Stronger Pick and Roll (II)

2:7, after the opening, the Knicks played a smooth offense again.

Bob Costas saw clearly in the commentary booth that Lee's timing of passing the ball was just right:

"It's incredible that Lee is not even 21 years old, but he has such an outstanding performance on the stage of the finals!"

Doug Collins watched the Jazz's offense turn into a low-post attack again, and couldn't help but comment:

"The Jazz should reduce some of these low-post attacks. Once Malone gets to the basket, there is a high probability of turnovers."

As soon as he finished speaking, Malone, who received the ball in the left low post, continued to play and turned towards the baseline.

As a result, Ewing completely waited for him.

With the two of them surrounding him, Malone didn't even have space to pass the ball.

He tried hard to break through the defense, but finally missed the shot!

Ewing grabbed the rebound again, and Stockton was prepared and delayed Lee from receiving the ball.

But this time it was Alan Houston who pushed forward, and all the Knicks players accelerated and rushed across half court quickly.

Lee did not spare his energy.

After rushing across half court, he immediately moved towards the baseline, then quickly slipped across the baseline from left to right.

When he came to the right side near the baseline, Lee bounced out, but still couldn't get rid of Stockton.

He made an arc and cut across the line again.

Oakley gave Lee an off-ball screen on the left side of the free throw line, briefly delaying Stockton's defense.

On the left wing, Lee easily received the cross pass from Alan Houston.

Facing Stockton who was chasing him again, he made a neat drifting jump shot outside the three-point line without shaking!

"Swish!" The three-pointer went into the net!

2:10, less than 3 minutes into the game, the Knicks easily widened the gap.

On the Knicks bench, the atmosphere team shouted happily along with the fans.

Such an easy game made everyone eager to try.

Being able to appear on the stage of the finals is also a great achievement.

Head coach Jerry Sloan on the sidelines naturally saw that Stockton couldn't keep up with the rhythm on the defensive end, and in desperation he signaled Howard Eisley to warm up in advance.

The Jazz's offense also became simple and rough, still with pick-and-roll.

Karl Malone received the pass from Stockton at the elbow on the right side of the free throw line and made another shot!

The game soon returned to the Knicks' rhythm.

Except for face-to-face jump shots, whenever Karl Malone asked for the ball in the low post, he would be double-teamed as soon as he got to the basket.

With 6 minutes and 18 seconds left in the first quarter, Malone arched to the lower right side of the basket.

This time Ewing failed to double-team him in time, but after a fake dribble under the basket, Oakley made a powerful cut.

As soon as the ball slipped out of his hands, Oakley, who was quick-eyed and quick-handed, immediately controlled the ball and then quickly passed the ball to Lee on the right wing.

When the Jazz heard Sloan's loud reminder, they quickly retreated.

Lee chased the opponent across half court and when he came to the right wing, the Knicks team pulled away at once.

Stockton kept interfering with Lee who was protecting the ball sideways.

The two of them came to a position close to the right sideline, and the fans in the front row began to boo loudly.

The ball exploded on the spot.

Lee, who had been protecting the ball sideways, pretended to turn around, picked up the ball with his right hand and accelerated to break through.

While Stockton was sliding to the left, Lee broke through the defense to the right blocking area and immediately crossed over and pulled back.

The sudden stop allowed Lee to easily create space for shooting.

Without waiting for Stockton to jump up to block the shot, Lee quickly gathered the ball, leaned back slightly, and shot a jump shot!

"Swish!" A steady mid-range shot!

Head coach Jerry Sloan immediately requested a timeout.

At 8:16, the Knicks' offensive success rate was too high and the Jazz bench was silent.

Isiah Thomas felt the atmosphere was getting more and more exciting, and couldn't help but complain about the Jazz's performance:

"They have to activate role players. Karl Malone alone can't beat the Knicks."

Hornacek was very active after the opening, but Alan Houston's defense was very effective, and the shooter still couldn't find his shooting touch.

Walking towards the bench, Lee had a relaxed smile on his face.

No matter how powerful Malone's elbow was, it was useless because he could solve the problem from the outside.

Jeff Van Gundy smiled again.

Although he had entered the trusteeship mode, the bald young coach was already used to this way of playing.

