Basketball boy, starting to shine from the slam dunk

There was indeed an element of luck in this goal, but it was not entirely luck.

Most centers don’t have Jokic’s three-point shooting ability, and even if they can shoot, their touch is not as smooth as his.

For example, Lopez can also shoot three-pointers, but his touch is not as smooth as Jokic. Either it is a hollow hit, or it bounces far away. Basically, it will not hit the basket and then fall into the basket.

It is difficult for a center to have the shooting touch of Jokic.

It’s not that they don’t want to practice, but many centers need to gain muscle because they need to position themselves in the interior and compete with big players.

The benefit of muscle gain is greater confrontational ability, but it is often accompanied by a loss of shooting touch, and the shot is not as smooth.

For example, LeBron James.

During the 1.0 period and high school, James was not that strong. At that time, his playing style was actually very agile and his shooting movements were also good.

Later, when I entered the NBA, my shooting wasn't as good after I gained weight.

In fact, given James's size, it is very rare for him to have such shooting ability as he has today.

Although Jokic has the body type of a center, and a heavy center at that, his wrists are extremely flexible. His dribbling, passing, and shooting are almost the same as those of a guard, even softer than many guards. This is very rare.

With this three-pointer, Jokic has scored 21 points.

Before the end of the first half, he had already scored 21 points, plus 6 rebounds and 5 assists. His performance could be said to be very comprehensive, as if he could do anything.

Points, rebounds, assists, there is nothing he can't do.

"This guy is really strong."

"He can shoot three-pointers, he can dribble, he can post up, he can pass the ball... It's like, yeah, it's like Magic Johnson."

Even some home fans couldn't help but sigh that Jokic is indeed very good. His dynamic talent is average, but his static talent, skills, and basketball IQ are all top-notch.

Well, it would be perfect if I could exchange brains with McGee.

......

Here, the Lakers attack.

After reaching the frontcourt, Zhuang Yu took the initiative to ask for the ball, then started a one-on-one play, dribbling between his legs continuously, then suddenly accelerated, passing Barton in one step.

Jokic came up to help defend, and Zhuang Yu faced him with a jump shot.

"It's the same trick again." Jokic was a little helpless.

Many guards use their speed to get past Jokic. Jokic would rather Zhuang Yu use his speed to get past him, so that there may be teammates behind him to fill in the position. If he turns around in time, he may have a chance to interfere with him and prevent him from scoring.

But when it comes to this kind of lob, he has no way to deal with it.

I can only pray that Zhuang Yu doesn't come in.

"Shh!"

But the next moment he heard the sound of the basketball going through the net.

The ball went in again.

“It’s really too confusing.”

"What can we do with this kind of ball?"

A group of Nuggets' substitute players couldn't help but shake their heads. There was no way to defend this kind of ball. No matter who defended it, the result would be the same.

Of course, it’s not just because Zhuang Yu’s jump shot is accurate enough, but also because he has a strong three-point and mid-range threat, as well as a passing threat.

If a player only knows one thing, he will be easily targeted.

But if a player has many ways to score, it will make it difficult for the defensive player to judge, forcing the defensive player to lose sight of one thing while focusing on another. This can greatly restrain the defensive player and create opportunities and space for his own shots.

Give a simple example.

If Zhuang Yu didn't have a strong three-point shooting ability, Barton wouldn't have to jump so far forward, and it wouldn't have been so easy for Zhuang Yu to pass him. If the first defensive player couldn't pass him, then Zhuang Yu wouldn't have been able to get to the position close to the basket to shoot.

If Jokic is the most comprehensive center, then Zhuang Yu is undoubtedly the most comprehensive guard, no doubt about it.

......

In a blink of an eye, the second quarter ended and the Lakers were still leading by 2 points.

Although the score difference was not that big compared to the previous deficit of more than ten points, the Nuggets players still felt a little depressed.

Jokic played an excellent performance today and was omnipotent on the court, but even so they still couldn't catch up with the score.

This made the Nuggets players feel a little discouraged.

A group of players returned to the locker room and Coach Malone walked in.

He had just been wandering outside the door for a while, thinking about what to say to the players when he came in, how to cheer them up, and how to arrange the next tactics.

It is easy to say cheering and encouraging each other, after all, the score difference between the two sides is not very big, and the players will not lose their fighting spirit.

But how to arrange the tactics next gave him a headache.

In fact, everyone knows that in order to defeat the Lakers, they only need to do one thing, which is to defend Zhuang Yu.

