Losing the first game is not a good sign. The Clippers' offense was a bit messy. Except for Ye Feng, everyone else played very poorly, with four scoring in double figures. Ye Feng scored 34 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal and 1 block, Pau Gasol had 14 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, Marc Gasol had 13 points and 10 rebounds, and Thornton scored 12 points.
The Heat also had four players score in double figures. James' 29 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals were not inferior to Ye Feng. Wade had 20 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists; Bosh had 16 points and 8 rebounds; Ray Allen also scored 14 points. There is also Rashad Lewis. Although his playing time is limited, his offensive efficiency is not low. He shot 41.8% from three-pointers. He only made 6 shots in this game, hit three three-pointers and scored 9 points.
Thibodeau admitted after the game that his tactics were inappropriate and he was suppressed by the Heat. He will find a way to deal with the enemy in the next game.
Ye Feng rarely expressed his dissatisfaction with his teammates. "Our defense was so bad in this game that we allowed our opponents to get whatever they wanted. In the past, we averaged 120 points per game and could win the game with points. It didn't matter if we were a little defensive, but now we don't have such a strong offense. In order to win, we must play Bloody! I can accept losing, but I must try my best."
It is difficult for Ye Feng alone to deal with the Heat's Big Three, unless he can defeat James, which will be very difficult. James's psychological problems are no longer as serious as the last Finals.
Ye Feng is very sure that if he wants to defeat the Heat and successfully defend the title, personal ability alone is not enough. His teammates must stand up to support him, especially the performance of the Gasol brothers is crucial. In his previous life, both of them were selected as All-Stars, but they felt that they could not reach their full strength in the Clippers.
The news media commented the next day that if the Clippers did not make adjustments, it would be difficult to defeat the Heat and defend the title. ESPN experts believe that the Clippers should focus their offense in the low post. The Heat's internal defense is not as strong as the outside, and the Clippers' defense must be strengthened, otherwise they will lose. The beholder is clear. These words make sense.
The Clippers did not have a holiday. Thibodeau called the players to study the game video and find the reason for the failure. Seeing the messy offense and movement, the role players were a little embarrassed.
Thibodeau looked serious. Said loudly: "Do you see the problem clearly? It's not that we don't have the ability to win, we just can't seize the opportunity, and we don't play our own characteristics. It's too slow to change the pick-and-roll inside, and everyone must concentrate on defense. And when following, we must Keep your distance and don't get too close, James and Wade are both good at drawing fouls!"
Preventing pick-and-rolls is a skill. If you follow too fast, you will easily get fouled. Ye Feng is a player who is good at drawing fouls. He only needs to make a small change of direction, collide with the opponent with half of his body, or make a sudden stop and feint, point the person up and then take off again. Most of the referees will call a defensive foul. If the block is slow, the opponent may just take the ball and break through in three steps, especially once people like James and Wade rush forward. Ye Feng couldn't prevent it either.
Thibodeau talked about the tactics, and assistant coach Ma Hong came out to train the inside players one by one. When he first arrived at the Clippers. Love, Gortat, and McGee are all trained like foul machines. Their skills are not very good, and their defensive experience is not enough. Being able to compete with other teams inside depends on their hard work. Now that the Clippers have won three championships and established a "dynasty", they have lost the momentum of guarding the basket and killing those who dunk. Pau Gasol is really soft in this regard, and Perry Jones is also not qualified. When playing against the Mavericks, Jones became a starter. But now in order to defend James, he has to be substituted again.
The Clippers can't lose anymore. Everyone knows this. If they lose again, they will probably end up in the same place as the Nets. Now some fans believe that the Heat have the possibility of sweeping the championship.
Of course Ye Feng didn¡¯t believe it. Sweep? Dreaming! The Clippers have a situation where their role players perform abnormally and fail to score goals. The same is not true for the Heat. If the Big Three can guarantee a shooting percentage in every game. Regular season scoring must be among the top five in the league. In fact, the Heat only have five people who are good at scoring.
The Clippers made adjustments to their offense. Thibodeau asked the Gasol brothers to stay in the paint and no longer pull out to cover. Ye Feng played singles on the outside or covered Thornton. Thornton is an important scoring point on the outside and can help Ye Feng share the pressure. . His main role is to attract James' defense after the pick-and-roll. If James switches defense, Ye Feng will have a physical advantage against Wade and Ray Allen. If the Gasol brothers have a clear advantage in the low post, pass the ball in and play.
In order to ensure the feel, Ye Feng practiced shooting more. The Heat's defense is aimed at him entering the inside, and shooting from the outside is needed to solve the problem. As long as he can hit jump shots, even James can't do anything to him.
On June 3, the two sides started their second contest. In the arena, Clippers fans uniformly dressed, and a large number of celebrities came to cheer.
