naaapseattle Chapter 343 The Battle for the First Name in the East
Chapter 343 The Battle for the First Name in the East
Chapter 343 The Battle for the First Name in the East
Chicago, United Center.
When the visiting Bobcats played, the Bulls fans at home erupted in cheers.
This is surprising and surprising, but if you turn your attention to the private room at the height of the stands, all doubts can be answered.
"Michael came to watch the Bobcats' away game against the Bulls today. He stood outside the private room and waved to the Bobcats players who had just played on the field. The Bulls fans at the United Center cheered and welcomed the return of this unique legendary superstar in the history of the Bulls!"
Old Joe just wanted to say hello to the Bobcats on the field, and told Li Ke by the way that the two guests he invited were sitting with him in the private room of the United Center.
The burst of cheers from the Bulls fans was within his expectations, but at the moment the cheers broke out, he waved to both sides happily, excitedly, and excitedly.
"Back to the United Center, who will Michael support in this game?"
In the commentary seat, Mike Brin looked sideways with a smile. Steve Kerr, who is also considered a Bulls legend, smiled: "I think he will definitely support the Bobcats, so in this game, I will reluctantly support the Bulls."
These words sounded high-sounding, and Mike Brin shook his head and laughed. He knew that Cole had looked down on Joe Boss and Joe Boss' team for a long, long time.
"Well, Steve, I think you're going to be disappointed in this game."
The Bobcats are now in the lead, and even the bulls, who have risen as a dark horse and occupied the second place in the Eastern Conference, have been left far behind.
Unless the Bobcats have a crazy losing streak in the second half, the Bobcats will be the No. [-] in the East and even the No. [-] in the league.
The Bobcats, who have only lost 6 games so far, are also considered to have a good chance of breaking the Bulls' record of 72 wins.
In this case, even the game that was fired as the top spot in the Eastern Conference before the game, most of the public opinion also believed that the Bulls would not be the opponent of the Bobcats.
On the court, Li Ke saw the old Joe outside the private room, and also saw Xiao Guo and Anthony Davis beside the old Joe.
It has become a practice to give Xiao Guo a ticket to watch the game every year in Chicago.
This year, it was not Li Ke who brought Brother Nongmei on his own. It was because Xiao Guo and Brother Nongmei had fought against each other for three years.
The second difference this year is that Xiao Guo sat in the private room of the United Center.
The reason for this difference is that Old Qiao watched the rise of the old master and decided on a whim to go to the scene to watch the game.
So, at the United Center, at the invitation of Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf, Old Joe took Xiao Guo and Brother Nongmei and sat in the private room of the high-level stands.
……
When the game started, Xiao Guo and Brother Nongmei still kept their eyes on the tall figure in front of them.
They were excited and excited, thinking it was just a game of sitting in the front row watching the Son of the Windy City lead the Bulls against the Bobcats of the Chosen One.
Then, Brother Nongmei supported the son of Fengcheng, and Xiao Guo supported the son of Tianxuan...
But now that they are sitting behind GOAT, the outcome of this game seems to be meaningless.
On the court, Jordan Jr. jumped the ball and defeated Joakim Noah, and the old Joe clapped his hands as a celebration.
Jerry Reinsdorf on the side shook his head: "Michael, it's just a jump ball..."
"Even with the jump ball, it was a stage win for the game."
"Well, you are GOAT, everything you say is right..."
The confrontation in the private room has already begun...
On the court, the Bobcats' offense has already launched with great confidence.
It was still Captain Jack's support in the middle. Li Ke made a quick air cut on the flank and went around.
Li Ke sprinted with the ball without any hesitation, stopped suddenly after one step, raised his hand and threw the basketball out.
Bang-dang-!
Looking back to the private room, Xiao Guo looked regretful, while Brother Nongmei still stared at Old Qiao.
Old Joe didn't move or express, but Jerry Reinsdorf clapped his hands.
"Look, Michael, today the Bulls will give the Bobcats the seventh loss of the season, and end the Bobcats' winning streak by the way."
"Anyone can talk big, Jerry..."
On the court, Li Ke settled in the backcourt, ready to defend.
What impressed him most about the offense just now was that the Bulls' defense was indeed not a joke.
The stacking of the strong side is well done, and the fast rotation defense is also perfect.
Here, Li Ke just got rid of Ronnie Brewer, and then turned around and followed.
The defense is very oppressive. If you look at it this way, it is difficult to pierce the Bulls' defense just by looking at a simple cut and shoot.
Of course, if you just want to win, the Bobcats don't need to pierce the Bulls' defense.