However, this is too difficult.

29 teams in the league are studying how to defend Zhuang Yu and limit his scoring, but has anyone done it?

No.

Regardless of whether it was a team with good or poor defense, they tried various methods, but ultimately failed to successfully defend Zhuang Yu.

Of course this is not surprising. If he could really be defended, he would not be called a super star.

If NBA players were to be divided into several different levels, then superstars would definitely belong to the first tier. Each of them has outstanding skills and super personal abilities.

Maybe everyone's technical characteristics are different, and not everyone is so comprehensive, but it is very difficult to defend any one of them.

But there is actually another level above the super players - that is the truly unstoppable players.

Although some players are strong, they are not unstoppable.

For example, Stephen Curry's physical talent limits his ceiling. Although he is also a superstar, in some key games and the playoffs, he is easily restricted by the opponent's defense.

When it comes to key shots, his ability cannot be compared with players like Kevin Durant, so in the previous Warriors team, Durant was often the one to play key shots.

Because Durant can ignore any defense, no matter whether the opponent sends outside players or inside players to defend, it is a mismatch for him.

He has enough hard-to-solve capabilities!

In today's league, there are only three such players so far - Zhuang Yu, LeBron James, and Kevin Durant.

If players such as James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Kawhi Leonard, and Stephen Curry belong to the first tier of the NBA league.

Then Zhuang Yu, James and Durant belong to the T0 level.

"It is impossible to defend a player like this unless there is something wrong with him." Coach Malone sighed inwardly.

A group of Nuggets players looked at him.

Coach Ma Long clapped his hands, and then cheered everyone up, encouraging them, and then talked about how to play next: "First of all, we still can't relax our defense against Zhuang Yu, especially the three-point defense..."

"More importantly, we have to play well on offense. In the second half, the opponent will definitely further strengthen the defense against Jokic. Murray, Millsap, Barton...you need to stand up and help Jokic share the scoring pressure. After Jokic attracts the defense, you have to seize the opportunity to score the ball. We need to play more..."

A group of players responded.

But no one felt relieved at all, including Jokic.

Because the coach obviously has no way to limit Zhuang Yu. The most he can do is to prevent Zhuang Yu from shooting three-pointers as much as possible, trying to reduce his scoring efficiency.

But Zhuang Yu is not only good at shooting three-pointers. He is taller than Curry, has better physical fitness, and is also very good at mid-range fadeaways and lobs.

This...how do I do this?

Jokic smiled bitterly and could only rely on offense.

But can the offense beat the Lakers?

......

The second half begins.

Entering the second half, both teams sent out their starting lineups. The Nuggets knew that it would be difficult for them to defend Zhuang Yu, so they wanted to gain an advantage on the offensive end.

And just as Coach Malone expected, the Lakers further strengthened their defense against Jokic after entering the second half.

Jokic began to show his passing ability, making wonderful passes to his teammates one after another, but his teammates were not able to seize the opportunity to score the ball.

The Lakers are mentally prepared for how the Nuggets will play in the second half.

Coach Scott made arrangements in advance for every player of the Nuggets.

In fact, the strategies of both sides are the same, which is not to give the other side three-point opportunities.

The Nuggets don't want the Lakers to shoot three-pointers, and the Lakers don't give the Nuggets any chance to shoot three-pointers either.

So when Jokic passes the ball after attracting the defense, and his teammates have no chance to shoot three-pointers, the tactical execution is half failed.

Of course, the Nuggets are not only good at shooting three-pointers.

They also had open cuts and breakthroughs, but the team's No. 2 scorer Murray was tightly guarded by Zhuang Yu. He couldn't break through at this point, and other points were also affected to varying degrees.

After a while, Coach Malone helplessly realized that they could only rely on Jokic.

Jokic on the court also understood this and strengthened his personal offense. However, every time he scored a goal, the Lakers could also fight back. In terms of scoring efficiency and scoring explosiveness, the Lakers were even stronger.

Because the Lakers have Zhuang Yu.

Jokic played very well today, but he is not unstoppable on the scoring end.

However, Zhuang Yu is truly unstoppable. Even if the Nuggets defend his three-pointers tightly, they cannot completely limit his three-pointers.

When Jokic scored a two-pointer in the paint, Zhuang Yu turned around and ran without the ball. After receiving the pass from his teammate, he immediately shot, completely ignoring the defender who rushed over, and hit a three-pointer. The gap between the two sides would widen again.