The number of Clippers fans is at least 50 times that of the Heat. If the Clippers can win the championship for the fourth time, it can be said to be a perfect season, allowing the Heat toWhen a giant wins the championship, it is more like a villain succeeding and finally spending money to buy a championship. Not only the Big Three, but also Ray Allen is disliked by many people. The main reason is that he joined the Celtics' mortal enemy after leaving the Celtics. In China, his nickname was originally "Junzi Jian", but now it has become "Yue Buqun" because he is more like the Junzi Jian in Swordsman.
When the players entered the stadium, the Heat received louder boos than in the previous game. From this, we can see how much people want the Clippers to win. This kind of home atmosphere makes the Heat players feel envious. Miami is not even half as good as here. The fans just sit in their seats and watch the game.
Commentators from major media also analyzed that the Clippers cannot afford to lose in this game, and they don¡¯t know what adjustments they will make.
Thibodeau will definitely not use the lineup from last game. The defensive loopholes are too big. They can only stalemate with the Heat in the first quarter. Still on the premise that Ye Feng feels good, the main reason for their defeat is mobility and ability to prevent pick-and-rolls, and Jones' speed. Not slow, but whether they face Wade or James, they will only be ravaged, so the Clippers have to take risks in this game.
In the opening starting lineup, Ye Feng plays the 4th position, mainly defending pick-and-rolls, and also pays attention to low-post defense. The center is Gasol. He is stronger and better at resisting people, and his ability to attack in the low post is not bad. If Bosh is defending, his body has the advantage. The third position is Matt Barnes, facing James. This is a relatively disparate matchup. He has to use Battier's defensive method to force James to make jump shots from the outside as much as possible. If he breaks through, Ye Feng will cover the defense. . Position 2 is Harrison Barnes. He is mainly responsible for outside shooting. There is certainly a gap between him and Wade. But he had a season of dueling with Ye Feng in training, and he had quite a lot of experience. At least he wouldn't be afraid when meeting Wade. Isiah Thomas started at No. 1. This is the Clippers' biggest defensive hole. Chalmers will not be the core of the offense. If it's a misplaced inside shot after the pick-and-roll, the Clippers will admit it.
The Heat have not adjusted their lineup, it is still Dalembert, Bosh, James, Wade and Chalmers.
Gasol beat Bosh with the jump ball, and the Clippers attacked first. Spoelstra looked at the Clippers' lineup and admired Thibodeau. It is a bold move to start Thomas. Only a coach like Thibodeau with an active mind and an eclectic mind in the league dares to make such an arrangement. Hinrich can't guard Bosh and James even if they are mismatched. It is better to replace Thomas and directly attack. The second team allows Hinrich and Thornton to cooperate and share Thornton's defensive pressure, killing two birds with one stone.
Ye Feng was not eager to catch the ball and attack, and provided a screen for Thomas. Whether or not to switch defenses is enough for James to have a headache. The Heat have studied the Clippers players thoroughly and know the characteristics of Thomas, so James switched defenses, and Ye Feng ran to the other side, opening up the space. Thomas passed the outside line to Barnes, and Barnes passed to the outside. With Ye Feng out of position, Chalmers became the defender.
Wade immediately let go of Barnes to double-team him. Neither he nor Chalmers were tall. Facing the defense, Ye Feng caught the ball at a 60-degree angle on the right side and took a shot. Neither of them could cover it. , three-point hit! 3 to 0.
Ye Feng¡¯s biggest improvement this season is his three-point shooting, which is becoming more and more accurate. In the past, he could guarantee a hit rate of about 40%, but that was under the premise of taking few shots, but now he is taking more and more shots. There were several occasions when he hit more than 5 three-pointers in a game. Once he shoots from the outside, the Heat are in trouble.
When the Heat attack, Ye Feng enters the low post and is responsible for defending Bosh. This is not an easy job. He is much shorter than Bosh, but he can use his excellent strength to keep Bosh out of the penalty area. Bosh usually completes outside pick-and-roll coordination. He has a stable mid-range shooting ability, so Dalembert can cover it. He has no confidence in shooting from the outside. His mid-range shooting ability is not as good as that of Dwight Howard. The Clippers can directly defend in two steps.
A center can't make a mid-range shot, and no matter how good his defense is, it's a tragedy. At least he can't become a superstar who dominates the game. Howard is an example. If Bynum hadn't been injured frequently and had problems with his defensive attitude, his position as the number one center might have been lost. People.
Bosh pulled to the outside to cover Chalmers, who broke through with the ball. Ye Feng immediately followed, and Chalmers passed the ball to Bosh. Thomas tried his best to get around, but he had no choice but to lob the ball. After Bosh received the ball, he immediately got close to him, hoping to interfere with the opponent's shooting rhythm.
Bosh was unmoved and just shot the ball in! 3 to 2. If Bosh's shots were so easy to defend, he wouldn't be selected as an All-Star every year. Bosh would be among the best in terms of mid-range shooting accuracy among inside stars.
The Clippers players did not feel depressed about this goal. It was expected. In the last game, Bosh made multiple mid-range shots. No matter how effective Thomas' defense is, this game will focus on offense.