NBA: James wants to team up with me

Chapter 103 The Spurs’ targeted defensive tactics, thanks to Wang Chong!

(It will be on the shelves soon. Let’s change the update method. The chapters in the future will be large chapters with more than 4000 words. In addition, there will be a wave of updates when it is released, and it will continue to be updated daily.)

Facts have proved that Turkoglu, whose height can be slightly compared with Wang Chong, is completely unable to interfere with Wang Chong on the defensive end. Especially when Wang Chong uses pick-and-roll screens and runs without the ball, Turkoglu's I really can't keep up with him in terms of mobility.

Seeing Wang Chong easily sneaking Turkoglu around, Spurs coach Popovich couldn't help but frown.

Before the series against the Lakers started, how to deal with Wang Chong became his biggest headache.

The Lakers with the OK combination were already difficult enough to deal with, but now they have another Wang Chong, which really gives people the feeling that they don't know how to play.

Bowen must have to defend Kobe, not to mention that the 2-meter-tall defensive effect was not good when facing Wang Chong. Even if Bowen can really limit Wang Chong's scoring, the consequences of Kobe's no one to limit him will only be more serious.

Even though Wang Chong's performance this season has amazed everyone, Kobe is far more threatening than him.

In this regard, Popovich could only curse inwardly. Phil Jackson is really unlucky. Not only does he have the strongest inside and outside partnership with OK, but Malone and Payton are now like this. He can pick up a young rookie with outstanding strength and usefulness, and any team coach will be envious.

On the field, the Spurs' defensive tactics were just as Popovich expected, and they achieved good results at the beginning.

O'Neal faced the blue-collar player Nesterovich with ease in the interior, but the opponent's active defense and Duncan's help on the other side made it difficult for O'Neal to easily catch the ball. .

In fact, this is a problem that O'Neal has always faced. His offensive ability at the basket is too strong. As long as he receives the ball in the penalty area, he will definitely be able to send the basketball into the basket.

But how to catch the ball has become the biggest problem limiting O'Neal's performance.

After all, he is not a defender and cannot start an attack with the ball from the outside.

With the league promulgating two rules that restrict inside players, three seconds in the penalty area and five seconds in the back, O'Neal can only get into position in the paint and wait for his teammates to pass the ball to him before attacking.

This is one of the biggest weaknesses of O'Neal, who is known to be invincible in the penalty area, even more important than his weakness in free throws.

It is said that O'Neal is the absolute core of the OK combination. There is no doubt about this, but we have to admit that without top defender teammates such as Kobe and Wade, O'Neal has never proven himself in the playoffs.

Don't worry about his dominance under the basket in the past. Regarding the overall situation on the court, O'Neal is really not as strong as imagined. The fact that he only has one regular season MVP in his career is one of the evidences.

You must know that Duncan, Nash and future Antetokounmpo and Jokic all have two regular season MVPs.

As strong as O'Neal, who was said to be invincible at his peak, he only had one regular season MVP in his career, which is enough to explain some problems.

In last year's playoffs, the Spurs eliminated the Lakers 4:2 in the second round, using the same tactics as now.

Try every means to prevent O'Neal from catching the ball easily. Even if the opponent catches the ball, they must foul to disrupt his offense before taking a shot at the basket and send him to the free throw line. At the same time, for Kobe, use the strategy of one-on-one defense with top defensive players. .

The result is that throughout the series, Kobe averaged 26.5 shots per game and averaged 32.3 points per game.

But O'Neal only had 25 points and 14 rebounds due to forward defense, double-teaming and shark-cutting tactics.

Although averaging 25+14 per game is a superstar-level performance, it is obviously not enough for the Lakers to beat the Spurs.

With the success of last season, this season, the Spurs will of course continue to use the previous defensive strategy. Although compared to last season, they lack David Robinson, an important interior defender for O'Neal, but O'Neal's strength today is compared to last year. The decline is not too small.

O'Neal, who averaged 27 points and 11 rebounds per game last season, averaged only 21+11 per game this season, and his offensive deterrence has declined significantly.

Even though the opponent was only Nesterovich, the frequent defense around the front and Duncan's double-teaming after O'Neal caught the ball still made O'Neal quite irritated.

In the first quarter of the game, O'Neal only succeeded in taking 3 shots at the basket, hitting 2 of them, and made 2 of 0 free throws and scored 4 points.

As long as he catches the ball under the basket, he can put the basketball into the basket even if Duncan double-teams him. But the problem is that it is difficult for the Lakers to successfully send the ball to the penalty area.

Not only O'Neal, but Kobe also had problems.

Although Bowen was later known for his vicious fouling methods, even without those dirty tricks, Bowen's defensive ability was still at the top level in the league. If he could become the league's top defensive player with dirty tricks alone, then someone like Zaza Players like Pachulia can all be selected for the best defensive team.

