warrior godfather

Chapter 770 For
December 4, Chase Center.

After the Blazers eliminated the Pelicans in the tie-breaker, they only rested for two days, and then came to the Bay Area to start the second round with the Warriors.

After going through seven games, followed by another round of the series, the Blazers players had visible fatigue on their faces, especially Green.

Green usually likes to speak the most. Even though he just came to the Trail Blazers for a season, he still regards himself as the leader of the locker room. He will definitely give a speech before the game to encourage his teammates.

The identity of the core player of the five-time Warriors, as well as many personal honors such as the best defensive player, the best third team, the best first defense, and the All-Star, also make Green highly respected by the Trail Blazers. Even if he is new, no one dares to refute his speech.

After all, this group of Trail Blazers players have never even made it to the Western Conference Finals. Lillard is the only one who has been selected to the best team and All-Star, and the finals are commonplace for Green, and the team honors and personal honors are soft. , with profound qualifications, in this alliance where the strong are respected, he naturally has the right to speak in the locker room.

However, Green has a high EQ, and knows that no matter how many honors he has, he is just an outsider, and the five championships were not won for the Trail Blazers. He did not feel superior to others because of this, but instead showed respect for Lillard everywhere.

Whenever there is an interview, Green will definitely praise Lillard and lick Lillard very comfortably, just like he licked Curry when he was in the Warriors.

It is also because of this that Lillard was willing to give up part of the ball at the beginning of the season, let Green deal the cards, and turned to run without the ball, but the effect was not satisfactory, so he switched back to holding the ball again. Don't give up your familiar card dealing tactics, and focus more on the defensive end.

But this also fully demonstrates Green's status in the Trail Blazers. He fell out of the starting lineup in the Warriors and came to the Trail Blazers, but re-enjoyed the feeling of being a core player. Although the team's strength and attention have dropped a lot, but He is very satisfied here.

Green also greatly improved the Blazers' defense, and the two sides complemented each other.

Before the start of every game, Green is the most passionate person in the Trail Blazers. He likes to show his leadership at this time.

But this time against the Warriors, Green became a lot more silent before the game, which surprised his teammates.

When he delivered a speech to boost the morale of the team as usual, he was no longer full of enthusiasm, but said solemnly:

"Guys, the Warriors are not like other teams. We have to give it our all. I know the Warriors better than anyone. Ronan can see through the weaknesses of any team. Steph can score when he wants to. Giannis squeezes me. When it comes to the bench ... the Pelicans are not in the same class as the Warriors, and it's going to be a tough series."

"However, we are not without opportunities. Without Klay and Kawhi, the Warriors are no longer the invincible Warriors, and Damian and CJ like to play the crouching center like Lopez the most, and want to win the Warriors It’s hard, but the Warriors have their own weaknesses, we finally got here, and we must never give up!”

As soon as Green finished speaking, Lillard raised his arm, waved the towel in his hand vigorously, and said loudly:

"Well said! Brothers, fight hard and win the tiebreaker. What else is there to be afraid of? Get rid of the warriors!"

"Kill the warrior!"

"Fack! Kill them!"

Driven by Lillard, the Blazers are excited and their morale is high.

Stotts watched Green and Lillard boost their morale, and he didn't feel dissatisfied with being robbed of the limelight.

He is a typical Confucian coach, with a gentle temper and a delicate mind, which is deeply trusted by the players, but he lacks passion and lacks the ruthlessness of famous coaches like Zhang Yu and Popovich.

Green and Lillard made up for Stotts' shortcomings. Lillard set an example on the court through practical actions, boosted the morale of the team with strong key shots and lore, and Green encouraged his teammates through passionate speeches. fighting spirit.

Stotts is also happy to see another locker room leader on the team, who can say things that he is not convenient to say.

After everyone gradually calmed down, Stotts raised his wrist and looked at his watch, before finally emphasizing the tactics:
"Let's go, the game is about to start, remember, you must calm down and handle the ball patiently, the Warriors are against Jokic, then we are against Lopez, the Warriors have Curry, we have Damian and CJ, victory is ours!"

Compared with Green, Stotts' voice seemed much gentler, even though the volume was deliberately raised, it was still a little gentler.

But everyone's fighting spirit had been aroused just now, maintaining high emotions, they filed out of the locker room and rushed to their battlefield.

