The Way of the Center

"The Lakers will definitely increase their defensive strength in the second half. I want you to move the ball more quickly! You will never force a shot until the last moment!" Jeff Van Gundy knew that the defense he was proud of could hardly limit Kobe's swing. , It's not that the Lakers cannot be restricted, but Kobe cannot be restricted! So during the halftime break, he changed his previous style and did not talk about defense first, but first reminded the players of the precautions on the offensive end.

Kobe's turnaround jumper is always completed in the weak defensive area between the penalty area and the outside line, which just gives Kobe a chance to show his talents. And if the Thunder flank, Phil Jackson's triangle offense will give the leaker a chance.

Van Gundy really can't think of a way to break the triangle offense. It's not how subtle this tactic is, but Kobe's core is really difficult to limit.

At the beginning of the third quarter, the Lakers faithfully implemented Zen Master's instructions, and their defense seemed to suddenly become a playoff-level defense!

"The Lakers have started to get serious. They found that the tenth young team in the Western Conference is not so easy to deal with. If they want to win at home, the Lakers must give it their all!" Mike Breen was ecstatic, and he went all out in the second half The two sides involved will definitely play very exciting.

Westbrook found that he could no longer easily break through the short and stout Fisher in front of him. This veteran lowered his center of gravity and opened his arms wide, completely different from the state in which he was casually broken through in the first half!

tough! This is Westbrook and Fisher's new evaluation of the old fish after physical contact.

In addition to being tough on the defensive end and being very good at making offensive fouls, Fisher's steals are also a must! Seeing that Westbrook hadn't adapted to the sudden increase in confrontation intensity, Fisher took the opportunity to reach out and reach for the basketball controlled by Westbrook.

"Fischer took the ball away! The basketball flew out of bounds!" The commentators became more and more excited, and the third quarter felt much more intense than the first half.

Westbrook quickly patted the removed basketball, but still couldn't regain control of the ball. Seeing this situation, Westbrook jumped up and threw the ball into the field before it went out of bounds, and he threw himself into the audience. Playing against the Los Angeles Lakers, Westbrook seemed to be fighting for every ball!

Successfully saving the ball back into bounds, Westbrook tossed the ball a little hard because he was afraid that Fisher behind him would get the ball.

Fisher took off with all his strength, but he couldn't reach the ball at all. The ball went straight to the penalty area. Angie and Gasol had already started wrestling. These two big men were the most likely to grab the ball.

Gasol has always been a relatively honest guy,

But in the fierce confrontation with An Jie, he also had to grab An Jie's jersey to interfere.

An Jie can't control that much, seeing the basketball flying closer and closer, and Odom is already in front of him, he will lose the ball if he doesn't jump anymore!

Under Gasol's grabbing and Odom's interference, Anjie jumped up forcefully, raising his arms high. The collision of several different forces made Gasol, Angie and Odom all lose their center of gravity!

But the basketball was still snatched by the tall and long-armed An Jie. As soon as they hugged the ball, the three of them fell into a ball!

The referee didn't blow his whistle, he didn't think there was a foul on the ball just now! The three big men fought frantically on the floor, and Anjie hugged the ball tightly, no matter how much Odom and Gasol pulled, he just refused to let go.

"Beep beep beep!" Finally, seeing that neither side could gain possession of the ball, the referee stopped the game and called a scrimmage, but Anjie was very dissatisfied with the penalty.

"Paul grabbed my jersey and I was ripped off! When I was on the ground, Lamar hit me with elbows!" Angie got up and complained to the referee. Although he himself liked to use small moves, it was not It doesn't mean that An Jie will be willing to let himself suffer from being dumb.

But the referee just told An Jie to hurry up and stand in the prescribed position, and ignored his complaints. The players all know that the referee will not change the judgment. The reason why they like to insist on the referee is just to put pressure on the referee.

Gasol and Angie stand at the free throw line and scramble for the ball again. However, the result this time was no different from that at the beginning of the game. An Jie finally got the ball for the Thunder.

In the end, Durant broke through and caused Ariza's foul, which ended the offense. Only the first goal in the second half, the two sides fought very hard!

Change the Lakers offense, the result is the same. Gasol can't even hold his position now, as long as he gets a little closer to the three-second zone, Angie will try his best to push this European castle out.

And Kobe's singles was not as easy as in the first half. The two sides played like this was the last game of the season, leaving no effort at all.

The shooting percentages of both sides throughout the third quarter were not ideal, because the improvement in defensive strength was too great, which made the smooth offense of the two teams in the first half disappear.

