Chapter 1052
I don't understand the art of attacking, but neither do you!
Jackson said, "Yes, the Lakers' week-long break was really too long. They didn't play a game for a week. Even if they didn't slack off or relax, and even if they kept training, the intensity of training and playing games is completely different."
"Many strong teams encounter this problem after finishing a round of matches early and waiting for their opponents for a long time. They often get caught off guard and suffer a surprise attack. But it must be said that this is also an important moment to test the difference between strong teams and top teams."
"For ordinary strong teams, this game might just be like this, and they won't be able to get into a tight spot throughout the entire game. But top strong teams can adjust their form the fastest and get back into the game quickly."
"Let's see how long it takes the Lakers to get out of this slump and regain their rhythm."
On the court, the second quarter had officially begun. Lin Tian, Durant, and others went to rest, and it was Kobe and Bynum's turn to lead three substitute players against the Grizzlies' mixed lineup.
With both Tony Allen and Marc Gasol on the Grizzlies' roster, their defense remains solid.
Kobe didn't rush at the start, passing the ball to Bynum for a one-on-one game. However, Bynum's hook shot under the basket against Gasol was blocked. Although the Grizzlies missed their own three-pointer afterward, Kobe turned around and went one-on-one against Tony Allen, but Allen also blocked him.
Then, turning around, Marc Gasol's mid-range jump shot also flew out of the basket with a 'bang'.
And this basically set the tone for the first half of the second quarter.
The Lakers were missing shots because the Grizzlies were defending really well, making it difficult for the Lakers to find truly comfortable shooting opportunities.
As for the Grizzlies, with Randolph out, they really can't attack right now.
However, this has always been the Grizzlies' strategy: I don't understand offense, but neither should you!
"This Allen is really good! I haven't seen such strong, fierce, yet clean defense in many years," Jackson said. "Looking at the entire history of the NBA, there are no guards with this level of defensive ability."
"Jordan, Payton, Lin, Kobe, and then Allen!"
“Apart from these five people, the others are less oppressive, aggressive and effective.”
"Four minutes into the second quarter, Kobe went 0-for-3, scoring zero points and committing a turnover! This is all thanks to Allen's one-on-one defense!"
"To be honest, if Kobe had faced Allen a few years earlier, he wouldn't have played so badly. Back then, Kobe had excellent physical attributes, making him more threatening when he drove to the basket and pulled up for a jump shot. But now, although Kobe's technique is more perfect, he has lost his physical attributes."
"The decline in his physical abilities made it quite difficult for Kobe to face defenders like Allen. Allen's defense was characterized by being both fierce and calm! He could maintain absolute composure while engaging in intense physical contact and constant, fierce collisions with you."
"He doesn't jump to block, doesn't try to steal the ball, and doesn't easily shift his center of gravity. Allen can do all three of these things while maintaining fierce physical contact, making him the kind of defender that a skill-based player like Kobe would least like to face."
Miller laughed and said, "But then again, what kind of offensive player in this league would want to face Allen? This guy is definitely a unique individual among the new generation. He knows almost nothing about offense except for dunking."
"But he really did it, making all his opponents unable to attack."
In the first four minutes of the second quarter, the Lakers played terribly, especially when Kobe went 0-for-3 and scored no points, the Lakers' offense completely stalled.
In the first four minutes, the Lakers scored one field goal by Bynum and two free throws by Thomas, totaling 4 points.
But with the Lakers, especially Kobe, playing so poorly, the Grizzlies didn't manage to widen the gap much.
This is why, despite having the best defense in the entire league, their final record was only mediocre.
They themselves couldn't score; their offensive methods were too monotonous, and their offense relied heavily on power plays and one-on-one duels.
Their lack of offensive talent means that even if they completely lower their opponent's shooting percentage, they still can't improve their own.
This is why they have never been able to attract more attention, and why no one has ever considered them a top team.
To take a recent example, the Pistons team from a few years ago had the best defensive system in the league and several top-notch individual defenders.
Furthermore, the Pistons also have three offensive talents: Billups, Hamilton, and Rasheed. They can really bring down your shooting percentage with their defense and then finish you off with their offense.
That's why the Pistons were able to win the championship and achieve 60+ wins in a single season.
But the Grizzlies are different. Their offense isn't lethal. They sometimes manage to hold their opponents to 85 points through strong defense, but end up scoring only 80 points themselves, leading to a loss.
Therefore, when the game entered its first timeout in the second quarter and both coaches prepared to substitute their key players, the Grizzlies' lead was only 6 points.
They failed to capitalize on the Lakers' complete slump and were unable to widen the score gap.
The good news is that they have clearly gotten used to this pace, and they are not at all bothered or frustrated by it.
On the contrary, they were all now full of energy, and their eyes were shining with excitement.
We can stop them! So what if they're the strongest offensive team in the regular season? We can stop them!
