NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 646 "Lone Hero"

On Friday, May 2009, 5, after a short one-day break, the Cavaliers faced the crucial Game 22 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Away wins are very important. If the score is 2:0 again, we will face a life-and-death battle at home. No one in the team wants such a "script".

The perfect record of 67 wins was swept out, and head coach Mike Brown didn't know how to face the fans who praised him so much. The greater the hope, the greater the disappointment.
Before the game, Black Bread changed his previous attitude and became extremely low-key. He even refused some interviews on the grounds of training. It was not until before the game that Mike Brown took the initiative to express his position:
"We are not afraid of pressure, but an away win will allow the Cavaliers to lock in victory, and no one wants to miss this opportunity!"

"."

The general meaning of this statement is that the two home games must be won. Sports reporters did not pay attention to the lofty words, after all, everyone hoped that the game would be dragged into a tiebreak.

Before the series started, this best coach still had some of the demeanor of a famous coach, but after losing a game he became cautious and revealed a bit of his "rookie nature".

In contrast, after the Lakers lost at home, Phil Jackson was not panicked at all. After the game, he even joked with his opponent with a smile, showing the style of a champion coach:
"This is the conference finals, we relaxed too much, and losing will make everyone nervous, which I don't think is a bad thing."

"In response, the Lakers will also win on the road. Our goal has never changed, stay healthy and enter the finals!"

"."

Regardless of the sarcasm of Denver sports reporters, Phil Jackson always maintained absolute confidence and his championship experience far surpassed that of his opponents.

Before the game, TNT, as the broadcaster, naturally gave a preview. Doug Collins gave his own opinion through Excel and tactical analysis:

"The third quarter is the key. The difference between the two teams lies in the response to the ball. LeBron James must make the right choice and he needs to take on the responsibility of a leader."

After the game started at 20:1 that night, unlike G1, Li Youyi changed his slow start in the previous game and frequently used breakthroughs to initiate offense, no longer dealing cards from the outside like in G.

The chain reaction brought about by the excellent game state is that the Cavaliers have become more cautious, actively slowing down the offensive tempo, and relying purely on talent for positional offense.

There was no pursuit of three-pointers like in the previous game. Most of the offense was concentrated in the paint area. Head coach Mike Brown wanted to play defense himself. He finally understood the feeling of meeting Li You in the playoffs.
After scoring 30 points in the first quarter, the offensive efficiency dropped significantly in the second quarter. With 38.6 seconds left in the half, Ilgauskas, who was substituted off the court, stared at the situation on the court.

During the Cavaliers' offensive round, Howard received the ball in a too high position, encountered help defense and almost made a mistake. There were also problems with the subsequent pass. JR Smith almost succeeded in a risky steal on the right wing.

With little time left in the offense, the basketball returned to James at the top of the arc. When he received the ball, he initiated a pick-and-roll. Gasol no longer controlled the defensive distance, but cooperated with Marion to double-team him.

Veteran Joe Smith, who came off the bench, couldn't play in the low post at all. In a hurry, he immediately shot out with a fake screen.

James, holding the ball in his right hand and accelerating with his shoulders lowered, jumped up and threw the ball in the double-team, and his hairband was knocked off in the air.
"Oh!!"

Marion used his long arms to make a "wonderful" defense. Amid cheers, the basketball changed direction and Joe Smith had to lean over to catch the ball. He had no time to look at the frame and just threw the ball casually.

After getting up from the floor, James was still complaining loudly to the referee. As the basketball went into the net, the Chosen One immediately turned around and defended, fearing that the goal would be invalid.

53:56, the Cavaliers seemed to be blessed by God and once again tenaciously narrowed the gap.

"Unbelievable! Joe Smith scored in this way. Now the Cavaliers need to defend this round."

In the commentary booth, Marv Albert exclaimed like the fans, saying that without this three-pointer, the Cavaliers would obviously not be able to hold on.

"Let's go Knicks!."

The New York fans at the scene did not like this kind of lucky shot. In the last attack of the first half, many fans stood up and shouted, putting pressure on the opponent again. Although such a game was exciting, the viewing experience was not as pleasant as in the past.

Delonte West disappeared early, and Afflalo, who came off the bench, got more playing time.

He is strong and has some height advantages. Although he is a rookie with little experience, Afflalo is already the best defender in the Cavaliers' backcourt.

At the top of the arc, staring at the bouncing basketball nervously, facing Li You who was dribbling with his left hand, Afflalo tried hard to control his body's center of gravity and no longer revealed his defensive intentions in advance.

The Cavaliers' coaching staff also studied the details in depth. Li You always likes to pursue reasonable breakthroughs and is particularly good at attacking the defender's supporting foot. Naturally, some defensive strategies need to be formulated for this.

