Bishop of the Devil

On December 3, the Clippers ushered in their 23rd game of the regular season.

In this game, they challenged the Washington Wizards away from home.

The Wizards have been having a hard time since Jordan left, and their record has always been pretty poor.

Of course, before Jordan joined the Wizards, the Wizards were actually a loser...

However, this year's Wizards lineup is still quite good. The team includes No. 1 pick Wall, Yang Shaoxia, Hilario, McGee and others.

Their record at the start of the game was good, with a winning rate of more than half, but only God knows how long this winning rate can be maintained.

"Coach, let's make an agreement first. After my contract ends this year, I will go to the Clippers next year..." Rashad Lewis whispered close to Richard before the game started.

Richard smiled bitterly, "Good guy, this Clippers is about to become a nursing home."

However, if these veterans join, they will only receive basic salaries and will not have much impact on the team.

And many of these veterans are very popular players, which can also boost the Clippers' ticket sales.

Anyway, if you sign it, it will definitely not be a loss.

"What's going on with McGee in your team now? Does Philip plan to reuse him?" Richard asked Lewis curiously.

The current head coach of the Wizards is Flip Saunders, an acquaintance of Richard...

Sanders has been able to stand in the league for so many years because he actually has something real at hand. This is a head coach with real talent and learning.

Lewis shook his head, "Coach Philip doesn't seem to like JaVale very much. This kid doesn't pay much attention on the court."

"Coach, do you like this guy McGee?"

"This kid's physical talent is really nothing to say, but his concentration is a big problem. If you, coach, can solve this problem, I think he should be able to play an unparalleled role under your hands." Lewis said with a smile. .

In Lewis's view, with Richard's magical ability, it was a piece of cake to correct McGee's lack of concentration.

Lewis still likes this kid McGee. He is silly all day long and very lovable.

So Lewis directly informed Richard about McGee's situation in the team. He also hoped that McGee could truly develop his talents.

In the history of the NBA, there are too many talented players, and basically every few years a player with McGee's incredible physical fitness appears.

For example, Stromaier Swift a few years ago...

But these players with incredible physical fitness really can't do much, which makes people sigh.

Now Lewis feels that Big McGee has an opportunity to change his destiny. If he can play for Richard, there is a high probability that he will be able to play.

After hearing what Lewis said, Richard smiled and waved his hands, "There's no hurry for now, let's dig into the Wizards now. I guess that old guy Phillip will be very angry..."

"Take your time, there will be a chance sooner or later. I do think this guy is pretty good, he looks a bit like Clark."

Lewis nodded. After Richard said this, he felt that McGee and Clark really had a lot in common.

For example, the shot-blocking abilities of these two players are both historically powerful.

…

The game started, and Richard sat on the sidelines and watched the game quietly.

Although the Wizards have a good momentum since the start of the season, Richard feels that they will most likely not be a match for the Clippers.

At the moment, Wall has not grown up yet, and the gap in strength compared to his peak period is still quite large.

As for other players, Richard is definitely not a threat.

"Beep!" the referee blew the whistle and gave Thomas a defensive foul.

The Clippers had another problem in this defensive round. Leonard couldn't help defend in time, and Thomas desperately defended Wall who was about to break through, but the referee called a foul.

Although there were no free throws, the momentum was quite bad. Thomas was afraid of a point guard like Wall who was extremely physical.

And if he encounters a point guard like Nash or Dragic, although Thomas still has a disadvantage, it is not so big that it is unacceptable.

Not long after the game started, Richard naturally did not call a timeout, but quietly watched how the players on the field would solve the current situation.

…

During the Clippers' offensive round, Leonard walked past Thomas.

"Isaiah, leave the opponent's Wall to me." Leonard said slowly.

"Huh? You can actually speak?" Little Thomas' face was full of shock...

Of course, this was a joke made by Thomas.

Leonard is definitely a player in the team who can't be beaten with three sticks. The four of them joined the Clippers at the same time. Logically speaking, they should have a pretty good relationship. As a result, Thomas has said no more than three words to Leonard so far. sentence.

Every time Thomas talks to Leonard, Leonard either just nods, or makes that silly laugh that makes people speechless...

"Haha..." Knowing that his teammate Thomas Jr. was joking, Leonard rarely laughed.

His laughter was indescribably weird, as if he was a child who had done something wrong and was being taught a lesson by an adult. As a result, he encountered something funny. He wanted to laugh but didn't dare to laugh, so he was holding back his laughter.

"Okay, then I'll leave him to you, but what about the opponent's Nick Young? It's hard for me to guard him..." Thomas said in pain.

Nick Young is 201 centimeters tall. It is no exaggeration to say that Nick Young shot in front of Thomas, and Thomas had nothing to do with him.

