"Madman" was stopped, and other Timberwolves players also controlled their emotions and did not take the initiative to punch Malone in provocation, thus avoiding large-scale conflicts.
Firstly, they are afraid that if a fight breaks out, the Timberwolves may suffer a big loss due to a large-scale ban.
Secondly, although Ma Long is 41 years old, he is really tough. Not many people dare to attack him, otherwise they will probably be beaten to death.
There is another reason, that is, although the Wolf King is the boss of the Timberwolves, he is not very popular in private and often bullies newcomers.
Even Lin Fei, before this rookie season, was often ordered by the Wolf King to buy coffee, burgers and the like.
There was just a big-headed, righteous and violent "madman" who took the initiative to stand up for him.
The others looked at the Wolf King lying on the ground with his mouth full of blood. Although they showed concern on the surface, they were already smiling unkindly behind their backs.
Just like Szebiak, in his rookie season, he failed because of the winning goal at the end of a game.
After the game, he was scolded by the Wolf King in the locker room and punched Szebiak in the face, causing his head to bleed immediately, but he still remained obedient and did not dare to say a word.
At this time, Sizebiak and Lin Fei walked onto the stage together to ask about the Wolf King, but they secretly thought that good and evil will be rewarded in the end!
"It's okay, I can't die. This old guy Ma Long is really cruel!"
The team doctor quickly trotted onto the court, checked the injuries on Wolf King's jaw and mouth, and treated the bleeding.
The Wolf King spat out a mouthful of blood on his hand, and his two bloody front teeth were clearly visible.
Lin Fei shrank his neck, Ma Long was really cruel, he knocked off two of the Wolf King's front teeth with one elbow, and maybe his mandible was also damaged.
If the force of this elbow hit him, Lin Fei felt that he would probably go back in time...
Under the shocked eyes of the home fans, Malone, who was expelled, walked straight to the tunnel with his head lowered without saying a word.
"Zen Master" frowned, and his heart was in turmoil. If Ma Long elbowed him, he would be suspended.
If the Lakers fail to win tonight and play away from home in the tiebreaker, and they are missing Malone, it will be even more dangerous.
Phil Jackson knows very well that even though Malone is no longer at his peak and was completely defeated by the Wolf King in this series, he is still the Lakers' first choice at power forward after all.
Without Malone, the only power forward on the Lakers bench is Stanislav, a white player from the Ukrainian basketball team. He averaged 4 points and 2.5 rebounds per game, and his defensive lateral movement was slower than that of the old Malone.
Then there are Luke Walton, who is 2.03 meters tall, and Brian Cook, who is 2.06 meters tall. They are just two rookies and have basically no playing time in the playoffs.
Of course, if Garnett is unable to play due to injury or needs to undergo concussion procedures, the Lakers will make a fortune.
But watching Garnett walk to the sideline with the support of the team doctor, apart from two front teeth being knocked out, there was nothing serious.
Phil Jackson's eyes are cold, so the series must not be postponed to the tiebreaker. The Lakers must win tonight.
Flip Saunders is still putting pressure on the referee team, believing that Malone must be suspended for such a bad elbow.
The three referees also repeatedly watched the entire process of Malone turning over and elbowing the Wolf King in front of the technical stage to judge the seriousness of the situation.
The high-definition four-sided screen on the roof of the museum also simultaneously played the conflict process.
The Lakers fans at home were whispering to each other and talking a lot.
"Karl definitely didn't mean it, it was a complete accident!"
"I think it's also unexpected. He just raises his elbows habitually when he turns over!"
"Isn't it more appropriate to call a first-level flagrant foul? Second-level flagrant foul is a bit serious!"
"How could Carl really want to do something? Otherwise, Kevin would have been in the ICU by now!"
"Just expel him. Karl played really poorly tonight. No one could guard him. He was holding the team back!"
"You shouldn't be suspended, right? When Karl elbowed Thomas, he received more than 40 stitches and was only suspended for one game. Now it's obviously much better to watch the Wolf King!"
"I can't tell you, this is no longer the violent basketball of the 1990s!"
"The Wolf King is probably at risk of mild concussion, right? I'm not forced to leave the game. Can I go through the concussion procedure?"
Seeing Kevin Garnett return to the locker room accompanied by the team doctor, the home Lakers fans' eyes lit up, and they rejoiced in their hearts, regaining hope of winning.
An old Ma Long Dui is a peak wolf king, this elbow is really worth it.
The cleaning staff quickly wiped away the blood stains on the floor, and the game resumed.
Timberwolves (54): (48) Lakers.
With a 6-point lead and the opportunity to make two free throws, the current situation is obviously more favorable to the Timberwolves.
But whether the Wolf King can return tonight is what Timberwolves fans are most worried about.
The Wolf King was no longer there, but Flip Saunders did not let substitute power forward Mark Madsen take over. Instead, he gave a few instructions and quickly replaced Lin Fei.
The "Zen Master" of the Lakers sent substitute power forward Stanislav, and also quickly replaced Gary Payton with Fisher to guard Lin Fei.
Szebiak went to the free throw line and executed two free throws.
"Uh-huh!"
"Uh-huh!"
Both penalties.
The Timberwolves served the ball from the sideline, and Fisher used his strong body to press against Lin Fei, not giving him any room to move at will.
Lin Fei tried his best to resist Fisher's body, suddenly retreated and ran back, and quickly moved to the left corner with the help of cross cover with Szebiak.
