basketball player

Chapter 298 Chapter 296: The Third Substitute

Most of Oklahoma's native casters kept their mouths shut. A few minutes ago they were smug, but now everyone has discovered a terrible truth.

Even if the Pacers lose Chris Paul, the core playmaker, they can still play [-]-[-] with the Thunder!

The Thunder and the Pacers took turns to attack, but in the end, neither of them could widen the gap.When more than half of the first quarter was played, the depth of the Thunder's bench was tested.

Following Leonard's three-pointer over Serge Ibaka, a brave drive by Paul George netted the Congolese his second foul of the game.Horford pulled Perkins out of the three-second zone, and there is no doubt that Ibaka's foul pressure will become greater, because there is no second insider who can help him share these fouls.

Brooks hurriedly urged the veteran Nick Collison, who had been in the team since the Sonics, to replace Ibaka. However, Collison's ability to protect the frame was not as impressive as that of Ibaka.

Collison entered the industry in 04, and he has averaged only 9.8 points in the season with the highest scoring average of his career.As a blue-collar veteran, Collison is more of the spiritual leader of this group of young Thunder, and you can hardly expect him to make any substantial contributions.This is similar to Haslem of the Heat.

As a result, the Pacers' air cuts have "intensified". The common problems of white insiders such as general bounce and slow movement speed can be found in Collison.

Horford's support was very good. As long as the person who cuts up the speed in advance, Collison can hardly successfully protect the frame.

After Ibaka left the field, the Thunder immediately fell into a disadvantage.Brooks had to switch positions between Collison and Perkins, with Perkins protecting the frame and Collison going to defend Horford, who was active in the high post.

After a few minutes, the Thunder's defense picked up.But Henson also saw his tricks, increasing the proportion of Horford's personal singles.With speed at his command, Horford has countless ways to break Collison's defense.

Horford is very confident in high jump shots, breakthroughs after fake shots, and post-up singles. He showed his all-round offensive skills in front of Collison.

In this way, the game reached the last 3 minutes of the first quarter, and the Thunder entered the rotation time with a 6-point disadvantage!

Henson replaced the lineup of Augustin, Ray Allen, Green, Yi Jianlian and Anderson, while for the Thunder, Brooks placed high hopes on Kevin Martin!

Kevin Martin, this is a very important bargaining chip in the Harden deal between the Rockets and the Thunder.During the Kings period, Kevin Martin was undoubtedly the team's top scorer.After transferring to the Rockets, he can be regarded as the boss of the rebuilding team.And now coming to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Brooks' positioning of Martin is undoubtedly Harden last season!
Facts have proved that Martin has lived up to expectations. In the case of coming off the bench and his playing time plummeted, Martin is still able to score 14 points per game this season, and his three-point shooting percentage is also impressive 42.6%.It can be said that he almost perfectly filled the vacancy left by Harden's departure, and Martin is more experienced than Harden.

Now facing the Pacers' second team, Brooks naturally hopes that Martin can lead the team to recover the score.As a result, the game continued to circulate like falling into a strange circle.Kevin Martin made consecutive shots with penalties, which brought the Thunder to a 6-0 offensive, tying the score in a daze.

Augustine and Ray Allen can put too little pressure on Kevin Martin, although after the first quarter, the Pacers still hold a 4-point advantage.But the two sides have been attacking each other like this, which is not what Henson wants to see.

Bench depth, Henson believes that he still has the depth of the bench to dig.

In the second quarter, Ibaka returned, but because he had committed two fouls, he was still somewhat timid on the defensive end.But fortunately, Durant's increasingly mature offensive skills can always allow the Thunder to use offense to fill the deficiencies in defense.

On the Pacers side, Horford, who has experienced success in the first quarter and is full of confidence, is also playing more and more smoothly.He even increased the proportion of his dribble movement, playing like a real point guard.

Because Horford's offensive threat is almost all over the halfcourt, the Thunder have been uncertain whether to deal with Horford to help defend or block the pass lane.

The scores of the two sides rose alternately in the exciting battle, but the coaches of the two teams seemed not in a hurry.

After Maynor scored a goal, Martin made two free throws. With Westbrook hitting two consecutive three-pointers, the Thunder played a wave of 12-2 attacks and quickly gained a 13-point lead. 13 points, this is also the biggest gap between the two sides so far in today's game!
But do you think this is stable?The Pacers are not to be outdone, and the defending champion is not so easily defeated.George and Stephenson fired continuously, and together they played a 13-0 attack wave to tie the score.

The two sides fell into a state where no one could guard the other, and everything seemed to be a cycle of the first quarter.What Brooks thinks is to use Kevin Martin to open the score in the rotation time, but what Henson thinks is to lock Kevin Martin in the rotation time to achieve the purpose of opening the score.

