Jordan: I thought he was there to help me!

Chapter 575 Tactical Overwhelming! Old Nelson Sees Through Popovich

In the first 11 minutes of the first quarter, the two teams traded blows, with the Spurs unable to stop the Knicks' relentless offense, and the Spurs not really putting in any serious defensive effort either.

After all, Popovich has already given the order that the focus tonight is on offense!

But both of the Spurs' forwards are at least top 15 in the league, with McGrady being a strong contender for the top 5!

When these two guys are on fire, it's quite difficult for the Knicks to contain them.

James' physical gifts and vision, McGrady's all-around scoring ability and equally top-notch vision, mean that even when they are on full offensive endeavors, they can completely organize the team's offense, ensuring that the team's offense does not experience any stagnation or disorganization.

With one minute remaining in the first quarter, key players from both teams, including McGrady, Anthony, and Okur, went to the bench to rest. Lin Tian and James remained on the court, leading their respective starters and reserves in a battle.

First, James dribbled past his opponent and passed the ball to JR Smith outside the three-point line, assisting him to make the three-pointer!

Then Lin Tian dribbled the ball, changed direction, and followed up with his signature step-back move before decisively shooting a three-pointer that went in!

Then James drove into the paint again, and this time, despite Smith's defense, he made a one-handed layup!

When this shot went in, there were only 7 seconds left in the first quarter!

The Knicks quickly inbounded the ball from the baseline, and Lin Tian dribbled all the way up, rushing to the Spurs' three-point line in the blink of an eye. With only 2 seconds left on the shot clock, he forced a three-pointer!

"Whoosh!"

"Buzz!"

With a crisp sound, Lin Tian's three-pointer went in!

38: 43!

Both teams were incredibly efficient in this quarter, with shooting percentages exceeding 50% and total points exceeding 80!

"We need to get back into focus in the second quarter!" After this incredibly exhilarating back-and-forth battle, Popovich stood before everyone with his clipboard and said, "They definitely won't let Lin play in the opening stages!"

"If the Knicks don't pull any crazy moves, there's a 99% chance they'll put Anthony and the bench players in during this crucial stretch of the game. That's our best chance to take the lead!"

"Raise the defensive intensity! Everyone, give it your all on defense! Use everything you've practiced!"

"Let's teach them a lesson with this sudden, aggressive defense!"

"Tracy, LeBron, both of you come in at the start of the second quarter! Use our intensity to quickly close the gap and take the lead! Four minutes, LeBron, are you okay? I need you to play another four minutes."

"No problem! I'll beat Messi and Ronaldo and prove I'm the number one draft pick of the 03 class!"

On the other side of the court, Don Nelson looked at his players and said, "If I'm not mistaken, that Popovich kid will definitely change his strategy in the second quarter. He can't beat us! Or rather, no one in this league can match us offensively!"

"They'll tighten their defense, they'll fight hard, they'll target Messi and Ronaldo! So, for the second quarter, Lin, you and Amaré will continue playing! Four more minutes, are you feeling fatigued?"

"No!" Lin Tian and Xiao Si stood up at the same time, indicating that there was no problem.

"Merro, as for you, take a rest. For the entire second half of the second quarter, I want you to take advantage of their fatigue and crush them!"

"no problem!"

Anthony wasn't upset at all by Don Nelson's changes to the rotation; on the contrary, he clenched his fists, full of fighting spirit.

Come on! Let's have some fun!

When the Spurs players stepped onto the court at the start of the second quarter, they were stunned.

Wasn't it said that Anthony would be leading the team? Wasn't it said that they would be rotating players and we would go all out against them?

Why are Lin Tian and Xiao Si still here?

Then all our preparations will have been for nothing, won't they?

Meanwhile, on the Knicks' side, Lin Tian and Stoudemire gave each other a triumphant high five.

Old Nelson guessed everything correctly!

Then we're guaranteed to win this round!

"Memet, be ready to catch and shoot. With Chris Bosh out, none of them can keep up with you! Gerald, Matt, you two be ready to cut and look for opportunities; the ball will come to you!"

"In these four minutes, let's really ramp up the pace! Let's give them a real speed boost!"

"no problem!"

At this point, the Spurs actually had two options.

1. Popovich admitted his mistake and decided to bench James, the absolute core player who needed rest, for a while.

This option would allow James to get enough rest he needs, but it would also cause the Spurs' morale to plummet.

2. We'll grit our teeth and fight hard, since Lin Tian on the other side hasn't rested either. We'll just have to rely on our stamina; we're young and strong! But all our previous strategy will be wasted, and the team could suffer a huge loss as a result.

To be honest, if it were someone like Don Nelson or Larry Bird, who are incredibly quick to react and completely shameless, they would definitely call a timeout or make a substitution immediately after the first round.

But Popovich was clearly not thick-skinned enough to admit his mistake directly. He chose to grit his teeth and keep fighting. Apart from standing up and shouting a few words to encourage everyone to stay calm and not be afraid or worried, Popovich did nothing else.

Lin Tian took the basketball from Wallace and started the first attack of the second quarter.

