After the start of the second quarter, the coaches of both sides began to prepare to rotate the lineup.
"How about it, Grant, are you ready?" Edison stood on the sidelines and turned back to Hill who was sitting.
"No problem, my big hands are already thirsty. (guess the source)" Hill replied with excitement as he geared up.
"Then wait until the next dead ball and you will come on the court, replace Marion, and let Iguodala defend Anthony."
"Okay, coach." Hill said as he took off his coat, came to the referee's seat, and requested a substitution.
"The Magic replaced veteran Grant Hill. This is a very critical moment for the Magic. The Magic are already very strong now. If Hill can perform at 70% of his former level, then the Magic will definitely be a capable player.
A team capable of competing for the championship." Marv Albert was very excited when he saw Hill playing. You must know that he was one of Hill's supporters at the beginning.
When Hill replaced Marion, Edison faced the audience, waved his arms, and made a louder gesture. The audience was very proud of Edison and shouted "hill~hill" loudly.
Hearing the cheers of the fans, Hill also waved to the audience and said hello.
Edison on the other side put his hands together in a gesture of thanks.
"It seems that Paul Edison values Hill very much. Now that Hill has just come back, he is playing as a substitute. Does Edison plan to let him play the main role in the future and take down Iguodala? Isn't the Magic's backcourt a bit too soft?
Although Iguodala is still a 'rookie', his strength is obvious to all. He has a tough body and a fierce playing style. He is now averaging 15+5+5 per game, which is unparalleled in the league. But if Hill can
If he performs normally, it wouldn't be appropriate for him to come off the bench. I don't want to think about it anymore. In short, the people of Orlando are in trouble with happiness." Steve Kerr analyzed.
After Hill came on the court, the situation on the field obviously changed.
Although Hill has not cooperated with Nash in official games, both of them are typical players with high IQs, and their ability to read the game and the overall situation are very good. Compared with Iguodala's hard-hitting offense,
In terms of style, Hill is more flexible, has more changes, and looks more relaxed and freehand.
If Iguodala's running technique uses eight steps to catch a cicada, which is simple and practical, and is about speed and stability; then Grant Hill uses light steps, which is fast, free and easy at the same time.
Thousands of them, without a trace of fireworks, are pleasing to the eye.
After Hill came on the court, the biggest change was that he would not wait for the ball like Iguodala did, or that Nash would need Nash to pass the ball to guide the movement. Instead, he would take the initiative to run out of position and then wait for Nash's pass.
Sure enough, as soon as Hill came on the field, when Nash and Josh were doing a pick-and-roll, he suddenly accelerated his run, got rid of Buckner who was defending him, ran out of a space, and then Nash's ball was passed to Hill in time.
He dared to take a three-point shot before Buckner could defend again, and "swish", he hit the basket hollowly.
Hill clenched his right fist and waved it, and Nash gave him a thumbs up.
"After Grant came back, he easily hit a three-pointer on his first shot. It seems that he has recovered well. His running was still so flexible just now and his feet were very light. It seems that he has got rid of the trouble of his knee injury."
Nuggets head coach Bzdelik knew at a glance that Hill was in good shape. Even if he couldn't fully return to his peak form, Buckner on his side couldn't guard him. So Buckner was replaced.
Add Demar Johnson and let him defend Hill. At least he won't be obviously overwhelmed in terms of height...
But he soon discovered that this was in vain, because after Hill got the ball from the wing, he directly broke through DeMar Johnson. After attracting Camby's attention, he made a wonderful pass to Howard, who then blasted like a mountain.
The dunk ended the attack.
Bzdelik just requested a timeout and planned to rearrange defensive tactics, while Edison planned to start a rotation.
"Nash and Josh come off the court, and Boris and Kevin Martin come on. Boris plays power forward, and Andre plays point guard. After halftime, you can hand the ball to Boris or Grant. Boris, you and
Grant is one inside and one outside, our dual-core organization, Martin will run around the two of them, we will use the zipper tactic, and the three of you will attack from the strong side. Do you all know? And Grant, you have to pay attention to your knees. Once you feel
If you feel uncomfortable, even if you are sore, don't hold on, call a timeout immediately so I can replace you."
Hill nodded after hearing this. Although he was very reluctant, he also knew very well that his knees no longer had the capital to fight hard.
Over there, Bzdelik had just arranged a 2-2-1 zone defense. Unexpectedly, in a blink of an eye, the opponent's lineup had undergone a major change. It was also quite frustrating, and the timeout was in vain.
In the past, the Magic's substitute offense mainly relied on Boris standing in the penalty area to organize, and Martin on the other side running in various ways, and then catching and shooting. However, once the opponent's substitute was on the bench, the two players who faced them had no defensive skills.
If it's very good, it can easily contain the Magic's offense.
But it's different now. Hill organizes on the outside, Diaw supports inside, and with Martin constantly interspersed, the three of them form an offensive area covering the entire strong side. The opponent simply cannot take care of all three of them with the same number of people invested.
. If the main players of some teams can rely on their own strong strength and tactical literacy to watch three people, the problem is that these three are substitutes for the Magic. You can't let your main players compete with the main players of the Magic.
