God's hand behind the scenes

Chapter 352
The Celtics eliminated the Raptors and advanced to the Eastern Conference finals after seven games, and the two teams in the Western Conference finals have also been born, namely the Lakers and the Spurs.However, their road to promotion was not easy. The Lakers encountered a tenacious resistance from the Mavericks. The troika composed of Nowitzki, Nash and Finley posed a huge threat to the OK combination, especially Nowitzki. His outside shooting is simply superb, and he beat O'Neal out of his temper.

However, it is precisely because they value the outside line too much that they hand over the inside line to others.It’s true that O’Neal couldn’t guard Nowitzki, who was wandering outside the three-point line all day, but he also showed his dominance at the basket, averaging an astonishing 34.1 points and 15.3 rebounds per game. Delivered 3.2 caps.His shooting percentage is much higher than that of Nowitzki. The Mavericks finally lost 3 to 4, and it was O'Neal's small hook at the last moment in the tiebreaker that made them out.

However, many experts believe that the performance of the Mavericks is already very good. Not just any team can drag the Lakers into the tiebreaker, let alone they still have a chance to win in the final game.Of course, being defeated by the Lakers stimulated the Mavericks owner Cuban. This crazy boss is estimated to spend a lot of money to bring in strong support this summer.

Relatively speaking, the Spurs were a little more relaxed. Although Admiral Robinson was getting old, the young Duncan was one against two in the paint and did not lose at all.In addition, Parker on the back line has also grown rapidly. Although he may be a little frizzy occasionally, he can average 14.3 points and 7.1 assists per game against the White Devil Bibby, which is already very good.

In fact, the most frustrating thing in the Kings is not Divac and Webber, who are under great pressure in the paint, or Bibby, who is watching the waves of the Yangtze River push forward, but the team's top scorer, Peja.Popovich recruited Bowen as in his previous life, and put him in the starting position boldly, because of Bowen's strong defensive ability.Bowen did not live up to his expectations. Under his defense, although Peja can still contribute 20.1 points per game, his shooting percentage has dropped to a disastrous 37.2%.

In the end, the Spurs defeated the Kings 4-2 to advance to the Western Conference Finals, allowing only their opponents to win the first two home games.And judging from the lineup of the Spurs in the two games, it is obvious that there is suspicion of letting go. Robinson played less than 10 minutes in the two games, and most of the time was played by substitute center Cherokee Parks and Duncan. .Of course, in the interview, Popovich always insisted that Robinson was unwell and needed to rest, and only they knew whether he was ill or not.

There is no shortage of highlights in the Western Conference semifinals between the two groups, but the 76ers have no time to care about the other division. They have been preparing for the next Eastern Conference Finals.In addition to getting a precious day off for sweeping the Nets, the players spend almost every day in the training hall, and while recovering, they also conduct targeted training according to the arrangements of the coaching staff.

The training plan formulated by the coaching staff is based on their analysis of the Celtics' game style, player configuration and common tactics this season. Analyze, so that no matter which team advances, they will not be in a hurry, even if the opponent is the Raptors, they can come up with another plan.

Because they are in the same division, the 76ers don't know much less about the Celtics than the Raptors.But it is because they know enough that they are puzzled by the rapid rise of the Celtics this season.Obviously last season was also dominated by the twin stars of Pierce and Walker, but the Celtics only achieved a record of 36 wins and 46 losses in the ninth place in the Eastern Conference. However, after one season, they suddenly rose to the second position in the Eastern Conference. Such a huge Many people can't understand the progress.

However, as the Celtics' opponents in the Eastern Conference finals, the 76ers don't need to understand why they can quickly rush to the forefront of the Eastern Conference. Anyway, it is enough to defeat them in the game. The golden championship trophy is still waiting!
But in fact, a veteran giant with a deep foundation like the Celtics is not so easy to deal with.They are a veteran team that existed at the very beginning of the NBA, with 16 O'Brien Cups unprecedented, and only the Purple and Gold can barely compete with them. In the 1959-68 season, they won 11 championships in 10 years, including an unprecedented eight consecutive championships.

The last glory of this team so far was in the 80s of the last century. In 1979, the Celtics picked up Larry Bird in the draft, and in the second year, Parish and McHale were recruited. , This famous combination in NBA history helped the team win three championships, and Bird became one of the greatest players in history.

However, after Bird retired, this giant team quickly fell into a trough. They failed to make the playoffs for three consecutive seasons. . After reaching the playoffs in the 1946-1950 season, the Celtics missed the playoffs for six consecutive years, and it was not until this year that they finally turned around.

Their success must be attributed to the two core players, Pierce and Walker. This season, Pierce and Walker averaged 48.2 points, 15.7 rebounds, 8.2 assists and 3.4 steals per game, making them one of the most powerful combinations in the league.It is also thanks to their outstanding performance that the Celtics can defeat the Raptors, who also have Carter and McGrady, and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.

The 76ers are not afraid of this kind of dual-core team. Anyway, they now have a lot of defensive players in their roster, and Dalembert has also grown into a reliable inside barrier. The Specialists are undoubtedly quite restrained.However, they did not look down on their opponents because of this. Arrogance and arrogance are the way to kill at any time. If the players insist that the Celtics are vulnerable, then the 76ers themselves may be eliminated in the end.

That's why the coaching staff did a lot of work on the Celtics. They roughly watched the Celtics this season, especially the replays of the playoffs, and combined with the impressions from the previous games, they worked out a very detailed plan. training plan.In Brown's view, the Celtics are not an easy opponent to deal with, but it is impossible for the 76ers to admit defeat at this time.The two sides played against each other four times this season, and the Celtics had the absolute upper hand with 3 wins and 1 loss. The only loss was because the team's top scorer, Reid, was absent due to physical discomfort, and in the end they only lost by 5 points. Said they already had the psychological advantage.

(End of this chapter)