Chapter 886 [Top 3 in the Alliance, the Uncrowned King]

All teams have a consensus. To deal with a team led by LeBron James, they must guard James alone and guard others strictly.

James' breakthrough attracted double-teams and distribution. It was easy for his teammates on the outside to get good three-point shooting opportunities. Once his teammates shot three-pointers, the Mavericks had a great chance of winning.

Both Paul and Matthews have made over 40% of their three-point shooting this season. Experts believe that the Mavericks have a chance to defeat the Clippers because James' three-point shooting rate has reached 40.6%. He will make adjustments according to the situation on the court. He will play without the ball at a certain period, with Paul holding the ball and playing inside. Pick and roll.

This adjustment is very effective. After James practices shooting hard, he can help the team even more. The opponent's way of guarding James is to guard against penetrations rather than shots. To break this defense, the Mavericks must rely on James' outside touch to let Paul hold the ball. James will run the pick-and-roll and others will move to the outside!

In order to deal with James, Yang Rui adjusted the lineup in the first game of the Western Conference Finals. Jokic came on the bench and Whiteside started.

Whiteside can't handle passes and can't shoot three-pointers. His advantage is that he has strong defensive ability near the penalty area. To deal with James, a powerful forward who likes to rush to the basket, a defensive center is needed.

The Clippers' tactics are mixed defense, with Curry focusing on Paul, Antetokounmpo on James, and the other three in zone defense. In addition to Curry, the Clippers start with four defensive experts, all of whom have the ability to be selected for the best defensive team. The defensive system also brings out their own advantages.

This season, Antetokounmpo's talent has begun to materialize, and he is so strong that other teams are extremely envious.

There are only a handful of people in the league who can PK James one-on-one, and there are even fewer people who can compete with James in terms of statistics. There are only two people who have not fallen behind against James many times. One is Durant, and the other is Alphabet. elder brother.

In the past two seasons, Antetokounmpo has always performed well against James' teams. Many people already think that he is one of the top three small forwards in the league. Although his statistics are not top-notch, his potential is much greater than Leonard's. .

In Yang Rui's previous life, Antetokounmpo competed with James in more than a dozen games. Although the Bucks lost most of the games, he was not beaten by James in terms of statistics.

James played 35.9 minutes, 25.8 points, 7.3 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.6 blocks. He shot 53.7% from the field, 43.8% from the three-point range, and 69.4% from the free throw line.

Antetokounmpo played 34.7 minutes, 20.7 points, 7.6 rebounds, 4 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.2 blocks, shooting 54.2% from the field, 36.7% from the three-point range, and 80% from the free throw line.

Antetokounmpo was a substitute in his rookie season, and he was only a role player in his second season, so his data suffered. The two can basically compete with each other by the 15-16 season. As James gets older, his data will definitely gradually decline. Antetokounmpo's peak period is still a long time away. In a few years, he will sooner or later surpass James in terms of data.

The Clippers' wing defense is very tight. Except for Paul and James, all other Mavericks players are blocked. Nowitzki can't do anything about Draymond one-on-one. He is always pushed close to him and pushed away from the penalty area.

Draymond is also the axis on the offensive end, responsible for organizing in the middle. Without Jokic, he couldn't play the triangle offense after the screen. Instead, Whiteside cut inside. If Curry catches the ball and doesn't have a direct chance to take action, he will dribble the ball to the center, find Draymond for a pick-and-roll, and then shoot or distribute the ball to Whiteside.

Whiteside's low post attack became a highlight of the Clippers. It was difficult for the Mavericks to defend the penalty area, and the three centers were of average strength.

The two sides were evenly matched in the first half, but the Clippers began to take the initiative in the second half and gradually opened up the score.

The 39-year-old Nowitzki still averaged 14.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game in the regular season. In March, his career points total exceeded 30,000, becoming the sixth person in history to achieve this achievement.

Nowitzki can still play a role in the playoffs, but his physical strength can no longer support him. He averages a maximum of 25 minutes per game. No more can guarantee efficiency.

