Pick Westbrook

Chapter 248 Always One Step Ahead

The first quarter ended quickly.

Rose panted and stared at the celebrating Bucks on the field.

In this game, the Bucks put a lot of defensive pressure on him, so much so that he only scored one shot in a positional battle.

If it weren't for the two counterattacks and fast breaks in the sports game, Rose would have been completely defended in the first quarter.

"Fortunately, Rose also made Cousins, Villanueva, and Artest each receive a foul by breaking through and killing, so the Bucks are also not feeling well."

Barkley looked at the court and couldn't help applauding.

Even though the difference between the two teams did not widen after the first quarter, the Bucks clearly had the upper hand in terms of morale and dominance on the court.

Kenny Smith was extremely excited.

"This is the Bucks!"

"I said, we can always trust the Bucks."

"This team has proved itself as early as the first two seasons. Their team culture: perseverance, never admit defeat, never give up, strong rebound!"

"The stronger the opponent, the stronger the Bucks will be."

Barkley nodded aside.

Regarding the team culture of this Bucks team, he and his old partner Kenny Smith have the same views.

Tough!tough!
Such a tough culture is naturally related to the management of the entire team, and veterans in the team will also have a great influence on it.

Of course, Barkley, who was born as a player, sees it more clearly.

Up and down.

What kind of stadium temperament a team can show is inseparable from their leaders.

Back then, Bird was the king of the Celtics, Thomas of the Pistons, Joe of the Bulls, O'Neal of the Lakers during the OK period, and the Spurs...

Barkley was taken aback when he thought of the Spurs.

He knew that the Spurs were built with Duncan, and the entire team was working for Duncan, but when it came to who was the leader of the Spurs, Barkley shook his head.

He can confidently say that it is not Stone Buddha Duncan.

"Although Duncan is very strong, he is not the leader of the Spurs."

Barkley looked at this Bucks team, and he can also say with certainty that the leader of this team is neither Artest nor Westbrook.

28: 22.

Bulls coach.

Tom Thibodeau looked at Li Lai on the Bucks coaching bench with a serious face.

The Bulls assistant coach handed over the statistics of the first quarter at this time.

Rose scored 8 points, 1 rebound and 4 assists in the first quarter.

If you look at the statistics alone, his performance in this game is not bad, but if you focus on the scoring efficiency that can better explain the game itself, Rose is obviously under great defensive pressure in tonight's game.

6 of 2 shots, both goals were scored in sports games.

If it weren't for the free throw line 4 times, Rose's performance tonight is not good, at least it is far from his second performance in the regular season MVP this season.

Of course, the current Rose is completely unlike him in his rookie season. When faced with the opponent's sudden high-intensity defense, he was at a loss, inexperienced, and didn't know how to respond effectively.

Making fouls, standing at the free throw line, passing assists, these are the obvious changes Rose has made on the court.

only……

Tom Thibodeau glanced at the last column of the stats and saw 4 turnovers.

"Ross is different from the old-school point guards. He belongs to the new generation of offensive point guards, and he is still a very strong one."

"In terms of offense, Rose is definitely considered a superstar in the league today, but in terms of passing, he is probably only around the league average."

"That's why the Bulls fell behind in the first quarter."

Tom Thibodeau was a little amazed at the adaptability of the Bucks coaching staff. They found the weakness of Rose's pass after only one game.

More importantly, the Bulls do not have a particularly strong traditional point guard in a strict sense. If the Bucks defend like this throughout the series, the Bulls may be extremely uncomfortable.

Of course, it's not that Tom Thibodeau didn't think of a solution to this problem, he just hesitated.

"Paul Pierce!"

The second quarter begins.

Paul Pierce leads the Bulls off the bench.

Yu Jia said with some concern: "Pierce is not Rose, he has very rich game experience."

"If the Bucks still want to defend Pierce like Rose, he won't be like Rose, and your Bucks will make 4 turnovers in a single quarter."

"However, Su pointed out, why didn't the Bulls let Pierce come to hold the ball as early as possible when Ross encountered great defensive pressure in the first quarter?"

Su Qun shook his head decisively when he heard these words.

"It's not that the Bulls didn't think of it, and it's not that Pierce didn't have the ability."

"The coaching staff of the Bulls are very aware of the strength of the team standing in front of them. They dare not!"

Yu Jia raised his eyebrows and said strangely: "Don't you dare?"

