Discuss the review | Jokic becomes a magician + sky hook But going from 0-2 to 3-2 is not just on him

From a dozen to five

2024-05-15 17:18Posted in Shandong Sports Creators

On May 15, Beijing time, the Nuggets defeated the Timberwolves in the Battle of Tianwang Mountain, leading 3-2 to win the series point.

After losing two home games and being cornered, the Nuggets won two games in a row on the road to equalize the score. In the battle of Tianwang Mountain, the Nuggets won another game at home, and they were only one win away from advancing to the Western Conference Finals and becoming the sixth team in history to lose two home games and finally turn the tables.

How did the Nuggets do it?

Jokic's MVP-level dominance is certainly key, but it's not the only one.

Jokic transforms into a magician + a sky hook

In the battle of Tianwang Mountain, Jokic played 40 minutes and made 15 of 22 shots, including 2 of 3 three-point shots, plus 9 free throws and scored 40 points, 7 rebounds, and 13 assists, with a plus/minus of +21 points. Against four-time DPOY (Defensive Player of the Year) Gobert, Jokic used his first 40 points in the playoffs this season to beat his opponent into a TOY (toy).

The stats show that when facing the Gobert defense, Jokic shot 8 of 9 in this game.

Timberwolves coach Finch was convinced: "He put on an MVP-calib, world-class performance, and we couldn't do anything about it. ”

Edwards smiled wryly and said, "What else can I say? I can only laugh (bitterly). He's the MVP, the best player in the world. ”

The Nuggets lost their first two home games, with Jokic scoring just 16 of 38 shots, including 2-of-10 three-pointers, scoring 48 points and dished out 17 assists, but committing as many as 11 turnovers. The Nuggets' defeat due to the offensive smut is directly related to Jokic's failure to meet expectations. But in the next three games, Jokic averaged 33 points, 9.3 rebounds and 9.7 assists on 60.6% shooting per game.

Especially in the battle of Tianwang Mountain, Jokic seems to be a combination of Magic Johnson and "Sky Hook" Abdul-Jabbar, and the art-like back passes, long passes, and difficult Sky Hooks make fans feel as if they have entered the exhibition hall. Jokic shattered the curse after he scored 40+ points four times in the playoffs and the Nuggets lost each of them.

Unlocks Murray Firepower

In the first-round series against the Lakers, Murray was average but still averaged 23.6 points per game and hit two shots. But in the first two games against the Timberwolves in the second round, Murray was reduced to the team's fourth-leading scorer, averaging 12.5 points per game on 28.1% shooting.

The key to Malone's adjustment is how to help Murray open the offensive valve.

In the second game, the Timberwolves led the defense of Murray in the backcourt and forced Murray after half the court to call it "really strong", and those large-scale confrontations consumed a huge amount of money on Murray, who was already injured in the calf. Malone's way of helping Murray reduce his burden is to increase the proportion of Gordon's advancement, so that Murray can use cover more in the front court to get rid of the defense and chase Towns.

In games 3 and 4, Gordon averaged more than 20 touches per game than in the previous two, second only to Jokic in the team, and Murray was the Nuggets player with the second most touches in the first two games. Who is the Timberwolves player who has taken the most shots against Murray in the 5 games of the series? Towns. When he defended Murray, who shot 12-of-16 from the field and shot 75 percent, Towns seemed to have become Murray's sight. When Murray returns to normal levels, the Nuggets' vaunted duo-driven mode will be able to work.

In the last three games, Murray averaged 19.7 points and 5.7 assists per game, shooting 50% from the field and over 40% from three-point range.

Malone not only pours chicken soup but also plays tactics

After 0-2, in the locker room, Ma Long looked at the silent disciples and asked only two questions: "Do you still believe (we can turn the tables)?" Do you still believe we can go to Minnesota and win two games against a good team? ”

Ma Long knew the disciples, and of course he knew how the disciples would answer. But this is not enough, Ma Long wants to add some ingredients to further stimulate the fighting spirit of his disciples.

Malone's two-minute remarks about the death penalty for the Nuggets on social media and TV shows were hesitant to send to his disciples after the highlights were released, so he asked the veteran DeAndre Jordan for advice. Despite Jordan Jr.'s support, Malone was hesitant to send it. Jordan Jr. made a decision for Malone and sent the video to his teammates through a group chat.

"Malone brand chicken soup" worked, and the Nuggets were not crushed by the losses in the first 2 games, but it was impossible to win by pouring chicken soup on their disciples alone. It turns out that as a champion coach, Malone can pour chicken soup and play tactics.

In terms of details, Malone also made a lot of adjustments. In terms of rotation lineup, Malone cut the rotation, Watson and Reggie Jackson plummeted, and Braun and Justin Holiday became the main rotation players on the wings, who have a lot of flexibility in changing defenses, good off-ball awareness and projection ability.

Braun played the surprise player in last year's playoffs, and the rising star is more reliable than last year. However, the biggest surprise was Big Holiday, the 35-year-old veteran who played the odd soldier. On the offensive end, he shot 10-of-17 from three-point range in five games, shooting 58.8 percent from the field. Defensively, he made Downs deflated several times, and Downs made two turnovers on 1-of-4 shooting when the two were facing off. Big Holiday was also one of the new players in defending Edwards, who shot just 6-of-14 from the field against him and shot 42.9 percent. In the 5 games of the series, Big Holiday had a team-high plus/minus of +40 points.

In this year's playoffs, the way teams use non-space points and their effects have a huge impact on the game. Like Hart and Gordon, they are both regarded as non-spatial points by each other, but Thibodeau and Malone's use of love generals is worthy of praise. In turn, the Timberwolves coaching staff's use of McDaniels has been mediocre. In the series between the Thunder and the Mavericks, Dagneault's use of Keady is even more worthy of complaining.

McDaniels only watched the first few minutes of the battle of Tianwang Mountain, and Gordon went from being a burden in the first two games to being a hero in the last three. In these three games, Gordon averaged 19.3 points and 5.3 assists with nearly 70% of the crosshairs per game. Along with the starters, Gordon was sharp off the ball, and his position was changed from the baseline to the outside to punish Gobert. As a small-ball No. 5 on the bench, Gordon can play the pivot like Jokic, taking advantage of the mismatch and making the most of his size.

Malone's use of non-space points is not only on the offensive end, but also on the defensive end. Malone dared to pinch Edwards, firstly, because McDaniels, Gobert, Lee Kyle and others did not have the spatial attributes, and secondly, he decided that Edwards did not have the ability to break the bag and divide the ball at the level of a superstar.

In the battle of Tianwang Mountain, Conley was absent due to injury, the Timberwolves lost a ball control point, and Malone's strength in Edwards' package reached its peak, and Edwards made many shots of one hit three or even one hit five, even if he broke through the first and second lines of defense, and let go of the weak side of the bottom corner, the wing of the assistant defender contracted the basket to form a third line of defense.

In the last three games, the Nuggets have scored 123.7 points per 100 rounds and conceded only 106.1 points. Compared with the previous two games, the Nuggets solved the problem of slow heat in the first half in the last three games, helped Murray release offensive firepower, used non-space points, and scrapped the Timberwolves' multi-point flowering mode.

This is the championship level Nuggets.

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