Li Liang knew that for a task like this that requires leading the team to win, the team lost nine times out of ten in history.

Where did you lose? It must have been lost at the hands of Oscar Robertson.

In the first quarter, the Celtics got into some trouble on the offensive end.

They don't shoot very well from outside.

The Celtics in the 1960s were actually a fairly modern team.

Although there is superstar Bill Russell inside, Russell's strength lies in defense.

On the offensive end, his main means of scoring is the second attack, and the occasional unreliable hook.

Li Liang looked at Russell sometimes squatting in a low position with his back to catch the ball, that ugly and unskilled posture, plus a stiff dribble and a big left-handed hook, how ugly it is, how ugly it is, I really want to go up to guide him.

Although Embry is not tall, he is strong and powerful, and it is difficult for Russell to score one-on-one on his head.

Russell couldn't score, Sam Jones didn't score after the start of the game, and the Celtics' offense was intermittent.

As for the Royals, their outside forward Jack Twyman was in good shape, and he hit shots one after another.

Oscar Robertson controlled the rhythm of the court very well. He was not fast, but every time he dribbled into the paint, he was very threatening.

Unlike Cousy, Robertson's passing is very stable, and he also has a strong shooting ability, which helped the Royals suppress the Celtics in the away game.

The score came to 14:8. After Robertson hit a jumper from the front, Auerbach called a timeout.

Basketball coaches in the 1960s were the same as they are now. After a timeout, they yelled first.

Auerbach scolded Sam Jones first, and made four shots in the first quarter and missed one.

Also, I am very dissatisfied with Robertson's defense, which makes him play too easily, with almost no pressure on him.

In fact, there is no way, because in terms of matchup, almost no one in the NBA backcourt at that time could match Robertson.

Even by modern standards, Robertson is very big and strong for a point guard.

For this reason, every time the Celtics play the Royals, they play very hard.

Winning is within a hair's breadth, and in the next few seasons, the Royals will be the biggest obstacle on their way forward.

Li Liang listened carefully to Auerbach's scolding, and took advantage of the gap to raise his hand and said, "Coach, can you let me go? I can defend Robertson."

Auerbach said: "You can defend, who do you think you are! You say you can defend and you can defend? What if you can't? Will you give me back your salary?"

Auerbach asked a series of questions, and by the way, he gave Li Liang 10 anger points, which is estimated to be 100 after weighting.

Li Liang wants me to eat your rice? When did you get your salary?

Auerbach said again: "Okay, you go on the field and work hard."

Li Liang was thinking shit, this old man just wanted to find someone to vent his anger on.

Being a coach is really stressful.

Li Liang replaced Tom Heinsohn as the team's power forward.

The Celtics lineup is very flexible, especially in the forward position.

The starters Tom Heinsohn and Tom Saunders, both Toms, can play both big and small forwards.

Havlicek sitting on the bench is also an all-rounder, which shows that the Cardinal's basketball concept is indeed very advanced.

Li Liang played power forward, but on the defensive end he faced Oscar Robertson directly.

Li Liang decided to give his opponent a bad start on the offensive end first.

Sam Jones dribbled the ball across half court, still the same old routine, and Cousy came up, dribbled the ball from the top of the key and cut in.

Li Liangti stepped up to cover Cousy, then took a step back.

This position is roughly where the modern NBA three-point line is.

Cousy dribbles in and the Royals surround him.

Jones waited for a chance at 45 degrees on the right as usual, but he missed four shots, and Cousy didn't want to pass him.

Cousy passed to Li Liang, wanting to reorganize the offense.

Who knew that Li Liang took the ball at that position and threw it away!

Seeing Li Liang in that position, Auerbach shot directly, stood up and yelled, "How the hell did you shoot!"

Before the words were finished, the ball had passed into the net and scored two points!

If there was a three-point line in the NBA at the time, this is a beautiful three-pointer.

The players of the Royals didn't expect Li Liang to shoot from this position at all, and their defensive attention was all on Cousy.

After scoring the goal, Li Liang spread his hands towards Auerbach, giving him a helpless expression, and he scored anyway.

Of course, Li Liang gained anger points again. It seems that the old bishop is also a magic weapon.

