Chapter 89: Coming from behind
From the free throw line, he backed up and rolled to the edge of the three-second zone, turning around and shooting a close-range jump shot...
If it weren't for Jason Williams on the other side of the three-second zone and Almon Gilliam in the middle of the free throw line, forcing Owens and Mourning to stand on the other side of the three-second zone, would this be the rhythm of a back-to-the-basket layup from the free throw line?
The fans at the scene looked at Kurt Thomas' body shape. Although he was similar in shape to Zhang Hao, the black man's muscles were more obvious and he looked stronger than Zhang Hao. The key point was that Pat Riley had been praising Kurt Thomas' defensive talent in the preseason... but he turned out to be so weak?
However, just like the Nets' defensive success in the previous round was surprising, Zhang Hao's Barkley and Mark Jackson-style back-to-the-basket play also surprised others.
Feeling the strange looks from others on the court, Kurt Thomas really wanted to explain - it's not that I'm weak, it's just that this guy's strength is too abnormal!
It’s not that Zhang Hao’s strength is really extremely strong. Of course, it is definitely strong enough to deal with Kurt Thomas. It’s just that in terms of body size, Zhang Hao’s strength is too exaggerated.
Watching Mourning pick up the ball and pass it out, and the high school student of the same grade and position on the opposite side backing up and then retreating expressionlessly, Kurt Thomas could only run to the frontcourt... How sad!
The Heat still controlled the tempo and Mourning played one-on-one.
Once again, Mourning faced a four-man team as soon as he received the ball, and this time the Nets were more confident that Kurt Thomas, who had some mid-range shooting ability, had his receiving route disrupted.
Wanting to pass the ball back to Coles, Kenny Anderson used his speed to follow closely in front. Keith Askins was a defensive player, and Edwards defended Keith Askins just like Rex Chapman defended Graham before, completely ignoring the fact that this was the only teammate that Mourning, who was mentally prepared, could pass the ball to accurately.
Mourning chose to force a hook shot without being able to make a complete force movement...
"Bang"
It’s iron!
The ball hit the left side of the basket and Zhang Hao grabbed the defensive rebound!
With this formation, don't even think about a fast break. Zhang Hao should protect the ball and wait for Edwards to come around and receive the ball.
In the offense-defense transition, Kenny Anderson advanced to the frontcourt and saw Zhang Hao creating space on the left baseline again, so he signaled Zhang Hao to receive the ball.
This position, the distance from the free throw line...
Zhang Hao wanted to send a greeting to the boss, and he yelled in his heart - I am not the Barkley type! No!
His expression revealed a hint of helplessness, but his body was very honest. Zhang Hao immediately took a step upward and leaned tightly against Kurt Thomas.
Early double-teaming is not allowed, which is quite beneficial for the player receiving the ball, as it can better create a one-on-one environment.
Zhang Hao received the ball and shot with his hips raised!
Seeing that Kurt Thomas had tried his best but couldn't hold on again, the Heat players began to move defensively. Because Kurt Thomas lowered his center of gravity, Zhang Hao had a good vision and saw that Mourning tended to move towards him, so Zhang Hao continued to play.
It’s so cool not to have to back up for five seconds!
When Zhang Hao was rolling over Kurt Thomas and approaching the three-second zone, Mourning had already moved to the left edge of the three-second zone. Zhang Hao stood up... and passed the ball!
Keith Askins on the outside has already closed in, and Zhang Hao’s target of passing the ball is Edwards who is running towards the top arc!
Edwards received the ball without stopping and immediately threw it to the right side of the basket. Jason Williams stepped into the right side of the three-second zone, jumped high, and pushed the ball into the basket with one hand!
15 to 11, the Nets are leading by 4 points!
Zhang Hao's pass was eye-opening. He did not risk lobbing the ball directly over Mourning's long arms. Instead, he saw the time difference between Keith Askins's double-teaming and other Heat players' defense on Edwards, as well as the gaps for high and low post passes.
"Alwan, did you see that? Aix's awareness of coordination is so good. It's also because of your good teaching. He has the awareness to observe the third point so quickly..."
Butch Baird was very excited telling Alvan Adams how great Zhang Hao's pass was, and kept praising this contemporary player.
However, Butch Baird is more excited about Zhang Hao's awareness in this area. This kind of thing is a talent and cannot be learned. Otherwise, the NBA would be full of supporting experts on the street.
On the other side, Pat Riley squatted on the sidelines and loudly directed his players, which roughly meant - play as a team and attack from the outside.
