On June 12, Game 6 of the Finals began at the United Center in Chicago.
President David Stern came to the scene to watch the game, and the championship trophy was delivered. This made Bulls fans a little panicked, as if the two teams were going to decide the winner today.
In the first quarter, the Bulls players were as brave as taking stimulants. Their defense was still strong and their offense was more blossoming.
Michael Jordan mainly breaks through with the ball and can score by himself. He also assisted two role players, Luke Longley and Ron Harper, to score.
Harper has played five games, how could he not know Yang Jian's defensive routine? Yang Jian will definitely let him shoot from the baseline and shrink to the penalty area to help defend and fight for rebounds.
Harper's offensive performance in the past few games was poor, and his shooting percentage was not high even though he was often left open. Under the arrangement of the coaching staff, he has conducted targeted training in the past two days, and practiced three-pointers from the right corner.
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The coach's requirements for Harper are very low. He doesn't need to go to other positions. He can only move on the right baseline. If he can shoot in the open space, he is successful. It's no wonder that Pippen is depressed because of his annual salary. Harper's salary this season is 3.12 million.
Being a blue collar worker on the team is a little higher than Pippen.
The effect of Harper's additional shooting practice is obvious. He made a three-pointer and a mid-range shot in the first quarter. With one more goal, his scoring task for the entire regular season was completed.
After pj Brown committed two fouls and took a break, Longley also scored 6 points in the first quarter and hit the basket with all his strength.
Langley has an advantage in size. He can get deep into the basket and catch the ball. Sam Perkins and Kemp are both difficult to defend. Perkins is only 206cm tall and Kemp weighs only 104 kilograms.
In the first quarter, the Sonics' gold medal undercover Pippen shot 50% from the field, which was also an important reason why the Bulls took the lead.
The shooting percentage of Sonics players is a bit low. Bulls players can engage in fierce physical confrontations at home and even use their hands to block opponents from breaking through. Under such conditions, Sonics players can only try to take shots outside the penalty area.
Just like in the fourth game between the two sides, it was difficult for Kemp to get into the penalty area and dunk or cause a foul. As long as Rodman and Longley did not knock Kemp down, the referee would not call a foul. On the contrary, if Kemp
If you defend like this, you will definitely be called for a foul.
Kemp is an inside star who mainly attacks the basket. If he averages no free throws or only 1 or 2 free throw opportunities per game, his threat will be greatly reduced.
This change in the scale of whistleblowing can only be felt by players on the court, and cannot be seen by ordinary spectators. They will only think that Jordan's breakthroughs are sharper because Jordan made more free throws.
The SuperSonics relied on Yang Jian and Payton's scores to hold on to the score, falling behind 22-29.
In the second quarter, Yang Jian and Schrempf led the team together, overpowering the substitute lineup led by Kukoc, and quickly caught up with the score. They had a chance to overtake, but Sam Perkins was in poor condition and shot continuously.
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The Bulls' starters returned to the court one after another, and the two sides reached a deadlock again.
Bulls players guarded Yang Jian closely, and it was easier for other Sonics players to get shots. But when his teammates couldn't make shots, Yang Jian really had no choice. Some people just had mental problems, and their shooting in the game was not as good as in training.
It is understandable that the SuperSonics players are excited. The championship is so close, and none of them have won it. They are only one step away from reaching the top this season. Yang Jian is also very excited. He hopes that this game can
Win. Once dragged into the tiebreaker, everyone will be under greater pressure than today.
In the second half, Yang Jian increased his breakthroughs and air cuts, getting to the basket to attract double-teams and then passing the ball. When no one was double-teamed, he forced a layup. Kemp also reduced his jump shots and kept attacking the basket.
This is a tactic arranged by George Karl. He knew that the opponent's defensive actions would make it difficult to get free throws, but he still asked the players to play like this. Is the coach crazy? No, he is preparing to use this method to attract attention and discussion.
The North American ratings of this game hit a record high in NBA history, and countless fans are paying attention to the NBA Finals. If the Sonics players' style of play is to focus on hitting the basket, but the free throws they get after the game are not as high as the Bulls, it will definitely cause some controversy.
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Moreover, when a player's touch is not good, his shooting percentage will be higher if he breaks into the basket, but he will lose if he shoots from the outside. George Karl is very experienced. He knows that going to the basket to fight can stimulate the players' blood, and he can also do this on the defensive end.
