Chapter 885 From undercover agent to hero, Ades redemption
In the second quarter, both sides rotated players to compete.
In this round, the Trail Blazers' rotation was pretty good, and they were evenly matched with their opponent, and still had a slight upper hand.
"Fortunately, Lillard, Patton and Batum each scored assists and did not let the score fall too far behind. The Trail Blazers' second lineup was also very strong in this quarter and should be able to rush back to the main force." Xu Jicheng said.
"Ade may be really tired. He has played almost 100 games in a season. He is the only player in the Trail Blazers' main lineup who is over 30 years old. His energy is not as good as before, that's for sure.
" Yujia said.
"Adelaide can't attack this point, so we should take over the attack here." Zhang Li said.
"That's for sure!"
"necessary!"
Hearing this, Xu Jicheng and Yu Jia both nodded.
At the official timeout in the second quarter, the Trail Blazers were 4 points behind at 47:51.
In comparison, the Trail Blazers' bench may be the deepest in the league, and the Warriors' bench is no worse than anyone else's, but under normal performance, it is still a little worse than them.
In the 9 minutes from the beginning of the second quarter to the official timeout, the Trail Blazers only allowed the Warriors to score 20 points, while they themselves scored 22 points.
Not only did the Warriors fail to widen the point difference as they wished, but they also narrowed the previous 6-point difference to 4 points, which was considered an overfulfillment of the task.
During the official timeout, Coach Terry sent out the main lineup to play offense again. The strategy remained unchanged. Wang Zelin was still responsible for the defense and support, Aldridge was responsible for the interior attack, and Lillard, Patton, and Batum provided support on the outside.
He still didn't believe that Aldridge's touch would always be so bad. There were less than three minutes left before the end of the first half, and the point difference was not big, so he chose to give it another try.
If Aldridge really can't shoot, it's not too late to change the strategy in the second half. On the contrary, once he shoots, the Blazers' offense on the court will become more calm, and Wang Zelin will be more relaxed at the basket.
Players from both sides returned to the court, and the Warriors also returned to their main lineup.
Wang Zelin ran to the frontcourt and asked Aldridge: "Tired?"
"It's okay, but the muscles are a little tight!" Aldridge replied.
"Relax, don't be stressed. If they dare to let you go later, don't hesitate, shoot directly, I will be the rebounder!" Wang Zelin said.
"Okay!" Aldridge nodded, and his face that had been tense for a long time finally showed a smile.
The game continued, and the Trail Blazers were very aggressive offensively.
It feels like you want to engulf your opponent in one bite.
However, the Warriors' resilience exceeded many people's expectations.
Especially Curry, many people were deceived by his innocent baby face. In fact, this guy's mental attributes and ability to withstand pressure are at a historical level, even as good as many legends of the older generation.
For example, a certain Los Angeles No. 24 who wishes to remain anonymous.
With only a few minutes left in the first half, Curry hit two mid-range shots and a three-pointer, scoring 8 points individually, and scored a game-high 19 points in two quarters!
Under his leadership, the Warriors' shooters also improved their touch and confidence. Even Green scored two three-pointers in the first half.
On the Trail Blazers side, they recovered somewhat after returning from the Alder game, but not much. They only made one of three shots and scored 3 points from free throws.
At halftime, 54:62, the Trail Blazers trailed the Warriors by 8 points.
If I remember correctly, this should be the first game since the playoffs this year when the Trail Blazers trailed their opponents by so much at half quarter. No wonder it surprised many people.
But considering Aldridge's sluggish state, it can be explained.
At the same time, Curry felt great tonight, making 7 of 11 shots in the first half, including three three-pointers, and 2 of 2 free throws, scoring 19 points efficiently!
It is precisely because his high efficiency on the perimeter has affected Wang Zelin's rebounds. The Blazers did not have enough advantages in the number of shots as they did in the first two rounds of the series. This is part of the reason why the Blazers fell behind in the first half.
Due to Wang Zelin's absolute dominance at the basket, the Trail Blazers' shooters were used to taking more shots than their opponents in every game. Suddenly, the number of shots was counted down, which made them a little uncomfortable.
"Zelin made 6 of 7 shots and 4 of 5 free throws in the first half, scoring 16 points, grabbing 7 rebounds, 3 blocks and 1 steal. Although he has average offensive desire today, he is more
He relied on rebounding at the basket, secondary attacks and cutting in to finish, but he still became the best scorer in the Trail Blazers!"
Looking at the data sheet in his hand, Zhang Lili could not help but marvel.
