Jordan received the ball on the three-point line on the right wing, Zhou Quan was engrossed, leaning over slightly, like a leopard, with the momentum of being able to pounce at any time.

The steal king with 3.3 steals in the regular season and 4 steals Jordan in a single game, so Jordan had to play 120 points in the face of Zhou Quan.

"This guy has made 4 of 5 shots, no, I'm going to be more aggressive defensively."

Zhou Quan knew that when Jordan broke out, passive defense could not prevent the opponent at all, and he had to take the initiative to defend to have some opportunities.

"Squeak!"

At this moment, he suddenly grabbed with his feet and reached out to poke the ball.

His steal was premeditated, and this sudden steal would most likely force Jordan to retreat, and then he took the opportunity to go up closely, seal Jordan's left side, and squeeze it to the right sideline.

Jordan, who was equally preoccupied, reacted quickly, pulling the ball back with his right hand while taking a step back, then crossed dribbling under his crotch and prepared to break through from the left side.

His goal is to get to the right elbow area, and if he can't get in, he'll make a pull-and-go jumper there, which is where he hits a lot of shots.

But just before dribbling under his crotch and preparing to break through, Zhou Quan took a step up and stuck to his left front side, sealing the angle of his breakthrough to the left.

"Bang!"

Dribbling under the crotch again, pulling up with his right hand behind him, he immediately began to break through from the outside, Zhou Quan's position was a little off, and the opportunity was very good.

Zhou Quan squeezed his chest hard, and at the same time, his left hand bypassed Jordan and made a stabbing motion in front of him, Jordan's breakthrough was destroyed, and the speed couldn't help but slow down.

At this time, Zhou Quan suddenly flashed sideways, and Jordan, who was breaking forward with his strength, had no resistance, and couldn't help but rush forward, and the ball in his right hand was instantly out of control.

"Smack!"

On the confrontation, Zhou Quan immediately squeezed up from behind Jordan, squeezed away the opponent and controlled the ball in his hand, completing the break.

"The defense is so beautiful this time!" Zhang said excitedly.

Jordan angrily chased after Zhou Quan, Zhou Quan advanced in front, but did not push with all his strength, because there were assassins in the middle and Joe Dumas on the right flank, he did not plan to kill himself, but slowed down and pinned Jordan to his side, and the assassin or Joe Dumas completed the attack.

"Squeak!"

He stopped on the left wing three-point line, and Jordan had to make a sharp stop in front of him.

At this point, Joe Dumas shook off Pippen and slashed diagonally from the right wing, and the Assassin stopped at the top of the arc.

"Whoosh!"

Zhou Quan pushed casually, and the ball flew out of the right side of the basket.

"Bang!"

Joe Dumas took off from the right side, received the ball in the air, and slammed the Bulls' basket with a one-handed slam.

"At 44:37, the Pistons regained a seven-point lead." Zhang Li said with a smile.

"Jordan broke Zhou Quan once just now, and now he has returned it." Sun Zhenping said with a smile.

"The steal king is not fake." Zhang Li said with a smile.

Then Jordan missed a shot, and the Pistons attacked.

The Bulls still use dense crowds to limit Zhou Quan's drilling, the effect is still good, the defensive experience is getting richer, and Zhou Quan's off-ball running is becoming more and more difficult.

Just when Zhou used his running position to disrupt the Bulls' penalty area, Secali suddenly pulled out of the box to receive the ball, and Scott Williams didn't have time to keep up, and Secali hit an open jumper and hit a mid-range shot.

"At 46:37, the Pistons led by nine points, and Phil Jackson couldn't sit still, so he called a timeout." Bill Wharton said.

"It's possible to limit Tekken's off-ball movement with a dense crowd, but the defensive focus is on Tekken and it's easy to leave opportunities for others." Williams said.

Bill Wharton laughed, "Iron Fist's vision is indeed amazing, and his ability to drill through human gaps must come from his vision ability." ”

"Why are you so sure?" Williams asked cooperatively.

Bill Wharton said: "Because in terms of agility, Iron Fist is not the top level, which can be seen from his ability to move in a continuous direction, he rarely does that kind of continuous change of direction, and if he does, it must be done with deceleration."

Agility is not top-notch, and he is not that kind of thin physique, so why is he so capable of drilling through people's gaps?

Only the vision, I had observed, and he did not pause at all as he suddenly changed direction through those gaps, as if everything had been planned.

He saw the gap before the defender, who ran through the crowd like a blindfolded donkey, not being able to catch up with a hound. ”

"Haha, Bill, what do you describe Michael Jordan as, a dumb donkey blindfolded?" Williams laughed.

After the two joked, Bill Wharton reminded: "The Pistons are in a good situation now, but be careful, at a critical moment, when you are in a desperate situation, Jordan is very likely to break out, and the Pistons currently do not have this kind of person, and Iron Fist currently does not have the ability to stand up in a desperate situation." ”

"You just can't let the Bulls get moving, you can't let Michael Jordan go crazy." Williams nodded.

"What are we doing? What are you doing? Bastard ......"

