Pick Westbrook

Chapter 107
April 4, Bradley Arena.

In the second game of the first round of the NBA playoffs, the Bucks played against the Chicago Bulls at home.

Because of the big victory in the first game, the enthusiasm of the Bucks fans was high, and all the businesses around the streets of Milwaukee gathered outside the arena to cheer for the home team.

Inside the Bradley Arena, the shouts of the fans were even more deafening.

"This is our fans!"

"Although they scold you badly on weekdays, they are still our most loyal supporters."

Looking at the tense atmosphere at the scene, Hammond said with a little pride.

The Bucks' mascot, Bongo, worked so hard on the court that he even pulled out the gun and fired at the fans.

What was shot out were some gifts, such as folded half-sleeved jerseys, headbands, candies, etc., gifts that would not hurt children.

Li Lai still watched the Bulls on the opposite side cautiously.

Although judging from the last game, the Bulls hardly put a lot of pressure on the Bucks, but this is the playoffs after all, and Li Lai didn't think the opponent would disarm and shoot.

on the field.

The Bulls players all looked dignified. The terrifying three-pointer of 12 of 10 in a single quarter in the last game still left a lot of shadows in their hearts.

No team plays like this these days.

Rose looked at the court with his hands on his hips, and his face was a little more serious than it should be at his age.

Game start!
Bucks regular starter.

Bulls regular starter.

Joakim Noah made a successful jump ball and the Bulls launched an offense.

Rose advanced with the ball, Ben Gordon circled the screen, and Noah suddenly raised the high pick-and-roll from bottom to top.

Barkley frowned.

Although the Bulls on the field are still most familiar with the unlimited pick-and-roll tactics, letting Ben Gordon try to come to the low post to catch and jump shots, but today's tactics are obviously different from yesterday.

George Hill still defends close to the court, whether it is running without the ball or defending the ball, he has done a very good job.

Only this time, Rose, who played a pick-and-roll from the outside, went directly to the inside, and the speed was extremely fast.

call!
This scene shocked everyone.

After Rose entered the penalty area, he faced Villanueva's defense and scored a 2+1.

"beautiful!"

"The ball was hit hard!"

After the goal, Rose and his teammates celebrated with high fives, and came to the free throw line to make a steady free throw.

Kenny Smith, who has become a fan of the Bucks, didn't think there was anything wrong with the ball just now, but said with a sideways frame: "The Bucks should be careful about their defense."

Westbrook raised his hand and patted himself on the head, signaling his teammates to keep a close eye on Rose. It would be uncomfortable for this guy to be defended by only one person, and then advanced with the ball.

Yi Jianlian once again mentioned the high pick-and-roll, Tyrus Thomas put it on, Joakim Noah put it on, and Rose followed Westbrook in front of him to prevent the opponent from easily attacking.

"Is this a three-person double-team defense?!"

Kenny Smith looked at the scene on the field in amazement.

It seems that the last game has completely made the Bulls team understand that they want to rely on normal defense to limit the outside pick-and-roll tactics of the Bucks Westbrook and Yi Jianlian, which is not realistic at all.

"After all, this is a tactic that the Bucks have played too many times in the regular season. If it is really so easy to defend, this tactic has long been eliminated."

Barkley clearly remembers that George Karl of the Nuggets, Popovich of the Spurs, and Phil Jackson of the Lakers all tried to defend this offensive tactic.

Of course, there are advantages and disadvantages, some are well defended and some are not well defended, but in the end they were all completely broken by the subsequent offensive changes of the Bucks.

So the Bulls want to limit the Bucks' offensive tactics with the current lineup, which is completely impossible.

"Now we have to see how the players on the Bucks respond!"

After the three-person double-team, Yi Jianlian was locked up, and Westbrook's breakthrough and three-point offensive options were restricted. But at this time, there is more defense and less defense on the court, which means that the Bucks must have players. in the vacant state.

Villanueva raised his hand for the ball from the bottom corner, and John Salmons directly blocked the passing lane while helping to defend Artest.

"give me!"

George Hill offered the ball.

At the same time that Westbrook returned a pass in an instant, George Hill dragged the penalty kick to the sky with one hand.

The experienced Artest cuts to the basket for an easy dunk.

This is why John Salmons is only helping to defend Artest's loopholes. This defensive choice is also most afraid of the opponent's sudden air cut to the basket.

Kenny Smith smiled awkwardly and said, "Ugly is a bit ugly, but luckily we got in."

Because of this ball, Barkley also reappreciated the player George Hill.

For the pass just now, Westbrook was in a blind spot, and it was impossible to drag the ball to the inside. After all, there were two big and tall teams of the Bulls in front of him who interfered with the line of sight and path of the pass, except for Magic Johnson and James. Except for the tall passer, most defenders are not easy to pass such a ball.