With Li Liang's long-range shooting level, it is not difficult to win this game.

The key lies in defense, how to steal three balls from Robertson.

It's not easy to steal the ball from an NBA player, let alone a legendary point guard.

However, there is a reason why this task is only difficult for [rookies]. The ball-handling level of players in the 1960s cannot be compared with what it is now.

Li Liang faced Robertson one-on-one near midfield, and Robertson dribbled sideways, using his muscular hips to lean on Li Liang and push forward.

"Damn it, players of that era like to dribble with their butts!"

Li Liang is not very used to defending this kind of dribble.

He pushed his hands hard, and the referee blew his whistle.

"Foul, block."

At that time, the whistleblowing for blocking fouls was very strict, and the slightest contact with the body made the referee feel that you were exerting strength, and they would call you a foul.

Li Liang still needs to get used to it, but he thinks he's fine.

Now he is not the NCAA drinking fountain, he is the NBA drinking fountain!

The Royals sent a sideline kick, and Li Liang stuck near Robertson.

The moment the ball was thrown, Li Liang suddenly started.

He took advantage of his height and wingspan to bypass Robertson and hit the ball!

Robertson reacted quickly and immediately squeezed Li Liang away to prevent him from stealing the ball.

"Beep!" The referee's whistle sounded again.

This time, Robertson was called for a foul.

Li Liang was "push down" to the ground, but in fact, he was acting in this ball.

Russell stepped forward to pull Li Liang up, patted him, and said, "Well done boy."

Off the court, Auerbach was very satisfied with Li Liang's performance.

The Celtics need this kind of active fighting to change the decline caused by the poor offense.

Soon, Li Liang made another long shot on the offensive end.

At this time, the players of the Royal team realized, why is this kid's long-range shot so accurate?

It turns out that the ball just now was not covered?

Even Cousy felt a little unbelievable, and stepped forward and said, "It's a beautiful shot, catching up with West."

The West in Cousy's mouth is of course Jerry West, the best outside shooter of that era.

However, West's shooting skills are obviously not as modern as Li Liang's.

Because the players of that era shot from a relatively short distance, they mostly used fingers and wrists to shoot the ball, and the movements of the upper and lower arms were very small.

Later, as the shooting distance gets farther and farther, and when the three-point line appears, the forearm and forearm must be used, and the shooting technique is gradually modernized.

So in the game, Li Liang's shooting posture looks a bit strange.

The point difference was caught up to two points, and Oscar Robertson turned around and returned one.

This time he didn't go in the middle, but after dribbling the ball to the bottom line, he suddenly jumped sideways and made a master shot.

His shot point was very high, Li Liang couldn't block the shot, and Robertson hit a two-pointer.

The rhythm of the two sides was extremely fast, and there were not many tricks and routines in tactics, Li Liang quickly adapted to it.

Because of his precise shooting, the Royals had to put more defensive attention on him.

Cousy had better room to move, and he began to revitalize the Celtics' offense.

The point guard is really getting older and more demonic. Cousy leisurely shuttles through the Royals' half court, and then sends a ghostly pass.

Li Liang played better and better on the offensive end. The skills he honed in Kentucky were enough to be used on the field in the 1960s.

But on the defensive end, under the fast-paced confrontation, there was never a chance to steal the ball from Robertson.

In the second quarter of the game, Li Liang had already scored 14 points, most of which were outside jump shots.

The position of his shot is too far away, and the players of the Royals are not used to defending so far.

And after the training of Bob Knight's space ability, Li Liang can easily find a space to fire.

The Celtics had already overtaken the score, and Auerbach took advantage of the timeout to replace Li Liang and praised him a lot.

"Not bad boy, did you install the scope today? It's really accurate!"

Li Liang just smiled, but he couldn't feel happy in his heart.

Three steals, none so far.

The pace of the game was too fast, and the penalty scale was strict. Robertson did a good job of protecting the ball, and it was really not easy to steal the ball.

"No, I have to think about it." Li Liang started to think of a way again.

Tap the screen to use advanced tools Tip: You can use left and right keyboard keys to browse between chapters.

You'll Also Like