It seems incredible, but the "Thunder Four Youngsters" are still on their rookie contracts; it’s hard for such a talent-laden team not to become hugely popular.
After the opening ceremony, the starting lineups were announced:
Grizzlies: Conley, Tony Allen, Hansen, Randolph, Little Gasol
Thunders: Westbrook, Seferosa, Durant, Ibaka, Perkins
Little Gasol won the tip-off for the Grizzlies, and the much-anticipated first round G1 officially began.
The strategy of the Grizzlies had changed since the beginning of the season; although Randolph was still posting up down low, the feeder had switched back from Hansen to Conley.
The main purpose of this adjustment was to allow Hansen to initiate plays on the weak side to draw attention.
While Hansen and Little Gasol were moving, they quickly realized that Thunders were heavily guarding Hansen.
When Hansen played for the Cavaliers last season, Brooks’s performance had left a deep impression on him.
In fact, Brooks ultimately became the League’s Coach of the Year, despite being only 44 years old.
However, with only five players active on the court, Brooks’s focus on Hansen freed up Randolph in the post.
A pivot toward the free-throw line followed by a shot over Perkins, Randolph scored the basket.
Randolph scored first for the Grizzlies; turning back, Durant received the ball at the high post and isolated to attempt his favorite pull-up jumper.
Stan believed there was a reason to predict upsets in both the Thunders-Grizzlies and Magic-Hawks series; fundamentally, these series were team versus star matchups.
Stan clearly believed in the supremacy of a team over a star player.
The arena started buzzing with noises from Thunders fans.
Although Allen had a remarkable performance against Durant during the regular season, that was only the tip of the iceberg and didn’t get much attention.
But now, with Allen shorter than Durant, this matchup was too easy for Durant.
After receiving the ball, Durant switched from a back to a face-up position then suddenly leaped up for a mid-range shot.
But just as he released the ball, Allen slapped it out of his hands.
Although the ball wasn’t stolen, Durant’s rhythm was clearly disrupted, and the ball clanged off the rim.
Randolph secured the defensive rebound, and Thunders’ first attack of the game came up empty.
The Grizzlies didn’t push for a fast break; Hollins’s strategy was the same as before, focusing on grinding it out.
The ball went back to Randolph, who this time took a baseline turn and shot off the backboard, but it was off target; however, Perkins was stable defensively.
Yet, Randolph grabbed the offensive rebound over Perkins and scored on the second attempt.
In theory, Perkins’s low post defense should be among the league’s best, which was likely why Brooks had him guard Randolph one-on-one.
But the reality was that after suffering an injury, Perkins’s explosiveness had significantly declined, or else the Celtics wouldn’t have traded him, especially since in the East, Perkins was greatly effective against players like James or Howard.
Durant didn’t continue to isolate in the frontcourt.
There’s nothing difficult in the world, if you’re willing to give up?
Clearly, that wasn’t the answer; rather, looking at the games between Heat and Grizzlies, that saying seemed more applicable to James.
Although Durant didn’t isolate, he started playing pick-and-roll with Ibaka without the ball.
Allen was excellent at navigating through off-ball screens, but Durant, after catching the ball, immediately pulled up and shot, completely disregarding Allen’s defense.
This differed from the regular season; clearly, Allen had previously made Durant somewhat uncomfortable, but it also forced Durant to evolve.
Faced with this kind of play, Allen couldn’t deflect the ball in time and could only jump to try to disrupt; clearly, that wasn’t enough.
With a crisp swoosh, Durant also ended the scoring drought for the Thunders.
The charm of the mid-range shot was perfectly demonstrated at that moment.
The two teams were trading baskets at the start. For origınal chapters go to 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩~𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖~𝙣𝙚𝙩
The Grizzlies moved up to the frontcourt, where Hansen noticed that Thunders were still closely guarding him.
Was Brooks truly respecting him, or underestimating Randolph?
Seeing Thunders’s persistence, Hansen was reassured and continued to play a decoy role.
Randolph was in good form tonight, completely overpowering Perkins down low; if this continued, Grizzlies had a great chance.
Thus, the game seemed to enter a period-based system; Randolph scored inside, and then Durant responded from outside.
Although there were slight adjustments afterward, such as Brooks sending Ibaka to help defend, Randolph showcased his playmaking skills from his days playing against Heat, passing to Little Gasol who quickly scored in the paint.
For instance, Allen began to play partial front defense on Durant, restricting his catches; this was his specialty. With Durant unable to get the ball, Thunders went through a scoring drought, but this changed after Brooks brought in Harden.
Overall, due to the strategic deployment by both coaches, the game essentially became a contest of inside offense versus outside offense.
However, no matter how much Durant could score, the efficiency of outside scoring was always lower than that of inside.
Thus, at the end of the first quarter, the Grizzlies were ahead.
But once the game moved to the bench phase, Thunders caught up from behind.
Jordan Crawford had scoring capabilities, but on the playoff stage, his stability was not yet comparable to Guy’s.
Guy’s absence impacted the Grizzlies significantly at that moment.