The Pacers' first game loss was unexpected.

Maybe it was a little too easy to play the Celtics in the first round, and the Pacers players were a little uncomfortable facing the Bulls in the second round.

Indeed, from the perspective of the lineup, the Bulls and Celtics are not on the same level.

The Bulls players are tough, experienced, and talented.

It can be said that the semifinals will be a real test for the Pacers and Li Liang.

After the game, Bird called in Mike Brown and Vogel for an emergency meeting.

Consultations were held on how to make adjustments for the second match.

Bird gave two directions, one is to fine-tune the tactics with the same lineup, and believe in the state and morale of the players.

One is to adjust the lineup, put Kevin Garnett as the starter, and let Li Liang play small forward, so that he can fight with the Bulls on defense and position.

Vogel supports the second adjustment strategy, in which McGee will face Noah and let Garnett fight Gasol.

The two sides are right on top, and Garnett is honestly not afraid of Gasol.

Brown objected, believing that the lineup should remain the same, with me as the main player.

The Pacers' first loss had an element of chance, and it would be a distrust of the players to make adjustments so quickly.

And Garnett's starting lineup is not much, and it is not a last resort, so it should not be easy to make such big adjustments and changes.

Besides, Garnett is no longer the Garnett of '08, and Garnett is already inferior to Gasol in the '10 finals.

After all, Garnett is 4 years older than Gasol.

"What if the original lineup is kept, what will Bruce do? It's a waste to put him on defense against Gasol, and he has to face Butler and the Bulls on offense. ”

Vogel raised an important question, Li Liang played against Gasol in the first game, and he actually suffered.

No matter how much Li Liang's low-post defense slips, in the face of Gasol's height and arm span, there is really no way to do it many times.

Later, McGee was asked to defend, and as a result, there was some confusion in the interior rotation.

Hearing Vogel say this, Brown suddenly raised his voice and said, "Forever! Never doubt Bruce! He's sure to do what he's supposed to do! Changing the lineup is a distrust and insult to Bruce! I don't allow that. ”

Vogel was startled by Brown's sudden roar.

And Bird was silent for a while, then said: "I agree with Mike, this game is still with the original lineup, and I also believe in Bruce." ”

"But we can't afford to miss ...... second game"

"We can't afford to lose every game!"

Bird interrupted Vogel, his tone very firm.

Bird thinks in his heart that in fact, regardless of whether the lineup is adjusted or not, the Pacers are still sure to win the second game.

But what Brown said touched Bird, and they had to believe in their aces.

Because for this pacer, Li Liang is their biggest reliance on winning the championship.

They don't have a big three, they don't have a twin, they're a one-core team.

The single-core team also has to help strengthen its single-core, whether it is tactics or confidence, we must give him enough support.

While the coaching staff made the decision not to change, Li Liang went home after the game and went to sleep.

Losing the first game of the semi-finals left him frustrated.

However, he didn't rush into the heat and wanted to get some props in the system, or see the results of the series in [Stern's Sim World].

He just sleeps and then gets up the next day to really train with the team.

After the training, I went shopping and eating with Zhu Shu, and when I went home, I accompanied Zhu Shu to play League of Legends for more than two hours, and successfully brought Zhu Shu from the master to the gold.

However, Zhu Shu was not angry, but worried that Li Liang would be unhappy because he lost the game.

"No, I'm not unhappy, I just lost the first game, and I didn't lose the series." Li Liang said.

"But... But after all, we lost, and everyone thought we could win the first game. ”

Given the Pacers' devastating performance in the first round, most people in the semifinals are certainly bullish on the Pacers.

I didn't know that I was beaten up in the first game.

Li Liangdao: "Hey, do you know that the road to three consecutive championships, the last championship is always full of hardships, so I have long been mentally prepared." It's only been a loss, where is it? ”

Li Liang now moved out of the theory of three consecutive championships.

Yes, the last championship of the three consecutive championships is indeed the most difficult and difficult, but they are a team!

You're a single person who pursues three consecutive times, it's really unprecedented, and whether there is anyone who comes later, it seems that it is difficult.

As Li Liang, who has experienced two consecutive championships, he certainly does not worry about the victory or loss of a game.

The key is that after the first game, he basically knows the strength and level of the Bulls.

At the same time, how to deal with the second game, plans and ideas are also arranged in my head.

The Bulls are one of the few teams in the league that still sticks to the last decade of play.

It can be seen from their starters that a Noah and a Gasol on the inside are all center-type insiders with no range.

Butler and Rose on the outside are both strong backcourts with fierce offensive and defensive plays.

Coupled with Thibodeau's tactical system, the entire Bull is naturally tough.

They are in the middle of the league in scoring and in the upper echelons of the league in points conceded, and they have very high rebounding numbers in front and back, making them one of the best defensive teams in the league.

In all other aspects, such as three-pointers, free throws, etc., the Bulls are in the middle of the range, not good but definitely not bad.

So overall, it's a very strong opponent.

However, Li Liang has faced more strong opponents, and the bull is definitely not the most terrifying one.

The so-called rigid and easy to break, the Bulls' defense, or Thibodeau's defense, has some weaknesses.

One of them is that the Bulls' defense is still too conservative.

It can be seen from the Bulls' season steal data that a strong defensive team has the lowest average steals per game in the league.

In fact, the Bulls have no shortage of stealers, Butler, Rose, and Noah all have strong stealing ability.

So, one reason the Bulls have fewer steals is that Thibodeau's defensive strategy is conservative.

Pay attention to pressing, pay attention to the integrity of the formation, and prefer to reduce aggression rather than leave a breakthrough for the opponent.

This kind of defense worked extremely well against the Celtics at the beginning, because the Celtics were overwhelming their opponents in terms of roster strength.

So, if Celtic doesn't make mistakes, it will be difficult for the opponent to win.

What about bulls? Will the Bulls crush the Pacers in terms of strength?

Although the Pacers lost the first game, it was actually more because of the problem of the Pacers' overall iron.

In the whole game, the Pacers didn't make many mistakes, and the tactics were not messy, but the state of the players was messed up.

As long as they regain their form in Game 2, what awaits the Bulls is a punishment.

In this regard, Li Liang ...... Forget it, Li Liang didn't believe it, he couldn't trust JR and Finson.

It's better to believe in them than to believe in yourself, and vote for two more points.

In the first game, 2 of 7 three-pointers, this shooting rate is too embarrassing, it is not as good as Lao Ke, how to play this game.

Relaxed, a day later, on May 8, the rematch between the Pacers and Bulls continued at the Conseco Arena.

The Consec Arena is still packed, with fans enthusiastically supporting their hometown teams.

Tonight, the Pacers changed into a bright yellow away jersey, and the Bulls opposite were still the same red jerseys for thousands of years.

In the opening jump ball, McGee seemed to be too nervous, accidentally jumped early, and he also rounded his arm and waved it into the sky, but accidentally hit the referee......

McGee was busy apologizing to the referee, and Li Liang thought to himself, fortunately it didn't hit me today.

Re-jumping the ball, Gasol dialed the ball, and the Bulls began their first offensive run of the first quarter.

Before the start of the game, the TV station's camera kept giving Li Liang.

The narrator tonight is none other than former Pacers legend, Reggie Miller.

"Chicago is a strong opponent and Bruce didn't play as well as he should have in the last game, so tonight, let's see what kind of performance the magical Bruce will bring tonight."