Four days ago, the Thunder lost to the Lakers on the road. For the Thunder, losing on the road is not unacceptable, and playing the Lakers is not a key battle.
But back at home, the Thunder are absolutely unwilling to lose again, especially for a team that is aiming for the championship. They just lost to the Lakers four days ago. This time, of course, the Thunder team is Gathering up enough strength to prepare for revenge.
Coach Brooks of the Thunder also learned the lesson. He knew that the big lineup would suffer too much against the Lakers, so he made another lineup change and replaced Perry Jones as the starter with Andre Robertson. In this way, Ibaka returned to his familiar power forward position.
Andre Robertson is also a new player. His defense is very good, but his offense is relatively poor. He is 2.01 meters tall. He played as a power forward in college. He is the kind of player who can rebound and play hard. Blue collar players. After coming to the Thunder, he was asked by the coach to play shooting guard and small forward.
Because he is a player transformed from a power forward, Robertson has almost no shooting ability, let alone three-pointers. He has almost no scoring methods except layups and dunks. These days, it's very rare for a shooting guard or small forward to not be able to shoot three-pointers.
Robertson's role on the court is mainly defensive. In the last contest between the two sides, Meeks' outstanding performance was one of the keys to the Lakers' victory. This time the Thunder let Robertson start, mainly to limit Meeks.
…
Looking at Robertson in front of him, Meeks curled his lips in disdain.
"A first-year rookie comes out of nowhere and dares to guard me! Let me teach you a lesson!" Meeks thought as he started dribbling.
However, no matter what fake moves Meeks makes, Robertson is always close to Meeks.
"Damn it, where did such a clingy guy come from? He's quite strong!" Meeks failed to break through. He had just started when he was stopped by Meeks.
"Yordy, pay attention to 24 seconds!" Wesley Johnson's voice sounded. Meeks had no choice but to choose a strong shot. Fortunately, he was lucky. The ball bounced on the basket twice and finally went in.
"Andre, you defended well! The only difference we had with this goal was luck. Let's keep up the good work!" Durant stepped forward and patted Robertson on the shoulder.
The encouragement from the team boss boosted Robertson's morale, and he then worked hard on defense.
Only after this incident did Meeks realize that the newcomer he looked down on was so difficult to deal with. Robertson was keeping an eye on Meeks regardless of whether he was asking for anything or holding the ball.
0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks, 0 turnovers, and 1 foul. These are Andre Robertson's statistics in the first quarter. He played a full 8 minutes in this quarter. As a starting player, playing such data in 8 minutes is really pitiful and can be called the worst starter. But he successfully locked up Meeks, who made only 1 of 5 shots in the first quarter. The Thunder sacrificed a No. 2 offense in exchange for Meeks' misfire.
On the inside, Ibaka, who returned to the inside, also caused a lot of trouble for Gasol. With Ibaka's help in defense, Adams gradually entered the state, although he would still be blocked by Gasol. A foul was committed, but compared with the previous game, Gasol's offense was no longer as sharp as going upfield.
The benches of both sides came on stage one after another. On the Thunder's bench, Caron Butler, Reggie Jackson, Perry Jones, Collison, "Old Fish" Fisher, and Lamb, this lineup requires There is more depth than the current Lakers. Fortunately, the Lakers' Nezmore and Farmar performed well and barely withstood the Thunder's bench offensive.
60 to 46, the Lakers trailed the Thunder by 14 points in the first half.
…
In the locker room, the Lakers' morale didn't seem very high.
Zhang Guan looked at his teammates around him, and suddenly there was a hint of enlightenment in his heart.
In the past few games, although the Lakers have encountered some "hard problems", there are always role players who have stepped forward, such as Meeks, such as Bazemore, such as Farmar, and even that "little Kobe" Marshon Brooks has some good performances. They are not the core of the team, and their sudden burst is more like an extra bonus. As long as one role player performs well, Zhang Guan and Gasol only need to play normally, and the Lakers can win.
But today's situation is different. The Lakers' role players seem to have been brought back to their original form. No matter whether it is their performance on the field or their personal data, there is nothing outstanding.
"Perhaps this is the reason why the team pursues big-name stars. Excellent role players are important, but many times, it is the team's big-name stars that determine the outcome! And now, it is my turn to score."
Zhang Guan thought about the current score. The 14-point deficit made Zhang Guan feel a little pressured. After all, the opponent was the Thunder. It was not easy to recover 14 points from the Thunder.
…
Westbrook stared directly at Zhang Guan. In the first half of the game, he almost gave up attacking and assisting and focused on guarding Zhang Guan. So far, it seems that the effect of this is pretty good. Zhang Guan is on top Didn't play too well in the half.