The two coaches each have their own plans, so no matter how anxious the situation on the field is, they are indifferent.

"We are now falling into the rhythm of the Thunder, and we are trying to play against them! Although the shooting percentages on both sides are high, we are not an offensive team after all! Henson, don't you adjust your strategy?" Vogel couldn't sit still. He was originally a more defensive coach, and he was always unable to reassure him about offense.

Facing Vogel's suggestion, Henson just waved his hand, "No, we don't fight against each other. Wait a minute, soon."

Henson didn't change his face, and the fans spent 8 minutes in this addictive offensive battle.The youngsters of the two teams showed their unparalleled talents, and the fast-paced offensive and defensive transitions made the ratings of this nationally broadcast game skyrocket.

And this timeout, Henson and Brooks picked up the tactical board almost at the same time and stood in front of everyone.Both coaches hope that this timeout will turn into a turning point that will change the situation of the game!
"Shoot more shots for Kevin, and set up more screens for him! Shoot when you have the opportunity, just like you did in Sacramento! Your task is to open the score during the rotation time and lay the foundation for our offense in the second half!" Brooks squatted in front of Kevin Martin. Since no one in the starting lineup can defend anyone, then use the rotation lineup as a hindrance!

"Jimmy, I want you to watch Martin die! I want you to put pressure on him both offensively and defensively! Consume him and reduce his shooting percentage as much as possible! Even if it's a chaotic fight, don't be afraid, we can still punch them to death." Henson sat in front of Jimmy Butler.

In the rotation time of the first quarter, the effect of Augustine and Ray Allen's partnership at the back line was not good.So, Henson decided to test the waters with Butler Garley Allen's partner.And whether Jimmy Butler's performance is outstanding is directly related to the success of Henson's plan B
As for organizing the offense, Henson doesn't need an organizer this time, and he doesn't plan to use the power of the team to confront the Thunder again.Instead, we need to see how Kevin Martin can contain Jimmy Butler's singles.

Martin is actually a very strange player, with strong scoring ability, but poor confrontation and defense ability, which determines that he cannot be a leader.Therefore, the team with Martin as the core usually has a poor record.And if he goes to a strong team as an auxiliary point, he needs a partner with strong defensive ability to "check for gaps" for him.

Martin's very classic "performance" on the defensive end was in 2011. Mavericks veteran Peja Stojakovic was already in the twilight of his career. It can be said that he has been reduced to a pure shooter.

As a result, when the Mavericks met the Kings, Carlisle asked Peja to back up and beat Martin hard, and they really broke into two. This shows how vulnerable Martin's defense is.

Now, Henson wants to do something similar to Carlisle, singles Martin!But Henson's ball-handling singles point is not Peja, but the young and vigorous Jimmy Butler!
In the games before this season, Butler has accumulated some reputation in the league relying on defense.Now, it's time to put his offensive talents to work.

After the timeout ended, Brooks looked at the court and couldn't help but feel shocked.Henson changes again, and every time Henson changes, Brooks will feel nervous.Because he couldn't figure out the purpose of Henson's change.

"Come on, Coach Henson has once again brought out his secret weapon, Jimmy Butler. Butler has played the role of a firefighter for the Pacers this season. Many times when the Pacers are unable to open up, Coach Henson will let Jimmy play. Look forward to it, this guy is more powerful than you think!"

Seeing Butler play, Barkley immediately got excited.After all, this season is not the first time he has seen Jimmy Butler perform well.

"But in this way, the Pacers will have no point of attack." Kenny Smith spread his hands and didn't want a point guard. Is this Henson's approach?

In the first round after returning from the timeout, Jimmy Butler used his active defense and tough confrontation to force Kevin Martin, who was not physically strong, to make a shot.But then, the Pacers were pushed by Jimmy Butler with the ball.This scene made Brooks and Kenny Smith dumbfounded.

"As far as I know, Jimmy Butler is not a qualified point guard."

The Thunder's defensive focus was on Ray Allen, but Jimmy Butler didn't even intend to pass the ball after he took possession of the ball for half the court. Instead, he gradually lowered his center of gravity and then accelerated the frequency of dribbling.At the same time, the Pacers players completely emptied Butler's side after a run!
"This is to let that guy play singles with the ball?" Brooks was stunned. Is Henson so bold?Dare to let him play singles with the ball on the third substitute?

Henson smiled smugly, thinking that Jimmy Butler was only here to defend?So stay tuned!

　Good noon everyone, today is the last day and three changes, and tomorrow will return to normal, and the additions will be accumulated until tomorrow~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)