NBA: This Center Is So Stable

The new situation is not good.

Chapter 266 Gambling

Youth!

It can be said that this Knicks team has one of the few advantages against the Lakers.

With the establishment of the Lakers dynasty with three consecutive championships, and then the defeat in San Antonio, the replacement of the old and the new is a problem that the Lakers have to face.

O’Neal is unwilling to be depressed and under someone else for a long time, and is unwilling to be a “little brother” to his former little brother.

This is destined to make this Lakers team unable to achieve perfection.

It is precisely this imperfection that has created the current team that carries the hopes of Los Angeles fans in the finals.

It can be said that the Zen Master will play a key role in this, and his response to the OK contradiction will determine how far this OK can go.

Or maybe OK can temporarily put aside their differences, win the trophy first and forget about the rest, and put all the conflicts aside until they win the championship.

And the Knicks, on the other hand.

In addition to not having the obvious conflicts like OK, this young team has an advantage in age.

Especially Wang Song, who is playing against O’Neal. When most teams have to consider the physical strength of the main center in the playoffs, this first-year Asian rookie is obviously known as the “child of other people’s families”.

Although he has lost a lot of his immaturity when he first entered the league, Wang Song, who is only 20 years old, is a tall, thin and mobile inside player. Not only does he have no physical problems, he can also play from the fifth position to the fourth position.

After he developed a mid-range shot, D’Antoni once wanted to put him at the fourth position of the team. A mobile inside player like this, put at the fifth position and confront those tank-type centers, which made D’Antoni feel distressed.

It’s just that the Knicks don’t have a suitable center who can do better than Wang Song, so he is fixed at the five position.

Even so, Wang Song’s performance at the five position is obvious to all, and it is definitely not comparable to ordinary All-Star-level inside players.

Back to the game.

In the second quarter, after Kobe left the court, O’Neal, who had a face-to-face dialogue with Wang Song again, calmed down a lot.

Although this is a shark on the decline, no one will question his dominance in the penalty area.

Blocks like Wang Song in the first quarter are ultimately rare. This Knicks team can only rely on fouls or double-teaming to stop O’Neal to achieve the best defensive effect.

But what makes D’Antoni feel fortunate is that the Lakers are not in a very good state after coming to the away game today.

Especially the touch of the outside line. Except for Kobe’s small climax in the first quarter, the touch of the other outside players can be described as cold.

Gary Payton made 0 of 2 shots, Derek Fisher made 0 of 3 shots, and even Karl Malone, who was partnered with O’Neal, was in a low state, making 1 of 4 shots while holding his breath.

In contrast, Kobe, who made 3 of 9 shots in the first quarter, scored 8 points and was already the second output hero of the Lakers.

This is also the most important reason why the OK combination has been in conflict but dare not completely fall out.

Because they all know that they cannot lose anyone from each other if they want to continue the Lakers dynasty.

After O’Neal scored 5 points in the second quarter, he had entered a relatively tired state.

At the end of the first quarter, D’Antoni adjusted his defensive strategy.

He understood that it was impossible to hope that Wang Song would block every ball. In order to improve the team’s defensive efficiency, his choice was to double-team.

In addition, with Wang Song’s suggestion to rest between quarters, even if O’Neal was fouled and went to the free throw line, he must not be given the opportunity to easily score under the basket.

It was Wang Song who proposed this concept before the game, and he followed Nelson’s advanced defensive strategy against O’Neal.

The league has not yet revised the rules on the “Hack-a-Shaq Tactics”, and even because of the timeline, the Knicks are the pioneers.

Facts have proved that this strategy is extremely effective, especially when the Lakers’ outside line group is silent, it highlights O’Neal’s alone.

Of course, this also made O’Neal’s personal efficiency unprecedentedly improved. Near the end of the first half, he scored 17 points with 7 of 8 shots.

No one in the whole game!

And behind this data, the Knicks also paid a painful price.

Kurt paid 3 fouls, and Wang Song also contributed a new high of 2 fouls in the first half.

Just when the Zen Master thought they had won a big victory in the confrontation in the interior, he glanced at the score after the half.

51:46!

The Knicks are like a bone attached to the bone.

The ulcer bit the Lakers tightly.

Even though the Lakers have done this, they still can’t widen the score.

The Zen Master looked at the panting O’Neal from the corner of his eye, and then turned to look at the Knicks bench.

His eyes were fixed on D’Antoni, with a complicated expression.

I didn’t expect that the new coach who came from the opposite mountain corner would have such foresight and awareness.

Obviously, the Lakers only had an advantage on the surface in this round of game.

The second half full of dangers is the real beginning!

Fortunately, the Zen Master also has his own plan in mind. Who doesn’t show their magic in the finals?

······

These tactical games were not seen in the eyes of most fans. At the end of the half, the fans in Madison Square Garden were not very happy.

Even Coach Zhang, who always makes up for the Central Sports Center, showed a sad face.

“Coach Sun, please tell me how the Knicks can turn the situation around in the second half. They didn’t take the lead in the entire second quarter.”

“Wang Song just responded with a mid-range shot, Nash made a three-pointer, and then O’Neal caused damage in the paint. This is really difficult!”

Sun Zhengping, who was standing aside, looked at his partner’s bitter expression, but a faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth inadvertently.

“Hey, I’m not saying anything to you, Old Sun, why are you so happy?”

“Don’t worry, Coach Zhang, I thought you saw through me and were teasing me!”

Sun Zhengping cleared his throat. It was rare for him to express his opinion in front of this national player. He sat down and said, “The score difference is less than 10 points. It will only take two or three rounds to catch up. I think the focus of the game between the two teams is not on the score, but on the players.”

“Almost all teams know that under continuous fierce battles, Shaquille O’Neal’s performance will be greatly reduced after 40 minutes of playing time.”

“And this Knicks team understands this point, constantly putting pressure on O’Neal. When other teams avoid him and turn to target other players, they choose to bite the hardest dish.”

“Isn’t the intention obvious enough?”

Looking at his partner’s cunning smile, Zhang Weiping suddenly realized and slapped his thigh angrily.

“It’s true that all is fair in war! How come I didn’t think of this? I’ve been confused from watching from a fan’s perspective for so long!”

(End of this chapter)