The current strength of the Lakers has declined. Since the disintegration of F4 last season and Kobe Bryant's serious injury, their team has been in decline, and their reputation is far greater than their current strength.
Saying this is a tough battle is not because of how strong the Lakers are, but because they have to challenge the Lakers without Durant.
Durant felt discomfort in his legs after playing against the Clippers last night. After going for a CT scan, the team doctor's advice was to rest for a week.
Not only are the Thunder playing back-to-back games, but they also have to play an MVP-level player in this game. Such a game is indeed a bit difficult.
The Lakers' record so far is not good, with only 16 wins and 18 losses, ranking tenth in the Western Conference.
Kobe and the Lakers attach great importance to this Thunder game.
The Thunder is the favorite team to win the championship this season. Kobe hopes to lead the Lakers to defeat the Thunder to restore the team's declining momentum and strive to get into the top eight as soon as possible.
Although the game is also played at Staples, the feeling of the Lakers' home court is different from that of the Clippers' home court for Zhao Chen.
Lakers fans looked even more crazy.
The number of championship flags above the Lakers also tells Zhao Chen that their foundation is very strong.
Zhao Chen was also slightly excited after seeing Kobe.
In his previous life, Zhao Chen was also a Kobe fan, and he was very sad when he heard about Kobe's accident.
Traveling back in time and seeing Kobe again, that feeling of youth came back.
Although Zhao Chen is now an NBA player and has some strength and fame, he is obviously not on the same level as Kobe.
Zhao Chen took the initiative to say hello to Kobe: "Hello, Kobe, I'm Zhao Chen."
Kobe is used to rookie players coming over to say hello. Most of today's rookies grew up watching him play.
Kobe smiled and nodded at Zhao Chen: "Zhao, I know you, your three-point shot is good."
Zhao Chen said: "Hey, tonight you will experience the power of three-pointers."
Kobe smiled and said, "If your father knew you were talking to Kobe like this, he would think his son was crazy."
Zhao Chen shrugged and said, "I will be polite to you off the court, but that doesn't mean I will be merciful on the court."
Kobe held out 5 fingers and then looked at Zhao Chen and replied: "Rookie, I have 5 championship rings. You should try your best to get into the starting lineup first."
Okay, killer deal!
Zhao Chen can't argue, he has 0 championship rings.
Sure enough, there is no advantage in bickering with these old fritters.
After Zhao Chen finished greeting, he quickly sat back on the bench.
Seeing Zhao Chen leave, Kobe also returned his attention to the court.
Kobe will not ignore Zhao Chen just because he is just a substitute.
Zhao Chen is the most popular rookie recently. Including the Clippers games, he has scored 30+ points in 4 consecutive games. This kind of rookie has a very strong fighting ability.
Even if Durant is not here, it is impossible to underestimate the Thunder.
soon.
The game started.
Lakers starting lineup: Kobe, Meeks, Johnson, Pau Gasol, Jordan Hill.
Thunder starting lineup: Westbrook, Lamb, Robertson, Ibaka, Perkins.
You can see from the Lakers' starting lineup how miserable their lineup is. They don't have a qualified starting point guard, and it's going to be the point where Kobe has to control the ball.
Meeks, Johnson, Jordan Hill and others only played a substitute role in other teams and had no way to become starters, but when they came to the Lakers, they became starters.
The most threatening players in the Lakers lineup are Kobe and Gasol, but their condition has declined dramatically.
As far as the lineup is concerned, even if the Thunder does not have Durant, it is a high probability that they will win against the Lakers in this game.
However, it is obvious that the outcome of the game is not determined by such a simple comparison of personnel.
After the game started, the situation was not good for the Thunder.
The impact of the lack of an MVP-level player like Durant on the Thunder is not as simple as subtracting his points per game.
His tactical role is very important, and Thunder players are also used to Durant's isolation offense.
Without Durant, they can only find Westbrook, and Westbrook is the absolute ball tyrant in Durant's absence.
He dominates the ball and works alone passionately.
Westbrook is a weapon that can easily hurt others and himself, and tonight he obviously hurt the Thunder themselves.
The Lakers also flanked Westbrook to their heart's content, encouraging him to pass to others to finish.
However, Westbrook just wants to prove his scoring ability, so he doesn't pass the ball very much. The result of such force is that the efficiency is very low.
Kobe and Gasol played very maturely. Although their condition is not as good as their peak, they are in excellent form at home.
Kobe hit several key buzzer-beating 24-second shots in a row.
Before half a quarter was played, Kobe scored 11 points, while Westbrook shot 1 of 8 from the field.
Zhao Chen watched the Thunder being devastated by the Lakers...
He suddenly understood why Durant left the Thunder for the Warriors.
It is indeed difficult to lead such a Thunder.
The Thunder's starting lineup lacks the ability to independently attack. With Westbrook becoming a cancer, Lamb is also embarrassed to take on the task.
If it weren't for Robertson's crazy three-pointer, the Thunder would have dug a big hole in the first quarter.
It's up to Robertson to take the lead in the Thunder's starting lineup. You can imagine how bad the Thunder's starting offense felt today.
In the first quarter, Brooks did not replace Zhao Chen, who was in great form some time ago, but chose to let Reggie play for a while.
Brooks got a call from Presti asking Reggie to come out.
If we are going to trade recently, we still have to let this guy improve his data.
However, Reggie is still cheating, unable to seize the opportunity, and making all kinds of waste...
After the first quarter, the score became 20-34.
The Thunder are 14 points behind the Lakers on the road.
Brooks couldn't bear it anymore during the break and replaced Reggie again and replaced him with Zhao Chen.
Brooks said to Zhao Chen: "Zhao, your task is to go up and score, and be prepared to play the next three quarters. If possible, you can hold the ball more and play some singles."
Brooks knows that Zhao Chen has a certain ability to attack with the ball, but he rarely uses it.
Thinking that Zhao Chen was usually very reliable, he felt that he could try to rely on him at this time.
Zhao Chen also wiped his sweat when he heard that three quarters would be played.
Brooks either can't fuck him, or he's a hard fuck.
"OK, I understand." Zhao Chen nodded.
Durant is away and the team is in crisis. This is his good opportunity.
Zhao Chen went into battle.
Staples fans booed.
"Rookie, go back to Oklahoma City, this is not your territory."
"You will lose!"
"This is Kobe's territory!"
Lakers fans are obviously much more loyal than Clippers fans. They constantly attack Zhao Chen with words, but Zhao Chen remains unmoved.
Hearing these boos, Zhao Chen was slightly excited.
It would be a great feeling to beat the team they support with their own hands.
Zhao Chen is not an ordinary rookie, he has absolute confidence in his own strength.
This kind of booing can also be understood as Lakers fans' fear of the recent popular Zhao Chen.
Zhao Chen has scored 30+ points in 4 consecutive games....
This is also a shock!
