Chapter 340 [Won the Assists Title and Easily Passed the First Round]

Ranked 5-8 in the West are the Timberwolves, Lakers, Trail Blazers, and Grizzlies.

Although the Trail Blazers were missing Zach Randolph, they still managed to win 48 games thanks to the hard work of a group of veterans, and they insisted on not playing poorly.

The Grizzlies have 47 wins and have reached the playoffs for the first time since the team was founded. Looking back on the team's growth process, I have to say that they have achieved their current achievements step by step and are down-to-earth. They are only two games less than the defending champion Lakers. .

Ranked 9-14 are the Jazz, Rockets, SuperSonics, Warriors, Clippers, and Nuggets.

The first-round matchups in the Western Conference are out, Spurs vs. Grizzlies, Suns vs. Trail Blazers, Mavericks vs. Lakers, Kings vs. Timberwolves.

This time there was a dialogue between two strong teams in the first round of the Western Conference. The Timberwolves got the lottery. If the Kings had not been injured in the regular season, they would have been able to compete for the first place in the league. It would be very difficult for the Timberwolves with 50 wins to advance to the second round.

The Lakers barely made it into the playoffs by relying on their strength in the second half, but it was difficult to advance to the second round against the Mavericks in the first round. The lineups of both sides compete with each other. The Mavericks cannot guard against the OK combination, and the Lakers cannot guard against Nash and Nowitzki. Experts predict that the two sides will play a full seven games.

Starting this year, the first round of the NBA playoffs will be changed to a best-of-seven series. Before the war even started, the situation of the Lakers was not good. Everyone in the team was questioned, including "Zen Master" Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant, who had played the peak data of his career.

As before, the "blind beat" tactic is used, and the famous coach Jackson has become an ordinary coach who has poor on-the-spot response this season.

Kobe Bryant was evaluated by experts as not being the core of the Lakers' tactics. He was only good at singles and could not drive his teammates.

There is no doubt about Kobe's personal ability. In February, he scored 40+ points 10 times in 14 games in a single month, including 9 consecutive games with 40+ points and two games with 50+ points. He ended up playing 41.5 minutes, scoring 30.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 2.2 steals. However, the Lakers only had 49 wins and he failed to win any statistics. The only gain in the regular season was that he attracted a group of fans who like to watch soaring scores.

The Lakers completely dominated the league in the first two seasons. This season, they have to fight even in the first round, and the players feel uncomfortable. Even if they advance to the second round, they are not sure of winning against the Suns, and it would be equally embarrassing to be eliminated by Guo Xu's team.

The record of the Eastern Conference teams is much worse. The Pistons ranked first with only 50 wins. 2-8 are the Nets, Pacers, 76ers, Hornets, Celtics, Bucks, and Magic.

9-15 are the Knicks, Wizards, Hawks, Bulls, Heat, Raptors, and Cavaliers.

The Wizards are the most disappointing team in the regular season.

Michael Jordan sadly retired and will not come back again.

With a salary of nearly 100 million, the Knicks have failed to make the playoffs and will definitely need to make a major change in the summer. Star point guard Marbury's evaluation has been lowered by another level. There is no way. Who told him to leave a team and his old club immediately rise? No one in the league can do that now except him.

The regular season data kings were revealed, and McGrady won the scoring title, averaging 32.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.7 steals per game, and ranked first in efficiency value of 30.3.

Guo Xu won the assists title, averaging 26.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 11.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game. His star data improved again after the game, with an efficiency value of 29, slightly behind O'Neal's 29.5, ranking third in the league.

Pistons center Ben Wallace continued to lead the league in rebounding and blocks, averaging 6.9 points, 15.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.4 steals and 3.2 blocks per game. He is a blue-collar fighter.

Allen Iverson of the 76ers won the steals title for the third consecutive year, averaging 2.7 per game.

The Suns took three days off, and the coaching staff determined the 13-man roster for the playoffs.

Center: Nene, Scott Williams, Stoudemire.

Power forward: Gugliotta, Toni Kukoc, Haslem.

Small forward: Shawn Marion, Kirisek.

Shooting Guards: Joe Johnson, Casey Jacobson, Maurice Evans.

