The godfather of basketball started from conquering the NBA

"Listen guys, even though they got it right, we still had a chance, they didn't really come to the line in the first half, it was a trap they set up for us, to force us to put the ball inside , Go one-on-one with Duncan."

The midfielder was in the locker room, and Xu Xiao was patiently explaining the Spurs' tactical system to the players.

"I'm sorry coach, we failed to fully implement your tactics." Gasol said with a guilty look.

In the first half of the game, the Timberwolves trailed the Spurs 48 to 53. The performance of Gasol and Hayes was a disaster.

"I don't want your tm apology right now. The game is not tm over, so you apologize to me." Seeing the dejected expressions on the faces of these two people, Xu Xiao, who has always been gentle and elegant, said a very m-contained sentence.

"Listen, they will continue to use the defensive strategy just now. I ask you to shoot me decisively whenever you have an opportunity on the outside." Xu Xiao tried his best to calm himself down and calm down.

"The first half was the tuition we paid. In the second half, we should fight back."

Xu Xiao's words were powerful.

With the whistle blowing, the second half of the game began.

The Spurs continued to go up the line to double-team the ball holder, and Roy also quickly moved the ball. Milicic received the ball and made a three-pointer without hesitation.

The league's first three-point shooting rate really lived up to its reputation, and it hit the first goal in the opening game.

With the first one, the second one, and the third one after another. Of course, there were a few misses in the middle, but the Timberwolves' rushing and grabbing rebounds without any regard for the defense also caused the Spurs a headache.

When Oden also hit a three-pointer from the corner, the Spurs became anxious, and the Timberwolves completely overtook the score.

"Our offense is good. Next, we must pay attention to defense. Although the Spurs are based on defense, their offense cannot be ignored. Don't double-team easily and use more defenses. When Parker and Ginobili enter this When you are in the position, you must not be fooled, and don't rush out easily."

Xu Xiao took the tactical board to draw tactics again, and the assistant coach was stunned.

"Next, the Spurs will definitely defend our offense accordingly, especially Popovich is a person who pays special attention to defense, so shouldn't we change our offensive strategy?" An assistant said puzzled.

"Now we feel very good, and we are catching up and overtaking the score through offense, so we don't need to actively adjust the offense, but we must pay attention to the defense, especially now that everyone is playing high on offense, it is easy to appear. On top of the defense, it's not worth it to be tricked into a few fouls by this old fritter."

Xu Xiao calmly explained, unconsciously, there were a little more admiring eyes around him.

Sure enough, the Spurs made adjustments on the offensive end, increasing Parker and Ginobili's possession of the ball. However, with the Timberwolves' generals already fully shooting, Parker and Ginobili's difficult layups seemed like a drop in the bucket. up.

Xu Xiao's tactics are right, as long as Ginobili and Parker are not killed and the pace of the game is slowed down, it doesn't matter if he gets two points, anyway, you won't be able to guard me when you come back.

Popovich made a man-marker, but the Timberwolves shot high and threw it against the defender, and the old Spurs really couldn't keep up with the Timberwolves' young legs.

Although the use of young people such as Afflalo and Batum in the fourth quarter made the Spurs' defense a little better, but reusing newcomers means accepting their mistakes in growth, such as offensive mistakes. Wait for the phone call.

Although the feel of the Timberwolves in the fourth quarter has also come down, the Timberwolves have always maintained an active fight on the defensive end, including the protection of rebounds. In the whole game, the Timberwolves grabbed 15 more rebounds than the Spurs, and the fourth quarter was a single quarter. He won 8 rebounds, including 6 offensive rebounds.

So in the entire fourth quarter, the Spurs only scored 16 points, and the Spurs also lost the first game 94-99.

The Timberwolves, who got a good start, did not relax at all. After the game, Xu Xiao immediately called the team for a meeting.

After all, for a young team, everyone is playing in the playoffs for the first time, and they still make a lot of mistakes, and they need constant reminders.

"In the last game, I was not very satisfied. The tactics we formulated before the game were not fully implemented, and the offense we are proud of became hesitant. If it weren't for the rain of three-pointers in the third quarter With the rebound in the fourth quarter, our first game is over."

Xu Xiao said a little angrily.

"In the next game, our biggest adjustment is mentality, especially in our best offense, we still focus on double guns, Greg, don't always think about single-handedly with Duncan, you are still young, and there is still a long way to go in the future." There is a long way to go, don't be troubled by the immediate success or failure."

Xu Xiao looked at Oden who had failed to single out Duncan several times in the game and comforted him.

Duncan is the number one power forward in history, let alone Oden Dalo's skills, even if he is given Olajuwon's skills, he may not be able to beat Duncan.

"In the next game, we need to take advantage of our athletic advantages in the middle distance, and the defense against Parker can still be better. We don't always think about blocking him in the penalty area. We have to find a way to prevent him He entered the box."

The second game was still played at the Spurs' home court. In this game, the Spurs changed the starting lineup, replaced veteran Kurt Thomas, and used Bonner, who was once a mascot, as the starter.

The implication is obvious, that is to open up space on the offensive end, give opportunities for double guns, and hand over all the burden to Duncan on the defensive end.

"Old thief Bobo, you are really lucky. If you didn't have a player like Duncan backing you up, would you dare to play like this?"

At the beginning, Duncan did put enough pressure on the Timberwolves on the defensive end. After all, Milicic's inside technical development is not that good, and his breakthrough with the ball is average. Popovich also saw it, so let Bonner, who is average defensively, go right.

