In the first quarter, Kobe worked for 11 minutes, and his desire to win was clearly evident. Facts have proved that his choice was right. The Blazers were stronger than the Lakers imagined.
Kobe scored 11 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist in a single quarter. He successfully beat all the Trail Blazers' perimeter defenders in all directions and showed the fans in the Rose Garden a textbook singles performance.
What is offensive kaleidoscope?
This is it!
Single-handedly led the Lakers 28:22, temporarily leading by 6 points.
However, Kobe did not take it lightly. He already regarded this game as a playoff game and asked other Lakers players to maintain the same attitude as him.
The reason why the Lakers were able to temporarily take the lead was not only Kobe's own superb performance, but the bigger reason was that the Trail Blazers themselves were not feeling well.
In the first quarter, the Trail Blazers made only 8 of 22 shots, while the opponent made 11 of 25 shots. The former's overall hit rate was 36%, while the latter's was 44%, which was a full 8 percentage points higher.
Fortunately, the Trail Blazers adjusted very quickly.
Just 4 minutes into the second quarter, the Trail Blazers had already launched fierce counterattacks one after another. Before the Lakers could recover, the score on the court had become 32:31...
"It's so crazy! An endless stream of fast attacks!" Yu Jia exclaimed.
"This also shows how bad the Lakers' current defense is."
Zhang Lili just shook his head, no longer optimistic that the Lakers could win.
No wonder some media concluded before the game: "If the Lakers want to win tonight, Kobe must score at least 50 points, otherwise there will be absolutely no chance!"
Now it seems that this is true.
Because the Lakers' only strong point really can only be pointed at Kobe.
"Kobe, get ready to play. Paul has to rest for a while, and then it's up to you."
D'Antoni waved his hand helplessly, called a timeout, and let the Lakers wear No. 24 again.
Lakers No. 24 casually made a perfunctory sound, picked up the tactical board, and summoned his teammates who were going to play next to him.
D'Antoni squeezed for a long time but couldn't squeeze in. He could only rub his hands in embarrassment, neither standing nor sitting.
To put it bluntly, his current position in the Lakers team is really awkward.
Taking a detailed look at his entire professional coaching career, from the Suns' 7-second whirlwind to the future magic ball theory in the Houston era, if D'Antoni wants to play basketball well, he will always be inseparable from a reliable number one position, or the core of the organization. ...Because he knows this trick.
As long as the No. 1 position is reliable enough, he has the ability to turn corruption into magic; but if there is a lack of a strong No. 1 position, he will only be rotten.
Last season started with Tianhu's cards, but in the end he couldn't even make the playoffs, making this league-renowned tactician the laughing stock of everyone overnight.
Especially the arrogant Angel City fans, who have been clamoring for a new coach since the beginning of the season. Later, due to the good record at the start of the season, this voice gradually subsided.
Since Nash was confirmed to be out for the season, D'Antoni seems to have returned to a state where he can't play. Some media have photographed that when the Lakers have reached critical moments in recent games, the coach's tactical board is basically in the hands of Laker No. 24...
It can be seen that D'Antoni's authority within the Lakers has been reduced to a certain level.
On the Trail Blazers side, as soon as Mo Williams came down, Terry Stotts praised: "Well done, Williams! Come down and rest for a while, the team will need you in the second half."
In these 4 minutes, the Trail Blazers had a 10:3 shock wave, in which Mo Williams contributed 5 points and 1 assist, which is not a small contribution.
"I know, coach."
Mo Williams nodded excitedly, and when he sat down, he glanced provocatively at No. 3 beside him, as if to say: Look, I am the sixth man in the team, and you want to usurp power. Still early!
Beverley, wearing the No. 3 jersey, ignored Mo Williams' gaze and always focused on the team's tactical board.
"It's boring!"
Mo Williams whispered 1313, picked up Gatorade and drank it. What he didn't realize was that Trail Blazer 3's fists were always clenched. In fact, he was not as calm as he seemed on the surface.
Yes, if I say I'm not disappointed, that's all false, but Mo Williams played really well in these two games.
In the last game against the Jazz, he made 6 of 9 shots and 3 of 4 three-pointers. As a substitute, he scored the fourth-highest 15 points on the Trail Blazers team and ranked first in the team in efficiency.
Fortunately, Beverly is no ordinary person.
Being able to play all the way from the Development League to now, if he hadn't been traded to Portland midway through this season, I'm afraid he would have become Mosaic, a real starting No. 1 position.
