Bishop of the Abyss

Chapter 61 61. Defense Dominance Alliance
After the All-Star break, the rest of the regular season continues.

On February 2, the Timberwolves ushered in their first game after the All-Star Game against the Philadelphia 26ers led by Iverson.

The 76ers defeated the Timberwolves once this season. In that game, Iverson killed all sides, blasting the "alien" Cassel into scum, and led the 76ers to overthrow the Timberwolves gang with 26 wins and 4 losses.

Timberwolves fans still remember that game, because Iverson's performance was too explosive.

However, this time Iverson was targeted by Luke. As long as Iverson received the ball in the frontcourt, the Timberwolves would not hesitate to attack Iverson.

Even if Iverson's shooting ability is average, and his three-point shooting percentage this season is only 30%, Luke does not intend to give Iverson any offensive opportunities, so that Iverson will have to transfer the ball once halftime.

Five of the 76ers scored in double figures this season, but Allen Iverson is the only one who can really play.

And in the first two days, the 76ers came to Chris Webber for the trade and sent away many players headed by Kenny Thomas and Corliss Williams. four people.

It also includes Chris Webber, who has just been traded.

Webber, who just came to Philadelphia, is obviously incompatible with his teammates. The 76ers' style of play is completely opposite to the king's.

The Kings are a team that mainly plays Princeton tactics. The whole team pays attention to the movement of people and the ball. On the offensive end, a large number of off-ball cuts are used to create offensive opportunities.

This complex tactical concept involves teamwork among the entire team, and it also slows down the pace of the Kings. It can only be implemented after everyone is in the frontcourt.

But after coming to the Philadelphia 76ers, Weber discovered that this 76ers team revolved around Allen Iverson alone.

Except for the most common pick-and-roll on the offensive end, there is very little sharing of the ball, not to mention the screens and running positions off the ball.

To put it simply, it is enough to hand the ball to Allen Iverson. When Iverson holds the ball, the others only need to pull away to create singles opportunities for Iverson.

This simple and rough style of play is the core of the 76ers in the past two seasons, and Iverson's average of 24.8 shots per game this season is also ranked first in the league, which can be called a "debris flow" in the league. .

Iverson's one-on-one play robbed Chris Webber of his best ability, which is the high-post support that big players generally don't have.

Now Chris Webber can only act as a high-ranking turret to open up space for Iverson, so Weber basically lost half of it after he came to the 76ers.

In the two games that Webber played for the 76ers, Webber averaged only 36.1% of his field goals and 25.6% of his three-pointers.

Even his assist data, which has always been proud of the league, is less than three times, and his scoring average is only 15.2 points per game, which can definitely be called very bleak.

You know, the 76ers emptied half of the entire team's rotation for this deal, but Chris Webber could only contribute such a statistic. It is said that the Philadelphia management has become angry to the point of losing overnight.

I am considering whether to commit seppuku in minutes to give the Philadelphia fans an explanation!
Facing the 76ers who were obviously still in the running-in stage, the Timberwolves led the 76ers by a full 21 points in three quarters without bloodshed.

Throughout the first three quarters, Iverson was targeted by Luke and couldn't catch the ball. He only scored 11 points in the three quarters. This is the answer given by the league's scoring leader Iverson.

Every time Iverson scores, he must at least force a shot under the double-teaming of two people, because the Timberwolves' goal is very obvious, which is to empty other people and attack Iverson frantically.

At the end of the game, the Timberwolves defeated the 112ers 81:76, and scored 31 points at home in Philadelphia, avenging the last victory led by Iverson.

本场比赛加内特面对被交易到东部的老朋友克里斯韦伯全场轰下27分14篮板6助攻3抢断以及2次封盖，丝毫没给老朋友留一丝一毫的情面，又一次将韦伯的脸摁在地板上猛踩。

In sharp contrast, Weber only handed over 13 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists. From the confused expression of Chris Weber after the game, it can be seen that Weber is also worried about his future!
In addition, Nehbar, who was selected to the All-Star team for the first time in his career, scored 13 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in this game, completed the second triple-double of his career, and continued to develop his career milestones.

As for the best performer on the Timberwolves bench is John Salmons, facing his former club, the Philadelphia 76ers, Salmons looked very excited in this game, and seemed to have endless passion and energy on the court.

Even in the training stage of the fourth quarter, Salmons once began to dominate the game. The data of 23 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals completely smashed the Philadelphia management's vision!
The 23 points in a single game not only set a new career high for John Salmons, but also boosted the morale of the team against his former club.

Salmons told the Timberwolves fans with practical actions that trading him to the team is definitely the most profitable deal this season!
………………

On the 28th, the Timberwolves beat the Knicks 109-91 at home by 18 points. After the All-Star break, the morale was in full swing, showing an invincible aura.

Throughout the game, Marbury, who averaged 22 points and 8 assists per game this season, was restricted by the Timberwolves and couldn't find North.

This season, the Timberwolves' defensive efficiency has been ranked among the top five in the league. As long as Luke wants to target someone, even Iverson, the league's scoring leader, can only be caught without a fight, not to mention that even the All-Stars can't make it now. Marbury.

And Marbury's dismal performance directly led to the Knicks' complete collapse on the offensive end, and Crawford could only use his personal ability to let Golun go alone.

But Crawford is not Kobe after all. Even if Crawford scored 35 points, the Knicks still struggled to win.

The real core of this Knicks team is Stephen Marbury. Whether it is offensive stability or combing offense, Marbury is a topic that cannot be avoided in New York.

Relatively speaking, Crawford, who averaged 18 points per game this season, can only play alone. When the Knicks meet a top team in the league like the Timberwolves, Crawford's role is really minimal.

...............

After the victory over the Knicks, the Timberwolves ended all the team's games in February.

As of now, the Timberwolves have a record of 46 wins and 11 losses. They still maintain pressure on the Suns, Spurs and other teams behind them, and they are temporarily unshakable in the number one position in the league.

Next, the Timberwolves only need another month to usher in the comeback of "Madman" Sprewell.

At that time, the Timberwolves with a complete lineup will definitely become even more terrifying, and the new season will once again launch an impact on the championship!
(End of this chapter)