Carlisle must have been glad that he didn't let Yiyang go up to Livingston in the final minute of the second quarter, because at this point, with 2:30 left in the game, the Mavericks experienced a moment that resembled the last three minutes of the second quarter. But unlike the second quarter, this time, whoever takes the lead lasts will win the game!

As soon as the second half began, Curry and Thompson were completely out of the way. It's not that the Mavericks make mistakes defensively, but that the "Splash Brothers" feel is really incomparable. Whether it's Yiyang or Tony. Aaron, they're all very fast. But the "Splash Brothers" were stunned to be able to shoot and hit with a split second.

The Warriors' three-point shot made the Mavericks always unable to pull away from the score. Of course, the Warriors can't contain the Mavericks' offense. With Yiyang, any gap on the court for the Warriors will be seized and exploited.

Thus, the tug-of-war has continued until now. It wasn't until Nowitzki scored on a low singles Green that the Mavericks took a two-point lead.

The camera shows Green, who picked up the basketball and was about to serve the baseline ball, this strong man was full of black lines today. Nowitzki has scored 24 points and nine rebounds so far. And what about Green? 4 points and 8 rebounds. It is not an exaggeration to say that Nowitzki completely blew Green.

"Green paid the price for his pre-game remarks, a terrible price. Dirk. Nowitzki made it clear to him that the game of the Western Conference Finals was not as simple as Green imagined. "Seeing Dirk score again, Mike. Brin was in awe. How much power do veterans like them still have?

In the next defense, Yiyang stuck to Curry, and didn't want to leave him any space. Today's shooting performances of Curry and Thompson can only be described as "magical". As long as you can't pounce on it in the first place, even if it's just a second slower, they can shoot the ball in!

Once the Warriors shoot well, the offensive firepower is quite terrifying. So this time, Yiyang spared no effort to prevent Curry from scoring!

Green blocked and brought it up, but Yiyang had already noticed it, prepared in advance, flexibly bypassed Green's cover, and did not give Curry a chance to shoot.

A player like Curry, as long as there is a gap, he can complete the shot. But Yiyang didn't even leave this kind of gap for Curry, so you can know how tight his defense is.

If you can't block and dismantle once, you can do it twice!

This time, for Bogut to cover, Gobert was preoccupied, he was not worried about Bogut, but if Yiyang couldn't get around the cover, he could make up for it at any time to stop Curry from shooting.

But Yiyang, who had put all his energy into defense, still quickly bypassed the block, and this time, Curry got a chance to shoot, and he fired directly from outside the three-point line!

Fortunately, Yiyang blocked it in time, seriously interfering with the rhythm of No. 30, and Curry's shooting finally hit the iron!

But just as the Mavericks players were about to launch a fast break, Carlisle called a halt to the game. Now there are only two minutes left in the game and it's all over. All Carlisle has to do is make sure the players can settle the battle in two minutes!

"Misplaced!" Carlisle didn't talk much nonsense, and as soon as the players came off the pitch, he immediately explained the tactics.

"Doesn't the Warriors like infinite rotation? Also, I want you to find two points, Stephen. Curry and Harrison. Barnes. Andre, you come on the court to replace Tony later, and after you come on the court, you actively cover for Barnes and force Barnes to switch defenses. Dwayne, your task is the same. Kerr wants to hide his defensive weaknesses, and what we have to do now is to make him have nowhere to hide! Carlisle was writing and drawing on the tactical board, and Yiyang knew that this game could not drag on any longer.

For the Warriors, who are good at shooting three-pointers, the further back the game drags on, the more unfavorable it is for the Mavericks. When the opponent makes two or three three-pointers, it is possible to change the situation of the game. So now, the Mavericks have to pull away. And Barnes and Curry are the two major weaknesses of the Warriors on the defensive end at present.

In fact, Carlisle is only now deploying such a tactic because he initially only saw Curry as a defensive weakness. But at Curry's point, there is a whole Warriors team protecting him, so it is not easy to break through Curry.

But to Carlisle's surprise, Harris. Barnes, the "North Carolina Flying Eagles", is not as good as people think.

The Warriors faced the Grizzlies in their last series, and their fast and sharp offense was blocked by the Memphis Twin Towers, and the first three games ended up 1-2 in the aggregate. So Warriors coach Kerr wants to speed up even more and drag down the Grizzlies with a faster pace. But he ran into a conundrum if Drummond. Green plays a small lineup in the center position, so who will play against Randolph, who is as strong as a Grizzlies?

In the end, Kerr chose Barnes, the 2.03-meter-tall small forward. In terms of stature, Barnes and Randolph are not of the same tonnage at all.

