I just play ball

Chapter 469 Brave and Invincible Griffin

[-]th night, Staples Center.

After the regular MVP awards ceremony was over, Li Yue gently put down the microphone and left amidst the cheers of the entire audience, ready to return to the locker room to take off his suit and put on a jersey for the upcoming game against the Clippers in G1 of the Western Conference semifinals.

In the ESPN commentary seat, Mike Brin said: "It's another battle in the same city. What differences do you two think this year will have?"

Jeff Van Gundy said: "The Clippers have less chance of winning. They have not improved compared to before. Paul and other core players are aging again, and the Lakers' progress is reflected in many aspects, with new players and a new tactical system."

"I can't agree with your point of view." Mark Jackson said, "Because it can be seen from the data alone that DeAndre Jordan's layup percentage has increased by nearly 4%, Chris Paul's mid-range shots have also returned to their peak level, and Austin With Rivers and other players, the Clippers' bench lineup has also become better, and the two teams played against each other in the regular season, and there were wins and losses."

...

On the field, Li Yue led the team and ran out from the player channel, and the audience stood up and cheered.

The announcer introduced them one by one, followed by the opening ceremony, and the Black Eyed Peas sang the national anthem on stage.

As the last note fell, the lights of the venue were turned on, and the long whistle sounded that the game was about to start.

Li Yue got up and walked to the technical stage, performing various inexplicable high-five etiquettes with his teammates.

When everything is done, the short whistle sounds at the same time, and the referee whistles to remind the players of the two teams to enter the field.

In terms of lineup, point guard Kobe vs. Paul, shooting guard Iguodala vs. Redick, small forward Li Yue vs. Barnes, power forward Landry vs. Griffin, center Gobert vs. Jordan, head coach D'Antoni vs. Firth.

"Congratulations on winning the MVP!" Paul took the initiative to give high fives to congratulate, Li Yue smiled and nodded: "Thank you."

The referee holds the ball to the middle circle, gestures left and right, lifts both hands up and throws it lightly.

Snapped!Gobert touched the ball first, swung it back vigorously, and the basketball flew into the Lakers half.

Kobe picked it up in his hand, raised his hand to set up the opening tactics, and the four of Li Yue strode forward.

Many spectators cheered loudly and shouted LETSGOLA following the rhythm of the announcer. Nicholson held a beer and chatted with Denzel Washington with a smile.

Kobe dribbled the ball across the center line, raised his hand and passed it to Landry at the top of the arc, and Li Yue approached the ball from the left.

Waiting in place for a while, Gobert raised the wall to cover, Li Yue took the opportunity to rush to the left wing, and at the same time, Kobe ran to the right elbow area, and Iguodala crossed the screen without the ball, and each led the other side. defender.

Barnes squeezed through the wall and chased after Li Yue, while Jordan intercepted from the front, and soon became a double-team situation, but Li Yue rushed to the left wing, switched his left hand to his right, and instantly passed Jordan, went straight to the high position Go to the basket.

At this moment, the Clippers basket is unguarded.

Seeing that he was about to score an easy layup, Paul cut obliquely from the right at a 45-degree angle and intercepted Iguodala temporarily.

Li Yue decisively stopped and raised his hand to pass the ball. Iguodala caught the ball and took off, facing Paul back to the defense and throwing a three-pointer.

when!Smashing the basket and rebounding.

Jordan got the rebound and threw it to Paul, and the Clippers launched a counterattack.

Redick received the ball from the left wing of the frontcourt, and the three tried their posture for a while, raised their hands to pass the ball back, and strode towards the baseline.

Paul received the ball at the 45° three-point line, leaned over, hit the ground and passed to the left waist, and Griffin just rushed there with the help of Redick's cover, picked up the basketball and immediately stood sideways against Landry. Hold high and prepare to exert strength.

Landry approached closely, and Li Yue and others also searched the paint area, ready to provide assistance at any time.

