The Golden Age of Basketball

In the third game against the Mavericks, the Trail Blazers finally showed the demeanor of a strong team. They showed overwhelming advantages in both offensive and defensive ends in the second half, which allowed them to complete a moderate victory reverse.

After the game, what the media were most interested in was the outstanding performance of two young players, Gan Guoyang and Drexler.

From the second half of the regular season, the Trail Blazers have become more and more like a team that revolves around these two young people. Drexler's excellent passing ability, coupled with Gan Guoyang's strong finisher at the basket, they The power of the combination has already begun to show.

More importantly, one of the two is a first-year rookie and the other is a second-year rookie. This has to make people imagine what a powerful combination they will be when they both reach their peak.

But now, these two young people have not yet reached the time when they can really carry the banner of the Trail Blazers. In many cases, the team still needs mature stars like Sampson and Vandeweghe to stand up and help the team. Out of the woods.

Therefore, when Gan Guoyang and Drexler were both restricted in the first half of the fourth game, it made people understand that this pair of twin stars still has a long way to go.

"Increase your movement, move the ball! Gan, you move the ball too slowly, stop moving too much up the line, try to do high post, and focus on defense. Sampson, You go on the court to replace Carl and strengthen the offense inside."

April 4, may be the end of the first round of the series, the game continues at the Mavericks home.For the Blazers, this battle is not easy. The Mavericks, who are on the verge of being eliminated, will definitely fight to the death, grab this home court, and then go to Portland for a life-and-death battle.

In the first quarter, when Drexler and Gan Guoyang once again tried to attack the Mavericks' basket with a duo, they found that this trick didn't work. [

Although the quality of the pick-and-roll between the two is high and well coordinated, Gan Guoyang, who is the end point of the offense, and Drexler, who is the starting point, both have a very fatal flaw, that is, both of them have problems with their mid-range shots.

Drexler is okay. His jump shot is still accurate when the rhythm is good, but Gan Guoyang is not. In the official game, his jump shot has been wasted.

Two players who have no mid-range coordinate in the pick-and-roll. Once the opponent catches the weakness, the result is obvious. In the fourth game, the Mavericks adopted a strategy of not changing defenses for the pick-and-roll between the two. At the same time, if Gan Guoyang catches the ball, someone will step forward close the door.

In this way, when the opponent picks and rolls, the player defending Gan Guoyang leaves a space for the player defending Drexler to pass through. Drexler shoots, and the defender can't keep up, but he wants to break through. Basically unlikely.

The same is true for Gan Guoyang. After the pick-and-roll, if he cuts outside and makes a pkpop, then she will have a lot of shooting space, but he wants to pkroll. Sorry, the Mavericks will not give him a chance.

There are a lot of shooting opportunities and space, but two people can't make it at all!One is that the hit rate is not good, and they give up after two shots, and the other is that they can't shoot at all, so the pick-and-roll cooperation between the two was completely abolished in the first quarter.

Ramsey also immediately called a timeout. It seems that the young players are really "smooth and can't do things well."

"Paxson, you replace Clyde. Shoot the ball resolutely. You must be resolute. I hope you can find your own feeling." Ramsey also made a substitution adjustment and replaced Drexler. , replaced the former starting shooting guard, Jim Paxson.

Since Paxson became a substitute due to injury, his performance in the second half of the regular season and the three games of the playoffs has been average. The leg injury has always affected his performance. His scoring and shooting percentage There has been a relatively large decline since March.

However, Ramsey still trusts the former All-Star shooting guard. He is the most stable outside shooting point in the team except Vandeweghe. When necessary, his shooting can provide the team with great help.

In the first quarter, the Blazers' outside shooting percentage was not high, and the Mavericks' defense line was shrinking and getting worse. This caused the Blazers' offense to stagnate to a certain extent, and the team also trailed the Mavericks by 14 points at 21:7.

The introduction of Paxson might have alleviated some of that problem, while another substitution by Ramsey was somewhat unconventional, bringing Norris on for Kenny Carr.

