The Way of the Center

Even though Durant was almost completely misfired in the third quarter, Dantley still emphasized during the intermission that Durant must be marked to death at all costs.

As the guy with the most points per game in the entire NBA, Durant's scoring ability is beyond doubt. Dantley doesn't care about whether Van Gundy will set off another smoke bomb now. He would rather let Westbrook or Angie score more than let Durant, the scoring leader, open!

Facts have proved that at least Dantley's decision this time is completely correct. Now Durant is like Kobe is to the Lakers, James is to the Cavaliers. Even if he fails to make a shot, the head coach will choose to continue to trust him. It is really unreasonable to let a scoring champion not let him attack, except for occasional tactical needs.

However, under the joint defense of Anthony and his teammates, Durant's offensive efficiency did not improve at all. At the beginning of the game, Durant put in an extremely difficult goal against Anthony's defense that blocked his face, but this kind of goal only appeared once.

In the next three offenses, the ball still hit Durant's hands. But it's a pity that Durant hit all of the last three shots.

When the Thunder's scoring pace temporarily stagnated, the Nuggets were not idle. J.R. Smith took 7 shots in the first three quarters but failed to score a goal. Just when Sefoloza began to relax his vigilance against this nerve knife, he began to show off.

J.R first made a three-pointer under Sefoloza's negligence, and then made a fake shot and made Morris a foul.

This foul not only allowed j.r. to get two free throws, but also made Morris' fouls 4 times. If the Nuggets continue to resolutely kill the inside, then Morris is likely to be sent off early.

With j.r. Smith making two free throws steadily, the Nuggets also approached the score again. 90 to 87, for the Nuggets who have improved both offensively and defensively, the three-point gap is nothing to fear!

"Durant played well in the first half. Although he could score in the second half, his efficiency was too low. Once a player of Carmelo Anthony's level starts to defend seriously, his matchup will definitely be very difficult. .Even if you are the scoring leader, it is difficult to make a difference under such a defense." Mike Breen began to analyze the problems of the Thunder for the audience. At the same time, he also expected that other players who performed well could withstand The Nuggets' counterattack.

Anthony is now more eager to win than ever, so while trying to defend Durant, he also did the same on the offensive end.

There are as many as 82 games in the regular season. Even if you don't fight this game, there are still many next games that can make up for your regrets. However, in the playoffs, every game is the key. If you don't fight this game, when you want to work hard again,

Maybe we will have to wait for next year.

Moreover, after this game is over, the Nuggets will go to Oklahoma City to play two away games. At that time, the game will only be more difficult to play. So at his home court, at the Pepsi Center, Anthony hopes to get the team to Oklahoma City with a 2-0 score.

Durant was completely misfired because his breakthrough was not outstanding. If the shooting space is blocked, then with Anthony's physical fitness, Durant has almost no means of scoring.

But Anthony is different. Even if Durant doesn't give him shooting space, he can still use breakthroughs to cause damage and use breakthroughs to gain opportunities.

"Beep, beep." The referee's hurried whistle reminded him again that it was Morris, who had committed his fifth foul after only two minutes into the fourth quarter.

"Oh, my God." Morris waved his fist in the air unwillingly. He will not argue with the referee now, nor will he apply for a technical foul for himself. Let the Nuggets make one more free throw, he won't do this kind of thing.

"If you want to whistle so strictly, then many of the Nuggets' balls can be called fouls!" Van Gundy still "politely" complained to the referee that the referee's whistle scale in this game was extremely unbalanced. A lot of balls that can be blown or not blown are fouls for the Thunder, but they are fine for the Nuggets. If it had been changed to Vicki or Sloan, the referee would have been "kindly" greeting his family.

"Serge, you go!" Van Gundy didn't dare to take risks, he still decided to let Ibaka go up for a while.

"Hey, listen. No matter who your matchup is, I want you to open space for Anla when attacking. Remember not to contain, but to open space!" Before Ibaka entered the court, Van Gundy suddenly grabbed The Congolese who lived in this did not disappoint him whispered.

