In the first quarter of the game, the Spurs went through the same process as in the past.

The Spurs should be said to be the strongest team in the league.

It's just that a set of processes, and the regular season is basically two words, "stable." ”

Ordinary teams can't bear it at all, they fall behind when they fight anyway, and they lose when they fight.

The stable and reliable system has ensured the stable and efficient performance of this team for more than ten years.

And Li Liang also implemented his strategy, which is to keep causing trouble for the Spurs.

He only made one three-pointer in the first quarter and didn't hit it yet.

The rest of him is to use the offensive transition, use his strong body to rush to the basket, disrupt the Spurs' odd-even formation, and cause damage to the Spurs' interior line, especially Duncan.

"Killing", the frequency of the word has become less and less in the past two years, and now it is all "cheating fouls", rather than causing foul and psychological double damage to the inside.

And Li Liang, a three-point killer who used to float outside, turned into a heavy tank tonight, constantly breaking into the interior to score, make fouls, and go to the free throw line.

Li Liang scored 12 points in the first quarter, including six on free throws, and caused Leonard to draw two fouls and Duncan to draw a foul to help the Pacers end the first quarter 26-24 and lead the Spurs by two points.

Leonard had two fouls in the first quarter and had to sit on the sidelines for a long rest at the start of the second quarter.

Leonard never understood why Li Liang could let his strength be so much improved after a summer?

He has been training desperately, but it seems that in front of Li Liang, not only did he not improve, but he regressed?

A sense of powerlessness permeated Leonard's mind, a feeling that was absent in the face of James.

Because James was the chosen one and a genius from the start, Leonard wasn't even considered qualified to chase James.

So he was in a very "safe" position, silently working towards the goal and moving forward.

Li Liang is different, this thing is even more obscure than Leonard, and the result is earth-shattering.

At the same time, the rate of his progress is simply terrifying, and it is despairing.

And Li Liang, who is desperate, is sitting on the bench and feeling another kind of despair.

"Make more use of your mid-range to solve problems, don't be afraid to shoot mid-range, don't be obsessive about shooting three-pointers, and be flexible!"

In the first quarter, Li Liang's inside impact gave the outside a lot of opportunities.

Li Liang hopes that the outside players can make reasonable use of these opportunities to hit the Spurs' defense in a three-dimensional way.

As a result, Smith, Finson and others knew how to shoot threes.

The Spurs rotated very well from the outside, and the Pacers didn't shoot very well from three-point range, otherwise they would have led more in the first quarter.

"Didn't you want me to vote resolutely?" Smith's eyes finally became determined, and he was puzzled again.

"I don't want you to vote resolutely, but I want you to make the right choice, and then firmly implement your choice."

Smith was even more puzzled, and Finson was biting his fingers......

Bird spoke, "Let's shoot resolutely, don't think too much, okay, the game is on, guys." “

At the beginning of the second quarter of the game, Li Liang was still sitting on the sidelines to rest.

Bird sat down in front of Li Liang and said, "Bruce, you're in too much of a hurry, I understand what you mean, but you can't ask your teammates to be resolute and ask them to be smart and autonomous. “

"Isn't it okay to be smart and resolute?"

Bird said: "Not everyone has the ability and conditions of you, they are actually good players, you have to give them a moderate amount of relaxation, a moderate amount of guidance. “

Li Liang pondered for a while and said, "Isn't this what your head coach is going to do?" “

Bird said, "Yes, yes, I did it, but I think you're doing a good job." “

Li Liang had a question mark on his face, Lao Tzu asked you to be the head coach, and you let me do your job?

Why don't you give me a paycheck?

Li Liangda can fight his own, but there is no way, he is a person who breaks his heart for the team.

After the start of the second quarter, the second lineups of the two sides faced off on the court.

Boris Dior, who led the Spurs' second lineup, broke through as soon as he came up and caused a defensive foul on Scola on the inside.

Scola is very good on the offensive end, and the pace on the defensive end is really not able to keep up.

Even a fat man like Dior can't be guarded, and the Pacers' interior line is also problematic.

However, the trend in the league is that the strong teams have more or less problems with their interior defense, because they are throwing resources into the backcourt.

Christian Dior hit both free throws to tie the score.

