Before Durant joined the Warriors, Stephen Curry was the undoubted offensive core of the Warriors, especially his three-pointers, which were the team's most trusted scoring weapon.
But three-pointers still depend on touch after all. Apart from three-pointers, Curry's other offensive weapons can only be said to be average.
To a certain extent, this is also the reason why they have become the laughingstock of the runner-up with 73 wins.
Therefore, Durant, who is omnipotent on the offensive end, is here, and his arrival has truly made up for the shortcomings of the Warriors' original lineup.
As he further integrates with the team, as of now, Durant has replaced Curry and become the Warriors' new offensive core.
Although Warriors fans around the world still believe that Curry is the leader of this Warriors team, being the leader does not mean being the core of the offense.
Give the damn ball to Kevin!
This is the tactical instruction that Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has given the most so far in this playoffs.
The same goes for the Western Conference Finals with the Spurs. Before the game even started, Cole made it clear in the locker room that Durant must shoulder more offensive responsibilities in this series.
Cole can see clearly that the Spurs almost have the best defensive backcourt in the league, which makes it difficult for the Splash Brothers to become the protagonists of this series.
Durant is different. Although the Spurs also have Leonard, he firmly believes that Leonard cannot guard Durant.
………
On the court, both sides have very good shooting percentages in the early stages. Often the Spurs will complete an attack, and the Warriors will immediately respond with one.
Therefore, until the official timeout of the first quarter, 13:13!
The score difference between the two sides did not widen.
What was slightly disadvantageous for the Spurs was that Pau Gasol sprained his ankle and exited the game early.
Against the Warriors, the Spurs have the advantage inside. Whether it is height or experience, the Spurs twin towers composed of Pau Gasol and LaMarcus Aldridge will have the upper hand.
However, with the sudden injury of Pau Gasol, this advantage disappeared instantly. Popovich must pray that the team's inside line will not be at a great disadvantage in the next game.
Frankly speaking, Pau Gasol's accidental injury made Jiang Hao a little angry. He hated this kind of loss of troops that was not based on strength.
Therefore, the angry Jiang Hao suddenly changed his playing style on the court. If before Pau Gasol was injured, Jiang Hao tended to activate the team's offense, then at this moment, he quickly enhanced his personal offense.
After the official timeout of the first quarter, the Spurs' first offense, Jiang Hao handed the ball to Aldridge at the free throw line, and immediately bypassed Durant and quickly came to the goal.
Basket.
The ball has arrived!
Although high-post support is not Aldridge's characteristic, he still found Jiang Hao at the basket with his height and vision advantage.
The angry Spurs No. 35 did not choose a relatively safe throw layup the first time he received the ball, but instead went for a back dunk layup that shocked everyone.
Bang!
This was the second time Spurs No. 35 took a shot tonight, but it was also the second time he scored through a dunk tonight.
The atmosphere in Oracle Arena was a little quiet. In addition to bursts of boos, the home fans seemed to have a little helplessness in their eyes.
Looking at the entire lineup of the team, it seems that there is no player who can sanction the Spurs No. 35.
"Andre is on the field. Maybe he will be an obstacle to China Jiang. Regarding Andre's level on the defensive end, I don't think anyone will question him."
When Steve Kerr finally couldn't help himself and replaced Iguodala to defend Jiang Hao, the entire arena suddenly burst into violent applause. It was obvious that the fans in this city recognized Iguodala very much.
level.
Regarding Andre Iguodala suddenly becoming the new Warriors player to play against him, Jiang Hao remained calm as always.
After several matches in the regular season this season, he is aware of Iguodala's ability on the defensive end, but at the same time, he also has ways to deal with it.
Although Iguodala is a veteran defender, a fact that cannot be ignored is that Iguodala is no longer the young "little al". Age and injuries have become his biggest enemies this season, which made him once able to
Many defensive moves that were made easily can only be shaken now.
As for speed, it has never been his advantage.
In this situation, Jiang Hao decided to use his own strengths to counter Iguodala's weaknesses.
The Spurs had the ball right from the moment it passed the midline, and Iguodala blocked Jiang Hao. Iguodala was very smart. He didn't expect to use this defensive method to cause Jiang Hao to make mistakes, but through this
This method can at least cause serious consumption of Jiang Hao's physical strength. Iguodala believes that with the same method, Jiang Hao's threat will gradually decrease after a few rounds.
However, what made Iguodala a little angry was that the Spurs No. 35 in front of him was too decisive. He didn't give himself a chance to struggle, and directly increased his speed to the extreme, quickly got rid of him, and went to the basket with the ball.
.
"ohno!"
Spurs No. 35 succeeded again. He used his speed to eat Iguodala alive without giving the latter a chance to consume his physical energy.
And we must admit that because of their trust in Iguodala's defensive skills, the Warriors players were not very focused on defense at this moment.
And writing it happened to be the Spurs' No. 35!
3 out of 3 shots!
Steve Kerr's face is getting more and more ugly, even though he paid enough attention to Spurs No. 35 before the game.
But judging from the current situation, this first-year rookie is simply more destructive than he imagined.
It's hard for Kerr to imagine how much trouble this first-year rookie will cause to the Golden State Warriors throughout the series.
beep!
Relatively speaking, Cole was quite decisive, and he immediately requested a timeout.
"17:13! Steve Kerr was the first to request a timeout. Just as we predicted before the game, China Jiang is making himself the x factor in this series." Kenny Smith laughed, which was pretty much what he expected.
, then it depends on Cole's skill. If he can't solve the problem of China Jiang, then it will be really difficult for them to win this series.
"That's it, use your momentum to tear apart the opponent's defense. Don't worry too much, seize the opportunity and take decisive action."
Compared to the gloom and gloom on the Warriors' bench, Popovich's face is obviously much better on the Spurs' bench.
The reason why Popovich looks good is of course related to Jiang Hao's outstanding performance. Just as Popovich thought, as long as Jiang Hao's condition is normal, the team will play in a good rhythm.
Chapter completed!