"But looking at it this way, as long as the outside offense has a strong touch, it can really avoid the King's defense. But few people can maintain a strong touch throughout the game. As long as the touch is down, the King can use his defense to gain an advantage for the Blazers.
"Xu Jicheng said.
Yu Jia said: "Curry's offense just now was mostly focused on mid-to-long distance, and he only had two attempts to rush to the basket. As long as he feels down, he will move closer to the game area to increase his shooting rate. And he has to give it to the king just in time.
Opportunity to help defend!"
"So unless he can hit the ball from a position far away from the king throughout the game, he will definitely take the initiative to get closer to the king." Xu Jicheng said with a smile.
Zhang Lijia shook his head and said: "But the Trail Blazers also have a weakness. Al, who is the second scoring point in the team, has physical problems. After two quarters, he only made one of nine open shots and only scored 5 points with free throws.
.He cannot open up this point, and now another point must step forward in time to share the pressure for Zelin."
Yu Jia nodded: "Lillard made 2 of 5 today. His offense can only be said to be quite satisfactory. Ade is obviously not in good condition now. He must perform well next."
The three people gave pointers in the commentary box, and the Chinese fans in front of the TV listened with interest. The fifteen-minute intermission time passed quickly.
At the beginning of the second half, in the third quarter, both sides basically continued the rotation lineup in the first half of the second quarter, but the Warriors replaced Iguodala to further strengthen their offensive stability and perimeter defense.
In the 6th minute, 70:76, the Trail Blazers were still 7 points behind. At this time, both sides made substitutions.
The Trail Blazers resumed their main lineup in the first quarter, while for the Warriors, the Splash Brothers stayed on the court to maintain their outside offensive threat. Iguodala was still on the wings, Green and BoGt were replaced, and Speights and Ezeli came on.
The Trail Blazers attacked and Aldris pulled out inside.
But Speights did not follow because Albidge felt too bad today. He took so many shots in the first half and only scored 5 points. He directly let Aldridge go.
The Trail Blazers had their main force on the outside, with Lillard and Batum crouching in the corners on both sides. The Warriors had to send someone to keep an eye on them, and could not conduct a three-person double-team. So after Speights released Aldridge, he and Ezeli
Team up with Wang Zelin.
But at this time, Aldridge ran back to the game area, and together with Barton, stuck Ezeri behind.
Speights was in a dilemma and finally chose to defend the basket.
But it was still a step too late. Wang Zelin passed the ball, Aldridge received the ball and made a side layup.
This combination made the Warriors dare not double-team Wang Zelin in the following period, and Speights could only guard the basket.
After observing the first half and understanding that Aldridge was indeed out of shape today, coach Terry asked Wang Zelin to resume his role as the main attacker.
Within four minutes, Wang Zelin blocked two shots in succession, making the entire three-point line a no-fly zone for the Warriors.
The performance on the offensive end was even sharper. The combination of Speights and Ezeli was far worse than the combination of Greenberg and Gite. He hit all four consecutive shots, and once went 2-1, scoring 9 points in a row.
During this period, Cole paid the price for his underestimation of the enemy.
Originally, he thought that the Warriors were still 7 points ahead and the presence of the Splash Brothers would be enough to sustain the offense. Therefore, he habitually made the mistake of going with the wind and waves, and actually chose to replace Green and BoGt.
This wave of operations paved the way for Wang Zelin's short-term scoring explosion.
The last two minutes of the third quarter.
At 86:82, the Trail Blazers took the lead by 4 points.
More importantly, during the period from returning to the main force to taking the lead, the Trail Blazers scored a total of 16 points. In addition to Wang Zelin's 9 points, Aldridge also contributed 4 points, a cutting layup and a mid-range shot.
Jump shot.
Since then, Aldridge is only one point away from scoring in double figures tonight.
In the second half of the third quarter, his condition began to slowly recover. This result made the home fans on the sidelines excited.
"LaMarcus is getting better and better as he fights, so Warriors, prepare to die!"
"This is what a defending champion should look like. It doesn't matter if we are leading for most of the game, as long as we are the one who wins in the end."
The fans on the sidelines were talking a lot, and the atmosphere in the Rose Garden Arena, which had been silent for a long time, began to become lively.
In the last two minutes of the third quarter, the two teams made lineup adjustments.
For the Trail Blazers, Aldridge partnered with Jokic and continued to stay on the court to find his touch. Beverley and Moreau were sent out in the backcourt, and veteran Jefferson was added to the wing.
For the Warriors, Ezeli is still the center, and Green leads the team, partnering with Barbosa and Livingston in the backcourt, with Barnes on the wing.