Because the Spurs' positioning was very neat, he didn't rush to advance, but instead slowly made his way to the frontcourt.

There's no need to rush the first attack.

Upon arriving at the frontcourt, Lin Tian immediately noticed the panic on the faces of the Spurs players. It was an instinctive reaction from the players after the coach made a mistake in his instructions.

Lin Tian, ​​of course, wouldn't let such an opportunity pass by, and immediately teased, "Your coach must have misjudged."

"If the coach's predictions are always wrong, then it's understandable why your hair is falling out so quickly—it's too much trouble, right?"

"Shut up! Can you fucking get away from my hairline?!" James was exasperated. I've already taken off my headband, why are you still pulling on my hairline?

"But it's already so far away from me! If you want it to be even further away, you'll have to work harder and push it higher..."

"Enough!" James cursed, deciding to forget about his receding hairline. He quickly stepped forward, using his taller body to block Lin Tian's path to break through.

This is the defensive tactic that James has used most often when playing point guard over the past two years. His height of over 2 meters and top-tier speed in the league allow him to use his physical gifts to overwhelm his opponents when playing point guard.

But this guy clearly forgot that Lin Tian doesn't belong to the majority; in fact, Lin Tian is unique!

To be guarded so closely by Lin Tianshang is basically tantamount to suicide!

Faced with James's extremely close defense, Lin Tian didn't need to use any fancy tricks. He only needed to turn his back, then use a head feint to shift James's center of gravity, followed by a quick half-turn and acceleration dribble to leave James behind!

Or rather, even if 100% of the defenders in the league dared to guard Lin Tian so closely in a one-on-one situation, Lin Tian could use this move to get past them completely.

"Whoosh!"

James only felt a blur before his eyes, and then he could only watch Lin Tian drive into the penalty area.

However, the Spurs' defensive intensity and aggressiveness were definitely raised. As Lin Tian rushed into the paint, the entire Spurs' defense collapsed. But Lin Tian dealt with the collapse defense from McGrady and JR with ease!

A low-handed pass without looking at the ball sent it flying to Okur's hands on the wing.

As Okur received the ball, James lunged at him, but Okur passed it to Wallace, who took a step toward the basket and then passed it back to Lin Tian.

Even the Spurs' defense, after such a continuous cycle of collapsing, expanding, and collapsing again, finally showed particularly obvious weaknesses.

With Stoudemire completely open under the basket, Lin Tian easily lobbed a pass to Stoudemire for an alley-oop dunk!

"That was a beautiful pass! That was selfless ball sharing! Who says the Knicks just mindlessly charge around?" Barkley immediately roared, "They play simply because they can get the league's highest scoring average with simple methods!"

"And if their opponents try to outmaneuver them with defense, they can still put the ball in the basket in the most complex and dazzling ways!"

"You like close defense?" After Stoudemire's powerful dunk, Lin Tian quickly moved close to James, standing next to him. "Come on then, let's see how you deal with this move!"

Faced with Lin Tian's sudden surge in intensity and full-court press, James did not back down. He turned around and used his butt to block Lin Tian, ​​then reached out to ask for the ball.

But he has bullied too many people who are physically weaker than him because of his size, and this has become a habitual way of thinking for him.

He forgot once again that he was facing Lin Tian!

Almost the instant JR made the pass, Lin Tian slapped James' arm off him, then turned and circled around, blocking James's path.

Then, the basketball came straight into Lin Tian's hands, almost as if JR had passed the ball to him directly.

After getting the ball, Lin Tian didn't hesitate at all. Without even taking a step, he jumped up and slammed the ball into the basket with both hands!

"boom!"

After a muffled thud, the Knicks extended their lead to 9 points!

"LeBron, you need to box out!" After landing, Lin Tian trash-talked James again.

But James didn't look at Lin Tian.

Instead, he looked at the referee, spread his hands, and said, "He fouled! He hit my hand! He slapped my arm off! Why didn't you call it!"

Oh, you're complaining now?

So it was a child's training method?

However, no matter how skilled you are from childhood, at Madison Square Garden, getting angry at the referee is probably just a sign of insanity.

It would be a miracle if a human judge were to rule against you!

As Lin Tian had predicted, the referee completely ignored James' protests, not even glancing at him, and instead gave the ball to JR, signaling JR to inbound the ball immediately.

Seeing that the referee ignored him, James turned to JR and said, "You need to be careful when serving! You need to see their players properly, you can't just serve like that!"

Upon hearing this, JR mumbled something unintelligible, then immediately passed the ball to McGrady beyond the three-point line.

Then JR ran past James without even glancing at his increasingly grim expression, his head down.

It's only because JR is still somewhat rational; otherwise, given his temper, he would have bumped shoulders with James in a show of defiance at any moment.

Sorry, buddy, I'm going through a rebellious phase right now. I don't respect any of those little emperors or old emperors!

"Pfft!" Faced with this situation, Lin Tian couldn't help but laugh out loud, and he didn't intend to at all.

Sometimes, genuine laughter is more annoying than flashy trash talk.

For example, James' expression has completely changed right now.

If his verbal sparring with Lin Tian just now had a hint of playful banter and jokes, James's expression right now resembled his infamous death stare.

