From South China Tiger to NBA King

From November 11th to 18th, the Celtics once again had two days of rest without a game.

On November 11, the Celtics faced the Oklahoma City Thunder at home.

Last season, the Thunder formed a well-known Big Three, Paul George, Carmelo Anthony, and Russell Westbrook. The lineup looked quite bluffing at first glance, but in fact, the three did not have good chemistry. reaction.

Anthony, who likes to play in isolations with the ball, does not have enough ball rights in the Thunder, and he is not an excellent off-ball player. This situation resulted in the 1+1+1 between the three of them not being greater than 3 at all.

The three-man combination was eliminated 4-2 by the Jazz led by rookie Mitchell in the first round of the playoffs. Mitchell averaged 27 points per game against the Thunder's Big Three, becoming the only player in last year's playoffs. The most eye-catching rookie outside the arena.

The Big Three's inability to beat a team led by a rookie also made their trip to the playoffs a laughing stock.

It is difficult to form a tacit understanding and chemical reaction between the three, and there is no hope of winning the championship. At the same time, Anthony's final year's salary is 2790 million US dollars, plus Paul George and others' contract extensions, the Thunder are facing a huge luxury tax, as high as 1.5 million.

This was obviously unbearable for the owner of the Thunder, especially when it was determined that with the Celtics in the east and the Los Angeles Lakers in the west, it would be difficult for the Thunder to win the championship. The Thunder pressed the deal button and reached an agreement with the Hawks and 76ers. The trade agreement was reached and Anthony was sent to the Hawks.

Through this deal, the Thunder replaced Anthony with Schroeder and Luwawu. Schroeder's annual salary for the new season is US$1550 million, while Luwawu's annual salary is US$150. This US$1100 million salary gap helps the Thunder's luxury The tax was reduced from 1.8 million to 8800 million, successfully saving 6200 million.

More importantly, the Thunder made good reinforcements in this transaction. Schroeder averaged 19.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game last season. In the new season, he will be able to serve as Westbrook's number one substitute. His speed will help the Thunder's second team quickly advance, and he can be the second most popular substitute. The top scorer in the lineup, maintaining offensive firepower.

However, Anthony has never played for the Hawks. After the transaction, Anthony immediately reached a buyout agreement with the Hawks. After the buyout, he joined the Houston Rockets with a one-year contract of US$240 million. Deng and Paul continue to work hard for their first championship rings.

The Thunder lost Anthony and gained Schroeder. Not only was it no worse than last season, but it actually achieved a good record. After losing 4 games in a row at the beginning, it is currently ranked third in the Western Conference with a record of 10 losses in October. Bit.

Paul George performed quite well in the past four games. He scored 32 points, 35 points, 32 points, and 29 points in the four games respectively. He averaged 32 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. He led the Thunder to 3 wins and 1 loss. Western Conference Player of the Week.

But George has not faced strong opponents in the past four games. The Suns in two games, the Knicks in one game and the Kings in one game are all teams in the middle and lower reaches of the league.

Therefore, in this game, the Celtics also arranged for Leonard to defend George and Caruso to start guarding Westbrook.

Westbrook is fast and has strong impact. Danny Green cannot guard him. Caruso is relatively strong and has good athletic ability, making him a suitable candidate to face Westbrook.

After both sides warmed up, the game was about to begin.

Celtics starting lineup: Jiang Hu, Alex Caruso, Kawhi Leonard, Al Horford, Marc Gasol.

Thunder starting lineup: Russell Westbrook, Terrance Ferguson, Paul George, Jerami Grant, Steve Adams.

Just looking at the lineup, we know that the offensive and defensive rhythm of the two teams in this game will not be slow. Although both teams have a 7-foot center, Gasol has a long pass that can help with fast breaks. Adams is also physically strong and can run. With a strong man with excellent jumping ability, coupled with Jiang Hu and Westbrook, two players who rank among the top fast break scorers, this game is destined to be a running game.

Adams won with a jump ball and the game started.

Westbrook got the ball for the first time in the game. He started to accelerate as soon as he got the ball. Caruso had not yet entered the state at the beginning, and he passed him cleanly in almost one step.

He dribbled to the mid-range and was defended by Horford. He pretended to look to the left corner, and then passed the basketball through Horford's crotch with a ground pass.

Gasol reacted quickly and immediately came to the basket to protect it, but Adams had already rushed up and took the ball with a two-handed dunk.

Celtics 0-2 Thunder.

Zhang Weiping lamented: "Westbrook has declined a lot this season, averaging just over 20 points per game, but his tacit understanding with these players is still there. If Leonard had not guarded Paul George well, this game would have been difficult." .”

