NBA opening draw to twilight Shaquille O'Neal

Chapter 473: True Defensive Battle

On May 5, amidst the overwhelming media campaign, the Trail Blazers and Spurs officially kicked off the G22 game in the Western Conference Finals.

The victory of G1 pushed up the victory of the Trail Blazers in this series. The guessing winning rate given by the bleachers is as high as 78%, that of FOX is as high as 72%, and that of ESPN is also 69%.

Wang Zelin and the others are still playing at home in the Rose Garden tonight.

For TNT, Barkley and Kerney Smith, the ace commentary partner, were excluded.

At 5 p.m., Barkley was interviewed by the media. He said: "I am optimistic about the Trail Blazers entering the finals, because the Spurs still can't find a way to deal with Wang. At the same time, I also agree with Wang's words. Times are changing all the time, and young people are the protagonists of the new era!"

In fact, not just Barkley, most people are very optimistic about the Trail Blazers advancing to the finals.

There is no other reason, it is the first game of G1, and the Spurs lost too badly.What's even more frightening is that while Wang Zelin showed unparalleled dominance, he also dominated the audience on the defensive end, which is very unsolvable.

No one thinks that the Spurs can wait two more days to find the answer to the gap between the two sides.

Of course, in view of the general unfavorable attitude towards the Spurs in the near future, when the famous Spurs Admiral Robinson was interviewed by the media, it was inevitable to cheer for the home team:
"There has never been a popular theory in the NBA world. I believe that in terms of toughness, no one can compare with the Spurs with Tim at the core. Our lineup this year is the same as last year, and even strengthened. Therefore, I think the Spurs have met the expectations of San Antonio fans every year!"

7pm exactly.

Announced before the game.

Visiting Spurs: Tony Parker, Danny Green, Leonard, Duncan, Splitter.

Home Team Trail Blazers: Lillard, Matthews, Batum, Aldridge, Wang Zelin.

The starting lineup of the two sides is generally the same as the previous match.

When the game is approaching, when the camera is shown in the front row of the audience, many active and retired stars of the league can be seen on the scene, such as David Robinson, O'Neal, Iverson, Kobe, Anthony, etc., plus a large number of Hollywood handsome men and beauties, making the entire Rose Garden Stadium even more star-studded.

Of course, the female Zhao Riyue who came to watch the battle from the Celestial Dynasty is also indispensable.

"Brother Yao, long time no see."

During the warm-up period, Wang Zelin took the initiative to come to the first row of the spectator seats. He was not a Hollywood actress who was glamorous along the way, but walked straight to Chairman Yao.

"You boy, you are amazing!"

Looking at the young man in front of him who was about the same height as himself, it was obvious that the childishness on the latter's face hadn't completely faded, but he had already reached a height that he had never reached in his entire NBA career.

All-Star MVP, Double First Team Center, Best Defensive Player, Regular Season Most Valuable Player (MVP)... Every season in the NBA, there are only a few top awards with the highest gold content. It is conceivable how difficult the competition is.

In Yao Ming's entire career, the best individual award he could get was only a second-team center, and the team's upper limit was always limited to the second round of the Western Conference.

Now, as long as he thinks about the achievements in front of Wang Zelin, whether it is an individual or a team, he has completely surpassed himself back then.

It may not be long before they will go to the finals.

Champion!

"That's right, it doesn't matter who we are! From the moment I entered the NBA, I swore that there are so many excellent players from European and American countries who have reached the top of the basketball world. I have a civilization of 5000 years in China, and there is no reason to be inferior to others!
Just wait and see, I'm sure I'll be the champion this year! "

Hearing Wang Zelin's words, not only Yao Ming, but even the Chinese media who recorded all this behind the two of them were in awe.

Since World War II in the last century, people all over the world have been frightened by the terrifying power of nuclear weapons. As a result, from World War II to the present, human society has ushered in the longest period of peace and prosperity...at least in most parts of the world.

However, even in the era of peace and prosperity, the game between countries and the competition of comprehensive national strength between countries have never stopped.

Secretly, the major powers have to spend a lot of military expenditure every year to update and iterate their weapons.

On the bright side, soft power such as politics, economy, culture, and sports has gradually become a symbol of comprehensive national strength and international status.

