basketball player

Chapter 397 Chapter 395: Fast-paced Attack
On the court, the fourth quarter decisive battle between the two sides has begun.Although the Pacers trailed the Spurs by as much as 15 points, the Pacers fans still shouted their passion through their throats.

Meanwhile, courtside, the Pacers' three coaches stood together.Henson stood in the middle, with Vogel and Stevens on his left and right.

"Playing positional warfare, I am afraid it will be difficult for us to recover 12 points in 15 minutes. And you must know that even if we recover 15 points, we will only be tied with the Spurs. To beat them, we need more points. The small lineup can strengthen our offensive firepower and offensive rhythm, and we will try to suppress the Spurs with speed."

"But this way, Tim Duncan is inside." Vogel has his own concerns, and he knows exactly how capable Duncan is.It is possible for Horford and West to double-team the defense to contain Duncan. One-on-one defense?Duncan can score a bunch of goals in the paint.

"I know that there are risks in playing small lineups, and we are likely to be beaten by the opponent's inside attack. But likewise, we also have risks in playing positional warfare. Since there are risks, why not choose a method with a higher chance of winning? I know that basketball is not a gamble. But now, we can only give it a go."

After Henson explained, the Spurs had completed their first offense.Gary Neal continued to explode. He used Duncan's screen and a beautiful back run to get rid of Paul George and scored a three-pointer as soon as he came on the court!

The audience sighed, Neil's three-pointer today was simply too deadly, as if the souls of all the great shooters that night were attached to him.As soon as the Spurs came up, they widened the point difference to 18 points, and the Pacers almost fell to the edge of a cliff.

But the Pacers players were not discouraged, they were not frustrated, but quickly launched a counterattack!Horford sent the baseline ball quickly, and Paul ran across the half.Popovich frowned, the Pacers must speed up!
The Pacers' tactics are very simple, they just want to get the most points in the shortest time.If every attack is played for 24 seconds, Henson's goal will not be achieved.

Paul broke through to attract the defense and handed the ball to George. After receiving the ball, George feinted a shot. At this time, Horford just arrived and set up a screen for George.

The scene of George scoring 9 points at the end of the third quarter is still vivid.Henson believes that the young No. 24 still maintains the scoring status just now.

Seeing that George passed Mark Jackson through the screen, the Spurs hesitated to defend because they didn't know whether George was going to hit the mid-range shot or attack the basket.

But soon, George gave the Spurs the answer.He resolutely took two steps into the three-second zone, and then leaned on Duncan without fear to force a layup!

Duncan gave George a fierce and tough physical confrontation, but this did not trouble George. As the top scorer of the defending champion, scoring in the confrontation is commonplace for him.

George softly tossed the ball to the backboard, and the basketball deflected into the net.At the same time, the referee also blew his whistle, and he signaled Duncan to make a defensive foul.

"Are you crazy!? If you want to make a foul, foul me harder!" Popovich yelled at Duncan angrily. It's not that he can't accept Duncan's foul, and there was no problem with the penalty just now.Popovich was annoyed that Duncan couldn't stop the opponent from scoring despite fouling.

But even so, George's scoring didn't attract much attention.After all, even if he made an extra free throw, the Pacers were still 15 points behind!
"George played very well, but it's only now, isn't it too late?" Mike Breen sighed, and it was time for the Spurs to attack next.Maybe, they can immediately widen the gap again.

Immediately widening the point difference, Popovich thought so too.He made a few gestures to Parker, and Parker made a few gestures to his teammates while holding the ball and advancing.The Spurs players immediately understood that Mr. Vicki was telling them to attack the inside!
One big and four small, it is clear that the Spurs are going to play inside!

However, when Duncan relied on the inside to get a position, he found that Al Horford's defense was tougher than in the previous three quarters.Horford kept trying to get his arm around Duncan to steal. Of course, his purpose was not to really steal the ball, but just to disrupt Duncan's dribbling rhythm.

Horford is very clear about his responsibilities. With this lineup of one big and four small, whether the inside line will be blown up depends mostly on Horford's performance.Although he was abused by Duncan in the last game, don't forget that it was he who completed the lore in the last game.

The effect of speech skills is still there, but don't underestimate the impact of things like "morale" on players.

The cunning Duncan saw that Horford's center of gravity was relatively forward, so he suddenly turned his back and was about to walk in.But Horford has always been a center that is good at moving speed. He immediately got stuck in Duncan's position and didn't let him turn around comfortably.And Duncan also completed a small inside shot without getting rid of Horford.

It's a pity that Horford still puts too much pressure on Duncan.Duncan's throw was so accurate that it almost fell into it.But almost and a lot worse, the result is the same.The Spurs missed the offense, this is a good opportunity for the Pacers to close the score!
"It's a pity that I didn't seize the opportunity of this inside attack. Leonard grabbed the offensive rebound and he pushed the fast break himself!"