Norris is the fourth substitute inside the Trail Blazers. He is located on the edge of the team's rotation and is a typical ninth man on the team.

But this player is very characteristic. He has a strong physique, strong strength, a certain inside offensive ability, and dares to fight. Sometimes he can achieve unexpected good results on the court.Ramsey often used Norris when it came time to disrupt the game.

"Attack Norris with all your strength, attack! Gan, you have to do a good job of defending, and at the same time attract the attention of the opponent to create opportunities for Norris." Ramsey hopes that Norris can play the role of a surprise soldier. [

Ramsey also feels a little compelled to do this, because Mitchell Sampson slightly strained his thigh during yesterday's training. Although he entered the team squad for this game, Ramsey cannot guarantee that Sampson Will Posen's presence on the field cause his injury to worsen.

If the injury gets worse, it will be a great loss for the Blazers, so out of caution, he still let Norris enter the official rotation. If the effect is not good, then consider letting Sampson play.

"Yes, 'm-ok! (Okay, I'm fine!)" Norris said in his deep and rough voice. Among the pioneers, the king of power is second only to Gan Guoyang, and he has an aura that is not afraid of anything.

The timeout ended, the two sides returned to the field, and the Mavericks also adjusted the lineup. They replaced the team's sixth man, Joey Vincent.

Joey Vincent, as the lowest pick among the three young talents of the Mavericks in 1981, played an extremely amazing performance in his rookie season, averaging 214 points per game.

However, as a second-round pick, his versatility is limited after all, so he has become the team's ultimate substitute player. He is a typical microwave oven, and he comes up to grab points.

It seems that the Mavericks also want to use Vincent's scoring ability to maintain their advantage on the field.

"Beep!" The referee blew the serve whistle, and the Blazers served in the frontcourt.

Paxson served out of bounds, Gan Guoyang stood at the left corner, Vandeweghe stood at the bottom line on the left, Valentine stood at the top of the arc, and only Norris stood at the basket on the right.

Valentine and Vandeweghe took turns to pretend to catch the ball, but it was Gan Guoyang who actually came up to catch the ball.

Gan Guoyang stepped on the three-point line and received a pass from Paxson, and Paxson immediately ran into the field. Valentine had already cut in from the middle, taking away Davis' defense.

At this time, Paxson used Gan Guoyang to block people and ran to the top of the arc. At this time, the Mavericks center had two choices, one was to run to defend Paxson, and the other was to continue to stare at Gan Guoyang.

Wallace Bryant chose to keep staring at Gan Guoyang, because although Gan Guoyang's shooting was not good, he had the ball in his hand. Once he broke through, no one could stop him inside!

He didn't know that this shot hit Gan Guoyang's arms. Ramsey used this efficient quick catch and shoot tactic when laying out tactics during the timeout-the famous Chicago tactic.

Gan Guoyang immediately passed the ball to Paxson at the top of the arc, and Paxson did not hesitate after receiving the ball. Even though he was still standing outside the three-point line, he still made a shot, a three-pointer!

It was too late for Blackman to step forward to make up the defense. He could only pray that Paxson would not score this three-pointer.

With the frequency of the players shooting three-pointers at that time, the number of three-pointers in the game was really pitiful, but Paxson's shot was unexpected, and the position and rhythm of the shot were also very good.

"Shua!" The ball went into the net hollow!A three-pointer!

"Yes!" Paxson also squeezed his fist hard. This three-pointer is still very difficult for Paxon, who has been in a bad state recently, not to mention that the team needs to score now.

Gan Guoyang also stepped forward to high-five Paxson. If Drexler were to cooperate with him on the ball, Drexler would definitely not be able to make a shot. For Drexler, the three-point line is no different from the center line of the court.

This three-pointer not only narrowed the point difference between the Trail Blazers and the Mavericks to 4 points, but also changed the situation of both sides on the court, because the Mavericks knew that they could no longer shrink their defense. Now the Blazers have two accurate shooters on the outside. If it shrinks, it will only suffer more long-range strikes.