Unexpectedly, Redick used the cover of Jordan and Barnes successively, circled the baseline, slipped quietly to the free throw line, raised his hand to catch Griffin's pass, and then lifted it upwards, and the throwing action was fully formed.

In an instant, Iguodala, who was in charge of chasing and defending, stretched out his hand like lightning and slapped the basketball vigorously.

Snapped!The basketball flew off the baseline.

Li Yue and others raised their fingers to the backcourt, while Paul and others raised their fingers to the frontcourt. The referee blew his whistle and called for an out-of-bounds violation.

In a blink of an eye, the Clippers lined up vertically along the left sideline of the paint area, with Paul standing out of bounds and Griffin standing at the free throw line.

The whistle sounded, Jordan Jr. walked to the basket, Barnes walked to the sideline, and Redick stayed where he was and set up a wall to cover.

Griffin took the opportunity to rush to the short corner on the right, received a pass from Paul, and faced Gobert's defense and made a strong layup.

Beep!The referee blew his whistle, whistled for blocking fouls, and gave two free throw opportunities.

Li Yue stood still and waited. After carefully recalling the two tactics just now, he realized that the Clippers wanted to use Griffin to open up the situation. Then he approached Landry and whispered, "Defend around the front and disrupt their plan."

Landry nodded in response, the audience booed and Griffin stepped to the free throw line.

Two free throws were made, 0 to 2.

The Lakers attack and Kobe runs across the center line with the ball.

Landry received the ball at the top of the arc, held his hands high and waited for a moment, then turned around and passed to the left wing.

Li Yue received the ball, handed it to Iguodala who was running up, then dodged and cut to the waist, quickly locked the position, put his back against Barnes, raised his right hand to ask for it, and Iguodala immediately returned the pass.

Before he had time to dribble, Griffin double-teamed laterally from the right side, and the situation was critical.

Seeing this, Landry slipped to the basket, Jordan went around to block the passing route, Li Yue pulled the ball back and made a vigorous cross.Gobert caught the ball and started in a hurry, but unfortunately he made a mistake in his rush, and the referee blew his whistle to punish him for walking.

It was a good time to break the double-team, but was delayed by a low-level mistake. Gobert raised his hand to signal that he made a mistake.

Li Yue clapped his hands and shouted OK, the whole team turned and retreated, and the audience shouted for defense in unison.

The Clippers kicked off from the sideline, and Paul took the center line and shifted to the left with the help of Jordan's cover.

Kobe bypassed the wall to intercept and entangled with Paul at the free throw line, neither of them took advantage.

Paul suddenly pulls the ball back, hits the ground and passes to the short corner on the left, and Jordan catches the ball and hits back.

There is no technical content, just a strong push, but Gobert just couldn't resist, and the whole person retreated again and again.

Seeing that he was about to squeeze to the basket, Gobert stretched out his hand and slammed the basketball, and the referee immediately whistled for a foul.

Fortunately, it was not a shooting foul, and the Clippers re-teamed.

Paul used the cover to catch the ball from the left wing, turned around and ran to the right, covered the top of the arc with Jordan, raised his hand and passed the ball to Griffin on the right waist, and the rest of the Clippers followed suit to open up the singles space.

There is also no technical content, Griffin is also heavy-shouldered and bent-over, and Landry can't handle it.

Griffin pushed all the way to the basket, kicked the ball with both hands to take off, and was about to forcibly wipe the board for a layup.Landry jumped up to block the shot and slapped Griffin on the forearm. The referee whistled for a foul, and the basketball bounced off the backboard and into the net.

There were boos everywhere in the arena, Li Yue looked up at the timer, and found that the game was only 1:03, and the Lakers had already received two fouls, and they were still concentrated on the relatively weak inside, which had a great impact on the next game.

"My fault, my fault..." Rand showed embarrassment and shook his head again and again, "You reminded me..."

"Don't worry about it, it's a small matter." Li Yue responded with a smile, wondering why both Gobert and Landry were a little nervous?

