Heat (11): (6) Lakers.
Seeing Lin Fei score two three-pointers and take over 7 points, head coach Rudy Tomjanovich, who was standing in front of the Lakers bench, immediately chose to call a long timeout.
With the departure of "Zen Master", the Lakers this season also brought in former Rockets coach Tomjanovich, who was once a Rockets star and Dayao's Rockets coach in his rookie season.
Tomjanovich has been coaching the Rockets since 1992. He once led the Houston Rockets with the big dream Olajuwon to win two consecutive championships. He can be said to be a legendary player and coach of the Rockets.
Although he is humble and kind and takes care of newcomers, his coaching level is not outstanding and he has no original tactics. At the same time, because of his bladder cancer, his physical condition and energy are limited.
The Lakers' invitation to Tomjanovich is just a temporary excess. Facts have proved that it is difficult for the current Tomjanovich to train this Lakers team that has internal and external troubles.
Although the two championships in the 1990s were influenced by Big Dream, Tang Shuai’s famous words inspired generations of NBA players:
"Never underestimate the heart of a championship!"
Regarding how to defend Lin Fei's three-pointers, Tomjanovich's Lakers coaching staff also did enough homework and research before the game:
"With Dwayne retired from injury, Lin will definitely take on more shooting rights and offensive responsibilities tonight, so we must try our best to guard against his three-pointers!"
"Jason's passing level is obviously higher than Dwayne's, and the cooperation between him and Lin is better than we expected,"
"So for Lin's defense, on the one hand, it is to pursue the defense in place and delay in time; on the other hand, it is to defend Jason Williams, and we must try our best to destroy and limit his passing!"
Tomjanovich looked at Chucky Atkins, the starting point guard, and then at the substitutes, and suddenly frowned, helpless.
As an undrafted player, Atkins' career can be considered inspiring. In his rookie season, he was selected to the All-Rookie Second Team as an undrafted player. His offensive average was 13 points and 4 assists per game, which was quite satisfactory. He was most suitable for Kobe Bryant. , Wade, a ball-carrying core, is paired with a backcourt point guard.
But because he is only 1.8 meters tall, he is at a disadvantage defensively. This is one of the reasons why Jason Williams was able to continuously send Lin Fei easy passes at the start of tonight's game.
But except for Atkins, the Lakers have no other defensive players on the bench. The entire Lakers defense on the back line is basically Kobe.
Originally, the Lakers wanted to renew the contract of "Old Fish" Fisher this offseason. After all, Fisher's defense at point guard is also very good, and he is quasi-defensive at the second team level.
But because the contract could not be negotiated, the Lakers had no choice but to let Fisher go, and the old Payton also walked away. This season, it is not an exaggeration to say that everyone around Kobe Bryant has betrayed his family.
"Caron, Lamar, you two must take on more responsibility for assisting defense. Depending on the situation, you can let go of your opponent appropriately and double-team Jason Williams' ball release point!"
In Tomjanovich's view, the Heat's current five-tiger lineup, Jason Williams at point guard, Lin Fei at shooting guard, and O'Neal at center, are the three most important roles. The cooperation between people is also very subtle and varied.
Battier at small forward and Haslem at power forward, or roughly a substitute power forward, can be left open appropriately, putting more defensive pressure on Williams who holds the ball.
After all, although Williams' passing is gorgeous, it is only because the defensive pressure on him is not strong enough. When faced with double teams, he will inevitably panic and make mistakes.
Compared with the league's top point guards such as Jason Kidd and Steve Nash, Jason Williams is characterized by being flashy.
On the Heat's side, Stan Van Gundy also roughly replaced Haslem, adding a mid-to-long-range shot control point.
After the timeout, the Lakers attack.
Kobe did not continue to play Lin Fei in isolation, but gave the ball to Odom in the high post on the right.
Facing the ball, Odom turned over and used his speed to break through. After getting rid of the ball, he made an emergency stop mid-range jumper and hit the basketball steadily.
"Uh-huh!"
Generally speaking, Odom is more comprehensive in terms of technology, speed and confrontation ability. In this matchup, Odom clearly has the advantage.
With the departure of O'Neal, Kobe also tried more organizational work this season, taking the initiative to distribute the ball to Odom and Caron Butler. His average assists per game also increased to more than 6.
