The Hawks team caught up in two consecutive gas, which rely allowed them, who had already caught everyone’s attention after the first three gas, to receive even higher evaluation.
The Bobcats nearly got reversed, but in the end, they won, so not many people would nitpick. It’s just that Zhang San, being a "participant," recalled those two gas with a "reflective" mindset and thought they would be criticized because of them.
However, reviewing the recently concluded series, he indeed saw many things that were not done well.
He personally averaged a series-high 31.1 points, plus 5.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1 block per ga. These are great stats, but his shooting percentage started high and ended low, dropping from over 50% to 46.5%. He made six three-pointers in G1, and a total of nineteen three-pointers in the last seven gas, averaging 2.7 per ga, with his shooting percentage also dropping to 33.75%, averaging eight attempts per ga.
In this regard, it’s actually not that bad. The opposing three stars also experienced a decline in their shooting percentages, with Pierce having the highest but still 0.6 percentage points lower than his.
One thing the team didn’t do well significantly is what almost led them to being overturned by the Hawks—a lack of substantial adjustnts after leading 3 to 1!
After G2’s ho loss, to counter the Hawks’ stubborn star-driven playstyle, they chose to adapt to the opponent’s style in the first away ga, "if you can’t beat them, join them," solving problems through defense and solo plays. This was an excellent adjustnt made by the coaching staff and executed well, resulting in two consecutive wins.
However, by G5, when they had an absolute advantage in the overall score, they should have adjusted their playstyle back, attempted to bring the subsequent gas back to their rhythm, and seize the opportunity to play to their strengths.
If they had made adjustnts in ti, even if they lost G5, the chances of winning G6 could have been greater.
But at the ti, their thought was, having won two gas in a row, to maintain the montum of the two consecutive wins and wipe out the opponent in one fell swoop, forgetting that "if you can’t beat them, join them" was just a temporary asure.
Their initial intention in G3 adjustnts was to withstand the opponent’s surge in the first away ga and bring the rhythm back to their side once the opponent’s offensive weakened.
Without making tily adjustnts, they sank deeper, getting caught in the opponent’s rhythm not only in G5 but also in G6. By the ti of the Ga 7, there was no longer room or ti to make major tactical adjustnts, leaving them to fight head-on.
In last night’s Ga 7, if it weren’t for his good start and Joe Johnson losing his head in the critical ga, the final result could have been different. Although the Hawks overall strength was not as good as theirs, the explosion of their three stars was indeed fierce.
After figuring this out, Zhang Yang did not dwell on the poor preparation after G4 anymore but regarded it as valuable experience.
After all, it was the first playoff journey post-system establishnt, and inevitably there were mistakes. This ti, reliance on "temporary effective tactics" exceeded that of "long-term effective tactics." Next ti they encounter a similar situation, they would know how to avoid it with this experience.
As the winning side, it’s always easier to let go...
...
After a day of rest, on May 24th, the first ga day of the division finals arrived, with Los Angeles comncing the battle tonight.
In Charlotte, Zhang Yang and the team started preparations before the Eastern Conference Finals. After lunchti, he got the news that the Chicago Bulls had arrived at the Tuhang Stadium.
He went to greet the opposite side’s little giant but didn’t chat much, as both were focused on preparing their respective teams.
The Bobcats’ preparation direction was clear. They had faced the Chicago Bulls three tis after the All-Star weekend, including one finale for seventy-win chase, and they couldn’t be more familiar.
Of course, this ans the opponents were equally familiar with them. Even if the coaching staff was thoroughly prepared, they dared not be careless.
At night, Zhang Yang and his little friend snuggled on the couch to watch the live broadcast of the Western Conference Finals G1.
The Tatum brothers and two more had run to Los Angeles early yesterday to watch the Western Conference Finals of the old ironsmith live. They said they would rush back tomorrow afternoon; Zhang San even paid for front-row tickets out of his own pocket for these three ungrateful ones!
But considering these four watched the old ironsmith growing up playing basketball, who can bla them?
In the previous round, Boss Qiao had sent out 32 tickets, but this ti he did not ntion giving more tickets, only providing four family tickets.
Actually, Boss Qiao was already kind enough. There’s no such thing as family tickets in his rookie contract; it’s agreed in the not-yet-executed renewal contract. The contract stated that he is entitled to request up to four family tickets in the regular season. The team has no such obligation in the playoffs since salaries are not paid then - it’s pure honor battle.
Moreover, the four self-paid tickets were essentially "self-retained tickets" used by the team to entertain guests, for which he only had to pay the face value. For such front-row tickets, with the opponent being the Chicago Bulls, even if they were handed over to the "channels" half an hour before the ga started, they could be sold at half markup.
At 9 p.m. Eastern ti, the Lakers and the Jazz Team’s G1 battle began.
Zhang Yang saw the Jazz Team players confidently step onto the court... only to et a tragic crushing.
The first quarter ended 30 to 26, the second 26 to 20, the third 26 to 17... after three quarters, the ga lost suspense.
Kobe played for 29 minutes, making 10 out of 17 shots, including 3 of 4 from three-point range, along with 8 of 8 free throws, scoring 31 points with 2 assists.
Garnett played 27 minutes, scoring 13 points, with 6 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals; Kidd played 28 minutes, getting 6 points, 7 rebounds, and 8 assists.
The Lakers led the Jazz Team by 19 points, with 82 to 63, as the Three Giants clocked out after the third quarter.
In the final quarter, the Jazz Team, taking advantage of the absence of the Three Giants, scored 33 to 25, rely making the scoreline look a bit more decent.
In the end, the Lakers easily defeated the Jazz Team 107 to 96, leading 1-0 in the series.
Seeing this result, not-very-basketball-savvy Emma Roberts asked, "Jack, are the Lakers that strong? It feels like they’re easily playing against the league’s last place, isn’t the Jazz Team a championship favorite?"
"If not for the Lakers, given the situation in the West this year, the Jazz Team would likely make it to the finals. They’re not weak, just unlucky. Kobe and Jackson have ten thousand ways to deal with the Utah Duo..."
Zhang Yang’s tone was full of envy, wishing he could play against the Jazz Team as well. Just having fought seven long-range battles against Bibby, Joe Johnson, and Pierce, he was fully confident to crush the new Double Killers like the old ironsmith!
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