Then in the Pacers' offense, Scola asked for the ball with his back to the horns and was immediately packed.

Scola played the ball quickly and was very calm and re-fed to CJ Myers on the outside, who then passed the ball to McGee in the middle.

McGee has a chance in the middle, McGee turns around with the ball, and McGee has an elegant, big hook like a sky hook!

Didn't make ......

The arm span, movement, and posture are all perfect, but the wrist is not pressed at that moment.

The Spurs got the backcourt rebound, and after repeated blocks and cuts from the outside, Mills received a pass from Danny Green at 45 degrees on the right side and hit a three-point shot.

The Spurs overtook it.

Li Liang's efforts in the first quarter were in vain, because the rhythm of the bench lineup was completely different from the rhythm he played, and there was no way for the two sides to connect.

The Pacers are still the same as last season.

Bird also wants to change, but he can't change it for the time being, because the lineup is here.

Only when West and Hill return, the team will have more abundant lineups, and there may be room for adjustment and turnaround.

Subsequently, CJ Myers forced a breakthrough with the ball, and then distributed the ball to Scola who was waiting in the middle.

Scola picked up the ball and opted for a mid-range jumper.

It was a good shot, and the attacking options and the final shot were clear.

Popovich called a timeout at this point, and he had to make a substitution to start the transition between the lineups.

In this regard, the Spurs are indeed a very strong whole, and they do not have a clear so-called "first team", "second team".

Several main players can be combined differently according to different opponents and different situations.

This shows how strong Popovich's ability to control the team's lineup is.

Comparatively, Bird doesn't have that much control over the lineup.

However, a smart coach like Bird quickly understood a truth, in the current Pacers, controlling Li Liang is equivalent to controlling the whole team.

Li Liang re-entered the field and replaced McGee.

On the Spurs' side, Popovich replaced Duncan, and it seems that Li Liang is going to directly face Duncan.

After scolding Leonard, the next step is to slap Duncan, which is really a challenge for Li Liang.

As a result, after the timeout, the Spurs' first offense, Duncan asked for the ball in the left waist position, and singled Li Liang with his back.

Can't even hold it?

Li Liang quietly lit a [Tom Hayin Thorne's cigarette], and Duncan couldn't take advantage of it at all when he was stuck in the slot.

And the offensive time was running out, and Duncan could only choose a backward turn-over jumper, which was very reluctant and missed.

Once Li Liang was on the floor, the Pacers' offense suddenly became sharp and fast.

JR Smith rushed to the bottom corner, received a pass from Li Liang and made a decisive three-point shot, but did not shoot.

Li Liang rushed to the basket from the middle, squeezed away the three Spurs players, grabbed the rebound in the front court, and then distributed the ball to the bottom corner.

This time, Smith lived up to Li Liang's efforts and hit a three-point shot!

The three-pointer sounded the horn of the Pacers' offense.

The Spurs are obviously not used to the Pacers' lineup of Li Liang as a center.

First of all, on offense, Duncan is not sure of eating Li Liang one-on-one.

Secondly, in defense, the Pacers pulled away in an all-round way, re-exerted Li Liang's personal ability, and handed over the space stage to Li Liang to play.

This kind of "James with super three-point ability" style of play is really unbearable.

Li Liang himself also unlocked the three-point lock, hitting three three-pointers in a row in the second quarter, helping the Pacers play a wave of 17:7 offensive attack, and suddenly stretched the difference to more than 10 points.

Popovich's adjustment was a little slower, and he replaced Ginobili with the slightly bulky Dio, making the Spurs' lineup lighter as well.

But the situation has not changed for the better.

Compared to last season, GDP is a year older, and Ginobili is really completely bald.

Duncan's power in the low post has dropped dramatically, and Parker's form has gotten worse this season after his slump last season.

Originally, the Spurs' hopes were pinned on Leonard's growth, but now it seems that Leonard can't beat Li Liang.

At the end of the first half, the Pacers took a 10-point lead at 61:51.

For the Pacers, being able to score more than 60 points in the half is a sign that they feel good offensively.

JR-Smith played normally in the first half, Stephenson didn't mess around for the time being, McGee was reserved, except for smashing Li Liang's head with the ball, he didn't do anything to be embarrassed.

Being able to do this, Li Liang feels very satisfied, this basketball can still be played.