Fans' impression of Kobe has always been that he plays alone and doesn't pass the ball. However, after O'Neal left, Kobe actively tried to become a better leader. He also tried his best to share the ball with his teammates in the 2004-05 season. The average number of shots is only 20.
However, with the poor record of the Lakers in the 2004-05 season, Kobe officially launched the god-killing mode in the following two seasons, creating single-game scoring feasts again and again.
When the ball was transferred, Kobe was always chasing Lin Fei, but Lin Fei was not in a hurry to start the game and consumed too much energy, so he helped his teammates open up space on the outside.
Jason Williams passed the ball to O'Neal, who was successfully stuck under the basket. However, the moment O'Neal caught the ball, Odom quickly let go and double-teamed.
Faced with the double-team of the two, O'Neal did not choose to act recklessly, but gave the ball to the left hand on the right outside line.
I roughly tried a three-point shot, but missed this time.
"Clang!"
The offensive rebound was grabbed by O'Neal against Mihm and Odom. After landing, he had to make up for the dunk when he got up again. Odom and Mihm had no choice but to foul at the same time.
"Beep!"
O'Neal, who stepped to the free throw line, was in good condition tonight. Amid the boos and harassment from the familiar home fans, he made both free throws steadily.
"Uh-huh!"
"Uh-huh!"
The Lakers fans at home were filled with emotion. The 32-year-old "Shark" O'Neal is still the undisputed number one center in the league. When he gets serious, he will be unstoppable at the basket. Fouling in advance is the best way. .
The Lakers came to the offensive end. Kobe held the ball and rushed Lin Fei. After being double-teamed by Battier, he passed the ball to Caron Butler at a 0-degree angle on the right side. The latter made a three-pointer.
"Uh-huh!"
Third-year senior Caron Butler is also developing toward 3D.
With the sudden rise of Lin Fei, the management of each team in the league has paid more and more attention to the training and development of 3D players.
Caron Butler and Lamar Odom were exchanged by the Heat for O'Neal's main bargaining chips. They will face their old team at home tonight and they are also full of fighting spirit.
After all, Odom just turned 25 last month, and Caron Butler is only 24. As two young players who were drafted in the lottery, it can be said that they have a bright future. I don’t think the two of them will be better than the 32-year-old O’Neal. Difference.
So tonight in front of the home Lakers fans, Odom and Caron Butler also worked hard to prove themselves.
Heat offense.
Seeing that the Lakers obviously strengthened their marking of Lin Fei and Jason Williams' pass blocking, Lin Fei did not rush to find opportunities, but continued to open up space on the outside.
O'Neal received the ball in the low post and was double-teamed again. This time, it was given to the open hands on the outside.
I roughly seized this opportunity, took a deep breath, and finally took a three-point shot.
"Uh-huh!"
Standing on the sidelines, Stan Van Gundy is also relatively satisfied. When he takes mid-to-long-range shots when he is completely open, his overall accuracy is still above 50%.
Although the overall effectiveness and speed of defense on the defensive end are generally not as strong as Haslem's, he has always been very hardworking and focused, which has also been recognized by Van Gundy.
Lakers coach Tomjanovich also frowned, and there was no good solution.
Even without Wade, Lin Fei and O'Neal, both inside and outside, are still the top killers in the league and cannot be restricted by pure single defense.
But if we want to strengthen the defense of these two points, we must ignore other players. There is no way around this.
Feeling this, Tang Shuai realized even more that with a record of 27 wins and 2 losses and a crazy 15-game winning streak, the Miami Heat are indeed too strong.
The Big Three have made Wade so difficult to deal with. If Wade had not injured his knee, it can be said that the Lakers have no chance of winning against the Heat.
Looking back, Lin Fei once again made a contribution on the defensive end this time.
Kobe broke through with the ball, and Sean Battier also saw the right moment and decisively came up to double-team Lin Fei. The double-team between the two was very oppressive and blocked Kobe's vision of passing the ball immediately.
Kobe protected the ball with his back, and hesitated for a moment between turning over for a jump shot and passing the ball. Lin Fei also had cold eyes and accurately grasped this fleeting opportunity, as if a sword was drawn out of its sheath.
"Snapped!"
With a crisp sound, Lin Fei, who rushed up sideways, swung his long arm down and directly hit the basketball in Kobe's hand.
Steals +1.
In Kobe's shocked eyes, Lin Fei bent down and picked up the basketball, wanting to give it to Jason Williams or Shane Battier.
