In the first round after the game started, the stars of the two teams began to go head-to-head, with Yang Jian mainly defending Iverson.
Although the 76ers did not recruit Snow this season, Bobby Fiers is also in line with coach Larry Brown's team building ideas. The starting lineup of "four guarantees and one" has taken shape, and the 76ers are preparing for a big start this season.
Do a job, or help Iverson improve his statistics.
If this kind of lineup wants to win the championship, normal people will know that it is impossible if they think about it for a moment. Other championship teams are at least dual-core or even a team of three giants. Winning the championship with a single core is just to win.
In a parallel world, the lineup of Larry Brown's Pistons that reached the finals twice was not a single-core team, but multiple stars came together. The performance was extremely ugly under his tactical system, and was said to be "grassroots."
It's easy to deal with the 76ers' four-guarantee-one lineup. Just reduce Iverson's scoring efficiency and you'll win. The 76ers don't have a second strong scoring point. They were originally proposed to be traded away by Larry Brown. He firmly wanted to
Defend to win.
Yang Jian lowered his center of gravity and kept one step away to prevent breakthroughs but not shots. Iverson kept dribbling under his hips to test, but Yang Jian remained unmoved. His defensive method was to ignore fake moves and just keep his distance to interfere with shots.
Iverson wants to pass the ball casually, and if he changes direction, even if Yang Jian starts a little slower, he can still keep up with him from the side, and there will be teammates in the penalty area to help defend.
Yang Jian was selected to the second team of the All-Defensive Team last season, mainly because he rarely made mistakes and lost position when he defended seriously, and he could defend against the weaknesses of the opponent's scorer. Iverson tried several times and couldn't get past Yang Jian.
, passed the ball to small forward George Lynch.
Lynch is 203cm tall and weighs 99kg. He was selected by the Lakers with the 12th pick in the first round of 1993. He is a wing player with excellent physical fitness and outstanding defense. His offense mainly relies on catching and shooting. He has practiced breakthrough for five seasons but has not mastered it.
Facing Schrempf, who couldn't break through, he passed two steps to Matt Geiger in the low post on the left.
Geiger, a white center who is 213cm tall and weighs 110kg, became famous because he broke O'Neal's finger in the 1996 preseason game and became one of the famous tough men in the league.
Facing Ben Wallace, who was shorter than himself, Geiger chose to play with the ball in his back. He hit the ball hard twice but failed to push it away. Ben Wallace also weighed 110 kilograms this season, and his muscles were like iron.
Geiger is stronger.
Geiger couldn't turn around and passed the ball out of the perimeter again. The players passed the ball several times and time was running out. Fiers, who was 196cm tall, caught the ball and made a mid-range shot, which missed due to Payton's interference.
Ben Wallace leaped high and grabbed the backcourt rebound with one hand. He made a very beautiful move and passed it to Mason who was about to leave.
Mason dribbled the ball past half-court. He is only 201cm tall and is very skilled. Last season in the SuperSonics, he often performed rapid advances. He could misplace the opponent's big man and even performed a one-stop counterattack dunk.
At this time, there was a serious mismatch on the court. Yang Jian faced Iverson and rushed into the opponent's penalty area.
Iverson knew he couldn't withstand it, so he went around and failed to steal the ball. Mason passed a high ball, and Yang Jian jumped up from the left, making an alley-oop dunk and scoring the ball! 2-0.
The atmosphere at the SuperSonics' home court was instantly ignited. Yang Jian scored the first two points of the new season with a top-five goal.
The 76ers attacked and Iverson dribbled the ball across half court.
At this time, the butterfly effect has appeared. If Snow does not join the 76ers, Larry Brown will not be able to transform Iverson from point guard to shooting guard. Phils' defense is very good, but he can only play shooting guard.
Iverson was unable to use more off-the-ball movement methods to attack, and no one else could make him catch the ball as comfortably as Snow. Of course Iverson had no problem attacking with the ball, but the point guard carried the ball by himself through half the court.
When playing, he is a ball-carrying core with poor defense and low offensive efficiency.
This time Iverson and Geiger played a pick-and-roll in the middle. Ben Wallace changed defense and blocked Iverson's breakthrough route. Yang Jian pursued the defense and formed a double team.
