NBA: Two hands can’t carry championship rings

The New Orleans Hornets, if not too different, will be renamed the Pelicans in the future. This is a team with many disasters.

The team, which was called the Charlotte Hornets in 2002, moved to New Orleans, Louisiana and was renamed the New Orleans Hornets.

The team moved from the Eastern Conference to the Western Conference. After two seasons of stable performance, it finally became a weakling in the wild and cruel Western Conference.

Then, along with a brutal hurricane, the team had to temporarily move some home games to Oklahoma City.

After that, the team ushered in a new dawn after drafting Chris Paul.

Under the leadership of Paul, the team took on a new look, and Chris Paul also made the team management determined to build the lineup with him as the core of the team through his extreme performance.

Court general Paul can always control the rhythm of the court very well.

The sharpshooter Peja Stojakovic, who was traded last season, continues to show his precise shooting ability, which gives Paul a lot of room for breakthrough.

All-star David West's mid-range shot after a screen is ridiculously stable. He and Tyson Chandler provided a double-screen tactic for Paul, one for a mid-range shot after a screen, and another for a dunk after a screen. It makes people hard to guard against.

Outside Maurice Peterson plays a 3D role, and on the bench there are shooter Rasu Butler and point guard Janillo Pargo who can always quickly enter the role after coming off the bench.

In the end, relying on the stable performance of these players, the New Orleans Hornets recorded a franchise-record 56 wins and 26 losses in the regular season and ranked second in the Western Conference. Chris Paul also ranked on the league MVP list with his super all-around performance. At the forefront, he also surpassed super point guards Nash and Kidd in terms of statistics, becoming the league's steal leader and assist leader.

There are many rookies in the league. After two years of experience in the league, they began to realize their talents in the third year and became the leaders of the new generation of the league.

There is no doubt that Paul is such a player.

You can say that this Hornets team is a little immature, but you can't ignore the strength they have shown this season.

They are the second-best team in the Western Conference behind the Lakers.

The Warriors did not underestimate the youth of the Hornets. They were more accustomed to being underestimated, thus giving a fatal blow to the team that underestimated them.

After learning that the opponent in the series was the Hornets, the Warriors coaching staff began to analyze the Hornets' tactical system and study their tactics.

All the Warriors players, led by captains Jackson and Kidd, watched some classic combinations of the Hornets after training and studied the habits of the Hornets players during games.

The Smoothie King Center is packed, and this is the playoffs.

Fans wear uniform lake blue short-sleeves or jerseys, making the stadium look like a blue lake.

This is the lake blue color of the New Orleans Hornets.

The two teams were just training before the game, but the fans entering the stadium were already agitated, and the stadium was constantly noisy.

The New Orleans fans have been waiting too hard for this moment when the team returns to the playoff stage.

The pre-game procedures are completed and players from both sides take the field.

The regular season is over, and the selection of the best sixth man does not include the playoffs. This makes Yue Yi lose the meaning of sitting on the bench. He returned to the starting lineup and served as the team's shooting guard.

Before the jump ball, the players from both sides exchanged polite greetings before the game. Yue Yi and Paul both had expressionless faces and did not even look at each other.

When the game started, the Hornets took the lead and got the ball first.

Paul and Chandler had a classic pick-and-roll. Chandler followed up and Paul threw the ball in the air, but Biedrins destroyed it early and sent it out of bounds. The Hornets still had the ball.

The Warriors used this shot to tell Paul: Young man, welcome to the playoffs.

If you think about scoring such an easy alley-oop, it's impossible.

After the Hornets served in the frontcourt, the round ended with power forward West making a mid-range shot, but the ball did not go in.

The Hornets switched from offense to defense, and on the defensive end they gave Yue Yi two free throws when he broke through to their inside line.

Yue Yi made two free throws.

This offense and defense are the epitome of the Hornets' entire game.

On the offensive end, they played many rounds as casually as in the regular season, but their success rate was not as high as it was in the regular season.

On the defensive end, they worked too hard and were too tight, which frequently sent Warriors players to the free throw line.