While thinking about it, Griffin made an extra free throw, and the Clippers led 5-0, and the audience cheered.

Kobe took the ball across the center line, Li Yue got closer to catch the ball, raised his hand and passed to the left 45-degree three-point line.

Iguodala received the ball and waited in a three-threat position. Landry went up to the wall to cover, but the two tried together for a while, but failed to open the situation. Iguodala handed the ball to Landry and ran along the sideline Move to the bottom corner.

Landry received the ball and turned around with a look of looking for someone. Li Yue rushed forward to meet him.

As soon as he got the ball, Landry came up to cover, and Griffin and Barnes immediately double-teamed.

Li Yue was forced to pull the ball back, Landry hurriedly turned around and cut, Griffin turned around and chased after him.

The Clippers have an obvious defensive strategy, maximizing delays to prevent the Lakers from scoring easily.

Thinking of this, Li Yue lowered his shoulders and bent over, accelerated to the top of the arc, stopped abruptly to take off, and made a strong shot head-on.

when!Smashing the basket and rebounding.

Jordan jumped high to grab a defensive rebound, landed and turned around and threw it to Paul. The Clippers launched a counterattack.

Paul dribbled the ball forward with his left hand, raised his right hand to direct the tactical movement, and Jordan waited on the wall at the top of the arc.

Paul rushed across the center line, shifted to the left with the help of a cover, faced Kobe chasing him, made an emergency stop and changed hands behind him, diverted to move to the right, and once again used the cover of Jordan to get rid of it, Gobert had to step up and delay the grab, while Jordan strode inside cut.

Paul kicked off the ground and threw the ball over the basket. Jordan took off with a run-up and dunked in the air.

Boom!The basketball exploded into the net.

The Clippers lead 7-0.

"Wow, Jeff, did you see it?" Mark Jackson said, "The Clippers are obviously more prepared. Griffin and DeAndre rely on their strength to score goals, and Paul and Redick rely on their skills to move their positions." , Barnes has been pestering Li Yue all the time, and the Lakers seem to be still immersed in the previous MVP awards ceremony, seeming to underestimate the enemy."

"Don't worry, just wait and see..."

The Lakers attack and Kobe takes the ball to the right wing.

Li Yue raised the ball from his waist, raised his hand and passed it to the top of the arc, and Landry caught the ball and waited.

Kobe came to the left waist along the free throw line, stuck Paul with his back, and raised his hand to ask for a pass, but Paul continued to push hard, and Griffin also put pressure on Landry at the top of the arc. The form was more complicated. Kobe Had to retreat to the three-point line to catch the ball.

As soon as he held it firmly, before he put on a three-threat posture, Griffin moved across and teamed up with Paul to double-team.

It seemed that there was fire in his heart, Kobe didn't pass the ball, and forcibly crossed and strode to the bottom line.

But Paul's best defensive lineup is not for nothing. He just followed closely and never took half a step away. Jordan also came out of the paint to double-team, and Redick entered the scenic area ahead of time to intercept, and the form became particularly complicated.

In the chaos, Kobe suddenly stopped to take off, jumped out of the court, and threw the ball vigorously to the right corner.

Iguoda stretched his hand to catch it, facing Barnes to make up defense, immediately turned around and passed the 45-degree three-point line on the right.

Li Yue received the hand, and seeing Griffin coming straight, he immediately bent his knees and shoulders, and stepped in the opposite direction to break through.

As soon as he rushed to the middle of the free throw line, Redick raised and intercepted from the penalty area again, but Li Yue ignored it, changed the IN-OUT direction with one hand and easily broke through. Light toss shot.

bass!Hollow into the net, 2 to 7.

Jordan picked up the basketball and stood out of bounds, and the Clippers rushed to attack.

Paul caught the ball and ran across the center line, raised his hand and made a long pass to the left wing. Redick caught the ball and immediately hit the ground and passed it to the waist.