James on the left wing saw that his opponent Marion had started to move towards the bottom corner and hesitated for a moment. The latter came off the bench and made 2 of 2 three-pointers in the bottom corner.

The Knicks players' outside shooting was not affected at all, which made James feel uncomfortable. He turned his head back and finally reminded his teammates loudly, then moved into the three-point line to cut off the passing route.

Seeing Li You in the white jersey suddenly speed up his dribbling speed and change direction in front of his body very quickly, Afflalo was a little confused. He still maintained a parallel position and took small steps to accumulate power for the slide.

As Li You changed direction to his left hand, Afflalo immediately slid and successfully predicted the attack, but was still almost squeezed through.

He slid desperately to the right rear, and when he approached the three-point line, he noticed that Li You slowed down and dribbled the ball between his legs again, then took a step sideways. Afflalo jumped up to defend and blocked the shot.

At the right elbow, Li You raised the ball, his opponent jumped into the air, and then he calmly passed the ball to Gasol who was near the baseline on the right.

Watching the basketball fly out, Afflalo had just landed when Li You pretended to cut in and then turned around and ran back. The latter made a mistake in defense and subconsciously slid towards the paint area.

"Oh!"

Amid the cheers that resounded throughout the arena, he quickly bounced to the left wing, Gasol passed the ball, and the unguarded Li You calmly made a jump shot at the last second!
A buzzing sound was heard and the basketball went into the net. Li Youze, who completed the last attack, waved his arms again and couldn't stop shouting for a while.

53:59, the score difference reached 6 points, and the Cavaliers survived the second quarter.

The Knicks scored 29 points in a single quarter. During the rotation phase, the bench lineup performed well, which resulted in Li You playing for only 6 minutes and 26 seconds in the second quarter.

In the first half, with less than 18 minutes of playing time, Li You scored 14 points, 9 of 7 shots, 4 of 6 from beyond the three-point line, and 5 of 27 free throws, reversing the "sluggish" state in the first half of Game 1.

The boiling atmosphere in the arena made the Cavaliers players who were walking towards the player tunnel upset. The sluggish backcourt made it difficult for Howard to receive the ball. At this time, the "Happy Beast" completely lost his smile and signaled to his teammates after entering the tunnel:

"I can't catch the ball from such a far distance, throw it over at the first time, damn, help defense every time, they didn't defend like this in the past!"

Howard, with an angry look on his face, began to complain about the defensive treatment he received, which made it difficult for him to display his low-post skills and he was completely reduced to a tool in the first half.

James, with his head down, was in no mood to respond. In two quarters, the team made 7 of 2 three-pointers, including a half-court three-pointer and a lucky shot. He could feel that his teammates were losing confidence.

When entering the locker room, Mo Williams lost his temper, making 11 of 3 shots and 2 of 2 free throws, contributing 8 points, 6 of which were scored in the first quarter. After Mike Brown entered the room, he found that no one was talking, and he was a little embarrassed for a while. It was not easy to let the big man catch the ball in the dessert position. Now he had to make a choice:
"We have to have confidence in ourselves! Listen, guys, if we only look at talent, we won't lose to any opponent!"

"They will come out strong in the third quarter, and all we have to do is respond resolutely and everyone has to be ready."

In G1, the Knicks suddenly retreated with all their strength in the third quarter. Li You secured the victory by relying on transition offense and a wave of three-pointers. Mike Brown felt that the opponent would not make rash changes, but would stick to the same tactics.

Pointing at the whiteboard, he explained the opponent's intentions to the players, asking them to be prepared. Then he turned his eyes to James, with an expectant look on his face, and encouraged loudly:
"LeBron, you can make any offensive choice"

Hearing the coach signaling that he had unlimited firing rights, James nodded seriously. He trusted his teammates in the last game, so maybe he could "swing" on his own this time.

After the third quarter began, the Knicks took the lead in attacking again. Doug Collins analyzed the situation for a long time during the halftime break and finally came to the conclusion:
"A team without three-point shooting cannot beat the defending champions!"

His partner, groom Albert, almost laughed out loud when he heard this. There is no need to summarize this, as MSG has already explained the role of three-pointers to fans.

In large data samples, many times, "three-pointers are better than mid-range shots."

"Let's go Knicks!."

The cheers rang out again, and Delonte West stopped doing unnecessary defense. Instead, he stayed in the half court and punched himself twice, trying to boost morale.

Chandler came to the left wing early and stood still. As Gasol moved laterally at the right elbow, he set a screen. JR Smith, who was standing in the right corner, also began to move towards the upper line.

Facing the pick-and-roll, although Delonte West tried hard to squeeze through and Ilgauskas also came out with a big delay, Li You lowered his shoulders and accelerated, briefly got rid of the defense and instantly made a sideways pass.