Yu Jia shook his head: "The Thunder's style is fast. They attack fast and score fast, but they also lose points fast, because Russell Westbrook always only has the rhythm of pressing the accelerator to the end. Compared to For a player who can play fast or slow, his coordination with the team seems to be more immature. I am not optimistic that they can win this game."

The Celtics attacked. Leonard held the ball in the middle and played a pick-and-roll with Horford, which attracted Grant's help and went to the right. He passed the ball to Jiang Hu who slid down the baseline and ran to the right corner. An opportunity immediately appeared.

Adams will not help defend defenders who run to the outside when encountering a screen. He only moves around the penalty area, waiting for the opponent to attack the basket and protect the penalty area.

His defensive role in the penalty area is very obvious. When going to the outside, he will look a bit bulky and easy to pass.

Jiang Hu caught the ball and took a shot. Westbrook rushed over to pursue him and actively jumped to block the shot. He didn't block it, but it had an interference effect and the ball bounced out of the frame.

Adams grabbed a backcourt rebound and passed it to Westbrook, who immediately launched a counterattack and passed it to Paul George.

Paul George was also very fast. He received the ball and passed Leonard in a different direction, and made a quick layup before Horford could defend.

Celtics 0-4 Thunder.

The Celtics attacked, and Jiang Hu feinted with the ball on the right baseline. This time he did not take a direct shot and changed direction to the left. The person directly defending him was Paul George.

Leonard went to 45 degrees to cover Jianghu again. Jianghu got rid of Paul George with the ball, and used his speed to get past Grant, who was assisting in defense.

Jianghu drove to the basket, attracting Adams to cover.

Jiang Hu jumped up in the middle, half-turned around in the air, twisted his body with his right hand, and gently sent the ball behind him. His fancy moves made the Thunder players not even see where the ball went. Leonard caught the ball and stepped up with ease. Basket score.

Celtics 2-4 Thunder.

Yu Jia said: "Jianghu has begun to show its strength. Although the Thunder's lineup is not bad in terms of athletic ability, its flexibility is very poor. Once it is misaligned, it will be difficult to prevent Jianghu's breakthrough."

Zhang Weiping said: "This is how the Celtics position battle should be fought by Jianghu. No team has ever defended him. The Thunder's defensive resources are not enough to stop Jianghu."

As soon as he finished speaking, Westbrook stepped on the accelerator and sprinted again. He dribbled to the frontcourt quickly, stopped immediately and took a mid-range shot.

This is the rhythm Westbrook likes. At his peak, his mid-range shooting efficiency was above the league average. This style of play gave the Thunder a lot of advantages in chaotic games.

However, the current Master Wei no longer has the courageous demeanor of the past. This kind of emergency stop jumper is also nicknamed the "zombie jumper"...

This time Master West's jump shot missed, but Adams grabbed the rebound and got up to dunk. Gasol evaded the defense and withdrew from the penalty area for three seconds. Horford couldn't resist Adams, so he hugged Adams with both hands and fouled him.

Adams walked to the free throw line and took aim for a while before taking a breathless shot. He embarrassingly missed two free throws and Gasol picked up the rebound.

All teams know that Adams's strengths are his confrontational ability and strong ability to compete for offensive rebounds. He has been the offensive rebounding champion for several seasons. Being on the same team as Westminster West has given him a lot of competition. For offensive rebounding opportunities, he averaged 5.5 per game last season and 5.3 per game this season.

But his weakness is also very obvious, that is, his free throw shooting is very inaccurate. His shooting percentage this season is 60%, but his free throw shooting percentage is only a pitiful 50%, which is at the same level as O'Neal and Howard in their peak years. Jiang Hu felt that he could throw it more accurately than him with his eyes closed.

Stevens explained that Celtics player Adams grabbed an offensive rebound under the basket and immediately rushed to steal it. If he couldn't steal it, he would foul and not give the Thunder a chance to attack again. If he couldn't make a free throw, it would be regarded as a defense. It worked.

The Celtics attacked, and Jianghu ran towards the middle from the left baseline. Under the cover of Horford, he received a pass from Gasol at 70 degrees outside the right three-point line.

Grant immediately switched out, and Paul George also pursued and double-teamed.

Jiang Hu would not wait for a double team. He quickly dribbled the ball and changed direction in the middle. He found an opening and passed the ball to Horford on the right baseline.

The tactic arranged by Stevens is to let Horford open up the space, try not to go to the penalty area to avoid being too crowded, and use open mid-range shots to solve the problem.

