144 Changes

April 24th.

Toyota Center.

Trail Blazers locker room.

"Hey, did you hear the sound outside?"

Travis Outlaw touched Channing Fletcher's arm next to him and whispered.

Channing stopped what he was doing and listened carefully, and then heard all kinds of insults directed at the Trail Blazers by the fans in the Toyota Center Arena. There were endless filthy words.

There are the most voices scolding Zhang Jun here, but these fans can't seem to find a point to scold Zhang Jun, so they scold him in a strange way.

"Zhang Jun, your future achievements will not be greater than Greg Oden! He just didn't play this season, he is the well-deserved No. 1 pick, you thief!"

"I would say I play like Jordan or Kobe, anyone, but I won't say I play like Zhang Jun!"

"You will never reach the level of talent that can enter the NBA players in high school, such as Tracy McGrady!"

Channing listened to the subtle scoldings about Zhang Jun, and said very sensibly: "Well, it should be the Houston fans scolding us."

Even though Travis Outlaw has been in the NBA for five years, in fact this is his first time playing in the playoffs.

Some of the things those commentators often say are not lies.

Some players will never make it to the NBA after working hard all their lives, some players will never make it to the playoffs after playing in the NBA their whole lives, some players will never make it past the second round of the playoffs, and a certain player will never make it past the second round of the playoffs in his entire career. Touched the Western Conference floor.

Of course, most players will never make it to the finals no matter how hard they try.

As long as they can reach the finals, no matter which player is the core, starter or rotation, everyone who appears on the court will be known as a finals player, and those who win the championship will be known as a championship player, wherever they go. There are teams that need it.

Experience is the most important thing in the playoffs.

Therefore, most fans only see a small part of the glamorous part. Most of the unglamorous part and the bitterness behind it are invisible to most people.

"Outlaw, don't worry about those things, just execute the tactics on the court and play every minute, every possession, every ball."

Francis said in good time.

After Zach Randolph left, the Trail Blazers did not have a locker room leader for a long time. The arrival of Francis naturally shouldered this responsibility.

"This is only the first round of the playoffs, and this scares you out of your wits? Isn't the second round going to make you kneel down and surrender!"

"Houston fans are the most impure basketball fans. Once you see Salt Lake Plateau, the Silver and Black, and the Purple and Gold Dynasty in the playoffs, you will know what the craziest fans are."

Luo Yin couldn't help but smile on the side. He wrapped a lot of bandages on his knees and ankles. People around him were already used to the opponent's behavior before the game.

Adridge said confidently: "No one on the Rockets can guard me, not Luis Scola, not Carl Landry, not even Steve Novak, who stepped up in the last game."

"So the Rockets are not our opponent."

Zhang Jun stood up, his expression not very good.

He finally understood why Francis walked up to him and said those words after the last game. What seemed like a reminder was actually a shot in the arm for tonight.

Francis had long guessed that Houston fans would say all kinds of dirty things to Zhang Jun, so he told him not to pay attention to those comments from the outside world and to abandon himself and put aside distracting thoughts.

Zhang Jun took a deep breath and said: "Don't underestimate any opponent. When you step on the court, you must treat your opponent as your lifelong enemy."

"Then the more Houston fans insulted me, the more I just wanted to beat up their team on the field."

The rest of the Trail Blazers players immediately gathered around. They didn't think Zhang Jun was joking.

This kid looks young, but in fact he plays very fiercely on the court. The veterans of the opponent team always want to give him some color and trouble, but in the end they are often the ones who suffer.

Francis raised his right hand high, and everyone moved closer and lowered their heads in tacit agreement.

"Portland Trail Blazers!"

"Tear apart!"

On the court, the game is about to begin.

The Rockets' brilliant way of playing, and the annoying Rocket Bear mascot, made all kinds of noises in the Trail Blazers dugout, followed by the curses of the Houston fans at the scene.

The referee serves the ball at midfield.

boom!

"The game begins!"

"Yao Ming jumped the ball for the Rockets on the first possession!"

"Their offensive focus in the first round was still on Dayao. I have to say that Dayao was really targeted by the Trail Blazers in the first two games. They pulled out various singles and quickly bullied his defensive speed and Slow movement on the field.”

"But Dayao's performance on the offensive end is really efficient. In the first two games, he averaged 26 points and 10 rebounds per game, and his shooting percentage was as high as 66%!"

