NBA: I am a master dealer

After the rankings are out, it’s time to fight against each other.

The four groups in the first round of the Eastern Conference are: Nets vs. Heat, Raptors vs. Cavaliers, Knicks vs. Digital Man, Pacers vs. Celtics.

The four groups in the first round of the Western Conference are: Rockets vs. Timberwolves, Warriors vs. Pelicans, Spurs vs. Jazz, and Thunder vs. Trail Blazers.

The media also made various predictions at the first opportunity, and the predictions of major commentators and celebrities were quickly released.

Among them, the group between Nets and Heat, almost all people are optimistic about the Nets' success. After all, as they are able to reach the top of the league, their strength should not be underestimated.

Coupled with Xue Liancheng's ability to win at critical moments, this is enough to ensure that the Nets can pass smoothly. In the best-of-seven playoff series, Xue Liancheng is still trustworthy.

What's more, the Nets' overall strength is not worse than that of the Heat. Both sides have relatively deep lineups and more capable players. The place where the Heat is weaker than the Nets is the ability of their stars.

Wade is old, Porzingis is young, Dragic and Whiteside are not yet All-Star level, and none of them can compete with Xue Liancheng.

but.

The Heat are not someone who can be bullied.

Their overall strength is not weak. Spoelstra's on-the-spot reaction ability, dispatching ability, and coaching ability should be better than Atkinson. This three-time championship coach still has something.

So the general prediction is that the Nets will advance to the second round with a score of 4:2.

The biggest highlight of this series is Xue Liancheng facing his old club. What kind of sparks will Xue Liancheng and his former big brother Wade create?

Raptors vs. Cavaliers.

This group is a battle between two stars, but in terms of overall strength, the Raptors are much stronger than the Cavaliers. Lowry and DeRozan are known as the trash brothers in the playoffs, but it does not mean that they have no offensive power.

What's more, they have Valanciunas, Ibaka, Jeremy Lin, and other strong helpers. On the other hand, Irving and Love on the Cavaliers side do not have such strong players to share the pressure.

Moreover, in terms of lineup depth, the Cavaliers are not as deep as the Raptors, which can be reflected in their record.

In view of this, everyone's prediction is that the Raptors will defeat the Cavaliers 4:2 and advance to the second round.

Knicks vs. Digital Man.

James has welcomed a more suitable helper. Randle's physical fitness and high-post coordination ability can help the Knicks more. Their overall strength has definitely been strengthened through the mid-season trade.

Coupled with James having his peak season, the Knicks are clearly the team with a better chance.

Another point is that the Digital Man team made it to the playoffs again after many years, and their playoff experience is definitely insufficient, especially for the two core players, who are a little immature.

People's prediction was that the Knicks would beat the numbers guy 4:2.

The last group is the Pacers vs. Celtics.

With Isaiah Thomas' injury, the Celtics' fighting power has declined to a certain extent, and their offensive system has become disordered. They now rely more on defense to fight, but their front line is strong, which may be another advantage for them.

The Pacers have the home-court advantage. In terms of star strength, Oladipo is undoubtedly a level above the Celtics, and their overall strength is not weak, and they are definitely capable of standing their ground in the playoffs.

There is one thing, their defense may become their fatal weakness in the playoffs.

So the odds are evenly split between the two teams, and the media predicts that the Pacers will beat the Celtics 4:3 to advance to the second round.

Western aspect.

Rockets vs. Timberwolves.

The Light Bulb combination is more reliable than the combination of Butler, Towns, Wiggins and Teague. As the boss of the Western Conference, their overall strength is unquestionable. In addition, they are battle-hardened and have absolute playoff experience. It is undoubtedly harder than climbing to the sky for the Timberwolves to complete the black eight.

The mainstream prediction is that the Rockets will eliminate the Timberwolves 4:1 and advance to the next round.

Warriors vs. Pelicans.

Can the Twin Towers shake up the Warriors?
The answer is obvious, slim chance.

This can be seen from their respective performances in the regular season.

