The Bulls' formation was spread out, and in the first round Jordan had a fierce blocking with Yang Jian in the low post. Yang Jian's steady lower body, coupled with the small movements of his hands, blocked Jordan from the penalty area.
Kukoc lobbed the ball from the left three-point line to Jordan in the low post. The main impact of Pippen's absence was the defensive strength of the wings. The team's triangle offensive tactics were the same, but the people on Jordan's side became
Kukoc.
Jordan pushed Yang Jian with his back twice but didn't move, turned around in the middle and shot a fadeaway jumper near the free throw line. Yang Jian's prediction was accurate and he immediately jumped up to block the shot. He knew that Jordan's fadeaway jumper was difficult to block and blocked the block.
It's much easier. His size and speed make Jordan more uncomfortable than Payton.
Under severe interference, Jordan's shot bounced out of the frame, Barkley blocked Rodman, and Mason won the backcourt rebound.
The Bulls players returned to defense quickly, and the Sonics fell into position.
Yang Jian caught the ball as soon as the half was passed, and Mason blocked Jordan in the middle. Yang Jian took the ball and changed direction to the right, taking one step to the right and shooting a three-pointer from outside the three-point line.
Rodman followed Barkley to the low post on the left, Longley retreated to the free throw line, and Yang Jian took the shot easily without interference.
While the ball was still flying in the air, Yang Jian clenched his fist with one hand and raised it in a victory pose, and then the ball hit the net! 3 to 0.
Then he roared and ignited the audience, and the fans clapped and cheered!
Zhang Lili said: "Yang Jian started with a super long three-pointer. This kind of change of direction after the pick-and-roll is his unique skill. It can't be done without the help of inside players."
Sun Zhengping said: "Rodman can only help defend. Longley is too far outside and can easily be passed. But if Rodman defends, let alone whether he can block the breakthrough, Yang Jian passes the ball to Barkley and directly beats Longley.
It’s misplaced.”
Not only that, Longley's rebounding ability is not as good as Rodman's. With Pippen absent, the Bulls need Longley to strengthen their offense. He averaged double figures for the first time in his career, currently 12.1 points. But Longley can only play 30 minutes.
Grabbing 6 rebounds, as a 218cm big man, this performance can only be described as "junk".
Zhang Lili said: "The Bulls can only attack the SuperSonics if they want to win. Let's see if Jordan and Yang Jian can score points today."
Sun Zhengping smiled and said: "Yang Jian can only score three points, but Jordan can only score two points."
The Bulls player passed the ball to Jordan for a low post and opened up to create a singles opportunity for him.
Yang Jian held up his elbows to hold Jordan back even an inch, and his teammates did not come up to double-team him.
This is not because the Sonics players showed mercy to Jordan. If the weak side double-teamed Jordan, they would have to leave Kukoc open. The latter has the ability to shoot. If it is Harper and Rodman opens up on this side, the Sonics
Without saying a word, the players let them go and double-teamed Jordan.
Moreover, the SuperSonics have rich experience against the Bulls and are not afraid of Jordan's isolation at all. The key condition for the Bulls to win is not Jordan scoring 30, but the team's terrible defensive efficiency. In the 1980s, the Bulls' overall defense was not good, and Jordan's single game
40 always loses.
The SuperSonics guard Jordan alone and guard against others. Even if Jordan scores a lot, as long as his shooting rate is less than 50%, he cannot drive the team. Even if Jordan's shooting rate exceeds 50%, there is nothing terrible, because he always shoots two-pointers.
Yang Jian's scoring efficiency will definitely surpass him.
While the Sonics' offense is winning, their defense is not bad either.
Jordan caught the ball in the low post on the left and took a step behind his back. With his right foot as the pivot and his left shoulder swaying slightly, he quickly turned toward the baseline and shot a fadeaway jumper. Yang Jian once again accurately judged the eye-sealing interference, and the ball bounced out of the frame.
Because Yang Jian's bullet speed is faster than Jordan's, he can interfere with his back jump. It is difficult for Jordan to shake him up with fake moves. Yang Jian's reaction speed is extremely fast. If you don't jump, I won't jump. I will only fight with my body.
Barkley grabbed the rebound in the backcourt and waited for Payton to respond. The SuperSonics did not have to have a fast break, they could stabilize the rhythm.
Payton dribbled steadily across half court under Harper's pressure and passed the ball to Yang Jian, who wanted the ball from outside the left three-point line.
Yang Jian didn't wait for his teammates to come up to cover and dribbled the ball. He raised the ball with both hands and feinted before dropping the ball. He dribbled the ball to the left with his left hand and tapped his shoulder but his left foot did not move on the ground. Then he dribbled the ball behind his left hand to his right hand.
