Chapter 226 A good start
The timeout ends and the Lakers attack.

Payton passed the ball to Devin George, and then the others moved away, with the Postman moving to the right wing, with Devin George holding the ball and playing one-on-one against Nash.

This is an absolute mismatch advantage. No one thinks that point guard Nash can defend forward Devin George.

But in the regular season, Rick Carlisle arranged Nash to face Devin George, and they won the game.

He Zhongqiu did not play with the postman. On the defensive end, he played with O'Neal, while Mutombo played with the postman.

Mutombo couldn't run anymore, but neither could the Mailman, and the two were a perfect match.

When the ball was handed to Devin George, He Zhongqiu still followed O'Neal and pushed him outside. As long as O'Neal wanted to enter the penalty area, the confrontation between the two would begin immediately.

In this defensive tactic, he also has the task of assisting defense, that is when Devin George backs up Nash and approaches the penalty area.

At this time, Devin George lost the vision behind him, and his assist defense had to be quick and decisive so as not to give the opponent a chance to pass the ball.

Wells, who was guarding in the high position, did not help defend Devin George. In this defensive tactic, Nash was the only one defending Devin George.

Of course, if Devin George can play in a super explosive state and has a strong ability to score continuously, then he must provide help defense.

Devin George's ability to break through with the ball is average. He slowly crushed Nash into the wing. Nash had no resistance and was crushed all the way to the left elbow area.

The left elbow area was not He Zhongqiu's assisting defense area, but Wells's assisting defense area. He turned around and rushed over, reaching the position in two steps.

Devin George's breakthrough was average because of his average ball-handling ability. He became confused when he was double-teamed and the ball was poked away by Wells, which Nash took the opportunity to pick up.

“No one is available!”

On the sidelines, Phil Jackson kept shaking his head.

At this moment, he missed Pippen very much. If this Lakers team had another Pippen in his prime, even if O'Neal was old, he could still defeat the entire league.

Even without Pippen, if he had a young Rick Fox, he could have had a good series with the Knicks.

However, he only has Devin George.

The Knicks took the opportunity to launch a fast break, and He Zhongqiu participated in the fast break.

When he rushed to the basket, O'Neal, Karl Malone and Mutombo all lagged behind, creating a four-on-three situation in the frontcourt and no one defending the inside.

Devin George entered the restricted area with his head held high, but there is a very important reason why he has been a substitute for Rick Fox, that is, defense.

Nash threw the ball directly into the basket, then turned around and ran to the backcourt.

"boom!"

"Di!"

"Oh!"

The next moment, the sound of a fierce rim blast, the referee's whistle, and the cheers of home fans rang out at the same time.

"The Knicks' fast breaks are impossible to defend, and the Lakers' two inside players are simply unable to keep up with Wolverine." Barkley shook his head.

"Devin George can sometimes deliver amazing blocks, but this foul was actually meaningless," Kenny Smith complained.

Dream laughed and said, "Wolverine and Nash have very good fast break coordination. In the Knicks' main lineup, if Wells, who can't shoot three-pointers and whose shooting is unstable, is replaced by Ray Allen, it would be a perfect match."

"Replace the aging Mutombo with Garnett and we'll win at least ten consecutive championships," Barkley exclaimed.

"Don't you want other teams to survive? Replace the Postman with Garnett, and this Lakers team can beat the Knicks." Kenny Smith shouted.

"Haha..." The three of them burst into laughter.

6:15, Lakers attack.

O'Neal went crazy and squeezed in without sparing any energy, even using his elbows.

He Zhongqiu was not polite either. He grabbed a soft tendon on O'Neal's lower back with his five fingers, which immediately made half of O'Neal's body numb.

He stepped back and O'Neal fell directly to the floor.

The referee simply didn't blow the whistle; he didn't see He Zhongqiu's little move.

The game did not stop, Kobe took the ball and attacked on the right wing.

Battier still blocked Kobe's right hand, and Wells in the high position was ready to assist in defense at any time.

Kobe faked a breakthrough and shot a three-point jump shot.

Battier still used the same old trick, blocking the opponent directly.

"Bang!"

The basketball bounced out of the basket and was caught by He Zhongqiu.