On the Bulls bench, Jordan was snarling under his breath, venting his frustration, not only to his teammates, but also to himself.

"Phil, we need to make a change, we can't lose this game, we can't afford it!"

After venting, he raised his head and stared at Phil Jackson with a fierce gaze, his red eyes making the hearts of all who saw it palpitate, and the low roar hit their hearts like muffled thunder, and there was a shocking feeling that made their scalps tingle.

Phil Jackson nodded: "Now we have to strengthen the defense of the assassin, strengthen the confrontation, we can't let him pass the ball if he wants to pass the ball to Iron Fist, we want to make him unable to pass." BJ……”

His eyes were fixed on BJ's face, and he said very seriously: "The intensity of the confrontation just now is not enough, he no longer has the ability to break through with the ball, and when the iron fist moves in the penalty area, it is full of people, and he has no room to break through, so you need to prevent throwing, passing and not penetrating, as long as you can stop him for a second to two seconds, we can complete the defense." ”

"I'll do it."

BJ nodded heavily, his tone very affirmative, he was going to take back the main position.

The timeout ends and the game resumes.

"Brush!"

Even if he was stuck by Zhou Quan, Jordan still used a very resolute turnaround and backward jumper to hit a ball, and the shot was very resolute.

At 46:39, the Pistons attacked.

In the following time, the Assassin found that there was some trouble, and BJ Armstrong in front of him kept pestering him, making him very uncomfortable, and the injury could not make him make too big movements, and his passing was affected.

Zhou Quan spun around in the penalty area, finally getting around, and found that the assassin's ball was not passed, and then Jordan chased to his side, and the empty space disappeared.

In the end, the assassin made a strong shot and missed, and the Bulls protected the rebound.

At 50:48 after the second quarter, the Bulls were only two points away.

Zhang Li said with a serious expression: "Zhou Quan can't catch the ball behind him, he only shot once, and he hasn't hit yet." Now he is 8-of-13 shooting, shooting 61.5%, 16 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover, 2 fouls, and no free throws.

The Pistons are going to make some changes now, the Bulls were passive tactically, and now their own tactics are passive. ”

Sun Zhenping said: "Jordan just shot 2 of 4, and he has made 10 of 21 shots, with a shooting rate of 47.6%, and the shooting rate is slowly improving.

But there was no breakthrough today, there were too many people in it, there was no chance of a breakthrough, he made few free throws, 2 of 2 free throws, and scored a total of 22 points. ”

"Look at how the two teams played in the second half." Zhang said reasonably.

Back in the locker room, Chuck Daley thought about it and said, "We changed the formation in the second half. Iron Fist, you still come back and control the ball and attack with the ball. ”

Assistant coach Musk nodded: "Although Iron Fist's off-ball play is good, we have lost the threat of holding the ball, which is very fatal." ”

Isaiah Thomas was gloomy, he was no longer an assassin, and with the ball gone, a small role player could lock him up.

Assistant coach Relowert suggested: "What about Joe holding the ball? ”

Chuck Daly shook his head and said, "Pippen's defense is not vegetarian. ”

Then he began to lay out the lineup and tactics, the guard line Zhou Quan and Joe Dumas, the interior line Secali and Rodman, the small forward, the candidate for this position, he decided to let Darnell Walker play.

Darnell Wharton was the Pistons' biggest injury of the season, playing only nine games in total, and he still let this guy in when it came time to schedule the playoffs.

Dal Walker is a veteran, the No. 12 pick in the first round in '83, and now the offensive strength is almost gone, but there is still a bit of defense.

"Me?"

Darnell Walker was pleasantly surprised.

Chuck Daly nodded: "Darnell, I don't need you to attack, you just need to use your small man advantage to entangle Pippen."

You can allow him to shoot from the outside, but you can't let him burst in, and you can't let him pass the ball at will, you know? ”

"Understood."

Darnell Walker nodded.

After halftime, the third quarter began with the Pistons attacking.

The No. 1 spot on the Bulls' side is still BJ, and the other four are in the starting lineup.

"Oh, Darnell Walker?" Bill Wharton was a little surprised.

Williams analyzed: "After the serious injury, he has no other effect, it should be for him to drag Pippen." ”

"Now Iron Fist is back in possession of the ball, against Jordan, Sekari is also different from the first half, pulled out, the penalty area is a lot empty, there is room to break through, Iron Fist will definitely break through with the ball." Bill Wharton said.

"Let's see if Jordan can stop Iron Fist's ball-holding breakthrough." Williams grinned.

"Bang Bang Bang ......"

Zhou Quan dribbled to the top of the arc, but instead of attacking, he gave the ball to Joe Dumas on the right wing.

"John?"

In front of the Bulls bench, Phil Jackson turned to look at Paxson.

John Paxson nodded, stood up and pulled off his button-downs, ready to play.

Like the Assassins, he is actually not very good, playing as a substitute for a season, and now he is forced to start in the second round, and his body is a little unable to hold on.

"Brush!"

