allendalepharm Chapter 81: One-on-One with Paul George's Long-Range Shot, A Light Provocation Leads to a Trap!
Chapter 81: One-on-One with Paul George's Long-Range Shot, A Light Provocation Leads to a Trap!
In the live broadcast room, seeing the Clippers tie the score again in the crucial last two minutes, the commentator couldn't help but get excited.
Today's commentary team consists of Wang Meng, who has a limited vocabulary, and Su Qun, who likes to talk nonsense.
"That was really solid! Kawhi's mid-range shot in that crucial moment was incredibly reliable!"
"In the final moments, the best way to break through is still the mid-range shot, because your three-point shot is definitely not as reliable as the mid-range shot, and it is too difficult to drive to the basket, and you will definitely be double-teamed."
"Kerr didn't call a timeout! The Warriors still have the last two timeouts of the game; they could really call one!"
"Green inbounds the ball from the baseline, or Curry dribbles it up the court!"
……
The Clippers are a team with superstars, unlike the Jazz in the first round who were not so easily demoralized.
Although they were largely dominated by the Warriors in the second half, they managed to stay close thanks to their tenacious defense and the explosive performance of substitute Mann, and the Warriors never pulled away.
Even though Kawhi Leonard and Paul George might struggle against the Warriors' defense in some possessions, their ability to adjust far surpasses that of the younger Donovan Mitchell. They can still find new opportunities by constantly changing their playing style or providing assistance to their teammates in other ways.
Kawhi Leonard's crucial mid-range jumper, which he made despite Wiggins' defense, greatly boosted the team's morale and the atmosphere of the home crowd.
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
At Staples Center, the Clippers' home fans chanted in unison.
The Clippers players did not disappoint them. Beverley's mad dog-like defense arrived as expected, and he began to harass and pressure Curry in the frontcourt!
If it were just a matter of entanglement in the attacking third, that would be one thing, but the key issue is that Beverley's hands are never clean; he keeps making all sorts of dirty moves.
[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: 10 ...
The referee ignored it, but Curry was extremely annoyed and had no choice but to pass the ball forward in advance, and the basketball landed precisely in Li Xingchen's hands.
Tyronn Lue nodded in satisfaction. In the final moments of the Warriors' offensive possessions, as long as the ball wasn't in Curry's hands, it was a good thing.
Anyway, Beverley is a lean player, quick to get past screens, and has light and agile footwork, so there's no need to worry about him not being able to keep up with Curry when he's running off the ball.
—It's hard to say if he can catch up in a normal match, but if it's just these last few crucial rounds, he should be able to hold on.
If he can keep up with Curry's footwork and disrupt his receiving of the ball, then the Warriors' offensive effectiveness will be greatly reduced.
Moreover, Tyronn Lue had done his homework beforehand.
Although Li Xingchen's performance in the crucial moments of the previous series was quite stable, even outstanding.
However, his output in each game is basically the same, and his points are often concentrated in the first half.
Therefore, Tyronn Lue has every reason to suspect that Li Xingchen basically ran out of energy to maintain his stellar performance after taking on a certain amount of production.
As for the games where he shone in crucial moments, they all happened after he had performed poorly and lacked output in the first three quarters.
In contrast, Li Xingchen, who has already scored sixteen points in this game, is clearly closer to the former situation.
So when the basketball fell into Li Xingchen's hands, Tyronn Lue was actually quite relieved.
Little did he know that this young man from the East, whom he had underestimated, was the one who would kill the match with his own hands!
After receiving the pass from Curry, Li Xingchen dribbled leisurely to the three-point line.
Paul George was still guarding him.
He was five centimeters taller and had a five-centimeter longer wingspan, which was almost enough to overpower him.
Li Xingchen did not rush to attack, but instead slowed down the pace and wasted time.
He hoped for as few rounds as possible so that he could make more explosive plays in each round by taking advantage of the system's passive abilities.
Paul George also lowered his center of gravity and cautiously watched him with his long arms outstretched.
As for George, he actually knew very little about Li Xingchen.
My limited understanding is limited to the first-round video footage that I watched with the team before the series started in the last two days.
Currently, no one has been able to pinpoint Li Xingchen's limits.
Just when everyone thought they knew Li Xingchen well enough, he always seemed to unlock new abilities, bringing surprises to everyone.
Therefore, George dared not let his guard down at all and kept a close eye on Li Xingchen's every move.
Seeing George's serious expression, Li Xingchen couldn't help but smile again.
It's better to be serious, because the more serious you are, the easier it is to be fooled by feints!
Curry gestured to Li Xingchen from the far end, asking if he needed a screen, but Li Xingchen shook his head and refused.
This time, he didn't need any cover or tactics.
He wants to use the simplest and most straightforward method to take down George, the Clippers' top defensive anchor, one-on-one!
There were only eight seconds left on the clock.
Li Xingchen moved.
He broke through to the left with a very fast start, but on his second dribble, he changed direction and slapped the ball to his right rear. He then quickly moved two steps to the right rear, directly getting rid of George's defensive range!
George was indeed so focused on Li Xingchen's every move that he absorbed the entire set of "fake breakthrough" moves that Li Xingchen had meticulously performed. However, just as he was about to move to the left to block the breakthrough route, he saw Li Xingchen retreat to the right.
If Li Xingchen simply changed direction, George's almost superhuman body control would have been more than enough to turn around and keep up; even if Li Xingchen simply moved to the right to prepare for a three-pointer, George should have been able to make a last-second defensive stop and effectively disrupt the shot.
The problem was that after changing direction, Li Xingchen didn't break forward or simply move sideways. Instead, while moving to the right, he also took two steps back, retreating to a meter away from the three-point line!
This is completely beyond the shooting range of a normal step-back three-pointer.
Who could have predicted that?
Finally, thanks to his exceptional physical abilities, George managed to forcefully turn his body and lunge towards Li Xingchen.
Unfortunately, due to the great distance, his interference had very limited effect and was more of a symbolic psychological comfort.
The basketball traced a beautiful arc in the air and swished through the hoop.
The three-point training that Li Xingchen had previously conducted included training on long-range three-pointers from many different positions.
Even if it were a meter away from the three-point line, or even a meter more, it would still be within Li Xingchen's shooting range.
This is also why the system assigned Li Xingchen such a tactic.
At first, Li Xingchen asked the system with great concern, "Would George really be fooled by such a simple feint?"
The system did not explain the reason, but only told Li Xingchen that Damian Lillard had once made a game-winning three-pointer from a great distance in front of George.
Li Xingchen then had nothing to say.
Indeed, true history is humanity's most valuable experience.
After sinking a crucial long-range three-pointer, Li Xingchen gave Paul George a soft whistle.
Let's just consider this a simple response to his provocation in the first half.
Paul George wasn't angry; he just smiled and shook his head.
Judging from his expression, he clearly wanted to launch an effective counterattack in the next round of attacks!
Unfortunately, his wish was destined to be in vain.
Because Li Xingchen's defensive stats in this game still have two steals/blocks left to fill, and he's eagerly awaiting those!