Chapter 241 First round of playoffs

Author: Feng Yuanhua

Chapter 241 First round of playoffs

"Whoosh!"

Without any accidents, the basketball hit the net!

"Oh my god, Wang's shot is as if it is equipped with precision guidance!

My players should be more vigilant and not wait until he takes action to block it.

Facing Wang, we can't give him the slightest chance, you know, he is the three-pointer king."

Even the host at the Rose Garden Arena couldn't help but sigh.

As for the title of three-point king, it seems to be well-deserved after holding the title of three-point king for two seasons.

Steve Smith naturally knew that the person standing in front of him was the best scorer in the NBA.

But knowing is one thing, being able to prevent it is another.

No, in the next defensive round, Steve Smith pressed forward appropriately and did not give him a chance to take a three-point shot.

Wang Hao didn't play tricks and broke through directly.

Steve Smith quickly followed up, but unfortunately, he was still a step too late, allowing Wang Hao to easily break through.

The defense is originally very passive, but Wang Hao broke through first. How can the defensive players defend?

Not only that, when facing Steve Smith, Wang Hao also used his physical advantage very cleverly.

Raise your arms appropriately and use your arms and body to block the defender behind you, which gives you more options.

Sabonis always stayed on the inside. He moved his feet immediately and chose the right position to help defend.

However, Wang Hao is not the kind of player who only focuses on attacking the basket.

When Sabonis was completely attracted, the basketball in his hand had already been passed out.

After Gorilla Ewing got the ball, he finished the game with a powerful dunk.

54:53

Only one minute into the second half, the SuperSonics had already taken the lead, and the pressure returned to the Trail Blazers.

The SuperSonics' morale is booming, but it's the Trail Blazers who seem to have problems again.

In the last offense, Rasheed Wallace missed a mid-range shot, and this time, Stoudemire's floater also missed.

The two core players seemed to have lost their form in the first half.

Returning to the defensive formation again, watching Wang Hao catch the ball directly outside the three-point line, Steve Smith suddenly felt like Alexander.

One step beyond the three-point line is still within Wang Hao's shooting range, so he has to move forward.

In this way, Wang Hao made another breakthrough.

But this time, Sabonis had just returned to the basket and didn't even notice that Wang Hao could break through so easily.

A very light rebound shot, and the Sonics scored two more points.

Looking at the basketball falling from the basket, Steve Smith was helpless and helpless.

He also discovered that Wang Hao's speed was not that exaggerated, but he was very good at using his own advantages.

The three-point threat, coupled with physical confrontation, gives him an advantage when facing most defensive players.

Mike Dunleavy, who was sitting on the sidelines, had a grimace on his face and his expression was extremely solemn.

However, he still struggled to stand up and adjusted his defensive positioning on the court.

In the last game, Scottie Pippen, whose defensive performance was not satisfactory, was once again assigned to defend Wang Hao.

Unfortunately, the first two games have proven that even Batman cannot guard against Wang Hao.

Wang Hao decisively changed his playing style, switching from attacking with the ball to attacking without the ball.

This method can avoid Scott Pippen's advantage in physical confrontation and attack his disadvantage of slow speed.

As another three-pointer was hit, the sky above the Rose Garden Arena fell silent.

Even if Rasheed Wallace responded and maintained the score, the fans still saw no hope.

This is also true.

The fans who can come to the scene, not only understand the football emperor, but they still know a little about the situation on the field.

The SuperSonics' morale is at its peak, and they even have a somewhat unrivaled momentum, while the Trail Blazers are like a dying patient, making their final struggle.

32:18

In the third quarter, the SuperSonics scored 32 points in a single quarter, beating the Blazers' defense to pieces.

Among them, Wang Hao even scored 19 points in the third quarter, scoring more than the entire Trail Blazers team alone.

81:71

Entering the second half trailing by 10 points, judging from the score, the Trail Blazers actually still have a chance.

However, in terms of status, the chances are slim.

There was an episode in the middle of the third quarter when the Blazers' boss left the table angrily.

Paul Allen was not only disappointed with the loss in this game, but also disappointed with the lineup that was built with a lot of money.

It's not built with a lot of money. The Blazers' salary this year is as high as 87 million US dollars.

You know, this only includes the salaries of the players, not the salaries of the coaching staff and management.

The entire team's salary combined is well over 100 million.

This is the highest salary in the league. The New York Knicks, who are not short of money, only have a salary of US$73 million this year.

The salary of last season's championship Lakers was less than $60 million.

As for the rival SuperSonics, this year's salary is only US$50 million.

This is because they took advantage of Ewing's multi-million-year salary contract, otherwise the salary level would only be lower.

As one of the major shareholders of Microsoft, Paul Allen is not short of money, but he doesn't want to be taken advantage of either.

It can be said that Paul Allen's departure midway has determined the fate of some people.

For example, Mike Dunleavy, as the head coach, has been a little slow to react.

During the fourth quarter game, Mike Dunleavy sat in the head coach's position with a gloomy look and showed no reaction.

No, at the beginning of the fourth quarter, Gary Payton and Rashard Lewis led the bench and widened the point difference again.

Just halfway through the fourth quarter, the point difference between the two sides had already been stretched to 20 points.

At this time, scattered fans in the Rose Garden Arena had begun to leave their seats and leave the arena.

Rather than sitting here and watching the game depressedly, it is better to leave early to avoid traffic jams.

The departure of nearly half of the fans obviously affected the state of the Blazers, especially the main players.

On the contrary, the role players performed well, but unfortunately, their scoring was only a drop in the bucket for the situation.

108:91

The Sonics won their third game without any blood, successfully won the match point and advanced to the Western Conference semifinals.

They are also the first team in the league to advance to the semifinals.

Last season, in the semifinals, the SuperSonics faced the Lakers and ultimately failed.

This season is starting all over again, and they don't want to go back to fishing early.

"Well done, guys, but I have to remind you that this is just the beginning.

Next, there will be the Western Conference semifinals and even the Western Conference finals, that is our battlefield."

Paul Westphal is also very satisfied, not because of the sweep of the Trail Blazers, but because of the state of the players.

After all, he was the winner, and Wang Hao and Gary Payton were arranged to receive post-game interviews together.

"Wang, how do you evaluate your opponent?"

We have already won the game, so there is no need to say anything that will cause controversy, just a burst of praise.

"As we all know, the Portland Trail Blazers are an extremely good team with an excellent head coach and players.

However, we can all see that they are not in the best condition and they have not exerted their full strength.

The NBA is a long season, from October last year to now, a full 6 months.

No one can be at their best all the time, not us, not the Lakers, not the Trail Blazers.

It's a pity that they were not very lucky and encountered a low state at the most critical time."

…
To be continued...