"Charles, pay attention to fouling. Don't foul Malone too early!"

"We have to protect our fouls, some offense is acceptable."

At the reminder of Jeff Van Gundy, Oakley, who had been competing with Malone at the beginning of the game, nodded.

The opponent scored three goals in a row at the beginning, and the old guy felt that he had lost face.

The Jazz quickly made a personnel rotation, with Howard Eisley replacing Stockton and center Greg Foster also coming off the bench.

The lineup change after the opening was not successful, as Adam Keefe had problems defending pick-and-rolls and rebounding.

After the timeout, the Jazz attacked, and Malone finally made a successful pass inside, and after getting to the basket, he assisted Foster to score.

He just turned around and just stood firm, quickly advancing to the right wing, where Lee made a big in and out on the three-point line.

Lee swayed left and right, holding the ball in his right hand and accelerating, and came to the paint area, and immediately completed a lob shot with the help of Howard Eisley who had just entered the game!

"Clang!"

The basketball bounced twice on the rim and was about to fall out, but Ewing, who had successfully positioned himself under the basket, got in front of Foster and easily put the ball in.

The gorilla beat his chest and roared, and the New York fans at the game cheered loudly.

10:18, as the Jazz accelerated their offensive tempo, the Knicks slowed down.

Facing the younger and faster Howard Eisley, Lee took the initiative to slow down and kept passing the ball to the low post for several rounds.

Larry Johnson attacked from the low post and stood at the free throw line, but his shot missed, so three Knicks players rushed to grab the ball.

For several consecutive rounds, Karl Malone was wrestling with Oakley for position, which seemed to affect his shooting feel.

He missed jump shots for two consecutive rounds.

In this offense, Larry Johnson missed a turnaround jump shot against Russell near the left baseline.

The ball was scrambled again under the basket.

Finally, Ewing grabbed the rebound and quickly passed the ball to Lee outside the three-point line.

Moving to the right wing, Alan Houston first pretended to move sideways, then accelerated and cut in from 45 degrees.

Lee made another ground pass, easily breaking through the Jazz's defense and approaching the paint area.

Alan Houston received the ball and made a sneak layup.

"Nice off-ball cut. It seems Houston has learned a lot from Michael Jordan!"

In the commentary booth, Bob Costas loudly praised the Knicks' second offense, and Isiah Thomas on the side also smiled and added:

"The Knicks' young players have gained a lot of game experience after playing against the Bulls for two consecutive years."

"I don't know if Michael Jordan watched the finals, but I think he would be happy to see young people grow up!"

Doug Collins almost laughed out loud when he heard this.

The Knicks crushed their opponents, and the three of them quickly changed the topic.

Karl Malone was still able to hit jump shots and got free throws at the basket, but the Jazz had difficulty scoring points and had problems with rebounding.

In the final moments of the first quarter, Howard Eisley's breakthrough was disturbed by Lee, and there was complete silence on the Jazz bench.

At 17:28, the first quarter ended and the Knicks led by 11 points.

Playing the entire first quarter, Karl Malone made 5 of 9 shots and 1 of 2 free throws, scoring 11 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 turnovers.

The muscular man walked to the bench with a long face, and he almost scored all the points for the Jazz.

The cheers from the crowd were particularly harsh to Malone.

In his opinion, the Knicks played in a simple and rough style and should be easy to deal with.

But after the match, they found that their team was exploded in a single point, and the Jazz found it difficult to withstand Lee's pick-and-roll.

Stockton rested for half a quarter, and at this time, he was ready to go on the court without coach Sloan's call.

"Be patient, the game has just begun and we need to increase our defensive intensity."

"Don't let the opponent score easily, OK? Show strong defense!"

Sitting in front of the Jazz team, Jerry Sloan simply drew a few strokes on the tactical board and began to loudly instruct the rotation players.

Stockton and Shandon Anderson partnered in the backcourt, Chris Morris and Adam Keefe were on the front line, and Foster was still the center.

Jeff Van Gundy also knew that the Jazz planned to let Stockton travel at a different time, so he replaced Ewing and Larry Johnson at the end of the first quarter, and the two also came on the court early.

The outside players are still Chris Childs, Starks and Chris Mills.

"Go for the attack, we are the leading team, pay attention to rebounding and communicate in time on the court!"

