Pick Westbrook

Chapter 163 A Championship Rivalry

"If nothing else, tonight is probably the last playoff game for the Bobcats."

Barkley grew increasingly terrified of the Bucks.

Facts have proved that a team that uses three-pointers as the team's main offensive tactic can really become a strong team, especially the Bucks Curry, which can really be described as unsolvable.

Barkley originally thought that Curry could hit so many three-pointers in the regular season and broke Ray Allen's single-season three-pointer record just because he stayed on the Bucks team.

And this team has proved as early as last season that they are a team that is very good at creating opportunities to go out from the three-point line.

Barkley also believes that after Curry arrives in the playoffs, facing terrifying defensive pressure, his three-point shooting percentage and efficiency should be able to drop. After all, normal players are like this.

As a result, Curry is shooting even more terrifyingly than in the regular season.

"In the last game, the Bucks broke the record for the number of three-pointers made in a single game in the NBA playoffs!"

Kenny Smith looked at his old partner Barkley and said.

"The Bucks' tactical play is so clever, you think every tactic of his is to create shooting opportunities outside the three-point line, but in fact their three-point threat has created many opportunities for them to easily score inside. .”

"That's the biggest problem facing the Bobcats right now."

"Anti-Bucks three-pointers, their inside will be exploded, and the Bucks have also proved that they are a team that can win the game without three-pointers."

"If you defend the inside, then the last game the Bucks broke the record for the number of three-pointers made in a single game in the NBA playoffs is the best proof."

"In fact, even coach Larry Brown tried to balance the defense, and Westbrook killed the Bobcats by driving alone."

Barkley and Kenny Smith shook their heads at the same time.

Just as the Bobcats frantically tried to avoid the Bucks before the start of the playoffs, they really couldn't do anything about this team.

Game four.

Time Warner Center Arena.

The Charlotte people have looked sad, and all the Bobcats fans hope that a miracle will happen.

Michael Jordan still came to the home arena to cheer for the team, even though he can say responsibly based on his knowledge that the Bobcats are really not at the same level as the Bucks, but he still applauded and encouraged the players on the field .

Coach Larry Brown has completely let go of the burden at this time. Originally, he thought that with his own ability, he could steal one or two victories from the Bucks, but in the end, the Bucks and Li Lai did not give him any hope. .

Coach Larry Brown watches Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace on the court.

The two are the best players of the Bobcats. As a result, Stephen Jackson averaged only 16 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in this round of the series, and his shooting percentage was as low as 40%.

Elvis Presley Gerald Wallace averaged 17 points, 9 rebounds and 2 assists per game, and his shooting percentage was 36%. His stats may be even uglier.

"Is it because the strength level of the two is not enough?"

"of course not!"

Originally, Larry Brown also hoped that Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace could crazily target Curry's defensive weakness, and the Bobcats did the same in the first game at the beginning of the playoffs.

But the overall defense of the Bucks is really good. To be precise, Artest and Rasheed Wallace participated in more defensive rotations, which greatly covered up Curry's defensive weaknesses.

Coach Larry Brown couldn't help heaving a long sigh at this moment.

"It's a pity that the Bobcats are not good at offense. Otherwise, why would Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace be infinitely assisted in this situation."

"The Bobcats really need a star point guard."

on the field.

The Bobcats completely let go of their hands and feet and rushed to the Bucks' basket crazily. This was also their last desperate gamble.

Yi Jianlian and Rasheed Wallace were fouled again and again under the defense of the frame, and Li Lai had no choice but to take O'Neal and Villanueva ahead of schedule.

The Bucks have a solid family background this season!

Even if the two insiders encountered foul trouble at the same time, Li Lai was totally right.

When O'Neal was on the court, the Bucks' inside frame protection and penalty area defense were the team's strongest. Gerald Wallace, who made a crazy breakthrough, finally slowed down at this time.

At the same time, after boxing champion Tyson Chandler left the field, O'Neal started the low-post shark mad singles tactics again. Although he was not as destructive as he was when he was young, he could also overwhelm the Bobcats' restricted area.

The Bucks continued to take the lead at 58:50 at halftime.

Second half of the game.

Dragic suddenly showed his power, relying on his flexible feet to continuously break through and shoot, leading the Bucks' bench to play a wave of 15:5 offensive high slots.

This wave of high slots also continued to open up the scores of the two teams. The Bobcats, which had been very difficult to score, are now facing a situation of madly chasing 18 points, and it is certain that they will be unable to recover.

At the end of the game, the Bucks eliminated the Bobcats 112:100 and advanced to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs!
After winning the game, all members of the Bucks looked calm, and no one cheered and celebrated on the court.

Barkley and Kenny Smith looked at such a goal-oriented Bucks team and became more and more frightened.