Iverson forced a breakthrough into the penalty area without a chance to release the ball, and Geiger caught the ball at the free throw line. At this time, Ben's mobility advantage was fully demonstrated, and his defensive awareness was also very good. He immediately jumped out to interfere, and Geiger made a mid-range shot.
deviation.
Mason grabbed the rebound and passed it to Payton. Payton quickly advanced and passed to Yang Jian as soon as the half was passed.
Payton has rich experience. As long as he dribbles the ball forward, Phils will be extremely uncomfortable. Because he cannot leave Payton open to chase Yang Jian and quickly complete the switch with Iverson. That is equivalent to giving away points, Payton
It was immediately empty.
Yang Jian received the ball and changed direction, took one step to hit Iverson and rushed to the basket. He made an easy layup from the left side. 4 to 0.
Zhang Lili shouted: "Good shot, Yang Jian scored 4 points in the opening game. It seems that not practicing for a few months will have no impact."
Sun Zhengping said: "The SuperSonics counterattacked, and Yang Jian played against Iverson casually. The matchup arranged by George Karl was conducive to Yang Jian's performance."
Zhang Liji said: "It is true that Iverson is at a physical disadvantage when facing Yang Jian. Once the opponent starts a layup, he has nothing to do. Iverson cannot easily foul or get into foul trouble. The team needs him to attack.
"
Sun Zhengping said: "I think even if he fouls, he may not be able to hold Yang Jian. If he doesn't dunk, he will lose face."
The 76ers attacked and the players spread out. Iverson held the ball in the middle and challenged Yang Jian. He dribbled under his hips continuously and changed directions to the right. Yang Jian kept his distance and kept up.
Iverson mainly goes to the right to break through, and rarely goes to the left. He can beat 99% of the players in the league with his speed and skills. Yang Jian happens to be in the 1%, and his flexibility is not inferior to Iverson.
Iverson failed to break through and was blocked by Yang Jian without a chance to make a move. He passed the ball to find his teammates. He made a mistake when passing to Phils on the right baseline. During the confrontation, Payton suddenly stepped forward to steal and successfully started the fast break.
There was another mismatch on the court. Yang Jian ran towards the center, and Payton dribbled the ball across half court and passed to him.
This time Iverson retreated further back and did not dare to get close to him. His chance of successfully stealing the ball was too low. If he tried to fight physically, he would be bounced away by Yang Jian. The difference in strength between the two was too big.
Yang Jian made an emergency stop jumper one meter outside the three-point line. When he landed, he kept raising his hand, clenched his right hand into a fist, and the ball hit the net! 7 to 0.
Iverson only stretched out his hand to interfere slightly, Phils was also slow to pursue and block the shot from the side, and Yang Jian shot the ball as easily as in training, with a perfect rhythm.
The arena was buzzing with excitement. Fans were worried that the Sonics would be much weaker without Barkley this season, but the results seemed to be unchanged and they were still beating their opponents.
Sun Zhengping said: "Yang Jian's shooting is so stable. He is a natural talent and does not need to practice all the time."
Zhang Lili said: "Even if he fails to make a shot, Payton still has a high chance of grabbing the rebound. Payton cut to the inside and Fiers did not follow."
Sun Zhengping said: "Iverson was the No. 1 pick in 1996. He played well offensively for two seasons. But on the defensive end, he was basically at the mercy of others."
This game was broadcast live across the United States. Although the NBA shut down and lost some fans, there were still many fans watching.
At this time, people felt that Yang Jian's failure in the draft was the most ridiculous thing in NBA history. Iverson had a poor shooting, no height, no confrontation, and no defense. He could only compare with Yang Jian in terms of speed, but he was the number one pick in the draft. Yang Jian
Invincible, but lost in the draft in a small year.
How did this happen and why all the scouts made the mistake of seeing it together? I guess there will be people discussing it 50 years later.
The 76ers attacked, and Iverson wanted to fight back.
He held the ball and played a pick-and-roll with Geiger and then went to the right to force a breakthrough. Under the interference of Ben Wallace, his layup missed. His choice was unwise because the penalty area was full of people.
With a height of 183cm, he looks really fierce when facing a big man for a layup. He is worthy of being a tough warrior.
Iverson's layup was a successful "assist". He attracted Ben Wallace's cover, and Mason blocked Ratliff and could only defend one side.
Geiger cut in the middle and grabbed an offensive rebound, then dunked with his right hand in the second attack and scored 7 to 2.