First in scoring

Chapter 499 497. The Eastern Conference Finals starts with a rampage!
Listening to the fans at the scene shouting "MVP", Sefrosa, who was hit with a 3+1, looked at the big screen, which was replaying Zhang Yang's four-point shot from multiple angles.

In terms of step-back shooting movements, Zhang Yang and Pierce are completely different, and not many similarities can be seen in close-ups. But after seeing the details of Zhang Yang's arm when he finally threw the ball, Sefrosa was sure that his feeling was correct.

That's how Pierce shoots!

Don't pursue a lot of space, just be able to shoot the ball. It looks like it's about to be blocked, but the defender just can't block it. When shooting, calculate the limit of the defender's block!

Sefrosa looked at Zhang Yang who was walking towards the free throw line, and remembered the two rounds that Luol Deng failed to defend. His previous judgment was the same as Luol Deng's, thinking that Zhang Yang had added more fake moves in singles. Now, he remembered Joe Johnson... In those two attacks, Zhang Yang's last shot was different from Joe Johnson's, that is, he accelerated his shooting speed due to the difference in rhythm. But the previous "fake moves", although the movements were different, the handling of details was very similar to the way Joe Johnson created shooting space!

Is this the player with the greatest offensive talent since the birth of basketball?
After playing a game seven with the Hawks, did you learn some of the essentials from these two players?

Don’t be too envious of Sefrosa who is so good at defense!
As a well-known defensive expert of the new generation, Sefrosa actually guessed it right! Zhang Yang's improvement in these details is due to the 7 games against the Hawks.

Woodson has inherited the true teachings of Larry Brown. If you talk to him about offense, he will ask you to ask Bibby, but when you talk about defense, he is amazing. The defensive system he has created is top-notch in the league in terms of double-teaming, blocking, and backup defense.

Therefore, when Zhang Yang played against the Hawks, most of his shots were concentrated in the area above the free throw line. The Hawks used Joe Johnson and Pierce to defend him throughout the game. Both defenders were over two meters tall and weighed 107 kilograms. They forced him to break into the inside and enter the team's defensive circle.

He naturally has to shoulder the burden of making mid-range and long-range shots. To cope with his physical disadvantages, he has been thinking about how to better avoid shooting interference and reduce the impact of confrontation since the preparation stage before the second round. During the series, he has been constantly adjusting his technical use and shooting details, and continues to improve.

Some of these improvements were learned during the defense. As the top defensive player on the outside, he spent most of his time defending Joe Johnson or Bibby, and occasionally even had to go against Pierce. These three were all playoff big men, and they were all players who could make shots in high-intensity defense. In order to defend better, he repeatedly studied the videos of the three, and tried to analyze the singles details of the three during the game... In this process, he unknowingly learned a lot from these three singles masters with excellent skills and rich competition experience, and incorporated them into his playing style when adjusting the offense.

Moreover, due to the pressure brought by the game and his solid basic skills, his playing style and technical details made obvious progress in the half-month battle with the Eagles.

What a coincidence, Luol Deng has excellent height and wingspan, and is active in defense, but is relatively lacking in one-on-one defense ability. For Zhang Yang, he has many similarities with Joe Johnson's one-on-one defense; Pierce had a good defensive foundation in his early years, good awareness, and strong footsteps prediction ability, but his athletic ability has declined with age. For Zhang Yang, he is somewhat similar to Sefrosa, who has good static physical conditions but relatively mediocre athletic ability... The aspects that Zhang Yang improved in the second round were just in use in the Eastern Conference Finals!

He himself didn't realize this. It was related to the position. The defensive characteristics of the two brothers from the Hawks and the two brothers from the Bulls overlapped. The most important thing was that compared with the Bulls' handsome Sefolosha, the two brothers from the Hawks looked too sloppy and it was hard to associate them together...

Zhang Yang made the free throw amid the fans' cheers of "MVP", scored three goals in a row at the start, and beat the Bulls 3 to 8 on his own!

