Chapter 375: The Eastern Conference Finals and the Bulls of Internal Conflict
"Rodney..."
When Zhao Dong returned to defense, he said to Rogers: "If you guard against the postman, you can't get close to him. You can use the eye-sealing technique to cover his line of sight as much as possible and reduce his hit rate."
"OK."
Rogers nodded repeatedly.
When he came to the backcourt, Zhao Dong still guarded against Iverson's breakthrough. He would rather watch the postman shoot outside than let Iverson attack more efficiently under the basket.
This is actually the same defensive goal as Larry Brown's. They both want to block the opponent's offense from the paint area, and they want to prevent attacks under the basket.
The postman once again received Iverson's pass. Facing Rogers' defense, he waved his elbow even more fiercely.
As Rodgers retreated, he got room to shoot again, and then he took the shot.
Rogers just symbolically jumped up and reached out to block the shot. This time he used the eye-sealing technique as Zhao Dong said.
However, this defensive method also pays attention to the heat. If the movement is too big, it may blind someone's eyes. If the movement is too small, it will not be able to completely cover the opponent's sight.
This time, he didn't completely cover the postman's view.
After Zhao Dong forced Iverson to score the ball, he actually had a certain chance to return to defend the postman, but he did not choose to return to defense.
First, because the return defense distance is too far, the effect will not be good.
The second is because Willis's rebounding ability is not as good as Ratliff's. He stays under the basket, two-on-one, and is very important for protecting backcourt rebounds.
This time, he and Willis sandwiched Ratliff under the basket and occupied the best position.
"boom!"
I don’t know if it was because of Rogers’ eye-sealing technique that the postman failed to hit the ball.
Zhao Dong grabbed the rebound and the Knicks attacked.
He attacked by himself, broke through with the ball, and reached the left elbow area. When he was double-teamed by three people, he suddenly made an emergency stop to combine the ball, then turned around, leaned against the postman, and hit George Lynch and Ratliff. Before he pounced, he suddenly turned around again and took a turnaround and fadeaway jumper.
This turn and lean back immediately allowed him to break out of the three-man double-team and break the three-man double-team.
But he's not shooting,
Because the moment he was about to take a shot, he saw that Willis had reached the basket and immediately changed his shot to a pass.
Willis, who was left open, caught the ball under the basket and dunked with both hands, scoring a goal.
Looking back, Iverson made a pull-up jumper and hit a nearly two-pointer from the right sideline of the paint area.
Willis under the basket couldn't make up for it, and Zhao Dong on the left line of the paint area was too late. He could only watch Iverson take action.
Barkley praised: "Iverson is really worthy of the lightning. His breakthrough was too fast, and he had continuous emergency stops and changes of direction. Ginobili couldn't guard him at all."
Smith said: "His emergency stop and change of direction technique should have been learned from Zi Feilong. It was very helpful to him. He didn't have this skill when he first entered the league. At that time, his shooting percentage of emergency stop jumpers near the basket was very low. It’s less than 30%, but now it’s over 40%.”
Barkley laughed: "The emergency stop slowed down his breakthrough speed and greatly enhanced the stability of his shots. The change of direction increased his ability to escape and weakened the defense in front of him, so his shooting percentage naturally increased. .”
After the first quarter, 28:22, the Knicks led by 6 points.
Because the Knicks have strengthened their interception and defensive double-teaming of Zhao Dong at the edge of the paint area, the impact distance is not enough, the impact force is reduced, and the defensive force is too strong, making it impossible for him to smoothly break in and cause damage, which results in the number inside the team remaining Playing high-intensity defense.
This high-intensity defense has reduced Zhao Dong's attacks at the basket, and his offensive efficiency has been affected to a certain extent. Most of his shots are near the basket.
However, the digital team's defensive tactics of surrounding Zhao Dong at the edge of the paint area also have weaknesses.
In fact, every tactic is not perfect, and the same is true for this one.
When the digital team's defensive strength leaves the basket to make up for it and concentrates on the edge of the paint area, the basket becomes empty.
Then Willis got a lot of open opportunities, and they were directly under the basket.
