unfinished glory

Chapter 114
On April 4, the playoffs officially began.

On the first day of the game, the Nuggets were beaten by Yao Ming at home. He scored a big double-double with 41 points and 22 rebounds, leading the Rockets to victory.

Marcus Camby of the Nuggets has been afraid to go inside, and can only rely on sneaky outside shots to get 7 points.

He only had one blocked shot that he was proud of, but he ate Yao Ming's hot pot twice.

Yao Ming alone propped up the Rockets' inside line, and the defensive end ruled the Nuggets into obedience.Anthony and Andre Miller could only shoot from the outside, but each scored 25 points to help the team hold the scene.

But the Nuggets only shot 35% of their shots, and other players failed to give more help to the two backcourts.

George Karl rolled his eyes anxiously on the sidelines. He wanted to send a player up to do some dirty tricks, but he also thought of the recent trend of the league. He had no choice but to swallow the bitter fruit of the first defeat.

After Li Chongxiao congratulated Yao Ming, he ushered in the second day of the game between the Spurs and the Grizzlies.

As a young man under the age of 20, Li Chongxiao felt relieved.

I am forced by the team's tactical needs, so it's fine to play as a substitute, and someone is competing with me for the best sixth man?
Halfway through the first quarter of the game, Li Chongxiao and Mike Miller played at the same time, and the latter's nightmare came.

When Li Chongxiao was on the court, he always played very focused and serious, but this game was more serious, and he showed [-] points of strength.

Li Chongxiao is too experienced in the offensive style of a pitcher-type player like Mike Miller. He himself was this type of player last season.

What's more, he also made up lessons before the game, specifically observing the opponent's offensive habits.

After entering the field, Li Chongxiao immediately followed Mike Miller. Throughout the first quarter, he didn't give the opponent a chance to make a move.

For half a quarter, Mike Miller seemed to be invisible, completely out of the team's offensive system.

Grizzlies coach Mike Fratello saw his backup sharp knife was defended to death, but did not make adjustments immediately.He mainly wanted to see if Mike Miller could hold back Li Chongxiao and slow down the Spurs' offensive rhythm.

But he was obviously disappointed. Not only did Mike Miller make no achievements on the offensive end, but he was also given by Li Chongxiao on the defensive end.

Li Chongxiao, who has successfully unlocked many offensive postures this season, showed them one by one on the stage of the playoffs.

After a season of tempering, his breakthrough skills finally matured. Facing a fairly average defender like Mike Miller, Li Chongxiao didn't play with rhythm much, and directly used his speed to pass in one step.

The Grizzlies' inside line is relatively average, and the core player is a "soft guy" like Gasol who is not good at physical confrontation. Li Chongxiao succeeded in two consecutive strong against him.

After the Grizzlies strengthened their interior defense, Li Chongxiao took advantage of his wide vision and kept feeding Duncan the ball.

If Li Chongxiao is just a breakthrough, the Grizzlies can still handle it, but his famous offensive skill is shooting.All kinds of corner three-pointers, catch-and-shoot mid-range shots, pull-up jump shots, and strong singles shots with the ball.

Facing the crazy Li Chongxiao, the Grizzlies could only send Battier up to defend, but the senior couldn't hold back the momentum of the junior.

Li Chongxiao understands that his offensive ability with the ball is only half practiced, and he is fine against a half-baked player like Mike Miller, but he still can't handle it freely when facing an excellent defensive player like Battier.

So he changed the way he played, focusing on passing and catching and shooting, which obviously hit Battier's weakness.

Since Li Chongxiao came on the court, he has not stopped scoring. This game is obviously in his rhythm.

There were several games like this in the regular season, and Li Chongxiao, who entered his own rhythm, was unstoppable.The teammates were also happy and relaxed, and continued to cooperate. Anyway, the point difference kept widening.

By the end of the third quarter, the Spurs led by 25 points, and the game was completely one-sided.

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Grizzlies concentrated on a counterattack, but were suppressed by Li Chongxiao and Duncan.

So the Grizzlies completely gave up the game, and the Spurs made a good start to the playoffs at home.

After the game, the reporters focused their questions on Li Chongxiao, asking whether he was very excited because of the competition for the best sixth man.

He played 31 minutes and scored a game-high 36 points.And Mike Miller only played 14 minutes, the score is a pitiful 4 points, high or low judgment.

Li Chongxiao had nothing to be modest about, and directly admitted that this award really stimulated him.

……

In the second game, the Grizzlies obviously made preparations, and Mike Miller started directly.

This is indeed beyond the expectations of the Spurs, but it cannot escape the palm of the Spurs. Popovich adjusted his defensive position accordingly, hoping that Mike Miller, who is a surprise soldier, will meet Bowen again.

The Grizzlies, who were tactically passive, were defeated in the first quarter, losing [-] points in a single quarter.

Although Mike Fratello made adjustments in time, the point difference was slowly opened.

Li Chongxiao didn't make any outstanding contributions in this game, and his teammates played the game step by step, but the grizzly bear was like a bird locked in a cage, no matter how totem it was, it couldn't fly out.

This game hurt the Grizzlies very much. With the best record in team history, they entered the playoffs. They thought they would have a wonderful performance, but who knew that they would still be beaten to pieces when they met the defending champion.

Mike Fratello thoroughly confirmed the strength gap between the team and the Spurs through this game.He no longer fantasized about getting out of the first round, but set his goal on winning the next game.

The third game is the best chance for the Grizzlies to win, not only with Memphis' home court advantage, but also reflected in the tactical initiative.

The winning team generally plays relatively conservatively and will continue to use the previous winning tactics.The losing side can be more flexible and bold tactically.

Moreover, the news that Duncan suffered repeated injuries and may miss the game before the game also made the Grizzlies full of confidence, feeling that they are not far from winning the first playoff game in team history.

Although Duncan still appeared on the court when the game started, which made the Grizzlies have some regrets, but it did not dispel their determination at all.

In the first quarter of the game, the Grizzlies' tactics were very active, and the whole team was very active.Mike Miller, who came off the bench, was no longer afraid of Li Chongxiao, and started to make strong shots against the defense, scoring two points in one of three.

Duncan's body is indeed a little uncomfortable, and his state is not stable, which gave the Grizzlies the opportunity to take advantage of the loopholes, and they frequently succeeded in the paint.

Gasol's organizational skills were liberated, and he continued to tear the Spurs' defense through passing the ball.The Grizzlies played more energetically. At the end of the first half, they led the Spurs by 13 points.

Seeing the game slipping to the opponent, Popovich simply let go of the tactical restrictions after he could not count on Duncan, replacing Duncan, allowing Parker, Ginobili and Li Chongxiao to play freely on the court.

Li Chongxiao, who had been liberated, was like a runaway wild horse. With the assists of Parker and Ginobili, he made 7 consecutive shots and led the team to a 27:7 offensive climax, overturning the score in one fell swoop. .

In the fourth quarter of the game, the Grizzlies fans at the scene couldn't cheer up. In the silence, the Spurs made another victory.

This ball completely destroyed the confidence of the Grizzlies players. They no longer expected to win the game, but instead hoped that the game series would end soon.

That sentiment was evident at halftime in Game [-].The Spurs fell behind by a big score at halftime. Coach Mike Fratello was about to enter the locker room to say some words of encouragement, but he heard chatter and laughter outside the door. The players were not depressed at all, but were discussing where to go on vacation.

The trend is over!

Mike Fratello did not make the last struggle, and arranged tactics step by step, allowing the players to finish the final half of the game.

In the first round of the playoffs, the Spurs swept their opponents and advanced to the Western Conference semifinals.

(End of this chapter)