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On the 5th, the Wizards challenged the Timberwolves away from home.

There is good news. The Timberwolves' starting small forward, Wally Szczerbiak, who was selected as an All-Star last season, is absent due to injury.

Looking at the Timberwolves' starting lineup, Yang Rui was convinced that he would win without a doubt.

The starting center is Rasu Nesterovich, the power forward is last season's fringe player, Lauren Woods, who is 216cm tall and weighs 111kg, Garnett has moved to the small forward position, and the guards are Anthony Pillar and Troy Hudson. This is a big man lineup with poor mobility.

Yang Rui arranged the outside movement tactics of Hamilton and Wesley, catching and shooting and cutting to the basket. No matter how you look at it, they always have the upper hand. As a result, the Timberwolves blocked the Wizards' offense with one move of 122 zone defense.

Wesley's touch was cold and he hit the ball many times from the outside. Although Hamilton kept running and was very active, he mainly made mid-range shots, and his opponents could jump out and interfere at any time even if they were close to the penalty area.

The Timberwolves were also unable to break through the zone defense, and the Wizards fell behind 21-25 in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Timberwolves continued their 122 zone defense strategy, preventing Alston and Boozer's high pick-and-roll. Alston couldn't play a role if he couldn't break through. Although he didn't make any mistakes in passing, he couldn't create any space. Everyone was shooting without interference.

Boozer and Maggette took turns to strike, and the Timberwolves, led by veteran Kendall Gill, hit an 11-0 run.

Yang Rui called a timeout in time to adjust tactics and lineup, and defended the Timberwolves' offensive in the second half, but could not change the players' cold touch. The team only scored 11 points in a single quarter and fell behind 32-49 at halftime.

The Wizards didn't score a single three-pointer, and except for Hamilton, they were all blacksmiths. Garnett focused on taking care of Jordan, and his defense was very successful. It not only blocked Jordan's breakthroughs, interfered with shooting, but also interfered with passing.

With his height, wingspan, and flexibility, Garnett's defense is like a net. It is difficult for opponents to escape without relying on screens. He is a player who can truly defend from the 1st to the 5th position. He can block shots in the penalty area and is good at rebounding. His only weakness is his weight, and he cannot guard a center like O'Neal.

During the halftime break, Yang Rui went to the locker room to teach the players and changed the tactics.

"When you have the chance, play run-and-gun. Don't give the Timberwolves zone defense a chance to position themselves. Even if Garnett is defending in front of you, don't hesitate to play more and less. Rush to the basket and try to draw a foul from Garnett. Center Stoudemire , Marshall power forward, Jordan small forward, Maggette shooting guard, and Tyronn Lue controlling the ball. Everyone must run, try to counterattack, open up the position to play pick-and-rolls, and make cuts on both sides of the forward."

Yang Rui called the three frontcourt players to his side.

Instructions: "Remember those essentials clearly. After getting the ball, observe the opponent's defense. If the opponent reaches out to cut the ball, just hit their arm with the ball."

He looked at Jordan again and said seriously: "Michael, you don't have to run. Protect the rebound in the backcourt and pass it to the teammates running in front. The positional warfare organization also depends on you. Come on, we haven't lost yet."

"Of course we didn't lose." Jordan shouted loudly: "Everyone cheer up and run faster!"

Yang Rui recently coached several strong players to draw fouls and practice free throws, but he didn't let them practice the "European step".

Because not everyone is powerful with the European step, only Ginobili and Harden. Ginobili made a snake-like breakthrough, twisting his body into a twist and changing directions, which ordinary people can't learn.

Harden is even better. His European step can take one step further than others. As long as the four-step layup is consistent, the referee will not call it. Because he can lay up in three or four steps, defensive players can't count the steps. Even if he can't break through, he is prone to fouls. This has become a great skill in the league.

The Timberwolves lacked three-pointers, and their play style was very similar to that of the Wizards in the first half. Garnett played as a point forward, and his teammates moved to catch and shoot. If no one double-teamed, Garnett held the ball and played alone. In this case, sending Tyronn Lue will not become a big defensive hole. The Wizards will defend the penalty area and interfere with the opponent's mid- and long-range shots.

In the second half, the shooting touch of the Timberwolves players began to decline. Garnett's several jump shots missed the basket due to Marshall's interference. Pillar hit the iron three times in a row. Point guard Hudson is a small and fast defender who mainly relies on breakthroughs. After being entangled by Tyronn Lue, he is not so easy to pass.

In Yang Rui's previous life, the Timberwolves have always lacked the ability to attack in the low post, even during the Big Three era. Garnett is a big swingman, and it is difficult to hit the basket.

Although many people say that Garnett is tough and calls him "hard", his main method of scoring is actually to swing his shoulders and turn around to shoot, using his height and wingspan to create shooting space.

Watching Garnett's games, you will see countless such scenes.

I squeezed and squeezed with my back turned, but the person didn't move at all, so I turned around and applied it in. MD, the left turn is blocked, then turn right... Oh my god, you are awesome, you can still keep up? I'll turn left again... No, I can't pass, I'll make a jump shot, I'll throw it!

When the ball went in, Garnett moved like a one-size-fits-all Jordan, with picturesque postures. He beat his chest and roared, more iron-blooded than many people who completed a dunk.

Most of the time, Garnett's shooting touch is good. Once the touch is not good, it will be difficult for him to score. He didn't score many points in the penalty area, his lethality was low, and he only averaged 6.7 free throws per game at his peak.

The Wizards players still had a bad shooting touch, but they took advantage of their mobility and grabbed rebounds and immediately counterattacked, with at least three players going down quickly.

Marshall is also very physical and is still at his peak this year. In college, Ray Allen could only carry his bag in his first year. When he rushed up, Lauren Woods couldn't catch up. He attracted the defense and he would distribute the ball.

There was nothing Pillar could do to catch up with Maggette at No. 2. He was 193cm tall and weighed 94 kilograms. He was relatively strong, but Maggette was the strongest swingman in the league. He could get a layup if he squeezed him. Piller quickly paid two At the cost of three fouls, he fell into foul trouble a total of four times and rested.

The substitute veteran Kendall Gill is 196cm tall and weighs 88kg, which is even thinner.

In positional battles, Marshall and Tyronn Luela waited for opportunities to shoot three-pointers. Jordan organized from the high post. Stoudemire and Maggette cut to the basket and directly caught the ball and hit hard.

Garnett cannot guard the basket when guarding Jordan. If Garnett goes to fight Stoudemire, there will be an obvious mismatch on the court, and Maggette or Jordan will face Nesterovich.

Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders was forced to make adjustments. Unfortunately, Szczerbiak was no longer available. Garnett played power forward, and Reggie Lester had to be substituted at small forward. This was a fringe player for the Raptors back then, who was excluded from the playoff roster. He had an average body, and his shooting and breakthrough were average.

As soon as Lester comes on the court, the Wizards can shrink even more defensively to protect the penalty area.

The Wizards outscored 30-23 in a single quarter, trailing 62-72 in total, and the outcome was still in suspense.

At the end of the quarter, Yang Rui changed people to attack the basket again. Hamilton, Wesley, and Bell appeared together. This was because the Timberwolves did not dare to send Garnett as a small forward.

They didn't play much in the third quarter. They had plenty of energy and kept running around looking for opportunities. Stoudemire and Wallace were inside, cutting at any time.

The Timberwolves' outside players are of average strength, and the Wizards' small lineup can defend them well. Wallace and Garnett inside can also do a good job of interfering with shots.

At the end of the game with two minutes left, the Wizards were only 4 points behind 84 to 88.