Zhao Dong can not only attack, but also pass. In just the first half of the quarter, he assisted Willis three times to score directly at the basket.
In the second half of the quarter, Ratliff strengthened his defense against the basket and was able to stop Willis from scoring at the basket.
However, when he returned to defend the basket, the defensive pressure on Zhao Dong immediately dropped, and he strengthened his offense, leaving Ratliff in a dilemma.
Larry Brown was very decisive and directly instructed Ratliff to strengthen his defense against the basket, because his defensive goal was to prevent Zhao Dong from getting to the basket and force Zhao Dong to take shots away from the basket, which is exactly what he wanted now.
Zhao Dong played a full game in the first quarter, making 8 of 14 shots and a shooting percentage of 57%. His shooting percentage dropped. In addition, he made 4 of 4 free throws and scored 20 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists.
However, the digital team was still 6 points behind. At this time, because Iverson also couldn't get in, his efficiency outside was not as good as Zhao Dong's.
At the same time, the Postman felt average today, making 4 of 10 shots and 2 of 3 free throws in the first quarter, scoring only 10 points.
In the second quarter, Marion and Gary Trent partnered inside, Zhao Dong assumed the point guard position, Ginobili took a rest first, and rotated with Stackhouse at the second position, and the small forward moved to John Wallace. .
This lineup is very poor.
Although the guard combination of Zhao Dong and Stackhouse is extremely powerful, the other three positions are very poor and cannot be compared with the digital team at all.
There is nothing we can do about it. After one season and the first round of the series, the players' physical energy has been almost exhausted, and the rotation must be strengthened. Players like John Wallace who have little playing time in the regular season will be replaced in the second round. Both got more than ten minutes of playing time.
Zhang Lijia sighed: "If Fordson is here, he can play at least 35 minutes. Without him for these 35 minutes, the Knicks' rotation will really become a problem.
Marion, who was traded, is too young, Rodgers has no defense, and neither does Ginobili, but these three are all important rotations or main players. "
Su Qun said: "I would say that the Knicks should strengthen the construction of the lineup during the offseason. Don't the bosses have money? Invest in it! Get a few more stars to come over."
In the second quarter, the lineup was not good, Zhao Dong continued to attack, and Stackhouse assisted.
Just relying on his offense, after this quarter, 55:45, the Knicks actually led by 10 points.
In the second quarter, he made 6 of 10 shots, 4 of 5 free throws, and scored 16 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 assist. He made 14 of 24 shots in the half, with a shooting percentage of 58.3%, and 8 of 9 free throws. He scored 36 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals. 3 blocks data.
The E-mail combination also played the entire half, making 14 of 32 shots from the field, with a shooting percentage of 43.7%. This efficiency is actually good, because there are very few offenses at the basket, and most of them are jump shots from outside.
But compared with Zhao Dong's efficiency, even if Zhao Dong's efficiency is reduced, the efficiency of the email combination is also reduced, which gives the Knicks a lead.
To put it bluntly, the defensive strategic goals of both sides have been achieved. Both sides' attacks under the basket have been reduced and jump shots from outside have been increased. However, Zhao Dong still helped the team gain the lead with his higher efficiency.
During the halftime break, Barkley commented on the performance of the two teams in the first half and said: "This series was enjoyable for everyone, right?
Anyway, the ratings of our TNT series have repeatedly broken records, and the current number of viewers for a single game exceeds 60 million.
The fierce confrontation between the two teams is a guarantee of high ratings, which shows that offense is the eternal theme of basketball. "
Having said this, he took a sip of water, and then continued: "I want to say something about the performance of the two teams. Let's talk about the digital team first. The email team's performance in this series is beyond reproach.
Postman played the best playoff performance of his career. Iverson combined personal offense and passing very well, averaging five assists per game for Postman.
They can average 50+ contributions per game together. They are the best inside and outside combination in the history of the league, and they are not weaker than the OK combination. "
"E-mail is indeed a historic combination." Smith nodded.
Barkley added: "But they met Feilong, the god of efficiency. My teammate, with the highest offensive efficiency in history, averaged 50+ points per game in this series. He single-handedly shattered the email combination. All the hard work.”