Under Bowen's experienced defense, Kobe's shooting percentage was extremely low. In the first quarter, he made 4 of 1 free throws and 4 of 4 free throws, scoring 6 points.

The Lakers' two core offensive players only contributed 10 points in the first quarter. It stands to reason that the Lakers' offensive efficiency has been so low that the score will definitely be greatly widened by the Spurs.

But this is not the case.

The Spurs' offensive efficiency in the first quarter was pretty good. They scored 26 points in a single quarter. Duncan and Parker both scored 7 points. Ginobili, who came off the bench not long after the game started, scored 8 points in a row.

But the Lakers were only 4 points behind.

It was Wang Chong who stood up.

In the first quarter of the game, he actually didn't get many more opportunities than O'Neal and Kobe. He only took 3 shots. However, Wang Chong made sure of all three shots, one three-pointer and two pick-and-roll mid-range shots. Plus 2-for-2 free throws after a foul.

Wang Chong scored 100 points in the first quarter with a 7% shooting rate, allowing the Lakers to hold on to the score in the first quarter.

What Popovich was most worried about happened.

The media has previously commented that for the Lakers, Wang Chong is like a presence that ensures the team's fault tolerance.

When one or both of the OK combination's offenses are in a stalemate, Wang Chong's role as a scorer with ultra-high stability in the mid-range is fully highlighted.

Thanks to Wang Chong, the Lakers did not fall behind by too many points in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the OK team also began to gradually adjust back to form. Both of them are top superstars. Naturally, they cannot be so easy because of the opponent's targeting. Completely restrained.

Especially O'Neal. O'Neal, who was a little angry after being entangled by Nesterovich, frequently asked for the ball under the basket. As a result, the Spurs had to use shark-cutting tactics in advance in order to restrict O'Neal.

O'Neal scored 9 free throws in the second quarter. Unfortunately, his free throw accuracy today was a bit bad. He only made 9 of 3 free throws. In addition, he scored 6 points with 3 of 9 shooting.

Kobe was not to be outdone, and his shooting rate began to recover and he contributed 7 points.

Although the Lakers also only had 22 points in the second quarter, the Spurs only had 20 points. As a result, a 4-point deficit was caught up to 2 points.

The Lakers fans at home breathed a sigh of relief when they saw this scene.

When they saw the OK combination performing abnormally in the first quarter of the game, they were really worried about the team.

After being defeated by the Spurs in the playoffs last year, they still felt a little unsure about facing the Spurs.

<divclass="contentadv">Thanks to Wang Chong!

By the third quarter of the game, Kobe finally found his form, scoring 11 points on 5 of 12 shots in the quarter, leading the Lakers to a 12:4 attack wave, completing the lead at 32:21 in the quarter.

With a 9-point lead, the two sides entered the fourth quarter.

Although Duncan made 5 of 4 shots and 3 of 2 free throws in the fourth quarter, giving Kobe 12 points in a single quarter, the Spurs were already over.

The Lakers won their first victory in the Western Conference Finals 105:97. The process was smooth and smooth. Although they were lagging behind in the first half, they still managed to win the game with the stable performance of the players...not to be precise, it should be With the stable performance of OK combination and Wang Chong.

Just like the original playoffs, Malone and Payton were in trouble again.

马龙9投3中仅有8分入账，佩顿更是8投1中只得4分。

湖人队是靠着26中10，全场得到31分的科比，14投8中得到19分的奥尼尔，以及15投8中得到23分的王崇才赢下的这场比赛。

The Spurs actually played very well in this game. They used tactics properly and successfully limited O'Neal's score to less than 20 points. Although Kobe's score was high, his 26-for-10 shooting rate of only 38.4% was definitely not considered a success. Efficient.

包括在进攻端，邓肯18投13中，以高达72%的命中率砍下30分11篮板，帕克也有20分9助攻入账，97的得分对于常规赛期间场均得分只有91.5分的马刺而言已经属于高得分了。

Their only miscalculation, or completely unsolvable problem, was the Lakers' Wang Chong.

As an outside player, Wang Chong made 15 of 8 shots and 3 of 2 three-pointers. This is absolutely fatal to the Spurs, who are good at defense and are best at reducing the opponent's offensive efficiency to win. Even if it is In the next game, as long as the Spurs can't think of a way to solve Wang Chong, the result will still be the same.

But the problem is that players with Wang Chong's playing style are too difficult to target. Unless the Spurs immediately parachute in a peak Garnett, the players on the team will not be able to defend Wang Chong one-on-one. Including Duncan.

Duncan's ability to protect the basket is much better than Garnett's, but he doesn't have the mobility of Garnett. It's also difficult to keep up with Wang Chong who is wandering around on the outside. Moreover, if he guards out, O'Neal on the inside will have to How to deal with it? It's really just a suicide attempt to defend O'Neal with just a few blue-collar centers.

Even if there was a defeat in the first game, it is absolutely undeniable that the threat of the OK combination is definitely much greater than that of Wang Chong. The reason why Wang Chong is difficult to deal with is mainly because O'Neal and Kobe attract the opponent's main defensive focus.