The bald handsome guy specifically reminded Starks that there was no need to shoot three-pointers randomly when they were leading by such a big margin.

Lee changed into training clothes while sitting on the bench.

If the Jazz's offense showed no improvement, he would appear again in the second half.

In the first quarter, Clay Lee made 3 of 4 shots, 1 of 1 from beyond the three-point line, 7 points, 1 rebound and 4 assists.

The Knicks scored in multiple areas, with all five starters scoring.

"I knew the Jazz were no match for us. As long as we beat the Bulls, we can win the championship!"

"That was the case back then. If we could get out of the East earlier, maybe we would have won more than one championship."

It was all Mike's fault.

Oakley suddenly brought up old grudges, leaving Lee speechless.

The East is strong and the West is weak.

Maybe that was the situation back then, but the old guy was too optimistic.

They were defeated when they met Olajuwon.

Alan Houston didn't care about the history of the Knicks.

The game went well and he completely relaxed:

"If we can get match point in Game 3, the series is over!"

"Unbelievable! We are really going to win the championship!"

Covering his mouth with a towel, Alan Houston looked very excited.

No one could refuse the championship, and he had already begun to imagine the future.

Lee felt that his teammates were too optimistic.

Although he had only been to Salt Lake City twice in the past two years, the away experience left a deep impression on him.

Protecting the home court was just basic operation.

"When we go to away games, there is no refereeing environment like now. We know what will happen at the opponent's home court. One point can kill the game."

After hearing Lee's reminder, Alan Houston finally calmed down, and then complained in a low voice:

"What a damn schedule, three consecutive away games, the league should revise the rules."

The atmosphere group was still fully engaged and continued to cheer for the players on the court.

Stockton also turned on the offensive mode to help the Jazz score points.

At this time, both sides slowed down the pace and fought positional attacks in a methodical manner.

Chris Childs does not have the passing vision like Lee.

Instead of making high-risk passes in transition offense, it is better to fall into the position and pass the ball to the inside to continue to erode the game.

The Jazz successfully slowed down the Knicks' offensive rhythm, and gradually regained some of their shooting touch.

Less than three minutes into the second quarter, Karl Malone immediately returned to the court.

Seeing Stockton miss the jump shot after the pick-and-roll, Isiah Thomas smiled and commented on the commentary booth:

"John tried hard to attack, but he failed to change the Knicks' defensive strategy."

"With the same pick-and-roll, he couldn't attract much defense, nor could he compress the Knicks' defense."

"Maybe he should be more decisive and strengthen his attack so that Malone can get better offensive space."

Doug Collins shook his head again after seeing the technical statistics:

"The Jazz are not good at three-pointers. During the regular season, their shooting output was limited."

"In the playoffs, this situation has not changed. They have made efforts tonight, but the Knicks still choose to let these shots go a lot of the time."

"Perhaps after this year's finals, we will have to reconsider the issue of offensive space. Lee's performance is impressive!"

The two chatted nonsense in the commentary booth.

When there were 6 minutes and 27 seconds left in the first half, 25:36, both sides had 8 points each.

The pace was slow and the shots were missed, but the New York fans at the scene were watching with great interest.

As long as the Jazz don't close the gap, this will be a wonderful game!

When Lee came on the court, the score remained unchanged and Karl Malone started to miss shots.

Although the Jazz did not make any mistakes, it was very difficult for them to score.

Jeff Van Gundy simply made a downward gesture, indicating Lee to control the time and pass half court.

When the jump shot missed, the Jazz also stepped up their rush for rebounds and frequently went to the free throw line.

But the Knicks also had the blessing of the whistle, and in the last few minutes, the two sides had a free throw shootout.

35:48, the half-time game ended, and the Knicks widened the point difference a little bit.

The three people in the NBC commentary booth were drowsy.

The game was boring, the offense was slow, and both sides made 10 free throws each.

By the third quarter, Doug Collins was a little overwhelmed:

"The Jazz should speed up their offensive tempo a bit, now they are trailing by 13 points."

"Coach Sloan should take Stockton back as soon as possible!"

In the second half, the Jazz had another staggered start, with Howard Eisley starting.

Hornacek missed a jump shot from the right elbow of the free throw line, and the rebound was grabbed by Oakley, and the Jazz players quickly retreated.

