Legendary basketball manager

The Thunder and the Spurs are fourth in the West and fifth in the West.

Interestingly, that's not what fans expected of them before the season started.

For the Spurs with gdp, most fans think they will be at the top of the West.

Even if it is not the first, it will not fall out of the top three.

Although the Thunder is full of talent, the core players in the team are only in their early 20s.

Fans generally expect them to... press the line to enter the playoffs, keep eight and seven and try six.

Unexpectedly, now one is lower than expected, and the other is higher than expected, and finally meet at the fourth or fifth place.

Sophisticated Spurs vs young Thunder.

This group of duels also attracted a lot of attention.

There are even many professional ball commentators who believe that this will be the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, the most interesting matchup!

"If you had a choice, would you prefer to play the Spurs or the Thunder?"

In the gap between player introductions, Mark Jackson asked the Rockets generals.

"Thunder. Although the Spurs are old, they have the heart of a champion. It is uncertain how much energy they can burst out."

Tony Allen was the first to answer.

"It's still the Spurs. In the playoffs, their experience will play a big role. The Thunder are too young in front of them."

pj-Tucker said.

"Thunder's talent is indeed top-notch, but they still need more time to transform their talent into strength."

Lowry also expressed his views.

Xiaogangpao has now been reduced to the team's third point guard, but his mentality still seems to be good.

In fact, Mark Jackson had already communicated with Lowry before adjusting the team rotation.

Lowry didn't react too much, and accepted the arrangement calmly, expressing his understanding.

However, he also frankly told Mark - Jackson - after the end of the season, he may apply to leave the team.

"In any case, this season I will wholeheartedly help the team win the championship."

"As for the future... let's talk about it in the offseason!"

"If the Rockets no longer need me in the future, I will leave on my own initiative."

Lowry said so.

This passage is somewhat sad.

Mark Jackson's real thought after hearing this is [You don't need a player without a team. ]

But he couldn't say it, because once he said that, how would Lowry leave?

You can't let someone have an All-Star guard, play you the third point guard.

Therefore, Mark Jackson could only answer him at the time: "Boss said, after the season, if you have any plans, he will fully support you."

Lowry smiled and nodded.

............

Look back to the present.

Several players followed up with Mark Jackson's questions.

But except for Curry, everyone thinks that the Spurs are the team that may pose a threat to the Rockets.

Mengshen felt that the Thunder caused more trouble for the Rockets during the regular season.The Spurs' team-oriented basketball seems to have nothing to do with the Rockets.

"It's about to start, let's watch the game first, maybe you will change your mind after watching it."

Mark Jackson said with a smile.

............

With the referee throwing the ball high, the game officially begins!

Duncan and Ibaka scramble for the ball.

Although Shi Buddha has a size advantage, young people are better at playing speed and jumping.

Ibaka waved the ball back to his own half.

Thunder strikes first!

Westbrook holds the ball through half court and meets Parker's defense.

In the first attack, Guigui's goal is very clear, that is, to hit one!

With the help of Ibaka's pick-and-roll, he easily shook off Parker, and then went inside to kill.

Duncan quickly shrinks the basket to protect the basket.

But Westbrook was not afraid at all, kicked his feet on the ground, and rose into the air facing the stone Buddha...

The two had a physical confrontation in the air.

"Beep!"

The whistle sounded and Duncan blocked the foul.

Westbrook missed a layup, but was able to get to the free throw line.

One free throw...hit!

Two free throws... Strike the iron!

Duncan took off the rebound and gave the ball to Parker.

The little French sports car advanced quickly after getting the ball.

After coming to the Thunder's half court, he keenly discovered Gary Neal who was in the open position, and passed the ball in the first place.

After receiving the ball, Neil did not hesitate and made a decisive three-pointer.

After the basketball left his fingertips, it spun at a high speed, drawing a beautiful arc in the air...

"Shu~"

Hollow into the network!

1:3, the Spurs took the lead.

"Look at the counterattack speed, look at the on-the-spot choices, this is the basketball of the old guys."

Tony Allen commented with a smile.

"It's a really good position in transition."

Mark Jackson said with a smile, while he was talking, he was simply taking notes.

The game continues.

Durant began to show off.

He first singled Jefferson at a 45-degree angle on the right.