"Serge Ibaka is on the court. This rookie's performance today is really impressive. Yes, he didn't score a few points, and he only grabbed a few rebounds under the protection of Anjie. But this guy has sent out today. 6 blocked shots! 6 times, more than Andre!" Mike Breen was impressed by Ibaka's defense. This kind of player is actually good, but he is always underestimated because he is not dazzling enough.

The arrogant Kenyon Martin and Chris Anderson paid the price for their underestimation. This Ibaka is no shorter than them!

Anthony hit two free throws again, and Anthony is still shooting 100 percent from the line so far today.

Even though Durant misfired in the second half, his shooting percentage was still higher than Anthony. But Anthony used his breakthrough ability to make his scoring data not lose to Durant. The 03 generation has begun to slowly dominate the league, and Durant still looks too immature in front of Anthony.

Relying on free throws, Anthony insisted on leading the Nuggets to narrow the point difference step by step. If the Thunder has no one else to stand up and carry the banner of offense, it will only be a matter of time before the Nuggets come back.

After Ibaka pulled Kenyon Martin out of the three-second zone, both Westbrook and Anjie gained a lot of offensive space. And the two didn't waste the opportunity. In the case of Durant's misfire, Westbrook and Anjie continued to increase the Thunder's scoring.

But after Billups repeatedly allowed Westbrook to break through easily, Dantley, no matter how poor his on-the-spot command is, it is impossible for this gaffe to continue to develop. He decisively switched Afflalo and Billups, and this arrangement also played a certain restrictive role.

As a player with a similar playing style, although Afflalo's defense is not as good as Sefoloza's, the stickiness like a dog's skin plaster also makes Westbrook very uncomfortable.

Once Westbrook is stuck, his threat will be greatly reduced. After all, the shooting stability of this No. 0 guard is not much better than that of J.R. Smith.

Now, Morris is troubled by fouls, Durant is completely frozen by Anthony, and Westbrook loses the threat under the efforts of Afflalo. Now as long as Dantley solves the last problem, the Nuggets can win. And this last question is precisely An Jie!

Under the high-density and high-intensity perimeter defense of the Nuggets, Anjie has become Van Gundy's only choice. However, in the fourth quarter of the game, Van Gundy had no idea how efficient the fierce inside melee could be.

Don't look at An Jie's physical strength never having problems during the regular season, but this is the playoffs, and the physical consumption of the playoffs is several times that of the regular season.

Especially when the Nuggets are desperately attacking the inside, Anjie needs to consume a lot of physical strength on the defensive end. Now it is really difficult for him to shoulder the heavy responsibility on the offensive end.

The ups and downs of Anjie's chest did become very large. During the regular season, he rarely felt so tired.

Sweat dripped down his cheeks to his chin. He just shook his head and raised his hand for the ball again.

"Are you still coming!?" An Jie was exhausted, so how could Nene, who had fought against An Jie for a game, be any better. The Brazilian's running is getting slower and slower, and his movements are getting slower and slower. But this Brazilian, like Anjie, never knew what it meant to give up.

He tried his best to defend around the front, hoping to block Anjie's receiving route. But today, he still underestimated the tacit understanding and understanding between Westbrook and Anjie.

An Jie's height and wingspan were something Nene couldn't envy, and Westbrook's lobbed pass was also tailor-made for An Jie.

Nene wanted to jump up to intercept the ball, but under Anjie's interference, the Brazilian couldn't leave the ground at all.

Seeing the basketball fly around his fingertips and over his head, Nene hurriedly put pressure behind him, hoping that An Jie would not be able to catch the ball.

However, Westbrook's well-timed pass really fell into the hands of Anjie. Because Nene circled forward to defend, Anjie could directly face the unguarded basket after getting the ball. Without hesitation, he exerted his legs violently, raised the basketball with both arms and swung it towards the basket.

