Soul of the Golden State

Chapter 776 Changing the Situation

Mullin slid the bottom line, came to the 45-degree three-point line on the weak side, received a pass from Li Weisi, and made a three-pointer!

With the help of the pick-and-roll, Hardaway went straight to the basket and passed the ball to Persson in the corner. Persson also responded with a three-pointer, 5:5 tie.

For the Warriors, Li Weisi went inside through the pick-and-roll, faced Green's block, hit a throw, and continued to lead 7:5.

It was the Suns' turn again. This time Hardaway chose to pass the ball to Barkley during the breakthrough. Unexpectedly, Li Weisi saw through and hit the ball first.

After the basketball changed direction, it was picked up by Mullin, and the Warriors launched a counterattack.

In the fast break, Mullin and Li Weisi passed Persson who was defending them two times, and finally Li Weisi made an easy layup, 9:5.

Immediately afterwards, in the next round, Barkley missed a mid-range shot, Divac received the rebound, and the Warriors played a fast break again. This time, Richmond dunked successfully, 11:5.

In addition to the fact that the two sides were evenly matched at the beginning, the gap between the two sides gradually emerged. It is no wonder that compared to the Warriors, everyone can be used as an offensive engine, and the Suns can only launch offense. Hardaway and Barkley .

Not only that, but the play style of these two men is also mostly based on breakthroughs. Although they can also shoot, it is not enough to change the Warriors' defensive formation against them.

Therefore, after the Warriors shrunk their defense, the Suns' offense was blocked, which also made the score gradually open.

As a star of the Suns, Paul Westphal led the team to the finals when he was a player. After becoming a coach, he first worked as an assistant to the former head coach Cotton Fitzsimmons, and then in In 92, he officially became the head coach.

Westphal, who became the head coach, although relatively weak in experience, is very good at tactics, training young people, and training superstars. More importantly, he showed a sense of grasping the rhythm of the game when he was a player.

Up to now, the game has only passed more than two minutes, and the score on the court is only 11:5. It can be said that everything is just beginning.

But Coach Westphal resolutely chose a timeout, and came back during the timeout, replacing the cumbersome Xiaoke, er, Joe Klein, and replacing it with pitcher Dan Marley.

I have to say that this is a bold attempt, but at the same time it is a very correct choice, at least in terms of the results of the subsequent games, it is correct.

Back from the timeout, in the Suns' next attack, Marley, who had just been replaced, received a pass from Hardaway and hit a mid-range jumper.

Marley, who is not yet 30 years old, is at the peak of his career at this time. Although he entered the bench for the team, he can stand up when the team needs him, such as now.

Then it was the Warriors' turn to attack. Mullin also made a mid-range shot, but he missed Marley's defense. This time Rodman did not fight for the offensive rebound, but was protected by Barkley.

In terms of rebounding, Barkley and Rodman can be said to be from the same school. As a brother of the same school, Barkley's rebounding ability can be said to be greatly underestimated.

Even in Barkley's own words, if it weren't for me to take care of scoring, Rodman would not be the rebounding leader at all.

No matter how much bragging there is in Barkley's words, it is undeniable that Barkley's rebounding strength is definitely not something that a rebounding king can embody.

Barkley, who got the rebound, quickly rushed towards the frontcourt like a cannonball.

On the way, several Warriors players passed by, but unfortunately no one could stop Barkley from rushing up, not even Rodman.

This is Barkley's most powerful ability. Once he rushes up, with his weight and speed, it's hard for anyone to stop him.

In this way, Barkley took the ball all the way into the Warriors' penalty area, and finally flew and dunked with both hands, completing a dragon.

Sure enough, after the substitution, the Suns gradually recovered the point difference, and the situation that was originally beneficial to the Warriors was gradually brought back.

The two teams played inextricably in the first quarter, until Li Weisi was replaced, the score was still tied at 21:21.

After the two sides gradually switched to rotation, the originally inextricable situation finally loosened.

First, Kukoc hit a hook before the free throw line, and then Sprewell made a layup, which also caused Tisdale's foul and made an additional free throw.

Fortunately, veteran Danny Ainge made a mid-range shot at the buzzer before the end of the first quarter. This time, the Suns were only 30 points behind the Warriors at 33:3 in the first quarter.

The 36-year-old Danny Angie is getting worse and worse. This year is the last year of his contract. It can be expected that this may also be the last year of his career. With his current state, it is estimated that it will be difficult to get any more. contract with an NBA team.

However, even in such a bad state, as a player who has been in the dynasty team, his golf quotient is far better than most people in the league.

Therefore, in the game, he knows what he should do and what he can do, and it is precisely because of this that he can contribute his strength when the team needs him most.

In fact, regardless of the fact that the Suns were behind in the first quarter, the situation on the court is actually on the side of the Suns.

Especially for the Warriors, in the face of Barkley's impact in the middle of the first quarter, he abruptly changed the Warriors' defense, thus driving the entire outside shooter. , Actually, the Warriors have no good way to restrict it, they can only use Rodman to interfere as much as possible.

Not only that, but in the second quarter, especially during the connecting period, Barkley, who had only rested for 3 minutes in the first quarter, was replaced again. Under Barkley's impact, the Warriors, whether it was Kukoc or Horry Life is very difficult. The physical condition of the two of them makes it undoubtedly an impossible task to defend Barkley. At the same time, because they encounter too much consumption on the defensive end, it also affects their offensive state.

Therefore, in just 3 minutes of the second quarter, the Suns not only tied the score, but also overtook it by 5 points.

The situation happened so suddenly that when the Warriors replaced the main force, they could only start chasing points with a 5-point disadvantage.

In the following games, the two sides fell into a tit-for-tat rhythm again. Unfortunately, the Warriors were unable to play the offense like the beginning of the first quarter.

In the end, at the end of the half, the Suns led 58:55, and the Suns entered the second half with a 3-point lead.

It can be seen that in the first half, the Suns were obviously the better prepared and better team. If the Warriors did not adjust as soon as possible in the second half, then it would not be a bad thing to lose this game. things that could happen.

(End of this chapter)