The shooting from outside also made Gan Guoyang feel a lot more comfortable on the inside. The three-second zone was emptied a lot, and he was able to hold the ball in the inside again.

However, the Mavericks' three shots are not vegetarian. The three shots of Blackman, Aguilar, and Vincent are on the field at the same time, which greatly increases the defensive pressure on the Blazers. Originally, Paxson and Vandeweghe's perimeter defense ability Generally, with the addition of the Mavericks' three shots, it is impossible for Gan Guoyang to make up for every insider.

This is the flaw of the Blazers in the lineup. They cannot have both offense and defense on the perimeter. Paxson and Vandeweghe are good at offense, but poor at defense. Drexler and Cauchy are good at defense. The offense is not strong, and the effect of interspersed and matched is not very good.

The hidden danger of playing against the Mavericks is still unclear, but Ramsey has begun to worry about it, because the two sides have been in a state of confrontation in the first half. Until the end of the first half, the Blazers still scored 59: 61 behind the Mavericks by two points.

With 27 seconds left before the end of the first half, the Mavericks made the last attack of the first half, and the ball was handed over to Aguilar without accident.

Aguirre was desperate in this game. He made 16 of 10 shots in the half and 8 of 7 free throws. It was useless for West to come up. The inexperienced Cauchy was tricked into fouls several times by the seasoned Aguilei.

On the last attack of the first half, Aguirile received the ball from the outside, and the other players of the Mavericks all pulled away. It seemed that he was going to single Vandeweghe.

Although Vandeweghe has an advantage in height, he suffers too much in footsteps and body. Aguirile made a slight adjustment on the outside, and the time was almost consumed, and he rushed inward from the right side with a sudden step.

Aguilar's strong body suddenly pushed Vandeweghe away, and rushed to the edge of the three-second zone like a small tank.

Gan Guoyang saw that he quickly moved across from the left side to make up for the defense. Gan Guoyang's speed was so fast that when Akueli was about to make a shot, his big hand covered him.

"Boom!" Aguile still made a shot. He had no other choice and shot backwards, but he hit the iron under the interference of Gan Guoyang.

The ball was obviously weak, so it hit the front of the basket and knocked out. Gan Guoyang turned around and snatched the rebound easily!

With less than 5 seconds left in the first half, Gan Guoyang did not call a short timeout because he saw a slightly plump body running in the opponent's frontcourt - it was Norris!

Norris came up for a few minutes in the first quarter and did nothing, then Ramsey put him up again towards the end of the second quarter, and this time he was running like a striker!

Although he doesn't have the speed of Drexler, Norris has been wandering around the three-point line in the previous offense, and as soon as he saw Aguilei miss the ball, he knew that the rebound was likely to happen Accepted by Gan Guoyang.

Sure enough, Gan Guoyang got the rebound, and he passed the ball directly to the frontcourt without any reason after seeing Norris.

Gan Guoyang's strength is so great, he just flicked the ball and flew towards Norris quickly. At this time, the fans watching the broadcast in front of the TV could not even see the trajectory of the ball clearly - partly because of the shoddy picture quality, etc. When the camera is on Norris, the guy is already rushing to the basket with the ball twisting his ass.

"Bang!" He dunked vigorously!Norris dunked the ball in the basket before the buzzer sounded in the first half!Both sides draw!

59:59, this is a very important goal for the Blazers. Even entering the second half with a one goal behind is a kind of psychological pressure for the Blazers, because they are most likely to lose when they are behind at halftime.

Well now, the two sides are back on the same starting line.

"Don't leave the suspense until the next game. No one knows what will happen in the life-and-death battle." This is the only sentence Ramsey said during the intermission. Even a rookie like Gan Guoyang knows the weight of this sentence.

Indeed, no one knows what will happen in the life-and-death battle. Any strength and tactical arrangements may be broken in the life-and-death battle. Know what unexpected situations your team members will perform poorly.

So for the Blazers, here in Dallas, sending the Mavericks home is the best option, because their home is here.

