basketball hero

Chapter 553 G3 - One step back is the cliff

The Raptors are adapting to all changes without changing, continuing the previous lineup.In the NBA, the losing side will generally seek to change formations, while the winning side will generally not take the initiative to change formations for the stability of the lineup and the emotional considerations of the players.

The Celtics' change of formation means that Pierce or Bradley will have one to defend Yingxiong.As long as Coach Rivers' IQ is still online, he won't be so stupid to let Terry, who has the worst defense in the starting lineup, guard Yingxiong.If Terry, the "defense cash machine", is really allowed to defend, the picture...is unimaginable.

The problem with the Celtics now is that the offense is too constipated.After the lack of Rondo's engine and Ray Allen's top off-ball shooter, this team's half-court offense is simply a disaster.In fact, their defense is still good, and the efficiency of defending against a strong offensive team like the Raptors is not high.But after all, the game is about scoring more points. If you can't score, it is impossible to win.

It is still Valanciunas and Garnett who jump the ball near the middle circle, and the game is about to start.

Fans of the Celtics will never forget that this season, Ying Xiong, the core player of the opposing team, scored 52 points on this field and humiliated the home team.So they treat this yellow-skinned player from Asia like a thorn in the flesh, and they can't wait to beat him to a serious injury, and then the team can beat the opponent and advance.

KG's bounce is still good, and he easily grabs the highest point and passes the ball to his teammates. The Celtics have the first wave of offensive possession.

Bradley dribbled the ball across half court and gave it to KG in the high post.

With Terry on the court, the Green Army's court space is much better. It will not be like the previous two games, when Bass and Jeff Green are there, the opponent can shrink the inside.

Terry received a pass from Garnett, passed the defending DeRozan, stopped and shot a jumper-a direct hit!
The fans cheered for a while. Unexpectedly, Terry made a shot for the team's first offense after the change.

Jeremy Lin came over with a dribble and hit a high pick-and-roll.Defending him changed from Bradley in the previous game to Terry.Obviously, Coach Rivers arranged for Terry to defend Jeremy Lin, the shortest and least physically fit of the Raptors' backcourt trio.

Jeremy Lin gave the ball to DeRozan. DeRozan also made a breakthrough in the face of Pierce's defense. He was assisted by KG and distributed to Amir Johnson on the other side. The latter caught the ball and made a mid-range jumper-missed.

Jeff Green protected the rebound and handed it to Terry to advance.

Terry came over with the ball, facing Jeremy Lin's defense, with the help of KG's cover, he directly pursued with a 3-pointer-hit!
Terry made all 2 shots in the opening game and scored 5 points single-handedly!Back at home, the Celtics are really different. From spirit to offense, there seems to be a big difference.And Terry's return to the starting lineup made the team's offense look full of layers, and the outside threat was also much greater.

The Raptors did not take a timeout and the game continued.

Jeremy Lin dribbled the ball over and handed over to DeRozan at the top of the arc, and DeRozan split the right wing to Yingxiong.

And the one defending Yingxiong is Bradley, who is the shortest on the field.

Bradley is an excellent defender who can defend well with and without the ball.He has excellent physical fitness and quick feet. He is tough and calm when defending. He will not foul easily, but he is never afraid of confrontation, and he will not easily back down because of the opponent's reputation.

But no matter how good Bradley's defense is, he is only 188cm tall, 5cm shorter than Tony Allen.With such a height, defending DeRozan may not be so fatal, but defending Ying Xiong, who is 203cm tall and has a wingspan of 220cm, has a natural disadvantage, at least in terms of shooting defense.

This point, Ying Xiong is clear, Casey is clear, isn't Rivers not clear?Rivers also had no choice but to do this. Let Pierce defend Yingxiong. Let alone defense, let him consume too much energy on the defensive end, and the offensive end will inevitably be greatly reduced. This is too much.Therefore, we can only let the defensive champion Bradley defend, which is also something that Terry must face when he starts.Even if you can't guard against it, it's normal, because Jeff Green can't guard against it either.Since no one can guard, Bradley's height disadvantage is no longer a big problem.

The Celtics' strategy for defending Yingxiong is to flank him when he is playing singles, with partial threes and twos, and then rotate to let DeRozan's 3-pointers and Valanciunas and Amir Johnson's mid-range, lock the inside.

After Ying Xiong received the ball, Bradley quickly came over and locked his foot firmly.Of course, he will not underestimate his opponents. This Bradley has performed exceptionally well on the defensive end this season, and it is said that he is likely to be selected for the best defensive team.

Ying Xiong held the ball with his back, KG quickly came over to pinch, and he passed the ball to DeRozan in the left corner with one hand.

DeRozan scored 3 points in a wide open. He didn't know if he was not used to it. After hesitating for a moment, he still made a shot—"Bang—"The ball missed!

Ying Xiong grabbed the offensive rebound and threw a shot, but was interfered by KG's long arm-none.

Amir Johnson grabbed the offensive rebound, but was intercepted by Pierce when he was on the outside.

Terry made another 3-pointer—no this time.

Valanciunas grabbed the rebound and handed it to Jeremy Lin to advance.

Here Jeremy Lin divides Ying Xiong again, KG double-teams again, Ying Xiong divides again, Jeremy Lin receives the ball outside the 3-point line from the left wing, does not use the pick-and-roll, directly forcibly breaks through, and then makes a mid-range shot, causing Terry's thug foul!

Jeremy Lin stood on the free throw line, missed the first free throw, and made the second free throw!
Jeremy Lin scored the first point when the Raptors played for more than 2 minutes.He still has a physical advantage in the matchup with Terry.

The Celtics' defense is very clear, it is to pinch Yingxiong and force him to hand over the ball in his hand.No matter how good Bradley's defense is, they don't believe that he can lock up the two-time league scoring champion on his own.

In the next few minutes, the Raptors' offense still did not improve.Ying Xiong was double-teamed fiercely, and DeRozan was in poor condition and couldn't make an open shot.In addition to DeRozan, Amir Johnson and Valanciunas also failed to make shots when they got open mid-range shots.In this case, the Celtics have strengthened their determination to flank Ying Xiong.

On the offensive end, the difference between the Celtics and the previous two games is that Terry's playing revitalized the team. Although the offense is still not efficient, it is still much better than the previous two games.

With 6 minutes and 20 seconds left in the first quarter, the Raptors requested a timeout!The score on the court at this time was 10:5, with the Celtics leading.

After the timeout, the Raptors made substitution adjustments, Gay came on to replace DeRozan, and Bargnani came on to replace Valanciunas.

The game continues.

(End of this chapter)