Coach Larry Brown did not remind Li to be careful of his next opponent after the season, like coach Vinnie DeNagro of the Bulls in the playoffs last season.

From the bottom of his heart, he hopes that the next team that encounters the Bucks will be careful.

Because this team has passed his test and is a team that truly has the strength to win the championship.

"That kid Popovich called before the playoffs to remind me to be careful about the Bucks' elevator door tactic. He said that even though he had found a way to break this tactic, but because His lineup is too flexible, and he may not be able to defend in place every time."

Li Lai hugged the old coach Larry Brown in front of him, but he was surprised that Popovich could say such words.

"Coach Popovich is also good at coaching flexible lineups and passing and cutting tactics. He must have given you a lot of advice."

Larry Brown nodded, then raised his head and glanced at Li Lai.

"The Bucks haven't played an elevator door in this series."

After speaking, Coach Larry Brown and Li Lai smiled at each other understandingly.

Using this tactic against the Bobcats is indeed a little overkill.

Larry Brown then looked at Westbrook and Curry on the court, enviously said: "These are two perfect players."

"It's just a pity that Curry's height and defense are more suitable for playing point guard."

Li Lai admired Coach Larry Brown's vision, and he could see the problem of the Bucks' double guns in the backcourt with just one glance. If it wasn't because the Bobcats' offensive ability was too low, perhaps Curry's defense in this round of the series would be infinite. enlarge.

Post-match interview.

Coach Larry Brown sat on the chair with a smile on his face. He has created countless miracles and he doesn't need to prove anything at this stage of his career. He is the top coach in the league.

A reporter asked curiously: "Coach Brown, was the Bucks swept and eliminated due to the players or the team's tactics?"

Larry Brown smiled at the thorny question. At this moment, he thought of the young Bucks coach and said, "It's a question of the times."

All the reporters looked at each other, wondering why this old coach who was already well-known in the league suddenly said such words.

Larry Brown explained: "This era is destined to be a stage for young people. Their thinking is not as backward and rigid as mine."

"Obviously, the previous set of defensive inside and mid-range play is no longer feasible in this era. The three-point attack and fast rotation defense are products that conform to the times."

"This will also become the main theme of the entire basketball movement in the future."

Speaking of this, Larry Brown paused for a moment, then stood up and said, "I would like to call this style of play and new offensive tactical system the small ball era!"

"This is the era created by Bucks coach Li Lai!"

Bucks conference room.

Tyronn Lue and Marshall are carefully preparing the intelligence and data of their opponents in the next round. They are sweaty and anxious. It is obvious that the opponents in the next round have brought them great pressure.

Celtics Celtics.

In the first round of the series, the Celtics eliminated the Eagles, which had a better record than them, 4:1.

In fact, even if the Eagles' record is the fourth highest in the East this season, no one thinks they are a championship-level team, and no one thinks they are the opponents of the Celtics.

"The Eagles practice balance, which is the same in terms of offense and defense and players, but their star quality is too low. The closer to the critical moment, the harder it is for the team to win the game."

"In this round of the series, the Celtics defeated the Eagles almost overwhelmingly, and they can get a lead of more than 10 points in every game."

Tyronn Lue has always been very afraid of the Celtics team, not only because they have the only Big Three lineup in the league, but also because the defense of this ball is too terrifying. The best team to defend the Bucks in this stage is not one of them.

Marshall flipped through the data and said: "Garnett has rested more than 20 games in the regular season this season, and Pierce has had more than 10 games."

"Obviously, the Celtics suffered from Garnett's injury in the playoffs last season, so they failed to go further in the playoffs. This season they pay more attention to the health of the team, especially Garnett's health. healthy."

"This is also the reason why the Celtics only ranked fifth in the Eastern Conference in the regular season, but they are definitely the most terrifying team in the Eastern Conference in the playoffs."

Li Lai nodded repeatedly, agreeing with the two teaching assistants.

The Celtics are not only powerful from the Big Three, but also have an extremely deep bench lineup. There is no doubt that this team is indeed the best team to defend the Bucks in the regular season. It can be upgraded to another level.

So the Bucks are about to face a championship-level opponent.

Especially Garnett!

Li Lai still has a deep memory of Garnett limiting the entire offensive system of the Bucks in the regular season.

In addition to the Celtics and Bucks, the other two teams that reached the Eastern Conference semifinals were the Cavaliers and Magic.

The Cavaliers defeated the Bulls 4:1, and James, who missed the regular season MVP, vented his anger on the Bulls.

In this round of the series, James averaged 32 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists per game, playing a very dominant playoff round.

And Rose of the Bulls also proved for the first time in this round of playoffs that he has the potential to become a super giant. He averaged 27 points, 3 rebounds and 7 assists per game, and staged shocking scenes one after another at critical moments. The team scored to bite the game.

If it weren't for the slight lack of quality of other Bulls players, Rose might even be able to pull down the Cavaliers with the second record in the league.

