"Without fear of scandal, Kobe Bryant returned with 27 points and 6 rebounds to help the Los Angeles Lakers defeat Phoenix"
"The Los Angeles Lakers are unstoppable in the new season, and they defeated the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns in a semi-complete series"
"Los Angeles' Big Three with No. 13 in the first round! Jordan, Pippen, and Rodman are already in the lineup》
"Rookie Du En played brilliantly, scoring 21 points and 12 assists, achieving his first double-double in the new season"
"Dunn's post-game interview: Kobe can score the ball that I can't make, and I can pass the ball that Kobe can't pass."
It was 8 o'clock in the morning in Los Angeles. The Lakers and their team had just returned from Phoenix. Reports about last night's game had already spread all over Los Angeles.
After returning to Los Angeles, the Lakers players have half a day of rest until 3 p.m., the time for normal training and warm-up before the game, and they can just arrive at Toyota Center.
After returning home, Duan did not choose to catch up on sleep like other players. Instead, he called a personal physical therapist and asked him to come to his home for a full set of general health care.
Duen is prepared to eliminate physical fatigue in this way so that he can participate in the next back-to-back games with a fuller mental state.
…
"Come so early?"
At 2:30 in the afternoon, Kobe came to the Toyota Center early to warm up and found that Duan was already practicing in the arena, so he took the initiative to say hello.
"Young people can't sleep, so they have to come to practice."
Duan exchanged a few pleasantries with Kobe and then continued today's shooting training.
After all, there are cameramen working nearby, so it’s not good to waste other people’s time.
Not long after, other teammates came one after another, including O'Neal who came over to eat and drink.
O'Neal said he wanted to share the joys and sorrows with his teammates, but he ate more than anyone else.
O'Neal doesn't pay much attention to weight control. There is no need for a nutritionist for O'Neal. O'Neal feels that the food provided by the team is clean, hygienic, and nutritious.
Moreover, we ate together with everyone, talked and laughed, and the atmosphere was very good.
It can only be said that even the richest player in the league will not miss the opportunity if he has the opportunity to join the team.
After everyone finished the team meal and rested for a while, the Lakers' warm-up session started half an hour earlier than before.
Many people feel that playing back-to-backs requires players to get more rest time, and this is indeed true.
But under normal circumstances, players are not given that much rest time.
In fact, in order to avoid injuries, teams participating in back-to-back games often organize players to start warming up half an hour to an hour in advance so that the players can fully move their bodies.
Sometimes, the head coach will also ask the players about their own status and then adjust the players' specific playing time.
Master Zen is different from most head coaches. He warms up half an hour in advance, ends the warm-up half an hour in advance, and then uses the remaining half hour to lead the players in pre-match meditation.
Going back-to-back is not only physically exhausting, but also psychologically exhausting.
Meditation before NBA games will become very common in the future, partly due to the influence of Zen masters.
After meditation, the game is about to begin.
Tonight the Lakers will face the Golden State Warriors, who are missing their great coach Richardson.
During the offseason, Richardson was suspended for three games by the league due to domestic violence. He was able to play in the preseason, but was suspended for the first three games of the regular season. This game happened to be the third game.
It can only be said that the Lakers are lucky, and so is Duane.
The Warriors are strong in height and defense inside. When fighting in a defensive position, it is difficult for opponents to break into the Warriors' interior and score at the basket.
Zen Master also understood the Warriors' situation, so he adjusted the team's play style.
Last night, against the Suns, they shot inside. Tonight, against the Warriors, they mainly shot from the outside.
Because he mainly focuses on sudden points, Du En has also changed from the previous ball holder to a space point.
After the first quarter started, although Payton easily passed Speedy Claxton, his shot was easily interfered and blocked when he got to the basket.
As the space point in the starting lineup, Duan got a lot of shooting opportunities from the corners.
In the first quarter, he made 3 of 5 shots and scored 9 points and 2 rebounds. He became the biggest contributor to the Lakers' scoring lead in the first quarter.
