The way of the center

Chapter 399 Anjie's Day
Duncan's memory of Anjie?That's too much. From the first time he and An Jie played against each other, he felt that this young man from China would definitely do something.

At that time, looking at the three young men of the Thunder, Duncan knew that if these three continued to develop so strongly, sooner or later they would part ways and take charge of their own.You must know that not everyone in this alliance can last forever like GDP.

Now, everything Duncan predicted has come true.An Jie has become synonymous with center, and Thunder's three juniors have indeed become very powerful and have become the mainstay of the league.It's just that An Jie, who was separated from it, became the one who took charge alone.

Duncan didn't hope that An Jie's biggest obstacle to his career would come true!Parker and Ginobili are right, they really have enough crow's mouth.

"Huh" After taking a breath, Duncan raised his arms and once again supported An Jie's back.The expressionless No. 21 has not met such a difficult opponent for a long time. This kind of matchup should appear in the finals, not in the Western Conference semifinals.

At this point, the third quarter of the game has come to an end.Although the Spurs stopped the momentum of continued decline, it just means that they did not allow the Trail Blazers to continue to widen the point difference, and it does not mean that the Spurs are approaching the score.

10 points, the point difference is still in double digits.The Trail Blazers' excellent defense as always is one aspect, but Anjie's strength on the offensive end is the biggest reason for this situation.

"Mr. Big Fundamental Skills", this nickname is the biggest compliment for Duncan from fans.But in today's game, Duncan realized for the first time that his nickname is likely to be taken away by another guy.

Inside offensive kaleidoscope, this is the impression Duncan gave people before.But today, Duncan's less than half of his shooting percentage obviously did not meet the expectations of the fans for him.

On the contrary, An Jie, using his comprehensive offensive methods, scored points on the head of Duncan who was gnashing his teeth and trying his best to defend.Is Duncan not defending well?No, don't look at Duncan's "old age", but most insiders in this league still can't pass Duncan's level.The only reason that can be explained is that Anjie's offense is better than Duncan's defense!
After Anjie leaned against Duncan again, Popovich also stood up nervously.Judging from the performance of this game, the trick of forcing An Jie to attack with his left hand has lost its effect.

First of all, Anjie will now try his best to get himself the opportunity to throw with his right hand.Secondly, Anjie was forced to use his left hand a few times today, but he still hit the ball very well!
Until now, Anjie's hit rate is still 100%!That's right, the game was at the end of the third quarter, but An Jie still kept his hit percentage.Even Duncan, the "Mr. Basic Skills", has never done this kind of thing!

This time, Duncan's defense is still working hard, what about Anjie?He was not in a hurry to make a choice, but first tested Duncan's defensive focus with his back.

Afterwards, Raymond Felton's sudden free cut made Duncan a little distracted.The cut in this position is just right for An Jie to send a quick pass.

Duncan didn't forget the scene when Popovich showed them tape of the Trail Blazers game and Anjie sent the ball to Crawford without looking behind the head.

Even Anjie can pass that kind of ball, Felton's cut this time, Anjie can also complete the assist!

Duncan was a little embarrassed, but seeing Felton's resolute cut in, he still moved his footsteps a little, ready to wait for an opportunity to defend.

Just when Duncan just took a small step, An Jie who was holding the ball suddenly started!He turned to the left, and then retreated skillfully, out of Duncan's blocking range.

Duncan's heart was mostly cold, but he still actively reached out to interfere.

An Jie's posture in the air was very stretched, and his requirements for technical movements were not affected at all by the progress of the game and the exhaustion of physical strength.

What's so difficult about this ball?It's not difficult at all. The turnaround jump shot after holding the ball with your back is a simple skill that most inside players must master.

But it is this simple basic technique that most insiders in the league today cannot do.An Jie not only did it, but also made the most basic technical movements to the extreme.

An Jie has used this trick since college.The scene when he used this action to kill Stanford University is still vivid.

After so many years, although the people defending An Jie have become stronger, An Jie has also reached the pinnacle in the field of step-back jump shots after turning over.

"Brush." ​​The soft sound of the net rolling, even in the noisy rose garden, this sound is so attractive and ear-catching.

There are no Griffin-style dunks, no Howard-style raging rims, and no Love-style ultra-long three-pointers.But relying on such a basic movement, An Jie successfully widened the point difference to 12 points!
"An's basic skills in low-post skills are really outstanding!" Kenny Smith sighed for Duncan. It's not that the old guy with facial paralysis doesn't work hard, but he can't prevent it even if he works hard!
"Is it just low-post skills? Maybe you forgot about Ann's front-of-the-body change, his elusive passing, and his superb positioning. I tell you Kenny, Ann, he is a living book. Basic basketball textbook!" O'Neill took Kenny Smith's words and praised Anjie even higher.

Divac, who was watching the game at home, was the happiest person besides Anjie. The excellent player they said was his most proud student!
In the ensuing games, Anjie's strength spread throughout every corner of the defensive and offensive ends.He is like a shadow, has been hanging over the head of the Spurs.

