warrior godfather

Chapter 357 Lin Crazy

On March 3, the Warriors rushed from Dallas to Los Angeles to meet the back-to-back battles with the Clippers.

This is the last game of the Warriors' road trip, and it is also their biggest challenge.

The two teams had already played against each other in the opening game. At that time, Paul had just joined the Clippers, and he lacked coordination with his teammates. The Clippers' lineup was also very deformed. There were four point guards, and they did not fight back against the Warriors. The power, a crushing defeat.

But today is different from the past. Paul deserves to be the top point guard in the league. He has the top ball quotient in the league. The Clippers also sent Billups away. Although they still retain three point guards, the lineup is no longer as deformed as it was at the beginning of the season.

Under the leadership of Paul, the Clippers' record has steadily improved, gradually breaking away from the rhythm of winning one game and losing one game at the beginning of the season, and rising from the lottery zone to the ranks of the playoffs. Before this game, the Clippers scored 23 points. With a record of 15 wins and [-] losses, it ranks fifth in the Western Conference and has the potential to continue to improve.

I have to say that although Paul is still far away from the title of "God of Point Guards", his ability to lead the team to the lower limit in the regular season is indeed top-notch in the league. No matter how bad the lineup is, he can lead it in style , as long as he is given two more capable teammates, the swimming record can take off.

In this game, Paul was also gearing up and was fully prepared to avenge the warrior who defeated him at the beginning of the season, but Zhang Yu did not give him this opportunity.

In the last game against the Mavericks, none of the Warriors kept their hands, and they all used their full strength. Although they finally won a hearty victory, the energy consumption of the main players was also very high. Arriving in Los Angeles, the players did not get enough rest, and their condition was even worse.

So Zhang Yu waved his hand and directly rested all the Warriors' starters, allowing the substitutes and the third team to step up.

Anyway, this game was not held at the Oracle Center, and Zhang Yu did not have any psychological burden on the main players on rotation.

But in this era, large-scale rotation of the main force is very rare. Zhang Yu's doing so immediately attracted the attention of the outside world, especially the Warriors players are very young. In the eyes of most people, they don't need rotation at all. , Zhang Yu did so inconceivably.

But no matter how people pay attention to Zhang Yu's frantic rest strategy, they still have to wait until the game is over, but almost everyone believes that the Clippers will definitely win the game.

But the facts have proved that in competitive sports, everything is possible. Although the Clippers' lineup has an absolute advantage on paper, it is by no means a sure thing.

Even though the Warriors' starters were all rested, the substitutes burst out with strong combat effectiveness. They showed their full state from the beginning of the game, clung to the score, and faced the Clippers' starters, they did not lose too much.

Jeremy Lin ushered in an explosion tonight. When everyone was focusing on Zhang Yu's generous rest, he and Paul started a confrontation. He scored 12 points in a single quarter, showing a very strong desire to attack.

The rest of the Warriors' bench players are also in excellent condition. They were infected by the momentum of the team's big victory over the Mavericks in the last game. After Zhang Yu announced that they will all start in rotation, their fighting spirit is very high. They vowed to seize this rare opportunity to start. , Express yourself well on the field.

They worked very hard on both ends of the offense and defense, showing a desperate posture. Leonard repeatedly staged the scene of falling to the ground to save the ball. Consuming a little, Danny Green never stopped running, tirelessly looking for scoring opportunities on the offensive end, dragging the Clippers' defense.

Facing the Warriors who are fighting for their lives, the Clippers players panicked for a while, and were overwhelmed by the Warriors' momentum.

Pooh DeNagello is also frowning. All his game strategies are formulated for the Warriors starting. Now the Warriors have suddenly replaced the substitutes, and because of various factors such as fighting spirit and momentum, they are not even weaker than the The main force of the Clippers, which made him unable to find any good countermeasures in a short time, so he could only wave his hands desperately on the sidelines, let the players give the ball to Paul, and Paul would control the field.

