Chapter 298 The finals begin

When the Lakers entered the finals, countless fans couldn’t help but shout:
What year is it tonight!
No one expected that in 2013, we would be able to see Suwan vs. Kobe on the stage of the finals.

no……

Is it really the “longest river” vs. the “highest mountain”?

The outside world is full of expectations.

This is Kobe’s ninth trip to the finals in his career. On the NBA stage, apart from those Celtics in ancient times, after the 9s, there was only “Magic” Johnson. Now Kobe has become the second person to do this!

From 96 to 13, a full 17 years!

The Los Angeles media believes that Kobe is now good enough to be on par with Magic Johnson.

They all brought a brilliant era to the Lakers, making the Lakers always competitive under their leadership.

Kobe’s life is actually more difficult than Magic Johnson’s.

“Magic” Johnson is the script of “born protagonist”.

As soon as he joined the team, he became teammates with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who won the championship and was still a “full-level player”, and performed a “little skyhook” in the finals. ——The more important reason is that he can seize the opportunity.

But Johnson’s “basketball path” was indeed smoother.

Kobe experienced two peaks, making his entire career look more rugged.

just now……

They all represent this team!

Of course, there are also media saying that the two generations of “big bosses” of the Lakers can’t control their own crotches.

In response to this kind of talk, the Los Angeles media had only two words:
So sour!
Suwan responded for the first time to his fourth encounter with Kobe in the finals. He pretended to be surprised and said: “So Mamba hasn’t retired yet? How old is he…”

This caused a burst of laughter.

However, they are indeed old rivals.

Excluding ancient times, the only opponents who met four times in the finals were Suwan and Kobe.

Compared to Suwan who has been making it to the finals in recent years, Kobe experienced his third ups and downs, but he once again returned to the finals stage.

What can I say?

man!

It is worth mentioning that the outside world’s evaluation of Kobe’s return to the finals stage and meeting Su Wan was:

This was the Finals in which Kobe faced Suwan with the worst personal ability, but it was also the Finals in which he had the most hope.

Although the New York Knicks finally made it to the Eastern Conference Finals with a score of 4-1, the problems exposed by the team in the Eastern Conference Finals were not solved:
Their inside rebounding ability is really poor.

This is a favorable aspect for the Lakers.

The downside is that Al Jefferson is a bulkier five than Kevin Love.

and so……

Whether the New York Knicks can make good use of the strategy of “mismatched one-on-one against Al Jefferson” or the Lakers can protect the rebounds and gain more “second attack” opportunities like the Heat did in the third game, this needs to be verified by the game.

And this is not the best aspect for the Lakers.

Their more advantageous aspects are:

Point guard Chris Paul played very good defense against Stephen Curry during the regular season.

In addition, PJ Tucker’s defense against Boris Diaw was also very good.

However, the New York Knicks also noticed this, so they continued to increase the proportion of personal ball possession and shooting from the outside in the second half of the regular season. The purpose is to reduce Boris Diaw’s strategic position from the “engine” level.

When analyzing this round of the finals before the game, Bill Walton affirmed the foresight of the New York Knicks coaching staff: “The New York Knicks noticed the Lakers from the beginning and changed their offensive mode early on. To be honest, we must realize that the New York Knicks coaching staff is good enough!”

This isn’t the first time the New York Knicks coaching staff has been praised.

ESPN is ready to publish:

“On the second day of the creation of the New York dynasty, it may collapse!”

Now, not only Stephen Curry may leave, but the coaching staff of the New York Knicks may also be disbanded.

Whether it’s Mike Malone or Tyronn Lue, they both have the ability to become head coaches, and the most important thing is…

Championship experience!
Since Suwan has won seven championships in the past nine years, plus this time reaching the finals eight times, the only young generation of head coaches with championship experience are Rick Carlisle of the Pacers and these three people from the New York Knicks.

The title of “champion coach” is very valuable.

