The strongest champion puzzle

Chapter 486 How to Beat the Spurs
When the Thunder hit the iron, the Spurs' offense was very stable.

Zhang Xiaotian is not a master of organization, but his passing will increase the actual hit rate, and the Spurs' opponents are very helpless.

Moreover, the Thunder's overall defense is a bit of a problem.

They did not integrate the team very well, both on the offensive end and on the defensive end.

Speaking of which, both Paul George and Anthony can play off the ball. Many people thought that the combination of them and Westbrook would be smooth. In fact, the difficulty is more than expected, otherwise the Thunder's record would not be so bad. .

After trading two famous All-Stars, the result is not as good as Westbrook leading the team alone, which feels quite pitiful.

In the third quarter, the Spurs began to suppress the Thunder. The reason was that Aldridge got an opportunity inside as the outside line bloomed, and the Spurs' inside and outside offenses were successfully connected.

As for the Thunder, except for the inefficient Big Three, no one stood up at all.

They also knew that it was dangerous for the Spurs to gain the advantage and enter the final quarter. Westbrook changed his style of play several times, but the effect was not good. The Spurs still gained the lead step by step.

At the beginning of the final quarter, the Thunder let Paul George stare at Zhang Xiaotian every step of the way.

Of the Thunder's three strong points, Paul George is also the only one who gets better as he plays.

But confronting Zhang Xiaotian, who was on the hook, made all his previous efforts come to naught.

Paul George's ability to attack with the ball is mediocre, and Zhang Xiaotian almost prevented him from getting a chance to make a shot.

The Thunder can only quickly replace Westbrook, but the Thunder's efficiency has not improved.

With Danny Green and Murray taking turns to take care of him, Westbrook can't save the team.

After the Spurs replaced the main force, Zhang Xiaotian broke out again, extending the team's lead to double digits.

Then the Thunder's three strong points tried three-pointers one after another, but the shooting percentage was still not high.

This is the embarrassment of the Thunder. They don't have a dedicated shooter to open up the space. Whether it is a breakthrough or a long-range shot on the offensive end, they need three strong points to complete.

When Paul George made a mistake in the last minute and was intercepted by Zhang Xiaotian, the Thunder could only surrender.

Leonard played 10 minutes this time, and his state was just average.

But when he came back, he helped the team win the Thunder, which should be a strong team, and he was in a good mood.

The return of Leonard has made other teams more wary of the Spurs.

The powerful defending champion is undoubtedly qualified to be the public enemy of the league.

In fact, since the Spurs won the championship last season, ambitious teams have formulated some targeted tactics.

But this season, the Spurs have changed. The joining of Evans and the growth of Murray have upgraded the Spurs' No. [-] position.

The inside offense is a little weaker because of Gasol's departure, but the defense has not declined.

Now it depends on Leonard's situation. It is very likely that the current Spurs are stronger, the starting team is younger, and the main strengths have not changed.

On the training ground, Leonard, who has not been able to increase the intensity of training, is a little depressed.

Zhang Xiaotian went over to persuade: "Don't worry, this season will be ours after all."

When Leonard fully recovers, he and Zhang Xiaotian can lead the team staggered during the rotation period, so that the weakness of the Spurs' substitute players' lack of active offensive ability will be eliminated.

If other teams want to beat them, they will add several difficulties.

On November 11, the Spurs played against the Eagles at home.

In order to implement the small ball strategy, the Eagles traded Howard in the summer and signed Gasol.

But their biggest change is the growth of young people. Sophomore Taolin Prince has improved significantly, and this year's rookie John Collins is also an immediate force.

It's just that the current Eagles are a bit too civilian. Their top scorer Schroeder has no leadership qualities, and the team's results are of course very ugly.

Mike Budenholzer gives the impression that he is a bit obsessed with the study of tactics and doesn't know how to adapt to individual conditions at all, but the Hawks may be fine if they rebuild with the trend.

In the first quarter of the game, the two sides played inextricably, and Gasol performed well.

And the Hawks' bench lineup played well, with John Collins and Belinelli feeling hot.

Of course, the Spurs are not a fuel-efficient lamp. Although Leonard is still in the time limit, his return is a great upgrade for the team. The Eagles can't block the Spurs' offense at all.

Therefore, the Eagles' resistance became more and more difficult, and the Spurs took the opportunity to take the lead in the second half of the second quarter.

Schroeder's performance is only average, and the Eagles' current offensive power is mainly manifested on the front line.

In the third quarter, the Spurs immediately made targeted efforts, and they were about to crush the Eagles. It was their substitute lineup that helped the team survive.

When Zhang Xiaotian went to rest, the big striker of the Eagles kept scoring.

Leonard was a little depressed. If his body fully adapted to the game, he wouldn't let his opponent be so arrogant.

But the Eagles just kept the team from collapsing early. In the fourth quarter, Zhang Xiaotian went on the court to teach the young people continuously, helping the team expand the score advantage to double digits.

After struggling with the shooter lineup, the Eagles finally had no choice but to admit defeat.

Taking the Spurs' team defense as an example, the general shooter lineup can't play its strength at all, but will become a cash machine when defending.

The team is in good shape, and Parker also plans to come back.

But his current position is embarrassing, Leonard is the main force when he comes back, and Parker is counting on Popovich's old friendship.

Unexpectedly, at this time, the Spurs, who were regarded as the big devil by the outside world, were defeated.

They lost to the Pelicans on the road and were ravaged by the twin towers of Anthony Davis and Cousins.

In the summer, the Pelicans renewed their contract with Holiday for 1.26 million in five years, and signed Rondo to form a tough backcourt. In addition, the combination of the insider known as the number one center and the number one power forward is also extremely eye-catching.

Well, in fact, the main reason is that the two insider gimmicks are relatively large.

The current Pelicans' offense is very good. On the defensive end, they have single defense and assisted defense, but the overall defense is not good.

The third position is their weakness. If Leonard is healthy, the Spurs can have a fight even if the inside is completely blown out, but Popovich didn't let the main players play for too long, and gave up the game after falling behind.

Some people think that they have found the weakness of the Spurs. If the internal pressure and the strong internal defense weaken the impact of Zhang Xiaotian and Leonard, they may win.

But this point of view was immediately sprayed to death by other people. In the era when the inside line is withered, where can we find two all-star insiders who can attack and help defend? It’s better to team up with James and Durant to fight against Zhang Xiaotian and Leonard. , at least now there are many powerful strikers.

The loss didn't hurt the morale of the Spurs, or they rushed too hard last season. The rhythm of this season is familiar to the Spurs. Keep the top three in the Western Conference and take it slowly.

(End of this chapter)