"Kobe missed three consecutive shots, making only 4 of 1 shots, including 3 of 1 three-pointers. Battier's defense was very effective today," said Xu Jicheng.

"O'Neal and Zhongqiu seem to have an argument." Zhang Heli said at this time.

On the court, O'Neal blocked He Zhongqiu's quick pass.

Nash came down to receive the ball, then advanced slowly, making a few fast breaks to control the rhythm so as not to consume his energy too quickly.

As O'Neal ran to the backcourt, he angrily said, "Wolverine, you caught me."

"Did you elbow me?" He Zhongqiu asked instead of answering.

"You used Eagle Claw to catch me, and you used Kung Fu. That's despicable!" O'Neal said angrily.

"You can't play basketball without using your elbows?" He Zhongqiu counterattacked.

"That was the postman, not me," O'Neal said without thinking.

"Fake!"

When the postman following behind heard this, his face suddenly turned dark.

I'm such a masochist. I could have gone to the Knicks to help Wolverine, but why did I come to cling to the OK team?
"Sardines, come and defend me."

He Zhongqiu came to the low post on the left wing and hooked his finger at O'Neal.

"asshole!"

O'Neal was about to follow Mutombo, but when he heard this, he got so angry that he strode over.

The postman next to He Zhongqiu saw it and hurried to the basket.

However, Nash saw that O'Neal had double-teamed the Wolverines in advance, leaving Mutombo open under the basket, so he quickly passed the ball.

"brush!"

Mutombo received the ball under the basket and made a successful layup before the Mailman could defend. After the shot, he shook his head with his back teeth showing in pride.

"Haha, 2 of 2 shots, Mutombo has found another open space under the basket." Barkley laughed.

"Is the Big Shark trying to double-team Wolverine in advance?" Dameng asked doubtfully.

"No, he was just stimulated. Looking at the replay, Wolverine hooked his finger at him and there should have been some trash talk." Kenny Smith laughed.

"We can't play like this. At 6:17, the Lakers made two three-pointers and the Knicks scored 8 goals." Dream said.

"Don't panic, Coach Phil Jackson called a timeout again." Barkley laughed.

"Kobe, don't just shoot three-pointers. That's what Battier wants you to do." After Kobe sat down, Phil Jackson said to him.

Kobe blinked, and this reminder brought him back to his senses. This should be the case.

Phil Jackson reminded again: "Kobe, Battier blocked your right hand, forced you to break through from the left, and then Wells double-teamed you in the right elbow area, you have to pay attention."

"I understand." Kobe nodded.

Phil Jackson said to O'Neal again: "Shaq, it looks like you need help."

A somewhat gloomy O'Neal said in frustration: "Wolverine is too difficult to deal with. I can't squeeze in. I can't go deep."

Nodding, Phil Jackson said, "I'll let the mailman screen for you, and then you go to the basket and play against Mutombo."

"I'll knock him over."

O'Neill perked up.

After the timeout, the Lakers attacked.

He Zhongqiu followed O'Neal to the low post and was suddenly blocked from behind.

At this moment, O'Neal in front of him suddenly turned around and ran to the basket past him.

As he was about to catch up, the Postman who was pushing against him pulled to the left wing while reaching for the ball at the top of the arc.

This left him with no choice. The Postman was the king of mid-range shots, and his shooting percentage was low when he was defended, but he couldn't leave the ball open. He could only choose to switch defense and keep up with the Postman.

But he didn't catch up quickly and took two full steps to keep the chance to return to defend the basket.

He judged that Payton should pass the ball to O'Neal under the basket. No matter how strong Mutombo's defense was, he could not defend against the Big Shark under the basket.

Sure enough, Payton didn't give the ball to the postman, but passed it to the basket. He immediately turned around and rushed to the basket.

Under the basket, O'Neal, with Mutomboka behind him, caught the ball with one hand, then turned left and dunked with both hands.

Mutombo under the basket could only jump to block the shot to avoid being called for a blocking foul.

He Zhongqiu rushed behind O'Neal and jumped to block the shot, grabbing it with an Eagle Claw technique.

"boom!"

With the heavy sound of the rim hitting the ground, the Knicks' basketball hoop sank two feet.

"Di!"

The referee's whistle blew.