Spurs vs. Jazz.

The young Jazz faced the experienced Spurs, and there was not much suspense in this match. After all, no matter from which angle you look at it, the Jazz did not have the strength to eliminate the Spurs.

The mainstream prediction is that the Spurs will advance smoothly with a score of 4:1.

Thunder vs Trail Blazers.

This may be the series with the smallest strength gap in the Western Conference.

But Westbrook + Gasol Jr. are definitely not vegetarians. Their fighting power is still very strong and they have certain advantages against the Trail Blazers.

The mainstream prediction is that the Thunder will advance to the next round with a 4:2 victory over the Trail Blazers.

This is the current outlook of the media and commentators for the playoffs. There is a basis for reference, but there are unexpected dark horses every year.

and so.

None of this is conclusive yet, and the truth will be revealed in the playoffs.

After the season ended, various data came out.

First, the rebounding list.

Drummond won the rebounding title with an average of 16 rebounds per game, becoming a new generation of rebounding maniac, but unfortunately he still failed to lead the Pistons into the playoffs.

Jordan Jr. came in second place, but his average of 15.2 rebounds per game was a career high. Unfortunately, he could not compete with Drummond for the rebounding title.

Towns had 12.3 rebounds, also showing good rebounding ability. Davis averaged 11.1 rebounds per game, falling out of the top three.

The assists list is a standout.

Xue Liancheng averaged 15 assists per game, which was unmatched in the entire league. No one could compete with him. He became the first person in history to average 15 assists per game, breaking the highest record of assists per game in NBA history and becoming the true assist king.

The second person with the most assists per game in history is Stockton, who won the assists title with an average of 89 assists per game in the 90-14.5 season. No one has broken this record in the nearly thirty years since then.

Until this season, Xue Liancheng became the new generation of assist king with an average of 15 assists per game.

Following him is Westbrook, who ranks second with 10.2 assists, but the gap is still very large, with a difference of 5 assists per game, which is a very obvious gap.

After that, no one scored in double digits and was not even close to being able to compare with these two.

The steals leader is Oladipo, averaging 2.5 steals per game. He is very aggressive and has a good ability to predict defense.

After that, Xue Liancheng, Bledsoe and Butler all averaged 2 steals per game, but there was still a clear gap between them and Oladipo.

The block leader is Davis, who averages 2.6 per game.

Whiteside could not make the list because he did not play enough games. The next two players on the list were Capela, Turner, Embiid, and Durant.

It is still surprising that Durant averages 1.6 blocks per game, but considering his height and long arms, as long as he is willing to defend, he can still be a deterrent under the basket.

The Warriors currently need Durant's defense in this area.

The turnover princes are Westbrook with 4.8, Harden with 4.4, and James with 4.2. They are the only three players in the league who average more than 4 turnovers per game.

Xue Liancheng actually made quite a few mistakes, averaging 2.8 per game, but he was not even ranked on the list.

The three-point king is naturally Xue Liancheng, and originally it was Curry, but Curry did not have enough games, so Harden took second place, and Round Face took third place.

It can be seen that the Rockets' three-point shooting is also very fierce and should not be underestimated.

And the heavyweight scoring champion.

Xue Liancheng topped the list, averaging 35.2 points per game, becoming the third superstar in modern basketball after Jordan and Kobe to average 35+ points per game.

The second is Harden, averaging 30.4 points per game, truly showing the potential of a top scorer.

Third is Westbrook, averaging 29.2 points per game, which is still very strong.

Fourth is James, averaging 28.8 points per game, as stable as ever.

Fifth is Davis, who averages 28.1 points per game and is currently the strongest inside player in the league.

Sixth is Oladipo, averaging 27.2 points per game. After two seasons with the Knicks, he has grown into one of the league's top scorers, much stronger than the Oladipo in history.

The seventh is Antetokounmpo, averaging 27 points per game. He has also grown into a super star in the league, but he is unable to lead the team into the playoffs, which is a pity. The eighth is Lillard, averaging 26.9 points per game, and he has also advanced to become a top scorer in the league, and finally led the Trail Blazers into the playoffs. His future is also bright.

