Bulldozer of the NBA’s Restricted Area

The low pressure before the storm makes every minute difficult.

Under the spotlight, the coaches of both sides reported their starting lineups to the technical stage before the game... Lakers starting lineup: Li Shengli, Green, Artest, Fisher, Kobe; Celtics starting lineup: O'Neal, Garner Special, Pierce, Barrows, Overton.

Because the core players are fixed, the starting lineup will not be much different from the last finals.

What worries Li Shengli the most about the Lakers' starting lineup is Green... because compared with his opponent Garnett, he is older, has declined in competitive form, is weak in confrontation, and has reduced physical fitness. Especially in confrontation, Garnett is completely the best. The type of guy who likes to play the 4th position.

The original plan was that Phil Jackson wanted Crotty to play the three position against Pierce, and Artest to play the four position against Garnett, but this plan was quickly ruled out because the game was still In terms of scoring... Green returns from his old age, but he is full of experience and can take advantage of Li Shengli's best ability of inside passing and inside distribution, so he is more suitable as a starter.

Therefore, for such a starting lineup, the Lakers will depend on the status of Pierce and Garnett, as well as Green's status. Phil Jackson will make specific personnel adjustments later depending on the situation.

As for the Celtics, there's not much to say.

The whole audience was shouting the names of the Big Three, which is enough to show that the Celtics' selection of shooting guards and point guards is not too noteworthy. Whether it is Burroughs or Overton, they can play and occasionally play when given the opportunity. It can also break out, but in terms of strength and status, the average level of the league's bench is slightly higher.

…

The warm-up was finally over. When the starting players from both sides walked to the court to prepare, the Garden Arena became silent for a rare moment. Li Shengli saw that O'Neal on the opposite side was full of fighting spirit, and he was not polite at all. The referee had just thrown the ball to the top. , took off with a thud, and pushed the ball to the back.

"Lee, come on, hit me!" O'Neal ran to the backcourt to defend.

"Your request...Okay, then I'm welcome!" Li Shengli cursed and went down to the left position to compete with O'Neal. However, this first goal was more about momentum than tactics, so Li Shengli went directly to Crowded inside, raised his hand to ask for the ball.

Kobe at the top of the key passed the ball to Fisher without saying a word, and Fisher hit the ground and then passed it to Li Shengli. No one from the Celtics intercepted it, and they seemed to hope that O'Neal's almost unsolvable single defense could play the finals. The momentum of a game comes.

Low post shot!

O'Neal likes to play this position, and Li Shengli also likes it, because in this position the two of them almost beat the entire league's center army into incontinence, but this time it was two people facing each other. The moment Li Shengli got the ball, tens of thousands of fans were present. They all became excited.

After getting the ball, Li Shengli went behind to test O'Neal's strength. O'Neal knew very well that his own strength was crucial when playing against Li Shengli. This was not a matter of power crushing at all, but a very delicate and subtle rhythm confrontation. , but Gui Gui knew that he was still pushed a step forward without taking the initiative.

He's in the restricted area and is about to fight. In this position... this bastard will definitely work harder!

O'Neal was concentrating on exerting force, but Li Shengli turned directly to the left this time. O'Neal, who had accumulated strength to fight, immediately blocked the space on the left side and entered the basket. Li Shengli took a step forward, turned over again and stepped in from the right side. A one-handed dunk without any flashiness left O'Neal in place.

…

"Beautiful, Lee!"

"Boss, you're so handsome!"

Kobe and Artest shouted while returning to defense, and each slapped Li Shengli on the butt. On the Celtics side, O'Neal went crazy with depression... In just confrontation, he was sure that he could prevent Li Shengli from committing a back-up violation. So far, but this time it was a combination of confrontation and footwork, and Olajuwon in his prime was nothing more than that.

"Boss, what are you doing!" Pierce looked sad.

"Damn, Shaq, go over there and get him!" Garnett sprinted forward.

"Damn, get ready to give me the ball!"

