Chapter 618 [Fifty-Eighth Tragedy, Facing the Dark Horse]
Many Peak Komies felt so cold after watching the Lakers' first game. They could only comfort themselves. They played well because the Warriors were too weak. Then the Lakers would definitely have problems. For example, no one dared to stand up like Kobe at the critical moment. Shoot like that.
In fact, this is not a question of dare at all. Kobe shoots more because he has to shoot, otherwise he will not be in the limelight, and his key ball shooting rate is much lower than usual.
If the team is 1 point behind, Diop, who has the worst offense in the league, receives the basketball at the last second. His choice is to throw the ball to the basket, and the rest is left to fate. Does this have anything to do with courage?
In the next three games, the Lakers also steadily suppressed the Warriors and won without any surprises. Throughout the series, the Lakers averaged 128 points per game, and the statistics of important rotation players have improved significantly compared with the regular season.
The Warriors' offensive efficiency was very high, and they scored over 100 points every game. However, they did not handle some details well enough, and their defense was too poor. The point difference widened unknowingly, and they could not catch up no matter how they attacked.
In the fourth game, Yao Ming scored 32 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 4 blocks, beating Lopez, leading the team to a 125-110 win and a 4-0 sweep to advance.
Yao Ming averaged 34 minutes per game in the series, 27 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks. He shot 52.8% from the field and 33.3% from the three-point range, completely dominating the basket.
Lopez averaged only 8.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2 assists per game. He was bullied miserably by Yao Ming. People clearly saw the huge gap between the rookie and the star center.
Conley averaged 19.7 points and 6 assists per game, which was the best performance of the Grizzlies. The defensive end also made Lou Williams uncomfortable, but he could only guard one person. Brooks exploded, averaging 20.7 points and 4 assists per game.
Everyone on the Lakers worked hard and showed off their strengths, blossoming more in every game.
While praising the Lakers, the media also constantly mentioned Kobe, believing that he had indeed destroyed the team's offensive system. Without him, the Lakers could play more smoothly, but it is still unknown how far the Lakers can go.
The Lakers' opponent in the second round is the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets are recognized as dark horses this year. Their third place in the regular season surprised many people. Billups and Anthony were selected to the Western Conference All-Stars.
Because of his performance in the regular season this season, Billups's evaluation is completely reversed from that of Iverson. Although his offensive power is not top-notch, he is not afraid of mismatches on the defensive end, has a balance of offense and defense, and is better at helping the team win.
The Nuggets easily eliminated the Hornets led by Chris Paul 4-1 in the first round, and the number of people who were optimistic about them increased greatly.
Last season, Paul scored 20+10, made the All-NBA team, was second in the MVP rankings, and played seven games against the Spurs in the second round of the playoffs, establishing his position as the number one point guard.
But people were surprised to find that Paul didn't show any statistics when faced with it, and Billups, who had always been low-key, couldn't take any advantage. He was even suppressed miserably, with only 30+ points in one game.
Throughout the series, Billups shot 48.3% from the field and 53% from three-point range, averaging 22.6 points, 4 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 1 steal per game; Paul shot 41.1% from the field, but his three-point shooting percentage was not worth mentioning, averaging 16.6 points and 4.4 steals per game. 10.4 rebounds, 1.6 steals.
And in the fourth game between the two sides, the Nuggets staged a massacre at the Hornets' home court 121-63. Seven members of the team scored in double figures, creating the famous "58 tragedy." From then on, many people began to call Paul 58...
Paul played 36 minutes, made 2 of 7 shots, no free throws, and scored 4 points, 2 rebounds, and 6 assists; Billups only played 30 minutes, making 5 of 11 shots, 2 of 4 three-pointers, and 5 of 5 free throws, scoring 17 Points, 3 rebounds and 8 assists.
After this series, Billups has become the most underrated point guard in the league, Anthony is one of the league's super scorers, and Hamilton, who can't run without the ball, has experts predicting that the Lakers will be in trouble.
On the Internet, a large group of "transformed secrets" also supported the Nuggets to kill the Lakers. The Lakers without Kobe will undoubtedly lose, and Jerry Young must die.
