Halfway through the first quarter, there was an official timeout, and the ESPN TV station broadcasting the game entered a commercial screen.
The camera was not focused on the home team's bench, where Mike Brown was hunched over, holding a tactical board, and roaring something with a red face.
The score on the scoreboard above the head is 15:21, and the home team is in front, which means that after half the game, the Cavaliers are behind.
Shaquille O'Neal, who scored 10 points, 6 rebounds and 1 block, was the biggest contributor to the Heat's lead. However, Dwyane Wade, who was highly valued before the game, was slightly less efficient, scoring 6 points and 1 on 3 of 6 shots.
3 rebounds and 3 assists.
In contrast, the Cavaliers almost fell into an abyss at the beginning, forcing Lin Yu to step up and take over the game. He scored 5 points in a row, first helping the Cavaliers solve their scoring shortage.
Moments later, he hit a key three-pointer, which directly helped the Cavaliers open up the originally crowded offensive space.
After half the game, Lin Yu scored 10 points and 2 assists on 4 of 6 shots.
But the Cavaliers are still 6 points behind. For a team that was more optimistic before the game, the current situation is obviously intolerable.
Mike Brown was emphasizing the next phase of tactics at the top of his lungs. After Lin Yu stepped forward to take over the game, the Cavaliers' poor offense at the beginning was finally opened up.
So, the problem now is defense.
Mike Brown adjusted the Cavaliers' defense. He resorted to double-team defense in the penalty area, which was once the standard defense against Shaquille O'Neal.
It can only be said that even if the 35-year-old Shark has experienced an irreversible decline, in the playoffs where the real bayonet is played, the threat of the old Shark in the penalty area will still give many teams with average inside strength a drink.
The Cavaliers are not bad inside, but a large part of the reason why the old Shaq was wreaking havoc in the opening game was that the Cavaliers did not defend him.
Now on the standard double team defense, Mike Brown began to worry about Lin Yu's defense against Wade.
"Lin, in the next game, you need to deal with Dwyane Wade alone. Be careful not to give him space to easily break through. If he wants to shoot, let him shoot."
Mike Brown has always been very meticulous in his defensive arrangements. Lin Yu nodded. He agreed with Mike Brown's specific arrangements. At this time, Wade was famous for his poor long-range shooting.
But Wade's breakthrough was not so easy to defend. In the first half of the first quarter, Lin Yu relied on the help of inside man Drew Gooden to barely block Wade.
Now, the Cavaliers could no longer provide any help in defense, and Lin Yu suddenly felt huge pressure.
At the end of the timeout, the Heat made a substitution. Anthony Walker replaced Dorell Wright. The Cavaliers also replaced Anderson Varejao, who was not effective in defending the old Shark.
After the official timeout, it was the Cavaliers' offensive round. Lin Yu, who scored 10 points before the timeout, ran from the outside and created a huge threat.
LeBron James' breakthrough in the middle became a little easier. In the first round after the timeout, he scored two points with an extremely fast breakthrough.
At 17:21, the deficit was reduced to 4 points.
The Cavaliers are chasing points, but anyone with a discerning eye can now see that the focus of the game has changed from the Cavaliers' offense at the beginning to the Cavaliers' defense.
The old Gary Payton handed the basketball to Wade as soon as halftime passed. Now Gary Payton has become a functional point guard whose main job is defense and three-pointers.
Wade is the starting point of the Heat's offense. Every round of the Heat's offense must first let Wade try to break through.
In Lin Yu's one-on-one defense, he failed to block Wade's breakthrough, and there was no help on the inside. Only in the penalty area, Anderson Varejao was eyeing him.
Wade's shot from close range... Wow!
The score difference returned to 6 points.
During the Cavaliers' offense, James made another breakthrough. Lin Yu was being stared at, but he received the pass and used a somewhat lame breakthrough to attract the Heat's defensive tilt. An opening appeared on the weak side. Lin Yu's pass was accurate.
Found Drew Gooden.
Gooden hits a close shot... swoosh!
The goal was scored at 19:23, and the point difference was once again reduced to 4 points.
In the Heat's offense, Shaquille O'Neal received the ball inside the free throw line and pushed it in, but was immediately restricted by a double team.
The peak Shark would never take a step back in a one-on-one situation, but now the old Shark, who is aging, can only pass the ball out and reorganize the offense.
The Heat reorganized their offense, but time was running out. Wade made a hasty mid-range shot, and it hit the frame with a bang.
The Cavaliers rushed for the rebound, and the short Daniel Gibson picked it up.
Counterattack to the frontcourt, many people on the Heat retreated, and the fast break seemed to be unable to continue. LeBron James received the ball but rushed directly to the penalty area. While the Heat's defense had not yet formed a whole, he rushed into the penalty area and attracted
A pincer attack.
Lin Yu was given a very rare opportunity. He caught the ball, raised his hand and shot a three-pointer...
Whoosh!
The crisp sound of wiping the net suddenly detonated the entire Quicken Loans Center gymnasium, and cheers erupted like a tide.
The Cavaliers' score jumped, 22:23, and the point difference was directly reduced to 1 point!
…
After the official timeout, the game reversed course in the first half of the first quarter. The Cavaliers' offensive and defensive intensity increased, and Lin Yu created a great threat.
Then on the defensive end, the old Shark was restricted by double teams, but Dwyane Wade took advantage of this to get many scoring opportunities.
Another half of the game was over. After the first quarter, at 32:31, the Cavaliers overtook the score, but their lead was only 1 point.
"At the end of the first game, the Cavaliers have obviously recovered from the sluggish start. China Lin made 6 of 9 shots efficiently, scoring 15 points in a single quarter, and also had 2 rebounds and 3 assists. The Cavaliers were able to start from behind.
His performance was crucial to overtake the score."
"For the Heat, Shaq performed well at the beginning, but after being double-teamed, he immediately disappeared from the Heat's offensive end. Fortunately, Dwyane Wade stepped up and took over the game."
"In the first quarter of the game, to put it simply, China Lin led the Cavaliers forward, while Shaq and Dwyane Wade successively led the Heat forward."
"The score difference at the end of the first quarter was only 1 point. The intensity of this game exceeded our imagination!"
In the second quarter of the game, Lin Yu stayed off the court to rest. Because he fell behind at the beginning, he had to play the entire first quarter, which had already exhausted his physical fitness.
If Mike Brown still wants to maintain Lin Yu's combat effectiveness, Lin Yu should rest for more than half the game in the second quarter.
LeBron James and Rashard Lewis partnered to continue to support the Cavaliers' offense. Then on the defensive end, with the old Shark also needing a rest, the Cavaliers piled their defense in front of Wade.
Without Lin Yu present, the Cavaliers quickly opened up their lead.
However, compared with the offensive battle in the first quarter, the game in the second quarter turned into a defensive battle, or to be more precise, it should be a blacksmith battle with rookies pecking each other...