G2 of the Grizzly Bear and Timberwolf, the plot has come to a 180° reversal, and all the details are developed in the direction of the Grizzly Bear. This time the Grizzlies got the answer right, and the Timberwolves could be described as a mess.
G2 started with a basic foul fight, with players from both sides quickly contracting a large number of fouls in the first quarter:
Downs, 2 offenders;
Reed, 2 offenders;
Mike Daniels, 2 offenders;
Edwards, 1 offender;
Vanderbilt, 1 foul;
Russell, 1 offender;
Jalen Jr., 2 offenders;
Dillon, 2 offenders;
Adams, 2 offenders;
Clark, 2 offenders;
Morant, 1 offender;
Zaire Williams, 1 offender;
Tillman, 1 foul.
Usually, we need to focus on the foul numbers of Jaren Jr. and Towns, who are not only prone to fouls, but also the most strategic players in their respective teams. It can even be said that which of these two people has better control of fouls, which team is more likely to win the game.
G1 Jalen Jr. fouled badly, while G2 was Downs.
Downs fouled the opening minute, which was very bad, but the foul that produced a bigger chain reaction in this game could be Adams' second foul of 9 minutes and 10 seconds in the first quarter. This foul, coupled with Jaren Jr. and Clarke both committing 2 fouls in the first quarter, led Jenkins to try Tillman, which in turn made Adams say goodbye to the game, which is likely to be a turning point in this series.
The question of Adams has been discussed in 4 articles recently, and I will not repeat them here.
Tillman's defense is excellent, immediately after the game to defend Downs, and then misplaced to prevent Russell, holding Prince, although his ability to change everything has long been seen, the playoffs are still heart-wrenching. Jenkins didn't use him before, not knowing if it was to surprise subsequent opponents. Tillman's offense is relatively weaker, but the Timberwolves defense hasn't come up with enough performance to take advantage of that. Once the Grizzlies establish a rotation pattern of Jarren Jr., Clark and Tillman's three interior lines, the Timberwolves' offensive difficulty will be greatly improved.
Jenkins did not use Adams in the second half, but also did not use the inside line combination of Jaran Jr. + Clark, but first used Jaran Jr. + Sledgehammer, so that Sledgehammer vs. Downs, Jaren Jr. vs. Vanderbilt also took care of the basket. This method is somewhat similar to the Clippers' use of the front to defend Downs, and Jaren Jr.'s dominance of the basket under the basket is undoubtedly better than Zubac. The Timberwolves couldn't directly crack the Grizzlies' strategy with the upper block like they did when they blew up Adams, because the Grizzlies chose to switch between the backcourt and sledgehammer to prevent the breakout. Although Bane and Dillon are much smaller than Downs, but their strength is strong, they will not fly on top, and Downs wants to eat on his back in a high position to experience dangerous card swipe defense, and he does not have the ability of the emperor and Jokic to eat a little on his back and turn over and shoot at a medium distance.
And that's not all.
The Grizzlies were originally a cautious team that assisted in the bottom corner, and this game filled all positions. This option is also right, because the Timberwolves have a lot of low-quality shooters, and not everyone has the ability to punish the defense. For example, Morant made Downs' fourth foul.
When the Grizzlies put their full energy into the defense, the Timberwolves were a little overwhelmed.
How do you break the game?
Finch came up with the idea of adding a shooter. In the early third quarter, after being dominated by Jaren Jr. in the paint defense, Finch took Vanderbilt, took Beasley, and posed for 5 shooters. But the size of the team has been reduced by another notch, Towns with 4 defenders, what to do on the defensive end?
Timberwolves G1 wins by offense, in fact, did not defend the Grizzlies, the reason is that the Downs defense is too poor, the Grizzlies aggression is too strong, relying on follow-up personnel can not make up for it. And this problem has not changed in G2, and it is impossible to expect Downs to immediately learn to block and dismantle.
As a result, the Timberwolves fell into a dilemma between attack and defense, no shooters, the offense could not move, the addition of shooters equals downsizing, the defense was more finished, the Grizzlies G2 not only continued to play aggressively, but also because the Timberwolves declined in size, the traditional art of the second offense was activated - G1 is the Timberwolves won the second attack - plus the three-point feeling of Little Jaren and Little Jia, this game was spent.
How do Timberwolves adjust?
As you can see from G1G2, the Timberwolves' offense needs to stay on the court to break through the Grizzlies defense, and his foul number is of course the top priority. Even in some periods, downs present grizzlies can be prevented, but in some transitions, Downs is still a pillar of power, a great threat to the Grizzlies.
But it's not enough to keep Towns on the floor, because he can't stabilize the situation of the Grizzlies, and lose too much of the offensive gains, and the Timberwolves need to find a way to balance offense and defense, and improve the offense while not reducing the size too small.
In fact, the playoffs are nothing more than three things:
First, use energy to develop offensive ones. To put it bluntly, that's your star;
Second, use the space that can be opened. This is the lifeblood of modern basketball;
Third, use those who can defend. Especially the larger ones.
Main attack + space + body shape. The Timberwolves have three main players who will solve the main attack problem, so the rest of the people mainly provide space and size. So, a chicken player like McLaughlin shouldn't have scored 17 minutes at all, and Mike Daniels is a pseudo-shooter at all, and using him is not much more effective than Vanderbilt.
Aside from the three main players and Beverley, the Timberwolves have only two people close to the request — Prince and Reed. The former has no B number problem, but the combination of body size and projection is relatively qualified, and the latter is not accurate enough to be a space center, but it has basket value, can stand at the three-point line, and also has a certain front plate threat, which can target the weakness of the Adams version of the Grizzlies.
Timberwolves this game, only one time period seems to have the advantage, that is, the second quarter of the three main players + Beverley + Prince time period, unfortunately Downs 3 committed too early. Later, the Timberwolves used a bunch of benches to match the Grizzlies' theoretical strongest lineup, but it was normal to play, which was also the reason why the score opened in the first half.
I said in the preview that the Timberwolves may have to consider the twin towers in this series, although it may be a faint move, but after the Grizzlies eliminated Adams to evolve to the "Big Buou" stage, the Timberwolves did not engage in double internal line combinations, and it seemed that they could not find too many responses.
In addition, Towns must control fouls in this series and play aggressively, because his aggressiveness is also a way to weaken Jalen Jr. It's certainly difficult, but for Downs and Jarren Jr., the reasoning is the same — who kills whom first determines which side has a greater chance of winning, and for the underdog team and the poorer Timberwolves, downs has a greater need for epiphany.