Coach, I don't want to retire yet

Chapter 601: Fighting between gods!

The Lakers have not lost a game in the crucial stage of this season.

When a team has three players like Kobe, McGrady and Yao Ming, it is indeed very difficult to lose in the final decisive moment.

Therefore, many people say that as long as these three players are there, the Lakers only need to keep the score close in the previous games and leave enough physical strength for the three players.

Therefore, Popovich's job actually became very simple, which was to adjust his rotation so that Yao Ming, McGrady and Kobe would have enough energy at the last moment, and then replace the three of them at the last moment, and all problems would be solved.

There are 5 minutes and 59 seconds left in the game. At this moment, the score between the two teams is tied at 120, a very big score, even more like an All-Star game. However, no audience who watched this game would say that this game was a game without defense or confrontation.

In this game, both teams basically pushed their defense to the maximum and also pushed their confrontation to the maximum, but both sides were able to score and scored very efficiently. So far in the game, there has been no scoring panic for either team.

It is said that the NBA playoffs are prepared for superstar players because ordinary All-Star players are prone to sudden power outages and mistakes during high-intensity games.

The players on the court of the Lakers and the Bobcats are all superstars.

Even an extremely good 3D player like Danny Green of the Lakers was not even qualified to play a few more minutes in the game.

Even players like Danny Green could become targets for the opponent.

This is really magical.

It is really incredible that a player like Danny Green is not qualified to participate in such a game.

After all, players like Danny Green may not be stable in three-point shooting, but in the playoffs, they are more useful than some All-Star players. Their role in the playoffs can be completely regarded as that of an All-Star player or even a quasi-superstar.

Such a player is not qualified to play in such a game, because he cannot defend any opponent when he appears on the court. At the same time, he does not have a stable offense and has a completely negative effect on the court.

This is magical and incredible.

And now, this incredible and magical game is finally coming to an end.

Yao Ming, McGrady, Kobe, Antetokounmpo, and McCaw, this is the Lakers' final lineup for the final battle.

On the Bobcats side, there are Duncan, Thabeet, Beasley, Jordan and Rose.

O'Neal did not play, and the Bobcats did not use O'Neal to compete against Yao Ming.

Coach D chose to hand Yao Ming over to Duncan.

There is no way Yao Ming was handed over to Thabeet.

Putting Thabeet in front of Yao Ming is basically a gift.

The reason why so many experts and media at the scene have such strong opinions about Du Kang not playing with O'Neal is actually very simple. It is because O'Neal can not only compete with Yao Ming on the offensive end, but also help Duncan on the defensive end and fill the Bobcats' inside line.

The two inside players of O'Neal and Duncan can completely block the basket. No matter how strong Yao Ming is, he can't get to the basket on offense. No matter how strong Yao Ming is on defense, it will be very difficult for him to defend against both O'Neal and Duncan on the basket.

Therefore, from the perspective of these expert media and fans, the Bobcats are not without means to deal with Yao Ming's super performance in critical moments, but Coach D does not seem to use them.

While the commentators around were talking about how good it was to substitute O'Neal to play in crucial moments, Barkley chose to go against the flow with his colleagues this time.

"These people seem to have forgotten how great a center Yao is, and how good shooters TMC and Kobe are. If the Bobcats have to have two players on the court to deal with Yao alone, then TMC and Kobe will make the Bobcats pay the most painful price! No one in the world knows the strength and ability of Yao, TMC and Kobe better than Coach D. To play against the three of them, you can only play one-on-one. Throughout the game, Coach D played one-on-one against the three of them!"

"So, the question now is not why Coach D chose Duncan, the question now should be whether Duncan can stand up to Yao one-on-one!"

Barkley's words are definitely thought-provoking, especially at this moment.

The audience in front of the TV and the fans online all understood why Coach D made such a choice.

"Coach D looked like he was committing suicide, but in reality, he chose the only way to win!"

The double center of O'Neal and Duncan can stop Yao Ming, but the Bobcats will definitely lose!
Regardless of whether they supported O'Neal or not, at this moment, almost everyone looked at Duncan and understood Duncan's role in the Bobcats.

The game resumed and the Lakers attacked.

Under the harassment of Rose, McCaw quickly broke through the half court with the help of Antetokounmpo's screen.

After McCaw brought the ball outside the three-point line, he passed the basketball in his hand to Antetokounmpo.

Neither Antetokounmpo nor McCaw have consistent shooting ability.

But the two were able to replace Jokic, Ebanks and Roy and stay on the court at critical moments, mainly because they have extremely strong athletic ability.

Their presence can make up for the athletic vitality of Yao Ming, McGrady and Kobe. The presence of the two can provide great vitality to the Lakers on both offense and defense.

