Chapter 344

The Lakers' counterattack speed is fast, but uncoordinated.

After Paul and Howard's pick-and-roll, he quickly rolled down, was entangled by Fan Xi, and passed to Webster outside the three-point line. Webster is currently experiencing the nightmare of his career, with Arenas entangling him and spraying trash talk at him.

Arenas is very good at messing with people's mentality.

Webster's shot just touched the net, and the basketball was picked up by Fan Xi.

Webster is a good boy; he came from a high school draft and had been playing lukewarmly before. After arriving at the Lakers, in front of so many big brothers, he ushered in unprecedented space, and his shooting percentage rose in a straight line.

However, the person he met tonight is Arenas.

Arenas is now a role player, but he used to be a superstar; he is very good at messing with people's mentality and making honest kids feel uncomfortable.

Fan Xi dribbled the ball across the half-court at a slow speed, and then continued to pass the basketball to Yao Ming in the high post.

D'Antoni strangely discovered that the Clippers are not playing like a Triangle Offense now, but like Princeton.

After they took Nowitzki off, Yao Ming became the core instead.

This is too strange.

No one would have thought that the Clippers would be so bold as to let an injured player who had retired once come up to be the core.

Howard and Gasol switched defenses; he must guard the paint; he knows very clearly that the paint is his basic foundation.

Gasol came up to defend.

Yao Ming didn't take him seriously at all.

In his own words, whether on the international stage or the NBA stage, Gasol cannot defend him.

Even if Yao Ming is playing with dragging legs now.

It is worth mentioning that Yao Ming's idol back then was Sabonis, known as the Roof of the World. When Sabonis arrived in the NBA, his legs were also mostly ruined, but he still played at an All-Star level.

No one knows how strong Sabonis was at his peak.

Just like no one knows how much oil is left in Yao Ming's tank now.

The Lakers dare not bet.

Therefore, they watched helplessly as Yao Ming easily distributed the ball and passed the basketball to the wing... Leonard and Arenas had just completed a closing screen for Fan Xi, Fan Xi easily escaped Paul's pursuit, received the basketball, and took a shot... Swish!

Fan Xi is an excellent three-point shooter.

Everyone must face up to his ability when off-ball.

The Lakers became passive.

But Paul is still accelerating.

But his acceleration did not let the Lakers complete a fast break, because Fan Xi performed a full-court press, delaying his speed and helping Yao Ming return to the half-court to build defense.

Paul rushed to the free-throw line and took a floater.

Missed.

The basketball was taken by Yao Ming.

After crossing the half-court, Fan Xi passed the ball to Yao Ming, and Pau Gasol let him shoot.

Yao Ming shot... Swish!

Very easy.

7:0.

A small climax.

Kobe took over the ball possession afterward; he performed a beautiful wing attack; he shook off Leonard with his shoulder, which was very wonderful, and then he took a fadeaway shot, but missed.

Changing sides to fight again, Yao Ming distributed the ball, and Arenas hit a 3-pointer.

He sprayed a lot of trash talk at Webster.

Beep!

The Lakers requested a timeout.

They had to call a timeout because it was already 10:0 at the start.

This was directly blown up.

Yao Ming once again staged the effect of a surprise soldier.

And at this time, Charles Barkley said on TV: "I remember when Yao Ming first entered the league, his figure was thin, and I asserted at the time that he couldn't adapt to the NBA at all. But later, he made me look at him with new eyes; he completed a transformation with the help of Tomjanovich; his footwork under the basket at that time was very beautiful, and he also had face-up offensive ability; in fact... I remember, he often had five or six assist stats at that time."

"At that time, I thought he would become a combination of Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing, perhaps with a little bit of David Robinson's flavor. But later Jeff Van Gundy rebuilt him, and he became a heavy weapon in the restricted area."

Charles Barkley is very familiar with Yao Ming; he once kissed a donkey's butt on a nationally televised channel because of Yao Ming.

Recalling it now, there is still a bit of burnt donkey dung smell. "If Yao had always played according to the route designed by Rudy Tomjanovich, would his achievements have been higher?"

"After all, the NBA needs heavy centers less and less, and the tempo is getting faster and faster."

"Perhaps, his career would have become longer because of this?"

