After the game between the Spurs and the Mavericks, the game between the Thunder and the Grizzlies also started.
To be honest, the Thunder and the Grizzlies are old enemies. They met in the playoffs, and the game was very fierce.
The Thunder have been led by Durant alone for about half of this season. Westbrook has missed many games, but their strength is still outstanding.
Although Harden is gone, as long as Dewey is there, as long as Ibaka, Perkins and others are there, the Thunder will be a force that cannot be ignored.
The Thunder's biggest advantage is their youth, high talent, and strong impact. Such a team can often crush them when they encounter ordinary teams, but not when they encounter the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies are the opposite of the Thunder. They are good at positional warfare, playing slow-paced games, grinding with opponents, biting and fighting, dividing the game, and turning basketball games into wrestling competitions.
The Thunder's biggest headache is teams like the Grizzlies.
It is also for this reason that the Thunder traded Jeff Green for Perkins.
Although Perkins' scoring ability is basically zero and he cannot score a single point in many games, as long as he is on the court, the Thunder's inside line is guaranteed and no one dares to act recklessly on the court.
Players like Perkins, like Beverley and Artest, are hated by opponents but loved by teammates.
Of course, Perkins also has a big mouth and is very annoying - but it's not obvious yet.
As expected, this game was still full of sparks, and the two teams fought until the last minute.
The Thunder used their home court advantage to take the lead, beating the Grizzlies 29:16 in the first quarter, and then beat the Grizzlies 27:18 in the second quarter. At halftime, the Thunder led by 22 points.
If another team were to play on the road and fall behind by 22 points, they would basically give up, but the Grizzlies will not.
The Grizzlies strengthened their defense in the third quarter, and at the same time found their offensive touch, they fought hard to catch up, beating the Thunder 31:13 in a single quarter, with only 4 points left. The two teams returned to the same starting line.
In the fourth quarter, the Grizzlies once chased the point difference to 2 points and once saw hope of tying the score. However, the Thunder substitutes stepped up and coupled with Durant's performance, the point difference between the two teams widened again.
When the Thunder replaced Westbrook, the game lost its suspense.
The final score was fixed at 100:86.
Four members of the Grizzlies team reached double figures, with Randolph scoring the most, scoring 21 points on 7-for-21 shooting and 11 rebounds.
Three people from the Thunder scored in double figures, namely Durant's 33 points, Westbrook's 23 points and Ibaka's 17 points.
Although the Grizzlies have many people in double figures, there is only one in his early twenties, and his efficiency is not high. On the other hand, the Thunder have a highly efficient 33-pointer and Westbrook with 23 points. Compared with the two, they are playing well on the bench.
Under similar circumstances, it's not surprising that the Grizzlies lost.
The Thunder turned the ball over 12 times in the game, while the Grizzlies only had 6, but the Thunder had more rebounds.
In the final analysis, the Grizzlies still lack physical strength, and there is nothing that can be done about it.
As long as the Grizzlies have a player like Westbrook, victory should be theirs.
…
At the same time, the two games in the Eastern Conference were also completed.
The Heat defeated the Bobcats at home without a fight.
The strength of these two teams is not at the same level at all, so the Heat win very easily.
The Bobcats' top scorer was Kemba Walker. He scored 20 points on 6-of-15 shooting, sent 6 assists and 5 rebounds, but also made 6 turnovers.
In addition, Al Jefferson, McRoberts and Gary Neal also scored in double figures for the Bobcats.
Although the Bobcats have four players scoring in double figures, the scoring efficiency of these four players is relatively low.
On the other hand, for the Heat, James made 8 of 16 shots, 7 of 10 free throws, and scored 27 points and 9 rebounds.
Wade also took 16 shots, hit 10, and finally scored 23 points and 5 assists.
Bosh scored 13 points on 4 of 13 shots. In addition, James Jones scored in double figures. He scored 12 points on 4 of 6 shots, which was very efficient.
The Bobcats lost mainly in two aspects, one was free throws and the other was turnovers.
In the whole game, the Bobcats made 8 of 12 free throws, while the Heat made 18 of 26 free throws. In this alone, the Heat scored 10 more points.
In addition, the Bobcats committed 13 turnovers in the game, while the Heat only committed 7.
Obviously, it is very difficult for the Bobcats to score under the Heat's pressing defense.
There was nothing that could be done about it. The Heat's defense was very good, but the Bobcats' scoring ability was poor, so the Heat won the game without any effort at all.
The final score was 99:88. This was a game without any suspense.
…
Another set of games is the showdown between the Brooklyn Nets and Raptors.
During the offseason, the Nets recruited many capable players, which also made many experts very optimistic about the Nets' performance in the new season.
As for the Raptors, there wasn't much movement. Before the season started, no one thought the Raptors could reach this position.
The final result was shocking. The Raptors ranked third, while the Nets fell to sixth.
Of course, although the Nets are ranked sixth, many experts are still optimistic about their performance in the playoffs. After all, the Nets have mostly veterans, and the role of veterans in the playoffs is more important.
The results were also as expected.
The Nets, playing away from home, took the lead in this game. They felt hot and found their form first. After the first quarter, they led by 8 points, 29:21.
In the second quarter, the Raptors found some form and restored the point difference to 4 points.
31 In the third quarter, the two teams started a defensive battle, scoring 17:16 in a single quarter.
The Raptors launched a counterattack in the last quarter, but the Nets still had more players. They withstood the pressure and maintained their lead until the end.
Four Nets players scored in double figures throughout the game, with Deron Williams and Joe Johnson tied for the highest 24 points.
Paul Pierce scored 15 points and Livingston scored 10 points.
The best performer for the Raptors was Lowry. He made 3 of 7 three-pointers and scored 22 points, 8 assists and 7 rebounds. Of course, he also made 5 turnovers.
The second best performer for the Raptors was Vasquez on the bench. He made 5 of 11 shots and scored the team's second-highest 18 points.
The other two Raptors scoring in double figures are Valanciunas and DeRozan.
In this game, the Nets mainly won on defense. They made 8 turnovers in the game, but caused 17 turnovers for the Raptors.
In addition, the Nets also played more reasonably on the offensive end. Their field goal percentage was 42.5%, which was much higher than the Raptors' 39.4%.
In short, the young Raptors are still a little immature in front of the experienced Nets, and it is not surprising that they lost the first game.
By winning this game, the Nets will have the home court advantage in the series.
