I am the Warden Chapter 24: I don't copy the answers even if I have them
After Liu Xiu advanced across half court, he passed the ball to Derek Anderson and then continued to move down to the low post.
Derek Anderson passed the ball back to Liu Xiu who was blocking Andre Miller at the right time.
"The Spurs gave up on the all-around player after they drafted him because he didn't have a single strong point after his serious injury..."
When Liu Xiu received the ball, this thought flashed through his mind, and in just a moment, he immediately started launching the attack.
Liu Xiu attracted Nene to shrink, Dale Davis pulled up and helped Derek Anderson who cut in to block Jon Barry at the top corner on the right side of the free throw line. Liu Xiu passed the ball, Derek Anderson received the ball, Anthony had already returned it to the basket, Derek Anderson passed the ball to Reuben Patterson who was in a high position outside the free throw line, the latter received the ball and took a long two-point shot... missed!
After Liu Xiu passed the ball, he moved to the outside. Nene protected the defensive rebound and Liu Xiu immediately retreated.
Steady advancement, launching offense, passing the ball, pulling away, retreating... Liu Xiu only did these few things in this offense. They were all very simple operations. Except for the strength of his back-hit, there was nothing outstanding. But the feeling it gave people was completely different from the feeling when the little flying squirrel controlled the ball before. The fans at the scene felt like their eyes had been cleared!
The Trail Blazers' offense became smoother from the time they were on offense to the time they were led on defense!
Andre Miller took the ball from Nene, advanced to the frontcourt, and continued to cooperate with Nene, attacking the top arc pick-and-roll...
Andre Miller wants to smash the ball!
Is there anyone who defends like this?
As soon as he used the pick-and-roll, he saw Liu Xiu retreat to the free throw line, and Rasheed Wallace, who was pulled out to defend Nene, also stayed at the free throw line!
At this time, Andre Miller saw the movement of a teammate and passed the ball...Anthony used brute force to push Reuben Patterson away, cut in, received the ball on the left side of the three-second zone, and rushed into the basket!
Dale Davis pulled back and was about to make up for the defense in time, but Liu Xiu was there!
When Andre Miller finished the pick-and-roll, Liu Xiu noticed Anthony's movements. As soon as Andre Miller grabbed the ball, Liu Xiu started moving.
Liu Xiu knew Anthony's cutting style of play very well.
Anthony was unable to complete the change of direction, so he chose to slow down suddenly and get close to Liu Xiu, and then he hit him with the ball.
Anthony leaned against Liu Xiu and pushed hard. Liu Xiu was pushed one step away and couldn't stop him, but he created an opportunity for Dale Davis to make up for the defense!
Anthony was blocked by Dale Davis and wanted to get up again... but he was exhausted!
Reuben Patterson also double-teamed Anthony, and his passing vision in this position was really not that good, so he chose to force a jump shot... He was already exhausted in this offensive round, and his jumping height in the two-man confrontation was almost the same as Yao Ming. The ball was thrown out, but it was ridiculously crooked!
Liu Xiu grabbed the defensive rebound!
Try to retreat on defense, Anthony definitely wants to win tonight.
He was the former leader of the Syracuse University Orangemen! Of course he wanted to win against his former teammates.
But tonight… "Damn it Jace!"
This bastard, he has a competition today, but he actually agreed to open a bottle of wine last night! This college dropout who is not old enough to drink should be stopped!
Although Liu Xiu drank a little more, Anthony knew how amazing the recovery ability of this damn former teammate was!
After another two rounds, with 10 minutes and 22 seconds left, Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik called a timeout and replaced Anthony.
Under Liu Xiu's guidance, the Trail Blazers have realized that Anthony is not in good shape tonight and their defense is very targeted.
Moreover, Liu Xiu did a good job in commanding the defense. The Trail Blazers have been a strong team for many years and the defensive coordination is quite good. Anthony was incompetent and furious for a few minutes, and basically only had side effects on the court.
During this period, the Nuggets also wanted to resist, but the Nuggets had been in a bad state for many years. Although they had talent and commanders, the Trail Blazers were obviously stronger in comparison.
Anthony was substituted, and looking at Liu Xiu's handsome face that seemed to always have a smile on it... he became even angrier!
"I'm a basketball player, I don't want to argue with him."
