basketball player

Chapter 144 142: We Are Strong

When Paul Pierce began to miss the offensive end, the Celtics suddenly lost their rhythm.

Now Pierce can still score a small 20 points per game relying on his superb personal skills. For a 34-year-old veteran, this is a very remarkable achievement.

But from another point of view, Pierce can only rely on his accumulation of precipitation over the years to score points now.By body?By speed?By bouncing?He can't rely on anything.

Therefore, as long as Pierce's offensive space is squeezed as much as possible and he is not deceived by his cunning shot timing, it is not difficult to guard against this star small forward who still averages 20 points per game.

Green can't contain Pierce, but that doesn't mean the taciturn first-year rookie can't.

"The strongest offensive point of the Celtics has been locked. Next, we will continue to defend like this, resolutely man-to-man, and we don't even need to switch defenses when there are pick-and-rolls, because the Celtics have no speed. As long as we are more patient than them, we are the winner!" This time, Henson didn't even change a single tactic, but only emphasized the mentality problem.

After returning from the timeout, Rivers had difficulty sitting down and stood anxiously on the sidelines.Fans of the Celtics suddenly discovered that their three giants seemed not enough.

Garnett fought and retreated, Ray Allen was hugged by George like a tree, as for Pierce, his experience did not seem to have much advantage in front of Leonard's long arms and big hands.

The local fans in Boston thought that Henson was facing two bottles of poison, but in fact, what was in front of him was just two glasses of high alcohol.

Alcohol may not taste good, but as long as you bite your teeth and swallow it, it won't be fatal.

The desperate Celtics had never seen such a tough outside defensive zone. Rondo distributed the ball several times, but the team's top two scorers Ray Allen and Pierce were slow to get a chance.

George and Leonard teamed up to create an iron wall on the flanks, which left a deep impression on the league for the first time!

In the end, the Celtics could only hand the ball to O'Neal.Of course, it was Jermaine O'Neal.

The former All-Star insider who once became famous in Indianapolis has basically stopped attacking since his knee "was scrapped".Facing Horford's rock-solid defense, Jermaine's turnaround jumper couldn't escape the interference zone at all.

After returning from the timeout, the Celtics not only failed to play tactics, but also failed to attack directly, which was a huge blow to the team's morale.

Throughout the first quarter, the Celtics did not play a decent offense.The starting five were ineffective, and the weak second team was even more appalling.

Whether Boston fans want to admit it or not, the glory of the Celtics is indeed a thing of the past.

In the next three quarters, let alone the Celtics, they couldn't even overtake the score.The Pacers' outside defensive chain completely contained the Celtics, and Pierce and Ray Allen struggled.

In just half the game, the Pacers led by 15 points.And Mike Gorman attributed the reason behind to "the Celtics didn't play well in the first half."

If Henson heard this remark, his stomach would hurt from laughing.It's not that the Celtics are not playing well, they have tried their best, but they still can't change anything!

It's just that the local commentators and fans in Boston are still unwilling to admit this.

How could a "disgraced" "rural guy" from the cornfield beat a "lord" in Boston?

But in fact, the Pacers are no longer the shabby "country folks" they used to be, and the "noble masters", even if they are nobles, are now down-and-out nobles.

After the start of the second half, Rondo scored 5 points in a row, Ray Allen finally made a long shot, and the Celtics played an 8-0 spurt.

Henson didn't sit still, and immediately cut off the signs when he saw the Celtics' momentum, and reminded everyone righteously: "Fuck me up!"

When it's time to be a villain, Henson never softens his heart.Facts have proved that his anger did make the slightly relaxed players regain their vigilance.

So in the following games, the downcast Celtics didn't get any chances.Throughout the game, they were suppressed by the Pacers.With the Pacers blooming more points, Rivers asked the team to put pressure on the ball and try not to let the Pacers' passing work.

If it is placed last season, Rivers' trick may still have a chance of success.But now, with Henson having Paul as a floor-control master, it's impossible to keep the Pacers' passing running.

Watching the Big Three who once swept the league being overwhelmed by the young Pacers, Boston commentator Mike Gorman finally admitted the dilemma his home team was facing.

"The team's problem is obvious. This combination is more than 100 years old. The contracts of many Celtics players will expire after this season. Therefore, if the Celtics continue to fail to win the championship. This will very likely be the 'last season' of the Big Three."

"As for the Indiana Pacers, their young players are better than we imagined. Paul George has become a tall second position with both offense and defense. It is not a coincidence that Leonard has defeated the two top small forwards in the league, James and Pierce, in two consecutive games. The stable scoring output of Horford and West has allowed the Pacers to never stagnate in their offense. What's more, their lineup is very thick."

Having said that, Gorman couldn't help but look at the Celtics' bench data.Compared with the Pacers, those data are simply horrible.

Now that the game is in the fourth quarter, only Bass and young guard Bradley in the Celtics rotation have scoring data.Of course, don't expect how good their data is, the two only contributed 9 points together.

As for the Pacers bench, Matthews alone has scored 13 points.

Before the game, everyone thought it would be a close and difficult game, and the Celtics had a better chance of winning.

But the game ended with 97 to 74. Looking at the point difference, we know that this game has nothing to do with the word "evenly matched".The Celtics, an ancient giant who had just won four consecutive victories, once again lost in time.

"The game. The game is over. The Celtics only scored 74 points. I have to say, this is a heartbreaking result. We thought the Celtics could do better." Gorman couldn't help feeling sad as he watched the downcast Big Three exit the field.

In 2008, they were full of spirits and won the championship trophy in one fell swoop. Everyone thought that a new Celtics dynasty was about to be born.

However, in 2012, they lost to a team that was not even considered an opponent.And, it was a fiasco.

In everyone's mind, the Celtics are still the mighty Eastern Conference powerhouse, and the Pacers are still the underwhelming team that struggles to win 30 wins a season.

But unconsciously, the situation has changed.This is the NBA, where strength speaks.

"Okay, let's see who is the best player in this game." Gorman, who was in grief, suddenly realized that the commentary work is not over yet, and now is not the time to worry about the Celtics.

So, under his guidance, the best player of the game appeared on the TV screens of the fans.

So in the next 30 seconds, the fans were swiped by the No. 2 small forward who seemed to have facial paralysis.

13分8个篮板3次助攻，三分球3投0中.莱昂纳德的数据看上去平平无奇。起码比起保罗的23分8助攻和乔治的18分7个篮板，是不值一提的。

But looking at Pierce's 37% shooting and 5 turnovers, it's not hard to understand why Leonard was voted the best player.

A top three position who once ruled the league was humiliated by a first-year rookie. All the information hinted at one thing: a new era has arrived.

Boston fans are still living in their former glory, they think the arrogant man is Henson.But this game made them suddenly understand something.

In the words of Coach Henson Joe in an interview after the game: "Before the game, everyone thought I was arrogant. They felt that facing a team like the Celtics, I should be nervous. As long as I relaxed a little bit, I would be arrogant. But the process and results of this game showed that they are the ones who are arrogant. They are the ones who should be nervous! They always think that they are still superior, please, wake up!"

After speaking, Henson wanted to turn around and leave.But it seemed that he suddenly remembered something, and he moved closer to the microphone in Sager's hand again.

Afterwards, the Chinese-American coach said seriously: "Now we are very strong, really strong!"

(End of this chapter)