Haven’t you seen that the former “Pig Head” Rivers was reversed in the playoffs in various ways, but every time he was fired, he could always find a new job quickly. This is because he originally won the championship with the Celtics in 08.

As a coach, who doesn’t want to be the head coach of a team?

Of course, even if all this happens, it will be after the finals.

After two days of rest, the 13 finals soon arrived.

The first game of the finals was held at Madison Square Garden.

This series is full of gimmicks.

This is not only the fourth time that Kobe and Suwan have met in the finals, but also the first time that Chris Paul and Stephen Curry have met in the finals!

Before the game, when Chris Paul was asked if he had the confidence to defend Stephen Curry, he showed a stiff smile: “He has performed well so far, but our performance so far is also very good. I believe we will not have any problems!”

But in his heart, Chris Paul was already cursing.

What do you mean by “Do you have the confidence to defend Stephen Curry?”
Why don’t you ask who helped this guy correct his dribbling moves when he switched from the No. 2 position to the No. 1 position in college? Who taught him those breakthrough techniques?

You actually asked me if I had confidence?
Ah!
Chris Paul is pissed!
Even if you don’t know these things, can’t you just look at the regular season videos of our two teams?

After watching the video, you will know whether I can restrict him or not!

On the other hand, Stephen Curry was also asked about the matchup with Chris Paul.

In the past two years, Chris Paul has been making some unfriendly remarks, and as Stephen Curry continues to perform well, he has also had higher aspirations.

This is not only reflected in the team’s desire to take shots at critical moments.

It is also reflected in every aspect, for example, he was once compared with Chris Paul by the media.

But this was the first time he said what he wanted to say seriously: “Chris is the one I’ve always been chasing!”

These words still put Chris Paul in a very high position.

But in fact, Chris Paul has been regarded as an opponent.

Su Wan was not surprised when he found out.

Stephen Curry may look harmless, but in fact his arrogance is also of “historical level”.

Although he didn’t say anything like “I am a goat”.

But in a future interview show, when the host asked Stephen Curry if he thought he was the best point guard in NBA history, he nodded and said that he would rank himself first.

Then he was strongly rebuked by Michael Jordan…

In addition, when LeBron James said he was “the best in history”, Michael Jordan did not come out and scold him, which made some Bronnies think that Jordan recognized LeBron and did not respect Stephen Curry that much.

But actually…

Michael Jordan scolded Stephen Curry to speak up for Magic Johnson.

The reason he didn’t mention LeBron was because the topic of “goat” involved him, and he had no intention of engaging in a “war of words” with LeBron James.

Just like what netizens said when Yang Xiaowu provoked Guo Degang and Guo Degang never responded:
Look at LeBron, he is the one who wins!
So these are two completely different things.

Michael Jordan’s non-response is the best response.

If Bill Russell really came out to compete with him, whether it was good or bad, Michael Jordan would definitely not pretend not to hear it.

This is the gap.

Stephen Curry was reprimanded for…

Facing “Magic” Johnson, he did not maintain respect for his predecessors.

This is the case for a senior like Johnson, let alone Chris Paul.

Since you want to do it, just give it a try!

Stephen Curry also wants to see what level he is at now!
Suwan vs. Kobe, Stephen Curry vs. Chris Paul.

Just these two groups of confrontations are enough to make this round of the finals full of highlights.

Just look at the outside world’s discussions to know how hot this round of finals is…

Madison Square Garden is particularly lively tonight.

To be precise, it is several times more lively than before…

New Yorkers have been very excited since the start of the playoffs.

Everyone knows that if they can win another championship this year, they will establish the first “dynasty” in the history of the New York Knicks!
This has been the New York Knicks’ expectation for more than sixty years.

As the New York Knicks advanced to the finals, this atmosphere reached its peak.

It can be described like this:

Although the first game of the finals has not yet started.

But the outside world is already in a celebratory atmosphere!
Posters with slogans like “4 more wins” were flying everywhere.