So George Hill discovered this passing opportunity, took the initiative to ask for the ball and made a transition pass, which allowed Artest to score smoothly.

Of course, Artest's dunk was ugly.

Artest, who looked like a bear on the court, gave the two of them a speechless look and said, "You are ugly."

Bulls head coach Vinnie De Nagro frowned and was very upset, because the Bucks pick-and-roll tactic he specially designed for the team was cracked so easily, it was simply vulnerable.

But he still has confidence in tonight's game.

"If we weren't down a full 10 points in the first quarter last game, we wouldn't necessarily have lost to them."

Vinnie DeNagro is very clear that they will never be as constipated in the first quarter of this game as they were in the last game, with only 20 points.

Because Rose approached him specifically after the last game and said, "Coach, let me be the team's main attacker.

The Bucks' defense obviously has a big impact on Ben Gordon, so now it's my turn to carry the load on the team's offense. "

This is the first time Vinnie de Nagro has seen a rookie dare to take the initiative to take on the offensive responsibility in the playoffs, and it is from the team's scoring leader Ben Gordon.

Pooh DeNagello looks out onto the field.

He knew Rose was a different player, the entire Bulls front office knew it, and so did every Bulls player.

Rose is going to become the absolute core of the team next season, so this season is just for him to lose his rookie childishness.

But judging from now, it seems that the Bulls' management and Vinnie De Nagro are thinking too much, and Rose has long lost his childishness.

On the court, Rose once again entered the penalty area, this time facing Yi Jianlian's help defense.

beep!beep!
The referee blows the whistle and the shot is fouled.

Fortunately, the basketball swung around the basket and didn't fall in, otherwise it would be another 2+1.

"The Bucks' inside weakness was seen by the Bulls." Barkley said suddenly.

"what?!"

Kenny Smith turned his head in shock, then looked back at the court.

He also suddenly discovered that in the first quarter, it seemed that Rose had been frequently hitting the Bucks' penalty area.

As early as the beginning of the season, the Bucks had already exposed the defensive problems in the penalty area. At that time, James frequently hit the basket to score easily.

"Coach, if you play like this, the Bucks may suffer."

Tyronn Lue pointed to Rose on the court and said.

"That guy's breakthrough kills are too exaggerated. As long as he borrows a pick-and-roll from the outside, he can hit the basket extremely fast. It won't work for anyone to defend him like this."

Li Lai silently watched the score of 28:28 on the court. There was only 1 minute left in the first quarter.

In the first quarter alone, Ross scored 14 points.

This single-quarter stat is a bit exaggerated, even compared to his full-court stats in the last game.

"So, it is indeed time to find a way to limit Rose."

The second game.

The Bucks still have their own shooting team, and the Bulls are still a simplified version of the Princeton system headed by Miller.

The bench lineups of the two teams fought together again.

Barkley said with a wry smile: "Being able to become a substitute player is naturally because he is not qualified defensively and it is difficult to enter the starting lineup. Therefore, focusing on the offensive end is the strategy of most teams in the league as a substitute lineup."

"Like the Mavericks and Spurs with the highest scoring bench this season."

"But the Bucks and Bulls played too extreme. They have almost no defense at all. They are the only offense."

In the last game, the Bulls substitute who scored 10 three-pointers in a single quarter was also very afraid of the shooting ability of the Bucks players on the court at this time.

Especially the guy named Andre Ingram, who doesn't do anything on the court, just keeps running back and forth, and then finds a gap for the shot, one word, shoot.

"Gordon, stalk that guy whose name I don't know, where did he come from!"

Vinnie DeNagello yelled down the court.

Ben Gordon nodded and took a deep breath.

He found that the Bucks player, who had never even heard of his name, was really good at running, and his shots were extremely accurate. If he didn't pay attention, he might be shot by the opponent from outside the three-point line.

Of course, if such a player is good, he is not considered good. Both the overall strength and talent are far behind other players, but the opponent is a thief, and he is good at playing, and can also play a role on the court.

"A trouble that can be limited."

In this game, in order to prevent the Bucks from attacking from outside, the Bulls substitute gave Dragic too many opportunities to break through the inside. It was also a five-man lineup, and the two teams chose completely different styles of play.

The old Miller was intercepted by Crohill, the Bucks launched a fast break, and Dragic scored an easy layup.

In the second half of the game, the score on the court had reached 55:52, and the Bucks maintained a weak 3-point lead.

The main players on both sides are on the stage.

Rose still attacked the inside of the Bucks, but this time the situation made him completely unexpected.

"Westbrook pressed early! This is actively looking for physical contact!"

"The two collided, and the Bulls' offensive tactics couldn't be played out."

"Falled! Fallen! Both Westbrook and Rose fell to the ground. How did the referee blow this ball?"

