The way of the center

Chapter 680 The Enduring Secret Recipe

"Anjie is full of energy today." Popovich held his chin with his hand and muttered to himself on the sidelines.At the beginning of the game, Anjie even ran and jumped to give the Trail Blazers momentum.Worthy of being the defending champions, their state can change drastically just one day apart.

But a basketball game is always a game that needs to last for 48 minutes. Anjie's vitality cannot be maintained throughout the game.As long as he is human, he will be tired.

Therefore, although the Spurs encountered an accident at the beginning, when they attacked the Trail Blazers hinterland again, they were still calm, as if nothing happened just now, and the two sides are still at 0-0.

This is the San Antonio Spurs, calm, sophisticated, will always be their characteristics.

This time, Duncan still didn't honestly fight for a position in the low post. This guy will not let himself be nailed to death in one place.After all, Duncan is an indispensable part of the Spurs' offensive system. What he has to do is not only to score, but also to assist his teammates to complete the score.

Leonard set the first pick-and-roll for Parker, and Duncan set the second pick-and-roll for him from a distance.

Sure enough, when Lillard worked so hard to get rid of Leonard, he never thought that there was another Duncan waiting for him.

"Peng!" Lillard and Duncan collided solidly, and Parker was able to get rid of Lillard's entanglement and continue to go to the basket.

Originally, Popovich's tactic was to hope that Parker would drive Anjie away after breaking through, and then hand the ball to Duncan for him to complete the shot in the middle distance.After all, a mere Lillard can't interfere with Duncan, who is calm.

But when Parker passed An Jie quickly, the situation changed.

An Jie didn't chase Parker who ran past him, but continued to stare at Duncan, guarding in front of "Stone Buddha" who scored 27 points in the previous game.

"Damn it!" Parker cursed. Although the tactics had changed, it would not trouble the experienced Frenchman.He continued to go deeper, since An Jie let him in like this, then he is not welcome!

Just as Parker was about to make a layup, Aldridge approached him with his arms raised.Anjie sticks to Duncan, and Aldridge will defend the inside line.This is Ricard's solution!

Parker wanted to pass the ball, but he found that Splitter didn't seem to be very good at running on the offensive end.Splitter is standing under the basket, but now Parker has no room to pass the ball to the basket.Direct alley-oop?It's okay to pass the ball to Duncan. If you do this to Split, I'm afraid the Brazilian striker who is not good at attacking will not be able to understand.

There was no other way, and Parker, who was cornered, had to make an emergency stop and jump shot.Although Parker's shooting touch has always been very soft, but under Aldridge's interference, the basketball knocked out of the frame.

"Beautiful defense, Ann and LaMarcus have a very tacit understanding. The two of them solved this crisis perfectly, and the defense of the defending champion is still impeccable so far!"

After the attack missed, Anjie assisted Aldridge to easily hit a mid-range shot after attracting double-teams under the basket.

Aldridge's mother was running around with Catherine in the stands. Even cancer can't restrain the mother's joy now.

After three consecutive offensive and defensive failures, Popovich did not hesitate and immediately called the first timeout of the game.

The players of the Trail Blazers high-fived each other, and they won the first round of the contest!

After returning from the timeout, Popovich replaced Splitter with Diaw, aiming to strengthen the Spurs' offense.If Anjie puts his full attention on Duncan, Diaw will definitely get a lot of opportunities.

After the game restarted, everyone could see that Tony Parker had obviously increased the number of self-help attacks.At the beginning of the game, Parker put the passing first, but now, when the well-prepared Blazers killed Parker's passing route, he had to blast a hole himself.

Only when you score more can you attract defense.Only by attracting the defense can we find gaps and drive the whole team.

Under such circumstances, the Spurs' offense finally improved.In addition, in the second half of the first quarter, the appearance of Argentina "Demon Sword" Ginobili and the rotation of main players such as Anjie also brought some troubles to the Blazers' defense. Only then did the Spurs close the score .

24 to 26, at the end of the first quarter, the Spurs temporarily trailed by two points.The Blazers showed a completely different state today from two days ago. They are ready to play high-level games.Although only two points behind, Popovich knows that the situation of the entire game is now firmly grasped by the Trail Blazers.As long as there is an oversight, Anjie can immediately lead the team to an offensive climax.

Take over the game, take over the game.Popovich must come up with a way to reverse the decline, otherwise, when the second quarter ends, the point difference may not be as simple as two points.

"Obviously! Today the Spurs still want to use Duncan as an attack point to launch an attack. But obviously, we failed to let the Spurs succeed in the first quarter. It seems that you have not practiced in vain for these two days of confrontation training. Let's switch defenses faster, and let us hold the game in our own hands from beginning to end!" Ricard took the tactical board and analyzed many offensive routes that the Spurs may use later.

But the best coach doesn't know yet. On the other side of the court, Popovich already wants to open up another path.

Why did the Spurs go from a precarious playoff spot to a championship favorite in the past two years?In addition to Popovich and GDP still maintaining a high level, the rise of the Spurs' young players is also the reason why they can quickly heat up again.