Although the two do not have stable shooting ability, it is impossible for the opponent to leave them alone because they have strong off-ball abilities and can distract the defense for the team's three big brothers.

After McCaw passed the ball, he cut to the basket just like Jordan did on the offensive end.

Even if McCaw doesn't attack under the basket, he can reduce the pressure on Yao Ming by just cutting.

It's just like when Jordan cuts to Yao Ming, he can pull Yao Ming away and create offensive space for O'Neal.

This was the Lakers' first attack after the timeout, and the success rate was very important, so the whole world knew that Antetokounmpo was preparing to pass the ball to Yao Ming.

Duncan was trying to position himself against Yao Ming, preventing him from receiving the ball.

However, this kind of half-circle has limited effect on Yao Ming, because Yao Ming's off-ball running and positioning are too strong, with gold-level skills, the running and receiving of a top guard player.

With two easy moves, he shook off Duncan and received the pass from Antetokounmpo.

Seeing this scene, many Bobcats fans at the scene exclaimed, and at the same time they were glad that Duncan did not completely go around Yao Ming.

If Duncan chooses to completely bypass Yao Ming, then Yao Ming will definitely be able to completely get rid of Duncan. Duncan will not even have a chance to defend and can only watch Yao Ming receive the pass from Antetokounmpo and dunk.

Because it was a half-circle, half of Duncan's body was always behind Yao Ming. The moment Yao Ming received the ball, Duncan retreated behind Yao Ming and held him back.

Yao Ming's back-turning breakthrough failed.

Duncan chose to half-circle forward. How could Yao Ming not know what Duncan was planning?

Therefore, the moment he received the ball, Yao Ming turned around and broke through.

However, Duncan's lateral movement and agility were too high, and in the end, his back turn was stuck.

"Oh my god, the ball stopped. Duncan was defending Yao Ming alone and actually stopped the ball!!!"

What amazed the audience and fans, experts and media around the world was not that Duncan defended Yao Ming, but that he simply stopped the ball from Yao Ming, and forced Yao Ming, who wanted to attack, to stop the ball when he could not continue. This was already shocking enough.

This shows how powerful Yao Ming is now.

Some players' statistics may not look very impressive, but their strength can be clearly seen once you watch the game.

As long as Yao Ming wants to attack, the success rate is not 100%, but it is definitely 100%. It depends on your luck. It is not a problem of being unable to defend, but a problem of being unstoppable. As long as Yao Ming is willing to attack, no one can stop him. All you can do is pray to God that the ball does not go in.

And Duncan blocked Yao Ming who wanted to attack!
Yao Ming naturally knew that the ball was dead, so without any hesitation, he chose to hook the ball sideways against Duncan's defense.

"Oh my god, I actually saw Yao Ming's hook shot!!!"

"Because Yao Ming anticipated that Tim Duncan would be able to find his hook shot, and also anticipated that Duncan's athletic ability and jumping ability would be extremely strong!"

Duncan's jumping ability and wingspan are indeed excellent. Even if Yao Ming has jumped up, the basketball almost flies past Duncan's fingertips.

A swipe!
Yao Ming received the pass from Antetokounmpo and made a side hook shot under the basket!
122 is better than 120!

The Lakers took the lead!
Still got in!

Duncan looked back blankly at the basketball that fell to the ground, still feeling incredible.

He has already used his defense, athletic ability and predictive experience to the extreme, but he still can't defend Yao Ming.

He had never seen such a strong player. On the other side, many experts, media and commentators at the scene were also in an uproar.

"I've never seen Yao Ming's offense so difficult. Yao Ming actually forced the attack, and even though he forced the attack, he was almost blocked!!!"

Teacher Zhang Heli was shouting madly.

Normally, Yao Ming only needs to put in 8% of his effort on the offensive end to collapse the opponent.

This time, Yao Ming contributed at least 9 points, but he was almost blocked!

That's the difference!
"The current Tim Duncan is definitely the second best interior defender in NBA history!"

The player with the best interior defense is of course Yao Ming!

The reason why Yao Ming is the strongest player in history without any controversy is that his defense and offense are equally strong!
Even O'Neal, who was the best offensively except for Yao Ming, gave in and admitted defeat after attacking Yao Ming once.

After O'Neal left the court, everyone felt that the offense of both players on the court had returned from heaven to earth. No matter whether it was Thabeet, Kobe or McGrady, their offense did not have the kind of invincible dominance of O'Neal.

Let’s first discuss whether O’Neal was really invincible in those few minutes, but from the visual point of view, he really looked invincible as he rushed forward and knocked his opponents to the ground.

After Yao Ming scored this goal with a rare strong attack, the Bobcats went on the offensive.