The Spurs scored and Anjie scored.The Spurs couldn't score, but Anjie could still score.What the Spurs are now encountering is not a tactical problem, because An Jie can't be stopped even if he doesn't rely on tactics.

"What the hell!" Popovich looked up at the score on the big screen as Duncan walked off the court, panting, at the end of the third quarter.

75 to 61, the entire third quarter became An Jie's performance time. Scoring 7 points on 7 of 14 shots, this is the answer sheet that Anjie handed over in the third quarter.

An exasperated Popovich couldn't help swearing. In fact, in the third quarter, the Spurs had gradually adapted to Ricard's defense of combining man-to-man and zone defense. Although their offensive efficiency is not good, it is still Compared with the first half, there is also a big improvement.

But in the end, they were still 14 points behind.In the final analysis, it was because An Jie's performance was beyond the normal range.

"Don't give up! We almost succeeded! Ann's magical performance will not last long!" Popovich has been the head coach for 16 years, and he has encountered too many magical things.For example, Tracy McGrady's 35 seconds and 13 minutes allowed the Spurs to slip away.

But Popovich just didn't believe in evil. He just didn't want to believe that An Jie, who had been restricted in the first two games, could explode without warning after returning to the home court!
Without warning, this word is really suitable for An Jie's performance today.Anjie's assists in the first quarter were more eye-catching than his own goals, but in the second quarter, the Blazers' defensive counterattack became the main theme.

It wasn't until the just-concluded third quarter, when An Jie showed his prowess on the offensive end, that people were surprised to find that An Jie hadn't missed a single shot today.

Popovich gritted his teeth. He didn't hesitate to double-team Anjie, and he was bound to curb his momentum!

Unfortunately for the Spurs, however, something happened.As soon as the fourth quarter opened, Anjie continued his good form, swayed Duncan with his footsteps, and under Diaw's supplementary defense, he successfully hit a throw from the side of the board.

This ball can force Anjie to hit the board with a crappy side, and Duncan and Diaw's defense has actually succeeded more than half.However, An Jie, who was in hot form, still scored the ball with the mentality of fighting hard.

Catherine didn't know how long she had been away from the seat, it seemed that she hadn't sat down since the second half.But she didn't feel tired at all, instead she felt excited and restless.

Anjie's excellent performance made all the Blazers fans on the scene mesmerized.Among them, of course, also includes Catherine.

As soon as the fourth quarter opened, Anjie gave the fans a reassurance with a goal.In their first loss to the Spurs, the Trail Blazers entered the fourth quarter with a nine-point advantage, only to be reversed.Today, with Anjie's goal, the Trail Blazers have widened the point difference to 9 points.This time, the Spurs want to complete the reversal, but it is not so easy.

Afterwards, the treacherous and sophisticated Duncan and Dior teamed up to double-team, which really made Anjie very uncomfortable.But now that the team is leading by a big score, An Jie is not in a hurry, and keeps his mind in a clear state.

Therefore, even though he feels hot in his hands now, when he was double-teamed, An Jie did not try to force his shot, but calmly and wisely distributed the ball to the open space.

As a result, Aldridge was able to show his talents in the fourth quarter.You know, Aldridge is not a fuel-efficient lamp. Although he can't hit 100% like Anjie, but if Aldridge continues to play like this, the Spurs want to recover the 16-point difference , It's just a fool's dream!
Double-teaming is definitely unusable.When Popovich adjusted his defensive strategy again, Aldridge stopped, but Anjie started to score again.

14, 15, 16, 17 Anjie's consecutive hits continued, and now, he has completed 17 consecutive hits, and the Spurs' backwardness has also been stretched to 20 points!
With only 2 minutes and 30 seconds left in the game, Ricard replaced Anjie.He knew that even the Spurs couldn't complete a 2-point reversal in just 20 minutes!

The situation was just as Ricard expected. After Anjie left the field, the Spurs launched a fierce counterattack.But at this time, Courtney Lee and Aldridge stood up instead of An Jie.

The Spurs got closer, but from the beginning to the end, they couldn't keep the point difference within 10.

Popovich also replaced all his main players with only 1 minute left in the game.He gave up, the best coach of the year, this wise white-haired old man, was forced to give up the game in the Rose Garden!

How ingenious was Ricard's tactics?Not necessarily, Popovich almost cracked Ricard's defensive game.

But Anjie used his personal performance to beat the Spurs, Duncan, and Popovich to the point where he couldn't fight back!
All tactics are for the players, and all players are for the execution of the tactics.But Anjie's miraculous performance today made him superior to all tactics!
"I made 17 of 17 shots, my God, An Jie scored 38 points today, but the shooting percentage is [-]%!" O'Neill hugged his head with his hands in disbelief, miraculous, and it is not enough to describe An Jie's performance today show.

84 to 102, after the Trail Blazers lost two games in a row in San Antonio, with a huge difference of 18 points, they pulled back a city at home in Portland.

Today, Ricard's defensive arrangement, Popovich's wonderful scheduling, and Stephen Jackson's flashback will not be remembered by people.

Because today, because of this match, it only belongs to An Jie!
17 for 17, that number, might have to wait a while before another guy breaks it
(End of this chapter)