Legend of Tomorrow

In the second half, the Thunder's weaknesses were completely exposed in this Christmas game.

The Suns taught all teams a vivid lesson. To deal with the Thunder, the easiest way is to slow down the pace, play positional battles steadily, ensure the players' return speed after shooting, and limit the Thunder's counterattack.

The offensive and defensive transition speed slows down, and the Thunder Trident's offensive efficiency decreases. Stars frequently play singles in the mid-range.

The Suns are famous for fast breaks but do not rely on fast breaks. Guo Xu can still perfectly control the rhythm in positional battles and switch freely between playing with and without the ball.

Westbrook and DeRozan can only attack with the ball. The threat of running without the ball is very small, and the defender does not need to follow closely because they lack shooting range. In positional battles with the ball in singles, their shooting percentage is also very low under interference.

This is a lack of ability, and no matter how good the coach is, there is no way to solve it. Brooks's method of adjustment was to forcefully increase the speed and let Wei Shao lead the charge and fight.

The Thunder are forced to compete with the Suns, who have led the small ball era. How can the outcome be in suspense?

D'Antoni made adjustments accordingly, letting O'Neal and Gasol rest off the court, and Gortat, Ibaka, and Haslem rotated inside. The meat shield center does not play, and the speed of the Suns' interior players is not inferior to that of any team.

The team was lagging behind by a big score, and Wei Shao, who was eager to chase points, began to consciously take on more responsibilities. His fans called this crazy running, unparalleled domineering, and extreme display of talent as leadership temperament.

In the counterattack of this section, Wei Shao singled out Guo Xu and used his height advantage to force breakthroughs many times, making emergency jump shots and giving Ibaka two big blocks. He made 2 of 8 shots in a single quarter, scored 7 points, 3 of 4 free throws, 1 assist and 3 turnovers, leading the Suns to a 28-point lead over the Thunder in three quarters, and the game entered garbage time.

Guo Xu was kicked off the court by Wei Shao and went to guard the water fountain. He would not play again in the fourth quarter. This made him extremely depressed as he wanted to improve his statistics. The only consolation was that other Suns starters also accompanied him to guard the water fountain.

Well, if Wei Shao takes more actions, it will be a suicide attack.

In the third quarter, Durant took fewer shots and passed more. He knew that if he kept playing alone, he would not be able to beat the Suns even with good statistics. He hopes to drive his teammates and become a better core, but ordinary ball distribution is difficult to form assists. He is not good at sudden points like Guo Xu.

Durant's main advantages are his height and wingspan. He has a wide field of vision when organizing, and his passing is not easily interfered. His most suitable partners are outsiders like Curry and Thompson who can catch the ball and take action immediately, not Wei Shao.

In Guo Xu's previous life, there was a saying that only Wei Shao can prevent Durant from dying.

This is not an empty statement. Wei Shao can not only reduce the number of Durant's shots and reduce the Thunder's scoring efficiency, but also often convert Durant's assists into irons. The chemical reaction between the two is very poor, 1+1 is definitely less than 2.

For Wei Shao, Durant is the most suitable teammate. Because Durant is a selfless core, he does not have high requirements for the ball and can play without the ball. This is an important reason why he can get along well with Wei Shao.

If Wei Shao and Curry are swapped now, the Thunder will compete for the championship this season, and there will be a fight in the Warriors' locker room. One white camel mountain cannot accommodate two Ouyang Feng.

Of course, even if the Thunder didn't have Wei Shao, the coach couldn't let Durant attack all the time. He didn't have the physical strength to support the whole game. In the parallel world, as of 2018, his highest score in a single game in 11 seasons of his career was only 54 points.

In the final quarter, both sides sent substitutes for training, and the Suns' fringe players Jeremy Lin and Whiteside both got opportunities to perform.

Xiao Linzi played very poorly. Dragic was responsible for holding the ball and attacking. Xiao Linzi couldn't find the rhythm he was good at as a shooting guard.

