The Way of the Center

Kobe and Anjie each scored a goal, which completely opened the curtain of this exciting game. But what is surprising is that although the subsequent games were equally exciting, they formed a situation of only excitement and no goals.

The confrontation was fierce, and the smell of gunpowder was very strong. Both sides come and go, but the score does not rise.

"Kobe Bryant made a three-pointer! It's off the mark, it's off the mark!"

"Kevin Durant made an emergency stop jumper, still no! I read it right, is this guy the Durant who just beat Anthony!?"

The narrators were dumbfounded and couldn't believe it. Durant, the league's leading scorer, and Kobe Bryant, the Lakers' offensive core. These two people who should have carried the banner of the team's offense squandered their opportunities time and time again.

In the sound of these two guys striking iron, the first quarter soon ushered in the participation of the second team. Fortunately, the Lakers and Thunder's substitute players performed normally, which avoided embarrassment.

In the second half of the first quarter, the second team led by Anjie and Gasol gave Van Gundy and Phil Jackson some tactical ideas.

Originally, these two coaches were unwilling to focus their offense on the inside. Van Gundy knows that the Lakers' two championship-level inside twin towers are not like the Nuggets' insiders who can only bluff people. There are countless people who fell under Gasol and Bynum. Even for An Jie, it is difficult to score efficiently in this situation.

And Jackson is even more aware of the horror of the Thunder's Chinese butcher, and with the support of Morris and Ibaka, the Thunder's insiders are also not easy to mess with.

But now, when Kobe and Durant both feel extremely bad, the coaches of the two teams have to consider this issue that was not considered before.

17 to 20, the two teams played the first quarter and the score was extremely low. The defending champion Lakers are only three points ahead of the Thunder. Kobe and Durant should bear the greatest responsibility for this situation.

"Bryant, what's the problem?" Phil Jackson would not limit Kobe's right to fire just because he felt bad in the first quarter.

"No problem! I will continue to attack!" The paranoid Kobe could not easily move away from the position of the core of the attack.

"Russell, you should attack with the ball more in the second half. KD, get a better chance before shooting! I need efficiency now, consumption, we can't consume them!" On the Thunder's side, Van Gundy's tactics are much more free up. Although Durant won the title of the youngest scoring champion, he still does not have Kobe's status. Van Gundy didn't let him attack, he really had to be obedient.

"install,

You also look for more opportunities inside. But after playing, your main task is still to assist the offense, and after that, it may change. "Van Gundy's meaning is very clear, let Anjie first touch the depth of the Lakers' inside defense, and be ready to be ordered at any time!

"No problem boss, hey, Russell, if you want a pick-and-roll, just make a gesture, and I'll be right there." After speaking, An Jie patted Westbrook on the back.

As soon as the voice fell, the short inter-section break was over. The Thunder still sent the starting five tigers here, and Zen Master let Kobe rest off the court first.

The reason why Zen master is so confident is because he believes in the defensive ability of the twin towers. At the same time, it also allowed Kobe to fully recover to play better.

However, Westbrook's first impact after coming up in the second quarter tore apart the defense of the Lakers Twin Towers.

Quick as lightning, he used Anjie's pick-and-roll to break into the inside easily. In order to prevent Anjie from making a mid-range shot, Bynum had to stay outside.

Only Gasol went to defend the penalty area alone, but Westbrook's speed still surpassed the Spaniard by several grades. He was the first to break to the basket and force a layup while making physical contact with Gasol.

Westbrook's goal not only greatly increased Van Gundy's determination to let him continue to attack, but also gradually reduced Kobe's rest time virtually.

"Okay, it's just one ball. We've seen this kind of situation a lot." Zen master patted Kobe's leg, signaling him to rest at ease.

After Kobe went off the court, Gasol and Bynum naturally became the focus of the Lakers' offense. After all, Lao Yu is better at organizing now, and Artest's offensive ability has also seriously degraded.

Although Morris has a good defensive ability, it is still difficult for him to completely restrain Gasol.

Whether it is height or wingspan, Morris does not have an advantage. In addition, Morris was not very good at defending the inside line with outstanding skills, so Gasol turned over and shot at close range after advancing two steps, and scored a goal easily.

Dozens of seconds later, Bynum also took revenge on An Jie. Although the lower body strength of "Little Shark" who has experienced a major knee injury has shrunk, as the close disciple of "Gutter" Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, his small hook technique is even higher than that of Anjie.

Now he doesn't need to flexibly turn around and break through, and he doesn't need to forcefully carry to the basket for dunks. He only needs to use his broad frame and octopus-like big hands to get a position in a deep place, and he can score directly with a hook after receiving the ball.

An Jie had nothing to do with Bynum's shot. Although his lower body strength was much weaker, Bynum's upper body strength was still strong.

Watching the Thunder's whirlwind twin towers being continuously broken by the Lakers' champion twin towers, Phil Jackson began to raise his legs in relief.

The Thunder's offense is still dominated by Westbrook's breakthrough, supplemented by Durant and Sefoloza's outside shots. He didn't dare to let Anjie and Morris easily play singles inside. If they were defended a few times, the Lakers would quickly open the score.

