Chapter 1903 Fortresses Are Often Breached From Within
"Well, Chris has said a lot, and you are very experienced. The Lakers are the best team in the league at making comebacks. There is no other team. Whether it is the regular season, the playoffs, or even the finals, once you are careless, If a flaw is exposed, they will pounce on it without hesitation. James is not very good. He is leading more than us in the finals, but so what, the Lakers still came back. They even completed a 30-point victory last season. Super reversal.”
"So 14 points is nothing. We still have to play according to our rhythm and cannot give the Lakers any chance. Victory belongs to us!"
Clippers head coach Negro is very satisfied with the reaction from the players. He is also an old rival of the Lakers. Naturally, he has studied many classic Lakers comeback games. Basically, they were all comebacks completed in the second half when the opponent was careless because of the lead. So it is naturally impossible for him to let his team make such mistakes again.
The Clippers players also know this very well. After all, they are all old victims. Billups and Paul were both reversed by the Lakers in their respective teams. Although the Clippers players did not have such experience before because they were too weak, they He is also the one who most wants to defeat the Lakers at home, especially Griffin. He has been thinking about it for who knows how long, so naturally he will not be careless anymore.
So in the third quarter, the Clippers not only did not rotate any of their main players, but also increased their defensive efforts, especially inside. Griffin knew that he was being targeted tonight, so he simply started to defend hard. This made the first 5 players in the third quarter After half a minute, the Lakers not only failed to narrow the gap, but also lost by 3 points again. The point difference was widened to 17 points at the first official timeout of the third quarter.
"They played well today." On the bench, Ji Feng, who had just led the team for half a quarter, said with a sip of water.
They did change their tactics during the halftime break, striving to complete the reversal in the second half. Jackson also fielded a smaller lineup, with Jordan Hill and Powell, two more athletic players, on the inside, and Ji Feng and Kobe on the outside. Rhythm, Farmar fired from outside.
This is indeed a good way to chase points. As long as you seize the opportunity to counterattack, it is easy to achieve a climax in a short period of time.
But I didn't expect that the Clippers played really... so steadily!
The Clippers averaged 106 points per game this season, ranking second behind the Lakers in the Western Conference. The same is true for fast breaks. Their fast break level is very high. After all, they have two super guards and an inside man who can run and jump. The fast break success rate is very high.
But in this game, the Clippers didn't fast break at all. In the round just before the timeout, the Lakers hit the iron and the Clippers protected the rebounds. They could obviously play fast, but Paul directly pressed the rhythm, and Griffin even shouted Saying: "Don't give it to me, steady!"
It almost makes people feel like the Clippers are possessed by the Spurs!
Even O'Neal felt that this was ridiculously stable. In order not to give the Lakers a chance, the Clippers even gave up their own scoring opportunities!
The on-site commentator expressed his understanding and support: "In order to win, these tasks are necessary."
And this round is the epitome of the third quarter to the present. No matter how Ji Feng provokes or how vigorously he plays, the Clippers are unmoved. They can play for 24 seconds and will never play for 20 seconds. Even if they don't shoot, they will not. Don't give the Lakers a chance for a fast break because of random shots.
And when he was in position, he was also playing inside. Griffin was attacking one by one, or Butler and Paul were picking and rolling. In short, it was a sure win.
The Lakers then made substitutions, but due to the low shooting rate, they were unable to open up the situation. Instead, they were beaten several times by the Clippers, and the Zen Master had to call a timeout.
The ESPN commentator also said with emotion: "If this game continues like this, the Lakers may not be able to come back."
At this time, even Ji Feng was a little vague. Their shooting percentage was really bad tonight. They have made 4 three-pointers from outside the three-point line so far, but they took 14 shots, and their shooting percentage was the lowest in the season. Sure enough, after 11 consecutive victories, they encountered a cold night. Since the Clippers tried their best to shrink the inside line, and they had the rim-protecting monster DeAndre Jordan, their efficiency in attacking the inside line was average.
Until now, only Ji Feng has a good efficiency. He made 6 of 10 shots, 2 of 4 three-pointers, and 6 of 6 free throws. He scored 20 points, 6 assists and 7 rebounds. The highest score among the others was only Kobe's 11. It's just points. Gasol and Bynum didn't score in double figures. They couldn't open up from the outside and had no rhythm...
"Could it be that...the winning streak is going to stop here?" Ji Feng touched his chin. It was not impossible. Losing one game after 11 consecutive wins was normal and in line with the theme of their season. However, losing to the Clippers This mortal enemy in the same city is so unhappy no matter what he thinks!
But now is there any way to defeat the enemy...
"Tonight our tactic was to stick to the inside. Griffin and DeAndre Jordan didn't play much. They defended well, but the two guys on the outside opened up. To be honest, it would be outrageous to put Paul and Billups on the same team. Ah, strangling the backcourt is impossible, not to mention there is a guy on the bench who can’t pass the ball..."
"But it's difficult to comeback if you don't guard the perimeter... You can confirm it today. The Clippers' perimeter is much more important than the two stupid big guys inside. Although the limelight comes from the inside, the outside is the core, otherwise it will be like DeAndre Jordan. He can only dunk, but can't do anything else, and he can't even make free throws..."
"Huh? Free throw?! Little Jordan!"
Ji Feng's mind instantly thought of the famous showmanship tactic...
"Coach, I think we can try this tactic!" Ji Feng interrupted Zen Master at the last moment of the timeout, and then spoke his thoughts in Zen Master's ear.
I saw the Zen Master's eyes getting brighter and brighter, and then with a wave of his hand, he replaced four substitutes, Barnes, Jordan Hill, Farmar, and Powell, leaving only Ji Feng as a starter.
They obviously came with a mission, and each gave the other a knowing look before taking the field.
"Oh, are the Lakers going to let go? Only Ji Feng is left on the court. Hey, this game is not going to be easy." Yu Jia said after seeing the Lakers lineup.
The Clippers thought the same way, and Paul even started high-fiving his teammates. Finally, they were finally going to win!
The first attack belonged to the Lakers. Ji Feng didn't cooperate with the ball. He hit the mid-range ball through the pick-and-roll. The Clippers accepted it. This lineup obviously wanted Ji Feng to fight to the end alone. It didn't matter. Let Ji Feng Just score.
On the offensive end, the Clippers are still solid. Paul passed halftime and directed the players to get into position. Although the Lakers played four main players, the Clippers still had no intention of relaxing. However...
As soon as Paul was about to hit the ball to the inside, the referee's whistle sounded. As the inside moved to cover, Powell pulled Jordan for a foul. Since the Lakers had accumulated more than 4 times, Jordan went to the free throw line.
"Not bad!" At this time, Negro also praised Jordan. However, at the free throw line, Jordan missed both free throws. The Lakers seized the opportunity and Ji Feng scored two more points on the fast break!
The score difference returned to 13 points.