Basketball's No. 1 Anti-Fan

Chapter 148 Desperate Situation
At the end of the first half, the Mavericks led the Grizzlies 55-48.

Nowitzki scored 21 points in the first half, making 9 of 8 shots and 5 of 5 free throws, missing only one shot.

Hansen also scored 18 points in the first half, especially the competition with Nowitzki in the second half of the first and second quarters helped the team keep the score close.

It can be said that without his performance, the Grizzlies would have been defeated by Nowitzki's extraordinary performance at halftime.

In the second half, Hansen broke through the inside line and caused Nowitzki to commit a hand foul and go to the free throw line.

Being behind in the score, he now has to try to play inside to ensure points.

But looking back, Nowitzki attracted a double-team in the low post and passed the ball to Kidd at the top of the arc. Kidd then passed the ball to Marion in the corner, who made a three-pointer.

Although Nowitzki is a scorer, he has the ability to assist. Although he is not as good as Garnett, he is completely sufficient.

Especially with the presence of Kidd, Kidd not only has a fast transition ball speed, but also he suddenly became good at three-pointers after arriving in Dallas, with a hit rate of 40%. You really dare not let him shoot.

The Grizzlies' defense became very passive at this point. They couldn't defend Nowitzki alone, and double-teaming would leave him out.

Fortunately, looking back, Hansen held the ball from the outside and pretended to break through with Gasol's pick-and-roll, and suddenly he hit a three-pointer from the outside to return the favor.

What you can definitely feel is that Hansen was ruthless in taking the key shots tonight.

When the offense and defense changed, Hollins was directing on the sidelines. The Grizzlies no longer double-teamed Nowitzki, but switched back to the strategy of the first half, and were even more absolute. Whenever Nowitzki created a shooting opportunity, they would foul him on the spot and not allow him to shoot.

There is nothing wrong with this defensive strategy in theory, because Nowitzki's hands were so hot today. Instead of giving him a chance to shoot, it is better to send him directly to the free throw line.

It’s just that Nowitzki showed Hollins what it means to hit the target every time in this quarter.

He was sent to the free throw line seven times and scored 7 points from free throws.

Including the free throws in the first half, Nowitzki has made 19 of 19 free throws tonight!
That means Nowitzki shot a total of 28 shots tonight and made 27 of them.

Not to mention Hollins, even Hansen had never seen such a scene.

Just like he said, Nowitzki was on fire tonight.

However, the Grizzlies did not allow the Mavericks to continue to widen the gap in this quarter, because Hansen was also frequently attacking the inside and scoring points by free throws in this quarter.

Nowitzki took a lot of free throws tonight. In addition to Hollins' strategy, it was also related to the scale of defense.

Han Sen noticed this and took advantage of it.

Entering the rotation in the third quarter, the Grizzlies trailed the Mavericks 72-80.

Nowitzki scored 36 points in three quarters, and Hansen also scored 26 points in three quarters.

However, it was during the third and fourth quarters when the substitutes came on, that the Mavericks pulled away from the lead.

Crawford is still in good form, but the Mavericks' bench is too strong.

It's not just O'Neal, it's not just Terry, it's also Barea.

Barea is 1 meters tall with shoes on, very fast, and can also shoot three-pointers. Defending him is much more difficult than imagined.

Players of this height have existed in the NBA before, and they are often defensive black holes. But when you really want to take advantage of him, you will find that he is much stronger than you imagined.

During the rotation in the first half, the Grizzlies relied on Crawford's above-average performance to barely maintain the score difference, but you can't expect him to perform like that all the time.

As a last resort, the Grizzlies had to replace Hansen and Gasol Jr. in advance.

In response, Carlisle also replaced Nowitzki in advance.

Han Sen looked up at the scoreboard and saw that the score was 78 to 90.

Gasol Jr. made a mid-range shot to narrow the gap to 10 points.

Looking back, Hansen communicated with Gasol for a while, then took the initiative to switch defense to Nowitzki.

Before this, the Grizzlies had tried using Gasol Jr., Johnson, and even Tony Allen, but all failed.

Theoretically, Hansen can't defend against him, but in the current situation, if the Grizzlies don't defend Nowitzki, they won't be able to catch up with him just by attacking, so they have to try even if they can't defend against him.

Nowitzki was slightly surprised when he saw Hansen defending him, but he quickly reached out for the ball.

Because Allen defended him in the same way as he defended Durant in the three-way defense, so after he received the ball with his back to the basket, he just lifted the ball up and didn't give Hansen a chance to cut the ball.

Han Sen turned sideways at this time, on the one hand to prevent him from turning around and breaking through to the basket, on the other hand to prevent him from standing on one leg.

Nowitzki just dribbled the ball out, then turned around and shot with one leg standing on the ground.

Han Sen seized the opportunity and lunged forward.

His defensive posture helped a lot in this ball. He jumped almost at the same time and interfered with Nowitzki.

Nowitzki had to raise the arc of his shot to avoid interference.

