Junior Basketball says

Chapter 325 Brothers Fight
Before the start of the playoffs, everyone thought that the Spurs VS Timberwolves should be the fastest to finish.Of course, the ending speed of this round of the series barely met the predictions of experts and fans, but the final result was completely different from what they imagined. It was the Timberwolves who defeated their opponents and advanced to the second round, and they had not yet reached a crucial point against the Spurs. Seventh match!

When this result came out, the national basketball community was in an uproar.Although this is not the first time a black eight miracle has occurred in NBA history, the Timberwolves should not be a team that can eliminate the Spurs.In the eyes of most people, playoff experience is very important, and the Timberwolves are obviously far behind the Spurs in this regard. How can they defeat their opponents?
Everyone who has watched the game has to admit that it is definitely not luck that the Timberwolves can advance. Among the 4 games they won, they averaged double-digit wins per game. Is this the result of luck?If they really relied on luck to advance, then these few games should be narrowly won, and there will definitely be a lore.

But in fact there is no lore. The Timberwolves rely on complete restraint in style, punching the old master forcefully to death, and the Spurs players are almost directly dragged down by them during the game. This is a very terrible thing.For an experienced team, the players are exhausted, so what's the use of your experience?
However, the Timberwolves players are all flesh and blood. Even Xu Hao, who has the best physical strength, can't stand it after the series. McHale simply gave them two days off to rest at home and prepare for the second round.

In Xu Hao's view, the two-day rest period is very important, because their opponent in the second round is to some extent more difficult to play than the Spurs, and that is the Thunder, who are also young and full of talent. Xu Hao faced his good brother Harden head-on for the first time in the playoffs, but the Thunder's overall strength seemed to be stronger than the Timberwolves.

More importantly, it will be difficult for the Timberwolves to continue to replicate their performance against the Spurs against the Thunder, because the Thunder are more physically capable than them and can run better than them, and Westbrook and Durant are never afraid to play against you.In fact, Xu Hao feels that if the Thunder can further optimize their inside players, they will be a team more suitable for playing small ball.

Of course, Xu Hao will not be afraid to play against the Thunder. The young guards are also established through the draft. In the future, these two teams that are also in the Northwest Division will become direct competitors. It is good to find out now.Especially Westbrook, Xu Hao thinks this is a well-matched opponent, at least much more interesting than facing Parker.

Unlike Xu Hao's high fighting spirit, McHale is very worried about the team's prospects.If defeating the Spurs made him realize the power of small ball tactics, then the Thunder's lineup made him realize that small ball tactics are not omnipotent.

McHale could see that even if the Timberwolves adopted the same tactics as in the first round, it would be difficult to defeat the Thunder.And he believes that Xu Hao may face a severe challenge in this series. Sefolosha in the Thunder is the league's top perimeter defender. In terms of defensive ability alone, the Spurs' two star guards are far behind him. It was obviously prepared for Xu Hao.

After two days of rest, the Timberwolves players have fully recovered, and McHale also took them to Oklahoma City to adapt to the venue.Of course, Xu Hao also got in touch with Harden in advance. As the host, Harden must treat his good brother to dinner, but when the Thunder go to Minneapolis, Xu Hao will also invite them back.

In a small restaurant in Oklahoma City, Xu Hao and Harden chatted while eating in a relatively quiet corner.Xu Hao cut off a piece of barbecue, dipped it in a little seasoning, stuffed it into his mouth, and joked: "Dude, do you have any news to tell me before this round of the series starts? Just like what you did during the All-Star Weekend." like..."

Harden gave him an annoyed look: "Please, now our two teams are in a state of life and death. What does it look like to disclose the news to you? Why don't you tell me some news about the Timberwolves first? "

The two laughed together. They both knew that the other was joking. The most suitable thing for them at this time was to talk about their college days and some interesting things about their respective teams. It was best not to involve the playoffs. .In fact, this is also the reason why Harden chose such a place to eat, otherwise he wouldn't have been so hyped by reporters?
Xu Hao and Harden ate until after 10 o'clock in the evening before going back to their respective homes to find their respective mothers. The next time they met would be on the court.Although Xu Hao is the starting point guard of the Timberwolves and Harden is only the sixth man of the Thunder, Xu Hao averages nearly 40 minutes per game, and Harden will definitely stay on the court at critical moments. The two will definitely have a lot of offensive and defensive matchups. Opportunity.

The two can be said to have come from the same school. In terms of strength, it can only be said that each has its own strengths. Xu Hao believes that he can beat Harden, and Harden also believes that he is not weaker than Xu Hao.In fact, Westbrook, Durant and Harden have been called the "Thunder Three" in the league. This is an affirmation of their potential and talent, but the head coach Brooks does not want to put three ball-handlers on the court at the same time. , lest one ball is not enough to score, this gave Harden the position of the sixth man, and it stands to reason that he is the third master.

After returning to the hotel, Xu Hao hurriedly washed up and lay on the bed to enter the system. He must gain more experience against the Thunder.As teams in the same district, they met four times in the regular season this season, and the Timberwolves only achieved 1 win and 3 losses. But the key is that they lost three games without Xu Hao, and when Xu Hao returned from injury, , the Timberwolves avoided being shaved bald by the opponent. This is also the fundamental reason why Timberwolves fans firmly believe that the team can advance again.

However, Xu Hao also admitted that the Thunder is a difficult opponent to deal with. In the system's virtual game, the two sides were inseparable. From this, it can be seen that the Timberwolves are not sure of victory.But to be able to reach this level, the Timberwolves are already very good. After all, their advantage against the Spurs has disappeared against the Thunder. Now is the time to compete with the hard power of both sides. It seems that the Timberwolves are going to return to their previous joy. Fu and Jordan's regular start in the inside partner.

In Xu Hao's view, it is a trivial matter which lineup to use. Now is the time to test the overall strength of the Timberwolves.

(End of this chapter)