Super All-around Point Guard

When Luke Walton heard this question, his face became solemn. How to defend Xie Chen is also a question he is studying all the time.

Luke Walton will take over the Lakers' mess next season and officially become the head coach of a team. Walton was a player for the Lakers. He is extremely eager to coach this team that has had countless honors in the past. Walton once superstar teammate Kobe Bryant predicted that Walton would become a coach as early as when they played together.

When the two were playing with the Lakers, Kobe often teased Walton and said that he would be better as a coach than as a player. However, at that time, Walton wanted to be an excellent player and was not interested in Kobe's praise at all. For Walton now in the Warriors With his achievements, he became a coach that many teams are eager to grab. Kobe proudly said that he knew that Walton would become a coach back then. It was just a matter of time.

Although Luke Walton has become the head coach of the Lakers, the Lakers boss only talks to Walton once or twice a day at most, and the time is very short, because Walton still puts all his thoughts on the Warriors. Assisting Cole to win the championship seems to be more important than him planning his own team.

However, Walton feels that he is doing the same thing. Now the Warriors' opponent is the Knicks. To put it directly, it is Xie Chen. Walton's coaching career has just begun, and Xie Chen's career has not long started. If Dun wants to lead the Lakers to win the championship in the future, then Xie Chen will be his biggest opponent. It will be of great significance to him and the future Lakers to study this terrifying opponent early.

It doesn't matter that neither Cole nor he can do anything about Xie Chen now. What's important is that in a few years, when Walton's Lakers meet Xie Chen again, they must be able to restrain him.

Luke Walton sighed and shook his head: "It can be said that the New York Knicks have reached this stage entirely because of Xie. The Toronto Raptors, Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, including us, have to use the basic defense to defend Xie. I’ve used it all before, and I really can’t think of any perfect strategy to guard against Xie, but I believe you must have a way.”

Luke Walton looked at Cole with a pleading look on his face. Coach Cole also smiled meaningfully and said: "No strategy is perfect. Xie is a smart guy. No matter what method we use, He can handle it. So we have to make choices and make sacrifices. In the next game, my plan is to keep Xie's score below 30 points, strictly limit the time he holds the ball, and definitely cut off the connection between him and his teammates. The connection does not allow him to score, nor does it allow him to connect with his teammates to score."

Walton said: "But it can be seen from this game that his teammates may also beat us."

Cole laughed and said: "I would rather let them beat us. In addition, I don't agree with the other Knicks players except Xie. Do you think we can make 25 shots in the next game like tonight?" A three-pointer?”

"I don't think that's likely," Walton said.

Cole said: "Then how can you believe that they can continue the touch they had tonight in the next game?"

Cole was not frightened by the 23 three-pointers scored by the Knicks. Everyone went crazy tonight and played beyond their standards. But the game will eventually return to normal. He couldn't see through Xie Chen's strength, but he was Get the rest of the Knicks right.

…

The process of waiting for game day is excruciating. In the past two days, the Warriors and Knicks have carefully analyzed themselves and their opponents. They have also withdrawn from the crazy emotions of the previous game and have a relatively calm mentality. The Knicks did not. The Warriors put too much emphasis on the game they are currently leading, and the Warriors do not have too much pressure because of losing a game. After all, according to their practice this season, the next game after losing should be a win.

When were the Warriors the scariest? When is the team the healthiest and feeling the best? No, the Warriors are the scariest after losing! The Warriors after losing can only be described in three words: untouchable!

This season, the Warriors will always show extraordinary strength in the next game after losing. As long as the Warriors average 121 points per game and shoot 52% in the next game after losing, The three-point shooting percentage reached 46%. Throughout the regular season, the Warriors did not lose a losing streak.

However, this time against the Knicks, they lost in a row. Since Xie Chen came back in the second game of the Finals, the Warriors have lost two games in a row. Although the Warriors scored 121 points above the average in the last game, their shooting percentage They all met the standards, but they lost.

It is generally believed that the Warriors after losing one game are not easy to mess with, and the Warriors after losing two games will be even more difficult to mess with! The challenge against the Knicks in Game 4 will be even greater!