"Charles, do you mean the Knicks are sure to win? I don't agree with that." Due to the needs of the show, Smith immediately sang the opposite tune.
Barkley laughed and said: "Kenny, it doesn't matter whether you agree or not. This is the fourth game. How many times has the digital team taken the lead in the four games?"
"this?"
Smith was speechless and couldn't find a reason.
"What does this mean?"
Barkley said with a proud smile: "This shows that the Knicks' ability to control the game is to stabilize the opponent's head. No matter how good the email combination is, the god of efficiency can beat them on his own. Haha..."
"What a pity, Charles, you should have been able to get another ring." Smith said with regret.
Barkley almost jumped up and said with a smile: "What does it mean to be mixed up again? I won the championship as the main power forward in the finals. I am the main force. Do you understand the main force? That is not called mixed up. , I am the main force. Look, look here, the camera shows a close-up of my hands..."
As he spoke, he raised his right hand and flicked his thick index finger. On it was his championship ring.
In his short career as a broadcaster, this is the 132nd time he has shown off his championship ring.
"Ha ha……"
Seeing Barkley's proud smile, Smith couldn't stop laughing.
In the second half of the game, even though he fell behind, Larry Brown had no other solution but to repeatedly emphasize strengthening the double-team defense against Zhao Dong.
His defensive tactics remained unchanged, just double-teaming Zhao Dong in the paint area.
This position is not far from the basket. Once someone else from the Knicks cuts into the basket, the double-teamer can return to defend the basket in time.
At the same time, it can keep Zhao Dong some distance away from the basket. Zhao Dong's efficiency dropped in today's game, which shows that this tactic is correct.
Of course, Larry Brown also thought about double-teaming further away from the basket.
But at a further position, once the other Knicks cut to the basket, it will be too late to return to defense. With Zhao Dong's passing ability, the gain will outweigh the loss.
In response to this kind of defense, Nelson made some enhancements to the weak-side cutting tactics to reduce the power of double-teaming Zhao Dong.
He brought in Marion to run the weak-side cut.
Marion is as fast as a horse and has a very strong frontal cutting ability, which is very suitable for this kind of tactic of cutting to the basket.
Of course, if there is a defender under the basket, Marion's weak and almost non-existent attacking ability will be of little use.
This arrangement does work. As soon as the digital team starts to double-team Zhao Dong, Marion will immediately be like a sharp knife, quickly inserting it from the weak side to the unmanned basket.
At the end of the third quarter, Marion used this tactic of cutting into the basket from the weak side and received passes from Zhao Dong three times, all of which were dunks.
This tactic limited the double-teaming of Zhao Dong by the inside of the digital team, which made Ratliff and the postman restrained. The double-teaming of Zhao Dong was not tight enough and clean enough.
As a result, Zhao Dong's impact immediately broke out and he began to hit the basket continuously. In this quarter alone, Ratliff and Postman were fouled four times. It was very lethal and stopped the digital team continuously.
After three quarters, the Knicks had the advantage, with the point difference stretched to 18 points, and the victory was certain.
In the final quarter, the digital team was unable to recover and lost the G4 game.
With this number, the team lost two consecutive home games, trailed the Knicks by a big score of 1 to 3, and was in a desperate situation. With the strength of the Knicks, it was almost certain that they would lose this series, and their fate of being eliminated was already doomed. .
Zhao Dong once again scored 57 points in the G4 game, and his shooting rate returned to 60%, as high as 61%, showing extremely powerful offensive power.
Thanks to the fierce battle between the two teams, the ratings of this series were extremely hot, and the stars who performed well also received great attention.
For example, Iverson has attracted a lot of attention. This series has allowed him to receive more attention and grow into a real superstar. As long as he obtains certain hard honors, it is possible to become a superstar.
But for the Knicks, Pippen's statement may have some truth, because Zhao Dong's performance was too dazzling, and other players did not receive much attention. Even Stackhouse, who performed well, received only a small amount of attention. generally.