Su Qun nodded and took a deep breath.

Not only the Bulls, but everyone in the league doesn't know the strength of the Bucks' bench lineup.

— Second in the league!
Led by Dragic, the best sixth man of the season, and Yi Jianlian, the All-Star player, the Bucks' bench lineup led by McGrady, Danny Green, and Jermaine O'Neal.

Westbrook and Curry occasionally fit seamlessly into this bench.

With such a group of substitute players, which team in the league would not be scared to see them?

So Su Qun is well aware of the dilemma the Bulls coaching staff faced in the first quarter.

If they let Pierce lead the team's offense with the ball in advance, it might solve Rose's defensive crisis in the first quarter, but what about the second quarter after playing like this?
It is impossible to hope that other members of the Bulls can withstand the impact of the Bucks' bench bandits, and it is impossible to imagine that the 34-year-old Pierce can play the entire first and second quarters.

on the field.

The Bulls rotate point guard CJ Watson, shooting guard Kyle Korver, small forward Pierce, power forward Taj Gibson and center Kurt Thomas.

The Bucks rotate players Dragic, Curry, McGrady, O'Neal and Yi Jianlian.

Seeing that the Bucks even sent Curry to the court at this time, Tom Thibodeau was obviously flustered.

He already had a premonition of what the Bucks were going to do in this quarter, so he yelled at the court.

"Show me that elementary school student!"

The Bucks attack.

Dragic advances with the ball.

Facing CJ Watson's defense, Dragic passed the opponent with a change of direction.

Korver had to move quickly from the weak side to help around the free throw line.

But at the same time, Curry immediately moved to the top of the arc on the weak side without the ball and raised his hand for the ball.

Dragic played his best point-breaking tactics. After holding the ball to the paint area, he immediately passed the ball to Curry at the top of the arc on the weak side.

Curry caught the ball and threw it without hesitation.

Pierce still wants to help defend, but Curry's shot speed is too fast, and the shot point is extremely high.

Pierce raised his hands and ran quickly, but could only watch Curry complete the shot.

Swish!
There was a crisp sound when the basketball hit the net, and the net was rolled up by the basketball from bottom to top, like waves.

Three point hit!

"The Bulls, still have to be optimistic about Curry, after all, he is the league's scoring leader this season."

"Once Curry's touch is revealed, it will not be easy for anyone in the entire league to come."

Su Qun nodded aside.

Compared with the Bulls' starting lineup, the Bulls' bench lineup did not perform as well on the defensive end.

This is also the reason why the Bucks replaced Curry early in the first quarter and let him play early at this time.

"The Bucks will widen the gap in this quarter!" Su Qun murmured.

Near the midline.

Tom Thibodeau stood near the sideline with his hands outstretched, looking hopeless.

"Why?"

He clearly told the players on the field to keep an eye on Curry before the start of the second quarter, but it turned out that Curry hit a three-pointer in the first round.

How else can this game be played?
Barkley said: "This can't be completely blamed on the Bulls' players on the court. In fact, their court execution is not bad."

"It's just that the Bucks' offensive coordination is too good. If Korver doesn't help defend Dragic, then he can only watch the opponent break through the basket and score a layup."

"And once you choose to help defend Dragic, it is inevitable that the Bulls' overall defense will have problems."

Bulls attack.

Pierce singled out McGrady and scored easily.

There is no Danny Green on the court at this time, and McGrady knows very well that the Bucks will not have anyone to help defend.

Of course, with Yi Jianlian and Jermaine O'Neal in the penalty area, Pierce didn't dare to go to the basket easily. Pierce's offense will mainly focus on jump shots.

The experienced McGrady can clearly see the changes in the situation on the court, and he also knows the correct choice to defend Pierce. Strictly speaking, McGrady is two years younger than Pierce, but it is really difficult for him to limit Pierce when it comes to defense.

At this time, McGrady saw his coach's bench, Li Lai raised his hand towards the bench, Artest quickly took off his training clothes and prepared to play in the next dead ball session.

McGrady knows how important this game is to the Bucks, and how important this game is to the Bucks, so he can understand the coach's caution and what he wants to do next.

But McGrady still firmly raised his hand at his bench and pointed to himself, shouting: "I can do it! Leave it to me!"

Artest glanced at Li Lai and asked.

Li Lai hesitated for a while, but still raised his hand to signal Artest to sit back.

