Nine Hundred and Fifty-Three: The Tragic Clippers, the Pioneers Who Created Miracles

Just when Warriors fans were clamoring that Link won the title of Defensive Player of the Year just because of good luck and that Curry would definitely win the MVP, the Grizzlies' second-round opponent was officially announced.

On May 2, the Portland Trail Blazers defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 111-100 on the road and eliminated the opponent with a total score of 4-3, successfully advancing to the second round.

At first glance, this seems like an ordinary score. And the Trail Blazers played so hard in the first round, they are definitely no match for the Grizzlies.

But in fact, everyone outside is discussing the possibility of the Trail Blazers continuing to create miracles!

The Trail Blazers were able to eliminate the Clippers 4-3, but it was not as simple as it seemed on the surface. Because of the series victory over the Clippers, the Trail Blazers became the ninth team in NBA history that was able to counterattack and win the series after falling behind 1-3!

Yes, the Trail Blazers once trailed the Clippers 1-3, but they did not give up resistance. Instead, they broke out collectively and pulled the game back.

Because of this, they are known as "the team that went through hell and came back."

On paper, the Blazers are definitely not as strong as the Grizzlies. But with such an example of a 1-3 reversal and victory in front of us, no one knows what the Blazers can do.

And after experiencing a "death", they will definitely be able to perform even more powerfully.

Many people think that the Trail Blazers may be in trouble this year! This "dark horse power" will even make it difficult for the Grizzlies to resist.

In short, this round of competition, which was supposed to be without any suspense, has now attracted much attention.

People want to see if the Trail Blazers' miracle can continue when facing the Grizzlies.

The morning after the Trail Blazers came back to win, Joger also called everyone for an emergency tactics meeting. Obviously, the Grizzlies themselves also care about the Trail Blazers.

Being able to come back from behind 1-3 is not something that can be achieved by luck alone.

Link was also very surprised when he learned that the Trail Blazers had actually come back to win.

In the original history, the Clippers did experience a reversal from a 3-1 lead this year. But in the original history, the Clippers' opponent was not the Trail Blazers, but the Rockets. They were not reversed in the first round, but in the Western Conference semifinals.

At that time, Paul was only one step away from his dream of the Western Conference Finals. But no one expected that the Clippers would be eliminated even though they had the advantage.

Since then, the meme of "a certain 183-year-old man sneaking on the floor of the Western Conference Finals" has been spoiled by fans.

But Link never expected that with a different opponent and a different time, the Clippers would still be in tragedy...

It is really not unfair at all to say that the Clippers are a regular season team. They only made it to the playoffs during the regular season, but when it came time to take action, the Clippers always failed at critical moments.

Link shook his head and stopped thinking about the Clippers. At the moment, his opponent is the Portland Trail Blazers, and he must focus all his attention on the Trail Blazers.

Dave Joerger and Quin Snyder carefully analyzed the Trail Blazers game video. The reason why the Trail Blazers were able to come back from a 1-3 deficit was not only due to the full strength of the entire team from starters to substitutes, but also Because Damian Lillard's performance was very brave!

This third-year point guard did not fall behind in the face of Chris Paul, and frequently hit shots at critical moments, showing his big heart.

Lillard has gone to Link training camp every summer since entering the league. He is a very ambitious and determined guy, and as an older rookie, he knows very well,

He didn't have as much time to grow as others.

All he can do is work harder than others.

Apparently, his efforts paid off. Regarding this, Link really didn't know whether to be happy or worried.

On the one hand, Lillard has improved tremendously because he participated in his own training camp. On the other hand, the Trail Blazers have now become an obstacle to the Grizzlies' three consecutive championships...

After an analysis, Joger and Snyder decided to use a double-team tactic against Lillard!

Although Link's one-on-one defense against Lillard worked well in the regular season, Lillard may not be defeated so easily in one-on-one situations in the playoffs.

Moreover, asking Conley to defend the second position is also very disadvantageous. Conley is only 1.85 meters tall. He cannot take advantage of the Trail Blazers' Matthews or C.J. McCollum.

Therefore, Conley must be the first line of defense to defend Lillard, and the Grizzlies can only find ways to double-team.

Joerger and Snyder knew that the Grizzlies were truly safe only if Lillard was contained. Otherwise, you never know what the No. 0 defender will do in the next second.

Well, it seems that everyone wearing No. 0 jersey is not easy to mess with...

But the double-team tactic is not something you can just hit. Without careful planning, double-teaming can easily lead to problems.

How to double-team, when to double-team, who to double-team...all these details need to be refined.

Otherwise, the Trail Blazers will definitely let the Grizzlies taste the following fouls.

First of all, Lillard likes to play pick-and-rolls with Aldridge, so the first step in double-teaming is to double-team after the pick-and-roll!

Moreover, the big man flanking Lillard cannot leave Lillard's side. Lillard must be forced to try difficult shots, or he must be forced to release the ball.

In short, Lillard just can't play comfortably.

As a result, the requirements for the Grizzlies' defensive ability at the fourth position are very high. First of all, this person must be able to keep up with Lillard, and his defensive skills must be solid.

Otherwise, the number 0 cannot be clamped.

At this point, the choice is obvious. The Grizzlies still have one of the best defensive players who can play the fourth position.

In the last round of the series, Link performed very well in the fourth position, torturing Anthony Davis to death. And Tobias Harris also played very actively after moving to the third position.

This round, Joger hopes that Link will continue to be active in the fourth position. But his task is not to restrict Aldridge, but to find a way to block Lillard!

As long as Lillard is blocked, the Blazers can't do anything too extraordinary.

In terms of regular strength, it is impossible for the Trail Blazers to beat the Grizzlies.

After finalizing the tactics, the Grizzlies began practicing the double-team strategy that afternoon. But since the game will be played the next day and the training time is very short, in the eyes of most people, no matter what adjustments the Grizzlies make, the maturity of the tactics will definitely not be too high.

During the media opening period that afternoon, a reporter interviewed Jorge, "Coach, do you have any special targeted settings for the Trail Blazers? Do you think your arrangements can be effective in just one afternoon?" ?"

Qiaogel was very cautious. He didn't want to get into trouble, so he didn't answer directly. "It's not appropriate to discuss tactics now. We can talk about something else."

This unclear answer naturally cannot satisfy the reporters. Since they couldn't get the answer from Joger, the reporters had to make up their own minds.

It is generally believed that the only change Joger made was to let Link guard Lillard.

Link is like a brick, he can mend it wherever he has time.

Not only the media, but even Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts and Lillard himself think so.

What can the grizzly bear do? It's nothing more than using the best defensive player to restrict the opponent's top scorer.

To this end, they have also prepared corresponding response methods.

The entire Trail Blazers team is full of confidence. The immature Pelicans can't do anything against the Grizzlies, but that doesn't mean the same goes for the Trail Blazers!

That evening, Lillard accepted a phone interview from reporters.

During the interview, Lillard was full of confidence, "I respect Link, and I respect the Grizzlies. In fact, we have a good relationship in private. But precisely because of this, we will be less merciless on the court. We have just returned from Hell is back, we are now fearless. My teammates and I can’t wait to continue the miracle!”

The next day, Lillard's words reached Link's ears through reporters.

People thought that Lillard's impressive speech would calm Link, but Link just smiled.

"Hell? Hahahahaha, neither Pioneer nor Damien have ever seen what real hell is like. But don't worry, they will be able to see it soon, tonight."

After Link finished speaking, he winked at the camera. .

It seems that Death is about to start his hunting game again.

Link is very confident in the Grizzlies' new strategy.