A drastic change of direction towards the middle.
He held the ball in his right hand and moved his left hand slightly closer, making a realistic fake gesture of praying to Buddha, which attracted Jordan to move laterally, then took a big step to the left with the ball in his right hand and succeeded in changing direction.
Having played in two finals, Yang Jian clearly knows what his biggest advantage is against Jordan. His center of gravity is lower and his lateral speed is faster.
Jordan's current sprint speed is still very fast, but his lateral speed has dropped significantly compared with his peak period. His weight is also heavier than that at his peak, and he is a shooting guard weighing about 100 kilograms.
After Jordan's comeback, he used post-ups more to solve problems instead of facing the frame and holding the ball to break through.
Before Yang Jian faced Jordan in the 1996 Finals, he had watched many videos of the Bulls losing games. The Magic's Penny Hardaway and the Raptors' Stoudemire could pass Jordan time and time again, and the latter even staggered
Defeat him. Yang Jian memorized some moves in his mind. He knew how to make Jordan uncomfortable.
His quick change of direction this time almost knocked Jordan over, who was trying to forcefully change his center of gravity. He dribbled the ball into the three-point line and made a sudden stop jumper, making a steady hit. 5 to 0.
This is the weak side. If the Bulls players want to double-team, Rodman must let Barkley or Longley let Mason in the high post. There will be obvious gaps.
After scoring the goal, Yang Jian roared again in celebration and hit Jordan twice.
The Bulls attacked, and the players were all separated again. Jordan caught the ball in the low post on the left and singled out Yang Jian, then turned to the middle and made a fadeaway jumper. This time, his movements were very smooth, and Yang Jian interfered with the invalid ball and scored. 5 ratio
2.
When the SuperSonics attacked, Jordan followed the defense tighter, and the close confrontation made it difficult for Yang Jian to get the ball. Yang Jian started running, first going to the left corner, then sliding down the baseline and running at full speed to the right side.
The SuperSonics players moved the ball and changed positions based on Yang Jian's running. Payton passed the ball to Yang Jian in the right corner. Booutero blocked Jordan in the low post on the right.
Booutlo is a tall and lanky forward, and his cover quality is not high, but he still slightly blocked Jordan's progress. Because he was mainly defending Kukoc, the two stood together and blocked a lot of space.
It only takes half a second for Yang Jian to comfortably catch the basketball and turn around to face the frame. Kukoc hesitated for a moment and did not jump out to double-team Yang Jian. Booutlo stood close to the basket and could easily catch the ball once he received the pass.
Layup.
After Yang Jian feinted, he changed direction to the left but could not get rid of Jordan who was chasing him. He dribbled the ball with his left hand to his right hand, quickly dribbled the ball with his right hand under the hip and then passed it to his left hand. He held the ball with his left hand and dragged towards the baseline to change direction and break through quickly.
Yang Jian failed to completely break through, and Jordan followed up from the side.
Yang Jian's strength is amazing. Under the physical confrontation with Jordan, he can stabilize his center of gravity and hit the basket with both hands. The Bulls' inside players do not cover up the defense. As long as he forces a layup faster than Jordan, it will be difficult for Jordan to block the shot.
The two big men, Longley and Kukoc, shrank towards the basket, forming a three-man attack, blocking all shooting space. Yang Jian jumped outside the baseline to get a pass in space, and passed the ball to Longley's side to the left.
Side Barkley.
Barkley caught the ball in an open position and immediately took action, hitting a two-point mid-range shot. 7 to 2.
His mid-range shots outside the penalty area are very accurate, his shooting percentage is obviously higher than Kemp's, and his long two-point and three-point shots are similar to Karl Malone's lack of accuracy.
When returning to defense, Barkley gave Yang Jian a thumbs up.
Sun Zhengping said: "Yang Jian's passing is more difficult to guard against than his shooting. His passing method is unconstrained and he can pass the ball with his elbow. It is difficult for opponents to block the passing route."
Zhang Lili said: "Barkley played very happily in every game after joining the SuperSonics and smiled more. In the past, he was always the one responsible for attracting double-teams. In the SuperSonics, he often has open shooting opportunities, which is relaxed and happy."
Sun Zhengping said: "Jordan couldn't guard Yang Jian one-on-one. He is already 34 years old. It's a pity that everyone didn't get to see Jordan compete with Yang Jian at his peak."
Zhang Li said with a smile: "I think that is not a good thing for Jordan. Not to mention whether Jordan can win three championships, his scoring champions must be several short."