How did the Thunder erode the Timberwolves? The two leaders are so different, and the flaw of selling the bottom corner three points is very successful!

As of now, the Eastern Conference Finals (Pacers 3-1 Knicks) and the Western Conference Finals (Thunder 3-1 Timberwolves) have both reached the final stage. It is worth mentioning that the difference is that none of the four matches between the Pacers and the Knicks has a score difference of more than 10 points, while the four matches between the Thunder and the Timberwolves have only one game with a single digit difference. However, the 3-win and 1 loss Thunder only beat the Timberwolves by 1 point.

Alexander scored 30+ six times in his last seven games, but the only game that was less than 30 points was the one that was beaten by the Timberwolves 42 points. Alexander played for only 27 minutes before being replaced. It is worth mentioning that the Timberwolves are not the only game that has excellent defense in this game.

In the only game where Alexander lost, he stood on the free throw line 4 times. In addition to the other three games he won, he averaged more than 14 times on the free throw line, and his free throw shooting percentage exceeded 80%. In other words, in addition to scoring every free throw, Alexander's average data was about 25 points, and only one game hit the shooting percentage exceeded 50%. Compared to Alexander's free throw line, what made the Timberwolves collapsed was that the contraction of the defense allowed the Thunder to get more shooting opportunities.

Alexander's style of playing angered the Timberwolves' generals. Edwards once hit Alexander who fell to the ground with a ball, and McDann also angrily pushed Alexander like the wind. . .

Alexander has been the "dear" of the league since the regular season. Everything is expected at present. In comparison, Jaylenway's performance is even more admirable. He averaged 23 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists per game, plus 2.3 steals, and hit percentage: 50%+50% (average 2.8 three-pointers per game). Alexander can maintain the best competitive state in the entire series, because when he leaves the court, Jaylenway can take over the team's offense, shooting from outside the three-point line, step-back jump shots from mid to long distances, etc.

Edwards' dominance on the court is definitely not worse than Alexander, but how can Randle, who is "a game of gods, a game of ghosts" compare to Jaylenway?

Randall scored 28 points and 26 points in the first and third games, and his shooting percentage was above 60%. In the other two games, he scored 6 points in one game and 5 points in the other game, and his shooting percentage was as low as a pitiful 20%. In fact, the key reason why Randle has a "unpredictable" performance lies in the Thunder's defensive strategy. The further the

series, the more the quality of the star is tested. Edwards and Alexander can be said to be evenly matched, and Jaylenway and Randle's performance became the key to the series. In Edwards' words, "The Thunder set a great defensive plan to keep the ball away from me and hit me all the way." Next, let's look at a statistics:

Timberwolves series so far, 17.3% of the shooting comes from the bottom corner, the highest among the four teams in the semi-finals, to be precise, "fault lead". It is worth mentioning that the Suns lead the league in this data in the regular season, and only 12.8%.

Generally speaking, most teams in the league will defend three-pointers at the bottom corner, because the bottom corner is closest to the basket and has an extremely important tactical position. The Thunder will do the opposite. They shrink their defense, cut off the Timberwolves' breakthrough and passing routes, and allow the three-pointers to shoot in the bottom corner. The Thunder double-teamed Edwards and even Randall. Data shows that the two men's holding time in the Western Conference Finals series has been greatly reduced compared to the regular season and the first two rounds.

The current 3-1 result is enough to prove that Degenault's strategy is successful. He believes that the Thunder can slow down the Timberwolves' shooting beyond the three-point line (regardless of the three-point shooting, three-point shooting, and three-point shooting percentage in the regular season, while limiting Edwards and Randall to attack the penalty area. Coach Finch arranged a lot of pick-and-roll tactics, used the Thunder's defensive gap against three-pointers in the bottom corner, and made a lot of three-pointers in the third and fourth matches. Walker, McDann, Divinzenzo, and the shooting percentage of three-pointers in the corner, or the output of three-pointers was the highest.

As we all know, Randall is the key to this round of series. When the Thunder defended him, their intention was very obvious, which was to disrupt the rhythm of the game and even use defenders to defend Randall. For most of the fourth game, Caruso will appear in front of Gobert and Reed. Of course, Dort, who was selected for the defensive team this season, also has this strength. Let's see how Dort locked Randall!

In the final stages of the second and fourth games of the series, Randall was DNP. Perhaps some fans would not understand, but Coach Finch's approach is correct. In Randall's words, "Many times it's like sleepwalking on the court, you can only watch." Edwards, who had outstanding talent, also had this stage, and only shot the first ball in the last moment in the first quarter of the fourth game.

The Timberwolves have been behind the Thunder 1-3 so far in the series, and Edwards is not as capable as Alexander in leading the team, but has lost because he has made many mistakes, has no advantage in rebounding, and has no ability to limit the Thunder's fast break score. Edwards is very mature in the playoffs this season. He correctly weighs his own score and connects the pros and cons of the team. In the fourth game, Edwards scored not very well, but gave his teammates the opportunity to prove himself.

Asses in all four games exceeded 6 times. Of course, he also suffered a defensive loss..

The Timberwolves need to rewrite history if they want to defeat the Thunder three consecutive games, but every series is valuable. They must learn more experience in every game. Edwards needs to play dominant power, Randle needs to find the rhythm of the game, role players need to continue to hit open three-pointers in the bottom corner, etc.