Vol 3 Chapter 505: The finals begin

On June 1, 2019, in this children's holiday, the NBA's final matchup kicked off at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Before the game, the fans who were watching the finals had a heated debate on this. Compared with last year, the biggest difference in this year's finals is the difference in strength between the two sides.
Last year, although James played the strongest season, leading the Cavaliers all the way to the finals, no one would think that they can cause much trouble to the Thunder. The fact is the same, the Thunder brought the championship back to Oklahoma almost without a fight.
However, this year's Raptors are very strong. They even defeated the championship-level 76ers and Bucks, and the bigger the better, they have great momentum. On the contrary, the Thunder's combat effectiveness has declined. Although the basic fighting strength is quite intact, but because of the loss of Robertson, the Thunder's defense no longer has the dominance of last year. Whether it can limit the Raptors' offense is the key issue for the Thunder to defend their title.
Before the start of the finals, Donovan was worried. The Raptors' performance in the Eastern Conference finals surprised him, after all, they were not particularly good in the Eastern Conference semifinals. And the Bucks are obviously much stronger than the 76ers. The Thunder played against the Bucks and 76ers each in the regular season twice. They could feel that although the strengthened Raptors' comprehensive ability has increased a lot, the Bucks led by Antetokounmpo have more Impact, more explosive offensive.
The Raptors can beat the Bucks, showing the importance of defense in the playoffs. Many fans who are optimistic about the Raptors, the main reason is this. However, in the first finals of the two sides, the Raptors' performance was very average. Especially on the defensive end, it is impossible to suppress the Thunder's strong offense.
Although it was the first time they played in the Finals, the Raptors did not feel uncomfortable. After all, Leonard, Green, and Ibaka are all people who have played in the finals, especially the first two, who have won championships when they were in the Spurs. Other players, Lowry, Gasol, etc. have not missed the playoffs all year round. They are no strangers to such a scene.
There are many factors that affect the outcome of the game. The away game is even more difficult and must be strong enough.
Nas understood this point. So in the first quarter, he put on an aggressive attack. Regrettably, what he wanted to play, but received a very tough defense from the home team Thunder.
This can be seen from the performance of Leonard, the core of the team. In the first quarter, Leonard did not perform particularly eye-catching. Although he has always been a very unpretentious player, his scoring ability is at the top of the league. Paul George's defense prevented Leonard from playing hard.
Another core player, Lowry, did not perform well on the offensive end. In this situation, Gasol and Siakam became the two arrow figures of the Raptors.
An Luo scored the first goal of the game. Although he did not get a chance beyond the three-point line. But he ran without the ball, and with the cover of his teammates, he threw off Danny Green, cut to the basket and scored the ball.
Afterwards, Leonard met Paul George in the right elbow and threw the Raptors' first goal in the Finals. Unfortunately, the ball was thrown out of the basket under the interference of Paul George. Looking back, Paul George responded in the same way. It may be that he felt that his hand was not very good, so Leonard reduced his shots and began to break through to the basket to cause damage.
Siakam became the first person in Raptors history to score in the Finals. He stuck Grant on the left side against the baseline after receiving the ball, then turned over and made a jump shot, hitting the bullseye. Subsequently, An Luo succeeded again at the basket. The Raptors seem to be particularly concerned about Anlow's three-pointers. Danny Green has been clinging to him, opening his hands and constantly interfering. Even Anlo can score inside, but Danny Green just doesn't let him have a chance to shoot a three-pointer.
Of course, this does not limit An Luo's scoring. With the addition of Thunder, his mobility has been greatly developed. Although there are not many outbound mobile phones, I still grasp the opportunity of the internal line.
In addition to Anlow, Westbrook was the second to score. Paul George can indeed restrict Leonard, but he himself was restricted by the opponent. Ever since, all the Thunder's offense was concentrated on the inside, and there was basically no achievement on the outside.
In fact, the Raptors' situation is similar. Lowry, Danny Green and Leonard all three outside players feel bad. As a result, the area within the free throw line became the most intense battle between the two sides. Gasol and Siakam, the two players, moved silently and supported the Raptors' offense.
In the first quarter of the game ~EbookFREE.me~ the two sides battled 23:28. The Thunder opened the point difference to 5 points with An Luo's last-minute buzzer three-pointer.
Compared to previous games, the scores of both sides are not high. However, this is not caused by the defense of both sides. Whether it's the Thunder or the Raptors, the defensive state is not particularly good.
In an away game, not only a stable and efficient offense is required, but also a strong defense. Only in this way can the momentum be played out, and only then can there be a chance to retreat all over. The Raptors obviously failed to do it.
In the second quarter, the situation on both sides has undergone some changes. The Raptors strengthened their offense, especially the three-pointer. Gasol made two consecutive three-pointers after pulling to the outside. With his height advantage, no one can restrain the Thunder. Whether it is Adams or Noelle, the defensive attention is still on the basket. No one expected that Gasol would suddenly make an effort outside the three-point line.
In fact, after nearly two years of transformation, many traditional types of inside players have begun to transform. They have developed their own long-range shooting ability, and no longer stick to the basket. Among this type of player, Lopez of the Bucks is the most typical. His three-pointer ability is outstanding, better than most outside players in the league. More importantly, his defensive ability at the basket has not regressed! It now appears that Gasol has also completed such a transformation.
However, the Thunder responded quickly. An Luo, who has been running without the ball, has been trying to find opportunities, and other Thunder players are also creating opportunities for him. Although the Raptors have never relaxed their defense, but in this situation, the Thunder slowly recovered their offensive state.
When Anluo and Paul George started to shoot three-pointers, the situation of the game began to be controlled by the Thunder.