NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 643 Jia Fei VS Teacher Yue

The entire third quarter was a duel between Jia Fei and Jokic. The two did not directly match up, but they were both the team's top scorers and offensive strategists.

贾飞单节砍下22分4个篮板5次助攻2个抢断1个盖帽，命中了3记3分球；约老师则是砍下17分8个篮板5次助攻1个抢断2个盖帽，其中4个前场篮板。

Even the two commentators in the Tencent studio were surprised. They didn't expect that in the playoffs so far, the real opponent of Jia Fei was not his cousin Li, not Westbrook, not Harden, but Jokic, who used to play like an old man with a hook shot while drinking cola.

But Jokic is clearly no match for Jia Fei now. Jokic's biggest problem isn't offense—his offense is already outstanding—his biggest problem is defense. He can't defend pick-and-rolls, he can't defend five-outside lineups, and to avoid fouls, he can't truly protect the rim. He looks like a center version of Larry Bird, and a bit like a younger version of Domantas Sabonis.

Neither Bird nor Sabonis are defensive stalwarts. The Nuggets need to address Jokic's defensive issues; as a center, he's easily targeted by opponents in pick-and-rolls and drives to the basket.

In basketball, of all five positions, the two most crucial are center and point guard. More accurately, one is the big man in the paint, and the other is the ball-handler/initiator. Basketball is a sport of giants, so big men naturally have a huge impact on the game. Furthermore, basketball is a team sport, and the initiator of the offense plays an equally irreplaceable role.

As a center, Jokic's defensive capabilities haven't been fully developed. While he's not terrible defensively, his defense is just average, exhibiting many of the weaknesses of a traditional center. However, he can effectively attack in the low post, participate in the offense in the high post, act as a playmaker, and secure defensive rebounds before pushing the ball up the court. He's practically the offensive answer for a modern basketball center.

Jokic dribbles slowly like an old man playing ball in the neighborhood, but he never loses the ball. His hands are incredibly useful; if you're not careful, he'll make a brilliant pass to his teammate, making it impossible to defend against.

As Running Man gets older, his offensive and defensive abilities aren't what they used to be, but he can still be considered a top-tier forward in the league. That's because of his exceptional ability to orchestrate the offense. In this aspect, neither Durant nor Leonard can match him, even though both of them are currently stronger overall on both ends of the court.

This is why forwards don't have as much impact on the game as centers and playmakers. While it's often said that forwards are king, it's true that forwards, as the primary force in crucial moments, are less limited in their effectiveness compared to guards and centers. Guards are easily outmaneuvered, and centers often struggle to get the ball in critical situations.

Therefore, the saying circulating online, "With Kobe and LeBron teaming up, we have the world," is actually quite true. Both were in their prime and were indeed a perfect match. One was responsible for setting the stage and initiating the offense, while the other was responsible for finishing in crucial moments. Both possess excellent defensive abilities, capable of guarding multiple positions, and can play both small and large lineups, making them definitely stronger than Jordan and Pippen.

The third quarter ended with the Clippers leading 77-84!

In the final quarter, Jia Fei reduced his rest and steadily controlled the game. As long as Jokic was on the court, he used pick-and-rolls to target him, ultimately helping the Clippers secure the victory and win the first game of the Western Conference Finals without any major setbacks.

105:116，快船赢下西决G1，系列赛大比分1:0领先。

The score doesn't reflect the whole story. The Clippers didn't win easily; they were on the back foot at times. The game was turned around when Dillon replaced Beverley at halftime, and then Jia Fei took over the ball and played point guard.

贾飞本场比赛上场了41分23秒，这是他今年季后赛以来单场上场时间最多的一次。他全场贡献48分11个篮板12次助攻5个抢断3个盖帽的40+三双，成为球队获胜的最大功臣。

Jokic contributed a near triple-double with 34 points, 18 rebounds, and 9 assists in this game, undoubtedly making him the league's best center this season. However, the best center met the best player in the league, and the Nuggets surprisingly lost to the Clippers.

After this game, many have concluded that the Nuggets will be strong contenders for the Western Conference title in the coming years, becoming one of the Clippers' biggest rivals in the West, even surpassing the Lakers and Rockets as the Clippers' strongest opponent. After all, Jokic is only 26 years old, and Murray and other players are also very young. Meanwhile, the Lakers' star players are getting older, with Davis and Faker being fragile and uncertain about when they might get injured and have to rest.

Although they won the game, the victory wasn't easy and there are still some hidden problems. Jia Fei believes that while the Nuggets haven't made many changes, their roster depth is better than the Rockets and Trail Blazers. Therefore, they can't be careless in the upcoming games; they should field their full starting lineup when necessary and avoid trying to wear down the Nuggets. Jokic's stamina and resilience are far greater than they appear...

The outside world can be very deceiving. For example, Garnett often beats his chest and roars, as does Bosh. They both seem very tough, but the former is a tough guy who "fights and retreats" while the latter is a Taoist priest who gets beaten up by Gao Yuanyuan.

May 21, Western Conference Finals Game 2.

In this game, the Nuggets, who lost the previous game, did not change their starting lineup, while the Clippers, who won the previous game, changed their starting lineup.

Dillon replaced Beverley in the starting lineup, teaming up with the Flying Pepper duo.

Clearly, the Clippers learned from their mistake of being dominated by their opponents in the first half of the previous game and decided not to let the same situation happen again, so they simply stopped starting Beverley.

After the game started, the Nuggets made adjustments to their defense. When Jia Fei set a screen against Jokic, they would double-team him, double-teaming on the strong side and rotating on the weak side.

By doing so, they naturally created open spaces, and the spots they chose to let go were Dillon and Olynyk.

This was indeed a reluctant choice. You can't expect to defend all the Clippers players, and if they let Jia Fei run pick-and-rolls against Jokic like they did in the last game, the Nuggets felt they had no chance of winning. After all, they had already tried an offensive shootout in the last game, which ended in failure. Their strategy for this game was to try to let the other Clippers players defeat them.

Unfortunately, Jia Fei's ability to break double teams is as strong as a running man, making it extremely difficult to double-team him. Jokic's slow movement speed and inability to keep up with rotations gave the Clippers numerous open three-point opportunities.