unfinished glory

Chapter 140 A Draw (2)

Chapter 140 Draw (Part [-])

According to the established tactics of the Spurs, from the beginning of the fourth game, as long as Nash gets the ball, the first thing the Spurs players do is not to defend him, but to cut his passing route intentionally or unintentionally, and focus on other players. .

After being intercepted by two balls and made several turnovers, Nash also saw the Spurs' routine, so he stopped passing the ball and concentrated on dealing with Parker, who was defending himself alone.

In the second half of the first quarter, Nash strengthened his offense. Not only was he able to use the pick-and-roll to shoot, but he also had a fadeaway jumper that opened up space.

In the first half of the game, Nash made 16 of 7 shots and scored 20 points. This is already his highest number of shots since the playoffs.

Despite Nash's outburst, the Suns were still seven points behind the Spurs, which made Popovich very satisfied with his tactics.

However, neither Li Chongxiao nor Ginobili played very comfortably. The former still scored 10 points, while the latter made 7 of 1 shots and only scored 2 points.

Nash's continuous scoring still did not attract enough attention from the Spurs. Popovich always believed that Nash's offense could not kill the Spurs at all, and his biggest threat lay in his ability to organize and pass the ball.Based on this consideration, the Spurs still have the same tactical framework in the second half as in the first half.

Li Chongxiao picks and rolls, moves, and shoots in offense; blocks, follows up, and squeezes in defense.He felt like a worker on an assembly line, repeating the same labor.

By the time of the third quarter, the Spurs were still leading by 4 points. Nash had already scored 33 points, but had only 3 assists.

During the break between quarters, Li Chongxiao was a little worried. He felt that the 4-point difference was not safe, so he tried to ask Popovich if he needed to go to defend Nash in the last quarter, stifle the opponent's touch, and avoid accidents. .

Popovich naturally refused. His tactics lasted for three quarters, helping the Spurs take the lead and controlling the situation on the field.You only need to persist for one more quarter to win this game.

From the beginning to the end, and completely follow the tactics, it can be regarded as the coach's victory.

After playing 2 minutes in the fourth quarter, the Spurs players who maintained high-intensity attention for more than 30 minutes were a little distracted. Nash seized the opportunity to pass two good shots, and the Suns chased the point difference to 2 points.

During the timeout, Popovich was furious and scolded all the players on the court, including Duncan.At the end, I emphasized it again, execute tactics.

After playing, Nash's habitual pass was intercepted by Li Chongxiao, who strode to the frontcourt to complete an attack.

Only then did Nash realize that he was the main attacker in this game, so he started his personal offense again.

Relying on the first three quarters of the game, he developed his touch. After making a mistake, he hit three goals and scored 7 points in a row. Taking advantage of the Spurs' poor offense, he suddenly overtook the score.

With two and a half minutes left in the game, he has already scored 42 points.

The unbelieving Popovich once again rejected Li Chongxiao's defensive proposal, and still required the implementation of the established tactics, but only asked the players to hit the success rate in the offense.

According to the tactics, Li Chongxiao ran out of position.But Marion's reaction was quick, and he made up for interference in time, and the ball missed.

Ginobili was also very depressed. His pass at the top of the arc was too casual. He was intercepted by Raja Bell and handed over to Nash to counterattack.

In the fast break, Nash did not pass the ball to Marion who was running in the front according to the usual practice, but unexpectedly chose a three-pointer.

After the goal was scored, the Suns led the Spurs by 5 points, and the time was less than a minute and a half.

Seeing the dawn of victory, the Suns suddenly increased their defensive strength like crazy, and even blocked Parker's pass.

This time, Nash didn't make any further waves in the fast break, and chose a steady long pass to assist Barbosa to score.

Duncan struggled to score and hold off a Suns drive.But Li Chongxiao wasted a shot and missed a three-pointer from the outside.

In desperation, the Spurs could only execute a tactical foul, but the Suns passed the ball to Nash vigilantly. He made two free throws steadily, and the point difference became 7 points.

Then Ginobili made a strong shot and wasted another three-pointer.

In the last 7 seconds, the Spurs trailed by 7 points and there was no timeout. With no chance of winning, they could only choose to give up.

The Suns tied the big score to 2:2, and Nash scored 47 points, which is the biggest contributor to the Suns' victory today.

After losing Game [-], the teams were back on the same starting line.

This season, the Suns are also a team with 60+ wins, so everyone is still prepared for the Spurs' loss.But what everyone didn't expect was that the Spurs lost to Nash's score.

At the press conference after the game, facing media questions, Popovich took the initiative to admit that the biggest reason for the loss was himself, and that he underestimated the former MVP's scoring ability.

At the same time, he also said that there is no problem with the team's current tactics. The Spurs have always been a team team, and overall cooperation is the key to their success. Relying on singles by stars is not their team building philosophy.

……

For such a loss, Li Chongxiao felt very aggrieved. He personally believed that this game was completely due to the coach's stubbornness, which led to the loss of a game that could have been won.

He feels that even if the game is only half a quarter long, if he can play freely, he can help the team win both offensively and defensively.

Regarding Popovich's coaching philosophy, Li Chongxiao complained silently in his heart, whether it was a coach who didn't play well in the player era, who was more superstitious about tactics and cooperation, and always overemphasized the role of the team.

In Li Chongxiao's view, the team and the individual can co-exist, as long as they can win, there is no need to be obsessed with which one.

It's true that basketball is a five-person sport, but there is also a saying that the playoffs are the stage for superstars.Star singles is a tactic, and it is a very efficient tactic.

Otherwise, like the Lakers, more than half of the players are CBA, relying on team offense, it is impossible to enter the playoffs.

"Suppressing the offensive nature of players is really an anti-league trend. This old man, the older he gets, the less cute he gets."

However, Li Chongxiao only dared to talk to himself alone, and he couldn't even tell Duncan these words.

Duncan still respects Popovich very much, otherwise he would not be willing to stay in the Spurs for so many years.Without his support, Popovich's tactical adjustments would not be possible at all.

And now is such a critical moment in the Western Conference finals, Li Chongxiao also knows the severity, and he will not do things that affect unity.

So although he was full of resentment, he still followed Popovich's tactical drills meticulously during training.

Whether it is right or wrong can only be left to the conclusion of the next game.

(End of this chapter)