Anthony thought that Liu Xiu seemed to be a little stronger than him, and he didn't know where to start the story of "Fake Trees".
When it comes to basketball moves, An has to rely on his weight to overpower Liu Xiu.
"Can't you practice basketball properly? All you know is fighting?"
After being angry for a while, Anthony gradually calmed down as he watched Liu Xiu organizing the Trail Blazers' offense on the court.
"Jace's playing style is the same as before. He relies heavily on his teammates. The stronger his teammates are, the stronger the role he can play!"
"This ability definitely has a limit. Even if he is given a championship-level team, he won't be able to command it. He will be the weakest point on the offensive end. His only strength is post-up play... Fortunately, he is only a substitute now, and his playing time is part of the rotation."
"But his defense..."
Anthony was well aware of Liu Xiu's talent in organizing offense within the tactical framework.
But thinking back to Liu Xiu's help defense just now...
Although Anthony is in poor physical condition at the moment, he is still able to attack the basket. In the previous two rounds, if Liu Xiu had not made up for the position in the medium and close distances, it would have been difficult for Dale Davis or Rasheed Wallace to make up for the position in the first time. If the opponent moved in advance, even if his pass was not so good, he would have had a better space to pass the ball.
But Liu Xiu's timing of reinforcement was very good...
Anthony thought back to the past few rounds, and was amazed by Liu Xiu's progress in defense and double-teaming!
Knowing Liu Xiu's "talent", he was amazed but not surprised. In his opinion, this was the progress Liu Xiu should have made. If Liu Xiu had entered the NBA and did not make any progress under such great pressure, that would have surprised him.
…
After the first quarter, Liu Xiu scored 4 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist in half a quarter. He only had one back-to-the-basket shot, and the Nuggets' double-team came quickly.
The Nuggets have a defensive pursuit, are aggressive, and have no "face needs", and they will double-team when necessary.
Even though Randolph did not play and Rasheed Wallace focused on defense, Liu Xiu was still able to organize the team's offense, relying on his strong point of back-to-the-basket.
During the break, Liu Xiu once again determined his development direction - he must not lose his outstanding strengths!
During the intermission, the Trail Blazers made rotations, with Liu Xiu, Wesley Person, Travis Otero, Randolph and Dale Davis being substituted.
The Nuggets sent out a combination of Earl Boykins, Washan Leonard, Rodney White, Chris Anderson and Camby.
At the beginning of the game, Tianzun won the jump ball against Camby, and in the second quarter, it was the Nuggets who took the lead in attacking.
"Woods, who dominated the summer league, has a hard time even getting playing time in the regular season... It's really two different worlds!"
After sighing for a moment, Liu Xiu concentrated on playing the game.
Liu Xiu didn’t know what the Trail Blazers’ tactics were last year, but this year, attacks initiated from the low post accounted for a large part.
It had nothing to do with him, and everything to do with Randolph.
Randolph returned to the court. As long as there was no giant like O'Neal squatting under the opponent's basket, the attack would of course start from Randolph.
Liu Xiu had no intention of stealing the limelight and just honestly did what he was supposed to do.
He played for 4 and a half minutes in the second quarter. After half a quarter, Liu Xiu was replaced with 3 points and 1 rebound.
There were no assists, but there was one layup after cutting in and receiving the ball against the defender, and there was one defensive rebound. Randolph had a conflict with Birdman in a singles play, and Birdman was called for a technical foul. Randolph was called to to be comforted, and Liu Xiu made the technical free throw.
The statistics are not impressive, and his presence on the court also decreased after Randolph came on the court.
However, when Liu Xiu was substituted, the score was 36 to 25.
From the second half of the first quarter to the second quarter, which lasted 4 and a half minutes, a little more than 10 minutes, the Trail Blazers beat the Nuggets 26 to 16!
The Trail Blazers are stronger than the Nuggets. After Liu Xiu came on the court, the Trail Blazers' game rhythm got on the right track!
As the game went on, the fans' attention was focused on Derek Anderson or Randolph, but the coaches on both sides couldn't help but observe Liu Xiu's playing style on the court for a long time.
There is too much of that number between AC!
Nuggets coach Bzdelik was fine, but he really admired Liu Xiu's playing style and independent adjustments on the court.
