mtl008 Is Curry the Clippers' weakness?
Is Curry the Clippers' weakness?
“Yes, it’s really hard to imagine that the two of us couldn’t restrain Su Hao’s actions. It’s simply impossible.” Marion expressed his thoughts with a look of shock.
"Now I understand why Su Hao was able to easily defeat his opponents in the paint when they played against other strong teams before. This guy's strength is just terrifying!" Marion exclaimed in amazement.
Seeing his teammates' low morale, Kidd stepped forward to encourage them, saying, "Don't be discouraged, the game has only just begun. Although we can't defend inside, we can improve our offense to make up for the gap! Let's all cheer each other on!" Hearing their captain's encouragement, the other Mavericks players nodded in agreement.
On the Clippers' side, David Lee couldn't help but complain: "They called that timeout way too quickly! Su Hao only exerted himself slightly, and they immediately called a timeout. How many timeouts do they even have in a game?!"
Curry, however, smiled and comforted him, "Let them call. It's a good opportunity for us to take a break. There's no need to rush!"
After the timeout, the game continues.
Because Su Hao displayed strong individual ability from the start, the Mavericks' head coach and players had to re-take the Clippers seriously.
There's a reason why they were able to become the champion team last season.
At this moment, the Mavericks inbound the ball.
The ball was passed to Nowitzki, who prepared for a one-on-one attack.
But Su Hao quickly came to the rescue, and Nowitzki, seeing this, wanted to use his signature move, "One-Legged Stance," once again.
However, Su Hao stood in front of him like a wall, leaving him no room to maneuver.
Feeling helpless, Nowitzki had no choice but to pass the ball to Kidd on the wing.
After receiving the ball, Kidd jumped and shot without hesitation, and the basketball went in cleanly.
The Clippers quickly launched a counterattack, with Curry dribbling the ball up the court.
He used a screen to break through Kidd's defense and then tossed the ball high into the air.
Su Hao followed up with a leap, and scored with an alley-oop dunk!
After the Mavericks inbounded the ball, Kidd dribbled up the court and passed it to Nowitzki again.
This time, Su Hao didn't switch on defense; instead, David Lee went to guard Nowitzki. Nowitzki didn't hesitate at all, and facing David Lee's defense, he unleashed a mid-range shot.
"Swish!" A crisp sound rang out as the basketball swished through the net.
"Great!" Yang Yi exclaimed excitedly in the live stream, "It seems the Mavericks players have a really good start!"
The Clippers did not stop their offensive momentum and immediately inbounded the ball from the baseline.
After Curry dribbled the ball across half-court, he was double-teamed by the Mavericks.
Faced with this situation, Curry passed the ball to Su Hao, who was standing outside the three-point line, without hesitation.
After receiving the ball, Su Hao jumped and shot without any hesitation.
"Whoosh!"
The basketball traced a beautiful arc in the air and landed precisely in the net.
"Wow!" The audience exclaimed in surprise.
The Mavericks players were stunned; they stared wide-eyed at the scene in disbelief.
They never expected that Su Hao's range would be so far.
A cheer erupted from the Clippers' bench as the players rose to their feet in jubilation.
The Mavericks' players and head coach were stunned, completely shocked by Su Hao's performance.
They originally thought Su Hao was only invincible under the basket, but now they realized that he also possessed such terrifying three-point shooting ability.
The game continued, and the Mavericks inbounded the ball.
The ball was passed to Nowitzki, who tried to retaliate.
However, Su Hao stayed close to him, preventing him from making a move easily.
With no other option, Nowitzki had to pass the ball out.
However, his teammates' shooting touch seemed to be affected as well, and they missed several shots in a row.
On the other hand, the Clippers played better and better.
Su Hao not only scored frequently on the offensive end, but also caused a lot of trouble for the opponent on the defensive end.
Halfway through the quarter, the Clippers, led by Su Hao, had already taken a two-point lead.
The Mavericks managed to keep the score close thanks to Nowitzki's shooting.
Both teams scored on second-chance opportunities. The Clippers had 14 points, while the Mavericks had zero.
With Su Hao anchoring the defense, the Mavericks failed to score a single second-chance point in the first half of the quarter.
The match between the two sides is still ongoing.
After half a quarter of the game, they were already down by double digits.
They still couldn't penetrate the paint, and their outside shooting percentage had also dropped significantly.
Of the entire team, only Nowitzki maintained a shooting percentage of around 50%.
The Mavericks are struggling to score.
Fortunately, Kidd, with his extensive experience on the field, adjusted his strategy in time.
Choose a mismatched one-on-one strategy.
In his view, the Clippers' weakest point on the perimeter defense is Curry's position.
Although he has a decent three-point shot, his defense is definitely the Clippers' weakest link.
When Kidd had the ball again and faced Curry's defense, he did not choose to pass the ball to his teammate as he had done before.
This time he chose to attack Curry head-on.
He pushed Curry to the free-throw line, intending to take a mid-range shot.
However, at some point, Su Hao appeared behind Curry.
It completely enveloped both of them, leaving Kidd no room to make a move.
Kidd was also worried that if he forced his way in, Su Hao might block his shot.
So much so that in the final stages of the attack, he still chose to pass the ball to his teammate.
The basketball was back in Marion's hands.
With little time left on the shot clock, Marion, after receiving the ball, had no time to adjust his stance and had no choice but to force a shot.
The basketball's trajectory was already skewed when it was released.
The basketball ultimately hit the top edge of the backboard.
Tyson Chandler, who was just relieved that Su Hao wasn't guarding the basket, immediately jumped up, trying to grab the rebound.
As a result, Su Hao once again took the ball from above his head.
A long pass found the ball in the hands of Rasul Butler in the distance.
The latter, facing an unguarded basket, delivered a powerful dunk.
Su Hao's accurate long pass meant the Clippers' offensive possession lasted less than three seconds.
This fast break opportunity was absolutely perfect, and Su Hao's passing ability was once again proven.
"We'll be watching Su Hao's performance for a while now. I wonder if the Mavericks can even hold out past halftime!" Yang Yi said with a laugh in the live stream.
"I don't think they can hold on much longer. Su Hao isn't giving the Mavericks any chance at all! Even though Nowitzki is shooting very accurately, his impact isn't as significant as Su Hao's," Su Qun said.