Hinrich glanced at the bench and saw that the head coach had no reaction. He received the serve and advanced to the frontcourt, calmly continuing the pick-and-roll attack with Tyus Thomas.

Sefrosa took advantage of Hinrich, Luol Deng and Tyrus Thomas to push the Bobcats' 2-4 positions into the three-second zone, ran up from the right sideline, and with the help of Yao Ming's screen, got rid of Felton and came to the top arc.

Okafor didn't make a move because he didn't dare let Felton switch defense on Yao Ming, as that would allow the little giant to catch the ball and shoot without moving.

Luol Deng made a mid-range pass to Sefolosha, who took the ball and shot a three-pointer... The direction was right, but the power control was a little poor, and the shot hit the area near the neck of the basket, turned a circle, and hit the basket out.

Zhang Yang and Pietrus blocked Tyrus Thomas, and Millsap overpowered Luol Deng to protect the defensive rebound.

The entire Bulls team felt very sorry for this ball, but fortunately the team cooperated well and at least created an opportunity.

The other three immediately took advantage of the double forwards to delay the opponent's retreat and pressed the Bobcats into a positional battle.

Zhang Yang is very patient. He seizes the opportunity for a chase-down shot when it comes, and does not force it if it doesn't come. He cannot disrupt his own rhythm.

After he ran to the frontcourt, he did not continue to play one-on-one. Seeing that the 6-point advantage was still there, he ran to the left baseline and the two-point position to create space.

After playing for three rounds in a row, it's time to take a break and ensure the continuity of physical strength. It's also time to let teammates participate in the attack. It would be bad if they run too long and lose their form.

After the pick-and-roll combination of Felton and Okafor and the supporting Millsap launched the pick-and-roll attack, Zhang Yang began to move. He scored 3 goals in a row and scored 8 points at the beginning, and his running position and restraining power were fully utilized.

Felton broke through to close range and passed the ball to Millsap on the left side of the three-second zone. Millsap passed the ball to Okafor in the high position, and Okafor passed the ball to the right side at a 45-degree angle. Pietrus received the ball and made a three-pointer... It was a good opportunity, but unfortunately it didn't go in.

Then Hinrich used the threat of passing and cutting, pretended to break through and stepped back after the screen, caught Millsap off guard, hit a three-pointer, and rushed in to narrow the gap to 3 points!
Sometimes, a team's improvement in strength comes from seemingly insignificant places.

That's the case with the Bulls.

Tyrus Thomas spent several months learning only how to block in the pick-and-roll and knowing when to break up and cut in. His subsequent receiving ability was extremely poor. Telling others about his progress would only make people laugh. This is the most basic thing for a normal-minded inside player.

But his improvement has played a big role for the Bulls. If the full score is 100, he has improved to 20 points at most, but he started from 0 points, which is a qualitative improvement! At least it will save Hinrich from having to play against Zhang Yang alone.

But the Bobcats also had an unexpected improvement tonight...

Felton and Millsap once again contained Zhang Yang and passed the ball to Pietrus who ran to the same position as in the previous round!
Pietrus received the ball at a 45-degree angle on the right side and shot a three-pointer...and it went in!
Zhang Yang made 3 of 3 shots at the start. When his teammates were playing pick-and-roll, he slipped around the baseline and ran from one corner to the other. The Bulls' entire defense had to sink a bit, and the defensive players who stayed on the perimeter were lucky enough to be able to take care of Okafor who remained at the free throw line after the pick-and-roll. There was no one guarding Pietrus when he went to the high post. After missing the first shot, he was still determined to take the second shot!
11 to 5, the Bobcats lead by 6 points again!
In the next five rounds, the Bulls scored two goals. Tyus Thomas got two points by catching a pass, Luol Deng made a three-pointer, and Yao Ming made a single play and Millsap, who was double-teamed, was fouled and made two free throws, scoring 5 points.

