Chapter 387: A Tough Response
Despite losing the last game, the Milwaukee Bucks' backcourt "double guns" - Blanton Jennings and Monta Ellis were very unconvinced, this time at home against the Brooklyn Nets, both of them released "cruel words" before the game.
Point guard Blanton Jennings, who scored 37 points in the last game, was even more provocative in an interview with ESPN, arguing that the Nets were not superior in terms of strength, but just a fluke to steal a victory.
And when it comes to the topic of "who will win one-on-one with Tall and Strong", Brandon Jennings said with some disdain, "I can beat him, you reporters hold him up too high, don't forget that I scored 55 points in my rookie season, and today, I'm going to let him fall from the sky on Milwaukee soil."
"We neglected to defend that rookie in the last game, and today we worked out a strategy for him, and his scoring spree will not happen today, and the victory must belong to Milwaukee," and Monta Ellis, another Bucks guard who also scored 33 points in the last game, swore that he swore that he would be confident.
Obviously, the Bucks' extremely high-profile statement of "double guns" also reached the ears of Gao Dazhuang, but Gao Dazhuang remained silent before the game, of course, he didn't plan to fight back, all he had to do was prove himself with his performance on the court.
For today's game, the Nets' starting lineup is center Marcin Gortat, power forward Kenneth Faried, small forward Kyle Korver, shooting guard Gao Da Zhuang, and point guard CJ Watson.
Unlike the previous game, Kenneth "Half-Orc" Faried, who scored a double-double in the previous game, entered the starting lineup. The selection of CJ Watson, another "rookie", is that Coach Johnson has taken a fancy to his outside defensive ability, and his first task today is to target the opposing point guard Blanton Jennings, who scored 37 points in the last game.
The Nets, who won the last game, made changes to the lineup, while the Bucks, who lost, made tactical improvements.
The Milwaukees knew that they would not be able to take advantage of the Nets if they played the same way they played in the previous game, and that they would have to make changes if they wanted to turn around, so they decided to play a very targeted pressing defensive formation.
The Bucks are targeting the Nets' current offensive system, which is simply one sentence, "isolating the Nets players": severing the connection between the Nets players through pressing and positioning. Break up the Nets' offensive chain. Find a way to keep the Nets in endless singles.
They believe that without smooth passing, the Nets' offensive strength may be less than half, and even if he is tall and strong, he is neither a "thunder duo". It's not the "Big Three". He couldn't settle the fight with 48 minutes of singles.
Really. At the beginning of the game, the Bucks put a lot of pressure on the Nets' off-ball personnel on the defensive end, restricting space through running so that the Nets' players could not easily receive the basketball.
Other than that. For the Nets' ball carrier, the Bucks are not all-encompassing, but will emphasize anticipation, block the ball carrier's passing lane, and force the ball carrier to play alone.
This measure did achieve a lot of results in the opening stage of the game, and the Nets, who were not comfortable with the Bucks' defense for a while, did not score a point in the first three minutes, but were hit by the Bucks with an 8-0 attack wave.
In the first quarter of the game, under the close defense of Monta Ellis, the tall and strong played more of an offensive "playmaker".
At 9:03 in the first quarter, Gao Dazhuang was replaced by Coach Johnson, and in these nine minutes of the game, Gao Dazhuang did not have a strong offensive desire, only three shots, but did not score a point, but he still handed out 3 assists and grabbed 2 rebounds.
When the tall and strong left the court, the Bradley Center, the home of the Milwaukee Bucks, let out a burst of boos against the tall and strong, and the Bucks point guard Brandon Jennings walked up to the tall and strong with some arrogance and said: "Hey, boy, you won't have so many easy shots today, you don't want to take away the victory in Milwaukee, this is our home court."
The atmosphere at the scene was very unfavorable to the Brooklyn Nets, and even Coach Johnson, who had always been calm, walked up to the tall and strong side with some uneasiness, and pressed his hand on the tall and strong shoulder to signal his peace of mind.
14:28
At the end of the first quarter, the Bucks' 28 points were exactly double the Nets' score, and the Bucks fans at the Bradley Center were cheering to the heart's content, and the whole court was a sea of green.
"What's wrong? Didn't you have lunch? Play tough, show your bloodiness and ......" It was clear that the team's problems were not just at the technical and tactical level, so Coach Johnson was very excited to give a speech to boost the team's morale.
Before going on the court, Coach Johnson pulled the tall man to his side and whispered, "At this point, you have to step up, we can lose, but we must not lose to a team like Milwaukee."
"Well" patted Coach Johnson's arm and nodded vigorously.
The referee blew the whistle, and the second quarter of the game officially began.
"Squeak", "Squeak", "Squeak...... The sound of shoes rubbing against the floor came and went, and the Bucks continued to take their man-to-man defensive tactics to the extreme, but after a quarter of the game, the Nets' offense also changed.