It is not that there is no attention, but as long as the media mentions the performance of other players, it is not a good thing. This kind of attention is worse than no attention.
That night, the Lakers defeated the Mavericks, and like Niers, got a big score advantage of three to one.
On the 13th, the Knicks returned to New York.
The second round series is a 22111 format. The two teams play the G5 game in New York. If the Knicks lose, they will have to go to Philadelphia again to play the G6 game.
That night, the Pacers tied with the Bulls, and coincidentally, the Trail Blazers also tied with the Suns.
On the 14th, the Knicks started the G5 battle with the digital team.
In this game, the Knicks did not let any surprises happen. Zhao Dong continued to explode strongly, scoring 55 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. He led the team to eliminate the super strong team Digital Team and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals first.
In the five-game series in the second round, he scored 68 points, 38 points, 66 points, 57 points, and 55 points respectively. He averaged 56.8 points per game, with a shooting percentage of 62.1%. He had unlimited firepower and ranked first in the current season. The grace of the God of Man and Efficiency.
At the same time, Zhao Dong became the player with the most 50+ goals in a playoff series.
The former one was Jordan, who scored 50+ twice in a series, while Zhao Dong scored four times this time.
At the same time, he is also the star with the most 50+ goals in the playoffs in NBA history.
The previous one was Jordan, eight times.
The famous Zhang Dashuai has only scored 50 points twice in the playoffs. His performance in the playoffs is the same as that of the postman, both of which were weaker than in the regular season.
Counting this series, Zhao Dong has scored 50+ points in the playoffs 13 times in four seasons.
In addition, he is also the only one who averaged 50+ per game in a series.
The historical record for scoring in the playoffs that Zhao Dong has not broken yet is Jordan's 69 points in a single game, Thomas the Smiling Assassin's record of 25 points in a single quarter in the finals, and 29 points in a single quarter in the playoffs.
"Now we can actually say that Feilong is the most terrifying scorer in the history of the league." Barkley said with pride.
On the same night, the Lakers won another game, eliminated the Mavericks, and took the lead in reaching the Western Conference Finals.
On the 15th, the media was hyping up the Finals showdown between the Lakers and the Knicks, completely ignoring other teams that had not yet completed the second round.
The Pacers and the Bulls were tied at two, and the Trail Blazers and the Suns were also tied at two. These four teams all had the opportunity to advance to the Western Conference Finals and the Eastern Conference Finals, so the attitude of the media made these four teams extremely angry.
Pacers boss Reggie Miller was interviewed in the locker room before the start of Game 5 and angrily said: "Those media are praising the Knicks and Lakers. We will definitely surprise them."
The Bulls' Rasheed Wallace is still competing with Tracy McGrady for the boss, and the Bulls locker room is very disharmonious. If Oakley hadn't been suppressed by the authority of the four villains, the internal strife might have broken out long ago.
The Bulls have a very strong lineup, with Rasheed Wallace and the ever-strong Oakley carrying the inside, McGrady and Mobley on the outside, and Kidd in the organization. The lineup is very good. Apart from Oakley, they are a group that has already played. The youth army has endless potential. If it weren't for internal strife, they might have killed the Pacers.
Seeing that the media looked down upon them so much, these young soldiers were also very angry. Under Oakley's mediation, Rasheed Wallace and Tracy McGrady temporarily reached an agreement to put aside their internal disputes and go all out to attack the Eastern Conference Finals.
However, in order to boost morale, Oakley stood up and accepted an interview with the media, saying: "The Knicks and Lakers are indeed very strong. I know this very well, but we Bulls are not vegetarians. If we are allowed to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, We are confident that we can fight the Knicks to the seventh game."
Under the leadership of Oakley, the Bulls really won the G5 game that night, leading the Pacers 3-2 and gaining match point.
"Haha, Charles, are you really confident that we can reach the tiebreaker?" Zhao Dong called Oakley after the game and joked happily.
"Feilong, do you think I am willing to say this? I have no choice. These young people are so capable of causing trouble. They keep fighting all day long. If we don't set a unified goal for them, they can cause trouble in the locker room. It's amazing." Oakley said helplessly.