NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 732 The Clown Dances (Daily Chapter)
On Tuesday, June 2010, 6, when the game started at 8 p.m., the Staples Center was still the same as usual. Under the "dark curtain", most Los Angeles fans lacked energy after the game started.

The reason why the atmosphere in the stadium was so bad was mainly because the home team performed so badly. In a life-and-death battle, Kobe missed every shot in the first quarter.

Mamba's steady shooting allowed the Knicks to repeatedly launch transition offenses. If it weren't for Tim Duncan's desperate rush for the frontcourt rebound and Odom's seizing of the open space, the game might have been lost in one quarter.

"Shhh!!"

Boos resounded throughout the arena again. The Knicks' Diaw, who had just come off the bench, caused Odom to be fouled. The penalty kick was added, prompting Phil Jackson on the sidelines to quickly warn him loudly:
"Stay focused!"

While giving a loud reminder, he signaled Farmar to replace Fisher. The old man from KFC was planning to maximize the playing time of the core players. If they didn't fight hard, they would have no chance.

As the Frenchman was shooting free throws, boos continued in the arena. On the ABC commentary stand, Mark Jackson was speechless. He really didn't expect Kobe to be in such a bad state:
"Kobe only scored 6 points so far, with 1 of 2 shots and 1 of 3 free throws in a single quarter. He cannot lead the team to win this crucial game with such performance!"

"Maybe the finger injury affected his shooting, but in my opinion, Kobe's inefficiency is mainly because he has difficulty getting rid of Lee's defense."

Diaw made both free throws, and Jeff Van Gundy took another look at the box score and added:

"The Lakers should be thankful that the defending champions have made 8 of 2 three-pointers tonight. In addition to Lee, only Matthews, who came off the bench, made contributions from beyond the three-point line."

"The defending champions have widened the gap to 8 points, which is a very dangerous score!"

Most of the Los Angeles stars sitting in the front row didn't care about the score. Only Nicholson looked unhappy. Fortunately, the old guy was wearing sunglasses, which concealed most of his emotions.

Los Angeles fans who wanted to speak out sat in the back row. The atmosphere was depressing. In their first home game after returning home, the Lakers seemed to be surrendering early. The Knicks players who were retreating couldn't help but smile.

Amid cheers, Farmar dribbled across half court and passed the ball to Kobe who was bouncing out. On the right wing, Mamba, with an angry look on his face, swept the ball continuously, then quickly released the ball with his right hand, trying to complete a breakthrough.

"Hey!!"

Head coach D'Antoni and the Knicks atmosphere team on the sidelines stood up, shouted and made traveling gestures. This was not the first time Mamba had initiated a traveling gesture, but the referee signaled for the game to continue.

Kobe barely squeezed out half of the opponent's back by taking a walking step, and his forced breakthrough was quickly stopped by Li You. Mamba had to stop, turn around to protect the ball, and then started to play continuously after switching to his left hand.

Kobe accelerated and tried to break through. When he rushed to the paint area, he was cut by Li You just after he started. He screamed, but the referee ignored him.

Amid exclamations, Odom controlled the ball before Dio, returned to the three-point line, immediately waved to Kobe to leave, and then passed the ball to Duncan who was facing away.

There were only 6 seconds left in the attack, but Duncan still did not choose to jump shot. After releasing the ball with his right hand, he rushed to the basket against Gasol. While moving, he turned like a gyroscope and stuck in position, and made a layup with the ball on the bottom left side of the basket!

At 28:22, Duncan, who scored the goal, glared and pumped his fist, and while retreating, he did not forget to loudly encourage his teammates.

"Defense!."

Defensive cheers rang out again in the stadium. Odom followed Dio to the free throw line and hesitated for a moment. Kobe on the left wing kept rushing to the ball, and the Lakers' defensive focus shifted.

Duncan moved to the basket and saw Li You stop, so he quickly squeezed to Gasol's side. When Odom stepped forward to double-team him, Dio easily caught the ball at the top of the arc.

It was too late to return to defense, the Frenchman took the ball and broke through. For a moment, the Lakers' defense began to shrink again. Barnes in the right corner strode to fill the position, and soon the ball flew into the hands of Marion in the corner.

