Legend of Tomorrow

After the movie, Guo Xu was interviewed by reporters again. He talked all about the movie and refused to talk about the NBA Finals.

Guo Xu said: The finals are tomorrow. I will play seriously after I play. Today I will watch a movie to relax, so you should ask me about entertainment.

He didn't talk about the finals. All sports media and fans felt that he didn't take the Cavaliers seriously. If he didn't have the absolute confidence to lead the team to win the championship, he wouldn't have chosen this time to miss training and attend the premiere. If the Suns lose the first game, he will be sprayed to death by the media. Losing the first game of the 232 schedule will make the entire series dangerous.

The next day, the Internet was discussing Guo Xu's participation in the premiere. The scapegoats changed from Spurs secretaries to Cavaliers secretaries, saying that Guo Xu lacked professional ethics and supported James who worked harder.

Most people think Guo Xu is cool and they can do whatever they like. This situation has not happened before. In the 1993 Bulls Eastern Conference Finals, Jordan also went to gamble all night.

Maybe this is the sign of a superstar? Because they are too strong and don't feel challenged, they live whatever they want in life.

That night, Guo Xu flew back to Phoenix on his friend Robert's special plane. He slept in at home and went to the arena on time to participate in the evening finals.

When entering the stadium, another reporter interviewed Guo Xu and asked him to express his feelings. He said that he was well prepared and would not affect his condition.

Before the game started, the trailer of Kung Fu Panda was played on the big screen in the stadium, advertising Guo Xu's movie. He is really talented in both culture and sports...

As of now, the box office of Kung Fu Panda has exceeded 20 million US dollars in less than one day. It has received good reviews and box office. Guo Xu's dubbing of the protagonist panda Po has received unanimous praise.

After the warm-up the game started.

Suns: Guo Xu, Blake, Howard, Haslem, Varejao.

Cavaliers: Eric Snow, Eddie House, James, Boozer, Ilgauskas.

The Cavaliers attacked first, Snow passed to James in the middle and ran away.

The opening formation of both sides was a two-back lineup. The Suns coaching staff determined that this would be a more powerful play. Both guards could switch between with and without the ball, so the defense almost didn't matter.

The Cavaliers need House's three-pointers, and there must be a three-point point. If House comes on the bench, the Cavaliers will use Pavlovic in order to shoot three-pointers.

Only one three-point point is obviously not enough.

The Suns used a mixed defense. Guo Xu was responsible for marking House, and the other four players were huddled near the penalty area. This arrangement is very targeted, which is to prevent breakthroughs, defend the penalty area, and shoot casually from mid- to long-range.

The Spurs have always used this strategy when guarding against stars such as Kobe Bryant and James. Many teams do it, so it's not special.

In basketball defensive tactics, shrinking defense is one of the changes in man-to-man defense. This is a set of tactics that help teams that lack talent compete with strong teams with super-talented stars. When the opponent has a player with strong breakthrough ability, shrinking defensive tactics can limit the opponent's star's breakthrough with the ball.

When James encounters this defensive formation, no matter whether he goes frontally or on both sides, he will be double-teamed when he breaks through.

The Cavaliers had an embarrassing scene. Howard took two steps away. There was no one around James. He didn't shoot when he was open. He took the ball and forced a breakthrough inside, but was double-teamed and separated.

Snow also took two steps to catch the ball, and also did not shoot. While dribbling the ball under the defense of the air, he looked for teammates who were running.

After several passes, 24 seconds almost ran out. Center Big Z missed a jumper due to interference from Haslem, and Varejao grabbed the rebound.

In the Sun position battle, Blake attracted Snow's defense to protect the ball on the outside. If he was a fast defender, it would not be difficult to break through Snow, but Blake was a person who hardly broke through and could not seize the opportunity.

Guo Xu stood in the left corner and cut to the basket under the cover of Haslem. House went around the baseline and chased with all his strength, predicting that he would run to the other corner. As a result, Guo Xu turned around and ran up the right side. Varejao blocked House without the ball.