The sideline referee took a look at the two, and finally gave a defensive foul without hesitation.

The Milwaukee fans at the scene were unhappy, and the trash talk was overwhelming.

"Damn it, your basketball coaching qualification was tested by a physical education teacher. This is an offensive foul!"

"No, the physical education teacher is also very busy. This guy probably messed with a referee. With 3 months of field coaching experience, I can say responsibly that this ball is a level [-] flagrant foul by Rose."

"The brain is very important, but he obviously doesn't have it."

Tyronn Lue glanced at Li Lai nervously, and took a deep breath.

He had personally heard Li Lai's tactical arrangement during the intermission, "Russell, give me physical strength!"

"I can accept Rose scoring, and I can accept that he pinpointed our weakness and scored in the penalty area, but I can never accept him scoring so easily."

"Give you 3 fouls, and I want you to lower Rose's touch under normal confrontation."

Judging from the current picture on the court, Westbrook has also accomplished this task brilliantly.

So what if you get Ross a defensive foul?

As long as you don't stand on the free throw line, it will be a re-serve from the sideline. At this time, the Bucks must do a good job of defending against Rose's off-ball defense and receiving restrictions.

Noah served from the sideline, but he couldn't find Rose's position while holding the ball.

And Rose also frequently ran forward and backward on the court, but was always surrounded by the two people in front of him.

Ben Gordon stood up decisively to receive the ball, but at the same time George Hill's defense was also covered.

This is the defensive strategy deployed by Li Lai. At the same time, Artest assists in defending the penalty area to limit Ben Gordon's breakthrough.

In this way, the chain is intertwined, and the Bulls' offense is blocked again.

Vinnie DeNagello ran to the sideline in a hurry, waved his hands and shouted: "Turn the ball up! One-on-one scoring efficiency can't keep up with the Bucks' offense."

But it's not that easy to pass the ball.

Rose was guarded to death, Noah was pushed out of the penalty area, and the Bulls are now only able to score independently - Ben Gordon.

Duang!

Ben Gordon hit the iron again with his shot, and the Bucks fought back!

boom!
Westbrook's familiar tomahawk snap.

"The Bulls have to lose again." Kenny Smith said with a smile.

Even though the Bulls took the initiative to hit the Bucks' defensive weakness in the penalty area in this game, they still failed to kill each other. This is the Bucks this season.

Ken Smith suddenly said: "Now I understand that the Eagles deliberately avoided the Bucks. This team is really underestimated by everyone.

Only the Eagles, who tried their best to beat them, knew their strength very well. "

Barkley said: "In the first game, the Bulls were pulled away by a wave of three-pointers bombed by the opponent in the second quarter."

"And in this game, the Bulls were blocked by the Bucks' sudden and extremely strong defense in the third quarter, limiting Rose's performance, and the score was pulled away again."

"Although there is a good chance of losing the game, I have seen the improvement of the Bulls."

To be precise, I saw Rose's sudden responsibility and leadership qualities.

Li Lai also saw the tenacity of the Bulls.

In the fourth quarter, Rose once again staged a crazy style of play. Facing the Bucks' two or three-man defense, he was like a lone ranger, frequently entering the penalty area and causing damage.

It's just that compared to his own offense, the Bucks' team offense is more threatening and more efficient, so the Bulls still lost the game.

105: 98.

The Bucks lead 2:0!

CCTV commentary desk.

"This series has completely taken the fans by surprise."

"Originally one was the fourth-ranked team in the East, and the other was the fifth-ranked team. The overall strength of the two teams should be similar."

"But judging from the direction of the series, the overall strength of the Bulls seems to be far behind that of the Bucks."

Although Zhang Weiping appeared serious, he was already happy in his heart. Yi Jianlian played so freely and strong in the first playoffs, which was much better than Yao Ming's bumpy playoffs.

Yu Jia looked at the data and said: "Although the strength gap between the fourth and fifth ranked teams is indeed the smallest in the confrontation between the East and the West, one detail that we cannot ignore is that the Bucks have a record of 55 wins and 27 losses this season. , while the Bulls only had 47 wins and 35 losses.

This victory gap is not small! "

Zhang Weiping remembered that there were only four teams in the Eastern Conference with a winning percentage of over 60%. Other than that, the winning percentages of other teams were very different.

“可惜了罗斯在这场比赛26投13中，三分球3投0中，罚球8中6，砍下了32分4篮板4助攻的数据。

To be able to score such a high score on a stage like the playoffs, he is indeed a talented rookie. "

Post-match interview.

Facing the unconvinced face of the reporters in front of him, coach Vinnie DeNagello said arrogantly: "We are going to fight the local Bucks!"

　Delayed for a while today, only one chapter big.

　　Add more tomorrow.

　　muah.

　　Guys, vote for it.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)