If Adams is guarded, Horford will dribble to find space and pass to Gasol on the other side.

The Celtics had a targeted training session in the morning. Horford was very determined to catch the ball and shoot in the mid-range. Adams only stepped forward and reached out to interfere slightly, but it was ineffective and the ball went in.

Celtics 4-4 Thunder.

Zhang Weiping laughed and said: "This goal is another pass from Jianghu. He can always see through the opponent's layout, and then use surgically precise passes to cut through the opponent's defense, and he assisted his teammates to score consecutively from the beginning."

Yu Jia nodded and said: "His playing style is truly all-round. He can make sudden shots and combine with and without the ball. He always has a way to make his opponents uncomfortable. I think all outside players should learn his style of play. It’s so flexible.”

Zhang Weiping said: "Domestic outside players should study more of Jianghu's style of play instead of watching Kobe's videos. You can't learn Kobe's arrogance."

"You should learn from Jianghu. Even if you don't reach the level of Jianghu, you can still help Jianghu in next year's World Cup. He can't be allowed to play like this alone. It would be too draining. Others must stand up and can't just take over." The ball is still not accurate.”

The 2019 Basketball World Cup will be held in China. Chinese fans hope that Jiang Hu, a player who occupies a very high position in the NBA, can lead the Chinese men's basketball team one step further and break through the quarterfinals that remained unchanged in the Yao Ming era and enter the semifinals.

Of course, it would be better if we reach the finals.

Players are of course no exception. The CBA league is in full swing, and the stars are working harder than last season. All players know that the Chinese men's basketball national team, which will welcome the world next summer, is very likely to achieve a breakthrough in performance, so they I am also very eager to be selected for the national team and fight side by side in the world to gain glory.

The Thunder attacked, this time George's three-point jumper from the outside was successfully interfered by Leonard, and the iron was struck again.

Master Wei's passing is very simple. Basically, he breaks through in a straight line and passes the ball when he encounters a defense that cannot break through.

His pass was so direct that Leonard knew he was going to pass the ball when he saw him stopping the ball in the mid-range. He was always alert to George and almost completed the steal.

Although George completed the shot, the quality of the shot was not high.

Adams has a very good nose for offensive rebounds, and he once again got a rebound near the penalty area.

Jiang Hu happened to be next to him and slapped Adams' hand directly.

He can't foul unless he uses all his strength. Adams's habit is to hit high, with his hands always high. If the foul is not serious, he will easily score 2+1.

Adams scratched his head, smiled innocently at Jianghu, and stepped to the free throw line again. This time he performed well and made two free throws.

Celtics 4-6 Thunder.

Adams is one of the players who has changed the most since entering the league.

When Adams first entered the league, he had a white complexion and an innocent smile, but people compared him with Bill Laimbeer, the "greatest villain in history and modern times" because he always used some vicious moves when playing and looked quite barbaric.

Later, he grew long hair, beard, and tattoos, looking like a villain, and instead became the incarnation of Aquaman in the "Justice League".

Under his rough appearance, he hides a gentle and delicate heart. Those small actions are just his way of protecting himself. When he is strong enough, those negative things will disappear.

Of course, Adams, who is Maori, has never been afraid to express his feelings frankly. When people around him asked him why he "changed his look," this guy actually came up with something like "It costs $40 a month to get a haircut. It's too expensive." A ridiculous reason.

Stevens' tactical idea is very simple. He will never give Adams a chance to attack again after grabbing an offensive rebound, which can interrupt their offensive rhythm.

If Adams grabs more offensive rebounds, the Celtics players will definitely let him take free throws and never let those balls return to the hands of Westbrook or George again.

The Celtics attacked, Jianghu slid down the baseline from the left, ran without the ball under Leonard's cover, and got rid of Paul George to catch the ball in the right corner.

Paul George tried his best to follow, but before he could regain his footing, Jianghu took the ball and became a triple threat. Then he changed direction and passed George. He took a step forward and entered the three-point line and made a direct one. Remember the quick pull-up jump shot.

This time Grant was attracted by Horford and was a little far away in the high post. He had no time to come over and double-team, and the ball went in!

Celtics 6-6 Thunder.

After scoring the goal, Jiang Hu beat his chest hard. He believed that if the Thunder kept letting Paul George bypass the screen to defend him, he could win the game in the third quarter.

His first step is almost the fastest in the league. As long as the opponent raises his arms to chase after him, his defensive center of gravity is very high, and it is easy for him to change direction and get rid of him. Paul George cannot lower his center of gravity very low for fear of him catching the ball. Direct jump shot.

(End of this chapter)