They focused on Yao Ming's containment, created threats through passing and cutting, and then created long-range shooting opportunities. Their offensive performance was indeed better than the Bobcats expected.

But during this period, Okafor was left open at the free throw line and made two consecutive mid-range shots. In addition, Felton missed a three-pointer and Millsap grabbed an offensive rebound, causing Sefolosha to foul and made both free throws. The Bobcats also scored 6 points!
Thanks to Zhang Yang's three consecutive long-range shots at the start, the Bobcats easily withstood the Bulls' team counterattack, 3 to 17, and maintained a 12-point lead!
It was the Bobcats' turn to attack again. The Bulls players were already feeling annoyed because they had narrowed the gap by only 1 point after chasing for several rounds. Seeing Zhang Yang asking for the ball outside the top arc, the pressure was even greater!
Deng Yingqiao: Third brother, if you want to play one-on-one, you should let me know first. If I had known you wanted to play one-on-one, I would have asked the handsome guard to serve you!
When Zhang Yang played without the ball, the one chasing him was Luol Deng, who was also defending without the ball. Seeing how relaxed and carefree Zhang Yang was when dribbling, he himself felt that he could not defend him, but he still actively defended him.

Zhang Yang changed direction and broke through. In order to prevent Zhang Yang from stepping back, Luol Deng did not dare to retreat with all his strength. Zhang Yang seized the opportunity and broke through the three-point line.

As Luol Deng turned around to defend, Zhang Yang had already stopped two steps inside the three-point line and grabbed the ball. His knees were slightly bent, and he could only look up and watch Zhang Yang jump up and shoot a mid-range shot...

The ball was so accurate that it seemed like it was installed with a positioning system and went straight into the basket!

19 to 12, the Bobcats lead by 7 points!
4投4中、其中三分球1中1、加上1中1的罚球，张杨得分提升到10分！
Zhang Yang took the ball and scored! The Bulls players were under more pressure. Fortunately, Yao Ming stepped up in time, received the ball in the low post and played against Okafor. Under the double-team of Millsap, he forced the ball into the basket through two people!

This goal greatly relieved the pressure on the Bulls players. This kind of goal is so encouraging!

As for the double-teaming of Millsap, it even hung on Yao Ming, but the referee did not blow the whistle. The Bulls players have already gotten used to it, and this can be considered a boost of morale.

It was the Bobcats' turn to attack. Zhang Yang received the ball at the top of the arc. This time, it was Sefolosha who was defending him. He took a three-threat stance, suddenly pulled up and shot a three-pointer... but it missed!
After scoring 4 goals in a row and getting 10 points, he finally missed a shot. His burst speed was still a little average. Sefolosha was very focused in defense and provided effective interference. Sefolosha, who had the height advantage, was too confident in his pull-up shot.

After the offense and defense switched, Yao Ming continued to move down to the low post, trying to narrow the gap to within 5 points before the official timeout!
However, the Bobcats did not give him a chance to play one-on-one. As soon as he got the ball, Millsap and Pietrus were already in his face!

Fortunately, he had good playing habits. He raised the ball at the first moment, flicked his fingers, and sent the ball to Luol Deng on the sideline as accurately as throwing a softball.

But Luol Deng missed the open three-pointer! Yao Ming wasted a wonderful pass that attracted a triple-team!
The ball hit the basket near the neck and bounced toward the top arc. Hinrich rushed forward and tried to bypass Zhang Yang to grab the ball, but was blocked by Zhang Yang!
Zhang Yang grabbed the bouncing ball, turned around and put Hinrich behind him. The opportunity came and he started to counterattack!

He rushed out from the free throw line, no one followed him, there was no one in front of him, a big gap!
This time he was closer to the three-point line, grabbed the ball a foot away from the top arc, stopped, jumped, and shot a three-pointer... Sinrich, who had caught up, passed by Zhang Yang, rushed into the inside... and saw the ball go into the frame.