The Warriors took the risk of changing formations, and Barnes carried Randolph hard. Barnes used his strength, far beyond expectations, to stand behind Randolph. The Memphis media's envisioned scenario of Randolph crushing Barnes never materialized, but Randolph lost his rhythm under Barnes' hard-hitting defense. Barnes forcibly demolished Randolph's interior tower, and the Warriors were relieved to speed up boldly, so they won three games in a row to eliminate the Grizzlies.

Small lineups are the essence of the Warriors' strategy, and to execute this style of play perfectly, it is necessary to have a No. 3 fighter who can defend the interior players, and Barnes is the impeccable choice. In fact, back when the Warriors drafted Barnes in 2012, then-head coach Mark Barnes. Jackson made his judgment: "Barnes can defend five positions on the court. ”

If you look at it at this point, Harrison. Barnes is definitely a defensive powerhouse that the Mavericks need to avoid. In previous games, Carlisle did the same.

But Barnes didn't seem to be as focused on the defensive end today, perhaps because he didn't have too much defensive duties, or maybe he was often with Tony. Aaron's alignment made him let his guard down. In short, today Barnes frequently wandered, and even made Tony. Alundu cut inside several times. And the Warriors protect Curry well, but they don't protect Barnes much, because most teams don't think to play Barnes specifically.

Most of the young players have this problem, and the occasional lack of concentration is the biggest obstacle to their performance. Again, and the most fatal drawback.

Mark. Jackson once said that Barnes can defend five positions, but Carlisle wants to see if he can defend the number one position!

After the timeout, Iguodala replaced Tony. Aaron, but Barnes' vigilance has not increased. He knew that in the last two minutes, the ball would either be played to Yiyang, or to the German or Wade. Iguodala, more of a diversionary role.

However, when Iguodala set up cover for Yiyang just after halftime, and Barnes was inexplicably pushed in front of Yiyang, he didn't even have a reaction to what was going on.

Yiyang didn't say anything polite to Barnes, and directly accelerated and wiped past Barnes in one step. Since the Warriors' focus of protection is on Curry's point, when Barnes is broken through, the others simply don't have time to make up for Yiyang.

Yiyang made a pull-up jump shot from a mid-range position, and Klay. Although Thompson pounced positively, he was still a fraction of a millimeter away from Yiyang. The basketball hollow went into the net, and the Mavericks took a four-point lead!

"How did that kid stop Randolph in the first place!?" Even Armstrong thought it was incredible, Yiyang killed Barnes so easily?

Randolph was constantly trash talking to Barnes on offense, and before the game began, Kerr and Luke were talking about Barnes. Wharton also kept reminding him that you must resist! These pressures will make Barnes pay attention to it. But I bet no one had ever told him before this game that you were going to be in the right place! Carlisle smiled, Barnes was actually very physical, strong enough, powerful, and very agile.

But he doesn't always be able to concentrate on defending well on the court, unless the environment gives him a huge psychological cue. In an environment like the Grizzlies, Barnes will certainly do his best to defend in the face of Randolph's provocation and the coaching staff's constant instructions. But in the face of Yiyang, in the face of the game that did not have too heavy defensive tasks in the first 46 minutes, Barnes had already relaxed.

Curry then assisted Green on a shot from beyond the three-point line, which was also the first three-pointer Green hit today under Nowitzki's defense. But even so, the Warriors trailed by one point for just over a minute. At such moments, a one-point gap is often enough to change the outcome.

The Mavericks repeated their old tricks, Iguodala covered for Yiyang, Thompson couldn't get around, and Barnes blocked it.

In the face of Randolph, Barnes only needs to use his body to scare. The fat black man had no mobility advantage at all in front of Barnes. So as long as you withstand his onslaught, the defense is more than half successful.

But defending Yiyang is not so simple, and it is obviously not a wise decision to fight him.

Barnes opened his arms and let Yiyang go, ready to go. Yiyang has to admit that Barnes's physical condition is excellent. When he opened his arms, a wide wall seemed to appear in front of Yiyang's eyes out of thin air.

But in the face of Barnes's blockade, Yiyang was not afraid, but also smiled. Then, Yiyang pushed the ball with one hand, and the basketball grazed Barnes's scalp and flew into Wade's hand after shaking off Curry and cutting inside the basket.

Barnes gave Yiyang too much space, and Yiyang's passing was simply freewheeling.

After receiving the basketball, in the face of Bogut's supplementary defense, Wade slipped to the bottom line and made a layup, and the advantage was extended to 3 points!

