Chapter 1039
The Slovenian Outburst! Kobe Bryant Bites Dragic!
However, Lin Tian felt it wasn't enough.
A Kobe Bryant outburst of anger was not enough to change the rhythm of the game.
Not enough to kill Dragic.
"How about we make a bet?"
"No betting." Kobe muttered irritably, then looked down at the scouting report on Dragic in Lin Tian's hand, which he had somehow found.
He prefers to shoot from the left mid-range, and his ability to catch the ball and shoot after a handoff at the top of the key is particularly strong. Although his speed is not top-notch and his physique is not strong, he can always create quite good breakthrough opportunities with his top-notch sense of rhythm and shooting threat.
Lin Tian glanced at it and happened to see this page, which was exactly the part that Kobe was carefully studying and thinking about.
Lin Tian thought that Dragic was finished tonight.
Yeah, once Kobe goes up there, this guy's done for.
Because Dragic didn't rest at this point. He played for 8 minutes in the first quarter and then went to the bench. Now he's back on the court and immediately hit a 3-pointer over Isaiah Thomas!
"This guy is very smart. He knows where his advantages and strengths lie. When he's facing Isaiah, he will keep using his height advantage. But when he's facing you, he will keep moving quickly, looking for cover to shake you off and then strike quickly."
"He knows your weaknesses and knows how to get rid of you."
"You're so talkative. If you don't speak, no one will think you're mute." Kobe cursed, then stood up and looked at Jackson, saying, "Coach, I want to play."
Lin Tian leaned back in his chair more easily. With Kobe willing to go to great lengths to target the Suns' current top scorer, Lin Tian was naturally happy to watch the show.
When something happens, Kobe steps up; that's just his hobby.
"You said Dragic is his dad?" Just as Kobe left, Jackson came over, not forgetting to put his own special butt cushion under his butt first.
"How could I say such a thing?" Lin Tian looked shocked, as if to say, "How dare you slander me like this? I would never say such highly insulting things to my teammates!"
"Who would believe you? You dared to trash talk Michael during your rookie season, what wouldn't you say?" Jackson snorted. "But I'm pretty sure that European's done for!"
"If Kobe targets him, he'll definitely play terribly."
"Not necessarily." Lin Tian said with a wicked smile, "That kid is cunning! If it were one-on-one, Kobe could beat him to death, but it's five against five now, he won't go toe-to-toe with Kobe, just you wait!"
On the court, Kobe, who had just requested to enter the game, immediately went to the low post and backed down to secure his position. But the moment he got the ball and was about to go one-on-one, the Suns' help defense arrived.
Of course, it's not that the Suns' overall defense and help defense awareness are particularly outstanding; this team basically has nothing to do with being good at defense.
It was Dragic who called them.
This guy started yelling for help defense almost as soon as he saw Kobe decide to go one-on-one against him.
Even when double-teamed, Kobe was far from losing his temper. He passed the ball calmly, and it quickly reached Isaiah Thomas at the top of the arc. Thomas took the ball, raised his hand, and shot with absolute confidence.
Of course, confidence is also one of Isaiah Thomas's greatest strengths. With his height and draft position, if he lost his confidence, he would absolutely not be able to establish himself in the NBA.
His strong self-confidence allows him to seize opportunities, and even create opportunities that wouldn't otherwise exist.
For example, in the games where Lin Tian was absent, Thomas always performed quite well when he started.
For example, towards the end of the season, when Kobe, Lin Tian, and Durant were all resting, this guy once scored a spectacular 34 points and 7 assists in a game, leading the Lakers to victory even when all their stars were out.
Of course, absolute confidence can sometimes have negative effects on him, such as making irrational shots or playing with an overly self-centered style.
This shot wasn't exactly overconfident, since he had a wide-open shot, but it also wasn't exactly rational, considering that Kobe Bryant was already eager to get the ball and go one-on-one after passing the ball to Kobe.
But Isaiah Thomas really ignored Kobe and just pulled up for a three-pointer.
"Boom!"
Unfortunately, he wasn't in good form this time. The ball bounced off the rim and was caught by Gortat, who then quickly passed it to Dragic. Dragic immediately used one of his few advantages against Kobe: speed!
He dribbled the ball up the court at lightning speed. Even though Kobe stuck to him tightly, hoping to find an opportunity to steal the ball with a suffocating defense, Dragic steadily protected the ball and was not dispossessed by Kobe all the way to the frontcourt.
And after arriving at the frontcourt, he immediately calmed down, standing at the top of the arc waiting for his teammates to get into position. He showed no intention of trying to take on a challenge on his own.
The composure of the European white players was on full display at this moment.
But he only paused for a moment. When the opportunity presented itself, Dragic would never let it slip away.
Gortat has arrived!
Both the Pole and Dragic are from Eastern Europe, and they have a pretty good understanding. Gortat didn't bother to go inside at all, but instead stopped outside the three-point line to set a screen for Dragic.