It was better. The players kept shooting outside. The score was not lost, but the momentum was lost first.
Keep up the momentum. Even if the Sonics lose this game, there is a high probability that the tiebreaker will be a fair fight and you will not suffer a big loss on the whistle. George Karl firmly believes that the tiebreaker is fair because he knows that President Stern wants to face
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The president can give the Bulls the home court whistle, but he cannot directly give the Bulls the championship. When a game determines the outcome, the championship is won by competition, not given away.
Yang Jian tried his best on the defensive end and no longer allowed Harper to take easy shots. Harper's shooting percentage immediately dropped.
Yang Jian interfered from the outside, and Rodman began to show off his power in the interior. PJ Brown was in foul trouble, and Kemp and Perkins could not protect the backcourt rebounds.
Rodman went crazy for offensive rebounds. Kukoc, Jordan, Pippen, Longley and others also actively fought for offensive rebounds. It doesn't matter if the shooting percentage is low, just grab rebounds and keep shooting close to the basket.
George Karl completely abandoned Earvin Johnson, who was better at defending the penalty area, and reused veteran Perkins. He wanted to compete offensively with the Bulls, believing that the veteran's playoff experience would make him more effective.
Perkins is the only Sonics player with Finals experience. He reached the Finals with the Lakers in the 1990-91 season, and their opponent was also the Bulls.
The Lakers lost the finals 1-4. Perkins performed well, averaging 16.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1 assist and 1.4 blocks per game. This is the reason why Perkins can get a high salary, but after 5 years, his strength has declined.
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The Bulls let Perkins shoot casually from the baseline and guarded Kemp. As a result, Perkins played 32 minutes and made 3 of 14 shots, 0 of 7 three-pointers, and 1 of 2 free throws. He only scored 7 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists.
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In the second half, he tricked his teammates to the point of vomiting blood. Only then did George Karl wake up and sent P.J. Brown to strengthen the defense.
In the last 2 minutes, Yang Jian assisted Schrempf to hit a three-pointer, leading 95 to 94 by 1 point.
Kemp made another mistake in the next round. When he and Rodman were fighting for a backcourt rebound, he swung his right arm. Rodman fell to the ground and the referee blew the whistle. Rodman looked at the referee and pointed his finger forward.
, Kemp graduated with six offenses.
It can be seen from the video playback that Rodman's arm and Kemp's arm were completely entangled. Rodman did this deliberately without exerting force. As soon as Kemp exerted force, he fell down.
On the surface, this is two macho men competing for muscle, but in fact, it is an IQ crushing. Rodman's physique is very disadvantaged in the interior, with a height of 201cm and a weight of 100kg. But Rodman will constantly harass his opponents with small moves and use any means.
.Kemp is a stubborn inside representative who can't control the number of fouls.
It would be fine if he committed a foul while defending a key ball. His fouls were often meaningless. He would fly up into the sky for no apparent reason and be hit by someone for a foul, or he would move too much when he was blocked.
The situation was originally very favorable for the Sonics, but after a camp, the advantage was gone. Perkins' touch was so bad that George Karl did not send him on the field. He replaced him with Bo Otello to strengthen defense and let Schrempf take the 4th position.
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Kukoc and Jordan played a pick-and-roll, and after receiving the ball, he hit a three-pointer from the right side to overtake the score. 95 to 97.
The Sonics' formation couldn't open up, and Yang Jian relied on a screen to catch the ball from the outside and was double-teamed. He passed the ball to Payton, who passed it to P.J. Brown, and the Bulls' interior players were in place to cover the ball.
pj Brown is not good at assisting the pass, and he does not have as strong impact as Kemp. He has the worst offensive ability among the starting players, and he passed the ball to his teammates. With 24 seconds approaching, Payton beat Harper and missed the jumper.
In the next round, Jordan's jump shot missed due to Payton's interference. In the SuperSonics position battle, Yang Jian relied on a screen to catch the ball and faced Rodman's iron-blooded jump shot to equalize the score. 97 to 97.
At this time, it was obvious that Jordan could no longer run and could not keep up with Yang Jian when faced with a cover.
So Yang Jian made a mid-range shot. If the two sides entered overtime, the SuperSonics would have a high probability of winning.
However, God is not as good as God. In the Bulls' final attack, Jordan caught the ball on the left, forced a breakthrough to the middle, and made a pull-up jumper. Under the interference of Payton and Bo Otello, he made the shot...