"With a 14-point lead, as long as we can continue to limit Zhang Guan, this victory will definitely belong to us!" Westbrook was thinking about it, but Zhang Guan suddenly stopped.
One step outside the three-point line, Zhang Guan jumped up to shoot and hit!
"Zhang Guan, long-range three-pointer! Go in!"
Westbrook frowned unwillingly. This kind of long-range three-pointer is indeed a bit unsolvable.
Durant broke through to cause a foul and made two free throws. When it was the Lakers' turn to attack, Zhang Guan did the same thing, using the same breakthrough method to cause the Thunder's inside foul, and then made two free throws.
Westbrook felt even more unhappy and unknowingly increased his defensive actions.
Zhang Guan once again took the ball and forced a breakthrough, while Westbrook used his body to meet him without flinching.
"Zhang Guan, beat Westbrook hard, oh, why did you use your hand? This ball is fouled!" The commentator sighed, Westbrook's hand movements were a little awkward, and an obvious foul was caught by the referee.
"The ball was defended too hastily. Russell was a little uncool!" Durant also felt that Westbrook was a little too hasty.
But Westbrook was like an enraged calf, continuing to confront Zhang Guan head-on.
Westbrook's defense still relies too much on his body. After only three minutes, Westbrook committed another foul. Coach Brooks had to ask for a timeout to let Westbrook calm down.
It's not that Westbrook has no defensive skills. On the contrary, his defensive skills are very good. However, Westbrook's physical fitness is even better. At least in normal games, Westbrook doesn't need to use any defensive skills. He can just use his body. Defending opponents, so gradually, Westbrook's defense has become relying on body and consciousness. He is no longer used to using skills to defend.
After the timeout, the Lakers unexpectedly replaced Sacre.
Although Thackeray is a sophomore, he is really not as good as first-year Adams in terms of personal ability. Apart from air cuts, Thackeray has almost no scoring methods. His shooting was inaccurate, his rebounding was poor, and he lacked the speed to help defend. Thunder coach Brooks didn't understand the idea of sending such a player on the court.
"Beep!" the referee blew the whistle, and Thunder center Adams stood there with an innocent face.
Durant threw the basketball to the ground with some disappointment. He had already thought about how to organize an offense with this ball, but when he was about to start, he was interrupted by the whistle.
"Thackray fouled Adams! He fouled as soon as he came on the field. This Thackeray is really useless except for being tall. It would be more appropriate for him to stand on the bench and wave a towel." Ibaka curled his lips and muttered to himself Said.
Now Adams is not responsible for offensive tasks in the Thunder. He is more like a rebounder. There is not much time for the ball to be passed to his hands, let alone the opportunity for singles, so this is his role in this game. Standing on the free throw line for the first time.
Adams stepped to the free throw line. In his rookie season, Adams was as anxious as Jordan in terms of free throws. Later, his serving rate was relatively average, and Popovich also resorted to the tactics of cutting Adams many times.
Sure enough, Adams missed both free throws. Zhang Guan rushed up and grabbed the rebound, turned around and ran away, starting a fast break.
"Zhang Guan, fast break!" As soon as Ibaka reacted, Zhang Guan had already quickly rushed to the midfield position.
Westbrook and Robertson pounced at the same time, but Zhang Guan was obviously bullying Robertson because he was a newcomer and specialized in Robertson's side.
"Foul, stop him!" Westbrook shouted. Robertson understood and immediately reached out.
"Wait a minute! Don't foul!" Westbrook changed his tune again because he found that Zhang Guan was already preparing for a layup. A foul at this time would mean sending Zhang Guan to the free throw line.
But Robertson had already taken action. He grabbed Zhang Guan's arm, but was unable to affect Zhang Guan's start. Zhang Guan jumped high and then threw the ball like the blue box.
"Goal in, extra penalty! Robertson is still not enough, he was deceived by Zhang Guan into this foul!" the commentator said.
Westbrook walked up to Robertson and said: "The next time there is a foul, the reporter should be more ruthless and never give Zhang Guan Er a chance to add one!"
Robertson nodded, but he felt very wronged in his heart. He was indeed cruel to the foul just now, but he didn't stop Zhang Guan. But as the younger brother and the second boss, Robertson did not dare to refute the lesson.
The Thunder attacked with the ball again, but the whistle sounded again.
"Another foul by Thackeray? Adams's free throw... Wait a minute, I understand, this is hitting Adams!" No matter how slow Coach Brooks was, he had already reacted at this time.
Adams is only a first-year rookie. Although the No. 12 pick is also in the lottery, no one will plan tactics for him. But today, the Lakers came to cut Adams, which immediately made Adams feel flattered.