Ninth place is Irving, averaging 26.8 points per game. His control ceiling is well-deserved and he is currently one of the top guards in the league.

Tenth is Durant, averaging 26.4 points per game. He was once the four-time scoring champion, but now he can only rank tenth. You can imagine how crazy the performance of the major stars this season is.

And they are all rising stars.

Xue Liancheng is only 23 years old this year, Davis is 25, Oladipo is 26, Antetokounmpo is 24, and Irving is 26. Fully half of the stars have not yet reached their peak age, but they are already terribly strong.

There are only three players over 30 years old, namely Westbrook, James and Durant, while the remaining Harden is 29 years old and Lillard is 28 years old. They have already reached their peak.

In fact, the league's structure can be seen from the scoring list. Basically, in the next five years, this group of young people will become the mainstream of the NBA.

Xue Liancheng won the scoring title and assist title. In just four seasons, he has already won two scoring titles, three assist titles, and uh... two three-point titles. There is no doubt that he is now extremely strong.

These data and honors are enough to prove his dominance.

After two days of rest, the playoffs officially began.

The Nets were scheduled to play on the first game day.

The Nets' starting lineup remains unchanged: Xue Liancheng, Anunoby, Covington, Vonleh, and Sabonis Jr.

Their overall height is still an advantage, and their speed can keep up. With Xue Liancheng's own offensive firepower, plus the defensive capabilities of the forward group, their combat effectiveness is unquestionable.

For the Heat: Dragic, Wade, Richardson, Porzingis, Whiteside.

Their lineup structure is not weak, but overall, it is not particularly strong. Their strongest point is Porzingis, but in the playoffs on the superstar stage, he may not be good enough.

Wade is old, Dragic and Whiteside are still a long way from the top, and although Richardson is very good, he is ultimately just a role player.

Generally speaking, they don't have any particularly outstanding points, they seem to be a little lacking in team basketball, they are not top-notch on both offense and defense, they are not good at fast breaks, and they are not particularly strong in traditional positional warfare, so... they are very mediocre as a whole, and they take the path of balance.

pity.

The Nets played against this kind of mediocre team, and they played very well.

The game begins.

The Nets' fast break had a powerful impact on the Heat.

In Wade's past peak period, no, two years ago, Wade could still bring considerable defensive pressure to Xue Liancheng with his strong physical fitness and extraordinary explosive power.

But now, Wade's old arms and legs, coupled with frequent knee injuries, have made him simply unable to put pressure on Xue Liancheng.

Relying on Dragic and Richardson is even more impossible.

Another point is that the clumsy Whiteside was the target of Xue Liancheng's teasing.

As we all know, you can't stop Xue Liancheng.

But you can't not put any pressure on him. If you can't even do that, it's almost wishful thinking for you to win.

Facts have proved this.

In the end, the Nets beat the Heat by 130 points, 103:27, leaving the Heat no room for counterattack.

薛连城24中14，三分14中7，罚球13中13，爆砍48分13助攻7篮板的狂暴数据，把联盟第一人的水平完美地展现出来。

It was his outstanding performance that led to the team's morale boost, which led to this unparalleled victory.

Anunoby was obviously a little nervous in his first playoff game, with 5 turnovers, but he did a good job on the finishing end, shooting 15 of 8 overall, 4 of 1 three-pointers, and scoring 19 points and 7 rebounds.

Sabonis Jr. was obviously much more mature, making 13 of 6 shots and getting comprehensive statistics of 15 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists. His supporting role in the high post was very obvious, making the team's offense more smooth.

It was the outstanding performance of these three players that made the Heat unable to recover, lost confidence early, and was eventually slaughtered.

Heat here.

Dragic made 13 of 4 shots, 4 of 3 three-pointers, and 5 of 4 free throws, scoring 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists. He couldn't break through at all, and when he did, he was faced with an overwhelming blockade by the forwards. He was very agile on the court, but he was not a qualified organizer, nor was he an explosive scorer with his own killer moves.