22 to 14, the Bobcats' lead expanded to 8 points, the Bulls called a timeout and entered the official timeout stage!
Hinrich put his hands on his hips, listening to the wild cheers of the fans and watching the basketball bouncing on the floor. At this moment, his heart was not filled with pressure, but with an indescribable sadness.

It was not the first time that he had seen Zhang Yang make a three-pointer, but every time he experienced it personally, his mentality would be affected.

Who can shoot a three-pointer on a fast break with no one on the court?

After putting his hands on his hips for a few seconds, Hinrich shook his head and returned to the bench. After gathering with his teammates, the pressure returned to his heart.

Not only him, all the members of the Bulls were under tremendous pressure, as if a mountain was pressing on their backs.

At the start, Zhang Yang made 6 of 5 shots, two three-pointers, and one free throw, and he scored 6 points in 13 and a half minutes... Their entire team only scored 1 point more than this guy!
Their so-called "strongest" perimeter defensive trio in the league seemed like a joke in these 6 and a half minutes!
...

The atmosphere on the Bulls bench was so low that the staff quickly moved away after handing over the towels, fearing that these guys whose brains were only focused on muscles or sperm would take their anger out on them.

The situation was different on the Bobcats bench, as all the players were extremely happy.

In the singles duel, the third brother took off, the team attack, and the threat centered around the third brother were also played very well. The start of the first game was much easier than they expected!

Many of them feel that the Bulls do not seem to be as strong as the Hawks...at least Luol Deng and Sefolosha's defense on their third brother is not as strong as Pierce and Joe Johnson.

Their feeling is indeed correct, but to say that Pierce and Joe Johnson are better at defending Frosa and Luol Deng? Definitely not. Before Zhang Yang made such a big improvement, he scored 1+ in Game 40 of the second round.

In the end, the two players did a very good job of defending Zhang Yang, and they lowered Zhang Yang's shooting percentage throughout the series to lower than in the first round and even lower than in the regular season. This started in G4 and G5. The two players already had a good understanding of Zhang Yang's offense at the time and had sufficient defensive experience.

Moreover, the two players on the Hawks are in better defensive conditions than those on the Bulls!

Yao Ming's rim protection ability is the best in the league, but he was not selected into the All-Defensive Team like O'Neal in his prime, because in the eyes of the head coaches of each team, he has a flaw that cannot be ignored - he cannot expand.

When Luol Deng and Sefrosa defended Zhang Yang alone, they also had to consider how to double-team with Tyrus Thomas if they were passed. If it was Zhang Yang before the start of this playoffs, they could still barely handle it, but facing Zhang Yang who had experienced 7 battles with the Hawks, they really couldn't handle it. Luol Deng is not good at single defense, Sefrosa is mainly single defense and is very compatible with Luol Deng, but a player like Zhang Yang who is strong and skilled is exactly the type he is not good at defending...

Pierce and Joe Johnson are different. Behind them is Horford, who is one of the best in the new generation of inside players in terms of help defense.

Zhang Yang, who was drinking water, heard his teammates teasing or mocking Luol Deng and Sefrosa, but he kept silent. As the person involved, he had a general idea, but he certainly couldn't speak for his opponent at this time. He tried his best to score 13 points in half a quarter, and this was the result! Didn't you see that it was Hill who took the lead in teasing...

The starting perimeter combination of three second-level defensive players is still very intimidating. It would be great if it could reduce the intimidation of those three guys in the eyes of their role player teammates.

After the official timeout, both teams made personnel adjustments.

Carlisle sent out a combination of Felton, Zhang Yang, Hill, Okafor and Perkins.

Skiles sent out a combination of Hinrich, Nocioni, Luol Deng, Ben Wallace and Yao Ming.

The Bulls were attacking and saw Yao Ming going straight to the low post. Skiles on the sidelines frowned, and his already unfriendly face looked even gloomier.

Just as Okafor analyzed more than a month ago, Skiles really planned that if he could meet the Bobcats in the playoffs, he would never try to change, but would play steadily and stick to defense. No matter what the score was, he would fight to the end and accept whether he won or lost.