The Lakers have home court advantage;
The first game will be held on May 3 at Staples Center.
The arena was full again, and it was even hard to get tickets. Tickets can be sold at high prices online. Unlike the Warriors, the Nuggets have many famous stars, but no one calls the Nuggets perimeter trio "golden" anymore. Three shots”.
The Lakers' starting lineup changes, Lou Williams, Aaron Brooks, Iguodala, Millsap, Yao Ming.
This game was broadcast live across the United States. Jeff Van Gundy, Jon Barry, and Mike Breen arrived at the scene. They were all surprised to see two small guards playing together.
Breen said: "Jerry Young is too bold. It seems that he is not prepared to defend in the first quarter today."
Van Gundy said: "I think this arrangement is because he knows Billups and Hamilton, both of whom have worked with him before, and playing small guards is more targeted."
Billups is the backcourt commander, not reckless, he also has strong shooting ability and excellent defense; Hamilton is accurate in mid-range shots and has top-notch running without the ball. Both of them have solid basic skills.
Physically speaking, neither of them are outstanding. The 31-year-old Hamilton is still running well, and the 33-year-old Billups' speed has begun to decline. The Nuggets restrained the Hornets in the last round because the Hornets were average in three-pointers. Always fighting positional battles, the Nuggets use zone defense to limit Paul's breakthrough, which can reduce their offensive efficiency.
It is not a good strategy to use a zone defense against the Lakers. Yao Ming is not Tyson Chandler. After the boxing champion picks and rolls, he has to cut to the basket to have offensive power. Yao Ming can shoot three-pointers. Yang Rui sent two small defenders to counterattack.
The Nuggets' starting lineup remains unchanged from the previous round. Billups, Hamilton, Anthony, Kleiza, Nene.
Yao Ming won the jump ball and the game began.
Lu Wei controls the ball and observes the situation outside the three-point line. The Nuggets are in a 32 zone defense position again, with Anthony and Nene on the bottom line, Billups in the middle, and Kleiza and Hamilton on both sides.
Yao Ming pulled outside the three-point line to cover Lu Wei. The latter did not break through and took out a little space to pass to Brooks outside the left three-point line, and then ran to the right.
There was a serious mismatch on the court immediately, and Brooks singled out Kleiza.
Kleiza is 203cm tall and weighs 111kg. He mainly plays the third and fourth positions and moves slowly when guarding the outside. In the last round, he had no problem guarding Rasu Butler and Stojakovic, but those two were also slow. Now he is facing a little bit of confusion when facing Brooks.
Brooks caught the ball and feinted, changed direction and broke through. He used his speed to force past Kleiza and made a 50-degree jump shot inside the three-point line. 2 to 0.
When the Nuggets attack, the Lakers also defend in a zone, and their positions do not follow others.
Billups dribbled the ball across half court and passed it to Anthony on the right side. The latter met Brooks and caught the ball and made a three-pointer. Brooks knew that jumping was useless, so he just raised his right hand for a moment, which had almost no interference effect. .
Anthony is in great form this year. His three-point shooting percentage hit a career high of 37.1% in the regular season and 36.9% in the playoffs. The ball hit the net! 2 to 3.
Yang Rui does not blame the players for their defensive disadvantages. This was all expected by him. After he adjusted the lineup, the two sides competed with each other. Just like the last round of the series, he had to attack hard and use the offensive power of his team's players to rely on more A superior offense defeats the opponent.
Lu Wei dribbled the ball across the half court and passed it to Xiaobu on the left. There was no one to cover him and he directly challenged.
This time, Kleiza was worried about being passed, so he was a little further away. Xiaobu ran to catch the ball and caught the ball with a 70-degree pull-up three-pointer. The shot was very fast and without hesitation. As a forward, Kleiza's best thing is his strength, poor explosiveness, and slow speed. He was almost two steps away before he jumped forward to block the shot.
The ball drew a perfect arc, hollowed into the net, and returned a goal. 5 to 3.
Xiaobu feels hot and becomes more confident as he plays in the playoffs!