……

At the same time, in the luxurious locker room of the home team, Zhang Yu is also making the final pre-match arrangement:

"The Blazers are our old opponents. We must guard against Lillard and McCollum's ball-holding shots. As long as they play pick-and-rolls, they must switch defenses. I don't want to see Lillard score 40 points in a game. Still Yes, you must treat Drummond well. He is your old teammate. Let him feel your love for him. Didn’t some people say that I sent him to the Trail Blazers? Let's see if I'm gone or not!"

"Hahaha……"

Everyone laughed, and the atmosphere was relaxed and happy, which was completely different from the Blazers' imminent enemy.

Zhang Yu is not worried about players underestimating the enemy. The Warriors have experienced everything and seen too many big scenes. It is only the second round of the playoffs. Although it cannot be underestimated, it does not need to be taken too seriously
This is the confidence of a strong team, and the Blazers are also one of the exclusive cash machines for the Warriors. They have experience in fighting, and with the addition of Green, they are even more handy in fighting.

Amidst the laughter of everyone, Zhang Yu raised his wrist to glance at the Apple Watch, clapped his hands, and said with a smile:

"Okay, the game is about to start, let's go, in front of our fans, give Drummond a big gift!"

"Yes, boss!"

Everyone responded loudly, walked out of the locker room, and walked towards their home court.

……

The two teams walked out of the locker room one after another, shot baskets on the court for a while, conducted the final pre-match training, and then there was a grand entrance ceremony, and players from both sides came to the court.

The Warriors' starters are Curry, Jaylen Brown, Wiggins, Antetokounmpo, Lopez, and the Blazers' starters are Lillard, McCollum, Evan Turner, Green, Nurkic.

Since this is the playoffs and the hostile atmosphere is strong, the Warriors did not prepare a welcome video for Green, but the Bay Area fans still paid tribute to the five-time champion with applause and cheers, and Green also greeted the fans in the surrounding audience. Responding with a wave of hands, with a smile on his face, the atmosphere seemed harmonious.

But when the referee blew the whistle and Nurkic made a successful jump, the smile on Green's face disappeared immediately, his expression chilling, and the fans booed the Blazers.

All the tender veils were torn off, and the smell of gunpowder permeated the entire Chase Center. The life-and-death playoffs have begun!

Nurkic dialed the ball to the backcourt, Green picked it up, passed it to Lillard, and ran to the frontcourt by himself.

When he was in the Warriors, Green could advance to the frontcourt by himself, Curry ran without the ball, and ran a pass-and-cut tactic.

But in the Trail Blazers, Lillard is not good without the ball, Green can only be a screener, and all the ball is in Lillard's hands.

Green came to the top of the arc, ready to pick and roll Lillard, and at the same time, he was ready to roll down.

He has no threat on the outside and must cut into the penalty area to be able to score. No matter how fast Antetokounmpo moves, he can't compare with his striker who is less than 2 meters.

It would be even better if Antetokounmpo didn't come out on defense, and Lillard could directly use the cover to pull out.

Although Green boasted that Lillard has licking elements in front of the media, he can be sure that Lillard and Curry are not far behind in pick-and-roll shots. If the hand feels better, he can even keep pace with Curry. .

However, Green had made all the preparations, and even stood up, but turned around and found that Antetokounmpo was standing under the basket, and Wiggins followed.

The Warriors defended against him today turned out to be Wiggins in position [-], not Antetokounmpo in position [-]!
Green was stunned, Stotts on the sidelines was also stunned, and Lillard, who played the pick-and-roll with Green, was also stunned.

After Lillard and Green picked and rolled, Wiggins directly switched defenses with Jaylen Brown, came up to match Lillard, and Jaylen Brown went with Green.

Lillard is used to the Pelicans' flanking in the first five games and the Pelicans' retreat in the next two games, but this is the first time he encountered a defense change, and he was a little at a loss.

Stotts on the sidelines was also a little dazed. This was not in his plan at all. He thought that the Warriors would defend and retreat. After all, this was the most commonly used tactic by the Warriors after Lopez joined. He did not expect Zhang Yu to change his matchup. Let Wiggins face Green and switch defenses directly when encountering a pick-and-roll.

Green was the first to react and ran to the side, leaving room for Lillard, shouting:

"Damian, gogogo!"