75 to 75, after three quarters, Los Angeles fans originally thought it would be an easy game, but they didn't expect this little-known Thunder team to keep the suspense until the last quarter!

"Charles, it's time for you to change your jersey." During the intermission, Barkley took off his jersey again, and then put on the last one, Anjie's No. 16 jersey.

"Angie, let me tell you, this kid will be the key to the Thunder in the fourth quarter." Charles said, pointing to his jersey number.

"Yes, when you wore Coach Van Gundy's jersey in the third quarter, you also said that the key to the third quarter will be Coach Van Gundy's scheduling." Kenny Smith ignored Barkley's indecent remarks.

"No, no, this time I'm serious about Kenny. The defensive intensity of both sides will only increase in the fourth quarter, and Anjie is the guy who can fight toughest!" This time, Barkley really didn't joke.

"I think Gasol and Odom, who have a soft style of play, can't stop him. If you don't believe me, you are watching, anyway, the game is about to start." Although Barkley likes to joke, it does not mean that he is a idiot. What he said was indeed true, the stronger the defense, the more excited An Jie would be! The seemingly thin Anjie is not only not afraid of physical contact, on the contrary he likes to play with physical contact.

Only at that time, An Jie's wildness would be released, and the devilish blood in his body would start to flow.

"Kobe's breakthrough! He made a layup! Foul, Anjie slapped Kobe with the ball!"

"Fuck you Chinese!"

"How dare you touch Kobe!?"

"You picked the wrong guy, bastard!"

Seeing Anjie knock Kobe down, the Los Angeles fans immediately burst into abuse. It wasn't the first time Kobe had been treated like this. He didn't compete with Anjie, but went straight to the free throw line. Young people want to prove that they are normal, and Kobe himself did a lot of impulsive things when he was young.

Although he failed to prevent Kobe from scoring, Anjie is undoubtedly building his deterrence in the interior brick by brick. If you want to score in the penalty area, you must pay the price!

Although Durant performed well on the offensive end, he still seemed a little "gentle". Mainly Anjie and Westbrook, they really looked like beasts today.

"Fischer was very difficult! Westbrook was relying on Fisher to break through forcibly! Fisher was tough, and Westbrook was also not to be outdone!"

Seeing that Lao Yu couldn't stop the opponent, Odom immediately made up for it. At the moment when there was a gap, Westbrook used a no-look pass to let Anjie get the ball at the basket.

Without thinking too much, An Jie took off and dunked directly on the spot. Although Gasol quickly came to block from the other side, he could only slap An Jie in the face.

"Damn referee!" Seeing that the referee was still indifferent, An Jie was also very angry! The Lakers are now the cash cow of the NBA and David Stern's main favorite. Only such teams can "enjoy" the home whistle.

In the case of high defensive intensity, scoring in the penalty area is undoubtedly much easier than scoring outside shots. Because the interference on the outside will be very serious, and the inside may also get the opportunity to make fouls.

Unknowingly, Anjie has played singles with Gasol with the ball for the third time. Odom double-teamed Anjie as planned, but Anjie still completed the attack before Odom was in position.

"Again! Anjie's efficiency is amazing! He never wastes a shot!" He made 10 of 13 shots, and Anjie scored 24 points before the end of the game. Turbrook's score!

"It's quite a rare situation. Durant and Westbrook obviously can't find opportunities under this kind of defense. And Anjie, such a defense doesn't work for him at all!"

Afterwards, the Thunder's offense was still handed over to Anjie, and enough was enough. Anjie was not a paranoid like Kobe who could score 81 points. He knew that if he continued to choose to attack, he would definitely fall into the encirclement of the Lakers.

After all, in his first three attacks, Odom was hesitant to double-team, but for the fourth time, Odom will definitely complete the assisting defense task decisively.

Feinting and attracting attention is the key to Anjie's ability to assist his teammates. Of course, not everyone can feint and attract the attention of others. You have to be really threatening first, so that others will add extra troops when defending you.

No one on the Lakers went up to double-team except Odom, but it was obvious that they shrank a little towards the basket unconsciously. Whether it is for the convenience of assisting defense or for the convenience of preventing others from cutting inside, there is nothing wrong with doing so.

But Durant is a guy who can shoot and score without much space!

"Ange turned around! Is he going to score on the heads of Odom and Gasol!?" Anjie has completed wonderful moments in front of Mike Breen again and again. This time, Anjie is not It's impossible to make it!

