NBA Building Cardinals

Chapter 239 Getting Stronger (510)

In the contest between the two sides in the second quarter, the Bobcats took the lead.

Use Damon Stoudemire and Jefferson in the high pick-and-roll.

Sure enough, as Liu Rui expected, the Celtics focused on defense and didn't know what choice to make between the two.

After all, before Little Flying Squirrel came, Jefferson was a well-deserved main offensive player in the second team of the Bobcats.

This is something that other teams in the league know.

While Stoudemire was in the Trail Blazers before, he has always been the main player in the outside offense.

And throughout his career, he has always been a backcourt player with very strong offensive firepower.

In addition, in the Bobcats game against the Hornets, Stoudemire, the flying mouse, played amazing efficiency in just over 20 minutes.

This makes other teams dare not relax in the slightest.

However, due to the last game against the Hornets, the Bobcats' Jefferson on the bench did not play.

Therefore, other teams in the league do not know who the Bobcats are currently on the bench as the absolute main offensive force.

As a result, as soon as the second quarter came up, Stoudemire directly played a pick-and-roll with Jefferson in the high position.

At first, the Celtics focused on marking Jefferson's slop.

But with the help of Stoudemire after the pick-and-roll, it was obvious that the Celtics paid the price.

Since most of the Celtics' defensive focus fell on Jefferson after the pick-and-roll, Stoudemire scored five points in a row by shooting directly from inside and outside.

Anxious Rivers shouted loudly from the sidelines.

In the next round, the Celtics put the focus of defense on Stoudemire.

But facing the pick-and-roll, Stoudemire got the ball out of Jefferson's hands very well.

Facing Lavrentz, Jefferson was too familiar with him.

After all, before being traded, Jefferson was a substitute for him in the Celtics, and in the team's confrontation, the two will often become the target of each other's confrontation.

With the help of the pick-and-roll, facing LaFrentz, Jefferson did not choose to blindly go down.

Instead, he made a mid-range jumper directly from the high position.

It is because he is too familiar with Lavlenz, so Jefferson knows that after reaching the low position, even relying on his footsteps is worthwhile.

But in the confrontation at the basket, it can't take much advantage.

So using the pick-and-roll with Stoudemire, bullying LaFrentz's foot movement was slow, and directly made a mid-range shot.

And once LaFrentz chooses Jefferson, who is close to the body and holds the ball in a high position, he has the confidence to complete one-on-one and convert it into points.

As for the Celtics' defense on the defensive end, this is the result that the Bobcats are most looking forward to.

It is a pity that the Celtics did not choose to switch defenses throughout the second quarter.

Obviously, head coach Rivers also sees this point more thoroughly.

Sure enough, he is worthy of being the champion coach of later generations. In terms of vision, Liu Rui is really impressed.

It is also because of the rogue style of play of the Bobcats second team, and the Celtics are the first team to face the Bobcats.

It can be said that he was caught off guard. After all, before the game, he didn't have the slightest preparation for this.

So at the end of the second quarter, the Bobcats ended with:
55:46
Leading the Celtics by nine points ended the first half of the game.

"How about the coach, are you still satisfied with our performance in the first half, haha."

Before the game, Liu Rui was most worried that in the second team, Jefferson and Stoudemire could not make a good ball selection.

Regarding this point, he has never had a particularly good idea.

So before the game, the two were called together separately, and I wanted to ask them what they thought.

One of the two is a potential rookie, and the other is a big brother with excellent offensive ability.

So when they met for the first time, both of them were very modest, expressing that they would obey Liu Rui's arrangements.

So Liu Rui arranged the pick-and-roll tactics of the second team for the two.

Unexpectedly, his performance in this game was better than Liu Rui expected.

This made Jefferson ask Liu Rui for credit at halftime.

After all, throughout the second quarter, Jefferson felt that the two played absolutely well.

And the fact is the same, the two played really well.

At least the Celtics didn't have a good idea even if they called a timeout throughout the second quarter.

Because in addition to the two on the field, there are House and Smith, as well as roughly three players who are very threatening three-pointers.

This made the rest of the Celtics dare not give up assisting their opponents in defense.

This is also the greatest restraint on the field for players with three-point ability.

"Hehe, I'm satisfied, of course I'm satisfied. I was worried about the chemical reaction between the two of you, but I was really afraid that 1+1 would equal 0.8."

"Unexpectedly, the two of you gave me a surprise on the court."

For the performance of the two in the first half, Liu Rui is quite satisfied.

Moreover, Liu Rui knew that the two were able to exert such great power on the court, thanks to the existence of Wang Zhizhi.

Because before Wang Zhizhi came, the team used either Sampson or Pachulia as the power forward in the second team.

Neither of those guys has the long-range shooting ability to space the floor for Jefferson well.

Wang Zhizhi is just the opposite. Although he is in a low position, his body is at an absolute disadvantage.

But Liu Rui never had the idea of ​​letting him hit the low post, but always let him play the role of a three-point fortress.

It is precisely because Wang Zhizhi can pull the opponent's other insider out of the penalty area to the greatest extent on the court.

That's why the high pick-and-roll between the two can be made easier.

After all, it was on the flank, but there were still House and the old guy Smith staring at him.

No matter who these two are, no one in the league will dare to let them go.

House has played so far this season, averaging 42% of his three-pointers per game.

Even Smith has a 35% hit rate.

So any contempt will make the other party pay the price.

Combining all of the above, this made the outstanding performance of Stoudemire and Jefferson in this game.

At present, the team's inside depth is already relatively deep.

But Liu Rui didn't forget that there was still this beast Eli on the suspension list.

Although in positional warfare, his role is definitely not as obvious as Wang Zhizhi's tactical system, but as a natural counterattack engine, the beast Eli has a natural sense of smell in defensive counterattacks.

The thought of Eli's coming back soon gave Liu Rui a headache.

For the first time, I feel that too many players can be used is also an annoyance...

(End of this chapter)