This is where Dragic gets embarrassed.

In games against high-intensity defenses, he tends to lose himself.

Wade made 7 of 4 shots and 4 of 3 free throws, scoring 11 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. His overall performance was still very strong, but he is indeed old and can no longer sustain his continuous output throughout the game.

Moreover, his three-point shooting is getting worse and worse, and he hardly shoots it now, so Wade has actually turned into a raider with very limited destructive power on the court.

Richardson made 7 of 1 shots and scored 4 points. His performance was hard to describe.

Whiteside made 4 of 1 shots and only scored 2 points. He was fooled and dared not to go on. As soon as he went on, he was targeted by Xue Liancheng. You had no chance to break through.

So Whiteside was eventually sacrificed and had to sit on the bench.

The only player in the starting lineup who performed well was their star player Porzingis. He made 15 of 7 shots, 5 of 3 three-pointers, and 6 of 5 free throws, scoring 22 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists. His performance was still very outstanding.

But when he was attacking independently, he was still obviously limited. He didn't dare to confront the three forwards directly. He could only follow up dunks, shoot three-pointers, and bully Sabonis Jr. This was the main reason why he didn't take many shots.

And on the bench, there was another fierce player who was killing everyone.

Olynyk made 13 of 9 shots, 5 of 4 three-pointers, and 7 of 4 free throws, scoring 26 points and 7 rebounds. He replaced Whiteside and performed very well.

But this is obviously far from enough.

Dragic, Richardson, and Whiteside performed very poorly.

The remaining substitutes, Winslow scored 9 points, Ellington scored 6 points, Adebayo scored 6 points, and LeVert scored 2 points. It was average, not too good, but not too bad either.

At present, some clues can be seen from the first match between the two sides.

First of all, the Heat's lack of defensive ability was undoubtedly exposed. Whether it was fast break or leading defense, they were unable to put enough pressure on the Nets, allowing the Nets to score 130 points.

This is the playoffs! This defense is like a hornet's nest.

For example, in fast breaks, no one on the Heat can match the impact of Vonleh and Anunoby. Whether it is Richardson or Porzingis, they cannot effectively stop the two's beast-like ability to rush to the basket.

Then in terms of defensive ability, Wade, Dragic, and Richardson all had periods of time defending Xue Liancheng, but none of them could keep up with Xue Liancheng's rhythm.

For example, although Sabonis Jr. did not gain any advantage in the confrontation with Porzingis, Porzingis was able to stop Sabonis Jr.

Because of the size difference, the Heat were crushed and couldn't gain any advantage in the confrontation.

Finally, the Heat's lack of offensive firepower was also exposed.

Their main scoring points, which they usually rely on a lot, failed to perform in this game. For example, Dragic, Whiteside, and even Richardson, these strong players who usually have good scoring abilities, ultimately performed below expectations.

So the summary is that the Heat were beaten on both offense and defense, and also in terms of matchup advantages and disadvantages. It seems that the gap in strength between the Heat and the Nets is so huge that there is no hope at all.

After the Nets won the opening game of the series, praise followed.

"See? The gap in strength between the two sides is really too big."

"Even with this, some people still predict that the Heat have the strength to threaten the Nets."

"Is the No. 1 in the league kidding you?"

"On paper, the Miami Heat are not bad, and can even compete with the Nets in terms of positional advantage, but the game is not just about paper strength."

"The regular season record speaks for itself. How can a team like you, which just made it to the playoffs, threaten the No. 1 team in the league?"

"In terms of overall strength, the Nets are a team that is going to compete for the championship. It's normal for the Heat to lose."

"Prediction of 4:2? Hahaha... Looking at it now, we can save face by winning against the Heat."

"It was really unexpected that I was beaten without any chance to fight back."

In fact, the result of this game was indeed unexpected.

After all, the Heat's overall lineup strength and overall lineup depth are still very good, but they were beaten up by the Nets. (End of this chapter)