Kawhi Leonard, speaking of which, this is another pain point for Popovich.When Budenholzer suggested that Popovich trade George Hill for Leonard, Popovich hesitated.But it turns out that Leonard's plasticity is indeed very high.Look at his outstanding performance against James for two consecutive years. If George Hill can become a qualified starting point guard for the Spurs, then Leonard can become a superstar player!

This, Popovich firmly believes.

The Spurs' defense is still based on cutting off the passing route. Leonard saw that there was no chance to pass the ball, so he personally held the ball and launched an impact towards the basket.

Due to the sudden counterattack of the Pacers, Duncan and Diaw are still dragging behind the two insiders.Therefore, the Spurs' penalty area is not guarded by high points at this time.Facing "Martial Saint" Stephen Jackson, Leonard stretched his long arms and took a European step.After passing by Jackson, the taciturn No. 2 forward jumped lightly and dunked easily!

"European Step European Step Dunk. This is really a wanton display of talent. Without Leonard's physical condition, it is impossible to complete such a technical move as the European Step Dunk."

The fast break succeeded, and the Pacers narrowed the point difference to 12 points!Duncan shook his head, he should have grasped the ball just now
"There is a chance!" Henson looked up at the game time, the fast-paced offense of the first and fourth juniors was much smoother than he imagined!
Of course, the Spurs cannot sit still.In the next round, Gary Neal showed his skills again, making his second consecutive three-pointer in the fourth quarter!Seeing that the point difference was about to go to single digits, Neil stood up and actively made up the knife and succeeded.

"Hold on, it's not over yet!" But Henson was not discouraged by this. As long as the Spurs didn't score inside, it meant that this lineup still had a chance!

One big and four small are not afraid to attack the Spurs, but they are afraid that they will not be able to guard the opponent's inside line!As long as the Spurs can't find a huge advantage inside, it proves that this plan is still feasible!

"Desperate, the Pacers managed to gain momentum, and Gary Neal gave them a head-on blow. But the Pacers' offensive speed is still very fast, as if they were not affected by Neal at all. George broke through again, what will he do this time!?" Mike Breen felt that his mouth could not keep up with the rhythm, while Popovich felt that his control seemed to be gradually slipping away.Even just now, Neal hit a terrible three-pointer.

Counting the end of the third quarter, George has scored 11 points in a row.Therefore, the Spurs' defensive focus is all on George.

But this time, George did not choose to go inside and fight Duncan hard.It wasn't because he was afraid, but because he saw Ray Allen in the empty seat!

Gary Neal's performance today really exploded, but his defensive ability has not improved along with his fiery touch.Ray Allen slid around the bottom line and threw Neal clean. George broke through and scored. Ray Allen made a three-pointer in return!
Popovich gritted his teeth, the momentum was wrong!But Mr. Vicki didn't dare to use the timeout indiscriminately. When he thought of the last game, Popovich cherished every timeout opportunity very much.Think about it, if Henson hadn't held his breath and left a timeout in the last game, the Spurs would probably be leading by a big score now.

The 12-point difference is still the same, and almost 3 minutes have passed in the fourth quarter.It stands to reason that the Spurs still have a great advantage.But Popovich has begun to worry a little.

"Ray Allen, a player like him will never disappear at a critical moment! The point difference is only 12 points, can the Pacers come back to life!?" Mike Breen's voice changed from frustration to expectation. He had to admit that it was difficult for him to remain neutral in such a game.

This old-fashioned commentator was completely fanned by the resolute Pacers.

At this time, the live camera lens was given to Henson.He stood on the sidelines with his arms folded, unhurried and looking composed.This temperament is not inferior to Pat Riley.I have to admit that Giorgio Armani always has a good eye for people!

This time, the Spurs' ball was still ready to hit Neal's hands.But George was already prepared. At the moment Parker passed the ball, George suddenly gave up Stephen Jackson and went straight to Neil!

Neil was about to catch the ball, but a black lightning flashed suddenly, rolled up the basketball and walked away!Neil only saw the number 24 fluttering on the back of the jersey.
"Beautiful steal, the Spurs actually made a mistake! Their intentions are too obvious. Paul George has been spying on this ball for a long time! No one can catch up to him, and the Pacers played another fast attack! I have to admit that it is a wise choice for Coach Henson to send a large and a small lineup!"

Seeing George raise the basketball with one hand and leap for a dunk, Popovich sighed and called a stop to the game.

"10 points! 10 points! The strong Indiana Pacers, they narrowed the point difference to only 10 points! Popovich called to stop the game. He didn't want the team to lose control at the last moment!"

The lifeless Bankers Life Arena was ignited by George's dunk. Off the court, Henson waved his fist, but said nothing more.It's not too late to celebrate after catching up with the remaining 10 points!
Popovich was right. In a series, losses tend to bounce back.It's just that Henson doesn't want to wait until the next game to rebound. Now, let the Spurs see how the defending champion is fully fired!

(End of this chapter)