"But such efficiency cannot win a game for the Rockets. It's really incredible. Coach Su, what do you think?"

The CCTV commentary station broadcast the entire game between the Rockets and the Trail Blazers. Yu Jia and Su Qun were heartbroken to watch the first two games.

Because when the Jazz and Rockets played in the playoffs, they repeatedly targeted Yao Ming's weaknesses that could not be replaced. Boozer frequently scored high points on Yao Ming's head from mid-range.

Originally, both Yu Jia and Su Qun thought that the Rockets did not meet the Jazz in this year's playoffs. They finally did not have to face this extremely restrained opponent, and they were still facing the young team of the Trail Blazers. They must be able to defeat the opponent easily. Yao Ming can also advance to the second round for the first time in his career.

But what the two never expected was that the Trail Blazers targeted Yao Ming more harshly than the Jazz. Zhang Jun hit Yao Ming on the outside pick-and-roll list to find out. As long as the Rockets did not score in the offense, all members of the Trail Blazers Participate in a fast break.

Playing like this, Yao Ming spent most of his energy in the entire game on turning back and forth.

"But I really have to praise Dayao. Even after being beaten like this by the Trail Blazers, he was able to score such efficient statistics. Ordinary players really can't do that."

"So far, Yao Ming also has the highest shooting percentage among players who can average more than 20 points per game in the playoffs."

Su Qun said helplessly.

If Yao Ming could have entered the NBA a few years earlier, he might have been able to catch up with the era dominated by the four major centers and those top inside players who are famous in history.

But now, the league has already become the era of the four major PFs. During the period from 2002 to 2007, Duncan, Garnett, Nowitzki and Webb gradually replaced the four major centers in the past to dominate the league, and even continued to dominate. downward trend.

As most people think, the only centers that can be used in the league today are Yao Ming in the West and Howard in the East.

In addition, there is no other center who can play the role of the core of the team and form a championship lineup.

"But tonight's game is the Rockets' home court. I believe the Rockets will perform better when they return to their home court than when they play away from home."

"I believe that after two days of rest, Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady will be more energetic to face this game."

Yu Jia made a bold prediction: "As long as the Rockets can win tonight's game and move the score to 1:2, with their experience and ability, they have every chance to defeat this young army."

Uh-huh!

On the court, Yao Ming singled out Joel Przybilla and scored first.

The Rockets used Yao Ming to fake a position and turn his back to the weak side to take position again. This trick was very good. As long as Zhang Jun didn't pay attention to his position and made a mistake, or McGrady and Battier deliberately brought Zhang Jun to the strong side, Then Yao Ming will definitely play like this in the paint.

"The Trail Blazers have two strategies to defend against the Rockets. If Zhang Jun is on the weak side, let Zhang Jun defend. If Zhang Jun is not available, let Aldridge on the inside defend."

"Of course, after Aldridge goes to double-team, the Rockets' Luis Scola will be very comfortable to get a mid-range scoring opportunity. Compared with Battier catching the ball from outside the three-point line, the Trail Blazers at least have an outside shot. Rotate defense.”

"But there is no other way. The Trail Blazers can only choose one of two options to defend Yao Ming, and the Rockets also very much hope that the Trail Blazers will use Aldridge to defend him."

In the first quarter of the game, Yao Ming still had an efficient performance of 4 of 6 shots, and Luis Scola also had a performance of 2 of 4 shots.

Like the previous two games, the Rockets took the lead in the first quarter.

At 24:29, the Trail Blazers fell behind by 5 points.

"The second quarter is coming again. The Rockets' performance in this quarter was very poor in the first two games. They have been trying to use Dayao to reduce the dimension and attack the Trail Blazers' interior, but the effect is not good."

"Let's see how they plan to get through this tonight."

As soon as Yu Jia finished speaking, Su Qun, who had been staring at the court, immediately shouted excitedly.

"Team Rocket has changed their formation!"

"Yao Yao didn't come up. They got Tracy McGrady to lead the team at this time!"

On the court.

The Rockets' sudden change of formation also made it difficult for the Trail Blazers players to adapt.

Barkley gave a very high evaluation and said: "In the first two games, Yao Ming led the team and lost in the second quarter. This also proves that it is completely unfeasible for this lineup to play against the Trail Blazers."

"Don't think that Yao Ming's playing in the Trail Blazers' lineup without a center is a dimensionality reduction attack. In fact, when Yao Ming encounters this lineup, his powerlessness on the defensive end will hinder the Rockets' offense and defense."

