NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 545 Only hard for a few minutes

8-2, the Clippers scored their first 2 points of the game with a jump shot by Jia Fei!

Cheers erupted immediately at Staples Center... Jia Fei played very aggressively on this play, without asking for a screen or a handoff or off-ball movement; he simply spread out and cleared one side, forcefully finishing the offense one-on-one.

This simple and direct offensive approach isn't Coach Buden's usual tactic, but it is one he sometimes uses. To put it bluntly, having a superstar gives you the freedom to use this tactic when you're experiencing a scoring drought, and it works every time.

On the Spurs' offense, Mills brought the ball over and passed it to Aldridge to hammer Gallinari.

Who knew the Clippers would choose to double-team them!

Adriano didn't linger and immediately passed the ball out!

The Clippers' rotation defense was very fast, and DeRozan didn't have much open space when he received the ball. He pulled up for a jump shot but missed!

Rebound!

The Clippers dominated the paint, securing the rebound thanks to their numerical advantage.

Jia Fei gets the ball and launches a fast break, driving the length of the court and forcefully attacking the basket, drawing a foul from the opponent!

Jia Fei stepped to the free-throw line and made both shots, making it 8-4, the score instantly became 4 points!

"The Clippers adjusted their strategy during the timeout, they double-teamed Aldridge!" Wang Zixing exclaimed in surprise.

Su Qun nodded: "They not only double-teamed, but they also collapsed the defense, using their numerical advantage to protect the rim and rebounds. After double-teaming, they used rotations to help defend. It's obvious that they're targeting the Spurs' weakness in outside shooting."

Mills dribbled the ball over and passed it to DeRozan.

DeRozan, facing Paul George's defense, used a pick-and-roll to attack Gallinari, and hit a pull-up jumper to answer back!

But Paul George also used pick-and-rolls against Poeltl and hit pull-up jumpers, responding in kind.

10:6, still a 4-point difference!

The Spurs were on offense. Aldridge received the ball under the basket but was double-teamed, so he passed it to Poeltl on the other side.

Poeltl received the ball and prepared to make a strong run, but was slashed away by Jia Fei!

Beverley cleverly intercepted the ball and immediately passed it to Jia Fei to launch a counterattack!

Jia Fei launched a counter-attack, drawing two defenders before passing the ball behind his back to Olynyk!

Olynyk made a layup, making the score 10-8!

The atmosphere at Staples Center instantly heated up. In just a short while, the score difference was almost closed. So never doubt Jia Fei; he will beat you until you question your existence.

During the Spurs' offense, Aldridge and Gallinari were battling for position, and the referee called a foul on Gallinari.

Gallinari committed two fouls and was replaced by Harrell.

The Clippers are playing a big lineup now...

Although Harrell is shorter than Gallinari, he's a true power forward/center swingman, consistently playing center off the bench. Sometimes being short doesn't necessarily mean you can't play center; Ben Wallace was short too, but he played center his entire career.

On the Spurs' offense, Harrell and Aldridge were vying for position, and Aldridge was finding it harder to get past them. Mills couldn't pass the ball in, so he passed it to DeRozan.

DeRozan and Poeltl set a pick-and-roll, and Poeltl cut to the basket!

After receiving the ball and being double-teamed, Poeltl passed to Mills on the outside, but his jump shot missed!

Harrell put the board away and handed it to Jia Fei.

Jia Fei brought the ball over and called for Harrell to come up and set a screen!

Harrell came up and set a screen, then immediately drove to the basket!

Jia Fei dribbled the ball and cut inside, making a pocket pass to Harrell who was cutting in!

Harrell caught the ball and immediately unleashed a powerful two-handed dunk!

After dunking, he roared wildly and flexed his muscles, much like Kenneth Faried, the Orc, back in the day when he played for the Denver Nuggets.

Jia Fei felt that Harrell's image was somewhat similar to the savage in Street Fighter who could generate electricity and bite people.

With Poeltl tied up by Olynyk, the Spurs' interior defense was almost completely exposed, so it's not surprising that Harrell's pick-and-roll exploited the gaps.

10:10, the first tie of the match!

Spurs offense, Poeltl drives to the basket and draws a foul from Olynyk!

Poeltl made one of two free throws, and Harrell grabbed the rebound.

Jia Fei came over and continued to set a screen for Harrell, who continued to cut to the basket!

Jia Fei used a feint, pretending to pass to Harrell, but actually scored a layup himself!

11:12, the Clippers take the lead for the first time in this game!

Spurs offense, Aldridge backs down Harrell but misses!

Jia Fei grabbed the rebound, brought the ball over, and continued the pick-and-roll with Harrell. This time, Poeltl retreated to protect the rim, but Jia Fei passed to Olynyk...

Olynyk hits a three-pointer! 11:15, the Clippers lead by 4 points...

Spurs call a timeout!

Staples Center erupted! Cheers thundered, and shouts of "MVP" reached the heavens...

"Jia Fei is really amazing! I didn't expect him to be so effective at pick-and-rolls with Harrell! I thought only Lou Williams could run such good pick-and-rolls with Harrell!" Wang Zixing exclaimed.

Su Qun smiled and said, "A passing maestro like Jia Fei can naturally create wonderful combinations with Harrell. In the past few rounds, he has been setting pick-and-rolls with Harrell, perfectly reading the opponent's defense. When Poeltl is not there, he attacks the basket, and when Poeltl comes back, he passes to Olynyk. He mainly plays a game of adapting to the situation!"

Harrell was having a blast, a smile constantly on his face. Coach Buden was also secretly pleased; having a player like Jia Fei sometimes meant he didn't need to constantly yell from the sidelines—it was so much easier.

Jia Fei knew that the key to the effectiveness of his pick-and-roll with Harrell was their good offensive spacing. The opposing team was hesitant to double-team, as a double-team would easily leave open perimeter players.

Olynyk's three-pointer made Poeltl's help defense pay the price.

The Clippers used a 9-man rotation in this game. Coach Buden felt that the 9-man rotation in the regular season was suitable for them in the playoffs, so they continued to use it.

Gallinari fouled out early, and Harrell's early entry into the game became a turning point. Faced with Harrell's fierce attacks on the basket and Jia Fei's unpredictable dominance and unstoppable offense, the Spurs' defense became overwhelmed, and even their once-proud interior defense struggled to hold up.

The Spurs have an even bigger problem on offense. One major drawback of starting with two big men is the lack of offensive spacing. They used to play Aldridge as a single big man to create space, but they tried it against the Clippers in the playoffs and it didn't work, so they had to use a twin-tower lineup. But the twin-tower lineup only lasted a few minutes before they were brought back down to earth.

The Clippers started slowly but rallied in the first quarter, leading the Spurs by 9 points at the end of the quarter.

The Spurs struggled with three-pointers, so the Clippers exploited this weakness by collapsing their defense inside and frequently using zone defense to annoy them.

From the second quarter onwards, the game fell completely under the Clippers' control. Neither Poeltl nor Aldridge could make any waves against the Clippers' collapsing defense.

DeRozan is indeed difficult to defend, but it's already quite an achievement that he can score against the three formidable defenders of JaVale, Paul George, and Bridges. You can't expect him to do too much.