Dragic immediately used a screen to break through, but this time Gortat's screen was clearly not good enough and failed to completely stop Kobe.
Kobe forced his way through the screen and stuck to Dragic again, but Dragic raised his hand and passed the ball to Gortat. Then, in a very tight space, he made several crossovers and turns, and after a few off-ball feints, he turned around and charged towards Gortat again.
Hand to hand! It's still the hand-to-hand gesture that Europeans love most.
This time, Kobe failed to get past the screen again. Although Murphy rushed over and raised his hand to try to interfere, Dragic took a step back and then threw the ball again!
"Boom!"
He missed this time too, but Kobe clearly didn't show any relief or anything like that because of Dragic's missed shot.
Kobe knew: it wasn't that he defended the shot, it was that Dragic missed!
He completely fooled me with his continuous feints, back-runs, and pick-and-rolls.
It was a clear chance, but it just didn't go in.
Although the outcome was the same—an iron shot—the process was completely unsatisfactory for Kobe.
I can't defend against him?
I can't defend against a greenhorn from Europe?
I have to pray that this European kid misses his shot to defend against him.
Kobe's eyes grew increasingly gloomy. Dragic, of course, had no idea that his missed shot could make Kobe think so much. It was just a missed shot, yet Kobe had his eye on him.
so funny.
Dragic was caught off guard, but he didn't let his guard down. In the next possession, when Kobe once again reached for the ball in the low post and got into position, Dragic didn't hesitate to yell for his teammates to come and help.
He will never act recklessly when he shouldn't.
But this time, when the player came from the side, Kobe suddenly took the ball with both hands and flicked it towards the open Thomas in the distance.
The Suns player who was about to help defend immediately stopped and instinctively ran towards Isaiah Thomas.
But he realized what had happened as soon as he turned his head.
be cheated!
Kobe didn't pass the ball at all; he was just faking it.
But in that brief pause, it was too late for everything.
Kobe had already turned around quickly towards the baseline, then stopped and pulled up for a jump shot.
The entire movement was performed in one smooth motion, and it was absolutely beautiful.
"Shh!"
Then came a crisp sound—Kobe scored!
After scoring, Kobe immediately turned around and began close defense. He wanted to increase the intensity and start pressing Dragic from the backcourt!
"Alright, in that case, this kid is really finished." Lin Tian said to Jackson, "Kobe is going to play like his life depends on it!" "As everyone knows," Jackson said happily, "the simpler and more direct Kobe's offense is, the worse his mood is. This play just now proved that he was in a terrible mood."
As the two chatted, Kobe's defense against Dragic became increasingly tight and aggressive. However, the Slovenian didn't seem to care much. After all, although he was young, he was already a middle-aged player and had seen all kinds of ups and downs.
After a few attempts by Kobe, he knew he was no match for him and that he couldn't break through Kobe's defense with his own strong attacks. So he started passing the ball around, organizing the team's offense while trying to stay on the weak side and not touch the ball at all.
If Kobe were with me, the Lakers would be missing a reliable perimeter defender to help them on defense, leaving them to watch their teammates play 4v4.
If you don't follow me, then as long as a teammate gets the ball, Dragic won't let his teammate down. His shots are always very decisive!
For the next few rounds, Kobe chose the first option: ignore everyone else and focus solely on Dragic, letting the others play four against four.
It has to be said that the effect was quite good, especially with the Suns' three veterans all out. After completely shutting down Dragic, the Suns' offense also fell into trouble.
On the Lakers' side, Kobe became increasingly aggressive and determined on offense. After several successful low-post plays, the Lakers regained the lead and extended it to 5 points.
At this point, 3 minutes and 40 seconds had elapsed in the second quarter.
Based on the rotation habits of both coaches, the key players from both sides should be taking the field around this time.
At the very least, Lin Tian, Bynum, and the three veterans from the Suns on the other side have all walked to the vicinity of the scorer's table, just waiting for a dead ball opportunity to take the court.
But at that very moment, the situation on the field suddenly changed!
After the Lakers, who had just been on a winning streak, missed a shot, Dragic grabbed the rebound and started a fast break. He drove all the way to the basket, used a Euro step to dodge Kobe's defense, and then forced his way along the baseline to score a reverse layup!
After the basketball was hit, Kobe cursed again, then quickly walked to the baseline and inbounded the ball.
"Why are you serving?" Jackson on the sidelines was completely bewildered!
He just forgot to ask the referee for a substitution. It was mainly out of habit, because usually in this situation, the substitute player has already come onto the field. When the ball is dead, everyone will wait a moment, and then the referee will directly call the substitute player onto the field.
Although there are rules about this, over the years, it has rarely been necessary for the head coach to personally consult with the referee before making a substitution.
It's just to save trouble.
Who would have thought that something like this would happen today?
