Kendrick. Perkins, the defensive center who won the championship with the Celtics in 2008, was a very important addition for the Thunder in the middle of the season. It's no secret that the Thunder's interior defense, especially at the No. 5 position, has been criticized. In the past, people could achieve good results by simply attacking the Thunder's interior.

But the arrival of Perkins undoubtedly made up for the Thunder's weakness on the interior defense. In the series against the Grizzlies, Perkins' defensive ability has been vividly demonstrated. And his joining is one of the reasons why the Thunder can go so far this year.

Although "Chubby" Perkins played very hard, he was "only" 2.08 meters tall, but he still lost in the scrum stage. Chandler flicked the basketball behind him with a half-palm advantage, and it fell into Yiyang's hands.

"Audience friends, the game is on!"

Accompanied by Kenny. Smith shouted, and the Mavericks fans in the stadium cheered. The blue sea in the stands churned again, and the temperature of the city of Dallas seemed to have risen a lot.

A loud noise poured into Yiyang's ears, but his mind was very calm and clear. The rookie guard didn't get flustered by the frenetic atmosphere, he pushed forward unhurriedly, gesturing to command the offense as he walked forward.

Nowitzki was in a good position on the inside, and Yiyang paused outside the three-point line, his eyes on Dirk, as if he was going to pass the ball directly into the inside.

However, in the next second, Yiyang suddenly slapped the basketball to the left-hand side, accelerating to break through! Another beautiful eye feint, if Yiyang is facing someone else today, he is likely to have successfully broken into the penalty area.

It's a pity that today's opponent is Westbrook, who scored 40 points in the last round and is as strong as an alien!

Yiyang's sudden activation was indeed something Westbrook didn't expect, and he just thought that Yiyang was going to pass. However, Westbrook was not Fischer, he was always younger and more dynamic.

Seeing that Yiyang suddenly changed speed and direction to break through, Westbrook's feet quickly moved sideways, and he used his strong body to block Yiyang's breakthrough route.

"Bang!" The muffled sound of the muscles colliding made Vignarie, who was sitting in the first row watching the battle, feel a pain in his heart. Yiyang's body must be uncomfortable to withstand Westbrook's block.

Yiyang's breakthrough was blocked, but his thoughts did not stop like his footsteps. Seeing that his breakthrough route was blocked, Yiyang pushed the ball with both hands and passed it to Marion, who was in position in the bottom corner on the right side.

Marion faced a defender who was Thunder star Kevin. Durant, the tall and long-arm Durant pounced with open arms, Marion felt like a big spider, and the slender limbs made Marion not get any chance at all.

But the Mavericks are not a team that relies on the individual ability of the star to solve problems, and seeing that he has no chance, Marion also chose to pass the ball again. At this time, Yiyang had already shaken off Westbrook through an off-ball block and a counterrun to get space to shoot.

Westbrook can often use his perverted physicality to cause problems on the defensive end, but this guy is actually not very good at anticipating on the defensive end. Against a good off-ball attacker, Westbrook will struggle to defend.

Unfortunately, Yiyang has a lot of experience in attacking with and without the ball.

Yiyang received the basketball, and Westbrook naturally rushed over in stride. Seeing that Westbrook's center of gravity was all rushing forward, Yiyang decided to break through decisively.

But Westbrook's physical fitness is really outstanding, and almost instantly, Westbrook completed the change of center of gravity and followed Yiyang back.

In the first round of the playoffs, Yiyang faced the aging Andrew. Miller, in the second round of the playoffs, Yiyang faced the "old fish" Fischer who was no longer in the limelight. In the first two rounds, Yiyang's opponents were all veterans. On the defensive end, it can be said that it is at the mercy of Yiyang.

But in this round of games, Yiyang is no longer easy on the offensive end. He knew that it would be very difficult to score on his own, so Yiyang leaned on Westbrook to break through, but suddenly passed the ball to the side as he was traveling.

The target of Yiyang's pass was none other than Nowitzki, who had long been eager to try. Nowitzki got to the mid-range to catch the basketball, and Ibaka was a few steps away from Nowitzki. But for a violent blocker like Ibaka, this distance of just a few steps is not a problem at all! He only needs to take two big strides and leap high to interfere with Nowitzki's shot and even complete the block!

Therefore, after the ball was passed, Yiyang did not stop. Instead of taking the defender with him, he leaned over to Nowitzki.

Halfway through the run, Yiyang suddenly stopped, and then covered his crotch with both hands. Westbrook was stunned, what does this guy want to do?

"Change the guard, change the guard!" Off the court, Thunder coach Brooks' shouts resounded throughout the court. Westbrook found out that Yiyang had blocked the Ibaka who came to make up for the defense!

A guard does an off-ball pick-and-roll for a forward? What's the situation!?