Just after arriving at the right wing, JR Smith did not completely get rid of Mo Williams, but he still threw the ball after receiving it, completely ignoring the defense in front of him.
"Oh!"

Amid cheers, another three-pointer went in. Looking at JR Smith jumping and skipping, James turned around and ran towards half court, feeling increasingly unhappy. The Knicks' shooters were far superior to his teammates.

The score difference is about to reach double digits, and the crucial round is coming again.

It was still the big brother's tacit pick-and-roll. Facing Chandler who came to assist in defense, James moved sideways and immediately lowered his shoulders to accelerate, holding the ball in his right hand and striding towards the basket.

Prince and Chandler, who were chasing from behind, surrounded him, but James used his speed advantage to gain half a body position, rushed forward with three steps, raised his right hand high, and made a layup.

55:62, James, who had responded, also patted his chest vigorously, and did not forget to show his tough guy temperament when retreating
Head coach Mike Brown on the sidelines began to give passionate instructions again. When he saw Gasol coming to the upper line to set a screen, he kept reminding Howard loudly to go out to help defend.

Nearing the left wing, as Gasol set a fake screen, Li You, holding the ball in his left hand, gradually accelerated with the help of defense.

Howard tried hard to control his defensive distance and block the passing route as much as possible. When he was about to reach the blocking area, he assisted in defending the basket and reminded his teammates loudly at the same time.

After receiving the instructions, Delonte West wanted to take advantage of the situation to engage in physical confrontation and push Li You to the bottom line. The moment he moved his feet, the opponent in front of him suddenly shook his shoulder.

He subconsciously stopped to adjust his center of gravity. Before Delonte West could reach out his hand, Li You had already turned around, drifted with his left hand and threw the ball with one hand.

Just after returning to the basket, Howard saw this "irregular shooting action" and turned his head subconsciously. The basketball hit the backboard and fell into the basket. The latter came to his senses and then cursed again:
"Shet."

James quickly served the ball from the baseline and asked his teammates to set screens, then he slipped across the baseline from right to left. After setting the screen, Howard quickly squeezed to the lower right side of the basket to create space, while Ilgauskas moved to the right elbow area.

Mo Williams passed the ball from the top of the arc, and James took a tentative step immediately after receiving the ball in the blocking zone. Prince blocked the bottom line and began to turn his body sideways, while Li You moved to the elbow area.

Although his teammates had opportunities, James did not pass the ball back. Without waiting for the help defense to arrive, he directly pulled up for a jump shot!

"state!"

The basketball hit the rim and bounced out. James, who was not disturbed too much, let out a long sigh, tried to control his emotions, and once again loudly called out to his opponent to get into position as soon as possible.

It was almost the same tactic, but this time Ilgauskas' delay was wider. The big brother tried his best and forced Li You to pass the ball early.

JR Smith saw the big man retreating to the basket and immediately passed the ball back. As Li You received the ball near the top of the arc, the Knicks' wing began to move towards the bottom corner again.

James took the initiative this time, leaving Prince open. The left wing had just started moving, and Li You, who was protecting the ball on the right side of his body, suddenly faced the defense, leaned back slightly and forced a jump shot!

"Lee! It's gone!"

Amid the cheers, Marv Albert leaned back and scored a goal cleanly and neatly. It was totally unreasonable. Doug Collins, who had witnessed it many times, couldn't help but sigh:
"Incredible shooting ability! We were thinking Howard would limit Lee's breakthrough, but tonight Lee solved the problem just by shooting!"

"."

Looking at Delonte West who was throwing his hands up in frustration, James did not blame his teammate. He was also a little annoyed. This was just a random throw with no tactical support at all.

Looking back, Howard forced the ball in the low post on the left side, turned around immediately after receiving the ball, squeezed to the basket along the baseline, but failed to break through after the fake, and forced a layup, but was blocked by Gasol from behind.

Four big guys huddled together under the basket, and finally Chandler held the rebound in his arms. After passing the ball, he roared passionately, causing the New York fans behind him to scream continuously.

James, showing his leadership qualities, waved his hand directly this time, indicating that he would defend. It was rare to see the chosen one choose to defend a smaller player. Li You first passed the ball to Prince, and then ran to the right blocking area.

James, who was defending, kept confronting, but Li You didn't mind catching the ball far away from the basket. Prince made a successful lob and everyone immediately moved away.

James turned around immediately after seeing Li You catch the ball, and quickly adjusted his center of gravity and got into position.

With a quick tentative step with his right foot, Li You turned sideways to kick the ball, ignoring the defense, and shot another fadeaway jump shot.

"Shh!"

The basketball went into the net. Seeing that James was still blocking the shot, Li You smiled and patted him on the shoulder again, encouraging him kindly:

"Enjoy the game, man! I can teach you a jump shot!"

(End of this chapter)