Undoubtedly, under such a background of the times, whether or not it is qualified to host the Olympic Games has become a symbol of whether a country is strong or not in a peaceful age.

Take China as an example. After successfully hosting the 08 Olympic Games for the first time in history, it not only brought a huge economic cake to China, but more importantly, through this Olympic Games, the people of the world once again got to know the Chinese nation that was reborn from the ashes after World War II.

Read for the rise of China!
This was the deafening remark made by the young Premier Zhou during the turbulent years of the old Chinese dynasty a hundred years ago, and he devoted his whole life to this idea afterward.

It is precisely because of the arduous struggle of the predecessors that the peaceful years of the descendants have been achieved.

Ask yourself, it is impossible for Wang Zelin to reach the spiritual realm of Premier Zhou and other great proletarian fighters throughout his life, but since he is in a peaceful and prosperous world and has a chance to live his life again, he is naturally willing to contribute to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation within his ability.

In his last life, due to his lack of ability, he could only do what many of his peers on the Internet laughed at themselves: as long as he supports himself, he is the greatest contribution to the country.

In this life, he is fortunate to be able to develop in the basketball world, so he will naturally assume his due responsibilities.

For example, first set a small goal: conquer the NBA!Conquer the most famous basketball hall on earth!
Back on the field.

After Wang Zelin said this, Yao Ming directly gave him a thumbs up.

Soon, when it was time for the official game, the two sides started the game.

Watching the opposite Spurs start, Wang Li walked towards Duncan with his head held high and his chin raised.

The sudden situation made other Spurs players tense up instantly.

What the hell is he going to do?

Suddenly, there was a burst of boos from outside the court.Everyone turned their heads to look, and there was a group of people wearing Spurs jerseys. It seemed that there were at least two to 3000 people.

Although the San Antonio Spurs are located in a small ball market, the Spurs are by no means a small team.It can even be said that the Spurs are the best team in the NBA since the new century. Even the Los Angeles Lakers, who won three consecutive championships at the beginning of the century, are really inferior to the Spurs to a certain extent.

Although it is located in a small city, but it can maintain the competitiveness of the championship for ten years, there is no one else.

"Tim, are you ready to lose another game?"

As soon as he came up, Wang Zelin's arrogant attitude disgusted the Spurs players.

But Stone Buddha is Stone Buddha, he just frowned and resumed his indifferent expression, and replied coldly: "If you have anything to say, let's talk about it in the competition."

"it is good!"

Seeing this, Wang Zelin stopped insisting and returned to the Blazers bench with a sneer.

"Boss, how are you going to blow up the opponent tonight?"

Seeing Wang Zelin come back, Beverly stepped forward and asked hurriedly.

"Patrick, please remove the word 'how'."

Wang Zelin pretended to be dissatisfied.

"Haha, blow up the opponent tonight!"

Batum laughed loudly.

"We are the best team this year!"

Afterwards, Wang Zelin also smiled.

In the middle circle, facing Split, Wang Zelin won the jump ball and the Blazers attacked.

The Spurs retreated quickly, the fast break was fruitless, and the Blazers started a positional battle.

The second game was different from the first game. Except when the opportunity was particularly good, the Blazers did not intend to start a whirlwind of fast breaks like the first game said.

In the team meeting in the morning, Terry Stotts set the tone for tonight's game-seeking stability.

In the 7-game 4-win system of the playoffs, the home field advantage is too critical for a team. Since the next two games will be played away, he wants to win the second home game smoothly.

Going to the Spurs home court with 2:0 and going with 1:1 are two completely different experiences for all the Blazers players.

Therefore, the tactical arrangement of the second game is to focus on defense in the first half, with Wang Zelin controlling rebounds and inside defense, and then exerting strength in the second half.

After the first quarter, both the fans of the two teams, as well as the stars from all walks of life who arrived at the scene tonight, all looked drowsy.

On the scoreboard, the scores of the two sides were pitifully low. At 15:16, the Blazers had one point more than the Spurs.

The performance of the two teams was completely different from the sluggish scoring performance in the first quarter of the previous game. The last game was purely bad, so they had to fight crazily.But if you just look at the scene, the battle is still very lively.

At least one sound can be heard!

As for today?
The two teams are purely playing slow-paced, hard-charging defenses and positional battles.

So much so that after the first quarter, no team could break through 20 points.