"Oh, he is worthy of being called the Big Shark. Even two people under the basket can't defend against his dunk." Xu Jicheng said in surprise.

Zhang Heli said: "If Zhongqiu was in Mutombo's position, he might have a chance to pin down the Shark head-on. He can jump higher, and as long as he reacts quickly, he won't be able to pin him down if he's slow."

On the court, Mutombo and He Zhongqiu raised their hands at the same time, indicating that they had committed a foul.

"hiss!"

O'Neal shook his left hand, which had just been scratched by He Zhongqiu's claws. Fortunately, He Zhongqiu didn't grow his nails, otherwise a piece of flesh would have been gone.

The referee gave Mutombo a hand foul.

On the sidelines, Rick Carlisle yelled, “Dikembe, pay attention to the pick-and-roll and block the entry to the basket in time.”

Mutombo nodded.

It was indeed his problem just now. When O'Neal cut in from the bottom, he did not block O'Neal, allowing the Big Shark to successfully enter the basket.

"Bang!"

O'Neal missed the free throw and He Zhongqiu grabbed the backcourt rebound.

8:17, Knicks attack.

Wells broke through with the ball and made a quick stop jump shot, but missed. The Postman grabbed the backcourt rebound and the Lakers attacked.

Kobe got a reminder from Phil Jackson. This time, after getting the ball, he faked a shot and then actually broke through, but he only got one step inside the three-point line before immediately stopping and shooting.

At this position, Wells' double team had not yet reached him, and only Battier was on his right side. He used a fadeaway jumper, but Battier failed to block his eyes.

"brush!"

A splash appeared and a long two-point shot was made.

"Kobe made 5 of 2 shots." Xu Jicheng said.

"Wells' double-team position was the right elbow area, and he didn't expect Kobe didn't continue to break in, haha." Zhang Heli laughed.

"10:17, the Knicks can't be careless!" Yang Jian reminded.

On the left wing, two steps inside the forty-five-degree area of ​​the three-point line, He Zhongqiu ran there and stopped moving, stretching out his hand to ask for the ball.

When the postman saw it, he ran over quickly.

"Oh, so far from the penalty area, does Wolverine have the shooting range there?" Barkley said in surprise.

"So far, he has only taken mid-range two-point shots and no long two-point shots," Kenny Smith said with certainty.

When He Zhongqiu asked for the ball there, Battier quickly ran to the left corner and took away Devin George.

"The Knicks pulled away, and Wolverine singled out the Mailman." Dream said.

At this time, Nash passed the ball, He Zhongqiu received the ball, and performed the Chaos Step while dribbling.

The postman was shaken by his irregular steps, which made him feel dizzy, his feet were confused, his center of gravity was messed up, and finally his legs got tangled together and he sat down on the floor.

"Ha ha……"

The whole audience, including the commentators, laughed.

The postman slapped the floor and cursed, "Damn that crazy step, the step of a psychopath."

After shaking off the postman, He Zhongqiu got a wide open position and threw the basketball towards the backboard in the far two-point area.

"Bang! Swoosh!"

The basketball drew an arc, hit the backboard, then bounced downward and fell into the basket.

"Oh ho!"

"Clap clap clap..."

Madison Square Garden suddenly erupted in cheers and applause.

Barkley was very surprised and said: "I didn't expect Wolverine to be able to shoot long two-pointers. The Lakers are really in trouble now. Who can defend him there?"

"I can do it in my prime, but others can't."

Dream's tone was very certain, and he added: "Or double-team him. A smaller guy can do that. Wolverine doesn't dare to use the Chaos Step to knock down the Mailman. A smaller guy can steal his ball."

Kenny Smith said, "Kevin Garnett should be able to do it too, right?"

Dream immediately shook his head and said, "Garnett is fast in assisting defense, but his footwork is not as good as mine or Wolverine's. He will also be driven crazy by the shaking, just like the mailman."

"Haha..." Barkley and Smith laughed.

10:19, Lakers attack.

Under He Zhongqiu's toughest defense, Shaquille O'Neal had already consumed a lot of energy in positioning and attacking in the front and was panting heavily.

This time he was positioning himself in the low post on the left wing and temporarily did not have the energy to go deep, so he took the initiative to reduce the confrontation with He Zhongqiu. When he received the ball outside the penalty area, he could only attack with a hook shot.