Because there is no ball possession, it is difficult to get assists. The ball is usually passed to Du En, who needs Du En to shoot.
Du En understood that due to the change in play style, he had no chance to get assists, so he could only rush for as many rebounds as possible.
It's a pity that the Warriors are all tall inside, and they do a good job in rebounding protection.
And because both sides are basically playing positional battles, the pace of the game is relatively slow, and the number of rebounds is not as many as expected.
"Dunn, you should hold the ball more and pass the ball to me more."
During the break, Payton took the initiative to chat with Du En.
Mainly because the first quarter was not suitable for Payton. Payton made 1 of 4 shots and only scored 2 points, 2 rebounds and 4 assists.
Under normal circumstances, Payton should hold the ball more and pass the ball to Duen to facilitate double-digit assists.
However, Payton values scoring data more.
Moreover, as an All-Star point guard, like Kidd, who often reaches double figures in rebounds and assists but fails to score in double figures, it will also look very embarrassing.
For Duan, he actually doesn't want Payton to have a conflict with him over the ball when he has the opportunity to get a double-double or triple-double.
"Gary, don't worry, I'll pass the ball to you."
For the sake of long-term interests, Duan gave up the idea of scoring 30+ points again tonight.
With the cooperation of Duan and Payton, the Lakers continued to consolidate their advantage. When Kobe and Malone returned to the court, they played a wave of flow, further widening the point difference.
By the end of the first half, it was 35 to 46, with the Lakers leading by 11 points.
The point difference was not as big as expected, mainly due to the slower pace of the game and the fact that the Lakers took more outside shots.
Originally there was only one small blacksmith in Los Angeles, but now there is one more blacksmith, so there are two.
As the game entered the third quarter, the aftereffects of the back-to-back began to show a little, and even Duane joined the Los Angeles Blacksmith League.
After discovering that his shooting percentage dropped, Duane changed his style of play, proactively asking Payton for the ball, hitting Warriors backup point guard Avery Johnson in a pick-and-roll, and then driving to the basket to draw a foul.
After three quarters, Duan has made 6 of 13 shots, 5 of 10 three-pointers, and 3 of 5 free throws. He has accumulated 20 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
In the following fourth quarter, Duan played for more than 3 minutes and scored 3 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist.
If tonight was not a back-to-back game and he was about to go to the Eastern Conference to play an away game, Duan could still play more time and collect more data.
75 to 89, the Lakers once again defeated a Western Conference team with a 14-point advantage.
Next, there is the devil's fourth consecutive away game that extremely tests the players' physical and mental adjustment ability.
On November 4, the Lakers played their first game in the Eastern Conference against last season's Eastern Conference playoff team, the Milwaukee Bucks.
Payton played in the Bucks last season. Although he has no grudges with the Bucks, Duan and Malone, as teammates, still have a tacit understanding and continue to create scoring opportunities for Payton.
To this end, Payton made 11 of 18 shots, 1 of 3 three-pointers, 5 of 6 free throws, and scored 28 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.
Kobe went his own way, using games as training, and he played better and better. He scored 30+ points for the first time this season and scored 31 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists.
Duane and Malone gave up a lot of their shooting rights to Payton, and their scoring data did not exceed 20 points.
However, both players achieved double-doubles, with Duen having 16 points, 7 rebounds and 11 assists, and Malone having 14 points, 13 rebounds and 2 assists.
The Lakers' four main players teamed up to score 89 points, 32 rebounds and 20 assists. There is no reason not to win.
109 to 101, the Lakers got the bonus from the Eastern Conference in their first away game.
Continuous winning has also made the atmosphere in the team's locker room more harmonious. Even Kobe, who usually doesn't take the initiative, expressed his intention to treat his teammates to dinner.
However, after finishing the Bucks' meal, the Lakers will then travel to San Antonio to face the defending champion Spurs.
Without O'Neal sitting in the penalty area, it will undoubtedly be a huge test for the Lakers to defeat the Spurs with Duncan.