Griffin received the ball with his back, waited until his teammates opened up the space, turned around and held the basket high, and hit hard.

Landry was at a disadvantage, he gritted his teeth and steadied his footsteps, held his breath and carried it hard, his face turned red rapidly.

Griffin failed consecutive attempts, pulled the ball back angrily, and shot backwards in response to the pounce.

when!Smashing the basket and rebounding.

Gobert grabbed the offensive rebound, Li Yue caught the ball and ran wildly, and the front right wing used Landry's cover to break through.

Barnes and Griffin attacked back and forth, Li Yue led them to the short corner, suddenly hit the ground and passed the ball, and Landry, who made an air cut, caught the ball, took two strides in a row, jumped high, Score with one hand.

The audience cheered loudly, the Lakers caught up to 4 to 7, and the ability to score quickly was undoubtedly highlighted.

The Clippers attacked, and Paul took the ball to the right wing.

Redick starts in the right corner and runs past Paul, pretending to cooperate but actually helping to clear space.

Jordan followed up and set up a wall to cover, Paul instantly got rid of Kobe, accelerated the dribble and rushed to his left elbow.

Gobert went up to intercept, Paul stopped the ball and passed it to Griffin, and immediately retreated to the outside of the three-point line to receive the pass back. Taking advantage of Griffin's cover at the top of the arc, he got rid of Kobe again and went straight to the basket on the left Basket away.

Kobe continued to chase, Griffin took the opportunity to cut in, Gobert was a misplaced defense, and his speed was slower than that of Landry.

Paul threw the ball from the top of his head to the right, Griffin raised his hand to intercept and slid down, passed Gobert by virtue of his speed advantage, ignored Landry's hand interference, rushed to the basket in two consecutive strides, stepped off easily, and wiped the board Layup.

The Lakers attacked, Kobe brought the ball to the top of the arc, and the team settled in a V-shaped formation. Li Yue started running from the bottom corner on the right, reached the waist with the help of Gobert's cover, raised his hand to catch Kobe's pass, took off with the momentum, and fell back. cast.

Boom!The basketball crashed into the net, 6 to 9.

Barnes picked up the basketball and stood out of bounds. Paul caught the ball and pushed forward.

Griffin, who came down early, caught the ball at the 45-degree three-point line on the right, turned around to face the frame, bent his shoulders and forced Landry, like a bull, and rushed forward without looking back. In the blink of an eye, he rushed to the penalty area, kicked off the ground and jumped for a layup.

Landry jumped up to block the shot and knocked Griffin to the ground. The referee whistled for a foul.

The audience booed everywhere, and Landry spread his hands to emphasize that he blocked the shot first, and hitting people was a follow-up action.

At this time, there were 8 minutes and 49 seconds left before the end of the first quarter. Landry had already received two fouls. Li Yue stepped forward to reassure him that there was no need to get excited, but D'Antoni arranged for Davis to come on the field to replace him. The Lakers' rotation arrangement was indeed disrupted.

The key is Griffin's brave and invincible state, and Davis is likely to be difficult to defend. If the Lakers want to solve this problem, they must change their thinking. Li Yue walked to Kobe's side, and the two exchanged ideas in a low voice side by side.

In a blink of an eye, Griffin made two free throws and the Clippers led 11-6.

The Lakers attacked, Kobe took the ball to the top of the arc, bowed and patted on the spot and waited.

Li Yue beckoned to Davis to go up to cover, then took the basketball and walked to the sideline to break through, changing positions to face Griffin.

Barnes wanted to double-team, but Davis went straight to the hoop and had to be followed.

The left half was emptied, and Li Yue singled out Griffin, slowly preparing for it.

The audience cheered and applauded. Van Gundy said: "This is the Lakers' coping strategy. Next, please appreciate Li Yue's foul-making skills. I think his foul-making skills are indistinguishable from James Harden..."

(End of this chapter)