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Author: Sheep that doesn’t like to eat grass

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After the first quarter of the game between the Clippers and the Spurs, the score was 24:26, with the Spurs leading the Clippers by 2 points.

The Clippers did not take advantage at the beginning, and the Spurs were obviously very well prepared before the game.

Seventh vs. second is an absolute disadvantage, but the Spurs are a tough team and their desire for revenge is very strong.

Being blacklisted last season was a huge shame for Duncan.

Popovich's reconstruction plan has been repeatedly blocked, which makes him full of hatred for the Clippers.

It stands to reason that in interviews before the game starts, everyone should be polite and say nice things.

As a result, when Popovich was asked what he thought of the Clippers' lineup depth, he shrugged at the reporter and said: "I don't watch Clippers games very much. I don't know much about it."

He said this half-jokingly, half with a bit of disdain.

As we all know, Popovich is a coach who hates three-pointers.

He never hides his dislike of three-pointers in public, believing that the existence of three-pointers destroys the beauty of basketball.

Of course, on the court, Popovich's use of three-pointers is definitely pioneering, and his suppression of three-pointers is also master-level.

In the first quarter of today's game, the Spurs took advantage of their defensive strengths and guarded the low post and wing three-point positions very tightly.

After Duncan lost weight, he moved faster on the defensive end, covered a larger area, and had stronger delay ability.

Facing the Clippers' pick-and-roll, the Spurs will delay the pick-and-roll, destroying the Clippers' ball speed.

Split has grown up inside, and he was effective in defending Randolph in the low post without allowing Fatty Lan to penetrate him.

On the wing, Richard Jefferson was ineffective, so Popovich asked him to play as a forward, and then sent James Anderson as a substitute at the third position, using strong outward pressure defense to suppress the Clippers' three.

Point shooting percentage, not giving the Clippers a chance to easily take three-pointers.

Of course, the most feared part of such a defensive strategy is the mid-range.

The large open space between the three-point line and the three-second zone will be the stage for top midfielders to perform.

But no one on the Clippers side stepped up in the mid-range.

Curry was tightly guarded, unable to open up inside, and the Clippers' offensive efficiency was low.

During the break, Tyronn Lue and Steve Kerr discussed what tactics and lineup to use in the second quarter.

The regular season and playoffs are completely different.

In the regular season, you can play a large rotation, the personnel condition is relatively loose, and the offense feels very important.

If there is another major rotation in the playoffs, problems are likely to arise. Once the players cannot find their form, the entire game may collapse.

Therefore, Jeremy Lin, who performed well in the regular season, was not sent to play at a fixed time.

Originally, the middle of the first quarter and the beginning of the second quarter were the times when Jeremy Lin led the second unit to surge.

Now, after the first quarter, Jeremy Lin didn't even get a chance to play.

He is still eager to try and prove himself in the playoffs.

However, there were some differences of opinion between Cole and Director Lu.

"Playing Jamie is not a good idea. He has no advantage against the Spurs. It would be better to use Golan."

Cole believes that Dragic or Fisher are better choices. Their playing style and experience are more suitable for dealing with the Spurs.

Coach Lu had a different view. He said: "The rhythm of the game has been robbed by the Spurs. We have to get the rhythm back. In the first quarter, it is time for Jamie to bring up the speed and let the game resume."

Go to our rhythm."

The advantage of dual-headed coaches is that they complement each other, but the disadvantage is that sometimes they don’t know who to listen to.

In this game, the Clippers obviously did not do a good job of coordination before the game.

It should be said that the leak of Sterling's recordings still had some impact.

Both the coach and the players were a little distracted, not as hungry as the opposite Spurs.

After a brief debate, Steve Kerr respected the coach's intentions and made concessions.

Therefore, Tyronn Lue asked Jeremy Lin to come on the bench, replaced Curry, and partnered with Harden in the backcourt.

Coach Lu's idea is very clear, using Jeremy Lin's impact and speed to drive the offensive rhythm.

For the Clippers, offense is their foundation. They are younger and can run better than the Spurs.