The inside players only need to block House for Guo Xu for one second. This is the weak side. After the defender is blocked, the inside must switch defenses. How can Big Z prevent him with his speed? If he could, the Cavaliers would not compete with the Heat in tiebreaker, and the Hawks would not be able to win two games. The slowness of inside players switching defenses in pick-and-rolls is the Cavaliers' biggest weakness.

Guo Xu caught the ball at 70 degrees and shot a three-pointer. House bypassed the screen and could only stretch out his hand to interfere slightly, and the ball went in. 3 to 0.

The home fans applauded and felt relieved. Sure enough, attending the movie premiere would not affect Guo Xu's competitive state. It didn't matter if he missed one training session.

The confidence of the Suns players also began to increase. The Cavaliers actually allowed Guo Xu to take shots so easily. Their defense was far worse than the Spurs.

The Cavaliers attacked, and the Suns' four players once again shrank near the penalty area. James chose to pull up a three-pointer from the middle. Howard stepped forward without jumping and slightly interfered, and the ball missed.

Cavaliers fans who watched the game on live TV had to admit that the little emperor's shooting ability was completely incomparable to Guo Xu's, and he basically relied on three-pointers.

Even fake fans can see the difference in the defensive intensity faced by the two. Can James really defeat Guo Xu?

When James defeated opponents one after another in the Eastern Conference and reached the finals, many people expected another Jordan to fall from the sky. In 1991, Jordan eliminated the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Finals and reached the Finals for the first time, defeating the Western Conference giants the Lakers, thus creating the Bulls dynasty. Many people are discussing whether James will replicate Jordan's winning streak?

Just like Magic Johnson, Guo Xu is also a point guard star and a leader on the outside.

Obviously, Cavaliers fans are overthinking this. Jordan averaged 31.2 points, 6.6 rebounds and 11.4 assists per game in his first Finals, shooting 55.8% from the field. Can James produce such data? Now he is only good at breakthroughs and cannot score effectively outside the three-second zone.

Guo Xu is the opposite of James. Most of the offense is on the outside. He can easily be shot to death if he is not double-teamed outside the three-point line.

When the Suns attacked, Guo Xu received a pass from the outside. House bypassed the screen and pursued the defense, but he was the only one to catch up. Guo Xu got a weak-side singles opportunity.

He stepped outside the three-point line on the right side to make three threats. House was at a speed disadvantage and did not dare to step forward to get close to him. Guo Xu suddenly made a three-pointer and shot against House who was 185cm, and hit another one from the same position. 6 to 0.

When returning to defense, Guo Xu didn't even do any celebrations, and the training was generally relaxed. He really has no pressure. No team in the West dares to let him play in isolation. The Cavaliers only play two regular season games with the Suns in a season. They have too few games and lack experience. They still defend like they are against the Eastern Conference playoff teams.

Putting aside Iverson, who led the team for fishing in the regular season and shot only 45% from the field, Nash is the strongest star point guard in the Eastern Conference. His one-on-one ability is not at the same level as Guo Xu.

When the Cavaliers attacked, James first passed to Boozer, who received the ball from the left side of the frame as a triple threat. After probing, he broke through the baseline and was blocked by Haslem. Boozer was at a disadvantage due to his mobility and was unable to break through. He took a step with his back to protect the ball and was double-teamed in the low post. Snow again failed to shoot in the open space.

Snow played 82 regular season games and only scored 4.8 points, 2.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 0.9 steals in 28.7 minutes. He shot 40.9% from the field and 10% from the three-point range. He is a blue-collar perimeter defender, and his shooting percentage is just over 40% when he is left open.

He is self-aware, so he takes very cautious shots. Scoring is not his job.

James ran to catch the ball, rushed inside from the right, and was double-teamed by three people at the penalty area line. How could his breakthrough into the crowd be successful?