Livingston collapsed on the sidelines, feeling the strength of his legs and preparing to appear.
After coming to the Clippers, Livingston didn't get many opportunities to perform. Most of the time, he just did what Min Congda thought.
After all, the Clippers' lineup is indeed too thick. Although there was a third point guard missing at the point guard position, Harden, Curry, and Dragic are enough in a normal nine-man rotation. Basically, The third point guard won't be given too many opportunities to play.
In his limited playing time, Livingston did not perform very well, because by the time he was able to play, there was basically no suspense in the game.
But even so, Livingston will seize the few playing time to perform seriously and accumulate game feeling and condition.
And in terms of playing style, Livingston and the Clippers' offensive systems are not particularly compatible.
He is not good at three-pointers, and his ability to catch and shoot without the ball is average.
In the application of some technologies, it is obviously the template of the previous era, or even the previous era.
Generally speaking, the tall point guard style that was popular in the early 21st century can skillfully use the back.
He is good at mid-range shooting, good at attacking from both waist positions, and his turnaround jump shot is quite good.
This style of play is slowly being eliminated by the league, and it seems a little out of place for a team like the Clippers that pays attention to new styles of play.
Against the Jazz in the first round, Livingston didn't get many chances to play, and his opponent fell down as soon as he exerted a little force.
In this round against the Lakers, Livingston thought he would be on the bench, but he didn't expect to be put on the court in the second quarter.
Before he came on the court, Tyronn Lue patted him and said, "Mr. Smart asked you to come on the court. He said that after you come on the court, you should play more singles, and just stare at Paul and play to bring out your best!"
When Livingston heard that it was Mr. Smart who asked him to appear on the stage, his eyes lit up and he felt that his body was full of motivation!
Livingston is full of gratitude to Min Congda. His three-year guaranteed contract not only gave him work and money, but more importantly, gave him new hope in his career.
After half a season of recovery, Livingston can feel that the impact of the injury on his body and mind has been minimized, and he can already play well.
Returning to the Clippers, even though he didn't have much playing time, he still didn't dare to slack off for a moment, training hard and maintaining his competitive state.
As the saying goes, it takes a thousand days to raise an army, but it takes only a moment to use it. Livingston knew that the time had come for him to exert his energy!
Hit Paul, right?
Paul...where are the Pauls?
He's on the field, why can't he be seen?
Oh, behind McGee, blocked from view.
Too short.
Facing Paul, a well-known point guard in the league, Livingston was not afraid at all.
In terms of height, wingspan, and playing style, Livingston absolutely restrains Paul on the offensive end.
And on defense, Livingston is not a colander. The Clippers have already formulated a defensive strategy before the game. No matter who comes on at the first position, they will bite Paul and don't worry about anything else.
If you get passed by Paul, it doesn't matter, there will definitely be someone to wipe your ass behind.
Like some defensive gatekeepers, they often have to be distracted when facing off against the opponent's core players.
While facing each other, you have to look back, look left and right, and watch the movements of your teammates and opponents to decide your next move.
Livingston, Curry, and Dragic don't have such trouble tonight, they can just stick to Paul.
Therefore, after the timeout, Paul was once again faced with an all-round pressing defense and had to pass the ball to Kobe again.
Kobe drove to the basket from the outside, faced the defense, twisted in the air, switched hands and succeeded in a layup, scoring two points.
Kobe was in really good shape tonight, and was fed by the Clippers.
But playing like this requires a lot of physical energy, and this is only the second quarter.
Kobe's physical fitness is not as good as in the past. During the regular season, D'Antoni has been reducing Kobe's usage rate to ensure his physical fitness.
In the first half of the playoffs, Kobe was already taking a lot of shots, because there was no other way, Kobe couldn't open this point, and the Lakers offense couldn't hit.
Paul was not only welded to death on the offensive end, but also suffered a catastrophic situation on the defensive end - Livingston began to hit Paul with singles.
After a blocker, he caught the ball at the waist, bumped Paul, then walked to the baseline, turned around and shot a jumper!
Paul reached out to interfere, but he couldn't even cover Livingston's eyes. Livingston made a jump shot from close range and scored two points.
Kobe Bryant scored two points with a twist, and Livingston smoothed it with an easy jumper.
The ball began to go to Kobe more, and the Lakers' offense dominated, tilting from Paul to Kobe.
