Chapter 258 Core duel, Durant and Roy's performance!
The previous consecutive offensive failures made Durant very angry.
It's not that he was angry with Tony Allen. After all, although the latter was very aggressive defensively, he didn't make any extraordinary moves.
kd is angry with himself.
As the core of the Thunder, he has high goals for himself - to catch up with and surpass James.
This goal has sprouted in Durant's mind since he first entered the league.
Now, James has formed the Big Three in Miami, vowing to win his first championship.
This had a huge impact on Durant.
In the previous encounters between the two, James has always been the one with the upper hand.
He was already at an advantage, but with new and more powerful help, Durant's desire to become stronger became stronger.
Fortunately, the Thunder have extremely talented players like Westbrook and Harden.
Durant is confident that he can have his own Big Three combination in the Thunder.
In order to catch up with James as soon as possible, kd has very strict requirements on himself whether it is training or competition this year.
Like today, being restricted one-on-one by opposing players on the offensive end is hard for Durant to accept!
[No, I have to play my basketball. I can’t change my offensive method just because my defense is strong...]
KD thought in his heart.
Therefore, in the last offensive round of this half, Durant decided to use his best singles with the ball to challenge Tony Allen's defense.
Because Teacher Tony frequently used forward defense before, it was difficult for KD to catch the ball.
This time Durant simply asked for the ball in the backcourt and passed half court with the ball.
Tony Allen saw this and waited for him directly near the midline.
Teacher Tony's body language is very strong.
He showed an unabashed smile and clapped his hands at Durant.
That arrogant look was like shouting "Come here!" to KD.
As soon as Durant passed half court, Tony Allen pounced on him, putting pressure on the former with physical confrontation as always.
KD, on the other hand, lowered his center of gravity, turned sideways, and used his body to block the basketball from the opponent.
When Ibaka saw this, he wanted to step forward to set up a pick-and-roll, but Durant waved his hand to indicate that he didn't need to come over.
"Hey, you want to fight me alone? How do you launch an attack from this position?"
Tony Allen began verbal harassment.
Durant remained unmoved, watching the time on the timer while protecting the ball.
Obviously, he wanted to use up the 24 seconds of attack time, which would not leave enough time for the Rockets to organize a full attack.
"You can't get past me. You're too thin. I'm afraid I'll break you in one collision."
Tony Allen continues to talk trash.
Durant ignored it and kept focusing on observing the Rockets' defense.
Time passed by second by second, and soon, there were only 8 seconds left for the Thunder's attack.
At this time, Durant moved.
He was originally holding his waist to protect the ball, but suddenly he dribbled the ball hard.
When the ball bounced, Durant raised his center of gravity and turned to the direction he was facing.
Then, he suddenly stepped out with his right foot, making a breakthrough.
As a 2.08 meter small forward, Durant's stride is very scary.
Tony Allen subconsciously moved laterally to block.
He knew that this might just be a fake move, but if he didn't move this step laterally, once Durant made this move for real, it would be impossible to return to the defensive position.
This is the difficulty for defenders.
An excellent offensive player may be defended for 23 seconds in one round, but as long as he makes the right decision at the last second, he can still score a goal.
But once the defensive player makes a mistake, he may have to watch the opponent score.
Especially when you're guarding a star like Durant!
The result is that this step is indeed a fake move, it is just the first step of Durant's crossover.
Tony Allen was shaken back a step, and there was a certain space between the two.
However, this is just the beginning.
Teacher Tony quickly moved sideways and returned to the position facing Durant.
KD dribbled the ball closer and soon reached a place two steps beyond the three-point line.
Tony Allen did not dare to rush forward at this time, because once the ball was not intercepted by the forward dive, Durant could pass him by accelerating and then attack the basket.
He can only wait! Wait for Durant to launch an attack, and then respond.
Teacher Tony kept his center of gravity very low, like a cheetah preparing to hunt. As long as KD showed a slight flaw, he would be confident to intercept the ball!
But the next moment, Tony Allen was stunned.
Durant directly chose to take a shot when he was still 2-3 meters away from the three-point line!
The basketball left his fingertips and spun at high speed, drawing a beautiful arc in the air...
"Shua~"
Hollow into the net!
"wow~"
"Beautiful, kd!!!"
"If you fight like this, I'll tell you that Tony Allen can't guard you!"
In the stands, Thunder fans cheered for their core's wonderful goal.
Durant on the court looked indifferent.
He quietly looked at Tony Allen, who had repeatedly provoked him before, then raised his hands and spread them slightly.
This was Durant's response.
Without any help, he scored three points over Tony Allen with pure one-on-one hitting.
But, the game is not over yet.
At this moment, with 8 seconds left before halftime, the Rockets serve from the baseline.
Roy is naturally the player in this lineup who is best suited to play the final attack.
He quickly advanced with the ball and met Westbrook's defense.
When Westbrook was in college, he was actually a leading defensive player, and his draft template was Tony Allen.
Unfortunately, his physical talent was too great, coupled with the Thunder's careful training, he leaped over the dragon gate and became one of the most popular point guards in the league.
Over time, Westbrook focused more on the offensive end and his defense regressed.
But at the critical moment, he is still a trustworthy single-defense leader (at least for now).
Facing the menacing Roy, Westbrook lowered his center of gravity, concentrated his attention, and prepared for the opponent's attack.
Roy is a player known for his "big heart" since his rookie days.
It was clear that after arriving at the Thunder's half, there were only 5 seconds left in the attack time, but he was still unhurried and calm.
After observing that Westbrook's defensive position was with his right foot forward, Roy immediately decided to attack from the left (attacking the defender's forward foot).
I saw him making an in&out with his left hand, shaking Westbrook half of his body away, and then rushed straight into the penalty area.
Facing Ibaka who was assisting in defense, Roy avoided him with a dexterous jump step and successfully gained space to take action.
I saw him throw it gently with his right hand, and the basketball hit the net.
The ball goes in and the light comes on, and the half game is over!
Throughout the entire offensive round, Roy's operations were smooth and smooth. He was clearly surrounded by thousands of troops, but he didn't take any action and easily scored points.
Westbrook, on the other hand, had a very beautiful defensive posture. The opponent just made a fake move and he immediately disarmed him.
Durant shook his head helplessly and walked to the locker room without looking back.
He needs to rest quickly, because... there will definitely be a fierce battle in the second half!