Point guard: Guo Xu, Rafe Alston.

The excluded power forward Chris Crawford played 10 times and averaged 3 minutes per game. He was a pure marginal player.

His contract expires in 2004, and the management does not expect him to play well. They only clear salary space for the future and send away Hardaway, who has a high-paying long-term contract.

The Suns have already made money. This season, Hardaway struggled with "Big Dog" Robinson in the Hawks for more than half a season, and then got injured. Colangelo and his son shouted that they were lucky. If Hardaway had been retained, they would have caused a lot of trouble.

On April 19, the first game of the Suns vs. Trail Blazers started in Phoenix. The home team led from start to finish and got off to a good start 106-87.

Stoudemire scored 24 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists in his first playoff appearance. His performance was not inferior to that of Trail Blazers core Rasheed Wallace, who scored 26 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists.

Guo Xu and Stoudemire have developed a tacit understanding after getting used to each other in the regular season. As long as Guo Xu attracts Rasheed to defend the pick-and-roll, he can pass the ball to Stoudemire to hit the basket. Veteran Dale Davis only played 22 minutes and scored 5 goals. commit.

The 34-year-old Davis' athletic ability is not as good as before, and he was crushed by Stoudemire's talent. When the Suns played small-ball tactics, it was also very difficult for Davis to defend Marion. He is a 211cm big man and his speed is not as fast as Marion.

Veteran Sabonis is an excellent human shield. He is tall and powerful and is good at defending the penalty area. However, as soon as he appeared on the court, the Suns did not get into the basket. The two defenders relied on screens to get rid of the defenders and then threw the ball after catching the ball.

The Suns didn't do a bad job defensively. Guo Xu faced off against "Little Flying Squirrel" Stoudemire and prevented a breakthrough from the frame.

Last season the "Little Flying Squirrel" was as fast as Guo Xu. This season he was in poor condition after being injured and was in a state of confusion for most of the season. Guo Xu was obviously a little faster than him in the playoffs.

Pippen is old, has seriously declined on both offense and defense, and is just playing with experience. Shooting guard Bunch Wells has a good body and average shooting. They have no advantage against Joe Johnson and Marion, and their shooting percentage is not high.

The substitute battle was evenly divided between the two sides. The Trail Blazers relied on McGinnis, Derek Anderson, and Ruben Patterson to score. The Suns' Nene, Kukoc, and Alston also performed well.

The Suns won the second game easier, 115 to 90.

Guo Xu was in trouble. He made 8 of 14 three-pointers and scored 40 points, 3 rebounds, 11 assists and 3 steals. A terrifying double-double for the "Little Flying Squirrel" with 15 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists.

Guo Xu can make a shot as soon as he is facing the small guard. He can't do it without double-teaming. Once he is double-teamed, he will get the ball open. Three of the four starting teammates can shoot three-pointers, and most of the substitutes also have shooting range.

In the away game in Portland, Guo Xu continued to show his strength in the third game. He made 11 of 20 shots, 5 of 10 three-pointers, and 6 of 7 free throws. He scored 33 points, 3 rebounds, 8 assists, and 2 steals. Five players on the team scored in double figures. .

Although the Trail Blazers also had five players score in double figures, they lacked a super scorer. The most scorer was substitute swingman Patterson with 19 points. They lost 96-105 at home.

In the fourth game, the Trail Blazers finally regained a victory at home. The Suns players were in a collective downturn. Only Guo Xu and Stoudemire scored in double figures, losing 88-98.

However, no team in the NBA has ever been able to come back from a 3-0 deficit, so the outcome has been decided. When the Suns played at home, the Blazers players were under great pressure and performed poorly, losing 95-108.

Guo Xu and Marion scored 20+, and two substitutes also showed off their power.

Swingman Jacobsen also had his moments of convulsion, shooting 6 of 10 from the field, 3 of 5 three-pointers, and 2 of 2 free throws. He scored 17 points in only 22 minutes.

Nene played 25 minutes, made 8 of 9 shots, 3 of 4 free throws, and scored 19 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks.

The Suns advanced to the second round with a total score of 4-1, and Guo Xu tied Kidd's team record that year without any effort.

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