The first half was spent in the scene where the Warriors fought tirelessly and the Clippers were cautious and sticky. The battle between the two teams was 57:53, and the Clippers only led by 4 points.

In the second half, the Clippers began to exert their strength. Paul, who had figured out the strength and routine of the Warriors' substitute players, did not hesitate to speed up. He wanted to give full play to the advantages of the Clippers as the "city of lobs" and quickly opened up the score with fast breaks.

But this happens to be what the Warriors are good at. Although Jeremy Lin is not Curry, he is also a point guard who likes to play fast, and Jeremy Lin is in a very good state tonight. He is omnipotent for three-pointers, breakthroughs, and passes. For the first time, he staged a one-stop view of the audience, repeatedly challenging Jordan's frame protection, and was able to rival Paul on the offensive end.

On the sidelines, Zhang Yu looked at Jeremy Lin who once again made Jordan 2+1, roared towards the sidelines, and celebrated enthusiastically with his teammates. In a trance, he seemed to see the New York No. 17 who set off a storm all over the world.

Tonight, Jeremy Lin became Linsanity at the Staples Center!
In the second half, when the other players of the Warriors were gradually contained by the Clippers who found a countermeasure, Jeremy Lin stood up. He was like a tireless super sports car, using his speed not to lose to the first-line point guards, to attack again and again. The Clippers' inside line single-handedly supported the Warriors' offense and clung to the score.

And when he was off the court, Thomas gave the Clippers another surprise.

When Thomas came on the court, there was a burst of laughter and boos from the Staples audience, but when he, like Jeremy Lin, rushed into the inside of the Clippers time and time again, using his strong core strength and smart wrists, he was constantly in the paint. When scoring points, the Clippers fans couldn't laugh.

Pooh DeNaglo on the sidelines was also pale. He didn't prepare for the game against Thomas at all, and he couldn't have imagined that Thomas, a second-round pick on the verge of losing, would have such a sharp impact!
And when Jeremy Lin and Thomas staged a desperate rush, other Warriors players were also doing their best to contribute their strength. There may still be a certain gap between their strength and the corresponding Clippers starters and substitutes, but they put This game was played as the playoffs or even the finals. All the energy burst out on the court, like a wolf, biting the opponent for every point, every rebound, and every floor ball. It even revealed a bloodthirsty light.

They must seize this hard-won opportunity to play, show their strength in front of the coach and the world, and fight for a future!
With everyone fighting for their lives, the Warriors kept clinging to the score and stalemate with the Clippers until the last moment.

But at the last moment of the game, the shortcomings of the substitute players still emerged. Although they could make up for the gap in strength by relying on blood and vitality, at the critical moment, the attention of both sides was highly concentrated, and their enthusiasm no longer occupied. advantage.

After the two teams have improved their defensive strength, what is most needed is a hard solution from the stars, but the Clippers have Paul and Griffin, but the Warriors only have Jeremy Lin and Thomas.

The huge gap in star rating is a gap that nothing else can fill.

After Paul made a mid-range shot with a small hit, Jeremy Lin rushed into the tight-knit Clippers penalty area and could only barely throw the ball to the basket.

When Griffin finished covering for Paul, received a pass from Paul and rushed into the Warriors' three-point line, and after running over Yi Jianlian who was facing him for a layup, Thomas couldn't get rid of Paul's defense at all.

As time went by, the point difference was widened step by step, and the enthusiasm of the Warriors players was completely extinguished by Paul's deadly mid-range shots and scalpel-like passes.

In the end, with Paul's tough performance at the shutdown moment, the Clippers defeated the Warriors 116:106 and succeeded in revenge. In the last 2 minutes, the Clippers beat the Warriors 8:2, of which 6 points were scored by Paul. It is said that he single-handedly gave the Warriors their fifth loss of the season.

In this league, after all, the stars are king.