Kobe could actually initiate the attack himself by directly kicking off the offense.
I'm hooked, this is really hooking.
Bynum, who was standing next to Lin Tian, couldn't help but mutter something.
"I don't think so." Lin Tian remained relaxed and said calmly, "I think Kobe is very calm right now! I believe in him. It's just a fast break layup. Kobe will definitely be anxious to get the score back, but he won't completely ignore the game and force himself to play because of such a small play."
"He's just giving everyone the impression that he's gotten carried away and wants to go solo without thinking. If he really wanted to go solo, he wouldn't let us see it so easily!"
"After all, this is just the beginning."
As soon as Lin Tian finished speaking, Kobe lowered his head and drove straight towards the inside, raising his hand to forcefully break through.
The Suns, who were prepared, immediately surrounded and double-teamed Kobe with three players!
Are you getting carried away and want to go one-on-one?
We'll see you off!
Just when it seemed Kobe was about to end the possession with a rather 'brainless' forced shot, and just when it seemed Lin Tian's prediction was about to be proven wrong, Kobe passed the ball!
This guy had already jumped into the air when he suddenly made a behind-the-back pass without looking, passing the basketball behind him, which was the only direction out of his four directions where there were no Suns players.
Durant received the ball, got up, and launched another floater.
A floater from no more than 4 feet from the basket with no defender is a shot that Durant is absolutely certain to score and will be incredibly easy to get.
But this seemingly easy shot bounced off the rim with a 'bang' and missed the target.
Gortat grabbed the rebound and passed it to Dragic, who dribbled and charged forward again, advancing at high speed.
If you don't pause, then we won't pause either and will substitute!
Confidence is something every player possesses at this moment!
Dragic sprinted forward at full speed, this time choosing to go straight for the middle, without going around in circles, opting for the shortest distance between the two baskets to attack.
This simple and direct advance immediately put the Lakers' defense on edge, with several players in disarray. It was as if the team could have predicted that Dragic would choose such a route to attack.
Then, Dragic, who was now completely on fire, suddenly stopped outside the three-point line and pulled up for a three-pointer!
Once he got the feel for it, Dragic's confidence soared.
"Shh!"
Then came a crisp sound as Dragic hit a three-pointer in transition, tying the game again!
"5 points! Five points in a row! Dragic's five consecutive points have helped the Suns close the gap and tie the game! This young man is amazing, he's sure to become a true star!"
As Dragic hit the three-pointer, Miller erupted in wild, excited cheers from the sidelines, as if he himself had scored the three.
"It's a tie!" Jackson added. "The next game is going to be interesting! The Western Conference games are much more exciting than the Eastern Conference games! The first-place team can play against the eighth-place team and still achieve this kind of result."
At this point on the court, Lin Tian and Bynum no longer needed to play; they simply turned around and returned to the bench.
Phil Jackson called a timeout.
It's perfectly reasonable for the coaches to call a timeout when someone scores 5 points in a row.
If you encounter a coach with a short temper, he will immediately lose his temper, yelling at his players to vent his anger, and then let his players use that anger to crush the opponent.
A very reasonable pause.
But Jackson was never the kind of guy who liked to yell at players. As shrewd and calculating as he was, most of the time he would smile, squint his eyes, speak slowly and calmly.
This time is no exception.
"It's nothing, just 5 points. The Suns are good at offense, so it's normal for them to go on a run. They're very good at using these fast break opportunities to score repeatedly; it's their signature move."
"Dragic is called the 'Little Nash,' so it's only natural that he excels in these areas. Although he has never been selected for the All-Star team, we should remember that this guy is widely recognized as the biggest omission from the All-Star team and is known as the number one player outside of the All-Star team."
“Jason, don’t be angry. We all know that before him, this title belonged to you.”
After making a not-so-funny joke that stabbed Terry in the back, Jackson continued, "But how should I put it? A few mistakes, missed shots, and the fast breaks we got into don't matter. Like I said, it's just 5 points."
"But from now on, we need to be more focused, because Nash, Pierce, and Garnett will all be playing! No matter who the Suns' all-time leading scorer is this year, we must remember one thing: these three old men are their true core and soul!"
"Alright, now our starting players are on the field, everyone else can rest for a bit. Let's give it our all and win this game!"
"understand!"
All the players shouted at the same time and marched onto the field with great momentum. A 5-0 run certainly wouldn't make them lose their composure.
Yeah, except for Kobe.
"You're so mean, Phil." Lin Tian walked at the back of everyone, glanced at Jackson, gave him a knowing look, and then walked onto the court.
Whether others could understand or not, Lin Tian didn't know, but he knew that Jackson's words were basically directed at Kobe.
Indeed, Kobe's name was not mentioned at all; not a single word was explicitly related to Kobe.
But thinking about it carefully, every single thing he said was a reference to Kobe! (End of Chapter)