After Jokic and Howard’s matchup shifted from being completely suppressed to mutually explosive, the situation on the court fundantally changed.
Because the Bulls wouldn’t give Howard too many low post isolation opportunities, Hoiberg essentially just wanted to use Jokic as a breakthrough point.
After the tactical failure, he couldn’t possibly bet the team’s offense on Howard’s relatively inefficient inside play.
Moreover, without a "One Star and Four Shooters" lineup, Howard’s ability to handle the ball when double-tead was quite average.
But conversely, for the Cavaliers, Hansen could confidently feed the ball to Jokic, because Jokic’s ability to handle the ball was much stronger than Howard’s.
At this ti, Hansen also didn’t need to keep playing with the ball like at the start; he could put more energy into defending against Irving.
Although it might sound inappropriate, as the ga went deeper, this match had gradually beco a stage for the Cavaliers to train Jokic.
Hoiberg sat on the bench, hands clenched silently.
Actually, the Bulls could contend with the Cavaliers, as they had already completed their integration in the regular season.
It’s just that they had two big shots on the team, and neither was willing to let go.
Even if you replaced with Phil Jackson, the result would be the sa.
With a score of 106 to 93, the Cavaliers finally defeated the Bulls by 13 points, gaining the first victory in the division semifinals.
At the Bulls’ post-ga press conference, a Cleveland reporter asked Irving if he would apologize for his previous comnts.
"If my words hurt anyone, I would certainly apologize, but before that, I need those fans who attacked to apologize first. I brought a championship to this city, and they are ungrateful."
Besides his ego, Irving is soone who sticks to his beliefs.
"This is only the first ga of the series. I’ve been through worse situations. We’ll go all out for the next ga, and even if we can’t manage it, we will defend our ho court back in Chicago. We will win eventually."
When discussing the series situation, he also showed a calm confidence.
"I’ve always said Nikola can beco an All-Star, but now I want to say that’s just his starting point."
At the Cavaliers’ post-ga press conference, Hansen also made efforts to praise Jokic.
Jokic scored 18 points, had 9 rebounds, and 6 assists tonight, which isn’t particularly dazzling data; it shows Howard still greatly limited him.
But more important than the data is the situation on the court.
Second-year Jokic could face Howard, who’s at the tail end of his peak, in the playoffs. This indicates his progress is faster than "historically."
This will give the Cavaliers more assurance in their upcoming gas against the Celtics and the Warriors.
"I support DW’s view; there’s a difference between sacrifice and fearless sacrifice."
Hansen also openly expressed support for Wade’s comnts. Wade played outstandingly tonight, scoring 21 points with 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
"Kyrie’s confidence has always been his strength, but the series won’t have a Ga 5."
When the reporters inford Hansen of Irving’s previous comnts, Hansen gave a very positive response.
Just as Wade said, dissing forr teammates and teams you’ve played for isn’t a good choice.
Hansen wouldn’t do that, but he would show Irving the reality in his own way.
Two days later, the second ga of the series continued in Cleveland.
The ga process differed sowhat from G1 as Butler played much better. He is the kind of player who performs better the more critical the mont gets.
However, the issues between Irving and Howard were never resolved. The two clearly couldn’t stand each other on the court, giving the Bulls a feeling of unutilized strength.
The Cavaliers also took another win with 116 to 105, bringing the series score to 2-0.
The teams will next move to Chicago for the coming gas. According to Hansen, this series won’t go back to Chicago.
"Hansen is killing Nike’s future."
Before the series continued, an article published by NBC sparked a lot of discussion.
Nike viewed Antetokounmpo and Irving as the future of the brand, but now Antetokounmpo was swept by Hansen, and Irving is about to be next.
Athletes can, of course, build their image and reputation through marketing, but those ultimately must be based on performance on the court.
Packaging without a solid foundation on the field is like a house of cards, one kick and it collapses.
The article even ntioned Nike’s biggest mistake was allowing Irving to leave the Cavaliers.
If Irving had stayed with the Cavaliers, Nike might not have won, but they wouldn’t have lost either.
Because a championship is not just one person’s, it’s the whole team’s. Hansen winning also ant Irving winning.
But now, with Irving leaving and Jokic signing with UA, the Cavaliers have beco purely a UA team.
Of course, Nike executives said they won’t take the bla.
Irving was the "rebellious type" even when he was with the Cavaliers. As a Nike player, he dared to say, "No one wants to be teammates with Jas." If he wanted to leave the Cavaliers, could Nike have stopped it?
Nevertheless, this article that caused a stir made the Bulls’ prospects look extrely bleak.
Hoiberg previously said that a team with DW, Butler, and Big Gasol can’t be considered diocre. So what should a team with Irving, Butler, and Howard, yet ends up getting swept, be called?
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