The ball was passed directly to the "Madman" in the middle. Olowokandi quickly moved to the high post from the penalty area, opening up the space under the basket.
"Madman" failed to dribble past Kobe and returned the ball to Darrick Martin on the outside.
At this time, Lin Fei had quickly inserted from the bottom corner on the left to near the 30-degree three-point line on the right. With the help of Olowokandi's tall figure, he got rid of Fisher and inserted directly into the 45-degree angle.
"Whoosh!"
Martin's ball was passed quickly, and Fisher was blocked by Olowokandi's tall body and it was too late to get around.
O'Neal could only choose to switch defense to delay Lin Fei's shot, but the huge shark was still a little slower after all.
Lin Fei took out his sharp sword and faced the big shark. When he pulled it out, he struck again with lightning.
Whoosh!
With a three-point attribute of 99, Lin Fei's shooting speed is obviously much faster than before. It is difficult for ordinary defensive players to block shots, but he has not yet reached the peak of Curry's shooting speed.
Although his shooting speed alone is not as good as that of peak Curry, his shooting rate and stability have already killed the cute god in an instant...
"Uh-huh!"
sixth.
Timberwolves (59): (48) Lakers.
The Timberwolves came up and scored 5 consecutive points through two free throws and quickly pushed the lead to 11 points.
This is also the first time since the start of the game that the point difference between the two teams has expanded to double digits.
Lin Fei returned to defense and took the initiative to high-five Olowokandi and said with a smile: "Michael, you covered beautifully!"
Olowokandi was slightly startled, and then showed a row of neat white teeth: "Lin, happy cooperation!"
The two of them laughed away their grudges, and winning was the only goal!
"Oh my god, the sixth one, this ball was hit on O'Neal's head. Since then, Lin has shot the Lakers' starting five tonight!"
In front of the commentary desk on the sidelines, Kenny Smith was pumping his fists excitedly, while Charles Barkley next to him had a look of despair.
"Haha, Charles, Lin has already made six three-pointers. If he scores two more, you will have to run around Staples Center in Spongebob's underwear!"
"Kenny, I said, I want to wear Mickey Mouse's underwear! But Lin may not necessarily give me this opportunity!"
Barkley was still talking harshly, but he already had an ominous premonition in his heart, just like when he bet that Yao couldn't score 20 points in a single game during his rookie season!
on the court,
The Lakers took advantage of the poor defense of the Timberwolves' lineup of 1 big and 4 small. Kobe accelerated with the ball, trying to catch up with the opponent.
But Darrick Martin quickly rushed up and pulled O'Neal for a tactical foul.
"Beep!"
This was obviously a tactic arranged by Flip Saunders in advance. Taking advantage of this dead ball time, he quickly replaced Lin Fei with substitute power forward Mark Madsen.
Before the foul count came, the Lakers served from the sideline.
Lin Fei, who came on the court for less than 20 seconds, scored a three-pointer on the offensive end and was immediately replaced by Flip Saunders. Lakers fans were stunned to see this move.
"The head coach of the Timberwolves is too irritating. He lets Lin go on the court and score a three-pointer and then come off. He gets the advantage on the offensive end but doesn't suffer on the defensive end. This move is really damaging!"
"This tactic is nothing new. It has been used in the NBA for a long time. It's just that not every team has a superb '3-D' player like Lin!"
"The Wolf King is not here, OK, we must seize this opportunity and chase points quickly!"
On the court, without the DPOY-level interior guarding of the Wolf King, the Timberwolves' penalty area was obviously lacking in defense.
Olowokandi and Mark Madsen had communication problems in their zone defense positioning. The Sharks squeezed into the low post with strength, received Kobe's pass, and hit the defender with a violent dunk.
"Boom!"
"Beep!"
The ball goes in and the buzzer sounds, 2+1.
"Madman" rushed to Mark Madsen, who had paid for the foul, and scolded him in a cold voice:
"Your defense is like toilet paper, you know? Be tough. If you want to foul, be tough. Don't give him a chance to play 2+1!"
The white forward Madson curled his neck and obeyed, but secretly complained in his heart. As soon as O'Neal's strong body collided with him, he really felt scared!
"Uh-huh!"
O'Neal, who walked to the free throw line, took a deep breath, took extra free throws, and successfully scored 3 points.
The Lakers brought the point difference back to 8 points.
The Timberwolves kept their pace and played positional warfare.
Although Lin Fei was not present this time, the "Madman" took advantage of substitute power forward Stanislav and took advantage of Madsen's high pick-and-roll.
He took a sudden step out of position and made an emergency stop in the mid-range to make an elegant shot.
"Uh-huh!"
There are also.
"Madman"'s personal score also reached double digits. When the Wolf King was not present, he knew that he needed to assume the role of leader.
The 34-year-old Sprewell has reached the most mature stage in terms of skills and mentality.
Judging from the current performance of the entire Western Conference finals, the "Madman" can be said to be tit for tat with Kobe, without losing at all.
Returning to the defensive end, Madsen once again tactically slashed the shark. At this time, the number of fouls had reached, and O'Neal was sent to the free throw line.
At this moment, a chic and resolute figure walked out of the player tunnel, it was none other than Wolf King Kevin Garnett.
The Lakers fans shuddered suddenly, something was wrong now, Garnett was going to stage the return of the king!