But even if he could really fight, An Jie would not allow himself to act recklessly. When he made a gesture, everyone on the Lakers focused on him, including Ariza who followed Durant around half the three-point line!

"It's now!" An Jie suddenly withdrew his raised arms, turned around and passed! Durant tacitly stood on the passing route, shot the ball as soon as he caught it, and did not give Ariza a chance to make amends.

"The Thunder hit a three-pointer. Durant! The Lakers seem to have forgotten that the most terrifying thing about the Thunder is the connection between these three young people!" Mike Breen is more and more fond of this young A team with unlimited potential can generally be used to describe a player. But the same word applies to the entire Thunder team!

"The game is about to end with one and a half minutes left, but the Lakers currently only have a two-point lead! This team, which has been sitting on the throne of the Western Conference since the beginning of the season, must not have thought of a team that is currently outside the range of the playoffs." The team can force them here! The West is really a forest of strong teams!"

Kobe gritted his teeth and attacked the Thunder half court. Now he directly controls the ball in his own hands! At critical moments, Kobe can ignore all tactics and has the right to fire unlimitedly! At this point, he is the same as James.

Kobe just pushed the ball beyond the three-point line, and suddenly pulled up and shot! Durant didn't react in time, but he was sure he interfered with Bryant's shot.

"Kobe shot directly! It's true! The black mamba showed his fangs!"

This is Kobe Bryant. It is not the first time he scored such an unreasonable goal.

On the Thunder's side, Westbrook and Durant were all stared at by their respective opponents. Even if Anjie wanted to pass, he couldn't get a chance.

After all, this team is still too young, and no one else can assist the third young master on the court. Facing the marking at critical moments, they still cannot effectively get rid of it.

Anjie turned his back to Gasol and tried for a long time, but his two guys still couldn't get out of the gap. At the critical moment, Van Gundy also brought up Atkins who had just joined the team, but facing Fisher's defense, his experience was very limited.

Just when An Jie was hesitating, Kobe, who had followed Durant to the bottom line, suddenly stopped and slapped An Jie on the back of his hand.

An Jie didn't realize that Kobe had rushed in front of him, so the basketball was taken away by Kobe's sudden force. But Anjie was not worried, because Kobe just made an obvious foul.

But Kobe had already run to the center line with the ball, but the referee did not respond for a long time.

"What are you doing!?" This time, even Jeff Van Gundy complained loudly from the sidelines.

However, Kobe turned a deaf ear to these voices. He went on his own offense and assisted Trevor Ariza to complete a dunk with a single pass.

"Kobe's beautiful steal! Anjie's mistake widened the point difference between the two teams to seven points!" The commentators all thought it was a beautiful steal, because the angle of the camera lens just prevented people from seeing Kobe's hands.

"That's a foul! You can't turn a blind eye!" The young An Jie didn't understand that such things often happen in the NBA, and he yelled at the referee loudly. The referee knows that he is wrong, but he can't lose his dignity and lose control of the game.

"Listen, if you yell at me again, I'll give you a technical foul." The referee said with a livid face. An Jie is not a "convict" who has never had a technical foul. Now the entire league is beginning to know that this Chinese is different from the previous ones. An Jie is not a good boy.

Atkins immediately came over and pulled Angel away. He had played for the Lakers before, and he knew how Staples whistled. An Jie's complaints here can only lead to fire.

"It's alright boy, we still have time, if you still have the strength, then go all out in the attack." Atkins patted An Jie's chest.

In the last 40 seconds, Atkins broke through with the ball, but Derek Fisher fell back, preparing to make an offensive foul by Atkins. But this time the referee gave Fisher a defensive foul and sent Atkins to the free throw line.

But Atkins, who was ordered in a critical situation, obviously hadn't found his touch yet. He only made one of two free throws, and the rebound was also obtained by Pau Gasol.

In the last half minute, the Lakers' offensive morale was high and they scored consecutively. The Thunder's three young masters were naturally unwilling to give up the game, and they all responded one after another. But after all, the gap is six points, and the time is only 3o seconds.

Unwillingly, Anjie threw the ball directly to the Lakers' basket in the backcourt. When the ball was still flying in the air, the whistle for the end of the game also sounded.

The Staples Center is boiling again. Like the Clippers last time, the Los Angeles team is still the winner of the Staples Center.

An Jie clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. If it weren't for the bias of the referee at the last moment, the result might have been very different.

This is the nba league, and the strong naturally have the privileges of the strong. Young An Jie still has a long way to go in his career. (To be continued.) 8