Although the ball was thrown, it was clearly off target.

"boom!"

There was a sound of hitting the board behind me.

Han Sen looked back and saw the basketball hit the backboard and bounced into the net.

"God is wearing the No. 41 jersey!" ESPN commentator Jeff Van Gundy exclaimed in the commentary booth.

With Hansen guarding him, Nowitzki actually shot the ball off the backboard and it went in.

This can no longer be explained by common sense.

Turning around, Hansen directly asked Johnson to set a pick-and-roll, and then played one-on-one against Nowitzki.

The Mavericks certainly won't let Hansen have his way, they are rotating.

Han Sen seized the opportunity and made a mid-range jump shot.

"Shh!"

Knife up and down.

There was a commotion at the American Airlines Center.

I don’t know how many times Hansen has stepped up to save the Grizzlies tonight!
At this moment, they seemed to understand why the Grizzlies instead of the Thunder came to them.

This second-year player in front of him may not be as strong as Durant, but his game aura is unparalleled.

Turning back, Hansen continued to defend Nowitzki in the low post.

This time he chose to actively confront Nowitzki and disrupt Nowitzki's shooting rhythm.

This is similar to the previous idea of ​​defending Durant.

It was indeed difficult for Nowitzki to shoot, so he chose to play one-on-one with his back to the basket.

Although Nowitzki and Durant play similarly, one is an inside player and the other is an outside player, so Hansen was forced to lower his center of gravity.

Then, after two hits, Nowitzki turned around and shot again.

Hansen successfully predicted Nowitzki's shot at this time. He used his flexibility and physical fitness to rush out from the side to interfere with Nowitzki.

Nowitzki was once again forced to raise the arc of his shot.

It has to be said that, at present, Hansen is the Grizzlies player who is the best at defending Nowitzki.

The ball passed over Han Sen's fingertips and drew an extremely high parabola in the air.

"when!"

The ball hit the front of the basket, bounced and hit the backboard, then fell down and bounced back and forth on the basket twice before falling into the basket.

"Grass!"

Han Sen burst into swearing after seeing this scene.

He deeply understood the meaning of that word: as if helped by God.

Nowitzki's strength is definitely not that strong, but his condition tonight, and even his luck, are too good. Hollins called a timeout, and after the timeout, both sides replaced their main players.

Hansen played well in the fourth quarter, scoring 12 points in a single quarter, the same number of points Nowitzki scored in the fourth quarter.

But because of the pit the Grizzlies had dug before, they eventually lost to the Mavericks 112-121.

According to post-match statistics, Hansen scored a team-high 38 points, Randolph had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Conley had 18 points and 6 assists, Gasol Jr. had 13 points, 10 rebounds and 2 blocks, and Crawford had 12 points.

Nowitzki made 15 of 12 shots and 24 of 24 free throws, scoring a playoff career-high 48 points. Terry scored 24 points, Barea scored 21 points, and Kidd scored 3 points and 11 assists.

After the game, Hansen was there, pulling Gasol Jr. aside and giving him words of encouragement.

The Grizzlies used a lot of people to defend Nowitzki tonight, but most of the time it was still Gasol Jr. who was defending.

Gasol tried everything, but nothing worked.

The most representative moment was a round in the fourth quarter, when he tried his best to attack with all his might, but Nowitzki easily made a fadeaway jump shot.

His heart was killed by Nowitzki.

"We tried everything but we couldn't stop him from scoring. We were helpless."

Hollins was real with reporters.

No reporter thought his words were weak at this time, because even Van Gundy used exaggerated words near the end of the game: "I have awe in his toughness. I will name my first son Dirk!"

Nowitzki's performance tonight has begun to make some people take off the soft egg hat that has been on his head.

"Yes, we were helpless against him. I have been in the league for so many years, but this is the first time I have seen such a crazy performance."

Randolph was defeated by Nowitzki.

"Han, what do you think of Dirk's performance tonight?" The reporter finally threw a similar question to Han Sen.

"I should have defended him earlier. If I had realized that earlier, the situation would have been different." Hansen's answer was different from that of Hollins and Randolph.

Although he was also shocked by Nowitzki's performance, he felt that he was not helpless yet.

"I'm curious, how did you manage to stay confident in the game when Dirk was doing so unbelievably well? I mean, most people would say to themselves, 'Well, tonight was his night, so let's just go and win it next time.'"

The reporters all looked at Han Sen.

In addition to Nowitzki's superb performance, the most impressive thing tonight was that Hansen saved the Grizzlies time and time again.

"I can accept failure, but I can never accept giving up." Han Sen said firmly.

No one can win forever, but losing and giving up are two different things.

Only then did the reporters fully feel Han Sen's competitive spirit.

Perhaps they should have known it a long time ago, because in last season's playoffs, Hansen played for the Cavaliers until the season was over.

But at that time James was still on the Cavaliers, so reports about Hansen were always limited.