After a sharp change of direction to pass the latter, Xiao Shuaiyun made a sudden stop and made a mid-range shot...

hit!

3: 3.

In the next round, Durant made a comeback.

This time, he chose to ask for the ball in the low post.

Although Durant is still relatively thin now, his core strength is not weak at all.

Relying on his height advantage, the young coach stuck Jefferson firmly behind him and easily caught the ball.

After getting the ball, Durant's handling is still decisive.

He immediately turned to face the ball frame, and then crossed the ball and broke through.

But after taking only one step, Durant slammed his right foot on the ground, took a step back and bounced back to his original position, and then shot.

Jefferson was so shaken by this series of actions that he could only watch the opponent finish his shot...

Again!

5:3, the Thunder completed the overtake.

After scoring the goal, Durant looked calm, as if he had done a simple thing.

Upon seeing this, the Rockets as far away as Houston made comments one after another.

"Richard (Jefferson) will definitely not be able to defend like this. A player like Kevin, once he is allowed to enter the rhythm, the ball will be scored nine times out of ten."

Tony Allen shook his head and said.

"Then how should we prevent it?"

Jeremy Lin asked curiously.

"Up to the body."

Mr. Tony has not yet started class, and George is the first to answer.

"Yes, Kevin must be allowed to leave the 'comfort zone', otherwise, with his height and wingspan, almost all defensive players will not be able to form effective interference."

Tony Allen added.

"If the opponent is the Thunder in the second round, Tony is the most suitable defense for Durant."

"Next is pj, then paul."

Mark Jackson commented.

As soon as this remark came out, everyone nodded in agreement.

George himself didn't feel that the coach's words were inappropriate.

On the contrary, after improving his defensive awareness, George is very aware of his strengths and weaknesses.

He's an all-around defender,

He's capable against any style of offensive player.

From a small speed guard to a powerful power forward, George can defend one defense with his unique talent.

In addition, he is particularly good at predicting the opponent's dribbling and passing intentions.

There have been countless rounds this season, George has shot one step ahead, and simply intercepted the ball neatly.

The highest praise for Pickle's defense from the outside world is-don't pass the ball in front of Paul.

But George's defense also has obvious shortcomings-weak oppression.

When facing star players, his more "civilized" defensive style often allows the opponent to complete difficult offenses.

The Rockets coaching staff discovered this early on, so they let Tony Allen teach by example and teach some defensive skills.

George's defensive aggression has improved so far, but there's still plenty of room for improvement.

For this reason, Shen Fei even suggested to George to find his idol Kobe to train with during the offseason.

As the player with the most first defenses in history (tied for 9 times with Jordan), Corvo was known for his "mad dog" defense at his peak.

If George can absorb a little bit of defensive nutrition, he may have a great improvement!

But looking at the moment, Pickle is indeed not as effective as Tony Allen and PJ Tucker when defending Durant.

"It depends on how the Spurs adjust. According to Richard's defense, kd can score at least 40 points tonight."

Ben Wallace said lightly.

............

On the field, Popovich naturally saw the loopholes in defense.

He immediately got up from the coach's bench, walked to the sidelines and gestured at the players.

In the next round, the Thunder followed suit and handed the ball to Durant again.

But this time, the Spurs adjusted their defensive strategy, and Gary Neal immediately "abandoned" Sefolosha, who was facing up, and went straight to kd.

Soon, Neal and Jefferson formed a pincer attack on Durant.

However, there is a certain gap between the two of them and kd in terms of size.

Durant raised the ball high and firmly protected the basketball.

The next moment, kd flicked his wrist and passed the ball to Sefolosha who was emptied outside the three-point line.

Swiss army knife decisive shot after receiving the ball...

"duang!"

The ball hit the front of the basket hard and bounced out.

But Ibaka on the inside jumped up, overwhelmed the Spurs' twin towers-Duncan and Splitter, and took off the rebound.

Westbrook at the top of the arc smelled an opportunity, suddenly started, got rid of Parker's defense, and cut to the basket.

Ibaka understood and passed the ball.

The next moment, the tortoise came to the world and bombed the basket...

"bang!"

A powerful one-handed dunk directly caused the Spurs' AT&T Arena to fall into dead silence.

At 7:3, the Thunder continued to lead.

After the goal, Westbrook was very excited. He raised his hands and made a "baby cradle" celebration in front of him.

