Basketball Legends: Strikers Are King

"Polo team, come on!"

"The horse-walking team must win!"

Although the number was small, the Pacers fans, who could erupt with a roar that was no less than that of the home fans, immediately cheered for the team.

After a big reversal, the fans' confidence in the Pacers has been overwhelming. Now they are even more happy to see the team easily catching up with the score.

"I told you earlier, without Joe in isolation, the Eagles no longer have the trump card to compete with us. What can a rough forward do?"

Fans sneered at players like Josh Smith who relied purely on physical play. This disdain intensified after they discovered that the Pacers had increased their defensive intensity against Josh and that George frequently intercepted Josh's breakthroughs in the early stages.

"If you ask me, the Hawks can rebuild directly. With Joe as a single player, they can advance to the second round. Without Joe as a single player, it may be difficult to even enter the playoffs."

Otherwise, the fans are playing turn-based games. The Pacers fans who said this have completely forgotten that the Pacers have failed to make the playoffs for three consecutive years and have only made it to the first and second rounds in the last two years.

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But there is nothing they can do, who made their confidence increase with the performance of the players.

In the last two and a half minutes of the second quarter, Teague stepped forward. He first assisted Korver to score a jumper, and then used a pick-and-roll to hit a jumper to help the team widen the point difference.

But the Pacers relied on jump shots from West, George and Qi Tian to still hold on to the score.

"50-51."

After half the game, the Pacers were only 1 point behind their opponents.

The ability of both sides to make timely adjustments was fully reflected in the second quarter.

Josh Smith, who scored 9 points in the first quarter, failed to continue his magic and only scored 2 points in the second quarter;

West, who scored 12 points in the first quarter, was somewhat lost under Horford's targeted defense. In the second quarter, he made 1 of 2 shots and only scored 2 points.

The forward matchup between the two teams looked quite evenly matched.

Regardless of what the fans off the court think, everyone on both teams knows that today will definitely be a tough battle.

During the halftime break, Vogel explained to the players the key points of the second half of the game as usual.

"In the second half, the outside attack will be the main attack. Hill, you will organize the offense."

Vogel wanted to explain this aspect in depth, but at this moment, he suddenly realized that he really had nothing to say, so he quickly changed the topic.

"Outside defense is equally important. The opponent's inside line is not dominant, so we only need to strangle the outside line to ensure victory."

Returning to his area of ​​expertise, Vogel seemed to be a different person and began to talk.

"The opponent's outside attack is driven more by Teague. It is undeniable that Teague is very capable, but his technical characteristics also have flaws, that is, he prefers breakthroughs."

"George, I hope you will follow your opponent closely in the second half and specifically prevent him from breaking through. You should also be ready to make up defense at any time inside."

"Outside shooters must also keep up, Korver is not a target that can be left open."

"The defense inside is the same as in the first half, no changes are needed."

Qitian nodded after hearing this.

Today, he was very quiet on the defensive end. The main reason was to defend Korver, who was running all the time. Facing a historical-level shooter, he naturally did not dare to take it lightly.

However, when chasing defense, he did learn a lot of skills in running without the ball. Looking back and summarizing, maybe he can make his running method smoother.

On the other side, the Eagles head coach was much more troubled with his tactics.

Josh's weakness of only being good at breakthroughs has been seen by his opponents. In the second quarter, George's defense that prevented breakthroughs but not shots has proved this.

As for letting Josh take crazy outside shots, Larry Drew has no plans yet.

Speaking of which, Josh Smith also hated the remarks that he only relied on his body to play basketball, and began to seek a change.

According to the general idea, if he practices low-post singles and mid-range jump shots, it will also make Larry Drew feel at ease.

But Josh Smith got it right in one step and chose the same shooting distance as Lakers Odom - shooting a three-pointer!

Last season's 25.7% three-point shooting rate and 63% free throw shooting rate are enough to show that Josh is not a shooting material, but he still loves three-pointers, which can be called an example of a man's addiction to food.

Korver and Pachulia are both role players. Off-ball shooters and meat shield centers obviously do not have the ability to change the situation of the game.

"Then there's only..."

Larry Drew looked at Teague and Horford and said,

"In the second half, Jeff and Al cooperated, Josh Kyle provided help from the side, and Zhazha stayed inside to protect the rebound."

"You must do your own thing well and don't let your opponents have the opportunity to help defend. Only in this way can you give more help to your teammates."

Then he drew several tactics on the tactical board, including Korver running without the ball and Josh making air cuts to attract the defense and provide opportunities for his teammates.

The half-time break ended quickly and the two teams returned to the field.

In the third quarter, the main force still came on stage.

After 24 minutes of competition, both sides had an estimate of their opponent's strength.

The Pacers have the advantage in the starting lineup. The starting five are very balanced, the defense is on the line, and the offense can also perform well depending on their personal abilities. This can be seen from the first half scores of their starting five:

West had 14 points, George had 10 points, Hill had 8 points, and Hibbert had 7 points.

The Hawks' starting five are very functional. Although the overall lineup is good, it is still a little worse than the Pacers.

Fortunately, their substitutes Harris, Lou Williams, Stevenson and Ivan Johnson performed well today and outperformed the Pacers' substitutes.

For the Eagles, as long as the starting lineup is on par with its opponents, then when the substitutes come on, there is a high probability that they can take the lead;

Of course, the Pacers hope that the starting five can give their teammates a sufficient lead.

The Hawks' offensive came quickly. Josh Smith missed a layup, but Pachulia grabbed the offensive rebound from Hibbert's head and then passed it to Josh. Josh attacked again, causing Qi Tian to foul.

Went to the free throw line.

"Josh~Smith!!"

Eagles fans chanted Josh's name crazily to cheer him on.

Josh Smith high-fived his teammates one by one and walked to the free throw line.

"Huh~"

He took a long breath, adjusted his rhythm, and threw the basketball in his hand.

"clang!"

The first penalty hit, and the Eagles fans on the sidelines were breathless.

"clang!"

The second penalty hit the iron, and the coaching team on the sidelines had already covered their foreheads.

Missed two free throws, this foul is worth it!

Hibbert was overjoyed and quickly turned around to grab the rebound.

But at this moment, it was Pachulia again, grabbing a valuable offensive rebound!

Josh did not disappoint the fans' expectations this time, receiving the pass and forcing a layup.

"50-53."

"OK!!"

The Eagles showed strong offensive desire at the beginning of the second half, which made the fans very satisfied and started shouting.