147. The rhythm of the game
Although Wu Dawei's goal hit Brooks and Oklahoma fans who had just ignited hope, it was still early for the game to end, so they naturally would not give up hope.
40:35.
Wu Dawei's goal helped the Cavaliers stabilize the lead, and the pressure naturally returned to Kevin Durant's side. As a player with extremely outstanding offense, he has always been the hope of the Thunder on the offensive end.
The goal in the last round allowed Kevin Durant to regain a little confidence on the offensive end, and at the same time, it also made him feel a better and simpler offensive method. He once again sought cooperation from his teammates, and the inside player once again raised the high position, helping Durant make a pick-and-roll.
Although Wu Dawei had a premonition of this pick-and-roll in advance, no matter whether he was a player who squeezed through the pick-and-roll from the top or bypassed the pick-and-roll from the bottom, no matter how fast he was, he would leave Kevin Durant with a gap in his attack.
Normally, when the opponent performs a pick-and-roll, Wu Dawei will choose to bypass the pick-and-roll person and continue to defend the ball holder. In most cases, since the opponent against Wu Dawei is not much different from him, if the opponent directly chooses to jump to shoot after the pick-and-roll, then Wu Dawei can rely on his strong predictive ability to rush forward after bypassing the pick-and-roll person. Even if he can't block the opponent, he can disrupt the opponent's shooting rhythm.
For Durant, such trouble does not exist. He is too tall. Standing with Wu Dawei, from a distance, you may even feel that he is one head taller than Wu Dawei. In addition, his ultra-long arm span is different from ordinary people. Kevin Durant can rely on the pick-and-roll, Wu Dawei bypasses the gap between the pick-and-roll person's body and jumps directly to shoot. His shooting range almost covers the entire half, which is also the reason why he is confident.
If Wu Dawei chooses not to bypass his opponent and chooses to switch defense with his teammates, then I believe Kevin Durant will be scruples. He will not hesitate to hold the ball and break through hard, finding a better position for himself to attack.
Therefore, Wu Dawei did not choose to switch defense with his teammates. He knew very well that his mission in this game was to strangle Kevin Durant's offensive method. Until now, he has done a good job; but this time, he was still one step slower.
Kevin Durant relied on Wu Dawei to bypass the physical gap of the pick-and-roll man, stepped on the three-point line, and completed a jump shot!
The basketball almost flew over Wu Dawei's fingertips. At this moment, Kevin Durant fully demonstrated his huge height advantage.
The score was caught up again, and the pressure returned to the Cavaliers. Sessions passed the half-time ball, and then he also asked for a pick-and-roll from his teammates, and then went to the inside. Sevrosa still held Wu Dawei tightly, and this time, he worked harder than the last time. He almost did not participate in the Thunder's offense, leaving all his strength on the defensive end.
Wu Dawei was stuck by Sevlosa for a moment, Sessions rushed into the inside, picked up a basket, the basketball passed the basket, and the rebound was won by the Thunder!
This is the Thunder’s opportunity. The thoughts in the minds of Oklahoma fans who flashed through the Ford Center made them shout, and as long as they scored another goal, they would put more pressure on the Cavaliers!
It was still Kevin Durant who held the ball on the offensive end, and another pick-and-roll cooperation. This time, Kevin Durant hit a three-pointer one step away from the three-point line!
The score was instantly equalized by the Oklahoma City team!
The audience cheered as if they had won the game.
After scoring the goal, Kevin Durant spread his hands to Wu Dawei beside him. At the beginning of the second quarter, he even scored 7 points, and his hands felt very good. Naturally, he did not forget Wu Dawei's arrogant and domineering appearance in the first quarter.
Cavaliers head coach Byron Scott quickly made personnel adjustments, changing Brazilian Andre Valaijo to the inside and outside core Maurice Williams to the court. The Thunder also made corresponding adjustments, and James Harden was back on the court.
The two sides tied at 40, and the second quarter had been played for 5 minutes. No matter how excited the fans of Ford Center are now, the ball is still in the hands of the Cavaliers. It is undeniable that although the Thunder played aggressively, the Cavaliers are still in the hands of the Cavaliers.
