The Basketball Court Swordsman

On May 20, 2019, the Portland Trail Blazers almost brought down the Warriors. Well, almost.

In other words, the final winner of the game is still the Golden State Warriors. 119 to 117, the two sides did not decide the outcome until overtime. And Damien Lillard's last-second shot of the "lore king" also ended with an iron strike.

Lillard must regret that he didn't put in that winning goal, because after losing this game, the Blazers are already behind the Warriors 0-3. Even if God wears Lillard's No. 0 jersey, the Blazers cannot come back. In the history of the NBA, there has never been any team that can make a comeback with a 0-3 lag.

What's more, the Blazers' opponents are still the Golden State Warriors who are difficult to deal with.

You know, this game the Warriors did not even send the injured Durant and Cousins ​​on the field, just rely on the "splash brothers" to win the game. It is known that the strength gap between the Warriors and the Blazers is crushing.

After the Warriors won this game, it means that they will reach the finals 100%. For the third consecutive year, the NBA will decide a championship between the Warriors and other teams.

In the first and second rounds of the playoffs, the Warriors had a rough bump. Little did he know the Western Conference finals, but played easily. After this game, people said it was the most boring Western Conference finals ever.

The two sides don't need to fight to exhaustion because this is a one-sided series.

After the Warriors were sure to advance, people also turned their eyes to the east. Fans all over the world have heard that the Toronto Raptors actually bit a piece of the defending champion. So everyone also wants to see how the Raptors pulled the invincible Pacers in the playoffs.

Therefore, the game held in Toronto on May 21 attracted the attention of all fans around the world.

Before the game started, Brook Lopez calmed himself over and over again, so that he would not be too nervous.

Yesterday, Henson told Lopez that he would increase his number of shots today. The purpose is very simple, is to hit the opponent by surprise.

Lopez was naturally happy to receive such a task, but he was a little nervous. After all, he has become accustomed to being a role player over the years, not a star. Moreover, here is the Eastern Conference finals, and he saw the Raptors' state in the last game. Presumably the opponent will not let himself score easily.

Lopez was a little nervous, afraid that he would mess things up again, afraid that he would fail Henson's hope again.

As Lopez was putting on his jersey, Henson sat next to him, smiling.

"Nervous?" Henson asked straightforwardly.

"Yeah." Lopez nodded. He knew it was useless to cheat Henson, because Henson must have seen it long ago.

"Well, it's normal to be nervous. Of course, I won't tell you nonsense like'nothing to be nervous'. This is the key fourth game of the Eastern Conference Finals, and there is nothing wrong with being nervous. I just want to say, think about it. How did Gasol treat you in a game. If you still want to save your face, it's best to eliminate your tension. Then, stay angry."

After speaking, Henson patted Lopez's leg and left first.

A simple sentence made Lopez no longer nervous for an instant, because at this time there was only anger in his heart.

The Raptors were aggressive today, as you can see from the warm-up.

When the group of guys walked out of the player channel, the whole arena instantly became shaken. Henson must admit that the Air Canada Center Stadium is one of the stadiums with the strongest home atmosphere. After all, this team has been silent for too long since Chris Bosh left.

Once there is hope of recovery, fans are eager to shout throats to cheer for their players.

"We are going to the finals! We are going to the finals! We are going to the finals!"

In the stands, the fans roared. However, Henson has become accustomed to such an atmosphere. Amidst the chaotic shouts, he calmly tidied up his Armani suit and then pushed the starting five tigers onto the court.

"Coach Henson still hasn't changed. He didn't leave Brogdon or Oladipo on the bench to deal with Van Fleet. Until now in this series, no team has been able to force Coach Henson to change the lineup. But. I think the Raptors have this strength. What they need to do is just another victory. When the Raptors tie the series to 2-2, Coach Henson will react."

Before playing, Henson nodded slightly at Lopez. Lopez took a deep breath, then clenched his fists. He can't live up to the trust of the coach, he can't live up to the trust of the coach...

The referee blew his whistle, and Lopez shot up like a responsive cat, and shot the basketball into Brogdon's hands.

Lopez has always been ridiculed by the media and fans as a "Buddhist scrimmage" because he can't win most of the jump ball stage.