It’s different on the Trail Blazers side. The coaching staff of the Trail Blazers knows how terrifying Liu Xiu’s talent is!
Maurice Cheeks and Kevin Pritchard still have some concerns - as his strength improves, will Liu Xiu become too proud?
If Liu Xiu really quickly becomes a star or even an All-Star, it doesn't matter if he becomes arrogant, conceited, or power-hungry.
That's what the Trail Blazers are like.
The main reason is that Liu Xiu is still very weak...
Now it seems that the worry was unnecessary!
Liu Xiu went up and immediately pressed down the back-to-the-basket expert Andre Miller, but he did not act impulsively afterwards. This was completely different from his approach in the first preseason game against the Lakers. Obviously, he kept back-to-the-basket with Fisher and Payton that time because he thought it was more advantageous to do so.
The game goes on.
Jeff McGinnis replaced Liu Xiu and played for the remaining minutes of the second quarter. Maurice Cheeks sent Randolph and Rasheed Wallace together to focus on offense.
Jeff McGinnis' performance when he first came on the court was average. He didn't have any outstanding performance, but he didn't do badly either. At the end of the first half, the Trail Blazers led the Nuggets by 13 points, 51 to 38, and went into the halftime break.
In the second half, the Nuggets no longer sent Anthony into the game. Nuggets coach Bzdelik carefully cared for his precious genius and let Anthony have a good rest.
No one asked why. Although Bzdelik was also a tough coach and had served as an assistant coach for the fortune teller Pat Riley for seven years, he eventually fell out with his mentor Pat Riley because of their personalities. Bzdelik was very reasonable and accepted "superstar supremacy", while Pat Riley tended to be a dictator and squeeze out every last bit of oil.
The Trail Blazers once again sent out Damon Stoudemire.
If possible, Maurice Cheeks and Kevin Pritchard would be reluctant to give up the Flying Squirrel.
After all, he was one of the leading figures in the team’s last heyday!
That Trail Blazers team actually didn't have a clear-cut star player. There were Flying Squirrel, Tianzun, Roof of the World, Batman, Number One Gentleman... There were so many stars that worked together to win. No one cared about the statistics. In the 1999-2000 season, Rasheed Wallace, who had the highest average score per game, only had 16.4 points.
There is definitely human touch.
So, if there is an opportunity, the flying squirrel is always the one that gets it first.
But just like at the beginning of the game, at the start of the third quarter, the Trail Blazers' performance was below the limit of the Flying Squirrels' strength.
To put it simply, in terms of personal ability, Xiao Feishu is definitely an excellent point guard, but the strength of the team led by Xiao Feishu will not be higher than his personal ability.
Moreover, he is able to perform like this in a team like the Trail Blazers, where most of his teammates are very familiar with his playing style and are extra tolerant of him.
With the Nuggets' new star player not playing and the pitchers returning to normal form, the Flying Squirrel led the dual core of Randolph and Rasheed Wallace, but was unable to widen the score gap and could only fight back and forth with the opponent, which obviously shouldn't have happened, because this was Randolph and Rasheed Wallace!
In the middle of the third quarter, after Earl Boykins replaced Andre Miller, the Trail Blazers were beaten 9 to 3 by the Nuggets and were forced to stop!
Boykins' pure personal ability is not as good as that of the Flying Squirrel, but after both sides replaced their defensive inside players, Boykins, whose playing style does not rely purely on his personal ability, performed even better than the Flying Squirrel!
Liu Xiu was very puzzled watching from the sidelines - "The other side had such a good answer to copy, why did the flying squirrel keep playing the same way?"
If the Flying Squirrel cannot increase his role on the field by changing his playing style, Liu Xiu feels that the Flying Squirrel is right to work hard to prove his idea.
but!
This is clearly not the case...
Liu Xiu couldn't understand the Flying Squirrels' thoughts, but head coach Maurice Cheeks could.
In the mind of the little flying squirrel, the status of a star player is more important than enhancing his help to the team.
The opponent's Anthony was not playing, so the Little Flying Squirrel came on and played for 8 minutes, leading the team to a score of 13 to 20. The first half was okay, but Boykins made a 9 to 3 run in the middle. Maurice Cheeks replaced the Little Flying Squirrel and started the normal rotation, letting Liu Xiu, Derek Anderson, and Jeff McGinnis take turns to play or play as double point guards.
