If I were Yi Di in the NBA

Chapter 140 Inside Advantage
"Anthony made a turnover... Durant made a steal, and the Thunder counterattacked..."

"Yi Jian received the pass, he started straight away without stopping, dangerous! Nene's fifth foul..."

"There is no way, the Nuggets are forced to switch to a small lineup."

"The Nuggets were already lagging behind in rebounding, and now they have been greatly affected. The Thunder have directly hung the ball inside."

"Lopez directly hit the low post and missed... Lopez grabbed the offensive rebound and hit the second offense."

Not long after the start of the last quarter, the Nuggets were trapped by fouls inside, and the Thunder played the twin towers.

It was useless to pinch Yi Jian this time. He and Lopez went to the inside. The Nuggets' lineup couldn't protect the rebounds at all, and the defense completely collapsed.

In this case, the Nuggets can only bet on outside offense.

Anthony's condition was not so good in the second half, so Billups and Anthony attacked together, plus JR.

And after Lowry re-entered the court, Billups did not have the chicness before.

Billups is not too old, but he is not a top star in the first place. It is good to be able to explode in a game, and it is difficult for him to explode continuously.

In the Western Conference semifinals, the confrontation between the two teams was very fierce, and the fouls in each game were increasing, which naturally exhausted the players, especially the players who were closely watched by the opponent.

Billups is stronger than Lowry now, but if he wants to beat Lowry, he really can't do it after his physical strength drops.

In the final quarter, Anthony and JR, who are better at playing with the ball, are more active.

It's just that JR is not very reliable, and Anthony's explosive scoring ability is not that strong.

With the Thunder fully dominant inside, their defensive pressure has also been reduced a lot.

After all, as the leading team, as long as they can score consecutively, it doesn't matter if the Nuggets score some points.

Yi Jian understands the reason why taking advantage of his illness to kill him.

So the more difficult it is for the Nuggets inside, the more he will play inside.

Halfway through the last quarter, Yi Jian grabbed another offensive rebound and hit the Thunder's lead, which had reached double digits.

40 seconds later, JR finally hit a three-pointer, helping the Nuggets narrow the score gap to single digits.

This is JR's third three-pointer in the final quarter, but the first two were hit.

Because of the large gap in the game, the Nuggets are also constantly trying three-pointers.

After JR hit a three-pointer, Yi Jian came back and cooperated with Lowry in the pick-and-roll.

Lowry passed the ball to Yi Jian who was running down. The Nuggets' double-team was a little slower, and Yi Jian rushed in to score.

In the next Nuggets offense, Billups missed a three-pointer.

This is the pressure on the trailing side. In order to chase points, they sometimes have to gamble and try three-pointers knowing that the Thunder will strictly prevent them from outside shots.

After missing, their pressure will be even greater.

In many cases, the lagging side cannot play tactics more calmly and can only be forced to take risks.

This is also the advantage of the leading side. All they have to do is to stay calm and maintain their own rhythm.

No matter how the Nuggets struggle, they do a good job of offense and defense, and the Nuggets can't find a chance.

"Good shot, Yi Jian got another offensive rebound. He has already grabbed 19 rebounds."

"Actually, the Thunder's shooting percentage in the final quarter is also average, but their inside advantage is too great."

"Lopez also played well today, and he became the Thunder's third scoring point."

"The Thunder have selected outstanding rookies for two consecutive years and completed a rapid rebuild. They are a team that can create miracles."

"Anthony was a little anxious. He directly fouled Durant. Durant doesn't feel so good now, but he is still sure to stand on the free throw line."

"Anthony hit a three-pointer! The Nuggets still have a glimmer of hope. They must defend the Thunder for two rounds..."

"Oh, the connection between Yi Jian and Durant. After being double-teamed, Yi Jian threw the ball to Durant. Durant hit the second three-pointer of the day, which was also the first goal of the final sports game."

"There is no chance. The Thunder once again extended their lead to double digits in the last few tens of seconds. The Nuggets are powerless."

"Anthony made another three-pointer...Miss! The game is over."

35 points and 20 rebounds are Yi Jian's answer at home.

Thunder Brooks also said after the game: "You can always trust Yi Jian! We showed our advantages and played our pre-match arrangement."

"Durant is also great. He and Yi Jian have one outside and one inside, tearing up their defense."

But after another loss, Nuggets coach George Karl was no longer as personable as before.

"The Thunder performed well, but I was a little disappointed with the referee Mark's performance. This is a shame. Mark has always been a good referee. He can always make accurate judgments on fouls."

The head coach puts pressure on the referee, which is a play that can often be seen in the playoffs.

However, the two teams did have a lot of fouls, and it is also true that the home team got a little more free throws.

But it is still a bit cunning to only talk about the away game and not the home game.

Yi Jian said in an interview: "The game is like this. It is the players who solve the problem on the field. We have to adapt to the scale of the referee and then win the victory. This is what we did in Denver."

Yi Jian's words were resounding, they would not be fooled, the problems encountered by the Thunder when they played the away game were a bit more troublesome, so don't complain if they are not as good as others.

The second home game two days later is very important for both sides of the game.

If the Thunder can get the match point at home, the series will be more stable.

On the contrary, if the Nuggets can't grit their teeth to get back the home court advantage, it will be too difficult to chase later.

In terms of lineup, neither side has the habit of changing, and the two teams are already familiar with it. It depends on the choice of tactics and the grasp of details.

Seeing the hope of winning the series, the Nuggets players were also inexplicably nervous.

Yi Jian taught everyone a little trick, that is, not to pay attention to outside discussions during the series.

But everyone can play together, play games, play cards.

You have to relax your mind and insist on going to the field to go all out.

"Yi, it's your first time in the playoffs, why do you feel so calm?"

"Yes and no, the NBA is more competitive, but the atmosphere of competitive sports is actually the same. Whether it is other professional leagues or international competitions, it is a kind of exercise for mentality."

"You believe me, we will get better and better."

"Of course……"

On May 5, the Thunder soldiers walked into the familiar court again.

In the playoffs, the home court feels more cordial to the players.

It's the same hustle and bustle, and knowing the fans are on their side gives extra strength.

While warming up, Yi Jian was still communicating with other people.

In this game, maybe the Nuggets will pay more attention to restricting their inside lanes. Yi Jian plans to shoot a three-pointer when he has a chance to counterattack.

It will definitely be a good thing if you can beat your opponent faster.

(End of this chapter)