The Warriors' rebound after losing has become the focus of everyone's attention. The Warriors are a team with 73 wins. Many experts say that as long as the Warriors win the championship, they will be the best team in history.

Everyone in the Warriors wants to be a member of the "best team in history." In the fourth game, the Warriors didn't start with an amazing performance, nor did they show the momentum to win this game, but they handled every ball smoothly. They are still in control of the rhythm of the game, and the Warriors' various tactics are also used with such mastery that people are amazed and admired.

The pick-and-roll between Curry and Green has always been the most frequently used method by the Warriors. For most teams, to deal with the pick-and-roll between the two, they use a direct switch of defense, with the big man pushing outside the three-point line. Therefore, the Warriors responded to this The tactics have been upgraded to the "super high pick and roll".

Compared with ordinary high pick-and-rolls, super-high pick-and-rolls are farther away, almost one or two steps away from the three-point line. Due to Curry's ultra-long three-point ability, the big man he is dealing with must push out of the three-point line to defend. , otherwise, Curry will directly shoot a three-pointer from far away.

And once the big man chases outside the three-point line, Curry will break through fiercely and get to the basket, regardless of whether he makes it or not. This is a huge physical exertion on the big man, even the youngest and most physically fit one at the moment. Karl Towns can't survive being tossed around like this, and when playing like this, the defender will always become lax in defense, thus giving the opponent a chance.

Stephen Curry used this trick to continuously consume Lopez's energy, and his personal score also continued to rise. He would either rush in for two points or score three points from the outside. Curry always had a way to read the defense and use the most appropriate method. In terms of scoring, after all, Curry is quite a threat as MVP.

However, Curry is not the only one with ultra-long range. Xie Chen can also shoot one or two steps away from the three-point line. The Knicks can also play super high pick-and-rolls and attack each other with their opponents. However, the problem It's the Warriors and the Knicks who adopt different defensive methods.

The Warriors simply didn't let Xie Chen dribble.

Once Xie Chen poses a threat, two Warriors players will immediately double-team him. This completely restricts Xie Chen and leaves others free.

The Warriors exposed their defensive plan tonight from the beginning. Xie Chen also distributed the ball to his teammates as usual. His teammates occasionally scored, but the score remained stalemate.

Cole is not in a hurry about this. He believes that in the end, once the other Knicks players can no longer continue to help the team, the Warriors will completely defeat the Knicks.

Coach Kerr made a bet with himself in this game. What he bet is: excluding Xie Chen, the Knicks are a mediocre team. He not only underestimated the former superstar Anthony, but also underestimated the best rookie Bol. Zingis underestimated veteran Ray Allen and also underestimated Knicks coach Fisher.

It turns out that Cole is not arrogant and adventurous. Many seemingly risky methods are often the most likely to win.

On the field, the team's tactics may not always work, especially the kind of uninterrupted game where you come and go, and it will gradually become an emotion-driven game, but it is different when there is a timeout. After the timeout, the players always Being able to play according to the tactics arranged by the coach, at that time, it was a contest of skills between the coaches of the two teams.

In the playoffs, game time will be cut into pieces, physical contact will increase, defensive intensity will increase, fouls will increase, game stagnation will increase, timeouts and endless commercials will lead to tactics after fouls. Fundamentally affects the trend of a series.

The Warriors were able to win 73 games in the regular season, which has proven that coach Cole and assistant coach Walton are masters of tactics. Among them, the weave tactic is one of the Warriors' signature tactics.

Weave tactics refer to a series of tactics initiated by multiple people's continuous hand-to-hand passes. When the tactics are running, the visual effect of players shuttle back and forth (weave) will be produced, so it is called weave tactics.

Curry passed the ball to Draymond Green, and then in the corner. After that, Green and Barnes made the first hand-to-hand cooperation on the right side. Barnes dribbled to the left side, and then met Klay Thompson. In the second hand-to-hand coordination, after Thompson received the ball, he immediately completed the last step of the weave strategy, setting a pick-and-roll with Bogut, and then Klay Thompson hit a three-pointer.

