warrior godfather

Chapter 408

The next day, May 5, the Glenview community.

In the evening, Zhang Yu's house was very lively. After watching the game yesterday, Stevens stayed at Zhang Yu's house. This time he came alone, without Tracy and the two children.

Curry and Butler also came to Zhang Yu's house as guests. Ayesha had a long pregnancy and was unable to move, so she stayed at home, while Butler was always alone.

Therefore, four men gathered in Zhang Yu's house. Fortunately, Tina took care of the housework, so it wouldn't be too messy.

The four sat in the living room, and Stevens was talking about the situation of the Bulldogs this season. Zhang Yu, Curry, and Butler listened very intently.

The Bulldogs carry their fond memories, and Zhang Yu can often visit Stevens’ home, but Curry and Butler have heavy training tasks, so they seldom have the opportunity to return to Indiana. I went to Butler University, and in a blink of an eye, I didn't go back for more than half a year.

Listening to Stevens' narration, the two recalled their high-spirited college days, with nostalgic expressions on their faces.

After Curry and Butler came to the Warriors, Zhang Yu was still the head coach. He directly dismantled the original Warriors and took good care of them. They were also very happy and were not bullied like rookies from other teams , but the NBA is a business field after all, and the two of them can't find the feeling of playing in the Bulldogs.

No wonder the NCAA is more popular with fans in the United States. When the March Madness Finals are held every year, the NBA has to make way for it.

Although the NBA represents the highest level of basketball in the world, the NCAA's one-game system and unpaid college students add a touch of madness and purity to the sport, returning to the origin of competitive sports.

"...In the end, we still stopped in the semi-finals, but your juniors have made great progress. I believe that the Bulldogs will win the championship next year!" Stevens painted his eloquent speech. a full stop.

Zhang Yu looked up at the clock hanging on the wall, picked up the remote control, turned on the TV, and said with a smile:
"Okay, it's almost 07:30, the game will start soon, let's watch the game first, maybe today we can decide our opponent in the next round."

"So, Ronan, are you more optimistic about Thunder's advancement?" Stevens asked.

"That's right." Zhang Yu nodded.

Today, the Thunder and the Spurs will compete in the sixth game of the series at the Chesapeake Energy Arena. Before that, the two sides fought five games. The Thunder led the Spurs 3:2 and held the match point. At home, the right time, place and people are in his hands, and the advantage is huge.

However, no one dares to underestimate the Spurs. Popovich is sophisticated and the GDP combination is old and strong. There are also many people who are optimistic that the Spurs can bring the series back to the home court, and finally win the tiebreaker and advance to the Western Conference Finals.

Stevens was one of them. He shook his head slightly and said:
"I think the Spurs will win. Although the Thunder have a big lead, except for the Thunder's 3-point victory in G20, the points in the other four games are all within 10 points, and there are even three games within 6 points. The difference in team strength is not big, and this is only the second playoff for the Thunder. The Spurs are very experienced. I think they can withstand the pressure at such a critical moment. On the contrary, the Thunder may carelessly underestimate the enemy and be dragged into the tiebreaker. "

After listening to Stevens quietly, Zhang Yu tuned the channel to ESPN, which broadcast the game nationwide, chuckled lightly, and said:

"Really? I don't think so, Brad, you haven't watched the game between the Spurs and the Thunder much, and you still have a shallow view."

"Oh? Come on, I'd like to see what you have to say. The series between the Warriors and the Lakers has just ended. Don't you have time to study the game between the Spurs and the Thunder?"

Zhang Yu smiled slightly:
"When I get tired of watching Lakers videos, I will watch their games as a way to pass the time."

"When you're tired from watching the video, you go to the game? Ronan, you really are still that workaholic. I still remember that on the first day you became the head coach, you worked all night and passed out directly in the office. You It won't be like this now, will it?"

"That's not true, I'm still the boss no matter what I say now, 007 is unworthy..."

"Okay, tell me quickly, why do you think the Thunder can win?"

Curry and Butler sat next to the two of them, watching the two of them bickering with each other, speaking faster and faster, and they both laughed.

When they were in the Bulldogs, Zhang Yu and Stevens often argued together about tactics. Sometimes Curry and Butler were brought by Zhang Yu to visit Stevens’ home and watch NBA games at night. People also have disagreements and arguments from time to time, but after the game is over, the winner will not be complacent, and the loser will not take it seriously. Within two days, the two will start a new round of "dispute".

"It's very simple. The Thunder have three scorers with the ball. The three are young and strong, with strong impact and can play for a whole game. But GDP is already old. When it comes time to attack, they can't play. Of course the Spurs will lose. .” Zhang Yu said.

