amaotonovel Chapter 419 Nash: Perhaps today will be a good day!
Chapter 419 Nash: Perhaps today will be a good day!
Three-point shooting is not the Knicks' strong suit.
The Knicks' three-point shooting percentage during the regular season was 35%, ranking 10th, which seems pretty good.
But with an average of 12.7 three-pointers made per game, this number is only better than tanking teams like the Rockets and Hornets.
But the Knicks' foundation in the league is not offense, but defense.
From the very beginning of the game, the Knicks showcased their strengths.
"Offense may betray you, but defense will not."
This statement is regarded as a golden rule by countless people in the league, and Thibodeau is one of them.
This is also the basketball philosophy he has always adhered to.
But soon, Thibodeau found that his ideas seemed to have been overturned.
Swish!
Wang Xiucheng, taking advantage of Claxton's screen, once again sank a three-pointer from beyond the arc.
This was Wang Xiucheng's third three-pointer in the first quarter.
With this three-pointer, the Nets have closed the gap.
The time was exactly 6 minutes.
Thibodeau called a timeout.
"Watch out for Wang's three-pointer after the screen. He's getting hot. Use zone defense and double-team him..."
On the other side, Nash was also squatting on the ground, drawing on the tactics board.
"Everyone needs to run, don't hold back your energy, and be sure to help each other on defense..."
"you……"
Nash suddenly pointed to Zeng Fanbo, who was standing next to him, and gave up his seat to the main player.
"You'll play power forward, you two take a break."
Nash pointed at Durant and Westbrook.
Under normal circumstances, if the match is not very close, or the opponent is not very strong.
Durant and Westbrook will rest for the second half of the first quarter and then come on at the start of the second quarter.
They are usually replaced by either Royce, O'Neal, or Joe Harper who is not a starter, and then Ben West is added.
Zeng Fanbo himself did not expect that he, who had not played a single minute in the playoffs, would appear on the court at such an important moment today.
After taking off his jersey, Zeng Fanbo stood behind Wang Xiucheng and Benxi and followed them onto the field.
At this moment, Wang Xiucheng was with Benxi, Zeng Fanbo, Claxton, and Seth Curry.
With Benxi on the team, Wang Xiucheng should theoretically play the number two position.
However, Seth Curry was also there at the time, and judging from Wang Xiucheng's position, Wang Xiucheng should be playing the small forward position.
The positions in basketball are now very blurred; a person who is two meters tall can play almost any position.
"The future of basketball will be five people, each about two meters tall, running on the court!"
Basketball is becoming more and more like what Riley predicted years ago.
With the game resumed and the Nets having two players of good size, Ben West and Zeng Fanbo, their ability to defend the Knicks' spot-up three-point shooting has been further improved.
When attacking, Ben Citadel knows how to rack up assists for himself.
Swish!
Benxi drove into the paint and then passed the ball to Wang Xiucheng, who had just run to the baseline.
Wang Xiucheng took another three-pointer, making his fourth three-pointer of the day.
"pretty……"
Ben Simmons stood at the top of the arc and reached out to take a photo with Wang Xiucheng.
Assists, it's that simple!
The Knicks' five starters hadn't rested, especially Brunson, who had been orchestrating the offense with the ball. He pushed past Wang Xiucheng to the frontcourt and passed to Hart.
Even with Ben West covering his face, the latter still managed to sink a three-pointer.
This puts both teams on the same starting line.
Nash crossed his arms and glanced up at Wang Xiucheng's data on the large screen in the dome.
Wang Xiucheng missed his first two three-point attempts today.
Normally, Wang Xiucheng would focus on passing on his skills and try to make more breakthroughs.
But today, Wang Xiucheng insisted on throwing himself.
And then, he made all four of his subsequent three-pointers.
This gave Nash a very strange feeling.
Perhaps today will be a good day!
"Ah... Fuck... That's a foul..."
As he was lost in thought, Nash was pulled back to reality by the noise from the court.
Then he saw Wang Xiucheng steal Brunson's ball.
Then Wang Xiucheng took a few big steps and crossed the center line.
With another step, Wang Xiucheng reached the three-point line.
Taking off on one foot outside the three-point line, Wang Xiucheng, holding a basketball, leaped into the three-point line in a riding-archer-like posture.
Then, before landing, he threw the basketball out.
Swish!
Just as Wang Xiucheng landed on the free-throw line, the crisp sound of the basketball going through the net rang out.
The whole place was silent!
Bang!
The sound of the basketball hitting the floor was clearly audible.
The next moment, screams and applause erupted from one end of the stadium.
That was made by Nets fans who had traveled a long way.
Wang Xiucheng made his fifth three-pointer of the first quarter!
And it was done in the form of archery on horseback.
The impact of this shot was just as visually striking as the shot Wang Xiucheng made earlier, where he jumped from beyond the three-point line as if he was about to dunk.
This time, Wang Xiucheng didn't shout loudly, but instead smiled and slowly backed away.
At this point, the Nets had come back from a 0-7 deficit to take the lead.
The Nets are now leading by 3 points, 25-22.
There are still 3 minutes left in the first quarter.
Thibodeau scratched his head and shouted at his players on the field.
Brunson looked at his hand and wished he could slap it.
Back at the baseline, Brunson received the serve and led the attack.
Bang!
Randle's strong attack under the basket was blocked by Claxton.
Zeng Fanbo was lucky enough to pick up a backboard.
Instead of arrogantly dribbling, he immediately passed the ball to Bencić, who came over to receive it.
Benci took a step and flicked the ball forward.
Wang Xiucheng and Brunson were locked in a tight embrace, practically supporting each other as they crossed the center line.
Brunson pressed hard against Wang Xiucheng, pulling on Wang Xiucheng's arm to prevent him from jumping to receive the ball passed by Bensi.
However, Wang Xiucheng's arms are considerably longer than Brunson's.
Wang Xiucheng bumped his shoulder into Brunson, then stretched out an arm and slapped the basketball with one hand.
The basketball's speed decreased dramatically, and Wang Xiucheng took advantage of the moment Brunson was slightly pushed aside to jump towards the basketball.
With one arm held by Brunson, Wang Xiucheng managed to grab the basketball with both hands.
The next moment, Wang Xiucheng's body tilted and fell to the ground, then he fell to the side.
As the tide turned to one side, Wang Xiucheng shouted something.
"what……"
At the same time, he threw the basketball toward the basket.
Swish!
The moment Wang Xiucheng fell to the ground, he heard this beautiful sound.
beep!
An even more beautiful sound followed.
The referee blew the whistle.
Before Wang Xiucheng had even finished sliding down the slope, he turned his head to look at the referee.
"Brunson commits a foul, the three-pointer stands, one free throw!"