This tactic always starts with a hand-off pass and ends with a pick-and-roll at the top of the arc. In essence, it is a tactic of a top-of-the-arb pick-and-roll and then Klay shooting a three-pointer. The function of two consecutive hand-off passes is to disrupt the situation. Defense, and hand-to-hand cooperation may cause the opponent's defense to be out of position. Once a suitable opportunity arises, the Warriors can interrupt the original plan at any time and launch an attack directly.

Of course, the Knicks also have their own tactics, but the tactical execution of the five Knicks is still far behind the 73-win Warriors, including Fisher's tactical skills, which are also a step behind Cole. Big interception, so after every timeout, the Warriors played better than the Knicks.

The Warriors played well offensively and were very successful in defending Xie Chen. They did not send two people to stare at Xie Chen from beginning to end. They would only do this when Xie Chen scored consecutive goals and the Knicks were about to gain momentum. Yes, in the past, Xie Chen could set off a wave of offensive climax through crazy scoring, thus putting pressure on the opponent. Today, he is forced to pass the ball non-stop. The organization of the offense is done by others, and the scoring shots are also done by If someone else does it, it's fine at first, but if the scoring burden is assigned to them again and again, their sustainability becomes a problem.

In this game, the test was not for Xie Chen, but for Fisher and the other Knicks players.

Anthony scored three consecutive three-pointers in the last game. Tonight, he was no longer so magical. Instead, he shot three consecutive three-pointers, all of which were irons. Two of them were missed under very little defensive pressure. of.

This made Anthony quite irritated. The more he missed the shot, the less confident he was to make the shot. Naturally, the result was that everyone wanted to rely more on Xie Chen.

Fisher was quite unwilling to be beaten like this by Cole's tactics. He knew that there was no way to liberate Xie Chen unless the other four Knicks beat the Warriors so that they would not dare to attack Xie Chen again. Fisher also once Secondly, if you want Xie Chen to stand up and score, you must first keep scoring. Compared to the four of them, the Warriors' defense is already very simple. If you face this level of defense, Failure to produce results really only proves that they are a mediocre team.

Even Phil Jackson, who was sitting on the sidelines and watching, frowned. Cole is so cruel. If he wins in this way, it will be a blow to the confidence of the entire Knicks team.

Xie Chen cannot continue to perform on the offensive end. On the offensive end, he is more looking forward to the performance of his teammates, and then he can only focus on defense. Xie Chen is not only strong in offense, but also in defensive ability. outstanding.

Whether it is Xie Chen's awareness or ability to steal and block shots, they are all top-notch in the league, and his defense against the Warriors is basically equivalent to Xie Chen directly playing against coach Cole, because the tactics were formulated by Cole.

Xie Chen knows Cole and everyone on the Warriors team very well, not just Stephen Curry.

After the Warriors attacked and played a tactic, Klay Thompson caught the ball and swung away Williams who was rushing over. He pulled up and shot a three-pointer. Xie Chen slapped it and blocked it. Then, Xie Chen relied on With his personal singles ability, he scored two points in the fast break. In this case, Xie Chen could easily score.

Xie Chen knows Klay Thompson very well. He shoots very quickly and very decisively. As long as the tactics are formulated for him, his result must be a shot, a resolute shot, even a forced shot. People who are too determined will not turn around. , so Xie Chen gave up his defender to cover Thompson and got the effect.

After the goal, coach Cole and assistant coach Walton looked at each other. Neither of them spoke, but their eyes could be seen full of confusion and admiration for Xie Chen. It was not enough to restrict Xie Chen offensively. , do we need to work harder on his defense?

No, absolutely. As the best coach of the year, Coach Cole still has such self-esteem.

Cole secretly said in his heart: "Thank you, I can accept you using your body and talent to defeat my players, but I can never accept that you can also find loopholes in tactics and see through me. Maybe you just know my players too well." , but I will tell you that it is impossible for a player to match wits with the coach, in the past, present, and future."