The main theme is anger.

My opponents didn't give me any face, my teammates didn't give me any face, and even the referee didn't give me any face.

I'm angry! Today I'm going to slaughter everyone in my path!

"Tracy, ball!" James ran quickly to the frontcourt, spreading his arms to ask McGrady for the ball.

Unfortunately, McGrady ignored him, as he was currently playing one-on-one with Wallace!

This guy, who almost became the scoring champion last season, used several crossover dribbles to trick Wallace into losing his balance and failing to catch him when he jumped.

Then McGrady pulled up and launched his signature flat-arc jump shot with style!

"Bang!"

Unfortunately, this jump shot, which completely shook off his opponent, missed! McGrady's luck was truly bad this time.

Stoudemire grabbed the basketball and quickly passed it to Lin Tian. After receiving the ball, Lin Tian launched another fast break like a stampede of horses for the Knicks!

Full-scale rapid attack!

The Knicks' lineup has too many players who can run and too many players who can score. In addition, with Lin Tian's speed and vision, even though the Spurs players retreated very quickly, they still couldn't complete the matchup immediately. When Lin Tian drove to the vicinity of the free throw line, he saw two open shots at a glance!

Then Lin Tian paused slightly, giving the Spurs an opportunity to fill in the gaps and improve their defense.

And then?

The Spurs missed Lin Tian!

The Spurs had too many players trying to help and cover, and their awareness was too good, which directly resulted in Lin Tian in the middle lane actually getting a little space.

Now that the space has been provided, Lord Lin will not let them down!

Lin Tian accelerated again and rushed to the basket in the blink of an eye. Facing the empty basket, he pulled up and slammed the ball into the basket with one hand!

"boom!"

After that loud bang, the point difference between the two sides officially widened to double digits!

After the start of the second quarter, the Knicks went on a 6-0 run against the Spurs!

An absolutely dreamlike and tactically overwhelming start!

James then finally broke through and found Finley, who had been left out, assisting him for 2 points and breaking the Spurs' scoring drought in the second quarter.

But the Knicks' scoring never seems to stop!

Barnes, Stoudemire, and Wallace scored in quick succession in the following game!

Although McGrady and James on the Spurs side made numerous contributions, the point difference between the two sides remained around 10 points!

40: 51!

With 3 minutes and 30 seconds left in the second quarter, the Spurs were still down by 11 points!

Then, it was Lin Tian's turn to make his move!

He first grabbed the rebound and quickly advanced along the sideline. Everyone who knows Lin Tian knows that if he advances along the sideline, he is most likely preparing to make a sudden stop and pull up for a three-pointer!

This time is no exception!

Lin Tian drove all the way to a point where he was 2 meters away from the three-point line and suddenly stopped. He looked up at the basket and McGrady, who was defending him, instinctively stepped forward. But before he could even take that step, Lin Tian had already bent down and slipped past him.

Of course, Lin Tian took another step and then stopped again. This time, no one blocked him, and he made a clean three-pointer that went into the net!

"Whoosh!"

14 points!

"Defense!" Lin Tian was extremely excited after scoring the goal and shouted loudly.

Huh? What?

The fans in the front row and Lin Tian's teammates were stunned for a moment. What did he say?

"It's just Grandma's habit." Lin Tian thought to himself, "When has this team ever played defense?" He immediately corrected himself, "Prepare for the next attack!"

Oh, that's more like it!

The Knicks players displayed a completely ineffective teamwork at this moment, while simultaneously making an exaggerated expression of relief.

They don't play much defense when they're behind, let alone now that they're leading by 15 points?

Defense? Forget about it!

For example, James easily got an open shot after a pick-and-roll. Although his three-pointer missed, Nesterovic grabbed the offensive rebound and put the ball in.

The Spurs' comeback attempt never stopped!

Then the Knicks quickly inbounded the ball from the baseline again, and Lin Tian dribbled the ball along the left sideline and quickly advanced forward!

This time, the person blocking his way was James. James spread his arms to block Lin Tian, ​​while simultaneously retreating rapidly to stop Lin Tian's advance.

It has to be said that this guy, who is nearly 205 centimeters tall, has powerful muscles and absolutely amazing speed, is truly a monster! If it were any other guard in the league, it would be really difficult to complete any effective fast offense against James's defense, which has an overwhelming advantage in speed, pressure and size.

But as I said before, Lin Tian has never been any other kind of guard!

Facing James's close defense, Lin Tian dribbled all the way to the three-point line and then suddenly used a behind-the-back dribble and lateral movement to create some distance. Then, when James came forward again to block Lin Tian, ​​he used another behind-the-back dribble and lateral movement!

With two identical movements, one to the left and one to the right, James really couldn't catch up this time!

He's just too tall; asking him to move sideways like that is really asking too much. He's a monster, but he's not Terminator T1000!

Lin Tian, ​​who had successfully created an open space, did not hesitate and once again pulled up for a three-pointer, the basketball flying out of his hand once more!

"Whoosh!"

Another crisp sound rang out as Lin Tian scored two consecutive three-pointers!

42:57! (End of Chapter)