NBA: Starting with Jokic template

Chapter 23 Tug of War

After grabbing the rebound again, he pushed forward on his own, and while the Thunder were not in position in time, he made a long pass that penetrated the Thunder's defense and passed it to Miller in the corner. Miller quickly shot and the Heat made another three-pointer.

In the next round, the Thunder stepped up their defense and held the Heat to a point where, with only four seconds left in the offensive round, James received the ball with his back to the basket and dribbled twice.

After feeling Ibaka's defensive action, when the time was almost up, James pushed the ground with his left foot, leaving a black mark on the floor. He turned to the outside, raised the ball from his waist, and exerted force on his leg muscles.

As James jumped into the air, his core was as tight as steel, and he leaned backwards. Facing Ibaka, he made a fadeaway jump shot.

Beep!
As the 24-second timer beeped, the ball went into the net.

In just three minutes, the Heat scored another seven points.

If it weren't for Durant's strong shot and Lin Chuan's pass to Ibaka who scored two points, the Heat would have almost caught up with them.

With 5 minutes left in the third quarter, Brooks saw James' unreasonable goal and couldn't help but call a timeout again.

The Thunder was stopped by James for the second time.

James was captured on camera standing on the court with his knees raised and his eyes fixed on the scoreboard.

The sharp-eyed ones even said it looked like the G6's eyes of death.

After the timeout, the Thunder changed their lineup, replacing Harden with Sefolosha to strengthen the defense.

But the defensive strategy has not changed. I will continue to defend alone, focusing on the idea that if you are capable, you can kill me by singles, and I will never let you connect the team.

The effect of the change in formation was good. After the timeout, James' hot hand declined. In his last attack of this quarter, he missed a long two-point shot. Wade was also defended by Sefolosha. The Heat only had Chalmers score a two-point shot in the bottom corner.

On the Thunder side, Lin Chuan faced Haslem and Bosh in the interior and gradually adapted to the Heat's new defensive rhythm.

He played more and more aggressively, but due to the limitation of defending James' breakthrough, his physical strength also decreased. In the end, he scored three consecutive goals under the basket, but it can be seen that Lin Chuan was a little tired, and his layup posture was not very stable.

This shot, which seemed to be scored by luck, made Spoelstra hesitate on the sidelines and he couldn't decide whether to call another timeout.

In the last 10 seconds, the attack was also instigated by Lin Chuan.

Receiving the ball in the high position, facing Haslem's defense, Lin Chuan held the ball with one hand and swung it to the left, as if he was going to throw the ball directly to the left corner, and Bosh, who wanted to step forward to assist in defense, was also deceived.

Lin Chuan's big hands grabbed the ball tightly, then he pulled it back in front of him and passed the ball to Sefolosha who was unguarded in the right corner without looking at anyone.

Sefolosha made an easy shot and the third quarter ended.

A buzzer-beating three-pointer widened the gap again, allowing the Thunder to maintain a double-digit lead entering the fourth quarter.

"Starting from the third quarter, the Heat changed their style of play. James attacked the Thunder's inside line one after another, catching them off guard."

"Let's take a look at James's statistics. We can see that in the third quarter, James scored 15 points and made two three-pointers, almost catching up with the score. Can the Thunder hold on in the fourth quarter?"

Seeing Lin Chuan's Thunder team suffer a setback, Yang Jian was a little anxious, but as a commentator he tried to remain neutral.

"That's right. The frequent attacks on the inside not only allowed the Heat to close the score, but also reduced the Thunder's overall physical strength. Durant, who was the main defender of James, and Lin Chuan, who was assisting him in the inside, both clearly showed that they were a little short of physical strength."

"Durant didn't take the initiative to ask for the ball anymore. The Thunder didn't play well in the last few offensive rounds, allowing Lin Chuan to force the ball. Fortunately, Lin Chuan's touch was still good at this time, and the ball was still close to the basket after a few shakes."

Yang Yi stroked his beard and expressed his own opinion.

"Yeah, luckily Lei Ting still has Lin Chuan, otherwise this game would be really difficult."

……

No matter what people discuss on the other side of the ocean, they are always watching through the screen.

As for the audience, the noise from James' beating was indeed much quieter.

The Thunder players who were playing against the Heat felt it the most. At this moment, after the final whistle, the same thought came to the minds of several Thunder players who were leaving the court.

"Fuck, it's a good thing it's time for the break."

James suddenly got into good form and broke through the Thunder's defense.

They tried their best but failed to defend it.

Now the third quarter is over and there is still some time until the middle of the fourth quarter.

I hope this time can cool his touch down a bit.

"We need to be careful in the fourth quarter and try to wear him down. Otherwise, we will be overturned if we keep attacking like this."

"It's easier said than done. He was so lazy in the first half that his stamina is basically the same as when he was full now."

"Then what do you say we should do? Just let him charge and it'll be over?"

Before the fourth quarter began, several Thunder players on the bench started a discussion.

"Relax and play our best. In the first four games without Lin Chuan, we were able to fight to the last minute. We haven't lost since Lin Chuan came on the court."

Westbrook put the Gatorade aside and cheered for his teammates.

"Really? I hope Lin Chuan's buff can continue so that we can play a seventh game."

"Have a good defense, guys. If he can get past the first line of defense, we'll set up a few more lines to stop him. He'll always lose the ball."

Brooks clapped his hands to get everyone to pay attention.

"Also, the other players on their team seem exhausted. Let him pass the ball and try to prevent other players from shooting. They won't be able to shoot well because they are exhausted."

On the other side, Spoelstra of the Heat was also at a loss as to what to do with James' performance.

If the team wants to win, it must rely on James and establish James's position as the main attacker. If Wade is replaced, James will start to slack off. With this kind of performance, they will not be able to beat the Thunder.

The 18-point deficit in the first half was clear proof of that.

Once the ball is given to James and he becomes the main attacker, the team will be reborn.

But in fact, everyone knows the reason for this amazing difference.

But no one dares to say it.

Spoelstra had no choice but to take a step back after Wade talked to him before.

I had to spread my hands in front of my teammates and said to James,
"LeBron, you decide how to play in the fourth quarter."

James smiled and took over Spoelstra's tactical board.

"it is good."

At the start of the fourth quarter, Lin Chuan and Durant did not play and stayed off the court to replenish their energy.

At this time, Westbrook and Harden were leading the team.

James did not leave the court, but appeared on the court with the substitutes in the transition phase.

Judging from the situation, it seems that they are going to play the entire fourth quarter and make up the score difference in one go before Lin Chuan and his team come on the court.

(End of this chapter)