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Chapter 312 Fire Support
Before Xu Hao and Ellington were replaced with more than three minutes left in the first quarter to rest, now they are full of energy and waiting to play against each other.However, Popovich just continued to deploy Ginobili and gave Parker more rest time. Everyone knew that he used troops in unpredictable ways, but no one doubted this decision.

It was Hill who started the second quarter with Ginobili. This is a guard whose assist desire is far less than that of scoring, so the Spurs' possession of the ball is still concentrated in Ginobili's hands.When this sharp "Argentine Demon Knife" became the commander of the Spurs, the team's style became a little more unpredictable, rather than as rigid as Parker's offensive organization before.

But Xu Hao didn't take it seriously. He has seen Ginobili's style of play many times in the system, and he has watched a lot of videos about him. Ginobili's coquettish passing is in his eyes. No big deal.

Since Duncan was also pressed on the bench, the Timberwolves also recovered, and Xu Hao took this opportunity to find a touch on the outside.Even though Neal kept marking him closely under Popovich's signal, Xu Hao frequently took advantage of his shooting range to take one-step shots from beyond the three-point line, and he was able to guarantee half of the shots.This is enough for the Timberwolves. Xu Hao's precise outside shot forced the Spurs to expand their defense and disrupted Popovich's deployment.

The old man did not expect that Xu Hao kept shooting from such a long distance like a lunatic, which is absolutely not allowed in the Spurs team, and he also complained about McHale's laissez-faire attitude.But he has to admit that Xu Hao's long-range three-point shooting is very effective, and the ever-approaching score makes him have to put the main players back on the court in advance.

When Duncan and Parker came back, the Spurs stabilized the situation slightly, and Duncan continued his dominance inside the first quarter.But this time the Timberwolves didn't choose to go straight. Xu Hao's shot opened up a huge space, and the interior became extremely empty for a while. Only Jordan was still cruising around the basket waiting for an opportunity to grab rebounds. Love had already moved to close to the three-pointer The position of the line.As a modern insider with a three-pointer, this position is also his shooting range.

Duncan also had to pull to the high post to defend. He is a player with a balanced offense and defense, and his movement speed is very good among the inside players. It is very simple for him to move to the high post and then return to the basket. of.But no matter how far away he was, it was impossible to defend Xu Hao's position. By the time he came out, there would have been a big hole in the basket.

Facing Xu Hao's shooting, Parker felt very painful. His strength lies in his speed, and his defense was relatively average. Now he has to face Xu Hao who is going all out, and he feels very difficult.The key problem is that he can't call Ginobili to defend together, and the consequences of leaving Ellington short are also terrible. His three-point shooting ability is second only to Xu Hao in the team.

Seeing Parker clumsily on the defensive end, Popovich sighed.Everyone says that the Spurs defend well, but in fact their defense is still based on protecting the frame. In other words, they rely only on Duncan.Parker and Ginobili are most likely to gamble steals from the perimeter, and if they fail to do so, they will delay a bit and leave the problem to Duncan to deal with.

There are no particularly reliable perimeter defenders on the Spurs' roster now. Maybe some of those water fountain watchmen have such talents, but they haven't been excavated yet. It depends on whether Popovich is willing to try.But even if he is willing to drop talents in an eclectic manner, it is not possible to conduct experiments now, and it is better to wait until the end of the season.

Of course, Xu Hao knew how powerful Duncan’s ability to protect the frame was, so he made up his mind not to go to the basket in this game, and handed over all the inside offense to Love. He focused on three-point shooting and helped his teammates pull the Spurs’ defense. .

Popovich had no choice. He couldn't force Xu Hao to break through to the basket to face Duncan. He could only silently pray that Xu Hao's shooting rate could be reduced.But Xu Hao obviously didn't want to make it easier for the Spurs. He hit consecutive three-pointers with his teammates' screens.

In the second quarter, Xu Hao scored 5 three-pointers alone, helping the Timberwolves narrow the point difference to 5 points at halftime.The reason is simple. It is true that Duncan has the advantage in the interior and scored consecutively, but Love and Jordan are also trying their best to stop him, and Xu Hao has an extra point bonus from outside the three-point line. On the premise of a high shooting rate Naturally, it is a big advantage.

McHale was overjoyed about this. He didn't expect that the team could bring back the situation on the field under such circumstances. He originally thought that it would be good to be able to control the situation so that it would not get worse, but he got something unexpected. surprise.

More importantly, Xu Hao's shooting from the outside created a lot of opportunities for Love to score. Even Jordan Jr. felt sick after eating cakes. enough.

Xu Hao's performance also made McHale determined to focus on the outside line. At least in this game, he must stick to this style of play. Inside players are more likely to create opportunities for the outside line, and then work hard to grab rebounds.Love readily accepted the coach's decision. He was bullied by Duncan. In the second quarter, he scored some points in the interior by virtue of the fire support from the outside, but obviously he hadn't made enough contribution to the team. It's time to be dangdang Blue-collar can also be regarded as making up for mistakes.

Little Jordan will not say anything, this is the purpose of the Timberwolves to get him through the trade-reliable frame protector and rebounder.When Love also joined, the Timberwolves' rebounding ability was visibly strengthened.

Popovich is not clear about the deployment of the Timberwolves, but he understands that the Spurs need to strengthen the perimeter defense. Parker and Ginobili's offense is very good, but the defense is a headache.Suddenly he thought of a new and more dynamic backcourt combination, that is, Hill plus Neal. Although their strength is not as good as Parker and Ginobili, their defense is more reliable.

As the league's leading tactician, Popovich also likes to make surprise moves, and the results are good.Normally he never lets these two backup defenders play at the same time, but now it seems that he can give it a try.Even if they can't guard against the Timberwolves' outside shooting, the situation won't be worse than it is now. It's better to give them a chance to try.

(End of this chapter)