Super Role Player

At the end of the half, the Spurs relied on Anxi's second quarter with another 11 points, 52:46 in the half, leading by 6 points and entering the intermission time.

Anxi scored 22 points in the half, but the state was very good, but it used a lot of shots, a total of 15 shots in the first half, hitting 8 goals, so in the case of the team's victory, Popovich chose to let Anxi rest temporarily. .

The Bulls' defense in the second half really collapsed, and the high-intensity defense cannot be maintained forever, so the Spurs took the opportunity to open up the point difference. At the end of the third quarter of the game, Anxi has been sitting off the court to rest, but the team has secured a win, so Popovich did not arrange for Anxi to play in the fourth quarter.

In this way, Anxi, who had 22 points in the half, didn't get a minute of playing time in the second half, and the Spurs substitute finished the fourth quarter.

In the end, the Spurs beat the Bulls 101:83 and won their 4-game winning streak after the All-Stars.

On the same day, the Heat also started the game. They narrowly defeated the Magic by 1 point at home and expanded their winning streak to 16 games...

With 16 consecutive victories, the Heat is getting better, LeBron James roared at the American Airlines Arena!

On March 8, 2013, the Spurs once again ushered in the next game with the Heat. The Spurs played at home against the Trail Blazers, and the Heat played at home against the Philadelphia 76ers.

For the Blazers, Popovich made a substantial rotation, Manu Ginobili and inside Duncan and Leonard took turns, while Tony Parker still appeared on the active roster, but he did not appear on the starting roster. .

Confronting the Trailblazers who are gradually moving away from the playoffs, the Spurs sent a team consisting of point guard Patrick Mills, shooting guard Danny Green, small forward Tracy McGrady, power forward Boris Diaw and center Tiago Spree. special.

Popovich’s generous rotation is not because he gave up the victory in this game. On the contrary, Popovich believes that this game against the Trailblazers who are far from the playoffs, even if the rotation is still a chance to win, and it will end. The battle between the game and the Thunder is the top priority.

Therefore, he decided to rotate.

If there is no accident, the Spurs can easily win this game. After all, only Duncan, Ginobili and Leonard were rotated. However, an accident happened. At the beginning of the first quarter, the best rookie of the year. Damien Lillard, a powerful contender, began his explosion.

First, he quickly broke through Mills' defensive layup, then grabbed a rebound and made a three-pointer in the fast break, and then fired in the middle distance. In just half a quarter, Lillard shot the Spurs alone.

He took 8 shots in the half quarter, hit 6 goals and scored 15 points, including 3 three-pointers. Most of the other mid-range shots were two long shots. The Spurs were 10 points behind in the half quarter.

Popovich saw that the momentum was not right, so he immediately replaced Anxi and Tony Parker. The appearances of Anxi and Tony Parker helped the Spurs stabilize the situation. On the defensive end, Anxi defended Batum, who also had a tendency to explode. Scores again and again, but the Trail Blazers are really in good shape, and the 10-point lag has not been reduced.

After three quarters, the Spurs trailed the Trail Blazers by 15 points. Without Duncan, the Spurs' defense could no longer limit LaMarcus Aldridge, so the score expanded by 5 points.

The Trail Blazers are in excellent condition, and their 15-point advantage is enough for them to win the game without risk. In the fourth quarter, Damien Lillard scored another 10 points, the whole game scored 35 points, plus 26 points. LaMarcus Aldridge, JJ Hickson with 23 points and Eric Maynor with 20 points, the Blazers directly used their best form to defeat the Spurs.

At the end of the game, the Blazers defeated the Spurs with a 16-point advantage of 136:120. In this battle, if Anxi didn't play and lock Batum and Matthews in time, perhaps the Spurs would lose even worse.

The Spurs lost, and a few hours later, there was news from Miami that the Heat beat the 76ers 102:93 at home, and the winning streak continued to expand. Since February, they have scored 17 consecutive victories!

"The Spurs lose out and the Horror Heat continue their winning streak!"

"The NBA has ignited a big fire, and the Heat's winning streak is unstoppable!"

"A 17-game winning streak is booked ahead of time for the championship? James has completed his three years of hard work!"

The Heat's crazy winning streak has turned the entire NBA into the Heat's world. LeBron James has become more serious and mature, but behind the seriousness and maturity is the flash of spirit.

Two years of consecutive failures once made LeBron James lose heart, his career has also fallen into a trough, and even the idea of ​​making a decision again emerged. In the first half of the season, the Heat's record did not improve, and this idea of ​​leaving was also It is getting stronger and stronger. Until February, the Heat are getting better and winning again and again. The Heat have played their best performance, James' confidence has also been played, and finally he is facing reality again. He is still a Heat player. , Heat-still one of the strongest teams in the league!

"We want to continue winning streak, we must grab the league first, only in this way, we can have the home court advantage in the playoffs!" After playing the 76ers, facing the interview with reporters, LeBron James also changed his low-key before. The style, the goal is straight to the league first.

The Heat beat the 76ers, the Spurs lost to the Trail Blazers, one positive and one negative. The Heat's record came to 46 wins and 14 losses, and the Spurs' record became 48 wins and 15 losses. The difference between the two teams' wins was only 1 game left. And, more importantly, the Heat have three fewer games than the Spurs.

Two days later, the Heat began to gradually fill up their fewer games~www.ltnovel.com~ In this game, they ushered in the Pacers' challenge at home. The game ended, Chalmers 26 points, Wade 23 points, Bosh 20 Points, James only scored 13 points for poor performance, but the Heat still won the game with 3 20+ and achieved 18 consecutive victories! The record also came to 47 wins and 14 losses, and the victory was tied with the Spurs!

The winning game was tied, but the Heat still played 2 games less. According to the Heat’s current momentum, the remaining two games are more wins than loses. Therefore, the Heat overtook the Spurs in the regular season record. There is no problem. This league’s top spot will soon be monopolized by the Heat.

The Spurs' opponent in the next game is the Thunder. For the Thunder, the Spurs lost the game with the Trail Blazers, but Popovich didn't care. He knew very well that as long as a large rotation, losing is a normal thing.

But since losing to the Blazers, the Thunder must win this battle.

Popovich looked at the next schedule, sighed, how difficult it is to keep the league first, but in difficult situations, the Spurs have to work hard. Popovich knows the importance of home court advantage. Maybe The first few rounds of the playoffs are still not visible, but the later, the more you understand that home court advantage is basically equivalent to winning one more game in the playoffs series.

"Mike, maybe we have to abandon the policy of substantial rotation."

Mike Budenholzer, who was sitting across from Popovich, did not speak, but the silence meant he agreed with Popovich's ideas.

"Well, Tim, Tony and Manu will continue to perform rotations. In the future, young players will no longer join the rotation. Help me inform Will that the rotation system needs to be changed."

Will Swining, the creator of the Spurs rotation system, is him, through various physical tests, to help Popovich choose the rotation method and strategy. (To be continued.)