The Basketball Court Swordsman

In the past two years, Siakam has played most of the time as a substitute, and he has become the most important part of the Pacers' rotation.

As a rookie at the end of the first round, his ability to gain a foothold in the NBA is already his greatest success. After all, let alone the last rookie in the first round, every year's lottery rookies will not be able to gain a foothold in the NBA. There are many.

But Henson's expectations for Siakam don't stop there. He believes that this No. 43 from Cameroon has greater potential to be tapped.

During the pre-season training camp this summer, Siakam's defense, offense with the ball, and three-point long shot skills have improved a lot from last season.

Although his numbers this season still seem tepid, but that's because he doesn't have much time and shot rights in the Pacers. But now, Antetokounmpo was unexpectedly unable to play, and Henson gave the opportunity to Siakam.

The game against the Raptors can't just leave it alone.

"The Raptors started in the same way. Van Fleet and Kyle Lowry formed a double point guard lineup, and og Anunobi and Ibaka guarded the inside. At the third position, it was the Raptors. Strengthen Leonard. On the Pacers side... Coach Henson replaced Antetokounmbo with Siakam, and the rest remains the same. It seems that this is also no way to compromise."

Kevin Harlan shook his head. He knew Siakam was a good guy, but he certainly couldn't compare with Antetokounmpo.

Therefore, with the loss of Antetokounmpo such an important combat power, Kevin Harlan is still not optimistic that the Pacers can win the game. Even if Henson Joe can always turn corruption into magic.

The referee signaled the players from both sides to prepare, and Henson frowned from the beginning of today's fight. Let Siakam start is Henson's first decision to make up for Antetokounmpo's absence. I hope his strategy can really play the role of an All-Star player.

At the beginning of the game, Ibaka naturally grabbed the basketball from Lopez. Although the Congolese have suffered serious injuries, their athletic ability is still better than Lopez.

Van Fleet propelled the ball. This guy called "Van Jordan" is the small guard that the Raptors now focus on training.

Although Van Fleet used to be just a marginal person, and the height of 1.83 meters makes him look like ordinary people. But his performance this season is indeed gratifying. He has become one of the best role players in the league.

When Van Vleet was on the court, the Raptors had a 14.7 point difference per 100 possessions, making it the highest net efficiency player in the league. Throughout the season until now, Van Fleet's cumulative plus-minus value has reached +370 points, ranking 9th in the league. Those ahead of him are superstars like Curry, Harden, and Embiid.

Henson admitted that Van Vleet's high-level data is very amazing, but this does not mean that he can play that kind of efficiency on the Pacers.

For Van Vleet, Henson gave Brogdon the only arrangement to fight!

Brogdon's height and wingspan are both superior to Van Fleet, and it is not difficult to defend. In order to solve the problem of Van Fleet's inaction after being clamped by a tall defender, the Raptors coach Nick Nas will choose a double point guard lineup.

So Van Vleet handed the ball to Kyle Lowry, a long-established guard in Toronto in the north.

But well... Raptors coach Nick Nas has always been a rookie head coach. Yes, he used to have coaching experience in college and Europe, and also served as an offensive coach for the Raptors for several years. But coaching an NBA-level team and coaching other teams are completely different things.

How many European coaches came to the NBA and fell into the dust, these all illustrate the particularity of the NBA.

In order to organize the offensive ability, Nas deployed Lowry and Van Fleet's double point guard lineup. The shortcomings of this lineup are very obvious. Because Lowry, like Van Fleet, is only 1.83 meters tall. In this way, the Raptors' guard line is somewhat short.

Therefore, under Oladipo's defense, Lowry still can't organize the offense well. However, Lowry was always calmer than Van Fleet, and finally delivered the ball to Leonard, who ran out of space.

Confronting Leonard is Paul George, the two can be said to be Henson's early foothold in the league. In the face of George's follow-up defense, Leonard was not afraid of the ball and shot!

Now, Leonard's shots from beyond the three-point line are becoming more and more decisive. In the case of averaging 5 three-pointers per game, the three-pointer percentage can still be stabilized at 37.1%. So, the three-pointer is no longer Leonard's weakness.

George didn't expect the other party to be so decisive, so the interference took a while. However, this gap is more than enough for an athlete of Leonard's level!

The arc of the basketball is very beautiful, and it falls directly into the net. People say that people with too big hands can not practice shooting, but Leonard told the world with practical actions. As long as you work hard, there is nothing bad to practice.

Although only nine games were played last year, and the Spurs were very unhappy. But Leonard is Leonard, and he did not abolish himself because of it.

"I hit a three-pointer at the beginning of the game. I think Leonard will definitely get a lot of points today. After all, the Pacers' basket is not guarded by Antetokounmpo." Kevin Harlan can already imagine. Leonard exaggerated the scoring data after the game.

"Smelly boy!" Henson cursed secretly from the sidelines. Leonard is now more accurate than he used to have badge bonuses!

Subsequently, the Pacers changed offense. Although during the Pacers, Leonard and Paul George had a very good personal relationship. But now on the basketball court, Leonard is still a serious "face paralysis" to George.

His personality is the same as Henson, and he will not let you down or relax your vigilance just because you are a friend. On the contrary, the more you are a friend, the more Leonard wants to go all out. This is how he respects his friends.

After halftime, Brogdon handed the ball to George, who just got the basketball and Leonard posted it.

In the previous team training, George's biggest headache was the matchup with Leonard. After Leonard moved to the West, the two rarely met.

But I did not expect that now they will become direct competitors.

George gestured to Lopez to step forward to cover. With cover, George accelerated his breakthrough.

Leonard did not go back, but squeezed forward. He knows very well that George is also the kind of player who only needs a little space to shoot and end the offense.

George's favorite mid-range shot after borrowing the screen is to use the gap that appears when the opponent defends the pick and roll to score.

However, there is no gap in Leonard's defense and he remains in front of George all the time.

Seeing that he couldn't get rid of this expressionless former teammate, George decided to continue his breakthrough.

But just as George accelerated, Leonard seized the opportunity to stretch out his big hand and cut it with a precise "stab"!

This season, George's dribbling level has been very high, but due to his high center of gravity, he is naturally not as good as a defender in basketball protection.

Leonard often plays the role of grabbing a point guard. Now, how difficult is it to steal a 2.06 meter tall forward?

In this way, the basketball in George's hands was suddenly cut off by Leonard. And because of the huge palm of Leonard, he can control the basketball by the way after cutting off the basketball!

In an instant, the offensive and defensive transition was formed. Leonard single-handedly rushed to the front with the ball, no one can catch him. If the "Greek monster" is present at this time, maybe you can count on it.

But it's a pity that the kid is lying on the hospital bed with liquid hanging.

A step inside the free throw line, Leonard leaped sharply. In the air, he tried his best to stretch out his body. Then, with his long arms, he raised the basketball that was too small for him and poured it into the frame!

The ball scored and landed, Leonard screamed at the stands.

Well, he is more passionate now than he was with the Pacers and Spurs. Because he knows very well that he is the king of the north here! Wang, you must have some domineering kings!

Watching Leonard's performance on the court, Henson felt pressured. That brat wouldn't let himself pass easily.