Don't be afraid that the Nets will hear it, because as long as the outside players start playing one-on-one, the Nets will definitely not shrink.
Coles handed the ball to Owens, then pulled away and Owens singled.
But as soon as Owens received the ball, he was double-teamed by Edwards and Almon Gilliam.
Almon Gilliam's defense was average, so it was difficult for him to defend Owens. When Edwards saw that the opposing shooting guard was the defensive big guard Keith Askins, he made up his mind that as long as Owens played one-on-one, he would double-team him.
Owens took a long step back and missed the two-pointer!
Mourning rushed in to grab the offensive rebound, but Jason Williams would not give him any chance and firmly held on to the rebound!
Holding the ball, not in a hurry, Jason Williams passed the ball to Kenny Anderson after Mourning retreated.
When he reached the frontcourt, Zhang Hao consciously went to Kurt Thomas to ask for the ball.
Kurt Thomas faced off against a popular rookie for the first time in his rookie season. Before the game, he had imagined many possibilities. The Heat's style of play was very suitable for him, and he felt he could make a name for himself here.
If they could limit Zhang Hao like the Trail Blazers did, it would definitely be something worth celebrating for Kurt Thomas.
However, after he came on the court, he was beaten up by Zhang Hao...
This time, it comes again!
At this moment, Zhang Hao understood why Jordan and future Kobe Bryant liked to play one-on-one in the low post like a center. When static physical fitness and static strength have advantages, it is too easy to play like this, and it may be the one-on-one way with the least consumption.
Use force and roll backwards!
The post-up player has the ability to pass the ball. For this player, the most advantageous thing is not the pass itself, but having more opportunities to play one-on-one!
Keith Askins and Coles on the outside did not dare to move in, and Mourning also hesitated because there was another inside player of the opponent behind him.
Zhang Hao once again successfully pushed Kurt Thomas to the left sideline of the three-second zone from the free throw line and turned around to make a jump shot...
It was a good opportunity, but unfortunately it didn't go in. I was a little too excited and used a little too much force when I shot.
It was difficult for Mourning to grab the offensive rebound from Jason Williams. Similarly, it was difficult for Jason Williams to grab the ball against Mourning's broad body.
Mourning secured the rebound and passed it to Owens.
When they were retreating, the Heat quickly exchanged their offensive coordination. After Owens advanced to the frontcourt, he wasted time and with 10 seconds left in the offensive time, he broke through Almon Guillem!
Owens has the advantage in speed and flexibility, and Edwards immediately double-teamed him.
At this time, Keith Askins went to set an off-ball screen for Coles, and Mourning rushed in more resolutely. Owens passed the ball to Coles, and Coles made a high jump shot on the right side of the free throw line... and it hit!
Finally, after several rounds, the Heat finally scored!
13 to 15! Two points difference!
The Heat players suddenly became excited. On the defensive end, they saw Zhang Hao continue to back down from the free throw line, so Mourning began to move his feet in advance.
But this was noticed by Almon Guillem, and he didn't know whether Zhang Hao could notice it, so he started moving towards the free throw line.
When Zhang Hao was sticking his butt out and pushing Kurt Thomas to the left side of the three-second zone, Almon Gilliam suddenly pushed Owens and cut in through the middle!
At this time, Mourning's attention was all on Zhang Hao. Zhang Hao used his strength to push Kurt Thomas into the three-second zone, and Mourning immediately went up to double-team him!
With this double-teaming position, they didn't have to worry about Zhang Hao passing the ball from behind. However, Zhang Hao saw Almon Guillem cutting in and passed the ball to the middle!
Almon Guillem received the ball, took a step forward and dunked with both hands!
After the dunk, Almon Gilliam celebrated by pounding his chest like a gorilla. He wanted to high-five Zhang Hao to express his gratitude, but when he saw Zhang Hao, he ran away.
"This little devil is really..."
This ball was a big blow to the Heat players who had just accumulated strong momentum.
This shot was not like Zhang Hao's first back-to-the-basket shot and the second successful assist in the offense. The Heat were not prepared for those two shots.
For this ball, the Heat players were well prepared, but Zhang Hao still seized the opportunity to pass the ball.
If Zhang Hao was a little slower, Mourning would be able to get to Almon Gilliam.
The impact was completely different.
This affected the Heat's subsequent offense. After Owens advanced to the frontcourt, he even forgot to press the clock.
He directly attacked Almon Guillem, trying to give the Nets a chance to gain a foothold. He thought that the Nets might be accustomed to the Heat's slow-paced offense, and speeding up might have a different effect.