If we can defend against it, then we have a chance to fight!
So when the timeout ended and many of the key players from both teams returned to the court, the Grizzlies played even more aggressively and with greater enthusiasm.
Meanwhile, the Lakers are no pushovers either, nor are they the kind of softies who can't play from behind. Faced with the Grizzlies' almost brutal defense and physicality, the Lakers simply couldn't find their shooting touch or offensive rhythm, and their shots continued to miss.
But you, Grizzlies, have made me forget what offense is! Well, we can make you forget what offense even is!
For the remainder of the second quarter, whether it was Turiaf, who was at the biggest disadvantage in their matchup, or Kobe and Lin Tian, who could theoretically completely overwhelm Mayo and Conley.
They all put in their best effort to defend.
Forced by Lin Tian, Conley stopped dribbling across half-court and started doing off-ball playmaking. Battier, a pure 3-and-D player with little ball-handling ability, left the Grizzlies with Mayo as their only option for outside ball-handling.
But against Kobe, Mayo could only handle the ball; expecting him to score, or even score repeatedly, would be a death sentence for him.
As for Marc Gasol, although he has a knack for playmaking, his own offense is completely inadequate. A center whose field goal percentage is usually less than 50% shows his level on the offensive end.
While Randolph was able to repeatedly get into position to isolate and attack inside, firstly, Turiaf was playing with all his might at this point, and secondly, the Grizzlies were not shooting well, and the Lakers' defense began to tighten up, so Randolph's isolation opportunities were far less than in the first quarter.
Every time, just as he gets into the zone and manages to push Turiaf aside, Bynum, Lin Tian, Kobe, and others come to help defend. Unfortunately, Randolph's passing ability is inversely proportional to his one-on-one ability. If you ask him to play purely as a playmaker and not attack, he can pass two balls.
But if you let him get into a one-on-one situation and then pass the ball, he absolutely cannot do that.
Therefore, his one-on-one play in the second quarter was not only inefficient, but also showed signs of becoming a black hole.
With both sides missing shots repeatedly, the scoring progressed very slowly. By the end of the first half, neither team had scored more than 40 points!
Complete hand-to-hand combat, complete mud fighting!
38: 36!
With four seconds left in the first half, the Grizzlies, through a hard-fought mid-range jumper by Gasol, managed to regain the lead.
Even if it's just a ball.
Furthermore, Marc Gasol, already considered a veteran, immediately raised his arms and shouted after making the shot: "Defense! Stay put! Don't let them get going on the fast break!"
While shouting, he quickly retreated to the vicinity of the midfield to disrupt the Lakers' possible first pass and counterattack.
Randolph then turned around nearby and jumped up and down repeatedly with his hands raised to try and disrupt Bynum's baseline pass.
"Change!" Battier roared, taking Mayo's place against Kobe, denying Kobe any chance to receive the ball and advance the ball.
Mayo, who isn't known for his defense, reacted incredibly quickly, immediately keeping up with Durant and lowering his center of gravity. He knew he couldn't stop Durant in a half-court game, so he targeted Durant's lower body, preventing him from getting a good start. As for Conley, he made no attempt to hide his actions, one hand gripping Lin Tian's jersey, the other gripping his waist, preventing Lin Tian from changing direction or accelerating.
The Grizzlies' defensive discipline is truly impeccable; their discipline, intention, and reaction are all top-notch!
Randolph's interference was quite effective; Bynum held the ball with both hands but failed to pass it out immediately.
Suddenly, Lin Tian shouted, "Throw it forward!"
Then Lin Tian accelerated and was about to run towards the front, but Conley would not give Lin Tian his wish. He immediately blocked Lin Tian's way and even began to wrap his arms around him, trying to completely hug Lin Tian!
Conley was testing the waters; he was testing the referee's limits.
If the referee still doesn't call it, then he will use this method to defend Lin Tian for the entire second half.
If the referee calls it, that's fine too. Conley only has one foul so far, he can handle it. Besides, the Grizzlies' foul count in the second quarter hasn't dropped yet. After the foul, the Lakers will just inbound the ball.
Boasting won't hurt you, not boasting will make you a huge profit!
This is the players' experience.
But when it comes to experience, Conley is clearly reciting the Bible in front of Jesus and shouting surrender in front of the French; he's gone in the wrong direction.
Lin Tian made a feint to rush forward, leading Conley to believe he was trying to create space to receive the ball. However, Lin Tian's move was just a bluff. He then pushed Conley with both hands and turned to run towards Bynum.
Conley was testing the referee's limits, but Lin Tian was not.
Lin Tian let Kang Li try it first!
The referee didn't call Conley's complete encirclement, so of course the referee wouldn't have seen Lin Tian's tiny push!
Why are they praising themselves instead of Conley?
This option is not available!
