Chapter 151 Start of the playoffs

Last season, Nash set a new career high with the help of Zhao Yue and Anthony, and won the regular season MVP for the third time. At the same time, Zhao Yue also won two awards: Best Defender and Best Rookie. Nash, Anthony and Zhao Yue are all popular candidates for MVP this season, and the best defensive player will undoubtedly fall into Zhao Yue's hands.

Zhao Yue, the best defensive player, is the most popular player. The Suns' defensive progress this season is seen by everyone, and Zhao Yue's rebounds, blocks and steals this season are enough to be proud of all insiders.

The remaining players who have received media attention are Tyson Chandler of the Knicks, Serge Ibaka of the Thunder and Dwight Howard of the Magic.

The introduction of Chandler is still very helpful to the Knicks, otherwise it may be difficult for the Knicks to enter the playoffs with their injuries this season. In terms of personal data, Chandler and Zhao Yue certainly can't be compared. Chandler played 62 games in the regular season, averaging 11.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game, but the changes he brought to the Knicks' defense are still obvious.

Ibaka has become the backbone of the Thunder's inside line. His 3.5 block this season is second only to Zhao Yue in the league, which is just a reflection of the inside defense he brought to the Thunder. Excellent physical fitness and mobility enable Ibaka to make up and assist in defense, and at the same time, he is also excellent in the single defense of the inside line.

Although Howard has been trapped in injury data this season, his deterrent on the inside line is still the guarantee of winning the magic. After all, not every team has a monster like Zhao Yue.

Chandler, Ibaka and Howard have good defensive abilities, but they are much worse than Zhao Yue's help to the Sun.

This season, the Suns' defensive efficiency ranks third after the Chicago Bulls and the Boston Celtics in the league, especially the opponent's penalty area scoring and shooting rate are much lower than other teams. Of course, there is also the role of the defense of the Suns' whole team, but Zhao Yue is undoubtedly the core of the Sun's defense. While Anthony serves as the core of the attack, Zhao Yue is the barrier of the Sun's defense.

In addition to helping the overall defense of the Suns, Zhao Yue's personal data will give him a great advantage in the selection of the best defensive player. Although the data is not the only criterion for judging, the data of 15.5 rebounds, 4.3 blocks and 1.5 steals are really excellent. It is impossible to be ignored during the process.

After Zhao Yue won the best rookie and the best defensive player last season, there was a lot of praise from the outside world, but there are also some voices that think that Zhao Yue is not as important as Anthony and Nash in the team. Although such a voice is not mainstream, it exists after all. This season, Zhao Yue is also one of the hottest candidates for MVP in the regular season.

Since the beginning of the season, Zhao Yue, Anthony and Nash have been at the top of the NBA's official MVP list until the end of the regular season, which is enough to illustrate many issues. Few people have questioned this. The Sun's strong performance this season has surprised everyone, and the dominance of the Sun Storm has been recognized by everyone.

Zhao Yue can average 22.5 points, 15.5 rebounds, 4.3 blocks and 1.5 steals and 5.8 assists this season. Whether on the offensive and defensive end, Zhao Yue will bring huge casualties to his opponents. With the Sun's good record and Zhao Yue's perverted data, it is also very normal to be at the top of the MVP list.

The competition for MVP is very fierce, such as the Heat's LeBron James. It is undeniable that James has also played an excellent season. He can average 28.7 points, 8.5 rebounds and 8 assists per game this season. His performance is very eye-catching, but both the data and the team's record James is in the selection. It doesn't have any advantage.

Although the results of the selection cannot come out immediately, there is more than 90% chance that the best defensive player will fall on Zhao Yue's head, and Zhao Yue may also win the regular season MVP award.

It has only entered the second season of the league, but Zhao Yue's performance has surprised too many people. If Zhao Yue can win several awards again this season, his influence will increase again. Of course, there is another important factor, which is the performance of Zhao Yue and the whole Suns in the playoffs.

From the first day of the new season, the Suns have set a goal, that is, the championship. Last season's playoff defeat made all the Suns players hold back. What they have to do is to make a comeback in the new season. Although the Suns have shown absolute dominance in the regular season, there are so many variables in the playoffs that no one can be sure of the result before the last minute.