Nene was naturally not to be outdone, but he found that his jumping height and jumping speed were not as strong as they were at the beginning. This height is far from enough to block Anjie's dunk.

There was a loud bang from the basket, and Anjie scored two more points on the Brazilian.

"Hold on a little longer, hold on a little longer." Van Gundy knew that Anjie was exhausted, but he couldn't change. If you make a substitution, it will be tantamount to taking the Thunder's last scoring point. The playoffs are like this, there is no choice but to persevere.

An Jie's headband was soaked, so he took it off and threw it out of the field during the defense process. Naturally, this scene did not escape the camera's pursuit. This tough No. 16 center was planning to fight to the end.

Anthony and Angie dominated the fourth quarter. The two of them came and went, making the scores of the Nuggets and the Thunder climb alternately.

During an Anthony breakthrough, Angie was knocked down by Melon. This collision made An Jie feel that he didn't even have the strength to stand up.

He was lying on the wooden floor, eyes full of dazzling light. If it weren't for Westbrook and Durant to pull him, Anjie could really lie here all night.

But not now, he couldn't do it. The battle is not over yet, he must continue to fight!

"An passed Nene again and jumped up to attack the basket! Hey, what a pity, he was pulled down abruptly by Nene. An is really tired, otherwise this shot would definitely be a three-pointer!"

"Carmelo Anthony squeezed away Anjie and forced a layup! A good shot, and the point difference was forced to close to a three-pointer again! Anjie played the entire fourth quarter, and he has no strength!"

All signs indicated that An Jie's physical strength had already been exhausted, but the game was over in three minutes. You can't bite at this time, and the efforts in the first three quarters will be in vain.

The rhythm of the two teams is getting slower and slower, and the efficiency is getting lower and lower. But the fans, the more they watched, the more excited they were.

In the last 43 seconds, Anjie ran to the low post again to hold the ball. This time, Kenyon Martin decided to take a gamble. He ignored Ibaka who was pulling to the middle distance, but ran to double-team Anjie with nene.

The exhausted Anjie almost made a mistake under the double-teaming of Nene and Martin, but he managed to pass it before losing control of the ball.

There is no precision in this pass, and Ibaka takes a big step before catching the ball.

Now, Ibaka is just one step inside the three-point line, which is beyond the range of his most threatening shots. Martin's supplementary defense was a little absent-minded, and Ibaka did not hesitate and shot decisively.

Not the most threatening shooting range, it doesn't mean that Ibaka has no shooting percentage in this position. Among all the insiders of the Thunder, Ibaka's shooting range is the farthest, even surpassing Anjie and Krstic, and can extend beyond the three-point line.

"Brush." ​​Martin paid the price for his omission, and Anjie assisted Ibaka to score a key goal. 114 to 111, the Thunder ushered in the last attack of the Nuggets with a three-point lead!

The tense timeout ended quickly, and the Nuggets still had Billups in control of the ball. He looked at J.R. Smith and Anthony, and even the experienced man couldn't help but get nervous.

The two men were so guarded that they didn't even have room for a step. Seeing that the time was about to run out, Billups bit the bullet and made a pass, ready to let Anthony catch the ball.

Anthony tried his best to run in the direction of the ball, but Durant stretched out his long arms and destroyed the pass.

Now both sides have a chance to control the ball, but Billups, who still kept a hand, picked it up first.

Seeing that Billups received the ball, Anthony took advantage of the situation and completed a pick-and-roll cooperation with him.

3 seconds! Just after Billups passed the pick-and-roll, he took off and shot, Westbrook tried his best to interfere, but under Anthony's pick-and-roll, Westbrook could only catch up with the basketball in the hands of Billups.

"Yes!" Billups was overjoyed as soon as he threw the ball. Billups likes the feel of the ball and the rhythm of the shot!

Just when all the fans in the Pepsi Center were raising their arms high to celebrate Billups saving the team, a black shadow suddenly appeared in front of the former fmvp! (To be continued.)