"It's that simple?" Stevens looked at Zhang Yu suspiciously.

"It's that simple." Zhang Yu's gaze was very calm, "Of course, the Thunder have other advantages, such as Ibaka's ability to shoot mid-range shots, Duncan's slow pace, and he can't defend. The opportunity to hit a breakthrough point is also the key to winning three games in a row, but the fundamental reason is that the Thunder's three players can hold the ball and the Spurs' GDP can't."

Stevens fell into deep thought. After a while, he nodded slowly and said:
"You're right. I really didn't watch much of the Thunder and Spurs game. You know, their games and the Pacers-Heat series are often played on the same day. Of course, I watch the Pacers game first..."

"Brad, the Pacers seem to be losing?" Curry interjected.

Curry used to call Stevens by his first name when he was still with the Bulldogs, but he never called Ronan by his first name.

In the United States, it is normal to call the coach by his first name, but Curry and Butler respectfully maintain Zhang Yu's respectful title. Zhang Yu corrected it several times to no avail, so he left with them.

Stevens glared at Curry, but quickly fell down:

"Hey, the situation of the Pacers is really bad. They lost more than 30 points the day before yesterday and were pulled by the Heat in two consecutive games. They will play G6 tomorrow, but fortunately, they will play at home. I have bought a ticket and will go back to Indiana tomorrow morning. , I hope the Pacers can take it down...G5 is really outrageous! The highest scorer in the team is Paul George with 11 points. It is really unimaginable, Vogel is committing a crime!"

Stevens made a very rare complaint, Zhang Yu barely held back his laughter, and quickly changed the subject:

"Let's watch the game first. It's already started. If you go back tomorrow, maybe the Pacers will win a big game."

"It's still a big victory. As long as you can win, thank God. If you have home court advantage and lose, it will be really shameful..." Stevens felt deeply responsible for his love, and after a long sigh, he suppressed his troubles , watching the game intently.

……

After the start of the game, the two sides quickly fell into a fierce battle. The Thunder's determination to end the series at home was clearly visible, and the Spurs did not want to end their journey to the playoffs. It was so hard that people turned their backs on their backs.

As Zhang Yu said, Brooks let the three masters let go in the first quarter. Harden hadn't played yet. Durant and Westbrook took turns to play singles. Each ball was handled by two people, and the others were responsible. Space the floor, rebound and defend.

After Harden came on the field, he took some ball possessions from Durant and Westbrook. The three completely divided up all the ball possessions. The rest of the Thunder players could only do their best to defend. A fixed-point open, or grab two offensive rebounds, score a few points through the second offense, other than that, there is no chance to attack independently
In this critical game that determines the outcome of the series, Brooks has no time to take into account the enthusiasm of the role players. He must ensure that every attack of the Thunder has the greatest success rate.

And the three masters lived up to expectations. Durant played 48 minutes without resting for a second. He had no solution to the mid-range shot. The team has 15 fewer free throws.

Westbrook fought hard and launched a fast break desperately. Even if he made 5 turnovers, he never stepped on the brakes, vowing to use speed to drag down the Spurs' defense.

And Harden was much more relaxed, following behind the eldest and second brothers, digesting some ball possessions, sorting out the offense, but also got 6 free throws, complementing Durant and Westbrook.

After the whole game, the three got 28 free throws in total, while the Thunder only had 31 free throws. The Spurs fouled almost all of them, especially Durant, who scored 34 points and 14 free throws. Rebounds and 5 assists, nearly half of which came from free throws.

There is a factor of home court advantage, but the main reason is that the Spurs' outside defense is too weak, causing the inside to have to aggressively supplement the defense, the confrontation is too large, and San Shao is sent to the free throw line.

This has a lot to do with Zhang Yu. He cut off Danny Green and Leonard, especially Leonard. He should have been the mainstay of the Spurs' perimeter defense. Now that they are missing, the Spurs' perimeter defense is everywhere. They are all loopholes, and the offensive end also lacks space support, unable to deal with the impact of Westbrook and Harden, so Duncan can only rely on Duncan to fight the fire.

But as Duncan grows older, his footsteps become slower and slower, and he can't do what he wants. Many times, he can't make up defenses and can only attack. In this game, he was called a total of 5 fouls and was almost sent off. In the end, he had to restrain his actions. Let San Shao become even more unscrupulous.

Not only him, Ginobili made 5 fouls, Dior made 4 fouls, and Stephen Jackson made 4 fouls. They were all in foul trouble.

The Spurs are not good defensively, but they are playing well on the offensive end.