There is no way, Paul's first pass is basically contained, breaking through the ball, stealing points, one-on-one one-on-one attack will not work.
This kind of pertinence is unprecedented in Paul's career.
If you target someone a little bit, I'll just avoid the sharp edge. How can you target someone like that by always staring at someone to death?
But the Clippers were going to death, and there was a feeling of being indifferent to life and death. The whole team was united, as if they had a grudge against Paul.
In fact, there is no hatred, it is entirely Min Congda's strategy.
When Min Congda saw Livingston get the offensive rebound, dribble out, turn around and score two more points over Paul, he sighed in his heart: "Damn it, why are the people I picked so useful? I thought Livingston just came to the Clippers to retire, but I didn’t expect this guy to have miraculous effects on eating, training, and beating Paul.”
Min Congda analyzed the situation on the court while eating oranges.
Livingston has scored 6 points in a row on Paul, and the point difference between the Lakers and Clippers remains at about 15 points.
Unable to catch up, the Clippers had no intention of further widening the point difference, they just spent time at a slow pace.
The defensive intensity of the game has increased by two levels compared with the regular season, and the actions on both sides are getting bigger and bigger.
In this state, Kobe was so happy to play. He was really used to this kind of high-intensity confrontation.
Paul's already dark face looked even darker. After Livingston scored two more points, Paul got the ball from the backcourt and hit the ball hard.
Then calm down and continue to organize the Lakers' offense.
As soon as halftime passed, Paul handed the ball to Kobe, then ran to the corner and squatted, waiting for the opportunity.
Paul is still very smart, he is waiting for opportunities.
But Livingston kept an eye on Paul.
When Kobe broke through with the ball from a 45-degree angle, Livingston, who was squatting in the corner, didn't reach out to help defend. He didn't even look at Kobe and just followed him in.
Paul wanted to move around to see if he could have a chance, but there was always someone in front of him!
The first half is almost over, and Paul didn't score in any sports games? !
Kobe held the ball and drove to the basket. With no one to double-team and help defend him, he completed a difficult fadeaway jumper and scored two points.
Kobe had already scored 18 points at halftime, and Paul only scored 1 point on free throws.
Paul was completely angry. During the subsequent defense, when Livingston once again tried to hit Paul with the ball at the waist, Paul directly pushed Livingston and asked for a foul.
"Fxxk you! Fxxk!"
Paul couldn't help but swear, and the Lakers called a timeout.
Paul really can't stand it. Are all the Clippers members of your team Cormi?
Is there any need to suppress me like this and let Kobe score alone?
Returning to the bench, Paul threw the towel angrily. His performance in the first half was completely substandard.
The Clippers simply sacrificed the integrity of their defense to suppress Paul's role in the offense.
The key is that if other teams play like this, their defensive system will probably collapse and the score will definitely fall behind.
And playing like this, the Clippers can still lead the Lakers by 15 points, which shows their depth of strength.
But you are so powerful, why do you have to target Paul? It is simply murderous and heart-breaking.
Not only to win, but also to provoke and intensify conflicts within the Lakers team, killing two birds with one stone.
The entire Clippers team is having a great time playing. Paul's skills are admirable, but to be honest, it's really uncomfortable to play against him.
His little moves, trash talk, and cleverness in the game are really annoying.
For example, Kings center Cousins will be cheated every time he plays with Paul.
Cousins, who has an upright personality, loses his temper every time he hits Paul. After hitting him, he wants to go up and give Paul a break to relieve his anger.
When Curry played against Paul, he was often targeted by Paul, so biting Paul tonight made Curry feel very satisfied.
Livingston only played four minutes, but made three of three shots on the field. After returning from the timeout, he made two free throws and scored 8 points.
The efficiency is staggering.
Curry took a break off the court and returned to the game.
Bite your braces, continue to come to Paul, and stick to him before talking.
Paul is already in a semi-collapse state. The last time he was so collapsed was when he lost by 58 points in the playoffs.
He may not lose that much tonight, but he can't score 0 points in a sports game!
Paul couldn't stand it anymore, he had to score.
After all, he is only 27 years old. Although he suffered a serious knee injury and changed his playing style, as a league superstar, he can still score if he wants.
He changed direction and accelerated past Curry, directly into the three-second zone from the middle, facing Gasol and rushing to the basket!