"However, in any case, I am very happy that he has a chance to perform on the Clippers now; he showed things he didn't have a chance to show in Houston. And, we must see that when Yao Ming has top shooters, top blue-collar workers, and top point guards by his side, his power is really super strong."

Charles Barkley spoke eloquently.

If his words were translated into Chinese and played on the other side of the ocean, the tens of millions of fans waiting in front of the TV at this time would definitely be in tears.

Because what he said is not only Yao's regret, but also the regret of Chinese fans.

After the whistle blew, the game continued.

The Lakers began to play steadily.

Kobe and Gasol completed a beautiful strong-weak side transfer, and Kobe scored on a layup.

Turning back, they still failed to solve the huge destruction brought by Yao Ming.

When a super center with mid-range shooting ability and playmaking ability holds the ball on the free-throw line, with a group of elite soldiers and fierce generals by his side, the Lakers really have no way to capture the defensive focus.

When Kobe and Pau Gasol doubled him, Yao Ming just held the basketball and easily passed it to Leonard.

Leonard took advantage of the situation to kill into the paint; when encountering Howard's help defense, he played a beautiful back turn, and then took a fadeaway jump shot... the movement was not drifting, but it was indeed a stuttering version of Jordan.

Swish!

It fell into the net in response.

Although the Clippers don't have three league number ones and four superstars like the Lakers.

However, every player, when picked out individually, can support a piece of the sky at the right time.

It can be said that everyone is an elite.

The Lakers are unable to defend against everything.

Yao Ming played for 5 minutes on the court.

Before he felt knee pain and ankle discomfort, the Clippers had already put him down to rest. Although the team doctor and Dr. Laisi both said that Yao Ming has no problem playing for 10 minutes now, Fan Xi still only gave him about 5 minutes of playing time.

Yao Ming was very puzzled, and he joked: As a capitalist, you should squeeze my labor.

Fan Xi also answered him jokingly: "With the little minimum wage you get, why are you risking your life?"

When Yao Ming left the court, the Clippers led by 12 points, 20:8.

After Yao Ming left the court, Nowitzki came on.

Nowitzki played relatively poorly in the last game, but in this game, he hit a 3-pointer on his first shot.

He proved with practical actions: You can't expect a superstar to be cold for two consecutive games.

And at this time, problems within the Lakers appeared.

When any team has two plans and two cores, it is bound to be chaotic.

Although this chaos will become hidden under a consistent goal, once it enters adversity, it is inevitably exposed.

After the first quarter, the Lakers were behind by 15 points.

After the second quarter started, the Clippers accelerated the offensive tempo, and Stephen Nash ran wildly with the ball.

Fan Xi's original intention was that with the team leading by such a large margin, they could play a head-to-head game with the Lakers.

But as a result, the Lakers didn't attack.

Nor did they defend against the Clippers' three-pointers.

At the end of the half, the Lakers were behind by 25 points.

The Clippers fans at the Staples Center were excited beyond measure; they saw the possibility of slaughtering the Lakers again.

And the audience in front of the TV were also incredible when they saw this point difference; although the Clippers' touch was explosive tonight, they never thought they would be behind by so many points.

Kenny Smith even used incredible to describe it.

Earl Johnson said that the Lakers' offense was chaotic and had no central idea.

During halftime, in the Lakers' locker room, Jean Bas, Jimbas, and other shareholders entered at the same time. They couldn't accept this result, and Magic Johnson was also there constantly reminding the players to focus and fight tenaciously.

At this time, Kobe was furious.

He directly threatened Paul and Howard: "This is my team. If you don't listen to me, you can refuse to play now."

Kobe is a ruthless person; he always has been.

When Paul had a showdown with him before, he still thought about being harmonious.

But now, the team is at such a dangerous moment, he can't bear it anymore. The map is revealed and the dagger is shown.

Howard and Paul didn't expect Kobe to say such things in front of so many management shareholders, and the shareholders and management were all on Kobe's side.

In the end, this is Kobe's team.

Paul and Howard had no way out; they didn't have the strength to challenge Kobe.

They have 0 Grand Championships combined, while Kobe already has six Grand Championships and two Finals MVPs. What do they have to compare with Kobe?

In the words of former famous Lakers center Bynum: Before you came, Kobe was already a Grand Champion.

Kobe subsequently demanded that Paul and Howard strictly execute defensive strategies, demanding they guard their own positions, not think about showing off, follow the steps, and do their own jobs well.