"They played better than us tonight, but that doesn't mean they will be better than us every night. We still have the same chances," Hansen added.

The Mavericks are indeed stronger than the Thunder and Spurs they have faced before, but no one knows the outcome of the series until the very last minute.

After the Grizzlies finished their press conference, Nowitzki and Terry also came to the press conference.

"His performance was incredible and the resilience he showed during the game made me think we couldn't win the game in the end."

When the reporter asked Nowitzki about the difficulties he encountered tonight, Nowitzki took the initiative to mention Hansen and praised him highly.
"To be honest, I don't think he played worse than me tonight, but I had teammates like Jason (Terry) and JJ (Barea), and we beat them."

"After winning Game 1, will the Mavericks sweep the Grizzlies like they did against the Lakers?" the reporter also took the opportunity to ask.

"No, no, no, that's obviously different." Nowitzki shook his head immediately.

"They are a team in our league and we have to play our best game every night to win, and we will do that."

Two days later, the second game of the Western Conference Finals between the Grizzlies and the Mavericks continued in Dallas.

The Grizzlies made a lineup change in this game, replacing Battier with Allen as the starter.

The purpose of doing this is to allow Hansen to open the game against Nowitzki.

Han Sen put in his best effort and it did work.

During the years when Nowitzki was at his peak, how to defend Nowitzki was also a key research topic for each team.

A player who can play inside or outside, with or without the ball, and who can assist. An inside player with full footwork and shooting skills is a bug on the offensive end in this era.

The answer came in the playoffs between the Rockets and the Mavericks that year.

Although the Rockets were eventually eliminated, McGrady's defense against Nowitzki was very successful.

Nowitzki's biggest weakness is his strength, so playing against forwards and guards of sufficient size will indeed make him feel uncomfortable.

Nowitzki failed to perform and the Mavericks' offense was clearly sluggish in the first five minutes.

As a star player, Randolph showed his ability to adjust in G2, using shooting and footwork to play against Chandler, and his efficiency improved significantly.

The Grizzlies also took advantage at the start.

However, when the Mavericks replaced Terry, the situation on the court changed.

In the "history" that Hansen knows, many fans, in order to praise Nowitzki, described the Mavericks' championship in 2011 as a "single-core championship", which is inaccurate.

Because Terry averaged 17.5 points and 3.2 assists per game in that playoffs, and this number increased to 18 points and 3.2 assists in the finals.

Nowitzki averaged 27.7 points and 8.1 rebounds in the playoffs and 26 points and 9.7 rebounds in the finals.

If that can be considered a single-core, then I wonder how many championships Jordan would have won with a single core.

In fact, in terms of performance on the court, when Nowitzki did not perform well in the first three quarters of the finals, it was Terry who led the team to hold on to the score difference, and he played the role of the second-in-command.

Just like what Hansen knew about the Lakers' 4-1 victory over the Magic in the finals, the league needed a publicity focus, and Terry naturally needed to be ignored.

And Nowitzki also showed his ability to adjust as a superstar at this time. He used pick-and-roll and off-ball movement to contain and assist Terry.

This put the Mavericks in a 50-50 situation with the Grizzlies again in the starting period.

Then, entering the substitute transition period, the Grizzlies quickly fell behind.

Crawford failed to stand up again this time. You can expect a player with super six genes to become a surprise weapon on a certain night, but can you expect a first-year rookie to do so every night?

In fact, judging from the starting lineups of the two games, the Grizzlies' starting lineup is not worse than that of the Mavericks, but their substitutes are much worse than those of the Mavericks.

This can also be seen when playing against the Thunder. Even if the Grizzlies established an advantage in the first quarter, they would be caught up by the Thunder in the transition period between substitutes.

The Mavericks' lineup was more reasonable and their core players performed better. The Grizzlies were unable to establish an advantage in the starting lineup, so the situation was naturally different.

This fatal problem also caused the Grizzlies to lose the game 87-96.

In this game, Nowitzki only scored 18 points under the restriction of Hansen. His performance was significantly lower than that in the previous game, and it can even be said to be his worst performance since the playoffs.

From this point, fans can know that the so-called best lineup is a joke, because even if you put two Jameses, you can't achieve this effect.

But Terry scored 18 points, Marion scored 13 points, Kidd scored 13 points, and Barea scored 11 points. The Mavericks had five players scoring in double digits.

Nowitzki's words after the last game were not just polite words. The Mavericks, like the Grizzlies, are essentially playing team basketball.

In order to defend Nowitzki, Hansen put a lot of energy into the defensive end, and he only scored 15 points in the whole game.

At most, he completed an exchange with Nowitzki in G2.

Besides him and Randolph, only Conley scored in double digits for the Grizzlies, which was obviously not enough for them to win the game.

0-2, this is the first time the Grizzlies have encountered this situation since entering the playoffs.

It was the same situation as when the Spurs faced them. If they lost again, it would be 0-3, and they were forced into a desperate situation.

(End of this chapter)