Basketball Dragon

Chapter 85 Playoff Sprint

Carter got the rebound and accelerated forward suddenly.

Li Hai quickly turned around and followed, rushed to the front of Carter, stopped at the three-point line and prepared to defend, but Carter stopped.

After chasing a three-pointer, the basketball hit the net, 93:91, and the Nets overtook by 2 points.

It's over, Li Hai's heart sank at that time, he was a little out of breath, are he going to lose, this game.

The head coach called a timeout, but Li Hai was still dazed and didn't notice what was said during the timeout.

The Knicks served the ball at halftime, Li Hai ran mechanically, and somehow the ball came into his hands, and he shot mechanically, with a bang, bringing him back to reality.

He hit the iron again. This game must be lost to him. The Knicks probably won't even make the playoffs this season. Li Hai has never been so depressed. At this moment, he seems to have returned to the time when he was injured and reimbursed in his previous life.

The home fans burst into loud cheers, and Li Hai realized that because he had broken the Nets' inside line before, it finally paid off at this time.

Kurt Thomas grabbed the front court and made a shot, and the Knicks tied the score.

Li Hai woke up instantly, the game was not over yet, why did he give up without authorization, aren't all his teammates still working hard, he raised his hands and patted his cheeks vigorously.

Cheer up and win this game with everyone.

The Nets also served at halftime after a timeout. After receiving the ball, Kidd passed it to Carter who was out of the three-point line.

Carter controlled the time, and when there were only 8 seconds left in the attack time, he accelerated and rushed to the three-point line under the cover of his teammates.

Li Hai was stopped for a few tenths of a second, but immediately followed up with all his strength.

There are still two steps away from the three-point line. Carter did not choose to directly use three-pointers to solve the battle.

The relatively safe choice made Li Hai catch up.

Carter jumped high and made the motion of shooting before diving into the arms of the Knicks big man.

Beside him, Li Hai had already jumped to the same height, and slapped him fiercely with his right hand.

Carter noticed Li Hai's appearance, and kept the ball in his hand for an extra moment in order to avoid blocking the shot. When he threw it again, he didn't have enough strength.

The Knicks protected the backcourt, the coach called a timeout, and there were 10 seconds left in the game.

After re-entering the court, the ball was sent into the hands of Marbury, and everyone else was completely opened, leaving a huge breakthrough space, but Marbury stood still for a few seconds before suddenly starting, and after a simple screen he Just make a decisive move.

Missing, Li Hai rushed to the basket with the fastest speed.

But the guys at the basket were faster than him, and Kurt Thomas grabbed the offensive rebound again.

A tip-off lore, 95:93, the Knicks won the key battle.

"We won, we won!"

The Knicks players hugged each other happily, and all the previous unhappiness disappeared immediately.

"I am very happy for the victory. This is the result of the hard work of all Knicks players. Facts have proved that we are very united." In the interview after the game, Li Hai's mood has changed completely, and the smile on his face is much more real.

On April 4, the Knicks went to an away game against the Bucks, who were already hopeless for the playoffs.

Another outside battle, Maurice Williams, Desmond Mason, Michael Reed, and Lehi, Marbury, and Crawford raged to the last moment.

In the end, it was Li Hai's defensive contribution at a critical moment, stealing Reid to seal the victory for the team.

But two days later, the Knicks, who returned to the home court, were slammed by the Pacers who had upgraded the inside again.

At the end of the season, the Knicks are not the only teams that are doing their best. In order to enter the playoffs and gain home court advantage in the playoffs, many teams are fighting.

Only a few teams with outstanding records began to consider the playoffs in advance.

As the season enters the final stage, the competition for various awards has also entered a fever pitch.

In the competition for the best rookie, Li Hai's voice is very high. He may compete with Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon. Dwight Howard, who averaged a double-double, is expected to withdraw from the competition early. Also an inside player, almost all of his statistics were suppressed by Emeka Okafor.

Ben Gordon is also a contender for the best sixth man. If Li Hai hadn't become the starter later on, he would have been able to compete for this award. Ben Gordon's advantage is that he averaged less time per game than others to win the award. With excellent data, if it is converted into 48 minutes, he is the best scorer.

In addition, some people think that Li Hai can enter the best defensive team, but the overall defense of the Knicks is not good, often allowing opponents to score high points, and it is estimated that some points will be reduced.

On April 4, the Knicks came to the home court of the Nets, and the two sides fought again.

In order to deal with the Knicks, the Nets changed the starting lineup again. They put Carter back on the 2nd position and added an inside promotion height.

Their change was received in the first quarter. The inside score beat the Knicks 12:0, and it also caused too many fouls inside the Knicks.

The situation in the last game was reversed, and the Knicks also lost on the road.

On April 4, the Knicks played back-to-back games against the Bulls, who had locked the playoffs, and lost again.

On April 4, the Knicks challenged the Pacers away.

The Pacers Jr. O'Neal was absent due to injury. Facing opponents with weakened inside strength, the Knicks must win.

The Knicks are not full of personnel, and Tim Thomas is also unable to play due to injury. Fortunately, the Knicks have a lot of personnel at the power forward position, and the team let Michael Sweetney top the starting position.

Without Jermaine O'Neal, the Knicks' inside players are at least ten times more comfortable on the court. Dale Davis, who replaced O'Neal in the starting position, is a big blue-collar, and offense is not his strong point.

In this way, the only people the Pacers should pay attention to are Reggie Miller and Stephen Jackson.

At the beginning of the game, the Knicks played relatively smoothly, with more blooming outside and inside, while the Pacers were completely at a disadvantage inside. It was not until the substitute center Jeff Foster was replaced that the situation was stabilized.

Stephen Jackson intends to carry the team this time, increasing the number of shots.

Li Hai's defense against Stephen Jackson is meticulous, limiting the opponent's shooting rate to an acceptable range. The Knicks are more experienced in simply competing on the outside.

Crawford's defense is not good, but the offense almost killed the old Miller. Marbury didn't feel good today, but the pass was very timely, and several inside players also showed offensive power.

Everything was moving in the direction of victory, but in the fourth quarter, Reggie Miller suddenly exploded.

(End of this chapter)