Lin Tian refused to believe that the referees could make such biased calls at the Lakers' home court, unless they themselves didn't want to leave Los Angeles.
Conley is hovering between breaking even and making a huge profit.
Lin Tian, on the other hand, could always make a steady profit no matter what.
Space has appeared!
Bynum and Lin Tian had been playing together for a year and knew Lin Tian's style. He ignored Lin Tian's first "throw it forward" and only passed the ball to Lin Tian after Lin Tian got rid of Conley.
Four seconds later, Lin Tian dribbles the ball forward!
Conley wanted to catch up with Lin Tian again, but given Lin Tian's abilities, once he had left him behind, catching up would be extremely difficult.
In 3 seconds, Lin Tian swerved to the side and left Conley behind. Considering that Gasol was behind them and that picking Lin Tian up might result in a flagrant foul, he simply yelled "Mark!" and let Lin Tian go.
Of course, he didn't just ignore it; Conley himself turned around and chased after Lin Tian, maintaining the pressure he was putting on him.
As for Lin Tian, he didn't even try to challenge Gasol.
There's no need for that!
Two seconds later, after clearly seeing Gasol's position, Lin Tian dribbled diagonally away from Gasol. Just as Gasol moved in that direction, Lin Tian suddenly made an incredible change of direction and dribbled a step in another direction.
With one second left, Lin Tian suddenly stopped and pulled up two meters outside the three-point line, launching a super long-range buzzer-beating three-pointer!
"Shh!"
"Buzz!"
"MVP!"
"Lin! Lin! Lin! Lin!"
"Great shot!"
"nice shot!"
"Amazing!"
Several voices rang out almost simultaneously: Lin Tian hit the buzzer, the first half ended, the fans cheered, and his teammates celebrated…
With all these events occurring simultaneously, the entire Staples Center instantly transformed into a sea of revelry.
38: 39!
The Lakers, who had been trailing the Grizzlies by a small margin, finally rallied in the final moments of the first half to take the lead!
Although it wasn't a game-winning goal, and it was only the end of the first half, it was enough for everyone to breathe a sigh of relief and celebrate.
It was like a swimmer who was about to run out of air, but finally surfaced and breathed a rare breath of air. All Lakers supporters had a wonderful feeling.
Aftermath.
Completely released!
The cheers and shouts from the crowd lasted for more than a minute, and even after both teams had left the field, the fans were still unwilling to stop cheering.
The Lakers' last two games in the first round were both played in Phoenix, which means that Los Angeles fans haven't seen a live game for almost two weeks and haven't been able to unleash their passion and enthusiasm.
Well, Clippers games don't count.
As is widely known, the Clippers are not a Los Angeles team.
In short, Lin Tian's buzzer-beating three-pointer really got the whole of Los Angeles excited!
Everyone felt that this play would be a landmark, and the Lakers' offensive firepower would definitely ignite again in the second half!
"Lin's buzzer-beating three-pointer was beautiful! Brilliant! This is the first time I've seen someone use a crossover dribble from 3 meters out to mislead the defense and then complete the move, hitting the buzzer-beater!" Miller immediately began his analysis and summary after the first half ended.
"At this distance, you generally can't fake anything out except your own knees and ankles, but Lin fooled Gasol, causing Gasol to deviate from his defensive zone, so that Lin could comfortably shoot a buzzer-beating three-pointer!"
"Amazing! Absolutely amazing! It's not just his dribbling that's incredible; Lin's imagination, planning ability, and anticipation of the defense are all textbook-perfect!"
"Lin's shot was indeed beautiful, but it has to be said that the Grizzlies controlled the rhythm of the first half of the game almost entirely." Jackson, however, did not favor that shot as much as Miller, but focused on the entire first half.
"A comeback achieved with a miraculous shot is ultimately unreliable. The Lakers are only leading by one point, but this pace and style of play are definitely not what the Lakers like!"
"This three-pointer was actually Lin's first three-pointer, and the Lakers' second three-pointer in the first half. Although the Lakers are not a team that relies heavily on three-pointers, making only two in the first half, with a shooting percentage of less than 20%, is a pretty bad situation for any team."
"You can't rely on one person's miracle shot to save the whole game. If the Lakers continue with this efficiency in the second half, they're really in trouble!"
Van Gundy added, "Anyway, I have to give the Grizzlies a shout-out. Despite being underestimated by most, they played some really great basketball. They maintained their drive and hunger, and kept the game completely under their control!"
"I hope they can continue their performance from the first half, maintain their intensity and toughness, and show everyone the power of defense!"
This Grizzlies team is definitely the kind of team that Jeff Van Gundy, who loves, adores, and even idolizes defense, would adore. He is also the commentator trio who praises the Grizzlies the most.
"Now, let's take halftime. See you in the second half!"
After a brief summary, the live broadcast of the match was temporarily interrupted to begin commercials. (End of Chapter)