The Basketball Court Swordsman

Lionel Hollins today experienced what it's like to be restricted by the defense.

Before the start of the game, Hollins' plan was to defend firmly and then score points like a knife on the offensive end to gain an advantage.

But in fact the game was quite different from what he imagined. The Pacers really couldn't score, but the Grizzlies themselves couldn't cut the flesh from the defending champion.

After the first quarter of the game, the score between the two sides was 22 to 18, and the Grizzlies were temporarily behind by 4 points. In the era of fast-paced offense and three-pointers in modern basketball, scoring less than 25 points in a single quarter is very abnormal.

Both sides' shooting percentage is not high, because they almost put their attention on defense. Defending against the best defensive team in the league, this kind of thing may only be done by Henson Joe.

"I believe that the two sides cannot allow this situation to continue. At least one of the two teams will try to open the situation first, because if the score is delayed, it is actually very dangerous for both teams!" The narrators say so, but in fact, the real danger is their ratings. After all, few fans like to watch this kind of full-strength iron game.

However, Henson and Hollins continued their defensive battle in the second quarter with no shame. The Pacers failed to score nearly 4 minutes after the start of the second quarter, allowing the Grizzlies to lead by 31-26.

However, the Grizzlies did not last long. When Henson replaced Horford with the more energetic "Birdman" Anderson, the Grizzlies quickly fell into the ice cave in the next 6 and a half minutes. Gasol struggled in the interior, and the Grizzlies' breakthroughs were repeatedly destroyed by Anderson. His vitality undoubtedly added a lot of deterrence to the Pacers' penalty area.

The Grizzlies only scored 4 points in multiple shots and irons, while the Pacers’ offense was successfully activated by Stephenson and Ray Allen’s consecutive three-pointers. West and George also scored and quickly shot out. Wave 15 to 4 attack wave! However, looking up, the Pacers only took a 6-point lead...No way, the Grizzlies' defense in the first half of this quarter was really too successful.

In this way, the two sides finished the first half of the game in an extremely heavy situation. At halftime, it was 43 to 39. The Pacers are still leading by 4 points, but in the case of a whole half of the game, the 4-point advantage is almost negligible. As Henson and Hollins expected, the score was horribly low!

"Let's drag on...in case the Grizzlies start to counterattack..."

After returning to the locker room, Stevens was worried about the team's situation. The best way to play against a team like the Grizzlies is to open the score as early as possible, and what is the end of the defense against the Grizzlies at the last minute? Two days ago, Tom Thibodeau helped Henson experiment.

Henson raised his right hand and shook his head, "Just play, the game hasn't lost control."

Insisting on focusing on defense, Henson has already made up his mind!

When the second half of the game began, the cheers of the fans were not as enthusiastic as before. Of course, the ratings of major TV stations have also fallen off a cliff. There are some fans who are still watching the game, maybe because they have fallen asleep in front of the TV, they have not changed channels.

Before the start of the second half, reporters on the sidelines approached Hollins, "It seems that Coach Henson is not going to challenge the Grizzlies defense. Do you think if you play defense, can your team last until the end?"

Hollins smiled contemptuously. "To be honest, I didn't expect Coach Henson to be such a timid person. It seems that the pressure of 16 consecutive victories almost crushed him."

Hollins deserves to be an old and hot guy, and an ordinary midfield interview can be true and false.

What is imaginary is that he commented on Henson's timidity. He didn't really think that Henson was timid, but that he wanted to inspire the Pacers to attack and put more energy on the offensive end, so that the Grizzlies offense would change. It's easy.

It's really the pressure period. Hollins really thinks the Pacers are under too much pressure. And this kind of pressure will only harm the Pacers themselves. Therefore, Hollins is not in a hurry, he is willing to grind to the end with the Pacers. Because it was the Pacers, not the Grizzlies, who were anxious at the last moment. The attack at the critical moment is the most fearful and impatient!

However, Hollins's aggressive strategy obviously didn't work, and Henson was not stupid. He lost his mind when he was excited. After all, this is a rigorous basketball novel. (Pooh!)

Hollins and Henson did not give in to each other, and it was the fans who suffered.

After entering the second half, the rhythm of the game has become a little bit ups and downs. The Pacers first scored 5 points in a row and quickly took a 9-point lead. However, in the next 5 minutes, the Grizzlies recovered and immediately plunged the defending champion into an offensive desperation, and the Grizzlies did not score a single point. Take the opportunity to blast a 14-0 super attack wave to overtake the score!

"A wave of 14-0 offensive climax, Coach Henson called to stop the game! God, who would have thought that it was the Memphis Grizzlies who played the first super climax!" Reggie Miller was surprised, as if this A wave of offensive climax is about to become a turning point in the game.

However, after the timeout came back, everything returned to normal. Paul first made two free throws and broke the Pacers' embarrassment of not scoring for 5 minutes. In the last minute of this quarter, facing the Grizzlies' second team, Ray Allen led the team to a wave of 8-0, closing the point difference.

After three quarters, the Pacers trailed the Grizzlies by 4 points. That's right, the gap is still a **** 4 points! 65 to 61, the two teams were exhausted, but no one could kill anyone.

At this point, Henson has completed his first phase plan! He successfully used the defense and made it to the last quarter with the Grizzlies! Starting from the fourth quarter, every attack is a key attack for the Pacers!

With the defensive efficiency slightly inferior to the Grizzlies, why can the Pacers rank first in the league while the Grizzlies are only fourth in the West? Quite simply, on the basis of good defense, the Pacers can also play the league's top offense! And the Grizzlies, they don't have this ability!

At the end of the third quarter, after the players were off the court, Henson immediately took out his marker and sat among everyone.

In the first three quarters of the game, the relatively conservative play did not allow the Pacers players to waste too much unnecessary physical energy. And to save the physical energy in the fourth quarter is to keep the offensive in the fourth quarter!

"Good job, guys! I feel proud of your defense in the first three quarters. How do you feel tired?" Henson did not rush to draw tactics, but first asked his players.

"There is strength, boss." Paul answered with a smile.

"Very well, in the fourth quarter, we won't grind with them. On the basis of ensuring the quality of defense, we must try to open the situation first on the offensive end! Remember, to ensure the success rate, because in the fourth quarter, every offense is It’s the key attack! A miss once means that we’ve wasted our energy.” As he said, Heng Shou raised his right hand and then clenched his fist, “It’s time to close the game!”

Afterwards, there was a dense tactical explanation. Time is limited, Henson can only speak briefly. But he believed that Paul, a master of field control, could understand what he meant.

After the electronic buzzer sounded, Stevens stood beside Henson somewhat puzzled.

"Why are you attacking now? Isn't it good to open the score earlier?"

"I can't pull it away," Henson waved his hand. "Initiating an onslaught in advance will only waste our energy. And the attack at the critical moment requires high players' physical fitness! Do you know how Thibodeau died? It was because he tried to open the score in the third quarter, but failed. In the fourth quarter, facing the Grizzlies' seamless defense, the Bulls were already running out."

"But you are so confident, can you start the offense in the fourth quarter to open the score? Will the Grizzlies catch our focus on the offensive time period and launch an onslaught?"

"Don't worry, Brad. We have the Grizzlies defense, but the Memphis Grizzlies don't have our offense!" Henson smiled confidently. The defending champion has no shortcomings!

This tug of war, it's time to end!