The first half of the game between the Lakers and Clippers is over.
The score between the two sides was 52:47, and the Clippers were in the lead.
This is a situation that many people did not expect.
Forget it if they lose to the Clippers in the opening game, Gasol is not there after all.
Now that Gasol is back, the Lakers are not yet a match for the Clippers.
The most surprising player in the half was Stephen Curry.
He was the biggest reason the Clippers were able to lead in the first half.
He scored 19 points in the half and made 8 of 11 shots. He shuttled freely through the Lakers' defense.
Kobe looked very ugly on his way back to the locker room.
From the beginning of the first quarter, Kobe defended Curry.
The result was not good. Curry's frequent running and extremely fast shooting speed made Kobe a little exhausted.
In the locker room, Phil Jackson told Kobe that he didn't have to guard Curry in the second half.
"This consumes too much on you, so you have to put more energy into offense."
Phil Jackson's advice was spot on.
Kobe's physical function has gradually declined since this season.
The decline on the offensive end is not obvious.
With further experience and the huge confidence brought by winning the championship last season, Kobe's offense has become better.
But defense is a physical job, especially against a guy like Curry who keeps running.
Kobe thought, if only I were 10 years younger, I would definitely keep an eye on him.
"OK, I understand, I won't force it."
Bryant surprisingly did not compete, but followed Jackson's advice.
Since last season, Kobe has become less competitive and will listen to Jackson's opinions.
He will choose to trust his teammates when needed instead of just trusting himself, which is a huge improvement.
Jackson still gave Fisher the task of guarding Curry and reminded Fisher, "Use strength and intensity to fight against him, and don't be led away."
Fisher is an experienced point guard.
Although the slow pace is an irreparable shortcoming.
But the advantage lies in experience and being able to use your own body and strategies.
The game of basketball is never a one-to-one comparison of five positions.
A basketball game is a comprehensive confrontation between five people.
Every position has advantages and disadvantages.
Cooperating with each other, using strengths to support weaknesses, and hiding weaknesses are the characteristics that an excellent team must possess.
Jackson's confidence is that he doesn't think Curry can always be so accurate in the second half.
At the same time, he has confidence that the Lakers can play a more efficient offense because they have Kobe.
But Min Congda had no confidence in this.
At the beginning of the second half of the game, he saw that Phil Jackson actually used Fisher to mark Curry, and he felt that the game was over.
"Bald No. 2 again? It's over, it's over, why doesn't Jackson believe in evil?"
Min Congda thought Curry was going to beat Fisher in the second half and the Clippers were going to win again.
But after the start of the third quarter, the Lakers gradually took control of the game.
The Lakers did not make any special arrangements on the defensive end.
Ordinary one-on-one defense, Fisher versus Curry.
What changes is the intensity.
Fisher kept making physical contact with Curry.
Especially when he is off the ball, Fisher will use his arms to hit Curry.
This affected Curry's body balance, and he missed both of his shots in the third quarter.
Then the Lakers' offense was extremely stable, and Kobe continuously attacked Baron Davis in the low post.
Davis didn't limit Kobe's abilities at all.
At the same time, the Lakers' double height inside showed their dominance on both offense and defense.
With Bynum's offensive rebound and Gasol's high post support, the Lakers scored consecutively.
In just 5 minutes, with a 10:2 offensive shock wave, the Lakers took the lead.
Dunleavy called a timeout, and the Clippers were stunned.
In addition to Min Congda's surprise, he immediately realized that tactics and matchups are not decisive on the basketball court.
The players' attitude and determination on the court, and the resulting game state, also have a huge impact on the game.
This is especially evident with the Lakers.
Phil Jackson is not a coach who likes to play with tactics and matchups.
Especially in the regular season, he likes to let players solve problems by themselves and play freely.
Therefore, the Lakers may not see very clever tactical changes during the game.
But the team's state may be in the sky or underground, and the results will be completely different.
"Fisher kept confronting Curry, and the other Lakers players' obstruction to Curry increased significantly. Curry is no longer able to run as easily as he did in the first half, without any hindrance."
"If Curry wants to break this situation, in addition to improving his physical fitness on a daily basis, he must also put the ball in his hands and let him directly control the ball to create a greater threat... Hey, no, how do I start? Help the Clippers find a solution?"
Min Congda quickly gave up his thoughts.
Dunleavy did not expect to let Curry take charge during the timeout.
Instead, they mechanically changed the focus of the offense and continued to let Randolph hit hard in the low post.
In this way, we can re-establish a slow tactical formation that opens up space and compete with the Lakers for position.
However, how can fighting against the Lakers produce good results?
The Lakers' positional warfare efficiency is the highest in the league, unmatched.
In the third quarter, the Lakers began to slowly widen the gap, and the score reached 66:73.
The Lakers overtook the Clippers by 6 points. The 6-point gap was not big, but the initiative was held by the Lakers.
The team chasing points has to fight against the wind and is under psychological pressure. Playing is very tiring.
Dunleavy watched as he kept losing rebounds in the paint, and Bynum stole several of them.
Camby can only be replaced and Marc Gasol, wearing jersey No. 33, comes on.
Gasol finally got a chance to play and compete with his brother Gasol.
The photographers who had been waiting for a long time on the sidelines lost no time in taking photos.
There's material for tomorrow's sports news photo gallery.
After Gasol came on the scene, the changes he brought to the Clippers were obvious.
With his strong body, he is even better at protecting backcourt rebounds.
At the same time, on the offensive end, his mid-range is good, no worse than Camby's crooked machine gun.
Another point is that as a Spanish player, he has the same ability to support as his brother.
He stood in the high post, Randolph was in the low post, and the two partnered in the high and low posts, and the Clippers' formation became more coherent again.
At the end of the third quarter, Randolph caught the ball and turned around for a layup.
Gasol responded from the high post and passed to the basket, and Curry caught the ball and made a layup.
With continuous and efficient scoring, the score difference between the two sides was slowly getting closer.
80:81, the third quarter is coming to an end, and the Clippers are 1 point behind the Lakers.
In the last 5 seconds, the Lakers sent a sideline ball, a last-ditch tactic.
Derek Fisher slipped to the corner to catch the ball and hit a three-pointer!
Buzzer beater.
The score between the two sides was rewritten to 80:84, and the Lakers entered the fourth quarter with a more secure 4-point lead.
In this section, Min Congda was a little impressed by the bald head No. 2. It seemed that this guy was not a jobber.
Being able to secure the starting point guard position in a championship team requires two tools.
(End of chapter)