After that, fight with the substitute.
Some people may say, then increase the defensive strength and send one more person. But the other two people also have strong impact. Once space is given to them, they can directly attack the basket.
Bzdelik saw that this was not going to work. His main force could not defend against others, and it was not an option to continue like this. Since he could not defend himself no matter what, he simply replaced him with a substitute, let his main force rest, and then looked for opportunities to explode.
The Nuggets' bench is very special. It is special mainly because of one person, Earl Boykins, the second shortest man in NBA history.
Boykins' height is only 165cm. When he was a freshman, he was ordered by the coach to report his height as 5 feet 7 because the coach would be ashamed of having such a small guard. Although he is short, he has great ambition.
Not short, he overcame countless difficulties and setbacks and eventually became a winner. He played in the league for 13 seasons and once ranked third in the selection of the best sixth man.
Height is innate and cannot be changed by manpower. But basketball relies not only on height, but also on a spirit, a spirit of fighting and not admitting defeat. And Boykins is not as tall as any of his opponents.
He couldn't defend himself against any opponent, but he still gained everyone's recognition and respect.
The Nuggets' bench tactics mainly rely on Boykins to score points and organize.
Let’s talk about scoring first. Boykins’ scoring ability is very outstanding. He once set a league record of 15 points in overtime. To survive in the league, a small man must be fast and flexible. And Boykins has these two points.
Si almost did it to the extreme. Boykins' first step was very fast and very sudden. But what makes Boykins more effective is the small-to-large play after the pick-and-roll. After being screened by his teammates, as long as
If you let Boykins take the first step comfortably, then your insiders, those muscular big men, will be a complete tragedy. Boykins has unparalleled judgment. When the big man comes up to block the shot, he will
He would choose to dodge past their waists deftly, and when the big man turned around, he had already thrown the basketball in with a skillful throw. It can be said that if Boykins wanted to, he could keep circling around the big man, and the big man
Players can't catch his back. If the big man is afraid of his speed and flexibility and chooses to keep his distance, he will not hesitate to use a pull-up jump shot to complete the offense...
Let's talk about organization. Boykins' organizational ability is very good. His passing can cover the opponent's half, which even Nash can't do. It's not that Nash is not as good as him, but the organization of two people.
Determined by the position when attacking.
Nash is a standard outside organizer, so once the team attacks on the strong side, his passing will have a blind spot, and it will be difficult for him to pass to the players in the bottom corner of the weak side. Because he has a previous relationship with the player in that position.
If there are too many opposing players, you will be intercepted if you are not careful.
Although Boykins is short, he does not organize attacks from the outside like a general point guard. Instead, he organizes attacks near the paint area like a center. Because he is too short, his dribbling height is also low. It can be said that
, when he is dribbling, it is impossible for anyone in the league to steal him. Even if he is double-teamed by three people, he can guarantee not to lose the ball. Therefore, he can move around freely in the paint area. In this case, Boykin
Si's organization is just like an authentic inside line, it is completed in the paint area. The further inside the organization is, the wider the coverage area, so when Boykins is wandering at the free throw line, the entire defensive team
Almost half of the court is a dangerous minefield that could be penetrated by his pass.
But his disadvantages are also very obvious. His defense is mainly to put pressure on the opponent when they are dribbling. Once the opponent shoots, he has nothing to do. As long as he is an individual, he can make a pull-up jump shot in front of him, just like an open shot.
.
On the Magic side, Hill, Diaw, and Martin started a chain fight, while the Nuggets were led by Boykins. Because of the presence of Boykins, the game field became extremely chaotic, and the two sides fought.
Both teams were very fast, and mistakes began to increase this time, and then both sides frequently played fast breaks.
"As expected, after Boykins came on the court, he put tremendous pressure on the Magic. Their mistakes still increased. Paul should find a way to slow down the rhythm and play slowly. In terms of strength, there is no doubt that the Magic have the upper hand.
The one with the upper hand.”
But Edison had nothing to worry about. Instead, he replaced Varejao and Tony Allen, determined to compete with the Nuggets on the strength of the bench.
"Aren't you worried that our substitutes can't beat them? It's too casual to play like this. We can play more steadily." Thibodeau came up to ask.
"Don't worry, because the Nuggets disrupted the game with only one Boykins. He could run like this for 5 or 10 minutes. Can he last for 2 quarters?" Edison knew very well that the Nuggets' substitutes were very good later, which was very important.
The reason is the unreasonable duo of Boykins and Jr. Smith. One of them is running around, the other is unreasonable but can go in. The two of them team up to make the entire league miserable.
But now that Boykins is alone, how long can he last? His style of play is extremely energy-consuming.
Sure enough, at the end of the second quarter, 51-48, the Magic only led by three points.
But in the third quarter, Boykins' glory was gone. He was like a toy that was running out of power. Although he could still move, his impact was no longer enough. Magic players were able to guard him very well. Magic players
Start to gradually expand the score advantage.
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Thanks again to terry 灁, the zombie keeper, for the reward.
