Slam Dunk: My Study Abroad Career in Northern Hunan

Chapter 694: Avoid the edge temporarily? !
The emotions of the fans will affect the state of the players on the field.

The state of martial arts at this time was influenced by the fans. His blood was boiling, and his attacks were more fierce and fierce than usual.

"Dangdang!"

The loud noise of the dunk came from the basketball court, and the fans cheered as they watched Wu Dao fall back to the ground after the dunk.

Wu Dao, who scored the goal, pointed to the stands on both sides with both hands. While giving the fans some response, he also quickly ran towards the Timberwolves backcourt to return to defense.

"Today's situation is a little different from before."

"Looks very excited."

Some of the changes that took place in Wu Dao were naturally noticed by teammates who were familiar with him. Garnett, who had returned to defense early, saw Wu Dao positioning himself on the outside and chatted with a smile.

"Well, I feel a little different today than before."

"In the first game of the series, I want to bring out the team's momentum first."

The basketball came into Drexler's hands. The latter took the ball and was not in a hurry to attack. After a short test, he made a pick-and-roll gesture toward his teammate.

Players have different familiarity with different arenas, and players' performance and performance are often inextricably linked to the arena environment.

Today's game is the Timberwolves' home court, and the next game, the home court will be moved to Houston. For the Timberwolves, the first game is at home, which actually has a very big advantage.

But now, Drexler can no longer compare with Jordan, who holds five championship rings.

The game between the Timberwolves and the Rockets is not just one game.

However, even so, just from the fans' understanding of Drexler, we can get a glimpse of how strong he was in his peak period.

Martial Arts' words were heard by everyone. Garnett clapped his hands and let out a low growl: "Don't worry!"

The playoffs are a little different from the regular season. The difference here is not only reflected in the intensity of the game, but also in the competition system.

In these three games, the venues are different and both sides need to rotate.

It's just that Drexler's ability to combine man and ball is very outstanding. After feeling Garnett's defensive pressure, he quickly turned around with the ball, twisted into the paint area and made a quick throw.

In fact, there is no need for Drexler to give instructions to his teammates. With the tacit understanding between him and Olajuwon, there is no need to use such external means to communicate.

It's just that Drexler is no longer at his peak now, and there is no more gas in his fuel tank.

His purpose is to allow Budo to retain his physical strength and concentrate on exerting his abilities on the offensive end.

In this day and age, whoever wins three games in the first round of the playoffs will advance to the next round.

Defending Drexler is Tom Gugliotta. The Timberwolves originally planned to let Wu Dao, who is excellent in single defense, defend this player, but coach Philip decided to let Tom Fang take charge after careful consideration.

"Kevin, you have to work harder, but don't hold me back."

However, old players are old players after all. Although Marbury's defense is full of pressure, it does not affect Matt Maloney's play.

In fact, Wu Dao is not greedy. He just wants to maintain his home court advantage and successfully win the game in front of him.

Even the experienced Matt Maloney was affected by the momentum of the Timberwolves at this moment, and his body seemed a little stiff.

Without any hesitation, Maloney quickly passed the basketball to Drexler on the wing.

This means that in this series between the Timberwolves and the Rockets, the Timberwolves will have one more home game than the Rockets.

From the perspective of Timberwolves players, although Drexler is already old, his previous reputation has already left a deep mark on the players' hearts. No one dares to underestimate this player who was once able to compete with Jordan. Shooting guard.

"I will win this ball even if I die!"

At this time, for the Rockets, Matt Maloney, who was dribbling the ball into the frontcourt, also felt the strong momentum of the Timberwolves.

And the fans are also local fans. With the support of the fans, the players often perform better.

Drexler was very strong at his peak. Not only did he have a strong ability to break through with the ball, he also had the ability to find teammates for accurate passes under huge defensive pressure.

The pick-and-roll was in place, and Drexler accelerated his breakthrough in disguise. Passed Tom from the left and headed inside quickly.

Olajuwon's pick-and-roll position was in Tom's blind spot, but at this time, Garnett, while chasing Olajuwon, was also loudly reminding Tom that there was someone behind him setting a pick-and-roll.