"Adelaide has finally found his touch. Now it depends on whether he can maintain it in the last two minutes."
The Blazers re-established their lead, and Yu Jia also smiled.
"The Warriors didn't want to see Ade regain his touch, so they sent Green to target him." Xu Jicheng said.
"There is an obvious height difference between the two. Although Green has an amazing wingspan, I feel that as long as Ade's performance just now is not a flash in the pan, his offense will never be something Green can control."
Next, the Trail Blazers mainly played Aldridge at the fourth position. At the end of the third quarter, he frequently performed various singles in the left mid-range and low post where he is most familiar.
The Trail Blazers were attacking. At this time, Aldridge was holding Green on the left wing to ask for the ball. After receiving the ball, he made a direct face-to-face jumper. He looked particularly confident and successfully hit a two-pointer.
88:82, the Trail Blazers lead by 6 points!
"Oh, this ball is played so calmly, the height advantage is obvious!" Zhang Li said.
"There is no way. Although Green's defense is good, it also depends on who is facing him. Once Aldridge enters the state and wants to choke him while playing with touch, I am afraid that there is only one person in active service who can do it.
"
The further the Blazers lead, the brighter the smile on Yu Jia's face becomes.
"Let me guess who this person you are talking about... Haha, I guessed it, you are talking about the king!"
Hearing Xu Jicheng's words, Zhang Lili and Yu Jia both laughed.
Sure enough, Aldridge, who became more and more confident as he played, hit Green three times in a row, making two of three shots. One of them hit a three-pointer from the bottom corner. Adding the previous two points, he scored 7 points in two minutes!
After three quarters, Aldridge lived up to the patience of his coach and teammates and finally regained his form as the second-best player on a championship team in the second half of the third quarter.
If the first 4 points were caused by Wang Zelin sharing the pressure, then the current 7 points were all caused by him relying on his personal ability to forcefully shoot over Green.
From being an undercover player in the first half to being an important contributor in helping the team overtake in the second half, Aldridge's transformation caught everyone by surprise.
And all of this stems from the fact that Cole couldn't help but get sick for a while in the second half of the third quarter and changed the inside combination.
This wave gave Aldridge a chance to turn around. When he regained his touch, Green's single defense was no longer effective against him.
At 95:89, the Trail Blazers established a 6-point lead.
When the fourth quarter started, Cole was honest this time and immediately restored the lineup.
The same is true for the Trail Blazers, who sent out the starting five.
At the end of the quarter, the Trail Blazers attacked first. As soon as he reached the left wing of the frontcourt, Aldridge did not move, but faced Green at the three-point line and asked for the ball from the top of the key.
In the original timeline, after Aldridge later joined the Spurs, he followed the trend of the small ball era and developed three-point shooting ability, and his power was not low.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Take the 19-20 season as an example, he averaged three shots per game, made 1.2 three-pointers, and his three-point shooting rate was 38.9%.
As a big pitcher, he could be called an outside fort in the league at that time.
This big man who has proven that he can make reliable three-pointers has developed a precise outside long shot several seasons ahead of schedule after partnering with Wang Zelin.
Just this season, Aldridge averaged 3.5 three-pointers per game, made 1.5, and his three-point shooting rate was as high as 42.9%!
You know, even Ku Ritian, the number one player in the three-point field today, only shot 45.4% from three-point range in the regular season.
Of course, this is related to the fact that the opponent's defensive focus is mainly on Wang Zelin.
If you think about it carefully, as a teammate with a super center who has the ability to score points at the leading level, Aldridge will definitely have a lot of open opportunities, and he can shoot a terrifying three-point shooting rate of more than 42%. It makes sense.
But the next shot still seemed a bit too much.
Seeing that Aldridge wanted to play in singles again, Green immediately became upset and asked you to play a few times in a row. He really thought that would be enough, if you hadn't been teammates with that damn Asian guy...
While complaining crazily, Green was not too slow and immediately moved forward, but Aldridge made a simple reverse run, and Lillard's pass reached Aldridge's hands.
Then, facing Green's flying dive, Aldridge ignored the defense and pulled up directly, with confidence written on his face.
"Whoosh!"
A difficult three-point shot and hit.
98:89, the Trail Blazers lead by 9 points and are about to establish a double-digit lead.
"yeah!"
All the home fans cheered endlessly.
They didn't expect that Aldridge, who played my role in the first half, quickly completed his redemption in the second half. If we win tonight, he will definitely be an important contributor.
The momentum of the whole team also increased crazily with this extremely tough three-pointer.