker only 11 of 4 shots. Klay Thompson also defended Green enough. , Tim Duncan also fell into a foul crisis, the Warriors finally won 106 to 92, and Curry scored 34 points efficiently.

After reading the analysis, Li Yue believes that the Warriors will eventually advance to the Western Conference Finals. It is not because of the lack of strength of the Spurs, but because the Spurs still do not use Leonard as the core of offense and defense. Nader only played 33 minutes in the game, and he wanted to control the overall situation from the beginning. Against a monstrous team like the Warriors, it can be said that it had little effect.

The next afternoon, the Lakers made an exception and held a joint practice.

There is no offensive and defensive movement, just a simple shot to maintain the state, and watch the game video carefully by the way. The point is that during the time when the Mavericks were chasing points in the second quarter, apart from the few shots that Rondo intentionally let go, why did the others fail to defend? .

Wharton made a quick analysis, and his views are basically the same as D'Antoni's. The Mavericks have high mobility and a big man who can hit shots or pass from any position in the half. Run out of space.

At the end of the analysis, D'Antoni predicted the possible adjustments the Mavericks will make in the next game. He believes that the Mavericks will completely give up defense, Chandler's playing time will be reduced, and Nowitzki's playing time will be increased. attack.

Such a prediction does make sense, because the Mavericks' defensive problem is the aging of the core players. No matter how they are adjusted, the improvement is at most 60 to 70 points, and the marginal benefit is very low.

After training in the afternoon, Iguodala proposed a dinner and exchange, and everyone actively participated in it. The location was chosen at the base’s own nutritional restaurant. The team chef cooked meals according to the recipe. The whole team ate and chatted while watching the Rockets vs. Grizzlies .

Maybe fate is destined to be born against each other. The Grizzlies' iron-blooded defense meets McHale's singles tactics. Harden and Howard take turns to force their opponents. Steal a three-pointer, and the inside offense that the Grizzlies are proud of, was inefficient under the desperate defense of Josh and other big asses, and finally lost 98 to 108.

After watching the game, the entire Lakers team laughed knowingly. The Rockets had a hard time swallowing such a difficult bone for the Grizzlies.

Back at the apartment, Li Yue continued to watch the news.

First of all, the city rival Clippers played against the Trail Blazers. Griffin came back early and was in a mediocre state. Paul played bravely. Not only did he score 32 points, he also made Lillard only 21 of 5 shots through super defense, leading the team to 107. Big win over 86.

In the East, the Cavaliers faced the Celtics who were in a state of rebuilding. LeBron was like a god of war, rampaging and plundering the Celtics inside.

In another matchup in the Eastern Conference, the Hawks narrowly beat the Nets and had a huge whistle advantage in the fourth quarter. This result far exceeded the expectations of fans and the media. Many people predicted through Twitter that the Hawks would not be able to go far because of the lack of players who can attack.

After listening to the news, Li Yue had a general understanding of the situation in the east. It can be said that except for the Cavaliers, everyone else is a rookie.

...

After two days of rest, the Lakers once again sit at the Staples Center against the Mavericks.

As soon as the game started, Rondo took consecutive long shots with extreme confidence. Unfortunately, he made zero three shots. The Lakers took the opportunity to start 7-0. The Mavericks hurriedly made adjustments and arranged for Barea to replace Rondo. smooth.

Rondo did not reappear until there were more than five minutes left in the second quarter, but I don’t know if it was because he sat for too long and lacked communication with his teammates. zero.

Perhaps because he couldn't stand that kind of treatment, Rondo's defensive choices were out of order. He received common fouls and technical fouls in a row, and was soon replaced. But the cruel thing is that in the absence of Rondo, the Mavericks' offensive efficiency is particularly high. After halftime, Leng chased the score to 53 to 55, and relied on more offensive rebounds to get more second-shot opportunities.

Back from the halftime break, Carlisle still arranged for Rondo to play with the starters.

Who would have thought that Rondo still felt cold, and the Lakers took advantage of this to increase their defense against the rest of the Mavericks, and the point difference widened. level.

In the end, the Lakers defeated the Mavericks 111 to 103, leading the series 2 to 0.

That night, the Spurs reversed to win by 4 points and tied with the Warriors, while the Cavaliers defeated the Celtics again.

...

The Lakers took a day off and flew to Dallas.

As soon as Li Yue got off the plane, he received a notification from Twitter. WOJ claimed that he learned from inside information that the Mavericks will DNP Rondo in the third game. First, it is to improve the team's offensive efficiency. Make a qualitative.

Such a decision shows that the Mavericks completely gave up the idea of ​​renewing Rondo in the summer. It is equivalent to losing two growing young people in vain. .

The third game must be a bloody battle.

(End of this chapter)