This "mad dog" has long been accustomed to waiting. He knows that he is more suitable for the Trail Blazers than Mo Williams, and it will be a matter of time before he gets promoted.
"Buzz buzz!"
The electronic buzzer sounded and the game started again.
The Trail Blazers put on a full lineup, and the Lakers put on a half-main, half-substitute lineup.
As far as Wang Zelin and his team are concerned, to be precise, the Lakers' current lineup has one main force and four substitutes. They only need one thing to do well: defend Kobe Bryant to death.
The Lakers were attacking before the game in this round. Kobe received the basketball from the outside. He had a strong desire to score in this game. After all, the first quarter was played too fast.
The only thing Lakers fans are worried about now is whether Kobe's hand will cool down after sitting on the bench for a few minutes. If that happens, it will be too bad...
Well, it turns out they were overthinking it.
After Kobe picked and rolled, he hit Aldridge in a misplaced position. Even though he was not very fast, he still relied on his weird rhythm to get past his opponent and break through to score easily.
"Kobe's first shot in the second quarter... Oh, breakthrough! Successful layup! The Lakers overtook..."
After No. 24 received the ball on the field, Zhang Liang's commentary from the sidelines began to consciously increase the decibel level. When No. 24 scored the goal, the decibel level was instantly full, shocking Yu Jia next to him.
Yu Jia: "..."
Watch your face!
When retreating, Kobe blinked at Wang Zelin behind him.
The latter narrowed his eyes slightly: The Lakers need to pay a price for their temporary lead!
"Come with me and crush them!"
Arriving at the Lakers half, Wang Zelin settled under the basket and roared at everyone present.
"Crush them!"
The next moment, tens of thousands of home fans in the entire Rose Garden drank in unison.
"Has this guy's influence in Portland reached this level?" Kobe was filled with emotion again. By the way, his desire to defeat the Trail Blazers became even stronger.
This is when Batum suddenly made a reverse run on the right wing and reached outside the three-point line.
Lillard has quick eyes and quick hands and distributes the ball.
Batum immediately jumped after receiving the ball and shot a three-pointer.
With a sound of "Duang~", the basketball hit the basket.
Then on the rebound, Wang Zelin moved to the reasonable collision area first, came to the left side of the semicircle, grabbed the rebound, and took off the second time to tip the ball into the basket.
At 34:33, the Trail Blazers took the lead by one point.
When Pau Gasol does not play, the Lakers' already weak inside strength is greatly reduced, and their rebound protection ability is several levels worse than that of the Trail Blazers.
"Kobe, you'd better let Paul out quickly. It's not a good thing to just avoid him."
When turning around and passing by Kobe, Wang Zelin lowered his head and said something.
"I don't need Paul to defeat you, I alone am enough."
Kobe was not one to retaliate with kindness, so he immediately retorted.
"hehe!"
Wang Zelin smiled lightly and was noncommittal.
Lakers offense.
This time, Kobe didn't catch the ball immediately. Instead, he ran back through the baseline and got a short opening.
"Quick pass! Give it to Kobe!"
Zhang Lili now looks more anxious than the Lakers players playing on the court.
Yu Jia doesn't want to say anything anymore, just let him do what he wants!
However, the pass that Kobe was longing for did not appear. Where was the ball?
Oh, it is still in the hands of the Lakers player wearing the No. 0 jersey at this moment.
Wait, what is he going to do?
After Lakers No. 0 moved forward a step further, he suddenly stopped the ball outside the three-point line, defended against Batum, and then took action.
He... just took action?
At this moment, not only Zhang Lili and Yu Jia in the commentary box were stunned, but the audience in the stands and the players on the field were also stunned.
Walter Ayodu should?
Kobe spread his hands and looked over with confusion.
Immediately afterwards ~ "Shua!"
There was a crisp sound of the net passing through the net, and the scene that had been silent for several seconds suddenly exploded. A roar of exclamations resounded throughout the arena, almost toppling the dome.
Across the ocean.
A series of telegrams rang out from the sports section of Hunting Fox Live.
"Damn it! Who is this 13? He can actually score such a magic ball!"
"That's outrageous! This is the first time I've seen a guy not pass the ball to Kobe."
"Hahaha, pay attention to the replay and look at Kobe's eyes. Sure enough, you can't hide the look in his eyes that wants to kill someone..."
