Washington Wizards Regrettably Defeated, New Jersey Nets Defend Home Court Victory!
Link Scores 28 Points, 7 Rebounds, 1 Assist, 3 Steals, 2 Blocks; Besides him, no Nets player scored more than 15 points.
Washington Wizards' Playoff Chances in Danger, Bench Scoring 14 to 29, a Full 15-Point Deficit.
New Jersey Nets Blocked the Washington Wizards' Three-Point Shots through Active Perimeter Defense Rotations; the Team Shot 5 for 18 from Three-Point Range Tonight.
Though Defeated, the Team's Star Player, the Chosen One Link, repeatedly used Fadeaway Jumpshots to stop the bleeding for his teammates in the last quarter when most of his teammates were in poor form. Even Jason Kidd highly praised Link after the game as the Point Guard with the strongest offensive ability in NBA history.
Washington Wizards' Young Interior Defense player, Zach Randolph, scored for the team alongside Link during the team's crisis.
...
...
Despite the Washington Wizards losing the game, there wasn't much external criticism this time.
In the matchup against the league's top Point Guard, Jason Kidd, Link's performance was not bad. It was just the absence of Michael Jordan that caused the team's offense to immediately 'stall' after Link passed the ball out.
Other Perimeter players couldn't handle the ball well. Tyronn Lue barely managed, but... his slender physique would allow Jason Kidd to overperform.
In terms of team configuration and bench depth, the New Jersey Nets were a notch above the Washington Wizards.
These aspects were further reflected in the upcoming Eastern Conference Finals Game 2.
When Link drove halfway, encountered a double-team, and passed the ball to Hamilton and Gerald Wallace, they couldn't handle the ball well. Simply put, if it were Michael Jordan, Michael Jordan would make the correct 'offensive choice' based on the defensive position after receiving the ball. Additionally, in terms of driving after receiving the ball, both of their offenses were relatively one-dimensional, especially Gerald Wallace, who truly only drove in a straight line, even if he forced his way to the basket, it would be a miss.
Michael Jordan, on the other hand, could execute a pull-up jumper, change direction while driving, and manipulate the defense through Ball Handling rhythm.
In the first quarter of Eastern Conference Finals Game 2, the score was 22 to 3, with the Nets leading by 8 points.
However, in the second quarter, the Washington Wizards made another adjustment. Facing the Nets' mobile small-ball lineup, the Washington Wizards also deployed their death small-ball lineup.
"Oh, no! No!"
"Is Doug Collins crazy?"
Charles Barkley, a die-hard fan of Link in the TNT Broadcast Booth, couldn't help but exclaim at this moment.
"At this moment, on the court, the Washington Wizards, apart from Link, have a height disadvantage at the other four positions. This lineup is too short..." Kenny Smith added from the side.
Meanwhile, on the basketball court, the five Washington Wizards players were: Tyronn Lue, Link, Richard Hamilton, Gerald Wallace, and Zach Randolph.
Zach Randolph was completely used by the Washington Wizards as a 'low-cost version' of Shaquille O'Neal, with Randolph posting up in the paint, aggressively attacking Kenyon Martin.
His 'rolling meat' style of play made Kenyon Martin very uncomfortable. Randolph gave full physical confrontation on every play, dislodging his opponent, bumping them off balance, and then finishing with a soft touch.
Randolph attacked Kenyon Martin for 4 consecutive possessions, making 4 out of 5 shots. Yes, that's right, in the third possession, although Kenyon Martin defended it, Randolph scored with a put-back.
The Nets tried to double-team Randolph, but once they double-teamed the Interior Defense, it would create a 'vacuum' in the 'mid-range area'. Link began to score from mid-range... Of course, not everyone can utilize such mid-range opportunities; it requires excellent individual one-on-one ability.
Randolph and Link, this First-Year Players duo, although not comparable to the current OK combination, the Nets' Interior Defense was just average. Link frequently received the ball in the elbow area, initiated offense with his back to the basket, used his size advantage to suppress Jason Kidd, and scored repeatedly.
Once he drove to the basket and attracted the Interior Defense's help, Link, with a barefoot height of 2 meters, found both scoring and Passing particularly easy. After all, Kenyon Martin's height was only 206cm, and his Stamina consumption was also extremely high from frequently guarding Randolph.
This scene left Barkley and Smith of TNT dumbfounded.
"OMG! Link... he truly is a very special player. He can perfectly adapt to various offensive systems."
This also caused the score between the two sides to become deadlocked.
With a 'beep!', Zach Randolph received the ball in the mid-low post, executed a face-up triple threat, a jab step to test, got Kenyon Martin to bite, drove into the paint, and facing the help defense of Keith Van Horn, completed a strong 2+1 after aerial contact.
After making the free throw, the score was 89 to 93, with the Washington Wizards trailing by 4 points, and 3 minutes and 19 seconds remaining in the game.
"Get back on defense!"
"Get back on defense!"
Doug Collins on the sidelines shouted to the Washington Wizards players on the court.
The quick-witted Jason Kidd saw Tyronn Lue guarding Richard Jefferson in a mismatch. Kidd quickly passed the ball. Jefferson, on the left wing outside the Three-Point Shot line, received the ball, used his off-hand to fend off Tyronn Lue, and immediately charged towards the basket. Randolph tried to help defend, but Kenyon Martin initiated body contact. Just as Jefferson was about to jump for a dunk, suddenly, a long arm shot out from behind, and with a 'bang!', completed a pin-Block.
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
After the Block, Link landed unsteadily and fell to the floor. At this moment, the American version of Hanamichi Sakuragi, Gerald Wallace, picked up the basketball.
"Wow!"
"Good job, Gerald!"
"What a Block, Link!"
Washington Wizards fans in front of their televisions, seeing their home team players fighting so hard, couldn't help but cheer them on.
"Beep!" Doug Collins quickly called a timeout.
This timeout, while seemingly losing a fast-break opportunity, was actually very wise.
Rushing to offense before Link even got up, what's the difference from rushing to miss a shot?
(TN: The recs)