After all, in this era, if a player can be compared next to Jordan by fans, it is the greatest compliment to this player.

The consequence of losing a home game will be a huge blow to the team's morale.

In the future, he will not only be selected into the NBA's top 75 players, but he will also be able to land in the Hall of Fame.

Long before Drexler made a gesture, Olajuwon in the post had quickly moved up and set a pick-and-roll behind Tom's right side.

He is technically proficient and has excellent physical attributes. During his peak period, fans even compared Drexler and Jordan to discuss who was the best shooting guard.

Marbury, who was guarding him, saw this and felt there was a chance. Before the opponent approached the top of the arc, he stepped forward and put enough defensive pressure.

If nothing else, this will be his last season.

Tom and Garnett quickly completed the defense switch. Garnett caught up with Drexler immediately, and then used his body to try to suppress the opponent's sudden speed.

To build momentum and swallow the rocket in one breath, this is what Martial Arts thinks about. Wu Dao's goal gave the Timberwolves a good start, and the players were full of momentum.

This is unacceptable for the Timberwolves, who are aiming for the championship.

Compared to playing games elsewhere, playing at the Timberwolves' home court will naturally allow Timberwolves players to adapt to the venue environment better than other players.

On the court, whether it is offense or defense, players need to actively communicate. Although the Timberwolves players did not cooperate for a long time, they did a good job.

Although Garnett reacted very quickly and jumped to block, he was still a step too slow in the end.

The blue ball flew past Garnett's fingertips, and then gently fell into the net with a crisp sound.

The outstanding personal ability made Wu Dao couldn't help but look at Drexler a few more times.

Glider. Now this glider seems to have become a floor flow.

Wu Dao couldn't help but thought to himself, without thinking much, he quickly ran towards the front court. The offense and defense transitioned quickly on the court, and it was back to the Timberwolves' offensive rotation.

This time, after Marbury quickly dribbled the ball into the frontcourt, he did not immediately look for Wu Dao to score on the wing. Instead, he quickly called a pick-and-roll inside and, with the help of Garnett, quickly broke through and killed. Basket.

Facing Olajuwon's defense, Marbury did not flinch and chose to go up.

His idea is also very simple. Facing a center of Olajuwon's level, even if he cannot score, he has to fight for the opponent's foul and absolutely cannot retreat.

If Olajuwon's defense can be successfully torn apart, then the Timberwolves will have an easy time in this game.

They don't need to put all the offensive pressure of the team on Wu Dao.

If the team can blossom more, who would want to play outstanding basketball?

Marbury also hopes that he can perform well.

It's just that Marbury still thinks highly of himself after all. His height is not very tall among the defenders. Olajuwon not only has height and wingspan, but also has excellent physical talent and rich game experience.

Regarding Marbury's breakthrough, Olajuwon did not try to block the opponent's shot. Instead, he used interference as his main defensive purpose. Relying on his height, wingspan and bounce, Olajuwon forced Marbury to increase his shooting height to affect the opponent's shooting.

High arc projection is actually difficult to grasp. Marbury's shot crashed out of the frame, and as the basketball fell, Olajuwon quickly returned to his defensive position, blocked Garnett who was trying to grab the rebound, and then jumped up. He held the ball in his hands.

The ball was easy to turn, Olajuwon quickly released the ball, and the Rockets tried to counterattack quickly.

It's just a pity that these veterans with old arms and legs can't possibly outrun the young players of the Timberwolves.

When Olajuwon released the ball, Wu Dao was already approaching the midline, and Tom was already on the way back to defense.

Maloney, who had caught the ball, was just about to speed up when he saw Wu Dao actively slowing down and approaching him consciously. He also decisively gave up the idea of ​​a quick counterattack, slowed down his advance, and directed his teammates to move quickly into the front. field.

The requirements for the first position in this era are somewhat different from those in the small ball era. Small players often do not rely on their so-called scoring ability and defensive ability to establish themselves on the court.

The most important thing is actually the ability to conduct and coordinate teammates. In fact, it doesn't matter at all whether you have certain hard-solving ability.

