The way of the center

Chapter 127 Bloodwashing the Sleep Train

Although Jeff Van Gundy asked An Jie to be the main attack point in the fourth quarter, An Jie would not occupy all the shooting opportunities because of this.It's just that he held the ball more times than in the first three quarters, and Durant and Westbrook got a lot of open shots because of this.

An Jie was instilled by his father in the idea that basketball is a team sport when he was very young, which made An Jie have a very high awareness of passing and coordination.He will never turn a blind eye to his teammates who are in the open. Even when facing Hawes, who is completely out of control, Anjie will not single-handedly play.

Jeff Green looked at An Jie's continuous attack and passing, and could only be anxious. As a striker, his height was very difficult to defend the fourth position, let alone defending An Jie himself.

After Westbrook received a pass from Angie and made another open two-pointer, Jeff Green finally couldn't hold back.

Impatient, before he could completely get rid of Joe Smith's defense, he raised his hand and asked for the ball from Kevin Martin.

"Kevin! The ball!" Seeing that Martin didn't respond, Jeff Green yelled directly on the court.

Kevin Martin used Hawes' pick-and-roll to break through, but Westbrook's close defense prevented him from getting a layup.Seeing that there was no way to end the attack by himself this time, Martin finally passed the ball to Jeff Green who had been waiting impatiently for a long time.

Green still broke through Joe Smith with ease, and took a jump shot from outside the free throw line.

"No, you rely too much on shooting, kid." Divac shook his head. Jeff Green has not stepped into the three-second zone for a whole quarter.Shooting is undoubtedly a basic skill that every player must master, but this does not mean that shooting alone can solve the problem.

Jeff Green felt that the rhythm of the shot was very good, and it seemed that he would recover two more points for the team.but it turns out
"Jeff Green missed the goal! The basketball spun four times in a row, and it still came out! Anjie's backcourt rebound, he passed the ball long to Westbrook, the Thunder's conversion attack!"

Facing the fast retreating Kevin Martin, Westbrook didn't advance at full speed at the beginning, but when the Kings were two steps away from the three-point line at halftime, he suddenly increased his speed and made a change of direction, sending Kevin Martin Martin left behind!
Salmons also frantically pounced on Westbrook as a second line of defense behind Kevin Martin, but Westbrook still made contact for a layup.

A missed shot in a game is nothing, but Jeff Van Gundy doesn't think so. To him, it's a sign that the Kings are starting to tire.On the sidelines, he secretly made a forward gesture to the players on the field, which was the secret signal for the half-court tight defense!

The characteristic of the tight defense is that it makes it difficult for the offensive team to get shots, and it also forces the offensive team to make mistakes.The disadvantage is that it is easy for the opponent to find a gap for an easy breakthrough, but now Van Gundy is very confident in his team's ability to protect the basket!As long as the Kings' shots are locked, the Thunder will have an overwhelming advantage on both offense and defense!

"There are still 10 minutes to the end of the game, but the Thunder immediately started pressing the defense! Are they ready to start the decisive battle early!?" In the NBA, this kind of desperate pressing defense is usually left at the last moment. Will use it, but Jeff Van Gundy has gone off the beaten path and changed his defensive strategy early.

Although Jeff Van Gundy is often criticized for his offense and tactical flexibility, when it comes to defense, this guy almost rarely makes mistakes.

Sure enough, after the Thunder used the half-court press, Salmons, an impure point guard, couldn't even complete a decent pass.

He was stymied by Damien Wilkins.

Kevin Martin ran hard for a long time before he got a gap to catch the ball, but when he just adjusted his pace, Westbrook did not spare any effort to stick it up.

Although Kevin Martin was one of the best guys in the 04 draft, he never had a "victory" chance.

With a thin body and poor athletic ability, it is really difficult for him to take on a big role. Now when the Kings need him to stand up, he has been unable to break through Westbrook's relentless defense.

Without space, Kevin Martin's offense completely stagnated. All he can do now is try to protect the ball, and then look for opportunities to send the ball out.

Jeff Green is now the most relaxed person in the entire Kings team, because it is indeed difficult for Joe Smith to follow Jeff Green to run for half the court.

Now that the entire Kings team is being strangled by Jeff Van Gundy's half-court press, Green has undoubtedly become a key figure in breaking the deadlock.

He suddenly started after receiving a pass from Kevin Martin for a tentative step. Joe Smith was powerless and couldn't keep up with Jeff Green's rhythm.