His mid-range shooting is too poor. According to his playing style, he always squeezes into the basket and dunks, or shoots in the near two-point area. He rarely takes mid-range shots.

So this time, it was very frustrating for him.

He Zhongqiu was very happy because the physical exhaustion of the Great Shark showed that his playing style was correct.

"Bang!"

The mid-range shot missed, Mutombo grabbed the rebound and the Knicks attacked.

He Zhongqiu got the ball in the far two-point area again.

This time, Devin George and the Mailman double-teamed him, but he immediately passed the ball to Battier in the left corner.

"brush!"

Battier did not waste the open opportunity and made a three-pointer.

"Beautiful! 10:22, this ball was played beautifully." Xu Jicheng said excitedly.

Zhang Heli said excitedly: "Zhongqiu pulled to the far two-point area, which was too much of a distraction for the Lakers. If we don't double-team him, he can shoot the Mailman there. Double-team him, Battier's open three-pointer is very accurate."

The Lakers attacked and Kobe shot again.

Just like in the previous game, he dribbled past Battier, took one step inside the three-point line and then made a quick stop and jump shot.

"Bang!"

But this time Wells was mentally prepared, and the double-team was more effective, so he missed the shot during the double-team.

"Kobe made 6 of 2 shots," Kenny Smith said.

Barkley shook his head and said, "Wolverine also had a long two-pointer, and was also double-teamed, but he chose to pass the ball, while Kobe chose to shoot himself, and the results were different."

The Knicks attacked and He Zhongqiu got the ball in the far two-point area again.

This time, Devin George didn't dare to double-team.

Without double-teaming, the Wolverines can only shoot a two-pointer at most. With double-teaming, Battier will shoot a three-pointer, and he will still be responsible for this.

He Zhongqiu activated his Chaos God Steps, and through four steps, he patiently shook the postman to and fro, almost knocking him down, and then he calmly attacked from one meter away from the postman.

This time, the shot was still in an open space. Although it was only a small open space, his rebound shot was so fast that after he shot, the postman was still wandering around one meter away.

"Bang! Swoosh!"

A splash appeared and a long two-point shot was made.

"We must double-team! The Mailman has been completely out of position, and Wolverine is in an open position for the shot." Dream reminded.

"When I take open shots, I can make nine of ten." Barkley muttered.

Kenny Smith and Da Meng both laughed when they heard this.

Phil Jackson, who was not far away, heard what the two said and couldn't help but sigh.

The only way is to use Kobe to defend Battier, and then let Kobe double-team Wolverine.

Battier has always been the main defender of Kobe, but he did not arrange for Kobe to defend Battier because Battier is a 3D player who has few opportunities to break through with the ball and is far less lethal than Wells.

However, his tactic subsequently failed.

When Kobe came to defend Battier, He Zhongqiu still pulled out and brought out the Postman, but the Knicks' offense started from the other wing.

Nash immediately cooperated with Wells on the other wing, with Wells attacking O'Neal. At the same time, He Zhongqiu used his speed advantage to quickly get rid of the Mailman, cut in from the weak side, and cooperated with Willis, quickly causing O'Neal to foul.

At the end of the first quarter, at 16:33, the Knicks were leading by as many as 17 points. The Lakers' performance on both offense and defense was a mess, and their morale was very low.

Although Kobe did not give up, he was closely guarded by Battier and Wells, and his shooting percentage could not be improved.

The Lakers' core player, Shaquille O'Neal, was limited by He Zhongqiu's defense. Every time he fought for position, it was the most intense confrontation, which consumed a lot of physical energy, and he was never able to perform well.

In the end, the Lakers lost away from home, 72:101, and the Knicks won Game 1 of the Finals by 29 points.

"Champion! Champion..."

"Wolverine! Wolverine..."

When the final whistle sounded, excited Knicks fans cheered.

He Zhongqiu bowed to the audience in all directions to express his gratitude, and his teammates followed suit.

"Scott, if we win the championship at home, we have to decorate it well and try to add some Chinese characteristics." James Dolan said at this time.

"OK, Boss, I'll arrange it." Leiden said hurriedly.

