The Sonics' defensive matchup changed at the beginning. Payton kept up with Kobe, and Yang Jian defended veteran Ron Harper.
This is not just to facilitate counterattacks. The SuperSonics coaching staff has thoroughly studied the Lakers lineup. Arranging the matchups in this way may lead to Kobe Bryant's attack.
If Kobe Bryant wants to prove himself against Payton, the Sonics' defensive pressure will be less. Kobe shoots more, O'Neal shoots less, and the Sharks' shooting percentage will definitely be higher.
The players were all separated, and Glen Rice, Kobe, and O'Neal formed a triangle on one side. Kobe lobbed the ball to O'Neal in the low post on the right. At this time, no matter who the SuperSonics retreated to double-team O'Neal, as long as O'Neal distributed the ball
Give it to the outside, and your teammates can catch the ball and shoot.
No one came forward to double-team, so Brad Miller defended alone. O'Neal pushed his back twice, turned toward the baseline, jumped up, and dunked the ball with one hand and scored. 0 to 2.
Miller was hit so hard that he lost his center of gravity and almost fell to the ground. He was not in a hurry to commit a foul because it was not the time yet.
In the SuperSonics position battle, Yang Jian caught the ball after halftime, and his main defender was Kobe. Miller pulled one meter outside the three-point line and played a pick-and-roll with Yang Jian. This was the tactics practiced in the last round of the series.
Yang Jian held the ball and walked to the left. AC Green came out to help defend the pick-and-roll. O'Neal was still on the baseline. Yang Jian took a step and quickly passed the ball to the left corner.
Yang Jian has many assists, not only because he can attract double-teams, but also because he has excellent vision. He knows the position of his teammates well and can predict what will happen next with just a glance from the corner of his eye, as if he is a master of knowledge and domineering.
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Rashad Lewis caught the ball and shot from the corner. O'Neal jumped out and only slightly interfered with his hand. The ball drew a wonderful arc and entered the net hollowly. 3 to 2.
Zhang Liji said: "Lewis started first. This second-year rookie played very well in the playoffs this year, averaging 15 points and 6 rebounds per game, and his three-point shooting percentage was 47%, which is higher than Yang Jian."
Sun Zhengping added: "Lewis' high shooting percentage is attributed to Yang Jian. Yang Jian breaks through and distributes the ball. He only needs to catch the ball and shoot. His offensive ability with the ball is average."
The Lakers attacked, and O'Neal went to the right low post again to challenge Miller. He backed up twice, and this time turned around and threw to the baseline to score. 3 to 4.
When the SuperSonics attacked, Yang Jian first ran to the right corner and stood for a while, then ran up the line under Lewis's 45-degree screen, attracting Kobe to pursue him. At this time, the position on the court changed, and AC Green defended Lewis.
The Lakers players would make spontaneous adjustments on the court, and it was obviously inappropriate for O'Neal to guard Lewis, a small forward player. Originally, Jackson Jackson wanted O'Neal to guard Mason, but Mason did not start.
Payton played a pick-and-roll with Miller in the middle, moved sideways to get rid of Harper, and made an emergency jumper inside the left three-point line. O'Neal jumped out of the way and slowed down a step, and the ball went in. 5 to 4.
While the Lakers attack, the Sonics still defend each position individually.
This time O'Neal pulled out to set a screen for Kobe. Payton bypassed the pursuit from the inside, preventing breakthroughs but not shooting. Payton also used this method to defend Jordan, which was very targeted. He physically confronted his opponent in the low post,
Interference in medium and long distances is not personal.
Payton deliberately forced his opponent to take shots from the mid-to-long range. Kobe was too much like Jordan and had the same weaknesses. Kobe moved sideways with the ball and entered the three-point line on the right side to make a sudden jump shot. Payton bypassed the screen and jumped up to interfere.
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He couldn't block Kobe, and the interference was in place, and the ball bounced out of the frame. Brad Miller blocked O'Neal, and Yang Jian retreated to the basket and grabbed the backcourt rebound.
In the regular season this season, Kobe's long two-point shooting percentage was only 39.4% and his three-point shooting percentage was 31.9%. His extra long two-point shooting was very inefficient and simply helped the Sonics defend O'Neal.
Yang Jian immediately launched a counterattack. Kobe let go of Payton and headed towards Yang Jian. Payton ran from the left to the right, and Yang Jian brought it to the three-point line and passed the ball to Payton.
Payton took the ball from the right and took three steps directly. Harper jumped from the side and blocked the shot a step too late. Payton made a layup and scored .7 to 4.
