Vol 3 Chapter 398: Run them to death

How hard the Thunder's offense struggled in the third quarter, you can see if An Luo failed to make two consecutive shots. He is even close to the free throw line and always misses. So, the feel of this thing is really strange. It can suddenly become accurate, just like the Celtics. Hayward made four of five three-pointers in the third quarter, which immediately increased his field goal percentage. The Thunder suddenly couldn't make it. And this thing seems to be very contagious. When it is accurate, Robertson can throw it in; when it is not allowed, even An Luo can't make it.
At 79:76, the Thunder is in front and the Celtics are behind. This is the score before the game enters the fourth quarter. The Thunder still maintained a weak lead. But it's hard to imagine that they were still 21 points ahead of each other before one game. Throughout the third quarter of the game, the two sides played a 22:40, the Thunder in a single quarter was won by the Celtics 18 points.
Fans who are familiar with the Celtics are very happy, the Celtics who can always reverse the victory despite the slow heat are back! Since the start of the season, they seem to have forgotten how to win the game. Now everyone is finally relieved.
On the contrary, the Thunder fans are a little worried. You know, the third quarter has always been the strongest time for the Thunder. Last season, many games were won in this quarter. The previous game with the Kings was also in the third quarter with a wave of offense that opened up the points difference, turning the next game into garbage time. During the intermission, almost everyone believed that they could only watch three quarters tonight. But in the third quarter, the Thunder was caught off guard by the opponent in their own way, which everyone did not expect.
Of course, this is a national live broadcast, and more people watching the game are not fans of the two teams. What is even more curious for these people is that in such a situation, can the Thunder once again reverse the unfavorable situation? After all, in an absolute advantage, being overturned by the opponent is a very morale-damaging thing.
In the last quarter, Donovan changed. He put Grant in the lineup and replaced Adams. This change exceeded everyone's expectations. When everyone saw Grant appearing on the court, they thought they were replacing Robertson. After all, when Robertson is on the court, the Celtics can always have one more person to participate in the defense. With Adams replaced, the Thunder almost gave up the penalty area.
However, the subsequent performance of this Thunder version of the "Death Five" lineup was eye-opening.
The Thunder's first offense showed their minds. Grantra came out, Robertson also pulled out, one outside the free throw line and one outside the three-point line. The Celtics big man had to follow to leave the basket. In this way, the space within the free throw line becomes a paradise for Westbrook and Paul George. Excellent breakthrough ability allows them to easily pass through the Celtics' perimeter defense, and when they get to the basket, it is easy to score. Westbrook rushed to the penalty area with an acceleration under Grant's cover. How could Horford keep up with his speed! I saw him jump directly under the basket, his feet were like stepping on a spring, and suddenly he jumped high. Except for Tatum, no one dared to help defend. But he was stuck firmly behind him by Robertson. Even if Anluo and Paul George feel bad, no one dares to let them go. What's more, basketball is in Westbrook's hands.
The dunk succeeded, Westbrook opened the prelude to the Thunder chasing victory.
On the defensive end, the Thunder players are like crazy, running fast one by one. In particular, the Celtics' extremely strong perimeter offense in the third quarter received "special attention" from the Thunder players. Everyone who holds the ball will be double-teamed. Of course they can pull the Thunder's defense by passing the ball, but they can't hold the opponent's wanton running!
Owen pushed forward with the ball, and Westbrook kept staring at him. As soon as he approached the three-point line, Roberson immediately jumped on. In the face of these two men, Owen did not dare to stick the ball anymore, and he quickly passed to Jaylen Brown on the right. But Irving's ball has just arrived in the opponent's hands, and the Thunder have arrived. Grant, the nearest to Jaylen Brown and Anlow, doubled up directly. Four long hands blocked all of Jaylen Brown's play space, making him very annoyed. Although a Celtic player is emptied every time he is double-teamed, but the basketball can't pass, what can be done.
The Celtics' offense has stalled. Their players are facing tremendous pressure to hold the ball. The Thunder players on the court are all small, running fast and having fast hands. Their defense will not have too many moves, but if the ball holder is not paying attention, they will take the ball away. The Thunder is like a pack of wolves, swarming the Celtics' ball players.
The basketball that Jaylen Brown was about to hang into Tatum's hands was intercepted by Grant in midair. Then he was thrown directly to the other side of the court~EbookFREE.me~ At that time, no Thunder players even ran over. But Westbrook is like a thunder across the court, swift and tyrannical! After the basketball was slammed into the hoop, he raised his head and roared. Chesapeake Energy Arena almost screamed cheers for a long time.
In this quarter of the game, the Thunder used their speed and fierceness to bring the Celtics into their own rhythm. They haven't shot a basket for a long time, and even An Luo just seized the opportunity to complete a layup. In Donovan's tactics, he almost directly gave up the long-range attack. An Luo's role is only to attract defense and desperate defense.
Since the Warriors' head coach Cole won two championships in three years with the "Death Five" lineup, many teams in the league have begun to study this dynamic play of active running and rapid ball transfer. Including the Thunder, under Donovan's guidance, they have become a very strong team on both offense and defense. But playing like this is really rare. It can be seen how much pressure the Celtics brought to them.
However, Thunder had the last laugh. In the end, they defeated the Celtics 112:101 on their home court, giving their opponents a losing streak, while extending their winning streak to the fourth game. Moreover, they once again became the only team in the league that hasn't failed since the start of the season. In the words of many fans, the Thunder took most of the game to kill the Celtics.