This also made the home fans very dissatisfied and booed one after another.

Changing sides to fight again, Duncan stood up to stabilize the situation as always.

He post-ups Ibaka in the post.

Relying on his excellent skills, Duncan gave Ibaka, who can fly and jump, no chance to use it, so he could only watch him complete the hook on the spot.

The basketball went into the basket, 7:5.

On the next possession, an excited Westbrook tried to attack the rim again.

Using his super explosive power, he once again got rid of Westbrook's defense and rushed to the penalty area.

But this time, Duncan stood ahead of Westbrook's only path.

The tortoise couldn't avoid it, and bumped into the stone Buddha.

"Beep!"

The whistle sounded and the Thunder made an offensive foul.

Duncan, who fell to the ground, threw his fist in celebration, and other Spurs players hurried forward and pulled Big Brother up.

It is worth mentioning that although the defense was successful, Popovich was very upset.

During the interval of serving, he called Parker to the sidelines, bearded and glared, and began to reprimand him loudly, completely disrespecting the backbone of the team.

Parker lowered his head, bearing the anger of the coach.

He knew that his defense against Westbrook had failed since the start of the game, so he could only be scolded silently.

"Coach, I seem... I really can't prevent his breakthrough, why don't I let him shoot?"

When Popovich was tired from spraying, Parker asked cautiously.

"Otherwise? Use your brains more on the court, and at the same time trust your own judgment!"

Although Popovich is still angry, his tone has eased a lot.

Parker nodded, turned and returned to the arena.

Being stunned several times by Westbrook, the little sports car lost face.

So this round, he took the initiative to call the pick-and-roll tactic.

Duncan heard the news and came to help Parker firmly block Westbrook.

Stepping on the gas pedal of the small sports car instantly tore apart Thunder's defense.

But it is a pity that Ibaka, who is supplementing the defense, seems to have been prepared.

He calculated the pace, jumped up at the moment Parker made a layup, and pressed the ball on the backboard.

Nail board big hat!

Then, Ibaka took off for the second time, received the rebound, and found Durant with a long pass.

Thunder took advantage of the situation to launch a counterattack!

KD stepped up his long legs, as if entering no one's land, and quickly rushed to the Spurs penalty area.

I saw him holding the ball with his right hand, with the momentum of burning the sky, jumping high...

"bang!"

The hammer of thunder is like a broken bamboo!

This shocking one-handed dunk not only helped the team widen the point difference, but also directly caused Popovich to call a timeout.

9: 5.

Although the point difference is only 4 points, the Thunder has already started!

This young guard did not have the slightest stage fright when facing the seasoned Spurs.

On the contrary, they gave full play to their natural advantages.

With speed, strength, and bounce, the veterans of the Spurs were very embarrassed.

Such a situation not only surprised the fans at the scene, but also surprised the Rockets in Houston.

"If this 4-minute game is the true level of the Thunder...then they will definitely raise the ball."

Yao Ming said seriously.

"Well. The strength of the Thunder on the defensive end and the cooperation between the players are much stronger than when they played against us last time."

"Durant's finishing ability has also improved compared to then."

Curry analyzed.

"Kd even fine-tuned his shooting posture."

"He used to swing the ball too long and was easily disturbed. Now when he catches the ball, he puts the ball above his chest."

"Just such a small change... the difficulty of defending kd has at least doubled compared to the past."

Maddy touched his chin with his right hand and said seriously.

As a super scorer, t-ac is very meticulous in polishing his offensive moves.

Small details like lifting the ball may not be the key to ordinary players, but at their level, the situation is different!

Obviously, Durant has put in a lot of hard work and polished his technical moves during this time.

McGrady has a hunch that this slender new-generation striker will be one of the most difficult players to defend in the league in the future!

Thinking of this, t-ac couldn't help but turned to look at Curry.

[I don’t know either of you, who will achieve higher achievement..

.]

Maddie sighed inwardly.

............

Time flies, and the first quarter came to an end in a blink of an eye.

Relying on the excellent performance of Dewey and the juniors, the Thunder entered the second quarter with a 30-point lead at 25:[-].

As soon as the second quarter came up, the two juniors went off to rest, and Harden came off the bench.

As for the Spurs, Parker, who went to rest early in the first quarter, reappeared.