The growth of Leonard, Danny Green, Belinelli and others has brought more new energy to the aging Spurs.

In the first quarter of the game, the Blazers obviously cut off the connection between the three GDP players.Duncan and Parker couldn't cooperate, and Ginobili couldn't be on the court with the other two for the time being.Since you are deploying for GDP, now, Popovich will use another person to defeat you!

After a short intermission, the second quarter started as scheduled.On the Spurs side, Popovich still retains all the starters except Splitter. It seems that he does not intend to let the GDP trio break the predicament.

Duncan made a free throw from the baseline, and Parker gesticulated to direct the offense while holding the ball forward.Angie was ready, and he stared at Duncan, trying not to let this amazing big man get any chance.

Parker didn't get entangled with Lillard this time, and Duncan didn't go up to play with Parker.As soon as the Frenchman took possession of the ball beyond the three-point line, he suddenly hit the ground and passed the ball into Duncan's hands!
"Is it so direct!?" Anjie was suspicious. The Spurs are definitely not the kind of team that will mess around.Let Duncan play singles with himself?Angie admits that Duncan is very powerful, but will Popovich really make such a choice?
Duncan pushed forward with his back. In the past, people were always amazed that Anjie, an Asian, could burst out with such great strength.But now, it was An Jie who marveled at the fact that the old Duncan was still so powerful.

For the first time, An Jie was forced to take a small step back by Duncan.An Jie immediately increased his strength, trying to push Duncan out, and the foot became more stable.

Second hit!Duncan continued to hit back, but this time, Anjie didn't move at all!Fighting inside is the way An Jie is least afraid of.

Seeing that he couldn't go any further, Duncan slowly turned to face the frame.At this time, Danny Green suddenly ran past An Jie, but this defender who slipped the baseline did not attract An Jie's attention.Now, all Anjie's attention is on Duncan, the biggest threat.

As everyone knows, Duncan suddenly raised the basketball!An Jie thought he was going to shoot, so he hurriedly took a step forward.

Unexpectedly, Duncan's ball was not a shot, but a pass!

The steady No. 21 passed the basketball behind him, and then immediately covered his crotch with his hands. Anjie, who was entangled with Duncan, happened to form a huge obstacle with Duncan, blocking Matthews' follow-up footsteps.

Green controlled the ball beyond the three-point line, turned around and shot directly.This guy's performance in the playoffs has made him one of the hottest three-point shooters in the league.

This time, Danny Green still did not miss.His shot from outside the three-point line hit directly, cleanly!

"Duncan's feint fooled everyone. The Spurs' offense finally has a new face. We now seem to see the smooth conduction against the Thunder. The Trail Blazers have to be careful. If they let the Spurs players If they are all turned on, the game will be difficult." Bill Walton, who was sitting in the commentary area, was as anxious as Ricard on the sidelines.The wonderful cooperation of the Spurs is not a good signal.

"This old fox!" An Jie cursed to himself, Duncan played so hard just now, he really thought that this stone Buddha wanted to take over the game.As everyone knows, all this is just paving the way for Green.

After being scored a three-pointer by the Spurs, the Trail Blazers urgently needed to score to stabilize the situation.However, when Lillard moved the ball forward, he found a nightmare he didn't want to face.

Kawhi Leonard, No. 2 small forward of the Spurs, is opening his exaggerated long arms like Anjie at the moment, bowing his waist, waiting for Lillard to fall into his arms.

"Come on! Coach Popovich asked Leonard and Damien to talk directly! Now, the Trail Blazers' offense is in big trouble!" The commentary area exclaimed, and Lillard had already been caught by Leon. Nader is entangled.

The terrifying shoulder width, the terrifying arm span, and the scary big hands.When Lillard is defended by this guy with extremely exaggerated body proportions, he has no vision at all!
Lillard can only instinctively protect the basketball from being taken away, but he has no way to organize an effective offense now.

Last year, Ricard solved this problem by letting Andre Iguodala handle the ball.But now, Lillard has no way to get the ball to Iguodala, let alone follow-up plans.

Just when Lillard was entangled in a panic, Frenchman Tony Parker suddenly left Matthews and ran towards Lillard.

Double team!Lillard fell into a desperate double-team!
Under the joint defense of Parker and Leonard, Lillard still lost the ball.

Leonard took the basketball and pushed forward with the ball, and Parker was able to run farther ahead empty-handed.

Before the Trail Blazers could form an effective replay, Leonard passed the ball forward.Parker, who had already run to the opposite three-point line, received the basketball and easily made an empty basket.

"It's so fucking difficult!" Ricard yelled and cursed, and finally made GDP a little "honest", but unexpectedly, the young people of the Spurs team became noisy.

Bill Walton, who was sitting in the commentary area, couldn't help shaking his head. No wonder this Spurs team has always been enduring. When the game is in a difficult moment, there are really people who can stand up.Popovich has too many cards in his hands, and the Blazers must be more cautious.

The playoffs are a real battlefield, a battlefield without guns.Although the Trail Blazers controlled the situation in the entire first quarter, it is still uncertain who will be the winner in the end.
(End of this chapter)