But today, Lopez is actively competing for basketball. Most people disagree with this, after all, winning or losing in a scramble cannot represent any problem. Only Henson knew what was in the guy's heart.

The Pacers first attacked, Brogdon handed the ball to Antetokounmpo after halftime. Ibaka, who defended Antetokounmpo, performed well in the last game, giving him a direct starting opportunity today.

Seeing Antetokounmpo rushing with the ball, Ibaka slammed it up. Due to the closed and forced combat for the Thunder, the current Ibaka athletic ability cannot be compared with that of the past. But with yesterday's successful experience, Ibaka has gained a lot of confidence.

Therefore, this time he blocked Antetokounmpo very tough, and as yesterday, once Antetokounmpo breaks through, the Raptors will use zone defense to stop him.

To put it bluntly, if one person can't guard it, then use two or even three people!

But today, Antetokounmpo just broke into the penalty area and he passed the ball. This guy didn't continue to hit the rim, nor did he break the ball. Because his pass is not to the outside, but to the inside!

"Brook Lopez received the basketball in the low post. Is this a tactical error?"

The commentators opened their mouths. Generally speaking, when Antetokounmpo broke through, Lopez should pull to the three-point line. But at this time, why is Lopez standing inside?

Could it be that the defeat of the last game has caused the Pacers to mess up their positions? Everyone wants to score eagerly, but it leads to tactical confusion.

Just when people were all suspicious, Lopez suddenly leaned back and then turned to hook.

The white center's soft touch made the basketball hollow into the net, and the Pacers actually relied on Lopez's low singles to take the lead in the opening game!

Little Gasol did not expect Lopez to attack so resolutely, so he didn't even have time to interfere. From beginning to end, he was cut into the place Antetokounmpo.

"This...is it a tactical arrangement or a short-lived performance?"

The commentators scratched their heads, but Henson did not intend to explain. When the camera caught him, he deliberately made a sad expression. From his face, people can't tell whether he is satisfied or dissatisfied with the attack just now.

In fact, this guy smiled happily.

Henson certainly does not expect Lopez to end today's game. He only hopes to disrupt the Raptors' deployment and gain as many advantages as possible.

Just like the Raptors did against Henson in the last game, he has to fight back.

In the next attack, the Raptors did not give the ball to Leonard. After Kyle Lowry got the ball from the outside, the others kept interspersing to find opportunities.

When Devin Casey was coaching the Raptors, Nas was the offensive coach. And now when he takes control of the pointer, the Raptors offense is even more fluid.

Unfortunately, Henson will only be fooled once. Yesterday, he put all the defensive focus on Leonard, but was swallowed by the firepower of the Raptors. Today, he asked everyone to guard against their own match-ups and didn't give the other side more opportunities to blossom.

As a result, the Raptors conducted for a long time, but never got a chance. In the end, the ball had to fall into Leonard's hands.

In this way, everything is back to the starting point. The Toronto Raptors once again end up in a situation where they can only rely on Leonard singles.

Leonard singled out Paul George, and he certainly wouldn't be afraid. But again, George will not let Leonard pass easily.

In the end, Leonard's singles encountered George's tight seal. When he took off and shot, he found that George's blocking was at his fingertips, so he could only change his attention forcibly, and changed his shot into a pass!

Unfortunately, Leonard's pass failed to escape the "hunt" of Lopez, who was highly concentrated.

Lopez stretched out his long arm and put the ball that Leonard gave Gasol into his pocket!

"Brook Lopez succeeded in stealing! Leonard shouldn't hesitate, he is a little too cautious."

This time the offensive defense was completed, and the defense was perfect. Although he only succeeded once, Henson believes that his players can continue this performance.

On the court, Lopez made a long pass from the backcourt to assist Antetokounmpo to rush and dunk.

4-0, the Pacers' opening offensive made the cheers of the Air Canada Center Arena much less laughter.

Of course, Henson will not be complacent. Because he knows very well that this is not the time when the Raptors have the strongest firepower. Similarly, now is not the time to maximize Lopez's effect.

After Van Fleet and Powell also play, Henson's arrangement today will not work before it can be truly tested.