The two backcourts lead their respective teams and start a duel in the transition period.

Spurs attack.

Parker broke into the penalty area with the help of a screen and made a successful throw.

At 30:27, the point difference narrowed to within one round.

Offensive and defensive transition, Harden dribbles through half court.

With the same pick-and-roll tactic, Harden used the pick-and-roll to change the defender in front of him from George Hill to Matt Bonner.

Bonner is a typical shooter.

Except for shooting, he doesn't have many strengths, and defense is his weakness.

Harden beat him like a fish in water.

After a continuous crotch dribble, Brother Deng suddenly slumped his shoulders and made a breakthrough, but the next moment he retreated and rebounded.

In the blink of an eye, Bonner couldn't react in time and froze in place.

Harden took it easy...

"Shu~"

Basketball hit the net.

33:27, the point difference widened to 6 points!

Harden's goal was easy and freehand, which made Bonner feel frustrated.

He quickly raised his right hand and apologized to his teammates in annoyance.

[Next time, I will definitely guard against it! ]

Bonner thought to himself.

After 1 minute, he got a chance to prove himself.

Harden repeated the same trick, passing the pick-and-roll again at the top of the arc on the right, replacing the defender with Bonner.

"e.on! It won't be so easy!"

Bonner clapped his hands vigorously, as if to intimidate his opponent, but also as if to cheer himself up.

Harden glanced at each other lightly.

His response was very simple, not words, but a dribble under the crotch after sinking his center of gravity.

When Bonner saw Harden put on this posture, his scalp tingled.

In the last round, he was swayed by Harden's continuous crotch and couldn't move.

In order to avoid repeating the same mistakes, Bonner kept moving in small steps this time to improve his mobility.

[bring it on! ]

Bonner's spirit was highly concentrated, fully concentrating on waiting for Harden to make a move.

Soon, Brother Deng made a move!

I saw that his right hand increased the intensity of dribbling, and the ball bounced off the ground, stuck to his left hand, and was suspended in the air.

At the same time, Harden's whole body also stretched out, showing the shape of a roc spreading its wings.

Seeing this, Bonner stomped on his feet, ready to move laterally to defend at any time.

The next moment, Harden mobilized his whole body and made a huge crossover!

Bonner was cheated and his center of gravity was completely shifted.

Coupled with the high nervousness, he made a mistake in his busy schedule, stumbled under his feet, and fell directly to the ground!

"woo..."

There was a burst of exclamation at the scene, and the Spurs fans were also frightened by this dribble.

Harden, on the other hand, took a step back in an orderly manner after disguised, and instantly withdrew beyond the three-point line.

After seeing Bonner in a panic, Brother Deng did not rush to shoot, but adjusted his breathing before slowly shooting a three-pointer...

bgo!

36: 27.

The point difference between the two teams is close to double digits!

On the sidelines, Popovich once again smelled the crisis and quickly called a timeout.

He thought Durant

Without Westbrook, the Spurs can try to tie the score under the leadership of Parker.

Who would have thought that there was a terrifying rookie on the Thunder's bench who could rival Dewey.

............

"It seems that Popovich underestimated Harden's strength."

Curry said with a smile.

"This bearded man has a very good rhythm in singles. I even think it is the top dribbling rhythm in the league..."

"He's improved a lot since the last time he played against us!"

Tony Allen said seriously.

And McGrady, who was sitting at the far end, had a complicated expression.

[Good guy, Harden's talent seems to be able to compete with Curry and Durant? ]

T-ac said in surprise.

He decided to take a closer look.

After all, McGrady observes this group of young people with the standard of the future facade of the league.

At first, he was only optimistic about Curry.

But after Durant fine-tuned his shooting action, McGrady felt that Xiaoshuai also had the potential to "jump the dragon's gate".

It's good now, another Harden has appeared on the Thunder's bench!

"I think... the three young men of Thunder have the potential to become VPs."

"If nothing else happens, they will be our biggest opponents for many years to come!"

Maddie said seriously.

As soon as this remark came out, the generals of the Rockets all looked sideways, turning their attention to their trump card.

"Also, I'm going to take back my predictions before the start of the game."

"I think right now, the Thunder will beat the Spurs and join us in the second round."

"They are not only the 'future', but also the 'now'!"

Maddie added.

And Lei Ma's next match also verified what he said!