For the Thunder, fitness had been an issue throughout the season. Chen Xi in particular had been worn down badly over the course of the season and the first two rounds of the playoffs.
For athletes, a lack of stamina often went hand in hand with lower efficiency and a decline in competitive form.
To be fair, Chen Xi had handled it very well. His efficiency had inevitably dipped a little, but his production and clutch play remained strong.
Fortunately, the Thunder still had Anthony Davis, who had only just returned, and Westbrook, who never seemed to run out of energy.
Westbrook clearly knew what Chen Xi was dealing with, so he took charge of the offense decisively in the opening minutes, helping Chen Xi conserve energy.
The game continued.
Murray brought the ball across half court and waited near the top for Jokic's screen. He drove to the three-point line, then passed the ball back to Teacher Jokic.
Teacher Jokic held the ball near the left wing, then handed it off to Little Porter.
Porter first ran a cross-screen with Pope, then hurried up to receive the ball. Using Jokic's screen to evade Green's chase defense, he rose straight into a pull-up three over Davis.
Swish~~
The ball went cleanly through the net!
Something that gave Chen a headache had happened: Little Porter's special trait seemed to be kicking in again.
It was a little superstitious, perhaps, but in this series, having Davis matched up against Little Porter and Murray seemed to bring a bit of bad luck~~
Still, at least the Thunder weren't like the Lakers. All three of the Thunder's key guards had good size and defensive ability. They weren't like Little Rivers and Russell, who could not only get torched from the perimeter but even let