But this fast break opportunity was fleeting. Williams and Battier did not have a good space to receive the ball, and Kobe quickly rushed forward to counterattack.
Lin Fei knows very well that his passing and dribbling attributes are both 0. If he takes risks by passing the ball or dribbling directly, the probability of making a mistake is very high.
At the critical moment, Lin Fei didn't have time to think too much, and made a decisive decision. He directly avoided Kobe's first counterattack, raised his arm holding the ball, and threw it towards the offensive backboard more than 20 meters away.
"Whoosh!"
Lin Fei's ultra-long "shot" directly frightened the players of the two teams on the field, the bench players off the field, the head coaches of the two teams, the on-site commentators, and the tens of thousands of fans in the audience.
Recently, I witnessed Lin Fei's ultra-long shot from the three-point line at the top of his own arc, at least 21 meters away from the offensive backboard, and Kobe's pupils also expanded rapidly.
Damn it, do you dare to vote for this?
Go crazy!
However, at the moment when the basketball was thrown out with great force, Lin Fei kept moving, quickly shook off Kobe who was stunned for a moment, and rushed towards the frontcourt.
"Swish swish!"
By the time Kobe reacted first and rushed forward to catch up, Lin Fei had already rushed more than three meters away.
Jason Williams on the left also threw away Atkins and ran forward.
"boom!"
With a loud noise, the basketball hit the right side of the steel backboard and bounced back hard at a small angle.
At this time, Kobe was fully aware of what Lin Fei wanted to do. He was repeating his old trick. He wanted to throw the ball super far and then rush to catch the ball.
In last season's finals, Lin Fei had such a classic goal.
This method is very Lin Fei. As a player with extremely poor basic skills in passing and dribbling, this is indeed a good way to counterattack fast breaks.
However, the difficulty of this fast break method is also very high. Not only do players need to be able to hit the backboard head-on during super long throws, but they also need to master the angle and strength of the rebound.
Then there is the speed of counterattack and the superb shooting ability.
And all of this, except for Lin Fei, it is obviously difficult for other players in the league to fully possess it.
"Whoosh!"
Lin Fei, who quickly rushed past the LOGO in the center circle, did not rush directly in the direction where the basketball bounced back. Instead, he suddenly accelerated in the opposite direction, running against the right side of the basketball that bounced back, and rushed to the left side of the front court.
Kobe was stunned. What on earth did this guy want to do?
But the first subconscious decision was that Kobe still didn't care about basketball, but always chased Lin Fei closely.
In the next moment, Jason Williams rushed up from the right and accurately picked up the basketball that bounced back. He looked at the direction of Lin Fei's attack. His hands were not attached to the ball, and it was a straight forward pass with a crooked body.
"Whoosh!"
This action of rushing up to get the ball and passing it directly behind the back was so graceful and graceful that Kobe didn't react at all.
But Lin Fei was still prepared. He picked up the "white chocolate" and brought it to the basketball in front of him. He ignored Kobe who was one meter behind him. He took a step and shot an arrow on horseback about one meter outside the left three-point line. A difficult three-point shot was taken directly.
"Uh-huh!"
The third.
Jason Williams handed out his third assist of the night.
Lin Fei also hit his third three-pointer tonight.
The entire Staples Arena was shocked by Lin Fei's divine fast break, and many people couldn't help but open their mouths in admiration.
Amber Heard, who was sitting in the VIP front row on the sidelines, couldn't help but jump up and cheer and shout for Lin Fei's wonderful three-pointer.
Scarlett Johansson, who was next to her, widened her eyes in shock and opened her mouth wide into an O shape. The picture remained still for 3 seconds, which made people wonder.
In front of the commentary desk on the sidelines, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith were even more excited, slapping the table and spitting:
"OMG, this is the second time Lin has completed a three-pointer from a long distance in a counterattack fast break!"
"It's just that it's very different from the one in last season's finals. This time it wasn't Lin's direct three-pointer from the throw and the steal, but the perfect cooperation with Jason Williams!"
"Congratulations must go to the Miami Heat, Pat Riley completed another wonderful trade, Jason Williams and Lin are completely mutual achievements!"
"Charles, tonight is also the time when the All-Star voting officially opens. In your opinion, Jason Williams has now joined the Heat, and his gorgeous assists have more room to display with the cooperation with Lin!"