"At the critical moment, Dwayne was unrelenting! Barnes shouldn't have given that much space, he should have been like Clay. Thompson clings to it like that! "Mike. Brin shook his head, Barnes can defend Randolph well, in addition to being extremely focused, but also because Kerr and Wharton Jr. have laid out a detailed defensive strategy for him, and Barnes just needs to do it.

But now, no one is telling him how to defend the Dallas No. 1 who just won the MVP. And Barnes's own defensive judgment is a little too immature.

The 3-point gap is just a three-point shot. But Curry and Thompson may not be so easy to find a three-point shot now.

In the final moments of the game, the Mavericks had no physical strength to reserve. Yiyang and Iguodala's relentless death entanglement left the two league's top three-point shooters without any chances.

Pick-and-rolls can't get rid of them, and changing direction can't get rid of them. How scary are Yiyang and Iguodala defending with all their might? Curry and Thompson certainly know that.

Finally, Harrison. Barnes had a chance in the bottom right corner. Wade's knees still made him a little weak on the defensive end. Curry's pass came quickly, Barnes received the basketball safely, and he was in control of the fate of the Warriors!

Harrison. Is Barnes a great three-point shooter? Judging by his 40.5% three-point shooting percentage this season, he is not only doing well, but also doing well! But with a shot at a critical moment, the immature Barnes may not be ready.

The basketball has a high arc and dodges Wade's block. But in the end, it slammed into the left side of the basket, and the Warriors' key offense failed!

Seeing this situation, Yiyang pulled his legs and ran wildly to the front. He believes that Gobert will definitely be able to grab the rebound and pass the ball.

As Yiyang expected, Gobert steadily protected the defensive rebound, and then made a long pass directly to the backcourt, and the Mavericks counterattacked!

Curry is a player with a high ball quotient, and he followed Yiyang at the moment he started, without giving Yiyang the slightest chance.

But Yiyang is not stupid, Curry sticks very tightly, Yiyang uses his ass to hit Curry, who is close behind, and easily lays up after winning space for himself.

The game between two high-IQ players is often interlocking.

After that shot, there were only 58 seconds left in the game, but the Mavericks had already taken a five-point lead! Cole could see that Harrison. Barnes was completely targeted. So the Warriors coach called a timeout, and he needed to tell Barnes what to look out for when defending Yiyang.

But when the game restarted, Yiyang stopped looking for Barnes, he started looking for Curry!

After being picked up by Cole, Barnes is now full of enthusiasm, eager to knock Yiyang to the ground. But helplessly, Yiyang just didn't give him the opportunity to perform.

After Yiyang used the cover to shake off Curry again, Barnes, who couldn't wait, came over without authorization, hoping to clear his name. But in fact, this time the defense should be made up by Clay!

Barnes' reckless defense allowed Iguodala to run away quickly and get a chance in the bottom right corner in the exact same position as Barnes just now. Seeing this, Clay quickly chased after Iguodala. But no matter how fast he is, he can't be faster than Yiyang's pass.

This scene is almost a replica of Barnes's goal just now, Yiyang feeds the ball, and Iguodala catches the ball and throws it. The only difference was that Barnes hit the basket iron, which led to the Mavericks hitting a counterattack. Iguodala hit a three-pointer to extend the Mavericks' advantage to 8 points!

Chasing 8 points in 38 seconds is already very difficult even for the Warriors.

Kerr clasped his hands and shook his head, if he can also have a small forward as mature as Iguodala, I guess the Warriors can go to the next level...... It's a shame that Iguodala chose the Dallas Mavericks over the Golden State Warriors the summer before last.

After that, although Curry finally hit a three-point shot, it was already too late. The Warriors trailed by five points and had to resort to foul tactics. And Yiyang, the big heart, was stunned and hit all 4 free throws at the critical moment, completely closing the door to victory for the Warriors.

In the end, the gap of 9 points was maintained until the end of the game.

118-109, Yiyang 33 points and 13 assists, Nowitzki 24 points and 9 rebounds, Iguodala 20 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, Wade 17 points, Gobert 3 blocks, Toney. Allen had 3 steals...... The Mavericks will use their performance to prove the strength of a truly top-level team. The Warriors were Livingston in the second quarter, but on the Mavericks' side, there were also a lot of players who could make a difference!

Kerr reluctantly walked back to the players' tunnel, insisting on saying where the Warriors lost this game, it was Barnes.

In a confrontation like this at the highest level, all links must be done to the best to win. As long as one link is missing, it is quite deadly.

How to play the position of small forward? Looks like Cole has had to keep his hands busy for a while.