The Cavaliers can only beat the Bulls by 6 points per game in this round of the series, which is also the best proof.

In another group, the Magic and the Heat played a slightly anxious game. The Magic, which lost Hedo Turkoglu, finally proved how much they needed the opponent's passing ability in the playoffs.

Warcraft Howard averaged 21 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocks per game in this round of the series, and even played a tiebreaker with the Heat.

Wade averaged 33 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists, proving he is the second-best shooting guard on the planet.

It's a pity that the Heat couldn't limit Howard inside, and couldn't limit the Magic's three-point bombing outside. Even if Wade played a phenomenal performance alone, he still failed to lead the team to the next round.

In the last tiebreaker, the Heat only lost to the Magic by 5 points, which is extremely regrettable.

In this way, the dust settles on the Eastern Conference semifinal matchup, Bucks vs Celtics, Cavaliers vs Magic.

"I don't know if James can cross the Magic and Howard this time."

Last season, the Cavaliers fell in front of the Magic in the Eastern Conference finals. This season, the strength of the Magic has declined significantly, but Howard still has a great limiting effect on James during this period. It all depends on whether the little emperor can Step over.

Seeing that Li Lai was able to pay so much attention to the games of other teams at this critical moment, Tyronn Lue and Marshall seemed to have a backbone, and they were no longer as flustered as before.

Marshall feels more and more that the young man standing in front of him has a maturity and stability beyond his own age, and he and Tyronn Lue seem to be too different in this area.

Tyronn Lue relaxed and talked about the situation of the Western Conference teams.

The Lakers abused the Grizzlies 4-0. In this round of the series, Kobe didn't even break a sweat. He averaged only 23 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists per game. The average number of shots per game was only 19, which was even lower than his regular season stage. .

It's just that Kobe, who is pointing at the defending champion, really doesn't need to play so hard in the first round. The Grizzlies are not the opponents of the Lakers at all.

OJ Mayo has been trained by Kobe Bryant throughout the series, and the Grizzlies finally understand the gap between their favored man and the league's super giant.

Gasol averaged 18 points and 13 rebounds per game in this round of the series, Andrew Bynum's double-ten data was 12 points and 10 rebounds, plus Lamar Odom and Derek Fisher averaged 10 points per game, The Lakers blossomed more and directly sent the Grizzlies home to fish.

In addition, the Lone Ranger team was eliminated by the Spurs 4:2. The classic bull-horse battle is always so exciting. The matchup between the silver horn king Dirk Nowitzki and Duncan has always been the focus of the entire series. .

It's just that Nowitzki won the data, and Duncan, who was both offensive and defensive, won the game.

The silver and black army led by Popovich is getting better and better, and their substitute players are gradually integrating into the team's offensive system. This team has become more and more difficult to deal with.

The Suns and Trail Blazers also contributed a very exciting series.

Huang Manba Roy changed his life against the sky several times to continue his life for the team, but Nash of the Suns was too stable. Terby was because he and Stoudemire's pick-and-roll cooperation at critical moments made the Trail Blazers exhausted many times. suffered.

What made the Trail Blazers even more powerless was that dunk king Jason Richardson played the best round of his career in the playoffs, averaging 24 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal per game. The player with the highest score on the team.

Only the last group of the Nuggets and Jazz game, the result exceeded everyone's expectations.

The Nuggets were eliminated 4:2.

Anthony dedicated his most threatening round of the series, averaging 31 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists per game, and he also shot 49% from the field.

You know, almost all of Anthony's shooting percentages were played in one-on-one singles. His dominance in this round of the series is really terrifying, but unfortunately the Nuggets still lost the game .

They were able to reach the Western Conference finals last season, but they stopped in the first round this season. The Nuggets and Anthony, who had put in too much effort, felt desperate at the same time.

The former accused the latter of having always had great problems in defense, and the latter also felt that the former had never found a superstar for himself in his playing years.

"In this era of demons dancing in the West, how can Anthony alone compete with strong teams like the Lakers and Spurs?"

Tyronn Lue is still seeking justice for Anthony. He has been in the West for many years and he is very aware of the competition there. Even the Lakers led by Kobe back then had some messy results in the West, not to mention Carmelo Anthony. .

Li Lai nodded, he already had a hunch.

The era of the Possessed Rondo, which was so unbalanced and abnormal in the West, may soon be over.

Therefore, the dust settled in the Western Conference semifinals, the Lakers vs. the Jazz, and the Suns vs. the Spurs.

Seeing that Tai Lu and Marshall finally relaxed, Li Lai also talked about what he cared most about.

"Playing the Celtics is definitely not easy. The mentality of the players is extremely important in this series."

　There is only one chapter tonight.

　　brothers remember to vote

　　
　
(End of this chapter)