Joe Dumas jumper and hit a shot in BJ's head.

Bulls attack.

"Sure enough, Darnell defends Pippen." Bill Wharton said.

Pippen didn't need Phil Jackson's instructions to get the ball from BJ and began to single Danel Walker on the left wing.

The height difference between the two is ten centimeters, plus the arm span, the height difference is even greater, although Darnell Walker is only 82 kilograms of tonnage, but he is not afraid of confrontation, and he directly uses faster speed to grab the close, which makes Pippen a little uncomfortable, like a plaster sticking to his body, but he can't get rid of it.

"Bang!"

Pippen misses a strong shot, Rodman protects the rebound in the backcourt, and the Pistons attack.

"It's also a small defense against a big one, and Darnell Walker does a better job than BJ." Bill Wharton said.

Williams shook his head and said, "No, Bill, it's Joe Dumas's offense that is a little better than Pippen's." In fact, Pippen is weak in attack and strong in defense, and Joe Dumas is offensive and defensive in one. ”

Then, knowing that he was going to be replaced, BJ was very aggrieved and sent himself off the court with an active foul and replaced him with John Paxson.

"Joe, step up the confrontation and beat him down."

Zhou Quan thought of BJ's defense of the assassins later in the second quarter, and immediately said to Joe Dumas.

Jo Dumas nodded, indicating that there was no problem.

Next, Zhou Quan didn't attack too much, but did his best to make the ball for Joe Dumas, and let him toss John Paxson.

Joe Dumas stepped up his running on the offensive end and intensified his confrontation on the defensive end, so that John Paxson only played five minutes, and there were some parts of his body that he couldn't handle, such as his knees.

John Paxson, who had been seriously injured, couldn't hold on physically after consecutive starts, and he couldn't defend Joe Dumas, so he shot 3 of 6 in the half quarter, 1 of 2 three-pointers, and 2 of 2 free throws, and scored 9 points in the first quarter.

Zhou Quan didn't attack much, and spent all his energy on defending Jordan, breaking Jordan once, and making Jordan shoot 2 of 5.

Coupled with the first ball, Jordan shot 3 of 6 in the second half, the efficiency was actually good, and his state was still slowly improving.

Pippen's side faced Darnell Wharton, shooting 1 of 3 in the half quarter, and the misplaced advantage did not come out, and the offensive state was average.

However, Grant seized the opportunity to cut inside in a row, shooting 2 of 3 in the half quarter and playing well.

In the 6th minute of the third quarter, at 64:58, the Bulls trailed by 6 points at home and called a timeout.

Phil Jackson also faced the problem of Chuck Daley, the Pistons were not the right person at the No. 3 position, the Bulls were not the right person on the guard line, Jordan changed the defense Zhou Quan, there was no suitable person to deal with Joe Dumas, and everyone had a weakness that was caught.

John Paxson can't do it, he can only replace the 82-year-old veteran Trent Tucker, and there is no other choice, just like Chuck Daley.

After the timeout, Chuck Daley looked at the lineup on the Bulls' side and immediately instructed Darnell Walker to let him defend Tucker, and Pippen handed it to Joe Dumas.

In the first half of the quarter, although Darnell Walker's efficiency in defending Pippen was okay, his performance was not enough to make him believe Walker, after all, it was Pippen, and Walker was still a veteran after being seriously injured, so let Walker and Tucker, the old and injured guys, peck each other now.

In the second half, Jordan broke out in Zhou Quan's head, constantly breaking through with the ball, shooting 3 of 5, 3 of 3 free throws, scoring 9 points in the first quarter and 15 points in a single quarter.

Joe Dumas played against Pippen, and Zhou Quan took over the offensive power, and also strengthened the breakthrough with the ball like Jordan, and at the same time made kills, shooting 3 of 6 in the half quarter, 2 of 2 free throws, and scored 8 points.

The two formed a rivalry, and it was Jordan who had the upper hand.

After the third quarter, 76:73, the Bulls still trailed by 3 points.

Bill Wharton said with a smile: "Judging from the current situation, no one has a clear advantage, the Bulls definitely have a chance to turn over, and the Pistons can't be careless." ”

Williams nodded: "Jordan shot 16 of 32 in the third quarter, and his shooting rate has increased to 50%, and he shot 1 of 3 three-pointers and 5 of 5 free throws, and scored 38 points." He's getting better and better, and while Tekken's defense is good, Jordan is still unstoppable. ”

Bill Wharton said: "Iron Fist didn't attack much in the first half of the third quarter, conceded a shot, made 2 free throws, and did well in the second half, scoring 8 points, 10 points in a single quarter, and is currently 11 of 20 shots, shooting 55%, 24 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals, 2 turnovers and 3 fouls.

Joe Dumas was in average form in the first half, but the third quarter was good, and now he has 19 points, 3 assists and 2 steals.

In the next final quarter, let's see who plays better, Jordan and Iron Fist should both step up and preside over the team's offense. ”

"At the same time, we have to work on the defensive end to reduce each other's offensive efficiency." Williams added.

(End of chapter)