Therefore, the first adjustment of Tyrone Lu in this game: batum will start or play small ball.
Game 1, Mitchell made 30 shots 16, made 6 shots from 3-pointers 15, and scored 45 points; In the second game, Mitchell made 29 shots 15, and scored 6,37 points in the three-pointer 12. I'm afraid George's counterpoint defense strategy won't work in the first two games.
So the second adjustment of Tyrone Lu in this game: from the first minute, let Leonard defend Mitchell.
The third adjustment: improve Beverly's rotation order, play early and defend Clarkson.
Director Lu's adjustments have a clear purpose, there is nothing to hide, and the result is obvious:
Mitchell couldn't train Zubac in military training. He made 0 of 3 shots in the first quarter and was basically locked by Leonard. The space sense of the small ball lineup is really much better. Clippers 2 1 1 1, 3 of 6 3-pointers. The score of 27 points in a single quarter is not high, but it is still smooth.
At the beginning of the second quarter, when George led the team, there was an interesting scene worthy of being carried forward by the Clippers:
George and Zubac rolled around, but Zubac didn't have the ability to open the basket. Recently, George prefers to attack the basket, and both of them go down. In addition, ingels, who is in charge of defending George, and Gobert, who is in charge of protecting the basket, are both crowded, and George's attack on the basket also failed.
Later, I saw Zubac and George whispering, and what they said was unknown, but the Clippers changed:
In the next round, George and Zubac fought, but from the details, it was different. They played a game similar to that of Grizzly Morant and Varanciunas. Both of them got off, but the positions crossed. Zubac, who cut inside, always paid attention to the position and blocked the basket for the second time. George avoids Gobert, runs to the other side, and makes a low-handed layup.
This routine, from the technical characteristics, is really suitable for Jeangeorges and Zubac:
Morant is good at attacking at the basket rather than projecting, and Varanciunas only has CIC and can't drift to the three-point line; Similarly, George's aggression in this year's playoffs has also greatly increased. Although he is not determined to make a three-point shot, his attack on the basket is unambiguous, and Zubac can't open it.
And another factor: In the first round, the Grizzlies' opponent was Jazz, aiming at Gobert.
Since then, George has found a feeling. Since 4 1-47, he has scored three goals in a row, which has given the Jazz a blow:
Holding the ball to the right, there is no suitable pick-and-roll opportunity, so the distance between people with 18 feet is strong, 4 1-49.
The winger held the ball against Royce O 'Neill's defense, but the man didn't sway into the space, and the top man was strong by three points, 4 1-54.
Next ball, reggie jackson passes it to George on the right. Pause, walk three points, 4 1-57.
As a result, the original single-digit difference between the two teams was suddenly pulled to about 15 and remained at half-time.
Now the Clippers can catch their breath: finally, it's not them who are at a disadvantage, but the Jazz.
From the half-court, the Clippers' offense is not well organized, but it is based on the infinite changes in defense, the fiery touch of George and Reggie Jackson, and Leonard's defensive takeover of the Jazz.
Usually, people will regard singles and five outs as the characteristics of the clippers, but this is actually their problem:
It has been said countless times since the team was established. This kind of play is of course very popular in low-end games. The opponent has no excellent defensive resources, and it is not the Clippers' singles. After the Clippers passed the ball continuously, the defensive rotation could not make up for the outside three points. And on the offensive end, facing Leonard, George and Beverly, if the level is poor, it is impossible to take advantage of anything.
For example, the so-called George is always a ghost (or several ghosts), which is actually a matter of lineup configuration:
In essence, George is also a shooter who is best at moving empty-handed, running without the ball and cutting the ball, which is equivalent to a Clay Thompson who has strengthened some skills of holding the ball and weakened some skills of not having the ball. Obviously, it is not a wise choice to force Thompson to attack with the ball in every game, and it will seriously affect his efficiency.
The same applies to George, but some people make balls for Thompson. Who will make the ball for George?
Therefore, as long as the Clippers don't have a real organizer, ignore the cooperation without the ball in tactical design, and don't arrange classic tactics without the ball for George, such as bypassing double guards, crossing the position with the shooter, winding the ball inside the three-point line, and insisting on star singles and 5-out outside conduction, then George's state of a ghost game (or several ghost games) is actually foreseeable.
Also, a little hint: George should probably go to the gym to iron clothes and keep fit. In these games, whenever George's dribbling is blocked and there is a physical confrontation, he feels his waist collapse, his body is weak and his center of gravity is unstable. I'm afraid his core strength can't keep up.
Another shot can improve the morale of the Clippers, and how much can calm Zubac's anger the day before yesterday:
Three minutes left in the third quarter, Mitchell and Gobert left the high pick-and-roll and cut into the middle; Beverly ran after him, and Leonard recovered the weak side to help defend. Zubac let go of Gobert, who had no time to go down, chased him back in time and rewarded him with a blood cap.
Theoretically, the time when the Clippers took Zubac should be the best chance for Jazz to chase points. If Mitchell and Clarkson can stagger one row from each other, maybe the score will gradually be even. However, it seems that today is not a good day for military training in Zubac. The Clippers uniform team probably gave Zubac targeted training:
Focus the defensive energy on the lateral movement. As long as the first step is stuck in the lateral direction, you can wait until your teammates return to the defense.
This is the case in Mitchell block. As long as you follow him across the middle road from the left, it's no problem. It doesn't matter if he goes deep into the penalty area and is one position ahead of Zubac. As soon as Zubac's long arm is displayed, the block will be available.
By the fourth quarter, the difference between the two teams was still above 10. In the process of jumping from the basket, Mitchell aggravated his uncomfortable right ankle injury and was forced to return to the locker room. But less than half a minute after returning, Mitchell returned to the sidelines, sat in a chair, tied his shoelaces, communicated with coach Snyder, and tried to play again.
This is the embodiment of Mitchell's efforts, but bluntly said: health first.
There are many tough little people in the league. Because of their short stature, they have to play harder than others if they want to occupy their place in this long-established league. So, you can see that little Thomas came back soon after his family died; You can see that the little river's eyes are cracked, but he insists on playing; You can see Paul dragging his shoulders to eliminate the Lakers; You can see that after Curry sprained his ankle, he would rather take painkillers than gamble for toscano Anderson.
Of course, you can also see that Mitchell invited Coach Snyder to play after his ankle injury worsened.
Compared with those players who can move two meters at a time, the small players are not as strong as they are, but they never fall behind in toughness.
The Clippers won the race, and it was easy. After establishing the lead in the opening stage, it gradually expanded. There was basically no power outage, and the Jazz didn't have a chance to equalize or overtake.
However, does this really mean that we can rest assured of the Clippers and look forward to their future more easily?
Reggie made 5 of 6 shots; George 3 1 point, hit 50%; Leonard took over the opponent's arrow figure on the defensive end, made 24 shots 14 and scored 12 rebounds, which maintained an excellent offensive output. Can we continue?
Can the Clippers, a team that prefers star singles and five outs, be as stable in every game as it is today?
It doesn't matter if we don't know, because there are at least two more games, which gives us a chance to test the Clippers.
Finally, I hope Mitchell's injury will not affect his health and play, and I hope Mike Conley will return as soon as possible. I really want to see Conley come back, activate Gobert, kill the Clippers' small lineup, and force Lu to adjust.
After all, who doesn't want to see tyronn lue contribute another classic expression pack to us?