Although there were more goals in the second quarter, it was much more dull than the first quarter. The two teams are grinding their positions most of the time. Without a fast pace, there will be no mistakes, and without mistakes, there will be no fast breaks, and without fast breaks, it will be difficult to present wonderful pictures.

The second quarter of the game has been played like this for almost five minutes. It was not until the first official timeout came that Van Gundy and Zen Master planned to make changes.

"Bryant, how are you resting?"

"No problem Phil, I'm no problem." Kobe shook off the towel and was finally about to fight!

On Van Gundy's side, it's more difficult. Judging from the performance just now, Durant's touch still hasn't recovered. Perhaps it was Artest's defense that made it difficult for him to adapt. Anyway, Durant could not continue to attack.

Although Westbrook's desperate style of play is efficient, it consumes him a lot. If the Thunder want to play the second half, it's better to save Westbrook's energy.

Replacing Durant and Westbrook, who else can the Thunder count on? The two substitute outsiders Eric Maynor and Sean Livingston are indeed excellent, but they are not enough to let them carry the Thunder's offense.

Perhaps, it was time to implement this extremely difficult plan.

"Ann, how do you feel?" Van Gundy began to ask.

"The cooperation between Andrew and Paul is very tacit, not only in offense, but also in defense. Moreover, the two of them are in good condition today. When they defended me and Morris just now, they simply refused to give up an inch." An Jie is not arrogant. He admitted that these two twin towers of the Lakers are not so easy to deal with.

"But if you grit your teeth, you can fight!" But then he changed his mind. An Jie knew what Van Gundy meant by asking this question. Durant and Westbrook were off, and he and Morris had to shoulder the big responsibility!

"Well..." Van Gundy nodded, he had to try first, there was no other way to follow.

Before the timeout ended, Anjie and Kobe looked at each other. Both of them stared at each other for a second, their eyes full of tenacity.

"Come on, let's fight with real swords and guns!" An Jie clenched his fists. Kobe treated himself well in Houston last summer. He treated him well every day, and even gave him guidance. After that, the two got along very happily, and their relationship has always been good. But in the playoffs, any friendship can be wiped out by the players!

After the two sides re-appeared, the Lakers fans began to cheer. Although Fisher and Artest went off to rest, Kobe and the inside twin towers stayed on the court.

In contrast to the Thunder, Westbrook, who had been playing well in the second quarter, was replaced by Maynor and Livingston, and Durant was not on the court. Angie? There is a way to let that guy who is called a butcher try it!

Kobe Bryant's first offense after coming back from a timeout, he fired from beyond the three-point line. Phil Jackson didn't let Kobe rest in vain. Stamina has a lot to do with shooting percentage. Now, Kobe, who is full of stamina, has finally regained his sense of offense.

All the Thunder fans looked at An Jie who was serving from the baseline with great anticipation. The Thunder's expectations all rested on him!

But what everyone didn't expect was that after An Jie ran near the free throw line, he suddenly stopped his footsteps!

Only when An Jie organizes an attack will he choose to stand in that position. What does that mean, didn't Van Gundy put him on offense?

Just when the fans were at a loss, Livingston handed the ball to Angie who was in the high position. Anjie made three threats with the ball, and Bynum put up a stance, ready to fight.

People focus on Angie and Bynum, but ignore Morris and Gasol, who are wrestling in the low post.

Due to the existence of the three minors, Morris, who is not outstanding in offensive ability, has few opportunities to perform on the offensive end. But facing the Spaniard with a softer style of play, the tough Morris felt that he should be able to handle it!

An Jie suddenly broke through to the left. Although Bynum's sensitivity was greatly reduced after his knee was injured, he still withstood An Jie's impact in time due to his wide stride range.

An Jie did not give up after being blocked, but continued to increase his strength, pushing his shoulders against Bynum's chest and entering the inside line.

Although An Jie was able to walk to the basket, it was almost impossible to score a goal under such fierce confrontation and obstruction.

"Idiot! You chose the wrong place!" Bynum secretly delighted. When he and Gasol were on the court at the same time, Anjie never showed any too dazzling performance. The reason why Anjie performed so well in the game at the beginning of this season was not because Gasol was injured and absent?

An Jie suddenly turned around quickly, and Bynum, who was good at hooks, thought that An Jie was about to hook, so he jumped up quickly and jumped high, ready to complete the block.

Unexpectedly, after Anjie tricked Morris, he just hit the ground and passed. Morris received the basketball with Gasol on his back, and under Gasol's interference, he forced a dunk!

"Andrew Morris! I didn't expect that Anjie was playing for him!" At this time, people suddenly remembered that the problem of Gasol's soft style of play is not a day or two. And Anjie is not the only insider of the Thunder.

The two insiders from the Cyclones high-fived each other. Their tacit understanding was actually no worse than the Lakers Twin Towers.

On the second ball, Gasol entangled Morris very much, and Bynum did not dare to attack rashly. And Anjie, in this situation, easily turned around and passed Bynum, used his skillful picking, and scored another goal!

After scoring the goal, Anjie patted his chest and pointed at Bynum with his index finger.

"Come on, the little fish hiding behind Kobe." Anjie said this to Bynum with a smile, but Bynum couldn't laugh at all.

Do everything you can to win the game. Anjie, did not forget this. (To be continued.)