"Defense! Defense! Defense!"

Kobe emphasized repeatedly.

Defense wins Grand Championships; this sentence is never outdated.

The Lakers' defensive ceiling is the highest in the league.

Paul, Kobe, Howard, these three are all active players who bring their own defensive systems.

If they are all focused on defense, the Clippers' offense will be very difficult, and it will be hard to have the kind of wide-open gaps that appeared in the first half.

Kobe took over the locker room and took over the tactics; he asked the familiar assistant coach to arrange tactics for him.

He sidelined D'Antoni.

Such things happen from time to time in the NBA.

But in front of the management and the team owners, it is the first time.

This fully proves Kobe's transcendent status in the Lakers.

"Don't think we are stable; don't think we are sure to win."

Fan Xi said heavy words to Arenas and Kwame Brown who were playing around in the locker room; these two actually opened champagne during halftime, spraying it at each other's mouths, as if playing an unsightly adult game.

This made Fan Xi very unhappy.

He felt that Arenas and Kwame Brown were happy too early.

When Fan Xi finished this sentence, the two immediately stopped their actions; they put the champagne aside.

Fan Xi's words are worth their weight in gold.

No one disobeyed his authority, not only because he is the boss, but also because he fought his way up.

"The Lakers' paper strength is just stronger than ours; they can bring out the theoretically strongest offense and defense in the league today. We only have a depth advantage. But if they wake up, even if we take turns playing, it will be very troublesome."

"Pride and underestimating the enemy are the most taboo things. What's more, the opponent is stronger than us."

Fan Xi told them seriously.

Then he said to everyone: "In the second half, we must start from defense. I have a premonition that Kobe will not let the game continue at such a fast pace; the next moment is the moment of bayonets."

"This game is crucial. If we win, we will gain an advantage in the entire series. The later their physical fitness goes, the easier it is for problems to occur. Therefore, we must first complete the lead in the total score."

Fan Xi analyzed.

Mike Brown then began to explain his defensive tactics.

The atmosphere in the locker room swept away the previous ease and activity, and everyone became nervous and solemn.

Because, there was too much desire for the Grand Championship buried in the Clippers' locker room; these long-standing desires suppressed in the bottom of their hearts made them quickly calm down, quietly and calmly waiting for the dawn to come.

Beep!

The whistle blew.

The second half began.

The Lakers continued the starting lineup structure, except for replacing Webster with Matt Barnes.

This change signaled that the Lakers entered defensive mode.

And on the offensive end, Paul also became calm.

He was no longer so anxious to seek to solve problems himself; under Kobe's strong pressure, he operated within the prescribed range, using his talent and ability to connect.

He recognized his position.

He quickly gave Kobe a wonderful pass; Kobe got the ball with a well-timed back-cut, and took advantage of the situation to complete a layup.

Two great superstars produced a silky cooperation; Leonard is difficult to defend, even though the Clippers made the defensive rotation top-notch.

Turning back, they also gave the Clippers unprecedented pressure on the defensive end.

Fan Xi's assault was stuck; he rushed into the paint and jumped, was doubled by three people, and Fan Xi hurriedly passed the ball to DeAndre Jordan.

This was an extremely dangerous wonderful pass; DeAndre Jordan received the basketball, just about to dunk, Howard jumped up violently... he had just participated in the encirclement of Fan Xi, and then could jump for the second time... he interfered with DeAndre Jordan.

DeAndre Jordan turned the dunk into a floater in the air... Bang!

The basketball missed.

The defensive pressure of the Beast can be seen from this.

Gasol protected the rebound and gave it to Paul.

Paul pushed steadily.

In the second half, the Lakers were suddenly reborn.

Fan Xi already understood that the tiger of the Lakers had truly awakened; they were finally going to exert the energy they already possessed.

If Howard releases his super defensive dominance in the paint, if Chris Paul faithfully outputs his assist and passing talent, and integrates into the Lakers system led by Kobe.

Then, the Lakers must be the number one team in the league today.

Fan Xi felt a chill down his back.

At the same time, he felt a sense of relief; fortunately, the Lakers only awakened at this time.

The Clippers have a huge lead.

Moreover, next... playing to the extreme, it is nothing more than the brave winning when meeting on a narrow road.

Willing to sacrifice everything.

Just pull Kobe off the horse.