Howard Eisley delayed Lee from receiving the ball in the first place, but before he could get to his side, he saw the ball already flying into the hands of Larry Johnson who was rushing across half court.

Soon, at the top of the arc, Larry Johnson passed the ball hand to hand to Lee, and then quickly moved away.

Ewing immediately moved and stood on the right wing.

It was still a simple pick-and-roll offense.

Holding the ball in his right hand, Lee pretended to break through on the right side.

Eisley defended him desperately, preparing to squeeze through the screen as soon as possible.

As the two men just came in front of Ewing, Lee dribbled the ball quickly behind his back, then his body suddenly swayed to the left.

Eisley subconsciously slid and bumped into Ewing.

Eisley once again struggled to squeeze through the screen, but Lee took this opportunity to quickly change direction in front of his body.

This time Eisley failed to squeeze through the screen and was blocked by Ewing.

Foster saw his teammate out of position and hurried to help defend, but he was still a step slow.

After Lee broke free of the defense, he stopped suddenly on the right wing, faced Foster's defense, and quickly shot a jump shot from outside the three-point line!

"Swish!" The three-pointer went into the net.

43:57, the score difference reached 14 points, Lee's three-pointer helped the Knicks expand their lead.

Jerry Sloan tried to get the Jazz to speed up their offense.

Clay Lee and Alan Houston missed shots from beyond the three-point line, and the Jazz failed to launch a counterattack.

As the game went on, they turned into positional offense.

Malone received the ball in the low post

but did not take a three-pointer.

Instead, he rushed to the basket.

After Ewing blocked two shots, the Knicks seized the opportunity for a transition offense.

Lee easily found Larry Johnson who was running fast and made a layup.

"The game is over, Karl Malone is in great form, but they can't close the gap!"

"Perhaps Coach Sloan should consider adding some outside shooting. Whether it's Hornacek or Russell, they both have a good three-point shot."

Doug Collins saw that the Jazz were still honestly +2, so he simply made a conclusion to the game.

Isiah Thomas disagrees with this view and gives his own opinion with a smile:

"The Jazz need to improve their defensive intensity, which is the best way to limit outside teams."

"Lee and Alan Houston won't always be efficient, and once their efficiency drops, the Jazz will be able to drag the game into their preferred rhythm."

"."

56:72, at the end of the third quarter, the game basically entered garbage time.

Head coach Jerry Sloan did not continue to fight against the main players.

When the rotation failed to narrow the score gap, Malone, who played the entire third quarter, did not return to the court.

In the final moments, the iron-blooded coach watched expressionlessly as the Knicks' atmosphere group continued to score points.

In the 30 minutes of the game, Lee made 7 of 14 shots, 3 of 5 from beyond the three-point line, and 3 of 4 free throws, scoring 20 points, 4 rebounds, 12 assists, 2 steals and 2 turnovers.

Although he got a double-double and the highest score for the Knicks, Lee was not too excited.

Stockton's trip during off-peak hours showed that the other team had found some solutions.

"Relax, Lee! We will win the championship after two consecutive big wins!"

Oakley was grinning from ear to ear at this time.

The old man no longer took the Jazz seriously.

9 of 18 shots, 2 of 3 free throws, 20 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 turnovers.

Oakley's defense did not play much of a role, and Karl Malone was still in excellent form.

Ewing was also laughing at the side.

Lee noticed the emotions of his teammates and smiled as well:

"I was just thinking about winning away from home!"

The fourth quarter ended quickly, and the atmosphere group felt that it was not enough.

In Madison Square Garden, New York fans were shouting excitedly.

"Wow!"

82:96, the Knicks defeated their opponents again, and the series score came to 2:0.

The situation was very good.

The inflated Jeff Van Gundy could no longer hold back and shook hands with Jerry Sloan cordially with a smug smile on his face.

On the NBC commentary booth, Bob Costas saw the technical statistics of Stockton's 2-of-6 shooting, 5 points, 5 assists and 1 turnover, and couldn't help but sigh in a low voice:

"Lee played a stronger pick-and-roll offense, and the Jazz didn't have much time to adjust."

"Perhaps in this year's Finals, we will witness the rise of a non-traditional point guard."

"."

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