start with scouting

Chapter 189
The day after the Thunder defeated the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals, the Celtics also defeated the Magic 4-2 in the East.

The matchup in the finals was determined just like that, and the league followed closely to arrange the schedule. The first game will be played at the Ford Center on June [-].

Half an hour after the news was announced, the Thunder started selling tickets for the finals, and they were all sold out within 2 minutes.

Many fans who didn't get tickets bought them at a higher price on Twitter and other platforms, and the VIP seats on the sidelines were once as high as [-] US dollars.

Su Yang got [-] reserved tickets from the ticket center, all of which were near the sidelines, kept one for himself, and gave all the others to Kyle Wavell and other three low-ranking rookies, encouraging them to invite relatives Friends came to watch the game.

After all, that may be the only chance for the three of them to reach the finals in their careers. If there is garbage time in the game, Su Yang is willing to arrange for the three rookies to fight, and even design offensive tactics for the three of them, so as to fully experience and leave good memories.

On June [-]st, the Thunder team resumed training.

Su Yang arrived at the base at seven o'clock in the morning, and held a meeting with the scouting department, trainer team, and coaching staff as usual.

The head of the training team, Phil Handy, first reported the health of the players. All 13 members of the team can play normally. Then Brac, the scouting director, introduced the basic situation of the Celtics, emphasizing offensive rebounds and retreat speed.

"In a nutshell, the current Celtics mainly rely on experience and spirit to win. They need to shoot more accurately and stably than their opponents, and they need to be more focused on a certain method, more focused on avoiding mistakes, more cooperative, and more nervous... "

While Blatche explained, the four assistant coaches quickly flipped through the scouting report, and Su Yang nodded frequently in response.

Compared with the 10 and 08 seasons, the Celtics in the 09 season are not much different on the defensive end. They still pay attention to the overall linkage. Meeting the Celtics in the playoffs was a huge headache, but the price was that many defensive rebounds were missed, and the Hawks were forced to the seventh game.

But in terms of offense, in addition to using the opponent's mistakes to push fast breaks and counterattacks in the basic game, the Celtics used more mid-range jumpers in the 10th season. On the one hand, Garnett and Pierce are getting older and have already won championships. The decision to hit the rim is no longer as strong as before. On the other hand, the Celtics introduced Rasheed Wallace and other players who like jump shots in the offseason. Jump shots naturally account for a larger proportion of offense, and Rondo and Pierce rush Basket also prefers to dodge layups.

"The current Celtics are almost perfect in everything that involves spirit and experience, but they are old, lack muscle and impact, play very tired and lack easy scoring, and are prone to scoring shortages. "

After Blatche finished speaking, he slightly raised his hand to signal, and Su Yang immediately said: "Let's prepare for the Celtics. They are better than the Lakers. Be careful not to let Kevin Garnett's trash talk affect the mental state of the players. OK..."

Everyone laughed, Garnett's trash talk is indeed a must, and several Thunder players are very sensitive.

"Let me start first..."

Su Yang went on to say: "As the Celtics' defense likes to attack the ball holder on the line, we can play more CHIN tactics and UCLA air cuts to reduce the burden of handling for Russell and take advantage of Russell's speed and jumping..."

In a few words, Su Yang designed a set of tactics around Westbrook and Durant based on the defensive characteristics of the Celtics. The main method is to use high-post screens to cut air. If the air cut fails, he will switch to Durant. Initiate a five-out pick-and-roll at the top of the arc.

The core of the tactics is to weaken the Celtics' linkage advantage, play more local offenses, and try to pull Garnett out of the paint.

Assistant coach Snyder continued to speak, and he also mentioned the regular season, and even the tactics against the Celtics in the regular season last season. Anyway, the Thunder lineup and player characteristics are relatively restrained against the Celtics. The two losses are definitely not due to tactics. .

Assistant coaches Mark and Brooks spoke one after another, assistant coach Brian buried himself in the record, and the Thunder's main offensive strategy was quickly determined.

"The defensive end is very simple. A lot of shrinkage forces them to shoot mid-range shots. They make more use of Rondo's shortcoming of long-range shooting deviation as a help defense. When Rondo gets into the inside, make more use of his height disadvantage to double-team him to limit his passing. The other is defense. Fast break..."

As Su Yang said, everyone laughed again, because the Celtics also focused on defending the Thunder's fast break.

The key point is that the Celtics are the fastest defensive team in the league. This is because Garnett and others like mid-range shots. Unlike the Lakers Twin Towers, they desperately go to the basket every time they attack. Once the opponent launches a fast break counterattack, It was too late to retreat.

The Thunder, as the fastest counterattack team in the league, met the Celtics in the finals, which was a bit of a conflict.

In short, the Celtics can play those cards, and they can predict everything before the game starts. Doc Rivers will not play psychological warfare and gambling like Phil Jackson. Basically, he must defend if he can. , very textbook.

But even if the player's technical characteristics are fully restrained and he knows all the strategies, the Thunder still can't say that they can win against the Celtics.

The Celtics will become stronger in the playoffs. Rivers would rather give up home court advantage and help Garnett and Pierce rest. Big jump shot, full attack basket.

During the discussion, the preparation meeting ended.

Turning to the court, Durant and others have all arrived and are warming up for shooting, looking very excited.

Su Yang greeted casually, chatted a few Hollywood star gossips, talked about the latest rap, and then solemnly invited Sefoloza to the sidelines: "Sabo, we are going to change teams in the finals, and I hope you can serve as a backup shooting guard ..."

Before he finished speaking, Sefolosa nodded and agreed without any embarrassment or dissatisfaction.

Su Yang still explained a little bit: "It's not because of your low three-point shooting percentage, but because Ray Allen's offensive style of play is very different from Kobe's. It would be better to let Wesley defend, and you are better at defense. I would put you on Paul Pierce in the rotation, and you'd be able to limit him well, and that's just as important to us, you know what I mean?"

Sefolosa immediately nodded in agreement, and there was a hint of excitement in his eyes, as if he had been greatly affirmed.

Su Yang smiled and encouraged, but he did not deliberately exaggerate Sefolosha's defensive strength, because Pierce's offensive pace is particularly good, and players with equally good defensive footsteps like Sefolosha should be restricted.

The rotation is arranged, and the tactical play is followed by the Thunder generals. The practice speed is very fast.

At the same time that the Thunder generals were training fiercely, EPSN released the results predictions of 21 commentators for the finals. The Thunder won as many as 15 people. Compared with the previous dog-fighting attitude, it was the first time that a large number of commentators recognized it.

ESPN also cites two statistics: First, since the establishment of the three-point line, 70% of the championships have been won by teams with home court advantage in the finals; second, Coach Doc Rivers has never won a game without home court advantage. playoffs.

Many fans retweeted ESPN’s Twitter, expressing that the Thunder is about to repeat the history of the Blazers, won the championship after entering the playoffs for the first time, and will start the dynasty mode like the Lakers in 00. The old NBA king is dead, and the new king will be established. .

(End of this chapter)