After a short intermission, the players from both teams returned to the court. Judging from the expressions of the players from both teams, it was obvious that their inner activities were different.
The Spurs are relaxed, while the Trail Blazers are serious.
It is not difficult to understand that for the Trail Blazers, who were 10 points behind at halftime, they were burdened with greater pressure. Home games in the series are very important. If they lose their home court advantage, to a certain extent, this series will be considered a loss.
It's very difficult.
The Moda Center became noisy again, and under the organization of the host, the fans cheered for the home team again.
At the beginning of the game, because he and Rudy Gay did not reach a tacit understanding, Jiang Hao made his third mistake of the game. His pass was guessed by McCollum, and then the Trail Blazers counterattacked successfully.
Popovich frowned on the sidelines. Jiang Hao was suddenly outstanding, but he was still just a rookie. Until now in the playoffs, Jiang Hao's average number of turnovers per game has been the highest on the team.
Of course, Popovich also knows that there is no need to rush. Reducing mistakes is like the process of a warrior transforming from an ordinary warrior to a sharpshooter. He needs time, and he needs to hone his marksmanship one by one. For Jiang Hao, he can only go through a process.
Only in each game can you reduce your mistakes.
Jiang Hao was a little annoyed, because his teammates could forgive his mistake, but he himself could not, because his mistake instantly caused his opponent to launch a 5:0 offensive climax, and the 10-point difference suddenly narrowed to 5 points.
, this is not a good sign.
Fortunately, Leonard's mid-range shot helped the team stabilize the situation. The Blazers never underestimated Leonard from the beginning to the end, but they really had nothing to do with Leonard.
Leonard may be the strongest offensive and defensive player in the league at the moment. He is no longer the more defensive player he was in the 13-14 season. Now he has already found many weapons on the offensive end.
Although he has not played a game for almost the entire regular season, as a superstar, it is not difficult to regain his form through two playoff games.
When Jiang Hao fell into a misfire in the third quarter, he chose to stand up. His mid-range shot put a lot of pressure on the Blazers.
In just 3 minutes, Leonard used a wave of explosions to allow the Spurs to regain a 10-point lead.
From this perspective, Jiang Hao feels that Leonard is the target of his pursuit, and he also admires Leonard very much. He knows that Leonard may leave the Spurs after this season.
Under such circumstances, Leonard can still go all out to win the game for the Spurs, which is enough to show how professional he is.
It's a pity that he has no friendship with Leonard in private. Otherwise, he might ask Leonard for more advice. It is even possible that he and Leonard will explore the possibility of staying in the Spurs together.
.
What Trail Blazers coach Stotts was most worried about happened in the third quarter. When they finally waited for the Spurs to enter a silent state on the 35th, Leonard, the Spurs' real leader, stepped forward at this time.
What is very embarrassing is that his team has almost no players on the front line who can compete with Leonard.
The only thing he can do is to tell the backcourt duo to try their best to open up the situation on the offensive end, using sharp offense to cover up defensive deficiencies.
But when the game came to this point, the backcourt double guns he relied on most seemed to be running out of gas.
The Spurs' perimeter defense is too strong. They used high-intensity defense almost the entire game to consume the physical strength of the two guns in the backcourt.
Especially that damn Chinese rookie. When the offense was not going well in the third quarter, this guy decisively shifted his focus to the defensive end.
Stotts saw with his own eyes McCollum's shooting percentage plummeted under his defense.
McCollum had a difficult time in this game. After being tormented by Danny Green in the first quarter, McCollum was immediately defended by Leonard.
Leonard finally shifted his focus to the offensive end, and now there is another Chinese player. What's even more hateful is that this Chinese player's defense is also very good.
At 11 minutes and 15 seconds of the third quarter, the Trail Blazers had the ball. McCollum, who was entangled with Jiang Hao on the left side of the arc, decided to open his hand and ask Lillard for the ball. In this attack, he planned to work hard, otherwise
This was too frustrating, and he didn't believe that this Chinese player could really stop him.
You must know that McCollum is also a top scorer with an average of 20 per game. He can't do nothing in the entire game.
Lillard trusted McCollum very much, so when he saw McCollum asking for the ball, he threw the ball to McCollum without hesitation.
Facing Jiang Hao, McCollum decided to use his physical fitness to get rid of Jiang Hao, and then went to the basket to complete the score.
While dribbling the ball, he made tentative breakthrough moves.
But what disappointed him was that Jiang Hao didn't listen to him at all.
Therefore, in the next second, McCollum directly pressed against Jiang Hao and used his strength to push Jiang Hao forward.
Jiang Hao's expression finally changed. He couldn't stand it anymore. McCollum's full burst was really impactful.
The next second, Jiang Hao's mass was pushed away by McCollum.
After yelling, McCollum took the ball to the basket with lightning speed. For him, this attack was basically stable, because there were no Spurs defensive players in the basket at this time.
After quickly reaching the basket, McCollum opened his hand and threw the basketball up. He was even planning to celebrate.
However, at this moment, McCollum was completely stunned.
Snap!
A very clear voice echoed above McCallum's head. This sound was definitely familiar to McCallum, because he had let others experience it before.
Chasing the big hat!
The atmosphere at the Moda Center was a bit dull. The home fans really didn't want to see this scene. One of their ace players was actually blocked by a rookie.
This is too difficult.
That's right, McCollum was deceived, and the person who impersonated him was really Jiang Hao. Judging from the footage of the interview at the scene, Jiang Hao seemed to be prepared at the moment McCallum resisted Jiang Hao.
The moment he was pushed away, he immediately followed McCollum's footsteps and rushed to the basket. With 202, he had every chance to complete the chase block before McCollum took action.
Of course, through this replay lens, even the home fans have to admit that Jiang Hao's sense of smell on the defensive end is top-notch. It can also be seen that Jiang Hao has strong basic skills and experience on the defensive end.
Chapter completed!