ace marshal

Chapter 1285 Potential playoff opponent

"Forget the scoreboard, it's always zero to zero. The opponent's firepower is very fierce now, especially Anthony. George, you have to follow Anthony. Remember not to be confused by his shooting fakes and three threats, and continue to support him. Ball pressure~!!, don’t be afraid to foul, you have enough fouls~!!”

The regular season has now really come to an end. The fifth-to-last game outside the Clippers came to Madison Square Garden to challenge the No.7 New York Knicks in the East.

Because the Knicks are also fighting for a playoff spot and playing at home, they played very hard and focused.

The game has come to the fourth quarter, with 5 minutes left, the Knicks lead by 11 points, Lan Shengli called a timeout to remind the players.

In every game today, the Clippers can't afford to lose, and they can't lose.

"Clang~!!!"

But if it feels bad, you can't blame other people.

After returning from a timeout here, Harden received a breakthrough pass from Foye, made a three-pointer, and the ball hit the iron.

Harden's touch in this game was very bad. He made 7 of 1 outside shots and his shooting percentage was very low.

"Swipe~!!!"

On the Knicks side, the firepower is still unabated.

Anthony hit George with his back, shaking his shoulders back and forth to deceive George's defensive center of gravity, he turned over and shot a jumper.

The Knicks continued to expand the point difference.

The possibility of the Clippers wanting to reverse the game is getting smaller and smaller.

"Dum~!!!"

Seeing that the reversal was hopeless, Lan Shengli quickly replaced Love.

After all, losing the game is not the worst thing. If Love's injury worsens, it will be in a state of "the house leaks and it rains all night".

In the end, the Clippers failed to complete the reversal. Under Anthony's strong performance of 37 points, the Knicks defeated the Clippers at home, consolidating their seventh position in the Eastern Conference, and also made the Clippers' prospects of "fighting for four" more and more serious. The more pessimistic it is.

But fortunately, the initiative to "guarantee six" is still in the hands of the Clippers.

Maybe after watching such a game, Ballmer may be more eager for big-name players.

But that's all about the offseason. This season, they can only fight with this lineup.

With four games left in the regular season, coupled with the relatively stable ranking in the Western Conference, the Clippers' potential opponents in the first round of the playoffs should have appeared.

"The playoffs are less than half a month away, so I have to prepare in advance~!"

On the special plane flying back to Los Angeles, Lan Shengli looked at the western rankings and sighed.

I saw that the Clippers are still ranked sixth in the Western Conference, and they are in a state of being unable to get up and down.

They are 2.5 games away from the Mavericks in seventh place in the West, which is already a difficult gap to catch up with four regular season games left.

In front of the Clippers is still the Nuggets.

The Nuggets lead the Clippers by 1.5 games, but there are only 3 games left for the Nuggets. As long as they win two of them, they will lock in the No.5 position in the West.

Therefore, Lan Shengli's original goal of "guaranteeing six and striving for four" seems to be only half achieved.

"So, there is a high probability that we will meet the No. [-] seed in the Western Conference in the first round~!!"

Here, Lan Shengli was talking to Harper who was on the side while drawing a relationship diagram with a tablet.

"And now the third place in the Western Conference is the Lakers~"

Harper watched seriously and responded immediately.

"That's right, it's the Lakers~!"

Lan Shengli nodded and said.

"However, the Lakers are now only half a game ahead of the No. It is impossible to overtake, so our opponent in the first round will most likely be one of the Lakers and Grizzlies~!!"

Lan Shengli continued to analyze.

"In your opinion, who do we fight against, who is more sure of winning~?!"

Harper frowned, asking.

"Haha~, it's a pity that we can't pick opponents~!! Otherwise, I don't want to play against these two teams~"

Upon hearing this, Lan Shengli shook his head and sighed with a smile.

"Yeah, the Lakers will be completely different in the playoffs with Kobe Bryant. In addition, they were swept out by the Mavericks last season. I believe the Mavericks will come back this year~!"

Harper said.

"That's right, the playoffs are always a stage for superstars, and the Lakers are such a team that never lacks superstars. Although their main players' age structure is a bit older, they want to win four games in seven games." It is quite difficult to defeat the Lakers in the game~”

Lan Shengli shook his head and also sighed.

"In addition, the Lakers have always had an advantage when facing us in the past few years, so at the psychological level, we are not fully sure~!!"

Lan Shengli continued to speak cautiously.

"Then, then we can only hope that the Grizzlies can overtake and come to No.3~"

Harper thought.

"So you can go back to Memphis often~, haha~!!"

Lan Shengli said with a smile.

"Haha~, don't be funny, do you think I want to play against a team from Tennessee~!?"

Harper shook his head helplessly and smiled, sighing.

"If there hadn't been that bad-tempered brawl, we might have had a certain advantage in the face of the Grizzlies, but this brawl has definitely burdened the players, especially Harden and George. Pressure, especially in away games, this pressure is more obvious, so, in the absence of home court advantage, we are very difficult, coupled with the inside combination of Gasol Jr. and Griffin on the opposite side, so that our inside advantage is almost There is nothing left, and the playoffs are not only a stage for superstars, but also a world for defenders. Whoever defends better can have the last laugh. So~, in the playoffs, I met the top defensive team in the league One of the grizzlies, not very good~”

Lan Shengli still spoke in a very cautious tone.

"Then according to what you said, whether we face the Lakers or the Grizzlies in the first round, it's a bad situation~?!"

Harper asked with a frown.

"In fact, it is like this, very bad luck~"

Lan Shengli nodded and sighed.

"But don't be too pessimistic, and don't think too much. After all, there are still four games in the regular season. No one knows what the ranking will be after the four games, so we still try our best to do our best and take care of any one that may be against us." Prepare well, I believe that our youth team, together with the experienced Billups, can make a difference in the playoffs~!!"

Lan Shengli said suddenly with a firm expression.

(End of this chapter)