On the other hand, the Warriors are well-organized on the offensive end under the guidance of veteran Kidd. The whole team moves and positions in an orderly manner. On the defensive end, they are experienced. Kidd and Jackson are veterans. They make small moves constantly, but they can always escape. The referee's eyes.

When Hornets players want to retaliate, Kidd and others will react exaggeratedly, causing the referee to call a foul.

After the game, Paul publicly stated at the pre-game press conference that Jason Kidd was no longer his idol.

In his first playoff game, Paul was given military training by Jason Kidd. Not only did he feel uncomfortable during the game, but he also got angry.

Captain Jackson trash-talked his opponent Peja during the game. The defensive end was not only aggressive but also verbal, causing Peja to make 5 of 15 shots, which was a huge loss.

When Peja was young and playing for the Kings, he accumulated a lot of playoff experience, but he was still limited when he encountered a powerful captain.

Since joining the Hornets, he hasn't experienced the intensity of the playoffs for a long time. Now he encountered the confrontation from the tough Jackson, and he couldn't slow down at once.

In the first game of the series, the Warriors defeated the Hornets 107:93 in an away game and took the lead.

After the game, the media reiterated the miracle of last year's eight games, saying that this year's Warriors will succeed in seven games.

Yue Yi made 8 of 15 shots in this game and scored 22 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists. His debut in the playoffs was perfect.

On April 23, the two teams started the second game of the series.

In this game, the two teams were inseparable.

Core Paul was still inexperienced, and he met the point guard master Kidd, and his performance was still poor. However, David West and veteran Peja recovered and quickly adapted to the intensity of the playoffs and regained their strength. The rhythm of the game.

At the critical moment of the game, when the score between the two teams was tense, Peja scored a three-pointer.

Warriors power forward Harrington was unable to guard against West's offense throughout the game. West's low-post singles and catch-and-shoot mid-range shots after cooperating with Paul in the pick-and-roll, Harrington was unable to guard.

At the last moment, West made two key mid-range shots to kill the game.

The score was 102:107. With the support of all Lake Blue fans, West scored 35 points and 13 rebounds, leading the Hornets to regain a victory.

Former All-Star small forward Peja also performed well, making 9 of 17 shots, 3 of 5 three-pointers, and scored 24 points, saving face for his performance in the previous game.

Captain Jackson wants to limit Peja forever, which is obviously impossible.

For the Warriors, Kidd had 15 points and 13 assists, which was impressive enough.

However, the main center Biedlins showed his hips and only scored 16 points and 8 rebounds, with a shooting percentage of less than 50%.

Biedrins's poor performance against teams with strong inside players was once again reflected.

The main center of the Hornets is"Boxing Champion" Chandler. He has excellent physical fitness, first-class running and jumping ability, and outstanding defensive level. At the same time, he has a high golf IQ and is not the kind of reckless insider who relies on his body to play.

Under his defense, Biedlins' performance in both games was not as good as in the regular season. However, the Warriors won the first game, and Biedlins' performance was quite satisfactory, and he did not immediately expose the problem of offensive obstruction. That’s all.

As soon as the team lost the second game, the problem was nakedly exposed.

Yue Yi was also a little stretched in this game. Although he scored 17 points, his shooting rate was not high, 6 of 15 shots, and 3 turnovers. He was blocked by the boxing champion twice when he broke through for a layup.

The playoffs are a place to test the quality of superstars. The two bad guys of the Warriors revealed their true level in the playoffs.

Fortunately for Yue Yi, he is only a rookie after all. Paul, who has played in the league for three years, did not perform well in his first playoff appearance.

But Biedrins is different. He is already a Mesozoic player in the league. This will be his peak period. In his playing years, he is the core insider of the Warriors and the first choice on the offensive end. He has no excuses to shirk it. of.

However, after the Hornets returned to their home court after winning a home victory, this result was completely acceptable to the Warriors.

After these two games, the Warriors won the home court advantage from the Hornets. When they return to Oracle Arena, the golden wave of fanaticism will sweep over them, even more surging than the blue of the lake.

At this time last year, didn't the golden wave drown the Mavericks?