"Brothers upstairs, I remembered, this 13 seems to be called Nick, by the way, Nick Young!"
The response from across the ocean was so enthusiastic, not to mention the audience watching the game in the Rose Garden.
"I bought it!"
"What did I see!? Someone can actually defeat Nicholas' defense. I'm not Kobe?"
"Although we are opponents, I have to praise that the way No. 0 refused to pass the ball to Kobe was really cool!"
The sound in the stands soared in decibels.
Inside the venue.
"What the hell! Young Master Yang?"
Just after looking at the person who shot the fairy ball, Wang Zelin couldn't help but utter a curse word.
As expected of you, Young Master Yang!
Only this guy dared to refuse Kobe's extended request.
"Ahem, Coach Zhang, what do you think of this shot?"
Yu Jia suppressed a smile and looked at Zhang Lili, who was hesitant to speak, and asked.
"Well, cough, what's that?" Zhang Liangliang coughed awkwardly, "Although the goal was scored, it was not a reasonable choice. How can anyone just hit it..."
"Yes, yes, only giving the ball to Kobe is the most reasonable choice."
Yu Jiaji responded perfunctorily.
Trail Blazers offense.
In the frontcourt, Lillard used the pick-and-roll to easily get to the basket and succeed in a layup.
He felt like crossing the Lakers' defense was like crossing the street, it was so easy!
The score was tied at 36.
Next round.
Jordan Farmar quickly pushed across half court, and at that point, Nick Young pulled up to the left wing corner to approach.
Jordan Farmar faced Nick Young and felt like a pass was coming. Batum immediately accelerated and rushed towards Nick Young, trying to steal.
However, Jordan Farmar did not release the ball for a long time, turned his head and threw the ball to the right, and the basketball flew straight to the other side at a 45-degree angle.
Kobe just happened to be there, caught the basketball, and shot a three-pointer.
"Uh-huh!"
The Lakers hit another three-pointer.
39:36.
Beep~
Terry Stotts called timeout.
Two consecutive three-pointers gave the Lakers a momentum, which he would never allow.
"Patrick, come on!"
After Wang Zelin and others returned, he immediately made substitution adjustments, switching to Beverley to play the No. 2 position.
"Yes, coach!"
Beverly replied excitedly.
The opportunity he had been waiting for for so long was here!
"Coach Terry redeployed the players on the court, and Beverley came on. Wait, he's playing the No. 2 position!"
After seeing the Trail Blazers' substitution arrangements, Yu Jia's eyes widened.
After coming to Portland and showing his excellent defensive ability, Beverley began to attract the attention of some Chinese fans and received the nickname as in the original history - "Mad Dog Beverley."
The term "mad dog" is used to describe his sticky defense like a mad dog.
For the first time, even the fans in the stands widened their eyes and said, "I don't like Sister Li!"
But they quickly remembered that the last time Coach Terry asked Beverley to guard Durant, who was more than two meters tall, they looked like this...
But no matter what, they still feel awkward, and it will probably take a long time for them to adapt.
Lakers bench.
"Is it finally your turn?"
Although Kobe was motionless in his seat, there was already a fiery look in his eyes.
On December 5th, the Trail Blazers played against the Thunder at home. NBA officials and major media received a lot of support from public opinion. It was basically known to everyone in the United States.
Wang Zelin's buzzer-beating buzzer-beater made headlines in major newspapers, followed closely by the specific performances of other Blazers players that night.
There is a large section that introduces the strange players who faced off against Durant for a period of time that night.
Yes, in the eyes of the outside world, isn't it weird to let Beverley, who is just over 1.8 meters tall, guard Durant, who is about 2.1 meters tall?
However, Durant also spoke highly of Beverley in the post-game interview.
The praise from the league's scoring leader made Beverley a little popular and brought him into the eyes of more people.
Among these people, Kobe is naturally indispensable.
Before playing the Trail Blazers, Kobe also spent some time studying Beverley, during which he also made a call to Durant.
However, in this private exchange, Durant was not as generous as in the interview. He kept repeating one sentence: "That guy is so disgusting! I hate him!"
It can make historical scorers of Durant's level feel sick, and the success further aroused Kobe's curiosity about Beverley.
The league has never been short of small players who occasionally shine, but most of them appear on the offensive end, such as Nick Young who just scored the miracle goal...but there are very few role players who shine on the defensive end.
Therefore, Kobe is still looking forward to Beverley's defense. He wants to know to what extent the small role will shine?