Jeremy Lin's performance in the regular season went from amazing to gradually becoming stable.

Coming off the bench, he can contribute about 15 points and 5 assists per game.

As the Clippers' offensive gearbox, he can often bring changes and surprises to the Clippers after he comes on the court.

He played under pressure tonight. This was the first time in his career that he appeared in the playoffs.

The opponent is still the veteran Spurs, and I have to say that Director Lu still has great trust in Jeremy Lin.

Many rookies who perform well in the regular season will not understand what a real NBA game is until the playoffs.

The intensity of the competition is not at the same level as the regular season.

Jeremy Lin took a deep breath and appeared confidently.

In his mind, he recalled Tyronn Lue's arrangement just now.

It is required to drive the offensive rhythm of the whole team and increase the speed.

This is Jeremy Lin's specialty, a fast-paced offense.

Five minutes later, the Clippers called a timeout. The score on the field was 34:37, and the Clippers were still 3 points behind!

The situation on the court did not change. Jeremy Lin was covered in sweat and returned to the sidelines to drink water.

In five minutes, Jeremy Lin failed to score a point and missed two three-pointers from the outside.

There was a mistake during the fast break and a missed layup. The only gain was assisting Harden to catch the ball and make a layup in the positional battle.

There were several blood marks on Jeremy Lin's arm, which were caused by collisions with his opponents.

The confrontation in the playoffs was so fierce that the referee did not give Jeremy Lin a whistle.

Although he caused Linsanity in the league, he is not a star after all, and he will not have a whistle to protect his body.

The Spurs' defense on the outside was extremely tight and full of aggression. The game did not go as Tyronn Lue expected, as Jeremy Lin easily set the pace.

The playoffs don't give a player too many opportunities for trial and error.

Jeremy Lin was immediately put on the bench, and Tyronn Lue sent the experienced Fisher on the scene.

The two sides fell into a difficult positional battle, which was the rhythm of the game that the Spurs were accustomed to.

Duncan set up a good barrier inside, and Split kept an eye on Randolph.

Until the end of the second quarter, the Clippers were still 45:48, 3 points behind the Spurs.

If it weren't for the Spurs' insufficient offensive power and the strong individual defense capabilities of the Clippers' players, the Clippers would have fallen even further behind.

Seeing such a competition process, Min Congda felt very satisfied.

"Don't mention it, the Spurs are still quite capable of fighting. Maybe they will kill Qi and take revenge? That would be fun!"

Seeing the Spurs' suppressive performance in the first half, Min Congda began to wonder whether the Clippers could be eliminated in the first round.

If so, this result is simply fantastic.

Last year there was a black eight, and this year I encountered a black seven. The ups and downs in life were so exciting.

Shelley Sterling looked at the Clippers' performance in the first half and said: "The Clippers' performance today was not very good. It seems that the Spurs are not easy to deal with."

"The Spurs are certainly difficult to deal with. Which team in the NBA is easy to deal with?"

"It's much better than the previous Clippers. By the way, Smart, I heard that you have been raising funds for the construction of a new arena recently. How is the progress?"

Shelly suddenly changed the topic to the construction of the new arena.

This is a problem that has always troubled Min Congda. If it weren't for this, he wouldn't have gone around in such a big circle thinking about changing the owner of the Clippers.

"Uh... I don't have a clue yet. It would be great if you could provide some help."

Min Congda just said this casually, he didn't expect the Sterling family to come up with any money.

At that time, Sterling will just sign the various agreements and be done with it.

Shelley Sterling said: "If the Clippers can grow rapidly, investing in fixed assets may not be a bad thing. Real estate is always the most worthy investment project. Smart, in Los Angeles, wants to raise 1.2 billion

dollars, it’s not a very difficult thing.”

The Sterling family made its fortune in the Los Angeles real estate market. Shelly followed her husband in the business world and was a very discerning woman.

She realized that although the investment of US$1.2 billion would cost a lot, once completed, it would be beneficial to the Clippers and Sterling's personal wealth in the long run.

The main thing that needs to be concerned about now is the issue of risk.
To be continued...