On CCTV's live commentary booth, Zhang Heli analyzed: "In this game, tactically, the Knicks had a lot of initiative, and the Lakers played too passively."

Xu Jicheng nodded and said, "It's mainly because of the Mid-Autumn Festival. The Lakers can't do anything to him, so they can only passively follow him."

Yang Jian smiled and said: "Zhongqiu showed off his long two-point shot today, which was unexpected and caught the Lakers off guard."

"Yes, the Lakers don't know how to defend him on the perimeter and are very passive." Zhang Heli said with a smile.

这时数据整理出来了，杨建念道：“中秋上场32分钟，20投13中，命中率65%，6罚5中，轰下31分10篮板5助攻2抢断3盖帽3失误2犯规的数据。

Among 20 attempts, 7 were long two-point shots, and he made 4 of them. This hit rate is too high, even higher than his close two-point hit rate today.

And 4 of his shots were taken under double-teaming, and he made two of them, hitting the backboard from long distance was so accurate.”

Zhang Heli said with a smile: "With two points left, he had to face the double-team of the Mailman and O'Neal, and even the outside players participated in the restricted area defense.

The double-teaming force in the long two-point area on the wing is not as strong, so it is more accurate. "

Yang Jian continued, "O'Neal's performance today was average. He couldn't easily get into the restricted area. He consumed too much energy in the confrontation with Wolverine.

He made 14 of 6 shots, with a hit rate of only 42.9%. He couldn't get into the basket and had few free throw opportunities, only making 5 of 2 free throws. He got a total of 14 points and 12 rebounds, which was far lower than Zhongqiu's performance.

Among them, he made 6 of 1 mid-range shots, with a hit rate of 16.7%, which is similar to his usual mid-range shot hit rate.

I shot 3 of 1 from close range and 6 of 4 from close range, both of which were lower than usual.”

Xu Jicheng took the statistics table and looked at it, then said with a smile: "Basically, Zhongqiu defended him alone, and Mutombo would assist in defense after he entered the penalty area.

He and the Mailman played pick-and-roll in the low post. After the pick-and-roll, Mutombo couldn't stop the Sharks, allowing him to enter the basket several times. Otherwise, the performance would be even worse and he couldn't squeeze in at all. "

Zhang Heli took the statistics table and looked at it again, saying, "The other main players of the Knicks scored relatively evenly. Nash scored 15 points, Battier scored 13 points, Wells scored 11 points, Mutombo scored 8 points, Alan Houston scored 12 points, and with Zhongqiu, the six of them scored 90 points."

Yang Jian said: "Kobe made 24 of 10 shots, 7 of 1 three-pointers, 6 of 4 free throws, and scored 25 points, with a hit rate of 41.7%, which is not too bad, but as the first scoring point, the efficiency is very different from Zhongqiu.

Under the double-team of Battier and Wells, he rarely broke through and almost all of his shots were outside jump shots.

The Knicks' interior defense was very strong. They barely broke through the double-team of the first two players, and they were trapped when they got in.

The Mailman only scored 6 points under Mutombo's defense, Payton only scored 11 points under Wells' main defense, and Devin George only scored 14 points despite beating Nash.

Zhang Heli analyzed: "From this game, the Lakers' strength, how should I put it? Haha, it's really not as strong as the four-star lineup boasted by the Los Angeles media. It's very fake."

"Just fat." Yang Jian said with a smile.

"Yes, because of the bloat, after they defended O'Neal, the Lakers couldn't make any waves." Zhang Heli nodded and laughed.

Xu Jicheng said: "OK, there was still no cooperation. Kobe did not pass the ball to O'Neal once, and he worked alone even when he was double-teamed.

O'Neal can't beat Zhongqiu, he really can't beat him. If he dares to defend Zhongqiu on the defensive end, the scene will be even uglier. Zhongqiu can pull out and cut in and beat him. "

Yang Jian said excitedly: "O'Neal can't keep up with Wolverine's pace at all. In terms of personal strength, Wolverine has surpassed the Shark."

Zhang Heli said: "The Lakers are not strong because of the Big Four, but because of the OK combination. If they can't join forces, the Lakers have no hope."

At this point, he let out a long sigh, and then said excitedly: "The finals got off to a good start, I hope our Si Dai can show up."

(End of this chapter)