After the breakthrough, the offensive space left for Jeff Green is very wide. This is the disadvantage of pressing defense, but will the Thunder's penalty area really be attacked so easily?
After An Jie saw Green receiving the ball, he moved towards the three-second zone. As expected, Jeff Green broke through beautifully. Now the only person who can stop him is An Jie!
"No, he's too late!" Jeff Green naturally saw An Jie coming towards him, but he still didn't pass the ball. Firstly, the route for passing the ball to Hawes was completely covered by An Jie. Second, It was Jeff Green who felt that he would definitely be able to complete the attack before Anjie arrived.

"Jeff Green is going to dunk! Ann's got big strides! He jumps too!"

"Bang!" Jeff Green's right hand holding the ball hit the basket hard, and the entire basketball hoop was shaking, as if frightened by the head-on confrontation between these two big men.

The fans in the entire Sleep Train arena exclaimed, Jeff Green's slump was heavy, but what about basketball?The basketball flew to the Kings bench!
"An Jie! Tough defense of the penalty area! He did it! God! A fatal block!" Mike Brin directly grabbed the microphone on the commentary stage and yelled. Everyone was stunned by An Jie's defensive height and strength !
Suddenly, there was another burst of boos from the Sleep Train Arena. Looking at the referee's gestures, he seemed to have given a technical foul!
"The referee gave An Jie a technical foul! There was no quarrel between An Jie and Jeff Green!?"

Just when everyone was confused, the replay was immediately shown on the TV screen.

It turned out that after An Jie completed the block and landed, he shook his finger at Jeff Green viciously. This exclusive action that only "African Mountain" can do is expressly prohibited by the NBA for other players!
"That's it!"

"Look, the Kings jerks are freaking out!"

"That's right, hahahahaha." In addition to the Thunder fans in front of the TV, Divac also laughed at the sight at home.

Because of the technical foul, the Kings got a free throw, and after the free throw, they continued to attack again with a throw-in.Although he lost a point because of this, Anjie's actions really made the Kings players feel a little scared.

Who said that Chinese players are as gentle as Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian, this Anjie from the hands of the old devil Divac is an out-and-out little devil!
It's okay when he's calm, but once he's emotional, Anjie will be one of the most annoying guys on the court.After all, An Jie knows that no one dares to trespass on his territory unless he is tough!It was Divac, it was Morris who taught him that.

Kevin Martin himself went to the free throw line to earn a point for the Kings.But when the foul ball was issued, the Kings' entire offense once again fell into a quagmire.

Although Jeff Green's ability is indeed outstanding, he is only a second-year rookie, not a paranoid like Kobe.After being humiliated again and again in the paint, he has long been afraid of the three-second zone.

Anyway, I can shoot well by myself, and I won't fight brute force with you stupid big guy.This is the thought that Jeff Green comforted himself with.

However, he was provoked by An Jie.It is impossible for Jeff Green's mood to not fluctuate a little.His field goal percentage plummeted and he lost his first three quarters.

On the other hand, the Thunder team, Anjie's defense just now undoubtedly greatly improved the morale of the Thunder team, and Durant and Westbrook were even more jealous.

Westbrook was about to dunk even across Hawes once, but the huge height gap allowed him to dunk the ball to the front of the rim.Although the goal was missed, Westbrook's move shocked Hawes into a cold sweat.

"They're dying!" Kevin Martin was already sweating profusely. The actions of the Thunder players became more and more rough, and their physical contact became more and more frequent.The basketball court is the battlefield. When the adrenaline of these big men soars because of something, their behavior will be very scary.

As a young team, the Thunder are the most vulnerable to emotions.The defense was impenetrable, and the offense was unstoppable. Although Kevin Martin used a few unimaginable moves against the defense to complete the shot, he was powerless.

"Beep!" The sound of the end of the game finally sounded, and the Thunder's three young men sat on the bench early, because the game had already entered garbage time 3 minutes ago.

The Kings players breathed a sigh of relief as they finally escaped from a group of demons.

After the game, An Jie took the initiative to run over and patted Jeff Green on the shoulder, and the two shook hands to show their friendship regardless of the past.After all, Jeff Green and Anjie have no grievances, and what Anjie and Jeff Green really hate is the team's management that abandoned themselves!

"112 to 98, the Thunder turned away from home in the last quarter, and the game entered garbage time early. An Jie used his actions to punch the Kings management hard!" Undoubtedly, An Jie also Was named the best player in the game by ESPN once!Mike Brin also found that he liked this Chinese boy more and more.

After the fans had mostly left the arena, cleaners were cleaning up a pile of broken glass and a pool of cocktails spilled on the floor in the luxury box at the Sleep Train arena.Maybe the Kings general manager accidentally knocked it off the table, or maybe he threw it on the floor in a fit of rage.For what reason, who knows?
(End of this chapter)