Whiteside played well. On the offensive end, he screened and then cut, caught the ball and hit the basket, scoring 6 points. His inside partner Gortat scored 8 points. The two had the upper hand against the Thunder's substitute inside players.

The Polish Hammer began to show its strength this season, averaging 7.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 16 minutes per game, and shooting 56.3% from the field. He didn't play long, but his efficiency was explosive.

Gortat's mid-range shooting percentage has reached 50%, but he rarely takes it, averaging only 1.4 times per game. More than 70% of his offense is completed in the low post and at the basket.

Whiteside has to practice his defense slowly. He is a naive young man who often flies away at a moment's notice and always wants to block his opponent's shots. On the offensive end, he performed well. He cut the ball in the air and rushed to dunk. It is difficult for the opponent to prevent this move after the opponent's inside line is lured away by the defender.

Whiteside is much better than when he joined the Kings. There are super veterans like O'Neal on the team who can teach him game experience. He grew up watching O'Neal play, and he listened to his idol very much. He turned from a prick with low emotional intelligence into an honest little brother.

His destiny began to change. As long as he didn't do anything stupid to offend Guo Xu, there was no need to undergo socialist transformation.

There are many talented players in the NBA, but only a few truly successful superstars, because in addition to talent, character is also an important factor in determining destiny.

Everything seems to be going well for Whiteside in good times. He has no complaints about the little playing time. He honestly practices the mid-range shot after the high pick-and-roll and the low-post catch-and-turn shot, which has yielded some results.

In Guo Xu's previous life, there were rumors of conflicts between Whiteside and Jiangsu Tongxi when he was playing in China's NBL. According to Jiangsu media, the club has reservations about his professional attitude and believes that he is ineffective at work.

When he first returned to the NBA, Whiteside was the worst-tempered guy on the Heat. He played in NBA games for more than 3 months, received 7 technical fouls, and was ejected twice. According to NBA rules, each item corresponds to a fine. The total fine he was fined that season reached $37,000.

At that time, a reporter joked that Whiteside would owe the league money this season because he only had a basic salary. Would it be enough to pay the fine?

Now Whiteside has curbed his bad temper and has become O'Neal's die-hard younger brother, following behind him to carry bags every day. During training, O'Neal was willing to teach him some practical techniques.

O'Neal's low-post footwork is outstanding. As long as Whiteside can practice his turning skills on both sides, he will not worry about playing without the ball in the future. Although he does not have the strength of O'Neal and is a tall and lanky player, he is very explosive. With his bullet speed and wingspan, ordinary insiders cannot block his shots.

Guo Xu will also impart experience to newcomers, telling them how to move and how to cooperate during offense.

Whiteside listened with an open mind and could concentrate. He didn't dare to make mistakes when facing two historical NBA stars. What's more, many people say that Guo Xu is the first player in NBA history?

The substitutes of both sides finished the final quarter, and the Suns beat the Thunder by 35 points in an away game 124-89.

This is because the Suns saved face for the Thunder on Christmas. Even veteran Hill, who was full of energy in the last quarter and played very little time in the first three quarters, did not play. D'Antoni mainly trained the inexperienced young people.

However, the Thunder's fringe players are even worse, and they can't stand it.

Six members of the Suns team scored in double figures. Guo Xu played 30 minutes and made 8 of 14 shots, 3 of 6 three-pointers, and 4 of 4 free throws. He scored 23 points and 11 assists. He scored a double-double without much effort.

Fans who said before the game that the Thunder are expected to win the championship this season have shut up. The Suns have found a way to deal with them.

There is a big gap between the two sides at the No. 1 position. Westbrook made 5 of 18 shots, 0 of 2 three-pointers, and 6 of 7 free throws. He scored 16 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, and 5 turnovers. He took more shots than he scored.

The Suns let Wei Shao play in the mid-range and long range. He rushed inside to help defend and let role players take action. He was going crazy...