Trailblazers here.

Wang Zelin had already found a target when he came up. He only wanted to catch Duncan, and he deliberately went after Duncan on offense.

Relying on its own strong strength and top-level defensive ability, Glory of Kings has always defended Duncan outside the paint area, and there is no door if he wants to enter the penalty area.

This greatly weakened Duncan's offensive scoring ability, and he could only rely on the two tricks of high-position pivot organization and mid-range post-up singles to deal with Wang Zelin.

As a result, Duncan made 3 of 1 shots in the first quarter, 2 of 1 free throws, only got 3 points and 1 rebound, and then there were no other statistics.

The situation of Wang Zelin, who adopted the trick of "hurting one thousand enemies and eight hundred self-injury", is not much better.

他单节2投1中，罚球2中2，拿下4分3篮板1盖帽的数据，同样也没有送出过助攻。

According to statistics, this should be the first time since Wang Zelin entered so many games in the playoffs this year that he failed to send an assist after the first 12 minutes of a single game.

It can be seen how extreme the defensive battle between the two teams is tonight!

In the VIP room.

The president of the league, Bald Hua, had a gloomy face. He thought that Wang Zelin's outburst in the previous game would directly increase the ratings of tonight's game.

Who would have thought that, unlike the first quarter of the previous game, when the Spurs and the Trail Blazers shot more and scored less; tonight the Spurs and the Trail Blazers shot less and scored less...

This is too much!

You know, what the NBA really makes money now is the broadcast fee. According to your style of play, scoring more than 70 points tonight is not bad.

Bald Hua was even thinking about whether to make a private call to the head coaches of both sides and switch them to fast break in the second quarter.

Forget it after thinking about it, this is just the end of a quarter, and maybe someone will explode next.

Bear with it a little longer!

Although the home fans looked drowsy as well, they quickly regained their senses when they thought that the team was still 1 point ahead of their opponents.

"King, come on! Destroy the Spurs!"

"Just hit like this, torture the opponent to death!"

Sure enough, the fans are still very cute.As long as the result is good, no matter how the team played during the game, they will not accept it.

Just like the old man said: It doesn't matter whether the cat is black or white, as long as it can catch mice, it is a good cat.

Back in the second quarter, the Spurs took the lead in making bold personnel adjustments. None of the five starting players played again, and set up a second rotation lineup of Diaw + Ginobili + Belinelli + Baines + Kray Joseph.

In contrast, the Blazers chose a steady hand.

The lineup sent is the "iron duo" Wang Zelin + Lillard, and the main force + rotation combination of Connett Lee + Will Barton + Garnett.

At the court commentary seat.

After seeing the Spurs' roster, Xu Jicheng said in surprise, "Hey! Spurs coach Sima Weiqi's choice is really unexpected. On a stage like the Western Conference finals, he dared to play five-up five-down tactics with me."

Yang Yidao next to him said, "I just don't know, is this a bold person with a high degree of art? Or a foolish move?"

Xu Jicheng said: "Let us wait and see."

TNT commentary seat

"Kenny, what do you think of Traeg's arrangement?" Barkley asked.

"This should be a kind of change due to helplessness!"

Kenny Smith muses.

"Evolution?"

After listening, Barkley turned his attention back to the field, but he kept muttering in his heart.

In front of the Spurs bench.

Sima Weiqi was calm on the surface, but behind his back there were already turbulent waves.

Kenny Smith's guess is actually correct, this is based on his helpless change after the first quarter.

The Blazers have made it clear tonight that they want to fight a defensive attrition war with the Spurs. If the Blazers get what they want, there is a high probability that the carriage will end the same as the last game tonight. After the Blazers have accumulated a certain advantage, they will slowly snowball to death.

More importantly, the old guys in the Spurs can't afford it!

Especially the 38-year-old Duncan, who had to rest for several days after a game, in order to gather enough energy to deal with the next game.

What's more, Duncan West's real teammate most of the time in the finals is the young and powerful Wang Zelin.

The frequent high-intensity physical confrontation with Wang Zelin will undoubtedly further aggravate Duncan's consumption.

Therefore, Sima Weiqi put up a second lineup with the core of "Demon Sword" + "French Magician" to deal with the next game.

Do not ask for anything else, only to find the hope of breaking the situation.

(End of this chapter)