Without saying a word, O'Neal rushed to the same low post on the left side of the frontcourt and asked for the ball from his teammates. It was disrespectful to come and not go back... With this kind of offensive and defensive momentum at the beginning, Li Shengli scored a goal and already had the upper hand, so the Lakers had the upper hand. There was no interception, and the two exchanged positions for the second time in singles.

…

O'Neal is absolutely skilled.

The only reason is that he is too physically strong and found that... if his body is crushed, his skills are of no use. When he encounters an ordinary opposing center, he can hit the basket with just a casual collision. It is said that he is attacking, but in fact, he is casual. Putting the ball into the basket casually, and this situation after he gained weight, strengthened and amplified his offensive ability to an almost abnormal degree.

O'Neal pushed his back for the first time!

Li Shengli's card power can be used in back hits, back hits and blocking positions, but it doesn't work this time... because O'Neal relies on his body, abandons all details, and collides with brute force every time, and Not everyone can carry the weight of 155 kilograms.

However, this kind of effort is only for one-time achievement.

The first wave was less effective under Li Shengli's pushback. Although the force of the subsequent collision continued to decrease, O'Neal still stood in the penalty area. After turning left and right to no avail, he immediately jumped to the ground and shot a hook. At this time, O'Neal... was very... Thin, very thin. Before the hook, he added a back-up shot to create a stable opportunity for the shot. In the end, he also scored.

But compared to Li Shengli's goal, the applause given to O'Neal in the Garden Arena simply exploded.

"Shaq, that's awesome!"

"It's just so so, do you want to keep doing it?"

"Come on, let's see who gives in first, it's definitely not me!"

…

The popularity and attention of the finals is astonishing, and before the game started, in the TNT commentary room... Barkley, who just joined TNT this year and signed a contract to commentate, and Kenny Smith, who has already been sitting here, have teamed up to handle this game. Commentator, Li Shengli and O'Neal continued to 'fight' each other for four rounds on the court, and their eyes lit up.

"Oh my God, Charles, did you see that?"

"Kenny, is this necessary? I'm just retiring from horse racing, but I'm not blind!"

"Ahem... Look, the two of them played a total of five rounds, and they actually scored in all of them? To be honest, let alone the finals, I have never seen any game played like this. Look at it now The statistics of both sides...damn, only Lee and Shaq scored 10 points each, no assists, no rebounds, no blocks, no turnovers, nothing. Isn’t it possible that no one cares about them?"

Tube?

How to manage?

Barkley turned his head and glanced at Smith and said: "As long as the two of them continue to hit, no one will care until one of them misses. As for what you said...Kenny, I remember you retired not long ago. Didn't you and Li Have you ever played ball, or have you never suffered a loss? Really, I am sure that if you went up to play today, you would not dare to yell at Li... Hey, Li, you idiot, stop it!"

"Holy shit, do you think I'm crazy?" Kenny Smith thought to himself... Damn, are you kidding me? There are so many bloody lessons. Who would be free to provoke someone who is not prone to depression and suicide? Li Shengli!

"Yeah, you're not crazy, and the Lakers and Celtics are not crazy either, so this is how the game is played now, but I feel it's about the same. The Celtics are not stupid. Shaq's physical strength will be strong if we play like this. It consumes too much and is detrimental to subsequent games.”

"So, which side do you think can win?"

"Right now, the two teams haven't fully unleashed their offense. No one can say for sure. Now we can only see Lee and Shaq attacking each other, and what we will see later is which side's other main players are in better shape."

"Also...although the Celtics have stable offensive points including Shaq, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce, which are obviously more than the Lakers, you know that Phil Jackson is coaching him. There is a chance that the tactical system can pick out one or two surprise players, not to mention that Lee and Kobe are equally stable, and even Kobe's scoring explosiveness will be higher."

"Then the outcome is now half and half?"

"Yes, both teams have entered their peak stage. It's hard to say whether they will win or lose!"