In the first three offensive and defensive rounds, Lin Yu scored 5 points and 1 assist. All the Cavaliers' scores were related to Lin Yu.
His outburst caught many people's expectations, and even LeBron James got excited. However, the score of this game did not open up as quickly as Lin Yu's outburst.
The Suns, playing at home, also played an efficient offense.
Steve Nash couldn't find a chance, so he passed the ball to Boris Diaw. Diaw became the transfer station for the ball. After organizing the attack for the second time, he could always find better scoring opportunities.
After half a quarter, the Cavaliers and Suns were tied at 21:22, and the Cavaliers were even 1 point behind.
Just as Mike Brown predicted before the game, this game turned into a battle of attacks. Both sides refused to give in to each other and both got a high score.
If the game continues like this, the scores of both teams will exceed 30 or even 40 points in the first quarter.
In such an era where defense is king, 30 points in a single quarter is already very rare. To score 40 points in a single quarter can only be said to be the collapse of one side's defense.
The Suns' defense has been in a state of collapse all year round, so they don't care if they can't prevent their opponents' offense.
What Mike D'Antoni demands is that as long as the team can run its own offense, the mission is accomplished.
Mike Brown was different. After the official timeout, he was a little angry.
"Defense! I have emphasized it many times. If we want to win this game, we must focus on our defense!"
Lin Yu kept silent. He felt that Mike Brown's pre-game tactical arrangements missed the key figure Boris Diaw.
The peak Phoenix Suns were able to dominate the regular season because of more than just two-time MVP Steve Nash.
In fact, the existence of two insiders who are fully adapted to small ball: Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion, as well as the organization forward Boris Diaw, make it impossible for the Cavaliers to completely defend Nash.
Lock down the Suns' run-and-gun offense.
Because they also have Boris Diaw and two flexible inside players.
If we wait until Leandro Barbosa comes on the court, the Suns' offensive firepower will reach its peak.
Lin Yu did not give any warning, but Mike Brown himself was already aware of this. He began to ask James: "LeBron, after the game restarts, I need you to pay attention to Boris Diaw's holding the ball."
Then, he looked around at all the main players in front of him: "As for the others, follow your own defensive targets and rotate the defense faster, we must keep the rhythm down!"
At 21:22 of the half, although they were only behind by 1 point, this score was not what Mike Brown wanted to see.
After the official timeout, the Cavaliers replaced Drew Gooden with Donyel Marshall, and the Suns also replaced Laga Bell with Leandro Barbosa after the timeout.
Lin Yu's opponent on the offensive end has changed, and his pressure has been reduced, because the Brazilian Barbosa is not a player who is good at defense.
In the first round after the timeout, the Cavaliers attacked.
LeBron James broke through and continued to run into the Suns' double-team defense. However, the Suns' rotation defense after the double-team attack was not fast, and could even be described as extremely slow.
James quickly passed the ball and found Marshall who was wide open.
With a bang, Marshall's open three-pointer missed.
In the following defensive round, Lin Yu targeted Nash and James targeted Boris Diaw. However, the Suns relied on the new Barbosa to score points in a chaotic battle, and soon extended their lead to 3 points.
In the next round, Lin Yu, who was in excellent form in this game, took the initiative to take the ball. After controlling it for a while, he found James who rushed into the penalty area at high speed.
With a bang, James hit another dunk, and the deficit was reduced to 1 point.
During the Phoenix's offense, Nash quickly controlled the frontcourt. Stoudemire immediately gave him a screen. After the screen, Lin Yu switched to defense.
But the big Z inside was a step too late to save, and Nash stepped on the three-point line and shot directly.
Whoosh!
The Phoenix continued to score, and Mike Brown raised his hands to express his dissatisfaction: "Zarunas, guard against going out, guard against going out!"
Mike Brown was helpless. He also knew that it would be stupid to force Big Z to defend, but if Big Z didn't defend, LeBron James would have to take on the important task of making up for the defense.
This is too demanding for James. Mike Brown also hopes that James can dominate the offensive end and help the Cavaliers score more easily.
In fact, even if he didn't score much in the first quarter, James did dominate the offensive end.
The Suns always use multiple players in the penalty area to deal with James, and James can always find opportunities with his passes.
This time James passed the ball and found Lin Yu in the mid-range.
Lin Yu turned over and made a jump shot, once again helping the Cavaliers reduce the deficit to 1 point.
Off the court, Brendan Malone thoughtfully said to Mike Brown: "Mike, have you noticed that Lin and LeBron have cooperated more, and the passes between the two have also increased.
"
"Of course, I have been paying attention. In this game, Lin has already had three assists, all of which came from LeBron."
"This is a quite beneficial change. Perhaps, we can consider developing the duo of Lin and LeBron."
Brendan Malone looked at Mike Brown: "What do you think, Mike?"
Mike Brown nodded: "Let's go back and let everyone study together and develop some routines. Judging from this game, the cooperation between Lin and LeBron is still very powerful."
After the first quarter of the game, both teams scored high scores. The Cavaliers scored 33 points in a single quarter, and the Suns even more. They directly scored 37 points. Relying on their perfect performance in the first quarter, they led the Cavaliers by 4 points.
The 4-point difference was not big, but the game completely entered the rhythm of the Suns.
Although the speed of the run-and-gun offense could not be completely opened up, the Cavaliers' defense became riddled with holes due to the Phoenix's bombardment of multiple passing points and scoring points.
In the second quarter, Lin Yu stayed on the bench to rest.
LeBron James led the second team composed of Daniel Gibson and Donyel Marshall to counter the Suns' second team. After about half a quarter, the point difference was widened to 7 points.
Mike Brown kept getting up to direct the defense, but to no avail.
In this game against the real favorites for the championship, the Cavaliers discovered many of their own shortcomings.
LeBron James is easily blocked by a deep flanking defense. If Lin Yu can't run out of space, he can only hit the jumper against the defense. Fortunately, his touch is pretty good in this game, and most of his jump shots against the defense are successful.
Apart from Lin Yu and James, the Cavaliers have no second stable scoring point. Originally, Big Z was a stable scoring point, but this season, Big Z's state has declined a bit.
If Lin Yu and James are blocked, the Cavaliers will have to bet on the skill of the outside shooters.
Said to be a group of outside shooters, there are actually only three people in total, Lin Yu, Donyel Marshall and Daniel Gibson.
The direction and progress of the game made Mike Brown keep frowning. Are the Phoenix people too strong?
No, it should be the Cavaliers' true strength, which is somewhat hidden by the easy schedule in November...