Versatile Point Forward

Chapter 287 Who is the opponent?

The Blazers overthrew the Lakers, the dominant player in the Western Conference, 4-1, which undoubtedly made many people lose their eyes.The Blazers' ability to make the playoffs this season is beyond the predictions of experts. After all, the number of injuries they have suffered is also at the forefront of history, but this high ranking looks very miserable.

Whether it is the Suns, the Spurs or the Lakers, it can be said that the three opponents of the Blazers in the playoffs are not easy to deal with. The Suns are third in the Western Conference and the Lakers are the first in the Western Conference. It is flat, and the Spurs have been regarded as the sharpening stone that the league champions must go through. Even if it is only the No. 7 seed in the West, no one will underestimate this silver and black army.But it is also their strength that makes the Blazers' achievement of reaching the finals even more great and rare.Although they have encountered many tests in each round of the series, they have to admit that they have shown the temperament of a strong team.

The sixth seed in the West is indeed a relatively low ranking, but there is indeed a precedent for the No. 6 seed to win the championship in NBA history, and that was the short-lived Rockets dynasty that year. In the 1993-94 season, the Rockets scored 58 wins and 24 losses, ranking second in the West, and defeated the Trail Blazers, Suns, Jazz and Knicks consecutively to win the first championship in team history.However, in the following season, the Rockets suffered a wide range of injuries. In the end, they only achieved a dismal 47 wins and 35 losses, ranking sixth in the Western Conference.

But it was such a rocket that defeated the Jazz in the first round of five tiebreakers and the Suns in the second round tiebreaker when everyone was not optimistic. In the finals, the fledgling "Big Shark" completely fell into a disadvantage in the dialogue with Olajuwon, and the Rockets won the championship again.As the head coach of the Rockets, Tomjanovich's phrase "never underestimate the heart of a champion" has become a famous phrase sung by later generations.

Can the Blazers do it?If others thought it was a dream at first, then after defeating the Lakers, few people have stood up and clearly stated that the Blazers will be finished, even if they have no chance of getting home court advantage in the finals.But now the Eastern Conference champion has not yet been born, and the Blazers players can only start restorative training in the training hall, and cannot make any targeted arrangements for the time being.However, like the majority of fans, they are also paying attention to the progress of the Eastern Conference finals, because it is related to their opponents in the finals, although it seems that no one is easy to mess with.

Needless to say, the Celtics, the oldest giant in NBA history, once became a weak team in the league, but under the operation of general manager Angie, they recruited Garnett and Ray A. The two All-Star players from London, together with Pierce, the mainstay of the original team, and Rondo, who has gradually grown up, their strength cannot be underestimated.And this season they have added many outstanding role players. For example, one of the five Pistons who defeated the Lakers "F4", "Roaring God" Wallace, has really strengthened the team's combat power, and they are currently also with Leading the opponent 3 to 1, they took the opportunity to advance to the finals.

And their opponent Magic is a typical lineup of one center + four shooters. First of all, the inside "Warcraft" Howard has the momentum of the league's first center. Although Yao Ming will blow him up every time, his physical fitness is absolutely not enough. It has to be said that he averaged 20+10 hands per game, and his deterrence at the basket is very strong.The shooters that the team matched with him are not mediocre. In addition to Lewis and Turkoglu, Carter, Redick, Pietrus, Ryan Anderson and other players can also make shots from outside the three-point line. Huge contribution, this team also has a very strong strength.

Against either of these teams, the Blazers are not sure of beating their opponents.Although the Celtics' Big Three are old and frail, their lean camels are bigger than horses. Their strength lies there, and Garnett is still a player with his own tactical system.Even if the Celtics can't play the epic defense of the 08-09 season, the Blazers have no advantage against them. Maybe only Ye Feng and Batum can regain a little ground on the outside?

Not to mention the Magic. Strictly speaking, there is not much difference in the three-point shooting of the two sides, but the difference in the inside line must not be recorded in terms of numbers.The combination of Aldridge and Camby's offense and defense really complement each other, but Howard's dominance in the interior is not just talk, whether it is his pick-and-roll roll or rebounds, it can give the Blazers inside players a headache. endlessly.Conversely, the huge restraining force inside can create opportunities for the outside. You must know that Magic’s power forward Lewis likes to shoot from the outside. He made 39.7% of his three-pointers in the regular season. Do you dare to let him shoot from the outside?
However, the Blazers didn't care that much. If the basketball game can be determined by a contest of strength on paper, then what is the game?The Celtics and Magic are strong, but are we really weak?You know, compared to them, we crawled out of hell, and want to win the championship?Ask us if we agree!Even if you can win in the end, we will bite off a piece of meat from you!
Everyone thought that the Celtics' loss in the fourth game was just because of a little nap, and the Magic only won by 4 points. Almost everyone except the Magic fans believed that they could beat their opponents 4-1 and advance to the NBA Finals. finals.But in the fifth game, the Magic suddenly went crazy. They made 25 of 13 three-pointers in the game. Four of the team scored in double figures, and two of them scored more than 4 points. Lace scored 2+, and the Magic beat the Celtics 20-20 at home, tying the score to 113-92, still retaining the hope of reaching the finals.

But in Game 27.3, the seasoned Celtics still taught the young Magic a lesson. They suppressed the Magic's three-point shooting percentage to 31%. Only three of the team scored in double figures. The game is not the same.And they themselves scored in double figures with a total of five players. Veteran Pierce scored 13 points and 96 rebounds and became the team's biggest contributor.In the end, the Celtics defeated the Magic 84 to 2007 and entered the finals again after the 08-[-] season.For the Big Three, regardless of whether they can win the championship this time, they are already old. In other words, this may be the last season for the three of them to fight side by side.

(End of this chapter)