"So in this year's All-Star Game, does Jason hope to be selected together with Dwayne, Shaquille and Lin?"
Faced with this question from Kenny Smith, Barkley answered seriously:
"This is very possible, because the Heat's record this season is so strong, they have every hope of breaking the 72 wins and 10 losses set by Michael Jordan when he led the Bulls!"
"With the outstanding statistics and popularity of Lin, Shaquille and Dwayne, it is almost certain that these three guys will be selected as the Eastern Conference All-Stars, but the starter and substitute cannot be determined!"
"Although Jason Williams is not worthy of being an All-Star substitute in terms of overall data and position, if his gorgeous assists can continue with the Heat's winning streak, he will get more votes and with the help of the Big Three It’s not impossible for his influence to be promoted to the All-Stars!”
Facing Lin Fei's consecutive three-pointers, this obviously hurt Kobe, who had a strong self-esteem.
In the next offense of the Lakers, Kobe came up with a trick, hitting Lin Fei with his back from the high post, clenching his teeth, turning over and making a fadeaway jumper that was very difficult, and the basketball followed suit and hit the net.
"Uh-huh!"
Kobe became furious. He clenched his fists and yelled at Lin Fei during the defense: "Lin, you succeeded in irritating me!"
Lin Fei responded confidently and calmly: "Corvo, are you angry now? My three-point shooting has just begun!"
On the offensive end, O'Neal continued to raise the top of the arc to cover Lin Fei, allowing Lin Fei to accelerate and run away from Kobe.
But this time Kobe's pursuit was very fast, avoiding O'Neal's cover in advance and always chasing Lin Fei.
Caron Butler also decisively came up and double-teamed Jason Williams with Atkins, preventing him from passing the ball easily.
Jason Williams did not panic and gave the ball to Shane Battier in the open position immediately.
The fourth-year Battier has now developed good defensive and three-point shooting abilities. At the beginning of this season, his three-point shooting percentage for the Grizzlies reached 39%, the highest in the team.
Battier decisively shot an open three-pointer from a 45-degree angle on the right side, but maybe it was his first shot tonight, and the touch was still a little cold.
The basket bounced on the inside of the basket. After a few rounds, I still lacked some luck and finally fell out.
This was a short rebound, and Odom, who had quick eyes and quick hands, almost grabbed it first.
"Snapped!"
When Kobe saw Odom grab the rebound, he immediately turned over and jumped down to participate in the offense.
However, Odom is still too confident in his assists. After all, the left-handed magician is in quotation marks.
The long pass directly to Kobe Bryant with one step was very accurate and fast enough, but it ignored Lin Fei's reaction ability.
"Snapped!"
When Lin Fei was chasing Kobe Bryant, he jumped up, his long arms unsheathed like a sword, quickly stole the ball, and slapped the basketball directly to Jason Williams who came up.
The moment Jason Williams took the ball, he also winked at Lin Fei, and a bold idea suddenly came into his mind.
Lin Fei took advantage of the fact that Kobe Bryant was about to hit the ball without stopping the car, and quickly moved to the left, rushing directly towards the 45-degree three-point line.
Jason Williams, who responded to Lin Fei's steal at the top of the arc, turned his back to Lin Fei and faked a dribble breakthrough. He dribbled the ball with his crotch and then suddenly swung the ball behind his back with his right hand. It seemed like another concession. A behind-the-back pass that is hard to defend.
However, the ball was not passed directly, but Jason Williams hit the basketball hard with his left elbow while hiding the ball behind his back with his right hand.
"Whoosh!"
This elbow hit was very powerful, and the basketball flew directly into the hands of Lin Fei, who was standing outside the three-point line at a 45-degree angle on the left.
Lin Fei jumped decisively after catching the ball, ignoring Kobe who rushed up behind him, bent his bow and nocked an arrow, and shot another one.
When the basketball was released, Lin Fei couldn't help but admire in his heart that this "white chocolate" really knew how to play, even passing the ball with his elbow until the Christmas game.
"Uh-huh!"
The moment the basketball hit the net, the entire Staples Arena couldn't help but boil.
"OMG, how did Jason pass the ball just now? Why the hell didn't I see it clearly at all?"
"My, God, elbow pass, it's actually an elbow pass!"
"Is this okay? I'm totally confused. Is this the Christmas game or the All-Star game?"
(End of chapter)
