NBA: This Center Is So Stable

The first time, the second time.

Chapter 260 The defense line composed of gloves and sharks

Beep~

With a long whistle from the referee, the starting lineups of both sides came on the court.

The centers on both sides stood on the midfield line and aroused the cheers of the fans on the scene.

One of the biggest highlights of this game is the confrontation between O’Neal and Wang Song.

It can be said that after the Pistons and Timberwolves were defeated by the Knicks and Lakers, the reputation of the first center in the East and West has no prefix.

In Madison Square Garden, the two people standing opposite each other in front of the fans are now the top centers in the East and West.

The real battle for the first place in the league!

However, judging from the previous regular season record, the two defeats of the Knicks made Wang Song slightly inferior.

Although the matchup data is basically equal, the team’s record is also an important factor for the outside world to compare the two.

This is also why Ben Wallace and Kevin Garnett have both withdrawn from the competition for the first place.

The eliminated team is not qualified to stand on the highest stage to enjoy the attention of the fans, and the same is true for their star players.

Only the two standing on the court now, regardless of qualifications or records, only considering being able to stand on the stage of this finals, are the last disputes between them for the league’s top inside line.

Jump ball starts!

On the field, two completely different bodies started the first confrontation of this game.

After extreme weight gain, the Big Shark’s weight has reached the peak of his career at this moment.

325 pounds!

A weight of nearly 300 kilograms is unique in the league.

It is with this invincible weight that O’Neal has been in the NBA for more than ten years and has never met an opponent.

The Knicks rookie standing opposite him at this moment is just a tall and thin center of about 220 pounds, which is 100 pounds lighter than O’Neal.

It is this 100-pound difference that brings a strong visual difference to the fans.

In the eyes of Knicks fans, Wang Song on the court now has no advantages except that his height is similar to that of the opponent.

No one will ignore the flexibility of Shaq at this tonnage. The confrontation with the Timberwolves in the last round has proved this point. With this tonnage, although O’Neal is not as flexible as when he first entered the league, he is still the first echelon of flexibility among inside players.

Imagine a 300-pound flexible fat man who can hook his hands, take steps, use his weight advantage, and has a good bounce.

This is why the topic of the first center in history in the league has been enduring.

Even though this is the eleventh year since O’Neal entered the league, the big shark is still the dominant center in the league.

On the court.

“Rookie, the legend about you ends here!”

O’Neal seemed to speak casually, but in fact he wanted to put psychological pressure on the other party.

After this period of public opinion fermentation, the outside world’s attention to this Asian boy in front of him has become more and more outrageous.

If it weren’t for the previous two matchups, O’Neal would definitely become extremely cautious in this game. Fortunately, with the experience of regular season games, he still has some understanding of the strength of this Asian boy.

If you ignore the strength of this guy in front of you because of your rookie status, you will definitely pay an extremely painful price.

Looking at the inside players in the entire league, if you have to rank them, O’Neal can rank Wang Song in the top five.

It is enough to show how much O’Neal values ​​the Knicks rookie!

Wang Song naturally knew that the other party was bluffing, and showed a contemptuous smile, just like in the regular season, and said lightly: “Maybe it’s not a legend, but a realistic documentary.”

“And you, Shaquille O’Neal! Destined to become part of the documentary!”

O’Neal did not respond again, but just smiled disdainfully.

The referee looked at the two people who were bickering, and was not in a hurry. He waited for both of them to stop and threw the ball up.

Wang Song took the lead and jumped high, taking the ball in one fell swoop, helping the Knicks get the opening ball.

Looking at the height of the opponent, O’Neal didn’t react for a while.

The big weight brought him not only invincible power, but also slower reaction.

But Wang Song’s jump ball just now gave him an illusion that the Asian boy’s jumping speed was faster and higher than in the regular season.

Even if he met this guy in his peak period, he might not be able to beat his opponent with confidence. There was no such obvious gap in the previous regular season.

“This guy

···I’ve improved!”

O’Neal muttered to himself as he retreated.

“You are indeed a young man. This is a terrifying speed of improvement. If you give me two more years, you will really feel like when I first entered the league… But the good thing is that I was born a few years earlier than you. ”

Just when O’Neal was secretly proud of himself, the Knicks’ surprise attack had already begun.

The Knicks-style fast break initiated by Nash swept Madison Garden. If it is said that with the strategy of old Nelson and the lineup of the Suns, the son of the wind can launch a seven-second fast break.

Then in the Knicks, with a center like Wang Song who has full mobility, and a group of Knicks players who are trained to run all over the court every day, this data is shortened to 5s!

Of course, this is the data after taking the defensive rebound.

Now with the ball in the half court, the Knicks’ fast break only needs three seconds, or even only one conduction, to end this round of offense.

Nash is running fast, and the defender sent by the Lakers is “The Glove” Gary Payton.

When it comes to the role of Payton, most fans’ first impression of him is the man who blocked Jordan.

He was selected to the defensive first team 9 times in his career. In Jordan’s 6 finals, his hit rate was the lowest. The lowest season was when he faced Payton’s defense.

During his peak period, he was publicly evaluated by many American media as the strongest defensive point guard in history!

Even though it is no longer the Jordan era, the “glove” is still an indispensable part of the Lakers’ defense.

Kobe and his Lakers backcourt partner can be said to be both offensive and defensive.

Even such a former All-Star guard was still a little daunted when facing the attack launched by the Son of the Wind.

I don’t know if it’s because of his old age or Steve Nash’s speed, Payton can clearly feel that he is willing but not strong enough.

Especially during Nash’s change of direction, there was no fancy movement, and a simple shoulder shake directly shook him off.

Payton was still quite impressed with this old man born in 1996.

But Nash in front of him did make him feel a little strange.

“Gary, don’t be stunned! ”

Just as Payton was daydreaming, the Big Shark had retreated to the basket, roaring fiercely to show that he was guarding the Lakers’ restricted area.

If Payton is the Lakers’ first line of defense against the small and agile guards, then O’Neal is the last one.

The average of 3 blocks per game in his playoff career is enough to scare any ball handler who breaks through to the Lakers’ restricted area.

Unfortunately, Nash is not in this group.

At the moment when O’Neal made up for the defense, Nash had already thrown the ball into the air.

Bang!

With a loud bang, the basket behind the Big Shark sizzled.

(End of this chapter)