During the counterattack, Kobe and Harper switched defenses, and there was a loophole. Payton caught the ball and hit a time difference. Harper is not too old at 36 years old, but his physical fitness has declined so much that he can no longer run, and his speed is average.
Swingman level.
The Lakers attacked, and O'Neal pulled out to play the pick-and-roll again. This time Kobe broke through and was double-teamed by Payton and Yang Jian. Kobe had no chance to make a move and gave the ball to Harper in the right corner.
Harper caught the ball in an open position and shot out of the frame. Yang Jian grabbed another backcourt rebound.
Miller didn't grab the board directly today, but mainly because he was blocked. If O'Neal couldn't rush, he succeeded. Yang Jian and Lewis were responsible for grabbing rebounds.
In a parallel world, Harper is regarded by countless people as a championship puzzle piece and has won five championships with the Bulls and Lakers. Yang Jian doesn't think that in this playoff, he averaged 8 points on 8 shots per game and shot less than 25% from three-point range.
Jigsaw is so powerful, there is no pressure to leave him open to help defend and grab rebounds.
Letting Payton guard Kobe does not mean relaxing the defense. On the contrary, the Sonics arranged a tactic of double-teaming Kobe in the low post. Kobe's shooting percentage in the low post and at the basket is very high, forcing him to shoot in inefficient areas. If Kobe Bryant
Playing in the low post also overlaps with O'Neal's offensive area.
The defensive tactics were arranged by Nate McMillan, who became an assistant coach. He was a defensive expert at the time, had a deep understanding of defense, and became a good assistant to George Karl.
Yang Jian took the ball to the frontcourt himself, and Miller played a pick-and-roll with him outside the three-point line. This time, AC Green defended Lewis and stood on the right baseline. Yang Jian moved a step to the left and grabbed a meter from the three-point line.
Shoot a three-pointer.
Kobe was blocked and it took time to get around. O'Neal stood in the left corner of the penalty area and did not defend. Yang Jian took the shot easily without being disturbed, and the ball went hollow into the net! 10 to 4.
Zhang Lili shouted: "Good shot, Yang Jian made three points and two assists, SuperSonics made 4 of 4 shots from the start."
Sun Zhengping said: "The SuperSonics' tactic today is to resolutely beat O'Neal. The SuperSonics insiders have to pull him out of the paint."
Zhang Liyi nodded. "It won't work if he doesn't come out. The SuperSonics big men are all outside the three-point line. Lewis's first three-pointer was also at O'Neal. He was too slow to defend."
This not only creates mismatch opportunities, but also consumes O'Neal's physical strength. On the offensive end, the Sonics resolutely defend O'Neal alone. If he wants to attack, he can attack. As a fat man weighing nearly 250 kilograms, can he last until the end as a core on both offense and defense?
O'Neal's physical strength is so strong that he can play the whole game, but if he plays for a long time, his offensive efficiency will definitely decrease.
The Lakers attacked, and O'Neal asked for the ball in the low post again. This time he took the ball on the right side, turned to the center, and entered the penalty area. He pushed Miller and then used his right hand to throw.
Miller didn't jump, he just stood with his arms raised and the interference was ineffective, and the ball went in. 10 to 6.
After scoring the goal, O'Neal's expression was also very serious. He had an ominous premonition. Although he could score, he was very uncomfortable on the defensive end. The Lakers played four games against the SuperSonics in the regular season every year, and were swept by the SuperSonics once in the playoffs.
, he knows the Sonics' routines very well.
Sure enough, Yang Jian and Miller were playing a pick-and-roll on the outside again. This time O'Neal defended farther outside. Yang Jian broke through from the left, attracting O'Neal to switch defenses and Kobe to pursue and double-team.
Yang Jian went 50 degrees to the left and accurately passed the ball from behind with his left hand to the middle. Miller made a three-point jumper from a wide open space and scored without interference. 13 to 6.
Zhang Lili shouted: "Good shot, Yang Jian's third assist, SuperSonics made three three-pointers in the opening game."
Sun Zhengping said: "This is how the SuperSonics win. They are not afraid of O'Neal scoring, and they attack more and score more points than their opponents. The Lakers only have O'Neal scoring now, and the SuperSonics except Bowen have scored."
As soon as he finished speaking, Bowen also performed. On the defensive end, he interfered with Glen Rice's three-point shot and the ball bounced out of the frame.
Because they were afraid of a counterattack by the Sonics, the Lakers players did not fight for offensive rebounds and retreated. Yang Jian easily grabbed the backcourt rebounds.
From the beginning, Yang Jian gave full play to the game and led the SuperSonics to take the initiative.
"Zen Master" Phil Jackson sat meditating on the sidelines without even thinking of calling a timeout...