At the end of the regular season, the 16 teams that entered the playoffs began to prepare for the playoffs, and there was not much time to prepare for the playoffs. Take the Suns as an example. After they finished the last regular season, they only had three days off, followed by the first round of the playoffs.

Such a dense schedule will give many teams a headache. Of course, the outside world has also begun to give advice to strong teams. That is to solve it as quickly as possible in the first round and win enough rest time to face the strong opponents behind. Specifically for the sun, Phoenix's media put forward suggestions and targets for the sun and swept it.

The Dallas Mavericks are the opponent of the first round of the Suns' playoffs. Last season, the Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat and won the championship, but the Mavericks only ranked eighth in the West in the new season, which is expected by everyone. Nowitzki is not a good leader. He lacks a domineering spirit. As an insider, The domineeringness of a team leader is almost invisible to him.

The two main attack points of the Suns are Zhao Yue and Anthony. In these two positions, the Mavericks do not have strong defensive players, and the overall strength of the Suns is much higher than the Mavericks, which is the main reason why the Phoenix media is so confident that they can sweep the Mavericks.

The outside world is optimistic about the Suns, but the Suns are not too careless from the top. Even if they admit that they have the strength to sweep the Mavericks, there is nothing to be proud of, because their goal is the championship.

At the time of the last two games of the regular season, the Suns had decided to play the first round against the Mavericks, so the team's preparations have begun since then. On the second day after the end of the regular season, the Suns conducted another targeted team training. In late April, there will be four matches in the first round of the NBA, including the Suns vs Mavericks.

"Boom!" Phoenix American Airlines Center Stadium was in the middle of noise and finally came to the playoffs. The enthusiasm of all the Suns fans was completely raised, and the whole city began to look at the stadium.

"Sun! The sun!" As time went by, more and more people were on the scene, and shouts began to ring in the stadium. Fans used this way to express their expectations for the next game and their support for the team. Like all Suns players, the Suns fans' goal this season is the championship, and they want What is done is to watch the sun complete the road step by step.

In the locker room of the home team, the Suns players are as usual. Except for Yi Jianlian, who seemed a little excited, the other Suns players at least can't see any particularity in this game. Of course, this is just a surface. All the Suns players know that from today, they will really embark on the road of chasing the championship this season.

"Guys, get ready to go!" Elvin Gentry looked at the time and began to stand up and shout.

After taking a look at the Suns players, Gentry continued: "I think you have heard a lot of voices. Fans and the media hope that we can sweep each other to get enough rest time, which is also our goal. In the back, we have stronger opponents, but first we have to kill the opposite group of guys.

Speaking of this, Gentry paused slightly and then said, "Guys, the playoffs have begun!"

The Suns players, who didn't seem to have much abnormality, looked slightly after hearing Gentry's words, and the atmosphere in the whole locker room seemed to have become different, and a sense of killing was pervasive.

Gentry was very satisfied with the team's state and waved his hand slightly, and the Suns players ran out of the locker room one by one.

"Sun! The sun!" Listening to the shouts at the scene, Zhao Yue ignited his fighting spirit like his teammates. The playoffs began. The goal of the Suns was the championship. No matter who stopped in front of them, the Suns would try their best to knock them down.

The Suns players came on the field, and the cheers at the scene became louder and higher. After the ceremony, Gentry simply emphasized the tactics, and the five starters of the Suns began to come to the field.

Like the regular season, the Sun' starting center is still Zhao Yue, power forward Channing Fry, small forward Cameron Anthony, shooting guard Wens Carter, and point guard Steve Nash.

The Mavericks' starting center is Brandon Haywood, the power forward is Dirk Nowitzki, small forward Sean Marion, shooting guard Jason Terry and point guard Jason Kidd.

Zhao Yue and Haiwood jumped the ball, and the Suns took the lead in getting the ball. Nash dribbled the ball to half-court and sent the ball to Anthony, who had been stuck in the middle distance. As in the regular season, the Suns' offensive tactics have not been adjusted much, and Anthony is still the team's first offensive point.

The Mavericks also seemed to be still in the tentative stage. After Anthony received the ball, he only had a single defense by Marion. Of course, Anthony would not miss such an offensive opportunity. After leaning on Marion's back and squeezing a step closer to the basket, he turned around and shot easily, scoring the first point of the playoffs for the team.