novelhk Chapter 38 Can I elbow you one more time?
Chapter 38 Can I elbow you one more time?
In short, Li He has managed to temporarily stop Kobe Bryant.
At least for the remainder of the first half, the Black Mamba will not be able to return to the court.
This resulted in Li He receiving a technical foul in his NBA debut.
Whether it was the audience at the scene or those watching the live broadcast, they didn't seem surprised that Li He received a technical foul.
Given Hansen Lee's character, getting technical fouls is practically standard practice for him.
Without their star player, the Lakers' offense was crippled, making it easier for the Trail Blazers to double-team Shaq.
Gary Payton and Karl Malone have just joined the team and are still adapting and integrating.
On the other hand, the Trail Blazers are playing better and better.
The point difference between the two sides once reached as much as 10 points.
At the end of the first half, the Trail Blazers, playing away, were leading their longtime nemesis, the Los Angeles Lakers, 49-38.
Li He took 6 shots, making 4, including 3 of 5 three-pointers and 2 of 2 free throws, scoring 13 points efficiently in the first half;
On the Lakers' side, even under heavy double teams, O'Neal still managed to score 11 points and grab 7 rebounds.
Both sides went into halftime.
……
The Trail Blazers' locker room.
Coach Maurice Cheeks is feeling smug.
The Trail Blazers had an excellent first half, surprisingly leading the Lakers by a whopping 11 points on the road.
What surprised Coach Morris the most was that Hansen Lee's NBA debut was surprisingly successful, and he didn't seem like a rookie at all.
Although an accident occurred during the process, Hansen Lee elbowed Kobe Bryant.
But there are always unexpected events in competitions, aren't there?
Kobe Bryant even elbowed Hansen Lee.
Damon Stoudemire, Bonzi Wells, Rasheed Wallace, and others were already yelling and shouting in the locker room as if they had won the game.
Coach Maurice Cheeks wanted to explain the second-half tactics, but the others just stood by and let it go in one ear and out the other.
Several of them had argued with Maurice Cheeks, and they didn't think the head coach deserved any credit for their 11-point halftime lead over the Lakers.
This is what makes problem players so troublesome.
You never know when he'll "go off the rails" and do something outrageous for the team or on the field.
What's worse is that no matter how much you try to persuade them, they won't change at all.
If we look at it another way, if these guys on the "Trail Blazers' prison team" had listened to advice, they wouldn't be in this situation now.
Li He, meanwhile, was reviewing the first half of the game and adjusting and recovering his form.
Because he knew that this was Staples Center, the Lakers' home court, and the Lakers, with their F4, would never let them take the victory so easily.
……
At this moment, the Lakers' locker room became somewhat tense.
Before the game, they didn't take the Trail Blazers seriously at all. O'Neal even thought he would finish the game in three quarters and easily win.
As a result, they were dominated by this group of criminals for half the game and were still down by more than 10 points.
Head coach Phil Jackson harshly criticized all the players, and just as he was preparing to arrange tactics, the door creaked open.
Kobe Bryant walked in.
"Kobe, are you alright?"
"It was just an elbow, it's nothing," Kobe said in a low voice. "Boss, I can play the whole second half."
"Very good, now let's start planning the second half," Phil Jackson said sternly. "The new season has just begun, and if we lose to those bastards from the prison team at home, the media will laugh their heads off!"
"Our goal is the championship, while their goal is to spend two fewer days in jail throughout the year!"
……
The second half of the game started soon.
Kobe Bryant's triumphant return after being elbowed drew cheers from Staples Center fans.
Go Kobe!
"Tough guy! Punish that filthy bastard Hansen Lee!"
"Smash those bastards from the prison squad to pieces!"
The difference between home and away games in the NBA is too obvious; the feel of the game and fan support are both very important factors.
Of course, for the Trail Blazers, the gap doesn't seem that obvious.
Because there aren't many people at their home stadium.
Before the game even started, Li He and Kobe Bryant huddled together, and Li He spoke first:
"Kobe, I accidentally bumped into you, are you alright?"
"Of course, that elbow was nothing special, man. Don't think you're that strong. The team doctor just told me to rest a bit more." Kobe said smugly, but actually, Li He's elbow really hurt.
But before that, Kobe had also elbowed Li He. He was a man who cared about his reputation, so that's the only way to put it.
Li He said "Oh," and then added, "Since it doesn't hurt, can I elbow you again?"
Kobe Bryant: ...
What, you're addicted to elbowing people?
I got hit in the first half and couldn't play for half the game. The implication was that they didn't want me to play in the second half either?
At the start of the third quarter, both sides continued to use their starting lineups.
But the Lakers were the first to make changes.
Phil Jackson changed his defensive strategy, assigning Kobe Bryant to guard Damon Stoudemire.
The reason is simple: after half a game, the Zen Master found that Li He's ball control and passing skills were not good enough, and he did not show any offensive ability when holding the ball. He was more like a traditional striker.
In this situation, as long as the Trail Blazers' offensive initiation point is cut off, their offense will be slowed down.
Kobe, brimming with energy, played like he was on steroids, guarding the ball relentlessly, which made it difficult for Little Mouse. He stumbled and passed the ball to Bonzi Wells.
Bonzi Wells, who only scored 2 points on 1-of-4 shooting in the first half, was actually quite emotional, partly because he was unhappy with the coach changing his position.
Secondly, Li He's outstanding performance put some pressure on him.
Bonzi Wells attempted a strong mid-range shot, but missed decisively.
After O'Neal grabbed the rebound, the Trail Blazers quickly retreated on defense, and the Lakers failed to mount a fast break.
Instead, they adopted a steady and methodical approach, focusing on triangular attacks.
This is one of Phil Jackson's most classic tactics.
Its core is to break down the defense by forming a stable triangular pivot through movement and passing;
The basic triangle consists of a guard, a center, and a power forward, with the weak-side player creating space or receiving passes, waiting for an opportunity to finish.
This offensive system balances the freedom of superstars with teamwork, making the offensive endpoint difficult to predict and hard to defend against.
Some experts have said that new players need one to two seasons to fully understand the "triangle offense," but with the addition of Gary Payton and Karl Malone, they can only use games as practice.
Kobe passed the ball to Karl Malone and slipped to the corner. The ball was passed back to Kobe, providing him with ample space for a one-on-one play.
He faked a move, turned, and leaned back to shoot, scoring two points.
Wow!
Wow!
Staples Center fans erupted in enthusiastic celebration.
The invincible Kobe Bryant is back!