The overall defensive strength of the Bulls is indeed very strong. Compared with McGrady's offensive ability without dead ends and extremely rich offensive methods, Artest is indeed much inferior.

This is also the reason why Li Lai has deliberately increased McGrady's playing time since the last game.

But Artest also has a defensive strength that McGrady doesn't have at all, and this is where Li Lai has been struggling.

The overall offense of the Bulls is not good, and their offense is entirely on the offensive strengths.

Rose's breakthrough, Pierce's singles, Boozer's mid-range, Noah and Gibson's ultimate basket and their top five rebounds in the league.

That means the best way for the Bucks to defend the Bulls is one-on-one.

And if you want to defend Pierce, Artest is a very suitable candidate.

"But if you choose Artest's defense, you don't have McGrady's offense. If you want McGrady's offense, you don't have Artest's defense. This is a dilemma."

Li Lai's eyes were fixed, and he still chose the latter at this time.

During this period of time, the Bucks need McGrady's offense even more. As for defense, it depends on McGrady's own efforts.

And Li Lai also saw the defensive attitude in McGrady's eyes just now, and he believed that the opponent would do his best to accomplish this.

On the court, McGrady saw Li Lai's dignified expression, he nodded to Li Lai again and said.

"Leave the defense to me!"

The Bucks attack.

Dragic pushed forward with the ball again, and this time CJ Watson defended harder.

Dragic did not break through in the first step, but as Yi Jianlian mentioned the high pick-and-roll, no matter how hard CJ Watson tried, it would be difficult to keep up with the opponent.

Curry continued to move to the high post on the weak side, and Korver didn't dare to let him go.

In this way, the heavy responsibility of defending Dragic falls entirely on the inside player Kurt Thomas.

Kurt Thomas shrunk the inside to help defend, and Yi Jianlian had a wide open space at the top of the arc.

call!
Dragic had expected the ball to the top of the arc, and Yi Jianlian raised his hand to complete the ball in one go.

Swish!
"Hit!"

"The Bucks hit two consecutive three-pointers in the second quarter!"

"Now the pressure is on the Bulls, how on earth are they going to limit this Bucks!"

On the Bulls bench, Tom Thibodeau looked helpless with his hands on his hips.

What can he do.

The outside line assists the air defense Curry, the inside line assists the air defense Yi Jianlian, that bastard Yi Jianlian is playing center forward?The key is to shoot blindly outside with the ball.

At this time, Tom Thibodeau can only replace Noah in advance to increase the defensive strength, and at the same time let Noah stay in the penalty area and assist the protective frame, and send Gibson to participate in the outside line to block Yi Jianlian.

This is the best solution Tom Thibodeau can think of.

But just after the Bulls changed their defensive lineup, Curry suddenly slipped to the bottom line and took the initiative to find Noah, and then successfully closed the door on the side elevator in the bottom corner.

Noah chased and intercepted Curry but was blocked by Yi Jianlian and O'Neal at the same time in the bottom corner.

With his body and agility, it is not so easy to keep up with Curry, but he can only be held up by Yi Jianlian and O'Neal to watch Curry complete the shot.

Swish!
hit!

"and also!"

Curry, who scored two consecutive three-pointers, shook his head and shook his shoulders, then patted his chest and pointed to the sky, and finally let out an arrogant roar that felt unsatisfactory.

Noah was right in front of Curry at this moment, and he was the one who defended the ball just now, and Curry deliberately celebrated in front of Noah, shaking his shoulders very arrogantly.

"I really want to beat him up." Nuoah said very annoyed, his lungs were about to explode.

Korver's lungs have exploded as he defends Curry.

Once upon a time, he was also a well-known marksman in the league, but since Curry of the Bucks came out, the marksman in the entire league had to be eclipsed at the same time.

"He's a shooter at the same level as Reggie Miller and Ray Allen."

Tom Thibodeau is mad in the Bulls dugout.

"I can't prevent it no matter what!"

This is why Tom Thibodeau once again realized that countless coaches in the league have bluntly said that Li Lai is a first-class offensive master since the last game.

They were really scared by the Bucks' offense.

"The Bucks' offensive arrangement is almost always one step ahead of the Bulls, and the Bulls' defensive system has already been seen through by the Bucks."

Su Qun said with certainty.

The second quarter is over.

The Bucks played a 34:23 offensive wave in a single quarter and took the lead with 62:45.

(End of this chapter)