Chapter 445 The match point of the first round of the playoffs
Before the playoffs started, no one could have imagined that the Knicks could win two games in the first two games of the series.
Even Mark Stein and Bobby Marks, who are optimistic about the Knicks winning this series, only believe that the Knicks have a chance of winning one of the first two away games at most.
The result is that the Knicks have won two consecutive games, leading the series 2:0, and have completely taken the initiative.
The media began to analyze the Knicks' two victories. They analyzed it from the perspective of the winning team and came to the conclusion that although the improvement in statistics was not significant, in these two games, Lin Yu played better than the statistics can reflect.
Outstanding personal performance.
Zach Lowe’s summary: “Basically, in these two games, the players of the Pistons and Knicks, except for Lin, are still the same as in the regular season. Only Lin, his offense is at the same level as the regular season, but his defense is straight forward.
It’s gone up a notch…”
Mark Stein even believed: "Lin Yu's ubiquitous defense has directly caused the Knicks' entire team's defense to move from the middle of the league to the top of the league. The Pistons' offense is not as good as the Knicks, and the defense that the Knicks rely on to win has also been eliminated.
With a draw, two consecutive wins will come naturally.”
There are also experts who analyze the situation from the perspective of the losing side.
For example, Jesse Washington, a reporter from ESPN in Detroit: "Has Flip Saunders forgotten that there is such a tactic as double-team defense?"
In the first two games, Lin Yu rarely suffered from double-team defense. He also found it strange that the Pistons obviously had a defensive tactic that could effectively limit themselves, but the Pistons did not use it. What was Flip Saunders thinking in his head?
?
And Detroit Business Daily reporter John Perez: "No need to find any more reasons. In terms of technology and tactics, the Pistons did not lose. They just lost to talent. Starting from the failure of the Lin transaction with the Cavaliers, everything
The result is already determined.”
"We are an old team with no young talent and only a vague experience..."
The argument of losing to talent is a point of view most easily accepted by Detroit locals, and when this point of view is accepted, it is Joe Dumars who is criticized.
"Joe and Isiah were teammates as players, but why did we choose Joe as the team's general manager instead of Isiah?"
"Isiah helped the Knicks get Lin, while Joe just lives on his past achievements."
"Isiah is leaving New York, don't wait, Karen Davidson (Pistons owner), we need change!"
"..."
Isiah Thomas, who was on vacation in Europe, did not expect that he would be forced to leave the Knicks and suddenly have the opportunity to return to the Pistons.
#
Just as Detroit was wailing and New York was jubilant, the series left Detroit and came to New York.
It seems that no one thinks that the Pistons have the possibility of a comeback, but the actual situation is not as smooth as many people imagined.
In the third game, Flip Saunders finally used double-team defense, which many people thought could be used against Lin Yu.
The effect was good, but Lin Yu struggled a lot.
Because the Pistons attacked very decisively, it was difficult for him to open up his personal offense.
However, when passing the ball to his teammates, his teammates also performed erratically, and the entire team's condition suddenly dropped.
The game went down to the last moment. The Pistons got back a win with Rasheed Wallace's last-minute single and a magical three-pointer against the defense!
It seems that Lin Yu was indeed restricted by the double-team defense, which had a huge impact on the Knicks.
As many media emphasized before the game, Lin Yu seemed unable to effectively deal with double-team defense, and the Knicks were also Lin Yu's only team. He was so called to drive his teammates after encountering a double-team attack. In this game, the Knicks
Other players also proved with their actions that they cannot be brought along.
Just like that, after the third game, the entire screen was full of opportunities for the Pistons to make a comeback. Lin Yu and the Knicks, unable to cope with the double-team defense, were destined to be eliminated in the first round...
As a result, in the fourth battle, Lin Yu immediately told everyone with his actions that he had ten thousand ways to break the double team.
At the beginning of the game, facing a double attack, he took advantage of the high-quality outside screen to shoot his own long shot, and then used continuous fadeaway jumpers to tear open the opponent's defense.
Kenny Smith, who narrated the whole game, lamented: "The double-team defense that played a decisive role in the last game was just faced with a Lin who was in poor condition, and in this game, we faced a Lin who was in hot form.
Lin, double-team defense will be useless."
Double-team defense could not prevent Lin Yu from scoring. He no longer had to deliberately lead his teammates and easily led the team to defeat the Pistons.
After a victory, the Knicks took the match point of the series.
After the game, the direction of public opinion reversed again——
"The match point is obtained, the Knicks are about to advance!"
"Black Seven is about to take place, and the semifinals may be a big drama: Lin Yu versus his old boss!"
"Facing a double attack, China Lin scored like crazy, and the Knicks relied on their talent to win the match point!"
"..."
The Detroit media also declared very pessimistically after falling behind 1:3: "This may be the last season for the core team that won the championship in 2004."
Big Ben has been away for two seasons, and after being eliminated in the first round of this season, the veterans will soon be purged due to the voice of the fans and the owner's request to either stay competitive or start saving money.
Billups has long been surrounded by trade rumors. He went to the Rockets for Tracy McGrady, the Cavaliers for Lin Yu, and even the Nuggets for Iverson...
Rasheed Wallace only has the last year left on his contract. Maybe after this summer, the only remaining members of the Fab Five will be Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince.
After Game 4, there was no time to rest. The Knicks were preparing to go to Detroit again to play Game 5 with the Pistons.
Before Game 5, the New Yorkers made harsh words: We are going to end this series in Detroit!
The piston has always been quiet, and it's no different this time.
The veterans of the Pistons seem to have little fighting spirit. It seems that regardless of whether the fans call for it or not, whether the boss requests it or not, a blood change is inevitable.
#
After the four playoff games in the first round, some teams have advanced to the next round.
The Lakers in the Western Conference have swept the Nuggets 4:0 and entered the next round. Similar to the historical timeline, the Lakers this season are indeed very strong.
In the Eastern Conference, the Knicks, Magic and Celtics all lead their opponents 3:1 and are only one win away from entering the next round.
However, Cleveland, which has been feuding with New York fans during this period, has actually tied with the Raptors at 2:2!
So, when Game 5 was about to begin, New York fans took the upper hand in the war of words.
"I think we will meet the Raptors in the semifinals."
"The people in Cleveland are so incompetent. I want to see the semifinals as soon as possible."
"Danny Ferry regretted it to his core because he left a softie behind and sent away the toughest player in the entire league!"