Jordan of the Bobcats dribbled the ball across half court and pressed to the three-point line. Beasley and Rose were without the ball on the wings, while Duncan went to the free throw line to cover his teammates' movement. Thabeet made a move to receive the ball outside the 45-degree three-point line on the right, while Antetokounmpo clung to Thabeet.

"Beasley got rid of TMC and ran into the open space!"

When the people arrive, the ball will arrive soon!
Except for the problem with his shooting, Danzi is perfect in other aspects.

The passing wasn't top notch, but it was adequate.

There was a brushing sound!
Beasley hits a mid-range fadeaway jump shot!

122 is better than 122!

"The Lakers have an almost invincible offense, and so do the Bobcats!"

If Antetokounmpo can hold Thabeet, who will defend Beasley who has the strongest offense, and who can defend Beasley who has a purple level of running position?
Beasley is the strongest offensively, and Thabeet is the strongest in singles. These two, plus Rose, are the most stable offensive players of the Bobcats and the most reliable players.

If the Lakers played against Yao Ming, McGrady and Kobe at critical moments.

The Bobcats played with Beasley, Thabeet and Rose.

Lakers offense.

This time Yao Ming did not choose to work with Duncan under the basket. This time, Yao Ming pulled out.

"Duncan followed out!"

"Tim Duncan can not only push well under the basket, but he can also pull out!"

However, this time, Yao Ming did not ask for the ball to play one-on-one against Duncan outside. It would definitely be more difficult to play one-on-one against Duncan outside. The closer to the basket, the higher the hit rate. Yao Ming understood this principle.

Yao Ming was pulled out not to attack himself, but to create opportunities for his teammates.

"The Yao-Kobe pick-and-roll, the Yao Ming and Kobe pick-and-roll finally appeared. At the critical moment, the most invincible Yao-Kobe pick-and-roll appeared!!!"

Outside the three-point line, Yao Ming and Kobe performed pick-and-roll, and Yao Ming even held up two people by himself!

In the end, although Jordan escaped, he could only run to Kobe in despair and be shot by Kobe's three-pointer!

A swipe!
Kobe and Yao Ming made a three-pointer after the pick-and-roll!
125 is better than 122!

"Michael, see? Now, it's just the beginning!"

Kobe was very happy after shooting a three-pointer at Jordan.

Jordan remained silent.

In this game, in this finals, the coach told him not to think too much. This time, he came here to learn and see what the real top combat power is like.

He needs to use this finals to see what the current landscape of NBA basketball is like.

In his era, it was hard to imagine a guard with the ball, after leveling with a big man, throwing the ball directly from one step outside the three-point line.

This kind of three-point confidence made Jordan feel incredible.

Looking back, the Bobcats attacked, Jordan held the ball at the top of the arc, and Thabeet, who was held by Antetokounmpo, suddenly started.

A 2-meter-tall center can actually rival Antetokounmpo in terms of instantaneous burst!
Kobe took the basketball from Jordan and helped Thabeet block Antetokounmpo. At the same time, Kobe stuck to Thabeet. Looking at Kobe who was sticking to him, Thabeet smiled again.

This feeling is familiar, too familiar!

Without any hesitation or even jumping, Thabeet shot the basketball over Kobe's head from outside the three-point line.

A swipe!
Three point hit!

125 is better than 125!

"It's tied, the two teams are tied again, incredible Thabeet! When a 2-meter-tall center can run without the ball and catch the ball and play one-on-one like a shooting guard, you can't do anything!!!"

Kezi, who had just pretended to be so cool in front of Jordan, really felt a strong sense of helplessness at this moment.

Strong!

Facing Thabeet, he felt like he was facing Yao, and that feeling of powerlessness was even stronger than facing TMC and Beasley.

Looking at his teammates and opponents who were already playing very lively on the court, Duncan was very excited but remained calm on the surface.

He is still adapting to his current body. He doesn't dare to attack yet. He can only rely on defense to adapt.

His teammates and coaches are supporting him with their efforts and strength, giving him enough time to adapt to this body!

Lakers offense.

"Oh my god, this time, it's a Yao-McGrady pick-and-roll!!!"

Yao Ming and McGrady set a pick-and-roll. McGrady stood behind Yao Ming, jumped high, and took a three-point shot!

Duncan and Beasley could only watch the basketball fly into the air!

There was a brushing sound!
128 is better than 125!

This three-pointer from McGrady looks more stable than the one from Kobe just now.

In terms of temperament, Maizi can really grasp the players from all over the world.

Bobcats offense.

"Oh my god, Rose knocked down McCaw!!!"

"Three points, this is Rose's three points!!!"

“It’s still a hit!!! Oh my god, it’s still a hit!!!”

"Gods, these people on the court are real gods!"

"Right now, the gods are fighting. The group of gods brought by Coach Xiao Du are fighting right now!!!"

(End of this chapter)