Before the game started, New Yorkers were even more excited. When they saw Suwan entering the court, Knicks fans kept shouting at Suwan: “Suwan, when can we build a dynasty!”

Su Wan stretched out four fingers towards him.

Okay, this is very Clay!
This action also successfully ignited the fans around.

Everyone knew what Su Wan meant by this action:
Just 4 more wins to go!
tonight……

“Come on, everyone, let’s win the first game of the finals!” Su Wan called everyone to his front before the game and shouted encouragement with everyone.

At this time, the big screen on site showed the starting lineups of both sides for tonight.

The New York Knicks still have the “regular five”.

Let’s look at the Lakers:
Chris Paul at No. 1; Kobe Bryant at No. 2; Ariza at No. 3; P.J. Tucker at No. 4; Al Jefferson at No. 5;
Since PJ Tucker completely gave up his “star dream” and focused on performing on the defensive end, he quickly squeezed Odom off the bench.

Of course, for “Lama”, his preferred position is the team’s “sixth man” position.

Kobe also gathered everyone together and shouted “Come on” before going on the court.

“beep!”

Soon, the buzzer sounded and the game officially began.

The big screen at the scene gave a close-up shot of Suwan and Kobe at this time:
The reunion of two legends…

“beep!”

Another whistle sounded and the referee threw the ball into the air.

Tyson Chandler successfully jumped to the ball.

New York Knicks’ offensive round.

Stephen Curry faces Chris Paul.

This time, Boris Diaw’s movements were no longer consistent.

Instead of moving toward the top of the arc, he quickly approached Stephen Curry and set a screen for him.

When Stephen Curry was about to use this screen to get around, Chris Paul had already squeezed past Dio and blocked his breakthrough path in advance.

Boris Dio looked unhappy.

The contact with Chris Paul made him feel depressed.

What a dirty elbow.

Fortunately, Su Wan responded in time and got the ball in his hands.

Kobe defended him the first time he got the ball.

Suwan calls for a pick-and-roll with Tyson Chandler.

The purpose is naturally to create a dislocation and single out Al Jefferson.

But the Lakers had already studied the New York Knicks’ offensive system, so the person who followed was PJ Tucker.

He can perfectly guard players in positions 1 to 4.

Except for some point guards who are too short, he can switch defense for other positions.

Otherwise, how could he have become the top defensive player in the “small ball era” and even continue to have a job at such an old age?
But Su Wan had already realized this.

After Tyson Chandler noticed that the person following him was PJ Tucker, he immediately moved down and when he turned his head, Su Wan passed the ball to him.

“Bah!”

With a one-handed slam dunk, Tyson Chandler scored the first goal of this year’s finals for the New York Knicks.

Bill Walton watched the ball and said, “It seems that this is the Knicks’ way to deal with PJ Tucker replacing Al Jefferson’s defense!”

It is true that PJ Tucker can switch defense, but he is also really short.

Once Tyson Chandler started running, he could only watch.

Just like the one I just completed…

Phil Jackson clapped his hands on the side, signaling everyone to quickly change their state, adjust their mentality, and focus on the offensive end.

Chris Paul brought the ball to the frontcourt to face Stephen Curry, and without saying a word, he started to break through.

But he also underestimated Stephen Curry’s current defensive ability.

In many people’s impressions, Stephen Curry is the team’s defensive weakness.

But in fact, to be honest, it is not easy for players in the same position to beat Stephen Curry. In fact, there are not many outside players who can constantly stop him at the offensive end.

This can be seen from the various attacks launched by other teams in the league against Stephen Curry.

There are actually only a few people who can use the naming tactic against Curry, such as James Harden in his prime. But for a player like Harden in his prime, who else could he name?

Chris Paul failed to do what he wished. He attempted to break through immediately but was double-teamed instead.

The ball was passed out quickly, Ariza hesitated and missed the shot.

(End of this chapter)