"So a change of formation is necessary."

Kenny Smith agreed and said: "Regardless of whether such a change of formation has any effect, if this change of formation disrupts the formation, the Blazers' previous style of play will not work at all. This is the best effect."

"Furthermore, the players on the Trail Blazers are very young and inexperienced. After the Rockets change their lineup, I'm afraid it will be difficult for them to quickly adjust and find a way to win."

With everyone's high approval, the second quarter began.

McGrady holds the ball on the court and Zhang Jun defends alone.

After the first two games, the Rockets were very sure that Zhang Jun was the Trail Blazers' strongest outside defender.

It's not that Zhang Jun's defense is really as strong as the league's top defenders, but that Zhang Jun is the best defender in this Blazers team whose overall defense is not strong.

With his long body and long arms, he is able to defend Tracy McGrady.

Chuck Hayes pulled up the pick-and-roll to stop Zhang Jun, forcing James Jones to defend McGrady alone.

James Jones's defense is just like Paper Lake's. When he defends McGrady, he knows the result without even thinking about it.

After Yao Ming did not appear on the court, the Rockets dared to bring Chuck Hayes up. He did nothing but come up to defend Zhang Jun, consume his energy, pick-and-roll and grab rebounds.

call!

McGrady faced James Jones and scored with an easy mid-range pull-up.

“We have to give color back!”

"The Rockets' change of formation disrupted our deployment. If we can't respond on the offensive end, our second team advantage will be gone!"

"You know, we have never won against the Rockets in the first quarter."

Nate McMillan yelled onto the court from the sideline.

He had no idea that the Rockets would dare to change their lineup at this juncture, which is why coach Rick Adelman can be called a famous coach.

The other team has experimented with numerous lineup possibilities as early as the regular season. Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady both happened to have a long break, so they both led the team on the court and played games as starters and substitutes. .

Therefore, McGrady can adapt to such a lineup and understand his role as soon as he comes up.

Zhang Jun nodded after hearing this.

He knew what Nate McMillan was talking about.

If you want him to use offense to stabilize the situation first, Nate McMillan and Monty Williams still need time to think about how to crack the Rockets' lineup and play style.

Zhang Jun singles against Chuck Hayes.

The opponent still faced a lot of physical confrontation and high-intensity defense. Chuck Hayes prevented Zhang Jun from catching the ball when he was off the ball, and then he was physically exhausted on the ball end. He was tireless throughout the game.

Zhang Jun consumed a lot of energy in the confrontation with Chuck Hayes. He got the ball and tried his best to get rid of Chuck Hayes. He dribbled the ball with his low hand and broke through smoothly. The mid-range change was greatly changed. Xiang, Buddha's hand faked a move and reached the inside for a dunk.

"Since the first game of the playoffs, the Rockets suffered all the trouble from Zhang Jun's mid-range shot by defending Zhang Jun's breakthrough, and now they are completely afraid to let Zhang Jun's mid-range shot go."

"Such a defensive method also makes Zhang Jun's breakthroughs more difficult to guard against. He can often scare his opponents into immediately rushing to defend him with just a look or movement in the mid-range, but this leaves the breakthrough route unavoidable."

"This is how Zhang Jun handles his opponents on the court. Who would have thought that he was just a rookie."

Yu Jia couldn't help but sigh there.

All Chinese fans, even Arab League and Dayao are fantasizing about whether Zhang Jun is Asian or Chinese. Yu Jia sometimes also thinks about how great it would be if a player like Zhang Jun could become a Chinese player. .

When the time comes, Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian and Zhang Jun don’t know what kind of earth-shaking they will cause in the international arena, just like Sun Wukong in Journey to the West leading the monkeys to fight against hundreds of thousands of heavenly soldiers and generals.

"It's just that if Zhang Jun is really a Chinese player, I'm afraid he will be unqualified for the youth training team. I saw Zhang Jun's performance in high school. He only had one breakthrough and nothing else. He didn't even play tactics. ”

"If this was placed in the youth team and a proper ball lord was established, which youth team coach would allow players to not play according to their own ideas?"

Su Qun nodded and agreed very much with this. He also knew a lot of things here and said with deep feeling: "The training methods for those young players who play in the youth team are the same as military training. Let's not talk about anything else. First, "Please learn how to be obedient first."