After Lillard heard it, he finally reacted, leaned down to dribble, and began to single out Wiggins.

Wiggins put Lillard half a step away, and Lillard wanted to pull out directly, but after a calculation in his mind, he felt that the difficulty was too great, so he gave up the plan.

an idea.

He is different from Curry. He is a double-action shot. His shooting speed is slower and he needs more shooting space. Wiggins is tall and long with long arms and quick response. He can interfere with his shots at this distance for the first time. .

Subsequently, Lillard first dribbled the ball under his crotch, then suddenly started, and broke through on the left. Wiggins immediately turned sideways and followed Lillard closely.

Wiggins' sense of the ball is not good, but his speed is very fast without the ball. He can keep up with most guards in the league. There are only a few super guards who can directly eat Wiggins raw with speed.

Lillard had no room to shoot, so he could only lean back to the limit, and barely made a fadeaway jumper. Under the serious interference of Wiggins, the rebound fell into the hands of Lopez, who had been shrinking under the basket.

"nice shot!"

"Nice job, Andrew!"

The fans cheered, and Wiggins had a big smile on his face.

Compared to other things, he dare not say anything, but if compared to physical talent, he is not afraid of anyone!
After Lopez got the rebound, he immediately handed the ball to Curry, looking for an opportunity to counterattack, but because the Blazers were very focused and retreated quickly, the Warriors did not have an opportunity to take advantage of it.

Curry dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, and Green held Antetokounmpo with one hand, staring at Curry, eager to try, ready to defend Curry and Antetokounmpo's pick-and-roll at any time.

This is what Stotts emphasized before the game. The Kuzi pick-and-roll is the Warriors' core offensive tactic, and Green's defense is the key to defeating the Kuzi pick-and-roll.

However, Curry did not play a pick-and-roll with Antetokounmpo, but a pick-and-roll with Lopez. Antetokounmpo stood under the basket, threatening the basket at all times, and containing Green.

Nurkic had to defend, thick eyebrows dared to defend and retreat in the face of Lillard, but no one dared to let Curry shoot a three-pointer, not even a slight gap.

Nurkic delayed Curry a lot, but Lillard squeezed the screen slower, giving Curry room to handle the ball calmly.

This is one of Lillard's shortcomings. His defense is very average and his enthusiasm is not good.

But Curry didn't need time to adjust. He took advantage of Lillard's time to squeeze the screen and was a beat slower, passed between Lillard and Nurkic, completed one pass and two passes, and came to the inside.

Green subconsciously wanted to come up to help defend, but suddenly remembered that Antetokounmpo was still standing behind him, so he could only take back his steps.

When Curry broke into the penalty area, Green took a big step forward, trying to prevent Curry's layup, but the next moment he took back his steps, raised his hands, and blocked Antetokounmpo.

This is Green's usual tactic of one defense and two defenses. He uses fake moves to induce the opponent to pass the ball, and then stops immediately to block the opponent's defender's alley.

When Green was in the Warriors before, Harden, James, and Rose were all deceived by his trick.

But Curry and Green have been teammates for 7 years, and they are familiar with his characteristics and habits.

At this time, Green just took back his steps, and it looked like he voluntarily gave up the channel and watched Curry layup.

"Oh, Green actually gave up his position. Is he covering for Curry? Man, he is not your teammate now!" Barkley taunted in the commentary.

The game was broadcast live across the United States by TNT. Barkley, O'Neal, and Kenny Smith came to the scene to explain.

On the court, Green clapped his hands in frustration, Curry came up and patted his chest, and said with a smile:
"Dude, are you still trying to lie to me?"

Green slapped Curry's hand off depressed:

"Don't come here, we are opponents now!"

Curry smiled, turned around and ran back to the backcourt.

The Blazers attacked, Lillard chose to pick and roll with Nurkic this time, targeting Lopez.

But Lopez didn't follow. Instead, Jaylen Brown completely emptied Green and came over to flank Lillard, preventing him from shooting a three-pointer.

Lillard gave the ball to Nurkic, Nurkic took the ball and slid down, Lopez stopped in front of him, he had no choice but to pass it to Green outside the three-point line.

After Green received the ball, he hesitated for a moment, not daring to shoot a three-pointer. Jaylen Brown seized the opportunity and returned to him. The Blazers' offense failed.

(End of this chapter)