Start coaching the Thunder, starting with Westbrook

Chapter 31 Against the Magic
On July 7, the Thunder played against the Orlando Summer League host Magic.

Since Howard left the team, the Magic has become a bully that everyone in the East can bully. Of course, such a team cannot attract any strong players.

But this time the Magic have a star rookie, the No. [-] pick in this draft, Victor Oladipo.

In the two games he has participated in before, Audi averaged 27 points per game and led the team to two consecutive victories. His outstanding performance naturally made many people look to this game.

Everyone wants to see, what kind of spark effect will one of the rookies who are recognized as the best performers face the rookies who are "recognized as the worst performers"?
It is precisely because of this kind of duel that the attention of this game is good, and it has the bonus of the host of the Magic. After Li Sheng and the others came to the arena, they found that there were actually a lot of spectators sitting on the sidelines.

Of course, reporters are also indispensable. Whether it is Li Sheng, Antetokounmpo, or Oladipo, they are all topical figures now. After all, after the finals, those big-name stars have all ended their journeys. Training, training and vacations are of course not as much as they can write.

Li Sheng also saw some familiar faces on the sidelines. In addition to reporters from CCTV and Penguin Sports, there were also fans who came specially for him. Looking at the Chinese signs they held up, he knew that they were local Chinese fans in Orlando.

After Li Sheng waved to them, they also shouted and responded enthusiastically, which moved Li Sheng who was in a foreign country and didn't even have a chance to speak his local accent.

But the interview can be put on later, the key now is the game.

Seeing Brother Antetokounmpo again, Li Sheng naturally paid attention to his spirit.

It can be clearly found that his eyes, which were getting more and more confused before, are rare and firm today.

It seems that what he said still has an effect, Li Yong feels that he should be able to play differently today.

"It's the fourth game. I don't think I need to emphasize anything to you. We still play the same way as before. Giannis holds the ball. Others do more off-ball running, screens and air cuts. I believe he can pass the ball."

The last sentence was said to Brother Antetokounmpo, "Don't let me down!"

Antetokounmpo nodded heavily, but the other three rookies were fine. Gomez opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something, but finally swallowed it back.

Naturally, the Summer League does not have the cumbersome process of an official game. There are either rookies or homeless people here. Even if there are stars, they are future stars. Fans come to watch the game, and few come here to support a certain player.

Gobert jumped the ball and won. With his height and wingspan, the unknown center on the opposite side who only reached his shoulders didn't even bother to tiptoe and gave up the defense.

The Thunder's starting five remained unchanged, with four rookies plus Ryan Gomez, who performed well.

Antetokounmpo advances to the frontcourt with the ball, and the other four have quickly settled down and entered the position to attack.

In the past three games, although Antetokounmpo's performance was sluggish, after playing games together and experiencing running-in, everyone has a deeper understanding of each other and has also cultivated an initial tacit understanding.

Because the tactics arranged by Li Sheng are actually very simple, emphasizing that they should play more pick-and-rolls and cover more. Everyone on the offensive end should run as much as possible and create as many dislocations and open spaces as possible.

Therefore, when Antetokounmpo is on the court and holds the ball, he does not perform well and the Thunder's offense is struggling. On the contrary, he played well in the chaotic battle after he left the court, especially the counterattack based on defense. Because of the higher and higher success rate of defense, he played smoothly.

It can be said that their lineup has improved the most and performed best in defense. This also made Udoka and Collins consciously understand Li Sheng's meaning, and the Thunder in the new season is likely to play like this.

In fact, the Thunder played almost like this in the past. Their positional offense is actually not outstanding, but the counterattack relies on Westbrook's impact and Durant's shooting power.

That's why, when they encounter the Grizzlies, who fall behind almost every time they attack, and are the main insiders, they are often the ones who are at a disadvantage. This is a style of restraint.

Today's opponent, the Magic, is naturally the No. [-] pick Oladipo at the core of their offense, but they don't have an obvious strong point on defense.

As soon as they came up, they were man-to-man, so Antetokounmpo called Gobert to block both of them directly with a pick-and-roll. The opposing player wanted to squeeze over, and the center was in a dilemma, which just gave Antetokounmpo room to break through.

Moreover, Gomez and Ennis stood at 45 degrees, one was in the bottom corner, and the other Robertson was running to support. Antetokounmpo happened to be on the weak side.

"nice shot!"

This deduction not only made the audience and the bench boil up - the key is not so much, what is needed is such an atmosphere, it also made Antetokounmpo seem to sweep away the haze before, and he couldn't help roaring up to the sky.

Gobert immediately came forward and bumped his chest, and the two fellow Europeans were naturally close.

When it came to the defensive end, the Thunder didn’t change much either, because the Summer League didn’t have full-court video, and it was impossible for Li Sheng to go to every team to watch the game. To be honest, this kind of temporary lineup has no research value, so they can only watch it on the spot.

The Magic also played relatively simple. The formation was also extended. Audi held the ball on the outside, the center pulled out to pick and roll, and then stood directly at the bull's corner waiting to receive the ball.

Oladipo has the ability to pass the ball. He averaged more than 2 assists per game in his college career. He is not a selfish player. As long as his teammates have a good opportunity, he is willing to make wedding dresses for others.

Looking back at the Thunder's attack, Antetokounmpo called a pick-and-roll again. The Magic didn't want to defend, rather than being unable to defend.

But this time around to the other side, someone came to defend in time. Antetokounmpo is tall and has a wide field of vision, and he already has the attributes of a point guard. He has already noticed Ennis in the bottom corner, and immediately threw the ball over. It was too late for the opponent to defend again. Ennis directly stepped on the three-point line to shoot.

But it may be that the game has just started, and the hand is still a bit hard. The ball came out, but it just hit Antetokounmpo. Antetokounmpo leaned on a pair of long arms and carried Oladipo to hit the ball. Two more points, 4:2 start.

Udoka and Collins looked at each other, and then both looked at Li Sheng in unison.

They didn't expect Li Sheng's speech to be so effective. Antetokounmpo felt different throughout the game today, and he seemed very energetic.

Then the two teams took the lead alternately and began to fall into a stalemate.

The Magic's pick-and-roll defense is really poor. This is definitely a problem with the defensive layout. The coach is as indifferent as a mascot on the sidelines.

This gives Antetokounmpo an excellent space to play. Whether he is shooting himself, making damage at the basket or breaking through to score the ball, he plays very efficiently.

Looking back, the Thunder couldn't stop the Magic's offense, mainly because of Oladipo.

(End of this chapter)