Without thinking about the reasonableness of this goal, Westbrook immediately left Yiyang behind and rushed to Nowitzki to make up for it.

However, a stunned Westbrook has missed the best defensive opportunity. By the time he arrived, the Germans had already jumped high and made a successful shot.

The arc of the basketball flight is high, and Nowitzki's shooting arc is historically high. Perkins and Chandler were incompatible with each other in hand-to-hand combat under the basket, and no one wanted to miss a rebound.

The fans in the stands held their breath and didn't even dare to get out of the air. It seems that the slightest fluctuation in the air has the potential to change the trajectory of the basketball.

Nowitzki froze in place, his arms still held high, maintaining the position he had taken the moment he shot.

Yiyang looked up at the basketball that had crossed over his head, then turned around directly, and seemed to start to retreat towards his own half.

"Brush!" Yiyang's foot had just stepped out of the three-point line on the Thunder's side, and this wonderful voice sounded behind him. The basketball went through the net, and the Mavericks successfully opened the scoring!

"Haha, nice goal! The cooperation between Yi and Dirk is perfect! Suddenly, Kenny. Smith couldn't see what was going on the court. Because the fans in front of him, without exception, all raised their arms.

"Well blocked!" Nowitzki stepped back in small steps, and when he was about to push Yiyang's side, the German finally smiled and gave Yiyang a light high-five.

"A guard's pick-and-roll for the interior allowed the Mavericks to score. It was a very thoughtful goal, and believe me, we'll see this tactic many times with the Mavericks! "It was just a normal mid-range shot, but in the eyes of Barkley and others, it was a different kind of offense.

Carlisle is definitely a master tactician, otherwise no one would have thought of using a defender to cover the interior. But in the Mavericks, whose main means of scoring is the jump shot, everyone is a guard, and everyone is inside! Covering and being covered are mutually reinforcing.

Although the score just now does not come directly from Yiyang, it is also the result of Yiyang's needle and lead tissue. So in Westbrook's view, his defense just now was also a failure.

Westbrook hated defeat, especially in the battle against the counterpoint. He was just beaten by Yiyang and Nowitzki, and now, Westbrook just wants to fight back!

So, after receiving Perkins' baseline shot, Westbrook turned around and accelerated wildly, attacking the Mavericks' basket.

I have to admit that Westbrook's speed is really good. Before the Mavericks' defense was unfolded, this guy was already holding the ball and killing outside the three-point line.

In the face of Yiyang's defense, Westbrook directly changed direction during the high-speed advancement, trying to rely on his speed and much stronger body to force the way!

But Yiyang was not easily thrown away, he reacted quickly and immediately pasted it. Westbrook relied on his physical advantage to press Yiyang to continue to push in, and every second that Yiyang blocked now was torture to his body! Blocking someone like Westbrook is no different from blocking a pickup truck with your bare hands!

The strong impact caused a sharp pain in Yiyang's chest, and this guy gritted his teeth, but he didn't give up! Not only that, Yiyang also stealthily tugged at his jersey a few times during Westbrook's breakthrough to disrupt the opponent's offensive rhythm.

Westbrook didn't expect to be in such a big way, and normally, most defenders are knocked out of the way by themselves. But this Chinese seems to be glued to himself!

At this point, Westbrook had already burst into a very deep position. If you don't go to the basket, it's a waste of opportunity!

So, Westbrook put one hand on Yiyang, separating Yiyang by some distance. Then raise the basketball with your other hand and kick it with one foot, ready to go straight to the basket!

Yiyang jumped up, and under Westbrook's thrust, Yiyang struggled to maintain his balance and then stretched his arms as long as he could.

Westbrook only saw Yiyang's palm getting closer and closer to his basketball, and Yiyang's bounce power didn't seem to be inferior to Westbrook's. Yiyang in the air is like a hungry wolf, he will never give up until he hunts his prey!

Westbrook, some underestimate the perseverance of that Chinese!

"Smack!" A crisp sound spread through the Mavericks' three-second zone. Westbrook's imposing forced layup was covered by Yiyang, who was thinner than him!

The basketball fell into Marion's hands, and Marion played a long ball to the front court, where Terry was running wild.

Catch the basketball and stabilize the center of gravity. Terry jumped straight to shoot, and Durant, who was trying to catch up, didn't have time to brake, ran over, and missed the best opportunity to interfere. Terry's pull-up jumper on the fast break hit the perfect shot, leaving the young Thunder with no mercy.

Off the court, sitting at the end of the Mavericks bench Brian. Cardinal smiled. Then he stood up, waved the towel in his hand, and applauded Yiyang's cover.

"Westbrook, don't underestimate that kid!" This veteran, who may not necessarily get the opportunity to play, has a sense of accomplishment in his heart at the moment. It's as if it's himself who has just finished sealing.