But he could no longer sit still after only half a quarter. This was a hellish start!

He could only let Yao Ming attack fiercely, hoping that the score difference could be narrowed.

However, after entering the rotation lineup, Yao Ming's one-on-one environment became much worse than in the first half. The people defending him changed from Pietrus, Millsap and Okafor to Hill, Okafor and Perkins!

In the few rounds after the official timeout, Yao Ming tried his best to pass the ball on the offensive end and to defend the basket on the defensive end to help Luol Deng and Ben Wallace create conditions for help defense...but he only narrowed the gap to 3 points, and played against the Bobcats 9 to 6. The score came to 23 to 28, still trailing by 5 points.

Moreover, during this period, the Bobcats mainly played a team offense around Zhang Yang! During this period, Zhang San, who was lazy, only shot twice, one time he missed the shot, and one time he made a close-range shot with the help of a screen.

It was the Bulls' turn to attack again. Yao Ming received the ball in the low post, suddenly stood up and tiptoed to shoot... but was interrupted by the focused Perkins!

Fortunately, Nocioni, Luol Deng and Ben Wallace did a good job of retreating and did not give Zhang Yang, who was rushing forward, a chance to receive the ball and shoot.

The game fell into positional warfare, and Felton passed the ball to Zhang Yang who was leaning against Nocioni after reaching the frontcourt.

There are two minutes left in the first quarter, and the little giant seems unable to move, so Zhang San starts harvesting mode!
He backed down Nocioni from the right side of the free throw line, turned around and made a "Hamblen-style" step-back shot!
Looking back, Nocioni made a strong three-point shot in the confrontation with Felton... and missed!
In the transition from offense to defense, the Bulls were obviously anxious and confused! Nocioni went around in the high post to prevent Zhang Yang from receiving the ball!
Zhang Yang turned and cut in, and Felton seized the opportunity and passed the ball straight from the middle to Zhang Yang who cut to the right elbow area.

Cutting in without the ball is much faster than breaking through. Ben Wallace and Yao Ming had no time to move in advance, so they could only rush towards Zhang Yang while shouting and waving their hands.

Zhang Yang received the ball while being double-teamed by three people from front and back and threw it...it missed, and Perkins dunked from behind Yao Ming to score two points!

In the offense-defense transition, Hinrich came on his own, without asking for a pick-and-roll, he played one-on-one against Felton, broke through, stopped suddenly and shot a long two-pointer...and it went in!
Hinrich's ability to withstand pressure is indeed beyond doubt, he is extremely tough.

It was the Bobcats' turn to attack again, and Nocioni was still moving around the high post. Unlike Hinrich and Sefolosha who were highly calm, Nocioni, as a South American, was impatient.

Fortunately, Ben Wallace was prepared this time and moved forward in advance... Zhang Yang cut in halfway, suddenly turned around, and ran to the left along the free throw line.

Okafor helped Zhang Yang block Nocioni's pursuit on the left side of the free throw line. Zhang Yang went straight to the 45-degree angle on the left, received the pass from Felton, turned around and shot a three-pointer...

Hinrich and Ben Wallace rushed forward to make up for the defense, but Ben Wallace moved to the right in advance, and they turned back to chase but couldn't catch up. Hinrich followed the ball, and they were still far away when Zhang Yang jumped up.

After Zhang Yang threw the ball, he closed his eyes and clenched his raised hand into a fist.

Tonight, he warmed up his shooting touch by scoring consecutive singles goals at the beginning. He knew he could make this shot!
The director cut to a close-up at just the right moment, and the fans just happened to see this scene, and then they saw the ball fall into the frame!

The fans cheered wildly, shouting various nicknames of Zhang Yang.

He made 11 of 8 shots, including 3 of 3 three-pointers, plus 1 of 1 free throws. In the first game of the Eastern Conference Finals, Zhang Yang scored 20 points in the first quarter!
(End of this chapter)