In the first quarter, both sides hadn’t warmed up yet, but Tony Parker made a sudden breakthrough. He made 10 of 7 in a single quarter, 1 of 1 three-pointers, 3 of 2 free throws, scored 17 points, and helped the Spurs lead the Thunder by 34 points 20:14 .

It was this huge point difference that made Brooks make up his mind to give the three young players unlimited fire rights, let Durant play the whole game, and vowed to win the game.

But the good times didn't last long. In the second quarter, Parker felt cold. He made 4 of 1 shots and only scored 4 points. Durant started to exert his strength. He made 5 of 3 shots in a single quarter, 4 of 2 three-pointers, and 2 of 2 free throws. Scored 10 points, but the Spurs blossomed more. Stephen Jackson, Duncan and Gary Neal all played their part, scoring a total of 20 points, but the point difference was widened by 1 point.

At halftime, Stevens quipped:
"Ronan, do you still believe that the Thunder can win now? The Spurs are now leading by 15 points, and Manu Ginobili hasn't played yet. As long as they play steadily in the second half and stabilize the score, the Thunder will have nothing to take advantage of. It seems , After all, individual singles are no match for team offense."

Zhang Yu's face was as usual, and he said without worry:

"What's the rush? We just finished the first half. The second half is when the outcome of the game will be decided. Just watch. The Spurs will soon miss the shot, and the Thunder will turn around."

Stevens laughed:

"Okay, after the game is over, I'll see what you say then."

……

Soon, the second half began. In the first half of the third quarter, the two sides were still going back and forth. The Thunder played singles and the Spurs passed and cut. The confrontation was fierce and each other scored. Yes, consumed by Thunder.

But from 5 minutes and 35 seconds, the situation changed suddenly. The Spurs suddenly felt cold and their offensive efficiency dropped sharply. However, the Thunder relied on defensive counterattacks and the singles of the three minors to set off a wave of offensive climax. The Spurs scored 18:10 and tied the score at 80:81, only 1 point behind, and the Spurs' lead was completely wiped out.

During the break between festivals, Stevens was puzzled and fell into deep thought, while Zhang Yu asked with a smile:
"Brad, do you still believe the Spurs can win?"

Stevens was puzzled:
"Why did the Spurs suddenly stop shooting..."

……

In the fourth quarter, the Thunder made persistent efforts, and the third young master completely took over the game. Harden even scored 8 points in a single quarter, taking over the torch from his eldest brother and second brother, and supporting the Thunder's offense.

The Spurs team only made 18 of 6 shots. Duncan and Parker tried their best to support it, but it didn't help. In the end, the Thunder defeated the Spurs 107:99, eliminated their opponents by a big score of 4:2, and advanced to the Western Conference Finals!
After the game, Stevens shrugged, picked up the ice soda water on the table, took a big sip, looked at Zhang Yu, and said:

"Okay, you won. This game was completely within your expectations. The Spurs lacked hard-solution ability at the critical moment and lost to the Thunder. But I am still a little puzzled. How can you be sure that the Spurs will not attack in the second half?" Stable? GDP is very experienced, and they are all big-hearted players. The Spurs' tactics are also very mature, and this should not happen."

Zhang Yu laughed loudly and said:
"Haha, Brad, you are limited by experience, so you can't see it. In fact, the reason is very simple. The Spurs are all veterans, and they can maintain their efficiency in the first half. Their physical fitness will decline in the second half, and their offensive efficiency will definitely drop."

"Physical fitness..." Stevens' eyes lit up.

Zhang Yu smiled and said:

"You have been in the NCAA, and the players and opponents are all college teams. As long as you don't mess around with the rotation, you won't encounter this kind of problem, and you don't have to consider the impact of physical fitness. But NBA teams are mostly veterans, and physical fitness is very important to the game. Important factors, especially in the playoffs, the intensity of the game has increased, and the impact of physical fitness is greater. We won the Mavericks in the first round and the Lakers in the second round, and our physical advantage is also an important reason."

"The Spurs were beaten by the Thunder in four consecutive games. A very important factor is that Brooks started from Game 3, adopted a strategy of switching defenses, contracted inside, made mistakes, protected rebounds, and then forced a fast break to counterattack, even if he made mistakes. It consumed the physical energy of the veterans of the Spurs. Of course, all of this is based on the strong personal ability of San Shao, otherwise everything is empty talk."

"You see it so clearly, you should have found a way to deal with Thunder?" Stevens said.

Zhang Yu smiled confidently:
"Of course, Thunderclap's move is good against the Spurs, but if you dare to use it against me, it will be your own death!"

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(End of this chapter)