But Oden also has a three-pointer, so Duncan also takes into account Oden's three-pointer while also taking into account the breakthrough of the Timberwolves guard and the air cut of the striker.

At the same time, it is necessary to provide high-quality pick-and-rolls on the offensive end, providing sufficient offensive space for Parker and Ginobili. When Xu Xiao's tactics against Parker took effect, Duncan took on the role of supporting the Spurs' offense.

"Sure enough, he is the number one power forward in history. From this moment on, no Dirk Nowitzki or Garnett can match Duncan. This game is Duncan. If it is replaced by someone else, it would have been spent a long time ago. Anyone else I can't even achieve this effect." Xu Xiao said calmly at the coach's bench.

After one quarter, Popovich changed his tactics. The Timberwolves' defense did not give Parker and Ginobili a chance to break through easily.

Xu Xiao's trick is very simple. He uses his height to limit your speed. It's useless if you miss half a step. The defender's height and long arms can still interfere.

Xu Xiao clearly remembered that in next year's playoffs, the Spurs faced the Suns. This is how the Suns played against the Spurs' backcourt. At that time, the Suns' insiders Stoudemire and Frye, and a second-year Robin Lopez , the protective frame is completely absent.

But at that time, the Suns used two tricks. One was to use the height of the front line to limit the two guns, and try not to let them easily break into the inside line, and the pick-and-roll was also snatched from above.

In addition, it is the offensive rhythm and the firepower of the bench. The scores in those games were not low, and all of them were over [-]. However, the Spurs' scoring was very difficult, and it was not my favorite way of scoring. Parker and Ginobili could score. , but it cannot cause damage, which leads to Stoudemire being able to do whatever he wants on the offensive end, and cannot connect the whole team.

Now, on my own side, Westbrook, Ariza and Outlaw are no better than the Suns' Richardson, Old Hill and Dudley. They are a little bit worse in terms of experience, but Westbrook has the skills of Billups. , Outlaw has Avery Bradley on defense.

And you don't have to worry about your own offense at all. Although Westbrook is not in his peak state now, the Timberwolves' morale is high now, and the Spurs can't stop it at all.

The Spurs also lost the second game 91 to 107 very simply.

When he returned to his home court in the third game, he didn't even give him a chance, and defeated the Spurs again 113-99.

The 3-0 lead also made the young Timberwolves a little relaxed. In the fourth game, Popovich finally began to change, let Bowen and Batum start together, and also put Afflalo in the starting lineup.

This Spurs play much more reasonably, the defense can keep up, the offensive firepower is also reasonable, and Ginobili continues the Spurs' offensive rhythm on the bench.

In the fourth game, the Spurs also beat the Timberwolves 105 to 88, winning a chance for themselves.

"Listen guys, no team has ever come back from 0-3 in the playoffs," Popovich said, looking around, before adding:

"But history is made by people, and records are also broken by people. Let us be the pioneers this year. At our home court, win opponents and make history." Popovich also encouraged before the game player.

In this game, the Spurs played more disciplined, forcing the Timberwolves to make 20 turnovers. In the end, they beat the Timberwolves 110 to 90 at home, making the total score 2 to 3.

At this time, more and more people in the forum began to question the Timberwolves.

The talk that the Spurs want to make history is also rampant.

"The Timberwolves played really well this year, but the Spurs are a veteran team after all. Once they seize the opportunity, the Spurs really have a chance to make history. The Timberwolves are still too young." The United States stood up again and began to be objective evaluation.

Game [-] was held in Minnesota, and for the Timberwolves, it was a battle of life and death.

If this game cannot be won, then the next seventh game, whether it is mentality or morale, will be a huge blow to the Timberwolves.

"It's okay guys, take it easy, the Lakers have already advanced, if we want to challenge them, we can't be stopped by the Spurs, Outlaw starts this game, we have to fight against them as soon as we come up."

At this moment, Xu Xiao was very calm. He knew that the more urgent this time, the greater the pressure on the players, and the harder it would be to play this game.

Under his guidance, the mentality of the team members is much calmer.

From the beginning of the game, the two sides began a fierce physical confrontation.

Although Bowen is old, but the pace of defense is still there, coupled with the bad moves that specialize in the next three lanes, this makes Milicic very uncomfortable.

Because Milicic doesn't really have a particularly stable scoring method other than three-pointers, so as long as Bowen sticks to Milicic and prevents him from taking shots, his threat will be much smaller. He has a one-handed three-pointer, which makes Milicic have to be wide open when defending.

But because the Timberwolves are twin towers and still have an advantage in rebounding, the score has not been opened.

At this time, Xu Xiao suddenly thought of a way, beckoned directly from the bench, and called a timeout during a dead ball.

"Mark, you go." Hearing Xu Xiao's call, Gasol took off his coat and was ready to go on the court. Oden saw Gasol changing clothes and was walking off the court.

"Come back Greg, you and Mark, we use the Twin Towers."

"Greg, you are in the low position, Mark is in the high position, do high and low coordination, Outlaw, you have to wait for the opportunity, you have to first land on the same side of Greg, and then run to the opposite side of Greg, you Run aggressively, Russell, you're in charge of this tactic."

If the Spurs see this tactic three years later, they will definitely have a headache.

This is the tactic I used when I was blacked out by the Grizzlies. Gasol Jr. was in the high post and Randolph was in the low post. The two played Duncan and McDyess at the expense of one another. This round of the series ended and McDyess retired directly.

Now the Spurs' inside line is Duncan protecting the frame, and Bowen and Batum are helping to defend. One has experience and the other has athletic ability. It really looks like a wonderful combination.

But Pop, have you ever seen a lineup like this?