Because the Bulls' offense is also a big problem, Boozer's performance is not as good as expected, Luol Deng is a bit like Hua's second child to the Bobcats in the past season, averaging 17.4 points per game, and the impact on the offensive end is pitifully small.
The only threat to the Bulls is third-year Derrick Rose.
Rose's performance this season made Li Ke recall some clips of Rose, the pinnacle of his previous life, such as sharp changes in direction, high-speed breakthroughs, elegant levers, and explosive dunks with both hands...
It was a performance, a blast, a feast for the eyes, and one that couldn't help but cheer.
Derrick Rose also attracted a lot of fans because of this, and once became the leader of the new generation of NBA.
But injuries...
Li Ke is very clear that not only defensive master Tom Thibodo, but also Derrick Rose are leading the Bulls forward.
Some people say that Rose will shoulder half of the Bulls' offense, and they are right.
So in turn, how do you beat the Bulls without poking through their defense?
Lock Rose and it's over, lock Rose, and the Bulls' offense will be half useless.
Why didn't the Bulls, who swept the East in the regular season in those years, even have a finals experience?
Not only because they met the top three giants, but more importantly, everyone knows the only way to deal with the Bulls and Rose.
Rose's two-year playoffs at the peak, one year in the Eastern Conference finals, was blocked by LeBon's switch defense, and his shooting percentage in five games in the series was only 35%.
He was blacked out by the 76ers in the second year, and Rose only played one game due to injury.
The former can prove that Rose can be guarded.
The latter proves that Rose is extremely important to the Bulls.
So, on the court, the first offensive round of the Bulls, the defense happened quietly.
"Steph Curry is eyeing Ronnie Brewer, so, Sheldon will switch on Derrick Rose?"
"A wise choice. This season's Derrick Rose can be said to have supported the Bulls' offense on his own. Stephen Curry's defense can't prevent him."
Watching Li Ke face Rose, Mike Breen analyzed the rationality of this wave of defense changes.
Cole shook his head: "Selton's defense may not be able to withstand the impact of Derek. Derek this season is at the MVP level."
As soon as these words came out, Mike Brin was actually a bit of a question mark face. Rose this season is indeed at the MVP level, but isn't Li Ke's defensive performance at the Dpoy level?
The debate in the commentary was unnecessary. At this moment, Mike Breen's eyes locked on the matchup at the top of the arc.
Derrick Rose didn't make any fancy moves. He controlled the ball, headed against Li Ke, walked to one side, and then suddenly picked up speed.
The most terrifying thing about Rose is his explosive step. With the sharp change of direction, there are very few defensive players in the league who can completely lock him.
Li Ke's defense is strong because he knows himself and the enemy and can fight a hundred battles. He knows Rose's strengths, so he kept a safe distance from the beginning to the end.
When Rose took the step to explode, he also exploded immediately.
1 seconds, 2 seconds...
Soon, Li Ke forced Ross to stop.
With an emergency stop in the middle distance, Rose threw the ball out against Li Ke's interference.
Bang-dang-!
The basketball smashed out of the hoop, and after the crisp sound of iron striking, the United Center only heard a burst of exclamation.
The commentary was a little silent, and only Mike Breen said: "Sheldon completely enveloped Derrick Rose. The Bulls played too reluctantly."
At this time, Cole can only say: "Yes, Derek should pass the ball."
If the Bulls' starting shooting guard in this game is Keith Bogans or Kyle Korver, Rose may still have room to pass the ball.
But in this game, in order to defend, the Bulls started with Ronnie Brewer, who is more defensive.
If the space cannot be opened, Rose can only fight hard.
Under the basket, Jordan grabbed the rebound.
After the offensive and defensive transition, it was Bobcats' turn again.
Captain Jack continued to support at the top of the arc, followed by Li Ke, throwing off Ronnie Brewer, and catching the ball to face Luol Deng's supplementary defense.
But this time, instead of making a direct shot, he raised his hand and waved a fake shot.
Then retracted, a change of hands behind the back, a rapid change of direction, after a staggered position, speeding up and wiping away...
Bang!
The basket in the United Center was abused, and Li Ke hung high on the frame.
In the commentary seat, Cole continued to be silent, leaving only Mike Breen to support himself:
"After an off-the-ball cut, Sheldon caught the ball and didn't make a direct shot. Instead, he made another breakthrough, broke into the penalty area, and scored a dunk!"
"The Bobcats score, 2-0!"
Mike Breen was not surprised by Cole's silence. He knew that this guy was waiting for the Bulls to attack.
