Grab Curry at the start

Chapter 243
When Love was resting, Zhang Sixin decided to start Paul George.

It's okay for the Timberwolves to make it to the Twin Towers lineup, but that will reduce their tactical flexibility.

The Timberwolves are now mainly attacking from the outside, and a young striker with a height is a good choice.

Paul George has improved a lot so far, and it is absolutely no problem to start in an ordinary team.

He has adapted well in the Timberwolves, especially on the defensive end.

Paul George is already a defensive-minded striker, and he played in college for two years. It is easier to adapt to the league than a player like Bledsoe who only played for one year.

With the current lineup of the Timberwolves, the defense against certain teams will be tighter.

Three days later, the Timberwolves ushered in another strong showdown, an away game against the Mavericks.

And they'll play back-to-back games on the road, with the Thunder coming after the Mavericks.

In the absence of Love, this will be a very severe test.

Zhang Sixin asked the players not to feel pressure, "We have a good record now, and we are not afraid of losing at all. And I know how to rely on the team's current lineup to win, so you can play with peace of mind."

The Mavericks lineup has changed since Chandler returned.

As for Butler, he has been unable to come back to play this season, so the Mavericks are still making some attempts at the second position.

There is another difference in this start. Marion did not continue to play as a substitute.

As far as Peja is concerned, the defensive rhythm is still a bit behind, and the offense is not very good now.

Of course, Marion's offense is relatively average now, and the Mavericks' starting lineup will change this season.

From these aspects, in fact, the Mavericks are not champions.

So in competitive sports, everything is possible in many cases.

In this game, Curry showed his attitude and hit the first goal strongly, which put enough pressure on the Mavericks.

With the opponent Marion starting, the Timberwolves flanked Nowitzki at the beginning.

This also caused Nowitzki to score consecutive shots to the outside line, and then gave them two outside lines to waste.

Kidd and Beaubois, sometimes shooting is really unreliable.

Because the Timberwolves took the lead, but without Love, the Mavericks began to increase their defensive strength against Curry.

Curry was not reluctant to be guarded, but gave DeRozan more opportunities.

The other is Paul George, a surprise player. The Timberwolves underestimate this rookie too much.

When the opponent paid less attention, George also seized several opportunities and made shots.

George hasn't had the chance to show more talent yet, but it's good for 3D.

The Mavericks are still the third, but when the Timberwolves have a surprise, it is natural that the Timberwolves naturally took the lead.

"Our current lineup is not weak, but the rebounds may suffer a bit." Zhang Sixin said.

Frame protection and rebounding are not the same thing. Milicic’s rebounding can only be said to be average compared to his height and wingspan. Pekovic is also the same, and Whiteside is growing relatively slowly.

A little rebounding gap won't be the key to the game, but the Mavericks will realize that it will be easier to limit the Timberwolves.

In fact, when it comes to the rotation period, they are a bit at a disadvantage.

The Mavericks' rotation is already strong, and it is difficult for the Timberwolves to do it when the lineup is complete. Now that Paul George mentioned the starting lineup, the Timberwolves' bench lineup is even weaker.

On the Mavericks side, both Terry and Peja played well, helping the Mavericks catch up with the score.

There is no way around this, the closer the playoffs are, the more Zhang Sixin will train the bench lineup, even if he loses a few games, he will admit it, so it is normal for there to be ups and downs in the middle of the game.

The Mavericks wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to close the game. They felt that the current Timberwolves were less threatening inside, so they didn't let Chandler play for a long time on the court, but played a small lineup.

Love is not there, the Timberwolves do not have an insider suitable for playing a small lineup, but the Mavericks' small lineup can't speed up very fast, and the Timberwolves play as usual.

The Mavericks' small lineup is indeed more offensive, but the defensive end will also be affected.

They thought limiting the Timberwolves' outside shots was enough, but reality taught them a lesson right away.

Wing players such as DeRozan and Matthews constantly hit the opponent's basket.

DeRozan, in particular, is now stronger with the ball than at the beginning of the season, and has almost reached the All-Star level. The Mavericks' defense was suddenly disrupted.

In this case, the Mavericks found that their most offensive lineup was not as good as the Timberwolves.

At the end of the first half, Matthews hit a three-pointer and the Timberwolves took the lead again.

After entering the intermission, Zhang Sixin highly praised the players, especially Paul George, who had a good starting performance.

He laughed and said to George, "Paul, I knew you could do it."

Paul George also patted his chest and promised that he would meticulously complete the coach's explanation in the second half.

Zhang Sixin said to the players: "Gentlemen, we have lost a strong partner, but we can still beat our opponents, because the Mavericks' lineup has obvious weaknesses. They can't do a team like ours on both offense and defense, so good."

"Continue to limit Nowitzki and try to cut him off from the rest of the Mavericks. We can win, trust me!"

In the Mavericks' locker room, their head coach Carlisle couldn't maintain the image of a gentleman.

It's really upset that the Timberwolves took the lead at halftime without Love.

If the Mavericks are in this state, how will they compete in the playoffs?

In fact, the Mavericks' rebounding did win a little, but the efficiency is not as high as the Timberwolves.

Carlisle is also a little upset that every time he plays against the Timberwolves, it is very uncomfortable.

The Timberwolves often flank Nowitzki, disrupting the Mavericks' tactics.

How could the Timberwolves fight like this in a strong duel? Carlisle felt that Zhang Sixin, a young man, did not understand the rules.

The Mavericks are actually not afraid of flanking, but the Timberwolves' team defense is really good.

Timberwolves players' tactical execution ability, rookies are very good, how did Zhang Sixin train the team, many coaches in the league are very puzzled.

On the sports field, there are some people who are talented, and there may be people who are talented on the coaching bench. Others can only think so.

In the third quarter, in order for the Mavericks to win, Nowitzki finally exerted his strength without reservation.

What is being unreserved and not sparing physical strength, it also represents the state of betting on superstars.

When the Timberwolves are flanking, Nowitzki will catch the ball more directly from the three-point line, or face the flanking.

Don't give priority to passing the ball, but work hard against the defense. If you don't do it well, the Mavericks will finish the game early.

But superstars are superstars, and they can do things that ordinary stars cannot.

(End of this chapter)