"Peng" suddenly stopped and ran back in the middle of the high-speed advance, and quickly stuck Ellis behind him, asking for the ball with one hand, and at this time, the basketball happened to be passed by Cowhai Leonard to the tall and strong hand.
The tall and strong man after receiving the ball took advantage of the situation, followed by a step, and made a deft basket before the Milwaukee Bucks' interior players could make up the defense.
With a "brush", the tall and strong layup won the second quarter of the game, which was also his first point in the game.
"SHIT" Monta Ellis scolded a little unhappily after Tall Strong's goal, as if he shouldn't let Tall Strongman score.
And Ellis's attitude also aroused the "fire" of the tall and strong.
"Hey, guys. I'll pass the ball later," Gao Dazhuang whispered to Kawhai Leonard and CJ Watson next to him during the return visit, and turned to Kenneth Faried under the basket and said: "Kenneth, wait for me to play a few more covers"
The friends immediately signaled to receive it.
After defending against a wave of attacks, the Nets immediately launched a counterattack.
With a "snap", Gao Dazhuang suddenly retreated to receive the ball outside the three-point line, and when Gao Dazhuang just received a long pass from Kaulvay Leonard, he accelerated violently, using the absolute speed of the start to break through Ellis's defense in an instant, and hit the basket with one step.
The tall man rose into the air against the defense of opposing center Larry Sanders, but was about to make physical contact between the two. Tall and strong, one dodges sideways in the air. The whole person deftly slid from one side of the basket to the other.
There was a loud bang, and the tall man smashed the ball into the basket with a pull-up back dunk.
18:28
The tall man completed a shocking reflex dunk that sent the entire Bradley Center arena into an exclamation.
After the goal, the tall and strong man raised his arms and signaled to his opponent: "This is just the beginning".
Really. A minute later. "Defense", "defense" of Bucks fans throughout the court...... The screams. Tall and Strong played a "fake pick-and-roll" with Kenneth Faried at a 45-degree angle.
Then the tall and strong deceived Ellis's center of gravity with a dotted point, and took the opportunity to break away from the defense and cut into the inside line, taking a big step. Fly.
With a "clang", the tall and strong grabbed another dunk before the Bucks' interior defense.
20:28
Gao Dazhuang succeeded in three consecutive attacks, two of which were completed with "violent dunks".
Since joining the Nets, Nets fans have rarely seen a game as aggressive as the one they have today.
And today, as soon as the second quarter of the game began, Gao Dazhuang turned the hoop at Bradley Center, the home of the Bucks, into a plaything in his hands.
The Milwaukee Bucks' tactical ideas are very good, and they created the illusion that this tactic can restrain the Nets' offensive system in the first quarter of today.
But in reality, it turned out that the Bucks were overthinking, and they miscalculated the destructive power of the tall and strong, because with Monta Ellis alone, they couldn't stand the tall and strong, or even the two.
With 5:17 left to play in the second quarter, the tall man who was facing Ellis's defense head-on near the free throw line suddenly made a force and broke through from his flank, and Jennings, another guard of the Bucks, immediately rushed to help the defense.
However, just when the Bucks' backcourt "double guns" were about to form a pinching momentum, Gao Dazhuang suddenly changed direction, and the ball also passed out from his crotch, and accelerated along the middle with his right hand.
The tall and strong line was the narrow gap between Jennings and Ellis, and the speed and explosiveness of the tall and strong were fully manifested at this moment, while Jennings and Ellis closed a little later.
"Cluster", in an exclamation, the tall and strong cut into the inside line and made an easy layup.
"Pretty", "Go on", "Give them some color...... The tall and strong scored 8 points in a row, which greatly boosted the morale of the Nets and reduced the sound of the Bradley Center a lot.
In the next game, the Bucks naturally didn't want Gao Dazhuang to continue to brutalize the home basket, and they began to strengthen the bag of Gao Dazhuang.
However, the price they paid for the package was that they were frequently fouled by tall and strong, and the referee's whistle sounded continuously.
Perhaps it was the Bucks' defense, which was a little too protective of their own hoops, that once again angered the tall and strong.
After a two-handed dunk in the final 2.8 seconds of the first half, the tall man looked around the pitch with a somewhat defiant look after the goal.
This move also provoked a boo from the Bucks fans in the entire Bradley Center arena, of course, Gao Dazhuang didn't care at all.
45:46
At halftime, the Brooklyn Nets managed to chase the score to just one point.
"Boy, don't be arrogant too early, the game isn't over yet" At halftime, Bucks point guard Jennings said viciously to Gao Dazhuang.
"That's what I want to say to you," Gao Dazhuang made a "helpless" expression and responded to the other party strongly.
In fact, in the second quarter of the game, Gao Dazhuang had already "flowered" the outside of the Bucks.
All of Tall Strong's scores in this quarter came from within the paint zone, and he made 7 shots in a single quarter, hitting 6 of them, 5 of 6 free throws, and scoring 17 points in a single quarter.
This is the strong response of the tall and strong to the provocations of Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis. (To be continued......)