NBA's strongest prince

Chapter 367 Old Rival

The newly-emerged Magic in the Eastern Conference went relatively smoothly in the first round.

Although their opponent, the Raptors, is sixth in the East, they may be the worst among the eight playoff teams in the East.

They just got lucky and won two games in the regular season. As far as the stars are concerned, the Raptors really have no one except Bosh.

On the side of the Magic, Howard gradually entered the peak and began to compete for the position of the league's first center.

Turkoglu is also at his peak on the front line, a quasi-All-Star player with an organization and scoring.

Mr. Lewis, who got a big contract, is really the tail of the peak, and he must be suitable for Howard.

And although their young guard Nelson has poor organizational skills, he is also continuing to improve.

The Raptors will definitely not be able to resist the one-star shooting that Van Gundy made in the Magic.

Because no one in the Magic can hold Howard, and if Howard keeps his vitality, the Magic's tactics can be perfectly presented, and they can penetrate people with three-pointers from the outside.

In fact, this tactic is more suitable for Howard. If the Magic has a guard with stronger organization, maybe they can go further, but unfortunately nothing is perfect.

And Lewis was aging prematurely and did not maintain his strength, which is also one of the reasons why the Magic only thrived for two seasons.Of course, Howard himself is not very long at the peak.

The last clan in the East, the game between the Cavaliers and the Wizards, actually has no suspense.

After all, James is a superstar. Even if the Cavaliers have some twists and turns in the regular season, it is impossible to pass the first round of the playoffs. The fourth first round of the regular season also has an advantage.

But they also fought the Wizards in six games before advancing to the next round.

Due to injuries and other reasons, the Cavaliers did not play very well in the regular season this season, but they still got Big Ben over as in the original history.

The Cavaliers focus on defense, and Big Ben can still fit in smoothly.

It's just that this season Ben Wallace has declined in strength and is a bit tasteless player.

Defensive experience is still there, but that's all that's left.

The 34-year-old short insider really suffered a bit in the game.

Of course, they didn't solve it smoothly, and the lack of scoring points is only one of the reasons. The main reason is that the Wizards have changed this season.

The Wizards did not have Arenas. Everyone thought they were finished this season, but their regular season record was better than when they had Arenas.

Could it be that Arenas is holding back?Certainly not, Arenas is also a powerful player in the first position, which will definitely improve the team's combat effectiveness.

They were able to enter the playoffs this season and even fought a few games with the Cavaliers. In fact, the main reason is that after they lost Arenas, the team paid more attention to defense.

In the less competitive East, as long as the defense is improved a little, dozens of victories are mediocre.

Defense is really easy to improve the record, but unfortunately there are very few teams willing to settle down to do it.

And the Wizards only maintained this season, and the rest is a restoration.

As a result, the personnel were similar. Not only did they not make it to the playoffs, but they were also at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

Sun and his team rested for a few days before meeting their opponents in the second round.

It's a familiar face again. The Suns have played against the Spurs and Mavericks many times in recent seasons.

As a result, they started to meet them in the first round of this season, and the Spurs were also depressed when they met the Suns in the second round.

They actually want to be third, and they don't want to meet an unreasonable team like the Suns in advance.

It's a pity that other teams won't get used to him, so in the end the Spurs accidentally reached fourth in the West.

At the last moment, I didn't want to use my strength and wanted to get a suitable position. I was afraid I wanted to fart.

But this time the Spurs' first round is relatively easy, and the team's veterans haven't had a lot of consumption, so they can fight.

On May 5, the old rival Spurs came to the US Airways Center again.

The Spurs lineup basically remained unchanged, and Russell played a cameo role as a coach to explain tactics to his teammates.

He will explain tactics and add many practical tips, which are very practical in the playoffs.

This is what Russell has repeatedly summed up through simulated games. The Spurs may not be able to fight hard this time.

Everyone is familiar with the lineup, there is nothing to say.

At the beginning of the game, the Spurs focused on Duncan again.

After all, the Suns lineup is still relatively small. Whether it is the former Marion or the current Millsap, they can't actually hold Duncan.

The start of the game was supposed to be a trial period, and the Spurs like it that way.

But they will definitely not try it when they meet the sun, because once they try it, the opportunity will be gone.

While the Suns haven't fully double-teamed Duncan, let Duncan get mad for a while.

If the Suns start to attack in an all-round way, Duncan can only become a guarantee on the defensive end.

Fortunately, Duncan is good at defense and won't be aggrieved like Nowitzki.

In the first round of the playoffs, Nowitzki often became a defensive insider, playing hard and not efficient.

In fact, there is also a defensive option for playing Duncan, which is to lock the other points of the Spurs.

The Spurs' starters, except for Parker, the other three Suns can be locked up at will.

The Spurs really can only eat star players in their first match against a strong team. Two of the five of them are defensive types, and one is an old man. Of course, one of the defensive types is also an old man. It doesn't take much effort to lock them up.

On the Sun's side, except for Millsap who can only be cowardly in the face of Duncan, several other positions can be attacked.

Russell also lamented that this year's Spurs are extremely weak, and it was luck that they encountered a weak chicken in the first round.

Of course, the original historical sun was weaker, but now this sun is completely different.

"Now it feels like the Spurs are relying on Duncan to support them. This won't work. They have to break the game."

"The Suns are still so calm in the second round. The former top three in the Western Conference, the Spurs and the Mavericks are already far behind the Suns."

"The Spurs' lineup is too old. Not only can they not guard Russell, but they can't guard against any strengths of the Suns. It is impossible to go further by relying on GDP alone."

"The Suns haven't fully exerted their strength yet, and their rotation is much stronger than the Spurs. If Parker and Ginobili don't exert their strength, the game will be over."

Since the Spurs feel good about Duncan now, the Suns have not been able to pinch. If Parker and Ginobili can be restrained, it is okay to score higher for Duncan.

The Suns' defensive tactics are relatively flexible, especially when facing old opponents.

This was all discussed by Russell and the coaching staff, and Russell reminded his teammates on the court that the Spurs were extremely uncomfortable playing.

In fact, they don't know that if they don't break the current situation, they will lose.

It's just that Parker and Ginobili's abilities are really not as strong as Duncan's.

Duncan can play singles if he doesn't pinch, but the other two can't.

Parker and Ginobili can only take advantage when they feel good, and now it depends on how they adjust.

(End of this chapter)