But the Mavericks definitely don't want to be eliminated at home. Although the Mavericks are only ranked sixth this season, this does not fully reflect their strength. Many changes, this year's Dallas Mavericks will still be the top four in the West.

The desperate Cowboys made their final struggle in the second half.

With great energy in the first half, Aguilar, who scored 27 points, continued to attack with all his strength in the third quarter. His singles skills are so proficient and terrifying. It is also the first time Gan Guoyang has experienced it in the playoffs. I realized how terrifying such a high scorer is in the game.

But although Aguilar's offense is terrible, Vandeweghe is not a vegetarian on the side of the Blazers. Vandeweghe, who had a mediocre performance in the first half, finally broke out in the third quarter. One step is still his deadliest shooting distance.

Vandeweghe couldn't guard Aguili, but Aguili couldn't guard Vandeweghe either. The two staged an exciting battle of points in the third quarter.

This time, Gan Guoyang was completely a spectator for a while. This kind of intense game atmosphere was difficult for him to experience in the n finals, with high speed, intensity, and high concentration.

Both sides began to enter a state of ecstasy, and Gan Guoyang did the same. He began to devote himself to defense and rebounding, stopped talking trash, stopped yelling, and stopped communicating-no one communicated.

This was an outright hand-to-hand battle. Both sides showed their housekeeping skills, and the offense became extremely difficult. Every time they rushed into the opponent's inside line, they almost had to pay a high price, either falling to the ground or fouling.

This atmosphere continued until the fourth quarter, with 1 minute and 01 seconds left before the end of the game. At this time, the Blazers and the Mavericks tied 111:111.

"Beep!" The referee's whistle cut through the almost gelatinous atmosphere on the field, and the Mavericks called a timeout.

"Mark, star, everyone who is staring at you, don't take defense easily, except Gan, remember, remember!" Ramsey shouted loudly, at this time he was already shouting all over his head , Ramsey's defensive strategy at critical moments has always been like this, staring at the opponent, only leaving Gan Guoyang to make up the defense, and trying not to give the opponent the opportunity to stretch space.

"Cauci, you go on the field, replace kk, and keep an eye on Aguilei, his physical strength is running out." Ramsey replaced Cauchy again and asked him to consume Aguili. Finally, without too much energy, he scored 10 points in the third quarter, but he still hasn't scored in the fourth quarter.

"The timeout is over, the Mavericks serve!" The 20-second short timeout ended quickly, and the referee handed the ball to the Mavericks players.

Bryant served the ball out of bounds, and Aguilar still received the ball. Regardless of his physical strength, whether he scored in the fourth quarter or not, he is the most reliable scoring point for the Mavericks.

Cauchy clings to Aguiler like candy, and Aguiler pushes his back against Cauchy, trying to squeeze out space.

Aguilar suddenly turned around!Coxi was wrapped too tightly, but Aguile was given room to turn around, and he left Coxi behind all at once.

No one else came to help defend!Gan Guoyang saw Akueli rushing towards him within the three-second zone, and there was no one in front of him!Gan Guoyang immediately let go of Bryant to defend Aguilar.

But Gan Guoyang still took a step, and Aguile made a mid-range jumper from the 19-foot position, and the ball scored!

111:113!The Mavericks overtook it!The Mavericks overtook it!

"Beep! Blazers timeout!" The referee's whistle rang again.

This is extremely dangerous for the Blazers. After the Mavericks scored the goal, there were about 40 seconds left in the time. The Blazers scored a goal and had to defend another one.

"The goal must be fast, and we must score this goal quickly, so that we can attack again after we have made a defensive goal." Ramsey said, indeed, as long as the goal is scored quickly, then even if the Mavericks make a goal. With a ball pressing time of 24 seconds, the Blazers still have a chance to attack.

Ramsey put Norris on the field again. Since Sampson was indeed unable to play, Norris's offense was stronger than Carr's, so putting him on the field also hoped to have a miraculous effect.