If you can't imagine this kind of matchup scene, you can think about how painful it is to suddenly encounter a 2-meter-tall opponent on the field.

"Leave it to me as well." Leonard said in an angry voice, cherishing every word like gold.

Little Thomas rolled his eyes...

…

The Clippers' offensive round ended with Horford assisting Monroe to score.

It was the Wizards' turn to attack.

Seeing that the Clippers have an obvious shortcoming like Thomas in their lineup, it would be strange for Wall not to play Thomas in isolation...

Seeing Wall coming to beat him hard again, Thomas immediately stepped away and gave up his defensive position to Leonard who flew over.

As soon as Wall reached the free throw line, he felt a shadow coming. He might be attacked by a tentacle monster, and the basketball in his hand disappeared.

Turning his head again, he saw Leonard grabbing the ball with one hand and throwing it to Thomas, who was already rushing towards the frontcourt.

"Shua..." Thomas quickly controlled the ball to the frontcourt, and without anyone defending him, he successfully made a layup.

Thomas didn't dare to try a dunk like this. It would be embarrassing if he didn't make a dunk.

Curry of the Buccaneers would have such embarrassing situations from time to time, and Thomas didn't dare to imitate it.

…

It's the Wizards' offensive round again, and this time Wall is holding the ball in isolation against Thomas.

Naturally, Thomas Jr. repeated his old tricks and deliberately gave up his defensive position...

Wall held the ball and rushed towards the basket. This time he was much more cautious and started a three-step layup before he reached the free throw line.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Leonard swooping over again, and Wall quickly threw...

But what is shocking is that Leonard took off in a rather unscientific position, and his long arms and big hands actually blocked his throw.

Horford picked up the ball and made another long pass to Thomas.

Thomas counterattacked quickly again and scored the goal before his opponent was in position.

In terms of speed, Thomas is naturally at the top of the league.

In addition to speed, Thomas' strength is also quite good, at least among point guards, he is quite outstanding.

With his height, if he didn't have speed or strength, how could he possibly get out? How would he be any different from ordinary people with skills?

In two consecutive offensive rounds, the Clippers used their defense to cause the opponent's mistakes, and then quickly counterattacked to complete layups.

Among them, Leonard naturally takes the greatest credit, and his restriction on Wall is perfect.

Under normal circumstances, Leonard actually plays a core role in defense whether he is with the Spurs or the Raptors. He will guard whoever is stronger...

The strongest player on the Wizards team now is Wall. If Leonard comes to defend, there will be nothing wrong with him.

…

It's another Wizards offensive round, and Wall may have been a little bit carried away by Leonard.

After two offensive rounds were ruined by Leonard, Wall was still determined to play in isolation.

This time, he was naturally extremely careful and did not give Leonard a chance to block the shot or steal him. However, due to the hasty shot, the ball went wide and the rebound was grabbed by Monroe.

The Clippers counterattacked, and Thomas assisted Thompson who ran out of the open space and hit a three-pointer.

After three consecutive goals and a 7-0 climax, Wizards head coach Saunders naturally couldn't sit still.

"Dududu!" Wizard called a timeout.

This timeout would not work without calling a timeout. Sanders had already seen that Wall was getting angry. If he did not call a timeout and allowed Wall to continue his reckless actions, they would basically not have to play this game.

…

"Well done! This is the defensive effect I want."

"This is why I signed you with the lottery pick. Your defense is worthy of such a draft pick." Richard patted Leonard on the shoulder and said with excitement.

Although Richard knew that Leonard was good at defense, seeing this kind of death-struck defense in front of Richard still made him a little excited.

In Richard's view, when it comes to outside defense, Leonard may be among the top three in history. He may even be cheeky enough to say that he is the number one in history. This is not something that cannot be said.

After all, some people can call themselves the GOAT. There is nothing wrong with saying that Leonard is the best perimeter defender in history.

Leonard's defense is good, not in the fans' perception, nor in the media's praise, nor in the data, but in the recognition of the players who have played against him.

Among the players, Irving is recognized as the best in ball control. This is the result of an anonymous NBA survey, while Leonard is recognized among the players as the most difficult to defend...

Leonard's current defensive strength is definitely not at its peak, but it has already begun to show its edge. Richard can't help but be happy to see it.

In addition to his preference for big players, Richard also likes this kind of fierce outside defense.

It's not just Richard. Some fans who prefer retro basketball are generally in the same situation. They like traditional big men who fight in the inside and Saburo who likes to defend outside.

The roles of these two courts are roughly the essence of retro basketball.

…

Sanders took advantage of the timeout to comfort Wall and rearrange his offensive tactics.

In terms of defense, they actually don't have too many problems. The main problem is their offense.

Wall has been working alone, which makes Yang Shaoxia a little unhappy.