The strongest unicorn in basketball

Chapter 104
After Duncan went off the field, the game restarted!
The center replaced by the Spurs is Antonio McDyess, an insider who is 2 years older than Duncan.

To be honest, when he was young, McDyess was indeed a good inside player. He not only had a good inside scoring ability, but also had a beautiful mid-range shot. His defense, rebounding, and card dealing skills were all above the passing line. He was even selected All-Star.

But that was when he was young after all.

Today's McDyess has already entered the end of his career. Not everyone can have the ability to have a long standby like the No. 21 rookie.

On the offensive end, McDyess received a pass from Ginobili after the pick-and-roll. He first faked a shot and tricked Li Pu's defense, then turned around and bypassed Li Pu for a hook layup.

It has to be said that McDyess's set of movements is quite silky, killing Li Pu instantly. However, he is too old and his movements are too slow.

Any gorgeous technical action without the blessing of speed and strength is a castle in the air.

For example, Olajuwon, his dreamy footsteps look gorgeous, but in fact he uses the simplest low-post footsteps. There are many people in the league who can make these basic moves, but why don't they have such power?

It is because these people do not have Olajuwon's talent, such a height has such a fast speed, ordinary players simply cannot do it.

As a result, it is conceivable that McDyess's hook layup was rejected by Li Pu without a surprise.

turn around?I like turning around so much!
You go and ask, how did Brother Gua get hated?
The offensive end was blocked by Li Pu. On the defensive end, although McDyess has a higher presence than the offensive end, it is a pity that it is a side effect!

Just a pick and roll allowed McDyess to face Westbrook's breakthrough, and then Westbrook accelerated a second time and easily passed McDyess.

McDyess's footsteps were too slow, and he couldn't keep up with Westbrook at all. After being caught by Westbrook, Blair, who made up defense, had to face Westbrook's impact directly. As a result, he got a solid buckle !
"Dunk!" With a beautiful buckle, Westbrook even took the overlord step excitedly after landing.

It's rare to have such a happy fight tonight!
Then Manu Ginobili missed a shot, and the Thunder came up with another fast break. This time, after Westbrook broke into the paint, he chose a high-throw pass. Li Pu made a move and appeared near the basket. A strong dunk, San Antonio almost became the city of lobs tonight!

No way, after losing Duncan, the Spurs' defense simply fell off a cliff.

This is also the first time Li Pu has seen that one person can have such a big impact on a team's defense?
The key lies in the usual data such as rebounds and blocks. Duncan is not obvious, and his presence on the offensive end is not as good as that of Parker and Ginobili. However, on the defensive end, he can always appear when he is most needed. In any position, the opponent can always make shots in the most uncomfortable position with the defense he is least good at.

These are not reflected in the data.

It can be said that Duncan is the soul of this Spurs. Without Duncan, this Spurs is nothing!

People often overestimate Popovich's role for the Spurs and underestimate Duncan's role.

You know, the players who play on the court are the players, not the coaches!
In short, due to Duncan's unexpected departure, the Thunder not only played more freely on the offensive end, but even found the feeling in the first quarter, and at the same time found a way on the defensive end.

Due to Duncan's absence, the Thunder can completely deploy their defense on the outside, and Lip and Ibaka can spare a lot of energy for outside defense, which makes the Spurs' offense even more difficult.

In this way, the Spurs' lead was quickly eroded, and more than 6 minutes before the end of the game, Durant's breakthrough dunk successfully completed the lead.

Afterwards, the Thunder made persistent efforts, becoming more and more excited and in better condition.

In the end, the Thunder scored 35 points in a single quarter in the fourth quarter, and the team also defeated the Spurs 115:109, giving the Spurs a four-game losing streak.

In this game, the Thunder scored 20 points, especially Li Pu, who performed extremely well. He performed particularly well against Duncan. You must know that in this game, Duncan only scored 13 points and his shooting percentage was even higher. Is only 12 for 5 shots.

However, after the game, Li Pu couldn't be happier.

After the game, he took the initiative to come to the Spurs' bench.

At this time, Duncan had already left the field early and was examined by the team doctor, so Li Pu found Popovich.

"You... hello, Coach Popovich!"

"What's the matter, child?"

Popovich treated Li Pu kindly, and he didn't seem to be angry with Li Pu because of Duncan.

"Can you give me Tim's phone number? I didn't see him and wanted to apologize to him on the phone!"

"Don't be stupid, it's not your fault! Injuries are part of the game. Listen to me, I can give you the number, but you must not apologize!"

"why?"

"Because that fellow Tim will laugh at you to death!"

"what?"

"Believe me, I'm not drinking red wine right now, I'm very clear-headed, and I'm not joking with you!"

Popovich's smile made Li Pu seem to be serious.

This old man really didn't drink red wine?

"Huh? Care about me? My girlfriend is with me, and I'm eating steak. Will you need your care? You should take good care of your game! See you in the playoffs!"

On the phone, Duncan's arrogant voice came, making Li Pu's teeth itchy with anger.

However, Li Pu could also understand Duncan's intentions. He was telling himself that he was doing well, and that he was able to catch up with the playoffs, which meant that the injury was not serious, so he could rest assured.

"Okay, see you in the playoffs!"

After hanging up the phone, Duncan, who looked relaxed at first, suddenly changed his face and said, "It hurts... David, take it easy!"

"Take it easy, the hamstring is still very complicated. If something goes wrong, your career will end early!"

The hairless David in front of him is the team doctor of the Spurs. He has cooperated with the Spurs for more than ten years. He is not the Spurs veterinarian later.

The veterinarian of the Spurs is the Methodist medical system that formally cooperated with the Spurs in 2017. Among them, Dr. Schmidt, an "old expert" with decades of medical experience, specializes in thyroid diseases and does not treat sports injuries. proficient.

This led to frequent misdiagnosis and even led to Nader's departure from the team.

"Aren't you here?" Duncan laughed.

"Stop joking, lie down quickly, we are going to have some excitement!"

"Huh? Hey, David, take it easy! Ah!!"

(End of this chapter)