After all, since the beginning, all of Cole's praises have been given to Rose.
The Bulls' round, kickoff in the backcourt.
Rose, who received the ball, controlled it slowly, and just crossed the half court with one foot, and immediately exploded.
Rose's sudden acceleration caught Li Ke off guard, and he almost didn't react.
Urgently moving small steps under his feet, he wanted to re-complete the cover of Rose by moving laterally, but after a few steps, he realized that it was impossible.
Immediately chose another way, he used his body to collide with Rose.
This is the inspiration that Lebang's successful defense of Ross in the previous Eastern Conference finals brought to Li Ke.
Simply put, Rose's strengths are his speed and explosiveness, and there are very few players in the league who can rival Rose in these aspects.
Therefore, if you want to lock Rose, you can only avoid his edge, avoid Rose's strengths, and then use your own strengths to oppress Rose.
Compared with Ross, Li Ke's strength is his strength and confrontation, and so is Le Bon.
Use your body to oppress Rose, forcing him to have speed but not be able to play.
The rest depends on the referee's penalty scale.
boom!
With a muffled sound, Li Ke collided with Ross, took quick steps, and entangled Ross with great difficulty.
Then, it was a re-enactment of the Bulls' first attack.
"Breakthrough, emergency stop, Derrick Rose made another mid-range shot!"
Bang!
Cole's silence can only continue.
It wasn't until the middle of the first quarter that Rose relied on Noati's pick-and-roll cover to completely get rid of Li Ke's marking.
Rose, who assumed half of the Bulls' offense, was locked up by Li Ke alone. Cole was silent for the entire first quarter, and the Bulls were beaten 23 to 16 by the Bobcats.
The score is not high, because the Bulls' defense is not weak.
The Bobcats can no longer play the catch-and-shoot routine, and the offensive efficiency has dropped significantly. 23 points in a single quarter is considered a very successful offense.
After the second quarter, Li Ke continued to stare at Rose, and the Bulls began to switch the core of the offense.
Although the Bulls' career is not as good as expected, Boozer is still the Bulls' second scoring point, and besides Rose, the most threatening offensive point in singles.
The Bulls began to attack with him as the core, which can be regarded as a style of play.
But the Bobcats replaced Tucker with a hard top.
After one quarter, halftime ended, and the score became 44 to 35.
Boozer, who had high hopes from Thibodeau, only scored 9 points on 4 of 10 shots in this quarter.
Not inefficient, but not exactly efficient either.
The Bobcats took a 9-point lead at halftime. The point difference was not big, but the overall suppression was already very obvious.
In the second half, the Bobcats continued to suppress the Bulls with the same response to all changes.
Then three games, 69 to 54, the Bobcats lead by 15 points.
In the fourth quarter, the Bobcats did not put in too much effort, and finally defeated the Bulls away with a score of 93 to 75.
Steve Kerr, who was silent for the entire game, announced: "The first place in the Eastern Conference, the Charlotte Bobcats changed from the norm and used tenacious defense to block the Bulls' offense, thus taking the victory of the game."
Then, following this sentence, Mike Breen brought back the discussion at the beginning of the game about whether Li Ke could guard Rose.
"Selton guarded Derrick Rose, who was at the MVP level this season, and that's the key."
Cole froze for a moment, then nodded: "Uh, yes, Sheldon's defense was successful."
"So, why is Sheldon able to defend against Derrick Rose, who is at the MVP level this season?"
"..."
The discussion in the commentary booth gradually made Cole feel embarrassed. In the private room of the stands, the confrontation between Boss Joe and Jerry Reinsdorf only lasted half a quarter of the game.
After that, the bull was blown out and Jerry Reinsdorf was silent.
Old Joe's emotional intelligence is still fine, and after the game became clearer, he didn't celebrate much.
At the end of the game, he just stretched out his right hand and shook Jerry Reinsdorf: "It seems that Derrick Rose is not in good condition, so we won this game."
Finding a reason for the Bulls can be regarded as giving Jerry Reinsdorf a step down.
Jerry Reinsdorf did not go down this step, but said thoughtfully: "The Bobcats have been very successful in building the team in the past two years, Michael, you have improved."
When Old Qiao heard this inexplicable sentence, he shrugged and spread his hands, as if expressing, isn't this what it should be?
Immediately, Jerry Reinsdorf's words made him frown.
"If you can't get along in Charlotte, come to me, I'll sell you some shares in the Bulls, and let you be the Chief Operating Officer of the Bulls."
Two more today
(End of this chapter)