Williams took the ball through half and faced James Harden. Although Harden's body was much stronger than Williams, Williams was not too afraid of this young junior. Harden's defense was not too tough compared to Westbrook.
Williams dribbled in disguise in front of the body and broke through Harden's defense and rushed to the inside, but his sway did not shake away Harden, so he was quickly squeezed from the original route by the opponent's strong body.
When Williams threw the ball out of his hand, he was already outside the paint area. This was a relatively reluctant move because the basketball had no intention of entering the basket and it was on the front of the basket.
A successful defense!
When the basketball bounced up on the edge of the basket and there was no chance of scoring another goal, the cheers burst out from Ford Center were because they were suppressed for the whole game and would have a real chance to counterattack!
Bring the game back to the Oklahoma City Thunder pace!
The basketball bounced up, and the rest was the competition for rebounds, but the picture of Valejo being stuck behind Ibaka made Thunder fans feel that this would be a suspenseless belonging!
The basketball bounced high, and while Ibaka put Valejoka behind him, he also looked up at the basketball. He saw the landing point of the basketball clearly, so Ibaka jumped up!
He raised his hands high, and the basketball was about to fall into his hands in the next second, but suddenly changed direction!
Ibaka felt a strong wind suddenly blew beside him, and then a figure suddenly appeared beside him!
Oklahoma fans outside the court saw a figure jumping into the paint area, then grabbed the basketball before Ibaka, and then filled the basket with both hands!
Wu Dawei's No. 0 jersey shines extremely brightly at this moment! At the moment when the game rhythm is about to reverse, he retained the precarious lead for the Cavaliers.
42:40. The whole audience was silent for a while. The cheers of Oklahoma fans just now seemed to pass by, and everyone seemed to have disappointment written on their faces, which made Ibaka feel very upset.
"SHIT!" Ibaka hated that he was not good at the duck he had flew away from his eyes again. He cursed angrily, and suddenly felt that someone had slapped his shoulder. He turned his head and saw Durant's comforting expression: "It's okay, Sergi. We still have opportunities, I need your help!"
The scene of Kevin Durant holding the ball on the offensive end has saved Oklahoma fans a glimmer of hope. Although Wu Dawei's unexpected goal just disappointed them, it does not mean that they have no chance in this game. As long as they score a goal, and then another successful defense on the defensive end, and watch Wu Dawei in case he suddenly came out halfway again, then Oklahoma fans believe that the rhythm of the game will still return to the hands of the Thunder!
Durant once again planned to attack by himself, and Sergi Ibaka took the initiative to run near the center line to help Durant make a pick-and-roll. Then Durant still used the pick-and-roll intention to throw away Wu Dawei like he did last time.
This time, Wu Dawei did not bypass Ibaka's body from the bottom line, but followed Durant and bypassed Ibaka from the top line. In this way, Wu Dawei was one distance behind Durant. This situation made Durant's vision wider in an instant, and the closer he approached the basket, the greater the chance of scoring! This is what every attacker knows.
So, facing such an open marching area, Kevin Durant did not choose to take action directly, and he launched an attack on the inside. But when he rushed to the near-free throw line, he was forced to stop by Gibson, who came from the bottom line to defend!
Since he scored 7 points in a row on the offensive end, the Cavaliers' defense has made it the top priority to curb Durant.
Durant, who was in hot touch, faced Gibson, and he did not choose to allocate the ball to his teammates who were in the open position on the outside. Gibson was too short for him, and Durant had sufficient confidence in this distance!
So Durant jumped up!
His body was very straight in the air! When he raised the ball over his head, Gibson facing him was completely helpless, but he did not give up and rushed towards Durant. Although this did not pose a threat to Durant, Durant still leaned back slightly to create a broader vision for himself.
When he stretched his body completely in the air, Durant threw the ball into the basket without hesitation!
However, when he tweaked his wrist, he suddenly felt that he could not exert his strength! A huge force came to the top, and almost in a moment, he felt that the basketball was out of his control.
He was blocked!
Chapter completed!