The earliest man-killing tactic was against "Big Shark" O'Neal, so it was also called the shark-killing tactic. Later, in order to deal with Howard, another team used the "Huo-killing tactic". But both O'Neal and Howard are the top centers in the league. O'Neal's dominance needs no introduction. Howard is also known as the league's number one center. But now, such tactics are actually used on a first-year freshman. No one expected it.
Adams walked to the free throw line inexplicably again. This time Adams made one of two free throws, and the Lakers used their next offense to score two more points.
In two rounds, the Thunder were chased back by four points by the Lakers. Judging from this result, this killing tactic was very successful.
"It's the Thunder's turn to attack again. Do the Lakers still want to attack?"
However, this time, the Lakers did not attack anyone. Westbrook accidentally passed the ball and was intercepted by Zhang Guan.
"Zhang Guan fast break, there is no chance for this ball. Durant and Ibaka have already returned to defense. They directly shot a three-pointer and scored!" The commentator took a deep breath and continued: "This ball was hit. Beautiful, Zhang Guan took advantage of the Thunder's defensive breakthrough, hit a time difference, and shot a three-pointer. The score is now 82 to 81, and the Lakers actually took the lead!"
…
The score was overtaken, and Westbrook began to look impatient. Facing Zhang Guan, he really wanted to win.
I saw Westbrook holding the ball, picking and rolling with Ibaka and breaking through directly. Durant, who had just run out of the open space, was ignored by Westbrook. Westbrook faced the defensive player and scored the ball.
This is entirely a reflection of personal ability. In terms of individual singles with the ball, Westbrook is indeed more suitable than Durant. However, this kind of bayonet-style offense that relies on personal ability is not good news for the Thunder.
And Zhang Guan's long-range three-pointers are also continuing to flourish.
"Zhang Guan, three-pointer, hit again. Zhang Guan's three-pointers are currently 6 of 12, a 50% hit rate!"
"Zhang Guan made 7 of 13 three-pointers!"
"Zhang Guan made 8 of 15 three-pointers! He has already scored 38 points!"
"Zhang Guan, three-pointer! Scored again!"
…
"Is the person in front of me Zhang Guan or Curry? On average, Curry only shoots 8 three-pointers in a game. Zhang Guan has already shot 16 three-pointers in this game! Hey, here comes the 17th One! Fortunately, he didn’t get in!”
Westbrook was so frightened by this three-pointer that he broke into a cold sweat. The score at this time was 122 to 120. The Lakers were still in the lead, and the game time was less than 40 seconds. If Zhang Guan scored again, the Thunder could basically surrender.
However, the Thunder failed to protect this rebound. Gasol was really tough on key balls. Ibaka just didn't steal Gasol. After Gasol grabbed the offensive rebound, he took a small step and scored the ball.
124 to 120, the Lakers lead by four points.
The Thunder chose a strong attack. They planned to score two points first and then try their best to prevent the next ball. However, the Lakers returned to defense very quickly, and Zhang Guan also focused on Westbrook holding the ball.
At the same time, Bazemore actually rushed up to double-team Westbrook. Originally, Zhang Guan alone made Westbrook more difficult to deal with. Now with the addition of the tougher Bazemore, Westbrook's pressure suddenly increased.
"Oops, I'm going to throw the ball because of Russell!" Durant noticed that the situation was not good and immediately rushed to respond. However, Durant was still a step too late and Westbrook still lost the ball.
The referee's whistle sounded and a scrimmage was awarded. This penalty actually helped the Thunder a little, but who let the home team be? Moreover, the Lakers were still the leader at this time, still leading by 4 points. A scrimmage was not enough to determine the final outcome.
Westbrook and Zhang Guan competed for the ball, and the result was predictable. Although Westbrook's jumping is very good, compared with Zhang Guan, the world champion in the long jump, it is really not on the same level.
This time, Westbrook lost the fight for the ball. The Lakers controlled the ball. The Thunder had no choice but to foul. After the Lakers made two free throws, the point difference widened to six points.
The Thunder missed a three-pointer and fouled again. The Lakers made one of two free throws and maintained a 7-point lead. The Thunder missed another three-pointer and gave up the game.
The score was fixed at 127-120, and the Lakers defeated the Thunder in an away game.
In the next two games, the Lakers will still have to play the same team in a row. This is an opponent that is as scary as the Thunder, but has more foundation than the Thunder: the San Antonio Spurs!
Please buy a guaranteed monthly ticket and thank Rubin and Zhao Laoyao for the 10,000-point reward. Thanks to Thai Style Zhang Laotou, Dragon Walking in the Sky, Bubble 2016, Min 1 Min, Red Wenwu, and Duo Cai Ni for the reward!
(End of chapter)