ebookland Chapter 327 A Series of Hot Pots
Chapter 327 A Series of Hot Pots
The Hawks' defensive strategy was designed to match Blackburn's speed against the opposing Brazilian Lightning, to use Sefolosha's height on the wing to limit Livingston's jump shot, and to have Jia Fei, the best perimeter defender on the team, limit Klay Thompson, the opponent's most prolific scorer.
While offense is important in the Finals, defense is the key to keeping the game close when your offense falters.
The Warriors continued to play a passing and cutting style, with Green distributing passes from the top of the key.
When the Splash Brothers are both on the court, the Warriors' offense can accommodate any spacing black hole, and the team doesn't have a spacing problem. But if there's only one, then the spacing problem arises.
The Hawks' perimeter players, Poker and Barbosa, are obviously very aggressive. As for Livingston and Green, you can shoot all you want, we'll accept it even if you shoot yourself to death.
Klay tried to shake off Jia Fei by using his movement, but Jia Fei was too fast and too good at squeezing through/around screens, making it difficult for him to get the ball.
Green passed the ball to Livingston, who then passed it to Bogut in the penalty area.
Since the team started using a smaller lineup, Bogut's playing time has been decreasing. And since he came off the bench, Ezeli, who was originally a substitute, has had absolutely no playing time.
Bogut forcefully hooked Art Mayork, drawing a foul from the latter!
Art Mayor was unhappy with the ruling and tried to lash out, but was stopped by Jia Fei.
Bogut was still laughing like a dog, which made Art Mayork even angrier.
The opponent would love for you to self-destruct, but Jia Fei felt he couldn't fall for it. They were still leading by so much; what did it matter if Bodog took two free throws?
Bodog's first free throw was outrageous; he almost missed the target entirely...
The Hawks fans in the arena immediately erupted in gloating laughter, along with applause and boos; they were practically ready to throw shit at them.
Bodog still missed his second free throw!
Art Mayork leaped to grab the rebound, held onto the ball tightly, roared, and passed it to Jia Fei!
Hawks fans love this passionate big man and give him a round of applause.
Jia Fei passed the ball to Xiao Hei, who dribbled it across half-court.
Klay Thompson is guarding Jia Fei on the Warriors' side.
Xiao Hei dribbled to the frontcourt and passed to Jia Fei on the weak side.
Jia Fei, holding the ball and facing Klay, suddenly accelerated after a triple threat, changing direction and driving inside!
The Warriors immediately opted for a double-team!
Jia Fei passed the ball to Xiao Hei at the top of the arc!
Xiao Hei passed the ball to Sefolosha again, creating an open shot! But Sefolosha missed the three-pointer!
Art Mayork punched the ball away!
Jia Fei received the ball, took a step and was double-teamed again, then passed it to Scott in the corner!
Scott missed an open three-pointer! Green grabbed the rebound.
On Warriors' offense, Green was left wide open and missed a shot!
Both sides started missing shots like crazy, and the Warriors made a noticeable adjustment to their defense against Jia Fei, actively double-teaming him at this stage. They had tried double-teaming him at the end of the first quarter, but not as decisively. The double-teaming became more resolute at the start of the second quarter. This was partly due to his good offensive performance today, and partly because the Hawks' lineup's shooting was a bit poor.
Aside from Jia Fei, the other players' outside shooting ability is indeed very average. It's understandable that Art Mayok, being an inside player, isn't good at shooting, but whether it's Xiao Hei, Sefolosha, or Scott, their three-pointers are inconsistent, and under this level of defensive intensity, their shooting is basically unreliable.
Thabo Sefolosha was considered a 3-and-D player when he was with the Thunder, but now his 3-and-D skills are completely gone, and his D skills are just so-so. He can't keep up with the speed anymore, and all he has left is his defensive experience. If Kyle Korver hadn't been out for the season, he wouldn't have made it into the rotation.
The Hawks were shooting like crazy, but the Warriors were anything but happy! When the opponent is missing shots, the Warriors have a huge lead, but when they're missing shots and not scoring, they're the ones who suffer.
Yu Jia sighed, "Both sides are shooting poorly. After Klay Thompson of the Warriors was shut down by Jia Fei, no one scored."
Coach Zhang nodded slightly: "You need to pay attention to spacing, they're all standing still!"
More than two minutes into the second quarter, the Warriors still hadn't scored, and Kerr was starting to get anxious.
Xiao Hei brought the ball over and drove hard to the basket, but still missed!
After Green grabbed the rebound, he launched a fast break for the Warriors, driving the length of the court and then passing to Bogut who was following up!
Bogut raised a fire that set the sky ablaze!
This scene was indeed a bit frightening. Although Bogut might not have jumped as high as Chairman Yao, his barking revealed his true nature as a man with a more animalistic side.
Unexpectedly, at this moment, a black man dressed entirely in black flew down from the sky!
Art Mayork!
Jia Fei's best friend rushed forward without hesitation, using his hands like a net to block the gun hole!
Bogut's jumping ability is simply too poor; he couldn't dunk over Art Mayork, and the ball ended up in the latter's hands...
Both players fell out of bounds, but the ball inexplicably flew vertically upwards!
Green grabbed the ball, bumped into Scott, and forced a layup...
The mantis stalks the cicada while the oriole follows behind!
Jia Fei delivered a powerful block on Green!
—You can catch the Sea King's egg, but you can't escape Jia Sheng's seal!
Jia Fei took control of the ball and immediately launched a counter-attack!
The Hawks have four players on the counterattack!
Jia Fei delivered a surgical pass, a through ball to Xiao Hei, who was making a quick run down the front line!
Little Black's shooting was indeed terrible, but he was incredibly fast! Like a black lightning bolt, he overtook the Brazilian lightning!
The ball was not offside!
Little Black catches the ball and scores a touchdown!
This shot completely ignited the atmosphere at Philips Arena, sending the fans into a frenzy...
At 17:32, the point difference reached 15 points. The Hawks' defense was top-notch! Two consecutive explosive blocks and a lightning-fast counterattack broke the scoring drought!
The Warriors called a timeout! Kerr had a dark expression; you'd think his wife had cuckolded him...
They thought their defensive strategy of double-teaming Jia Fei was successful, but their own offense also failed, and neither side could score. It was obvious who suffered the most!
Yu Jia exclaimed, "Even when Jia Fei's offense is restricted by double teams, his defense is still really good. And in this situation, he can accurately find his teammates who are making fast breaks. He's truly a well-rounded player."
Coach Zhang said, "The Hawks played more rationally! Even when they missed shots, they played with real patience and weren't in a hurry. Jia Fei is really like Kobe now, in terms of temperament."
Yu Jia: "..." Why is Kobe being dragged into this again...?
Jia Fei and Art Mayor were bumping chests wildly, both of them as excited as if they were on drugs!
This wave of consecutive hotpots has affected everyone, from Bodog to Chasing Eggs...
These two were incredibly arrogant back at Oracle Center! But today, they're going to get a good beating here!
After the Warriors' timeout, they substituted Bogut for Curry to bolster their offense. Clearly, with the Warriors sticking to their small-ball lineup, Bogut has become increasingly awkward on the court. He can't keep up on defense, and he's ineffective offensively. Aside from his screen quality and rim protection, he's largely unremarkable.