But the veteran Edwards had been paying attention to Owens' movements and double-teamed him immediately. At that time, Coles and Keith Askins were not ready for an off-ball pick-and-roll!
Owens tried to lift the ball forcefully, but was intercepted by Edwards!
Without hesitation, Edwards looked for Kenny Anderson first and passed the ball without hesitation.
The Heat's defensive discipline is really good. They practice it day after day when there are no games, and it's not in vain. Coles , Keith Askins, and Owens quickly retreated.
But someone rushed out from the inside at a high speed, and Owens was the first of the three Heat players to be overtaken among them!
When Owens was overtaken, Kenny Anderson, who started the fast break first, was also overtaken! Because Owens was interfering with Kenny Anderson's start when he retreated!
Closer to the other side's basket than his four teammates, Zhang Hao saw a line of words floating in front of him: "Single Rider (Gold) Trigger..."
The moment this line of words appeared, Zhang Hao's speed increased dramatically!
Coles and Keith Askins are both guards with quite good speed. They saw Kenny Anderson and Zhang Hao launching a double counterattack. Owens judged that Kenny Anderson was on the counterattack route and was blocking him. The two of them were preparing to trap Zhang Hao at the center line or the three-point line. As soon as they ran across the center line and turned around... the No. 8 jersey flew towards them!
He rushed directly between the two of them!
what's the situation?
The two of them quickly increased their speed and chased after Zhang Hao... but they didn't catch up!
After Zhang Hao surpassed the two people, he triggered full power on his own!
When I rushed to the free throw line, the ball really came.
Zhang Hao took two steps forward and just caught the lob from Kenny Anderson. He jumped up and gently dunked the ball into the basket with both hands!
"Dunk Master (Bronze) is triggered. The morale of the Nets team that Zhang Hao is on will be greatly improved in the next three rounds..."
"Single Rider" and "Slam Dunk Master" are a perfect match! As long as Zhang seizes such a counterattack opportunity , these two skills can be triggered in conjunction!
Regardless of whether the final dunk was an explosive dunk or not, this counterattack itself was explosive enough!
19 to 13, the score difference is 6 points!
Seeing that there was not much time left in the first quarter, the Heat players became anxious. They wanted to catch up with the score before the end of the first quarter.
Keith Askins served quickly and Coles' pace of advancement became faster, returning to the style of play of last season.
Not only did the two of them speed up, but the entire Heat team sped up as well. They didn't slow down the tempo and attacked in a rush.
It is indeed easy to create passing opportunities when switching between offense and defense. As the speed increases, the movement of the defending side will be put to a greater test.
Mourning successfully received the ball when he cut in, and seeing Jason Williams under the basket, he jumped directly towards Jason Williams!
Separate dunk!
Must be separated!
Only then can we raise the current low morale.
Just as Mourning forced Jason Williams to smash the ball into the basket and Jason Williams was about to shout "crush!", a thin and long arm appeared in their sight and slapped the ball!
Two forces were applied to the ball, causing it to go astray and bounce off the basket!
Seeing that Edwards was a little far away from where the ball would land, Kurt Thomas chose to retreat directly.
Sure enough, the Nets launched another two-man fast break!
Kurt Thomas retreated directly to the basket. Kenny Anderson was not hindered this time. He was the first to rush across half court, attracting the double defense of Coles and Keith Askins on the opposite side. There was no big center under the basket, only a rookie power forward. If Kenny Anderson could not be stopped in a one-on-one match on the outside, he would be in trouble.
Kenny Anderson seized the opportunity to pass the ball, Zhang Hao entered the three-point line to receive the ball, and chased for a long two-point shot...
Owens, who caught up, could only watch Zhang Hao easily catch the ball and make the shot!
21 to 13, the Nets' lead expanded to 8 points!
Pat Riley on the sidelines couldn't help but imitate his students and started fiddling with his Armani suit!
What he wanted to do was to continue to strengthen . Keith Askins is 201 cm tall, Owens is 201 cm tall, and Kurt Thomas is 206 cm tall. These three players can do better when switching defense on Zhang Hao than in the first half.
On the offensive end, the team relied on Mourning's inside containment to create opportunities for Kurt Thomas, a rookie with mid-range shooting ability.
Although the idea is simple, in Pat Riley's view, it is enough to deal with the Nets.
But I didn’t expect a total failure!
Pat Riley looked at the bench opposite him. One of them was wearing glasses and smiling, looking like a nice guy, while the other had a stern face and looked difficult to get along with. "I thought these two guys were incompetent, but I was wrong..."