On May 5, the second game of the series begins.

If the last game was Kobe's show of strength, then this game is O'Neal's breakout.

Unlike Kobe, who scored 38 points with a 31% shooting rate, O'Neal's power was much more lethal.

在这场比赛中，奥尼尔全场21投15中，以71.4%的投篮命中率狂砍32分15篮板。

Kobe's shooting percentage in this game is still not high, scoring 17 points on 7 of 15 shots, Wang Chong 18 points, Malone's condition has improved slightly, scoring 8 points on 5 of 13 shots, but Payton is still as usual, shooting 30% and only 7 points. into account.

Not only that, Payton, a top defensive expert known as "The Glove", not only severely stretched his hips on the offensive end, but also on the defensive end.

Parker, who faced him, made 23 of 13 shots in this game and scored a full 30 points.

When the old Payton faced the astonishingly fast Parker, he could not prevent the opponent's breakthrough with the ball. Looking at the French sports car that seemed to be stepping on the accelerator at his feet, Payton could only lament the ruthlessness of the years.

99: 95.

In this game, the Lakers still had the last laugh.

After this battle, the Lakers already lead the Spurs 2:0, with a huge advantage.

However, the Lakers cannot take it lightly. Although San Antonio is not a big market, it is also one of the league's famous devil's home stadiums. The Lakers must win at least one victory at the Spurs' home court to be considered a real advantage.

-

With the start of the Eastern and Western Conference finals, the league has also begun to release the results of the season awards.

The Sixth Man of the Year was won by Mavericks forward Antoine Jamison. Jamison, who averaged 14.8 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, beat the Spurs' Manu Ginobili and the Pacers' Al Harrington. He can also be considered. Deserved.

After all, Jamison was the offensive core of the Warriors the previous season, but he had an All-Star performance of 22.2 points and 7 rebounds. Coming to the Mavericks was actually not a particularly good experience for him. He is already used to being the offensive core. To serve as a substitute for Nowitzki, the psychological gap is not small.

The Most Improved Player Award was won by Zach Randolph of the Trail Blazers. Although the Trail Blazers failed to enter the playoffs and only ranked tenth in the Western Conference, Randolph jumped from 8+4 last season to A 20+10 All-Star, the rate of improvement is staggering.

After these two awards were announced one after another, the next step was the most suspenseful, but actually not suspenseful, Best Rookie.

As Wang Chong expected, the Rookie of the Year award was ultimately awarded to James of the Cavaliers instead of Wang Chong and Anthony.

The announcement of this result immediately caused a certain response.

Fans of Wang Chong and Anthony expressed their dissatisfaction.

Why did James get elected as the Rookie of the Year? Does his data have better numbers than Wang Chong Anthony, or does the team's record stand out?

But dissatisfaction is dissatisfaction. In the United States, the number of fans of Wang Chong and Anthony cannot match that of James.

Although Wang Chong's fans on the other side of the ocean also complained about Wang Chong, it was of no help across the ocean.

Just like last year, Stoudemire beat Yao to win Rookie of the Year.

In terms of personal data performance alone, Stoudemire and Dayao are the same, both averaging 13.5+8 per game. Stoudemire's rebounds are slightly higher, but Dayao is better in assists, blocks and shooting percentage.

The reason Stoudemire finally beat Dayao to win the Rookie of the Year award was that the Suns had a better record than the Rockets and also entered the playoffs.

But in fact, in the 02-03 season, the Suns achieved a record of 44 wins and 38 losses, while the Rockets had a record of 43 wins and 39 losses. The two teams were eighth and ninth in the Western Conference respectively. The difference between wins and losses was only 1 game, and the two teams played against each other in four games. The Rockets have an absolute advantage with 3 wins and 1 loss.

To sum up, the main reason that actually determines Stoudemire to be the best rookie is that he is a local American player, and he will naturally be paid attention to by the American media during the voting process.

This is even true for Stoudemire, let alone James, who is highly praised by many parties.

There are many reasons given by the league for James to be selected, including a special example. Although Wang Chong and Anthony performed well, they are just simple scorers. They can only score by themselves on the court, while James Different, he can control the game and use passing and organizational support to drive his teammates to score and win.

The best proof is the 5.9 assists per game during the regular season.

Throughout NBA history, there are very few players who can average 20+5+5 per game in their rookie season. Only two players before James have done it, namely Big O Oscar Robertson and the god of basketball Michael Jordan.

James became the third player to achieve this achievement after these two superstars, which is even more commendable.

Of course, this argument is not convincing enough. Since you are so dominant, why can't you even make it to the playoffs? Isn't it strong enough?

It doesn't matter Wang Chong, Anthony's Nuggets lineup is not much better than the Cavaliers. They can still stand out in the fiercely competitive Western Conference. No matter what excuse you use, you can't get rid of this!