He worked hard to dunk on the Clippers' basket!
As a result, Anthony Davis, who was on defense, blocked a big block!
The inside combination of Anthony Davis and Gasol has greatly improved the defensive ability of protecting the basket.
The ball was pressed down, but it did not go out of bounds or leave the hands of the two people. The referee called a challenge.
Paul shook his head at the referee, you might as well call me an offensive foul.
You asked me, Anthony Davis, to compete for the ball. Isn’t that insulting to me?
Just give the ball to the Clippers.
Standing in the penalty circle, the two men competed for the ball.
Paul didn't jump at all, so how could he have jumped?
In fact, if you are short, you may not be able to win the ball.
Key aerial confrontation ability and shoulder width are very important.
Because in addition to the vertical height of the ball, the horizontal space is also very important.
When a tank point guard like Fisher competes for the ball, sometimes Yao Ming can't compete with him.
Yao Ming is always tall enough, right?
But Paul has just the same shoulder width, and he is not a tank like Fisher in aerial combat.
He could only stop jumping and try to judge where Davis would land the ball.
Davis was not stupid and directly passed the ball to Gasol.
When the Clippers attacked, Curry caught the ball with his left hand and accelerated, rushing to the basket for a layup, causing Paul's defensive foul.
Paul raised his hands helplessly.
Comet, you are all Comet, and the referee is also Comet.
You all want me to die!
Curry made both free throws.
The first half ended quickly and Paul stopped struggling.
Halftime, 1 point, 2 turnovers, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, the data is very neat, but of no use.
The Lakers mainly relied on Kobe's performance. In the first half, they barely fell behind by too much. They could still catch up with 15 points.
But those who watched half of the game know that the Lakers basically have no chance in this series, and the gap is indeed huge.
Kobe is actually not a fool. After playing for more than ten years, he knew that the Clippers were targeting Paul and asked him to fight.
The scene was so obvious that Kobe no longer disliked Paul so much, and even had some sympathy.
Only during the intermission, the two still did not communicate.
In other words, distance creates beauty.
The two had just started working together, and during the honeymoon period, they both admired each other very much.
The cooperation in the first season was quite pleasant, but everything was ruined by the Clippers.
Kobe knew in his heart that if the Clippers wanted to, they could completely block Kobe and let Paul play to his heart's content.
How the Clippers want to win depends entirely on their mood. They have a choice, but Kobe and the Lakers have no choice.
This feeling is really uncomfortable. Kobe and the Lakers were once so powerful. That was in 2001. In the playoffs, they were completely invincible and unstoppable. They could win no matter what they wanted.
The only miscalculation was the counterattack by Iverson in the first game of the Finals, but later in Philadelphia, the Lakers did not give the 76ers any chance.
Kobe could see that everyone was quite frustrated, and Kobe tried to cheer everyone up with motivational words and his own performance.
However, after the second half of the game started, the situation did not fundamentally change.
Trailing by 15 points, the rhythm was completely controlled by the Clippers. All the Lakers could do was run at a constant speed with the Clippers.
The Clippers scored 2 points, the Lakers scored 2 points, the Clippers scored 3 points, and the Lakers scored 3 points.
Whenever Kobe or the Lakers want to struggle, they want to use intensity to break the deadlock and bring the score closer.
The Clippers have the ability to increase the intensity and regain control of the situation without chaos at all.
With a score difference of 15 points, the Lakers were unable to mount a defensive counterattack in a difficult positional battle. If they did not reduce the score difference to less than 10 points, they would not have a chance.
Even, the Clippers have the ability to open the point difference to 20 points in one wave, but they don't. They just control the points, but they don't relax and let some people steal points.
The Lakers players and some senior fans broke out in cold sweat after controlling the court to such an extent.
Including the Clippers coaching staff, like Mike Malone, knew that Min Chongda was directing from behind in this game. Only then did he realize that Min Congda's commanding level was so high. His understanding of the Clippers and Lakers players and his computing power were quite amazing.
It turns out that there has always been such a great player hidden in the team. No wonder Cole can be fired at will and let him go to the rival Cavaliers.
Of course, there is one person who does not realize this, and that is Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue!
He faithfully carried out the arrangements on the note, and then thought to himself, "I did a good job tonight and completed the task."
(End of chapter)
