basketball player

Chapter 77 076: Need a key ball
On December 12th, Indianapolis had a heavy snowfall.This is a bit like the recent situation of the Pacers, which is extremely cold.

Without Horford and George, the Pacers' offense and defense seem to be limping a leg.The lack of restraint on the offensive end and the lack of strong points on the defensive end make Henson really stretched in terms of tactical arrangements.

Luckily, both of these guys made it back just before Christmas.And in yesterday's training, they performed pretty well.During George's ankle injury, he frantically worked on his long-range shots.And Horford's finger contusion did not hinder his defensive training.In other words, although both of them have been away from the field for a while, the training has never been interrupted.With systematic training, it is not difficult to maintain the state.

But the Pacers' opponent today, the New Orleans Hornets, is not so easy to deal with.Chris Paul, he can be said to be one of the best point guards in the current league.David West, an All-Star forward, has solid basic skills.The contribution of nearly 20 points per game is a huge threat to the Pacers' defense.Emeka Okafor, the No. 04 insider in the [-] draft after Howard.Although the data is not explosive enough, under the organization of Chris Paul, it can also play a huge role on the offensive end.

Meeting the Hornets at the juncture of a four-game losing streak, Henson's luck in December was indeed not very good.I don't know if reaching a five-game losing streak will also unlock an achievement, but Henson will definitely not try.

Before the start of the game, except for the local media in Indianapolis, almost no one thought that the Pacers could win.

After all, it turns out that when facing a real strong team, the Pacers' lineup is still a bit stretched.The New Orleans Hornets are definitely an out-and-out powerful team.

"We must use all our energy on the defensive end today. Tight man-to-man defense can make Chris Paul's passing less magical! Switch defenses as soon as there is a screen. I don't care whether it's an off-ball screen or a ball-holding screen. In short, switch defenses must be fast and decisive! Because as long as there is any gap, Paul can pass the ball to assist his teammates to score!"

In the locker room before the game, Henson was more serious than usual.He did it on purpose, because now he had to get the lads on edge.Let them know that this is an extremely important game.

Young teams can easily get tired after losing, get used to losing, and no longer have the desire to win.What Henson has to do is to constantly stimulate their desire to win.

Under the encouragement of Henson, Horford and Paul George are naturally gearing up, and the rest of the Pacers also want to get rid of the haze of losing streak as soon as possible.

However, after talking about the tactical layout, Henson found Horford and George alone and told them: "Think about it, think about what you should do after you go on the field. I know you can't wait to prove that you are okay, but I don't want to see you can't even do your job after you go on the field."

Some players need some passion, while others need more calm.

The lights in the Conseco Arena went out around [-] p.m. and then came back on after the national anthem was sung.Henson stood expressionlessly on the sidelines, wearing a decent suit and spotless leather shoes, which looked completely different from the previous "cleaner scout".

After two months of training in the regular season, he has become more and more like a coach who has been in the nba for many years.At this time, Henson looked stable and cunning.

In stark contrast is the new Hornets coach Monty Williams, who was born in 71 and is not yet 40 years old.But the young black coach stood on the sidelines with his hands in his pockets, feeling less stable than Henson.

But Monty doesn't need to be steady, because he has a steady and extremely talented point guard who can help his team control the situation at any time!
The starting lineup of the Pacers in this game is similar to that in November. Holiday continues to serve as the starting point guard, Matthews is at the second position, Dunleavy is at the third position, and Granger and Horford, who has returned from injury, are partners inside.

In this regard, ESPN commentator Jeff Van Gundy has some doubts.

"Al just announced his comeback yesterday, and today he's going to be in the starting line-up. Is Coach Henson a little too hasty?" Jeff Van Gundy, who once worked as a coach in the NBA, questioned Henson's employment from the perspective of a coach.

Henson is a young manager who is just as eager to get out of trouble as the players are.But sometimes, being too anxious is not a good thing.

"Coach Henson rarely makes mistakes in the selection of personnel, which is very commendable. Believe me, Jeff, never question Henson's changes in employment strategies." ESPN's top player Mike Breen is full of confidence in Henson. After all, he has seen Henson's many seemingly irrational operations that finally allowed the team to win the game.

After the start of the game, the two sides played inextricably. Chris Paul's powerful talent made the Hornets' offense always methodical.

As for the Pacers, Horford's comeback has brought tremendous changes to the Pacers.

First, he freed his teammates from having to deal with big players.Horford hit two consecutive open three-pointers after the opening, forcing Okafor to leave the basket.Second, the Pacers' offense has become much smoother.The scene of frequent mistakes in the previous games did not appear again.

But after the Hornets were emptied inside, Henson was surprised to find that the Pacers' offense was still somewhat difficult.The reason is that Chris Paul and Trevor Ariza's single-defense capabilities limit the Pacers' activities.

Holiday has a strong autonomous offensive ability, but Paul is one of the best defensive point guards in the league, and he can even remove "one".And Dunleavy doesn't have very good offensive ability with the ball. He is best at catching and shooting.

But Ariza's defensive presence made it difficult for Dunleavy to play.

In this way, the two sides played a 22 tie in the first quarter.The scores are not high, because the Pacers also made the Hornets suffer a lot on the defensive end.

West thought he could beat Granger violently with his height advantage, but Granger's toughness made West's offense not so smooth.

After the start of the second quarter, Henson started with George instead of Dunleavy, and the effect was obvious.

Facing a striker with richer offensive methods like George, Ariza's single defense is not so tight.George is not afraid of physical confrontation, and his athletic ability and shooting ability are very good.In the second quarter, George played 10 minutes and scored 12 points for Henson in a single quarter, shooting 64% from the field!

During the halftime interview, Henson proudly said: This is just the first step for George to become a superstar!
Indeed, George finally made his mark in today's game, allowing Henson to see a trace of the star's personal color.Maybe this nearly one-month injury made George really go crazy. 49 to 53, with George's outstanding performance, the Pacers ended the half with a 4-point lead.

In the third quarter, Paul assisted the Italian striker Belinelli to make frequent shots in the long range.The point difference was approaching, and just as Henson was worried, George's hasty performance in the third quarter allowed him to only score 3 points, and the Hornets entered the fourth quarter decisive battle with a 1-point advantage.

In the fourth quarter, the two sides played back and forth.West and Okafor frequently received wonderful passes from Paul in the low post and scored easily.Granger and Horford took advantage of their footwork and also dealt a heavy blow to the Hornets' defense.

Until the last 16 seconds of the game, Granger broke through to attract the defense and passed the ball to Holiday.The latter made a steady three-pointer, which made Paul pay a heavy price for the only defensive mistake in the game! In 13 seconds, Holiday's three-pointer gave the Pacers an important 1-point lead.

But soon, Paul's false pass again assisted West to make an easy layup under the basket, 93 to 92, and in three seconds, the Pacers fell behind again!
The scene was still boiling, and the fans did not expect this game to be so exciting.Mike Breen and Van Gundy were cheering for Paul's wonderful pass, and Paul's calm assist could not be overstated even if he used more compliments.At the same time, they are also looking forward to: "Let's see if there will be a lore in this game!"

Henson used up the last timeout in his hand, the last timeout, and needed to arrange a lore ball tactic.

Vogel was a little nervous, and he handed the tactical board to Henson tremblingly.But Henson had a calm face. At this moment, Vogel remembered what Henson said to himself yesterday.

Be prepared.

(End of this chapter)