No matter how strong the substitute is, it is only a substitute. With their bravery, they can compete with the opponent's main force, but when it comes to hard solutions, only superstars can fight against superstars.

This is just the regular season. If it is the playoffs or even the finals, the gap between the substitute and the starter will be infinitely widened.

However, Zhang Yu is not dissatisfied with the result of this game. Now that all the main players have been rested, he is ready to lose. It is already unexpected that he can fight the Clippers until the end. His unexpected.

When the Warriors left the field, Zhang Yu and everyone hugged hard, and whispered in their ears:
"Jeremy/Kawhi/UA... you played great, hard work!"

It was only at this time that the look of disappointment on everyone's faces slowly dissipated.

What Zhang Yu said is true, everyone's performance is indeed very good.

Jeremy Lin made 24 of 11 shots, 8 of 3 three-pointers, and 8 of 7 free throws. He scored 34 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 3 turnovers. In the last 5 minutes, he only made 5 of 2 shots and scored 4 points.

Thomas scored 23 points, 5 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal and 3 turnovers. He also set a career high scoring record. In the second half, Zhang Yu directly put him in the starting position. Hope, together with Jeremy Lin, supported the Warriors' offense.

However, limited by his height, Thomas' turnover rate remains high. He is conscious and active on the defensive end, but he is powerless.

After the game was over, Zhang Yu also had confidence in Thomas' strength. He couldn't partner with another offensive defender in the backcourt, and he was prone to making mistakes in handling the ball. However, at some special moments, Thomas could play unexpectedly. Effect.

In addition, Leonard had 6 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals and 1 block. On the defensive end, Caron Butler was repeatedly defeated. He also contributed to the defense many times. Yi Jianlian scored 12 points, 6 rebounds and 1 block. , Whiteside had 10 points and 16 rebounds, and Danny Green made 9 of 4 three-pointers and scored 12 points. They all played very well.

For the Clippers, Paul scored 26 points, 15 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 turnovers in a large double-double. He made 8 of 6 shots in the single quarter and scored 14 points, showing his peerless demeanor as a top point guard.

Griffin scored 24 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Together with Paul, he supported the Clippers' offense. He took advantage of the absence of both Chandler and Green to overwhelm the Warriors in the penalty area. Whiteside has a high altitude And confrontation, but the pace is too slow, it is impossible to prevent Griffin's attack.

The Clippers' dual-core performance was very impressive, but after the game, the focus of the reporters was not Paul and Griffin. They just wanted to figure out one thing, and that was why Zhang Yu rested all the main players.

Facing the reporter's question, Zhang Yu's answer was very simple:
"We had a long road trip and everyone was tired, so I gave them a good rest to get ready for the next game."

"But Stephen and Jimmy are very young, will they be tired?"

"Of course, they are all human beings, and if they are human, they will get tired."

"Ronan, do you have excessive rest? No team in the league has had such a large-scale rest, unless it is at the end of the season. Are the Warriors players so delicate? Or do you no longer use other players? The team is paying attention, thinking that the Warriors can secure the first place?"

Faced with this obviously malicious question, Zhang Yu smiled:
"Then now, I am honored to create this history. You said that the Warriors players are delicate, so what is the team that lost to the Warriors? Is it soft? As for the first, I don't know in the future, but we are now the first. One, that's enough, what the winner wants to do, don't need to consider what the loser thinks!"

Zhang Yu's answer caused a brief silence on the scene, but soon a reporter asked:
"Ronan, will you continue to take such rotations in the future?"

Zhang Yu smiled slightly;
"Why not? I will take turns when I need to take turns, and save my strength until the critical moment."

"What's the crunch time? The last five games of the regular season? Three games?"

Zhang Yu shook his head;

"Of course the critical moment is in the playoffs. In the regular season, I will rest all the main players. In the playoffs, Western Conference finals, and even the finals, I will never let them sit on the court. I will let them fight. Have fun, let them release all their energy, that is the stage for them to perform!"

(End of this chapter)