The Clippers are headed by young people, and their strongest strength is their physical strength.

In the final quarter, the physical gap between the two sides became more obvious. Yang Rui can let Curry, Antetokounmpo, and Draymond rest for a while, but Mavericks coach Carlisle dare not replace James. The Clippers relied on the bench lineup of LaVine, Booker, Mbah a Moute, West, and Jokic to withstand the Mavericks' counterattack.

The highlight of this quarter was the fringe man Mbah a Moute. His single defense limited James. In 5 minutes, James made 1 of 4 shots.

Mbah a Moute's excellent defense is no accident. This unknown and conscientious prince's statistics against star small forwards can be said to be very impressive every time. He is a wing gate that can be relied on. He only has a poor offense, so he does not play much time. Like Prince back then, the one nicknamed "Prince" seemed destined to be a long-arm defense monster.

Jokic, Booker, and LaVine ensured the offensive firepower and kept the point difference above 15 points. The Mavericks were forced to call a timeout.

After Antetokounmpo, Curry, and Draymond returned, the Clippers' offense became stronger, while the Mavericks relied entirely on the performance of Paul and James, falling into singles and failing to narrow the point difference.

At the end of the game, 118 to 96, the Clippers easily got off to a good start.

The score difference was even greater in the second game, with the Mavericks losing by 25 points. Their offense was good, but they couldn't guard against the Clippers' running and gunning.

Since the Mavericks center lacks offensive power and shooting range, the Clippers can pair Antetokounmpo and Draymond inside, which can not only protect rebounds, but also open up space in positional battles, and are especially sharp in fast breaks.

Antetokounmpo can only be defended by James, and his matchups with others are mismatched. When encountering a slow-moving inside line, he directly breaks through with an "letter step". When encountering someone who is not tall, he can make emergency stop jumpers and post-up shots in the low post.

In order to increase inside mobility and evacuation ability, James can play as a power forward for a certain period of time, but in this way, the Mavericks' small forward position is not strong enough, and Aminu and Jae Crowder have been poached by high salaries.

In the third game, the Mavericks returned to their home court and tried their best. At the end of the third quarter, they led by 10 points. However, they were taken away by the Clippers' fast break in the final quarter and ultimately lost by 14 points.

In order to break the Clippers' zone defense, Nowitzki played for 35 minutes, but was turned into a blacksmith in the final quarter, and the defensive end could not keep up with the counterattack speed.

In Game 4, the Mavericks finally came back at home, relying on their home court advantage and the explosion of role player Wesley Matthews.

Matthews is one of the most successful undrafted rookies in the NBA. At his peak, he averaged 16.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game with the Trail Blazers. He is an excellent 3D player who can occasionally draw from the outside. This time he hit 6 three-pointers and scored 26 points.

Even if three people scored 20 points or more, the Mavericks only beat the Clippers by 8 points.

Back at home, the Clippers won 123-100, eliminated the Mavericks with a total score of 4-1, and advanced to the finals again.

In the decisive battle, Curry played 40 minutes, making 18 of 28 shots, 11 of 17 three-pointers, 5 of 6 free throws, scoring 52 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals, and played a dominant performance.

Curry's condition this season is not as good as last season, but as long as he has a stroke, he is invincible.

Paul only had 14 points and 8 assists in the game. It can be decided who is the league's No. 1 point guard. Paul was at a disadvantage throughout the series. Paul can't guard Curry's style of play, and he can't actively pursue the pick-and-roll. Curry can take a shot when there is a little space, and he needs help from his big teammates.

Antetokounmpo's series statistics are only slightly inferior to James. He always has a way to score. He has advantages in height and wingspan, and a direct jump shot is an opportunity.

At the post-game press conference, James refused to answer reporters' questions and remained silent throughout. The Mavericks have no salary space to sign any more big-name stars, and they really can't figure out how to beat the Clippers.

James is extremely depressed. Is he destined to be the uncrowned king for the rest of his life?

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