The game is back on track...
Kevin Plitt looked at his little flying squirrel who was sulking at the edge of the bench, and said helplessly to Maurice Cheeks: "It seems that we can only rely on the inside."
As for summer plans, since the Flying Squirrel has recovered from his injury, they plan to create a combination of inside and outside play in the new season, learning the Lakers' thinking.
But as the preseason began, the idea was constantly adjusted towards the "twin towers" tactic.
Maurice Cheeks shrugged. He was actually more upset about the Flying Squirrel than Kevin Prietcha, but he was not a coach like Kevin Prietcha who had worked for the Trail Blazers for many years and experienced the last peak. That kind of emotion came and went quickly.
During the intermission of the third quarter, Liu Xiu, who had just played for more than three minutes, walked back to the bench.
Maurice Cheeks looked at Liu Xiu who was helping the twin towers in the interior to smooth out the offensive rhythm, and complained to Kevin Pritchard: "It's okay, we have to be patient, and we still have Jayce."
Maurice Cheeks wanted to comfort Kevin Pritchard, but the latter was full of resentment: "If this guy had worked harder in his first year in college, he might have the strength of Anthony now. Why should we worry about this?"
"..."Morris Cheeks chose to keep quiet. He shouldn't provoke the complaining woman at this time!
As soon as Liu Xiu walked to the bench, he felt the resentment coming from the two coaches...
"??? What's wrong? Did I play badly? It was pretty good! A very good backup point guard!"
…
At 9:22 pm, Boykins missed all three long three-pointers and the final whistle sounded!
After 2 hours and 22 minutes of play, the Trail Blazers defeated the Nuggets 103-97 at home to win the final preseason game.
"The Trail Blazers' preseason game against the Nuggets has ended, and the competitive relationship with the Nuggets players has ended."
"Great Magician: The game state has ended. Andre Miller's technical strength conversion talent: the bonus effect of post-up singles has ended."
“Match Rating:
Game type: Preseason.
Basic Reward: 150 Healing Points.
Game result: Victory.
Playing time: 18 minutes 22 seconds.
Personal data: 11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 turnover, 2 fouls.
Analysis rating: A+.
Game impact: B.
Overall score: B+.
Congratulations to the host for receiving the reward: 195 healing value..."
“No tournament clearing?”
"NBA preseason games are non-ranked, non-elimination, and have no game settlement."
"have to……"
Liu Xiu was replaced by Jeff McGinnis with 3 minutes left. He played a total of 7 minutes in the second half, scoring 4 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist and 1 steal. He felt that his performance was okay.
After the final whistle, he received a system notification that he had won. He was very happy and stood up to applaud his teammates who stayed on the field and helped the team hold on to the victory.
The Trail Blazers players who remained on the court at the last moment were Jeff McGinnis, Wesley Person, Reuben Patterson, Dale Davis, and Rasheed Wallace.
Liu Xiu took the initiative to high-five Dale Davis and Rasheed Wallace. When Wesley Person saw Liu Xiu coming towards him, he stretched out his hand and Liu Xiu also high-fived them.
But Liu Xiu didn't expect Jeff McGinnis to take the initiative to high-five... Liu Xiu naturally chose to high-five, which was a bit unexpected.
Reuben Patterson was willing to cooperate during the game, but after the game, he didn't even look at Liu Xiu, who had a good relationship with Randolph.
After a high-five to celebrate, Randolph, who performed the best tonight, went to be interviewed.
Jeff McGinnis found Liu Xiu and said, "Jes, we've known each other for so long and we've never had a drink together. Let's go have a drink tonight?"
Liu Xiu declined: "I have an appointment tonight, let's go next time. I'll treat you next time."
Jeff McGinnis was already satisfied with this answer, and after stressing that it was his treat even for the drinks, he did not argue further.
Seeing Jeff McGinnis take the initiative to talk to high school rookie Travis Outlaw, Liu Xiu thought to himself - 'The Flying Squirrel was not substituted in the entire fourth quarter, which shows a lot of things. Fatty Lan's tactical status is even higher than Tianzun...
McGinnis was previously a loyal follower of the Flying Squirrel, but now the relationship has begun to change.
Well, that's normal.
We all want to win, that's it!