At the same time, he put Drexler and Vandeweghe on the court, plus Gan Guoyang and Vandeweghe. This should be the strongest offensive lineup for the Blazers.

But the only problem with this lineup is that they don't have a point guard!Then, it can only let Drexler to control the ball.

But Gan Guoyang served out of bounds, but he couldn't find Drexler, because he was very entangled by Blackman.

Seeing that the time was approaching, Gan Guoyang did not call a timeout, but threw the ball to Norris who was on the receiving end. This pass almost made Ram Qixin jump out of his throat.

And Norris didn't know what to do when he got the ball at the top of the arc. Ramsey's tactics were not like this at all, it was all messed up!Neither Drexler nor Paxson, nor Vandeweghe had the ball.

At this time, seeing the time passing quickly, Norris was heartbroken, and he didn't care, and directly broke through with the ball from the middle!

Unexpectedly, this move was completely unexpected by the Mavericks. The Mavericks' defensive focus was not on Norris at all, they just wanted to let him go.

Unexpectedly, Norris rushed in with the ball headed like a big buffalo. Perkins, who defended Norris, was inexperienced.

Norris made a layup from the right, the ball hit the rim twice, and it went in!Norris' layup went in!Lucky hit!

"Beautiful job Norris! Nice job!" Gan Guoyang couldn't hide his excitement anymore and rushed forward to hug Norris.

"Don't worry, don't worry, the game is not over yet." Norris was unusually calm.

The Mavericks also immediately called a timeout, 113:113, and the two sides were tied again.

At this time, Ramsey has nothing to arrange, so he can only ask the players to fight. The Blazers have no timeouts, and neither is the Mavericks. As long as they hold on and score one, the Blazers can eliminate their opponents!If you can't defend, then the last attack will be very dangerous.

At the end of the timeout, the Blazers are still Gan, Norris, Drexler, Paxson and Vandeweghe. For the key goal, Gan Guoyang can feel his breathing speeding up.

With 31 seconds left in the game, the Blazers were pressing at halftime.

The Mavericks sent the ball with difficulty, Aguirile was defended by Vandeweghe and failed to get the ball, Blackman got the ball.

Blackman feels very average in this game, so far he has only scored 17 points.

Blackman dribbles, he's going to drive, it's his most potent weapon, and he's facing Drexler.

With 18 seconds remaining, Blackman made a breakthrough. He rushed in from the familiar left, and Drexler seemed to be thrown away by him.

No!Drexler got the ball from behind and he broke it!

Drexler counterattacked with the ball!This will be the most deadly counterattack in the audience!

The Mavericks' players returned like crazy, and they couldn't allow Drexler an easy layup.

In 12 seconds, Drexler slowed down. There was still enough time. The Blazers had time to hit a success rate. Ramsey yelled "Steady"!

The Trail Blazers players all ran across half court, and Drexler carefully handled the ball with 9 seconds left.

Drexler is about to break through from the right side, and his breakthrough is one of the strongest weapons for the Blazers, with 7 seconds left.

But Drexler has a more deadly weapon!

That was his pass, and he saw Norris running back from the right! 6 seconds.

Drexler was double-teamed, he passed the ball to the right! 5 seconds.

Norris catches the ball, 10 feet from the baseline, at a zero-degree angle, which isn't Norris' best shot, but he makes it anyway. 4 seconds!

In many cases, a small person can often change the fate of a game or even a series.

And Norris, this little-known backup center, made this shot that determined the fate of the two teams in a crucial game

"Shua!" The ball went in! 3 seconds.

Three seconds! 115:113, Norris made this fatal mid-range shot!With only three seconds left for the Mavericks, they have no timeout!

"Defend! The last ball! Don't give them a fast break!" Gan Guoyang shouted, he interfered with the Mavericks' serve from the baseline.

The Mavericks pass fails, the ball is thrown out of bounds, and time is running out...

Dallas's home court was silent, only the Trail Blazers players hugged and celebrated together.

Surrounding them is the hero of the field, Norris.

A soldier's legend.