If a player like Marbury was on another team, he might try to move him to the second position.

It's just that in today's Timberwolves, because of the presence of players like Martial Arts and Garnett, the role of the team's second position is actually relatively small.

On the contrary, the Timberwolves are actually more suitable to have an organizational number one like Kidd or Paul.

Marbury was very motivated to play. After the failed breakthrough, he immediately tried to grab the rebound. If he didn't get the rebound, he quickly pursued Maloney to defend.

After seeing Marbury return to his position, Wu Dao also found his opponent, and at the same time focused more attention on Olajuwon.

The Rockets' offense is actually very methodical. Maloney, who is supporting each other, will immediately move after the ball is released, or pick and roll, or drop into the corner to steal a three-pointer.

Drexler, the ball-handling scorer, also has a lot of offensive changes. Sometimes he will play in isolation, take mid-range shots, sometimes score suddenly, and sometimes he will force the basket to challenge the Timberwolves' inside gates.

Generally speaking, the Rockets' offensive rotation is actually centered around the perimeter, allowing Drexler to keep naming Tom or Marbury.

What's more, the Rockets are very smart. When they are attacking, they will try their best to avoid rotating the defense to the ball handler.

The targets they are targeting are Marbury, who has a dislocation advantage, or Tom, who moves relatively slowly.

Although the offense revolves around the outside, Olajuwon is not without a voice. Although he has been injured this season, his condition has also declined sharply after recovering from the injury.

But when he only needs to concentrate on doing one thing well, he can do it perfectly.

For example, now, what Olajuwon is entrusted by the team to do is defense and rebounding.

The vast majority of the team's offense rests on Drexler on the outside.

The Rockets' style of play today seems to be a little different from before.

During the early two-championship period, the Rockets built their offense around Olajuwon's inside line. Drexler was still able to share the ball when he was at his peak, but his form declined after a serious injury. Most of the time, he was the only one. The role of auxiliary scorer appears on the court.

Since Barkley came to the Rockets, the Rockets' style of play has relied on Olajuwon and Barkley.

But in today's game against the Timberwolves, the Rockets seemed to have given up on Olajuwon, an all-around center, and reduced him to an auxiliary offensive role, instead placing most of the offensive responsibilities on Drexler. .

This offensive change somewhat surprised the Timberwolves. In the previous tactical exercises, they really had not thought about how to deal with such rockets.

The Rockets' offense is pretty smooth. Although Drexler didn't feel very good today, but with the hard work of Olajuwon and Kevin Willis, their offensive efficiency can barely be called high.

As for the Timberwolves, the combination of Garnett and Ben Wallace seemed to be suppressed by the opponent in the competition for rebounds.

It is true that both Garnett and Ben Wallace are excellent defensive experts, and even Wallace, who has not yet reached his peak period, is a ruthless character who dares to fight hard.

But after all, Wallace has the most fatal flaw as an inside player, and that is his height.

When it comes to rebounding, height is more important than attitude.

As for the Timberwolves, Marbury did not give up his ideas just because of one failure. He is also an all-around player. His offensive methods include not only attacking the basket, but also his emergency stop jump shot in sports battles. He is also an important scoring method for him.

Marbury, who hopes to be able to fully blossom, has reduced the number of passes to Wu Dao, increased the number of screen calls, increased his own personal offense, and also increased the proportion of Garnett's shots.

Although the offense did not revolve around martial arts, the Timberwolves' offensive efficiency was quite good, and they even suppressed the Rockets' offensive in the first quarter by attacking.

24: 28.

With a 4-point lead, the Timberwolves had a slight advantage at the end of the first quarter.

"Very good, they played very well."

"The sharp momentum the Timberwolves had at the start of the game has weakened a lot."

"Next, let's give these young people a good dose of strength."

"Let them experience the intensity of the playoffs!"

Although the team was lagging behind, when the players returned to the rest area, Rockets coach Lao Tang smiled and patted the players' arms and encouraged them with a smile.

Barkley, who had been sitting for a whole session, was also smiling and got up to move around.

The development of the game seems to be in the hands of the Rockets.