The veteran did not choose to shoot. He received the ball and broke through. Gasol had already blocked Duncan under the basket. Marion shook off Barnes and made an easy layup.

"What the hell are you doing!**"

Furious, Kobe loudly criticized Farmar's defense in this round. He failed to provide assisting defense immediately after coming on the court, and made a mistake as a substitute, which made Mamba even angrier.

"We can't play! The Lakers are going to collapse. The gap is too big. None of Kobe's attacks in the first quarter were reasonable."

On the CCTV commentary stand, Zhang Weiping was wearing headphones. When he saw Kobe dribbling the ball across half court, he started to attack. The old man couldn't bear to watch the Mamba attack until he passed the ball, then he stopped talking.

Duncan received the ball in the right elbow area. Kobe wanted to catch the ball again but didn't get a good chance. For a while, the Lakers' offense stagnated again, and everyone watched the big man playing one-on-one in the high position.

He attacked with the ball, leaned over and shot with his left hand in the paint area but missed. The Lakers fans sighed, but Odom under the basket committed a foul.

Looking at the referee, Dio, with his hands on his hips, was somewhat helpless. This was almost a "must-have" in every game. The Lakers were able to score 20 free throws in the first half.
Odom, who kept wiping his sweat, also tried his best tonight. After high-fiving Duncan, he patted his chest and encouraged loudly:
"Bro, that's it!"

Fisher on the bench put his hands together and shouted loudly. The old fish performed well, making 4 of 2 shots and scoring 4 points with two jump shots. He was also very successful in defending JR Smith.

The Lakers encouraged each other. Outside the three-point line, Li You looked relaxed, and Scott Foster was whispering to the side:
"This is the home advantage, Li, you should understand the scale tonight, Mike has to understand our job"

The mustache guy complained about Kobe's traveling at the start of the game, and was also very dissatisfied with the call for rookie Ibaka. He was the only soft persimmon in this series and was repeatedly bullied. In the away game, he had less than two fouls in half a quarter.

"Looks like they don't stand a chance tonight!"

Odom missed both free throws. Li You ran towards half court while responding to Scott Foster who was following him. The latter came to half court and raised his eyebrows helplessly. The Lakers' poor performance put a lot of pressure on them!
Dio passed the ball to Li You as he crossed half court. Gasol received the ball at the top of the arc and pretended to pass it. After the Frenchman cut in and took away Odom, he immediately turned sideways and let Li You take over the ball again.

Kobe didn't dare to stick to him too closely, as he was worried that Li You would run back, so he kept controlling the defensive distance. At this time, Li You passed the ball to Mamba, and Mamba could only rely on his teammates to help defend and fill in the position in time.

When Gasol passed the ball to the left blocking area, close to the right elbow area, Li You was about to be surrounded by three people. He jumped up to pass the ball, and Kobe almost intercepted it.

"Oh"

The Los Angeles fans at the scene couldn't help but sigh with regret when they saw Gasol controlling the ball. At this time, Li You, who had no ball, accelerated his lateral movement again, and Kobe, who was chasing him, bumped into the big man.

Gasol staggered and passed the ball to the left sideline. Li You received the ball and was left unguarded. He made a steady three-pointer from an open position!
"Shhh!!"

Boos resounded throughout the arena again. Gasol, rubbing his thigh, pushed Kobe away angrily. Seeing that Kobe was still glaring at him, he immediately lowered his head and shouted:
"Don't look at me, I'll help you wimps save money on plane tickets!"

"Get the hell out of here! Who do you think you are?"

An angry Kobe elbowed Gasol away. As the two pushed each other, the Spanish big man kept muttering to himself. After being pulled apart by two referees, he simply raised his hands and put up eight fingers.

Although Gasol, who owns seven rings, borrowed one, this move made Kobe and Duncan very angry. The two of them only have one ring together, while the opponents' hands are almost full of them!
31:22, Li You, who was having fun, also smiled.

On the bench, the atmosphere group also laughed, and Ben Wallace even used his elbows and shouted:

"Show that clown some skin!"

Kobe, who broke through the defense, tried to elbow his way out during the offense. As soon as his ball protector swung his hand, he was pushed out of the sideline by Li You. Mamba fell into the audience, stood up and wanted to launch a charge.

The Los Angeles fans at the scene finally came to life and shouted loudly, but the furious Kobe was hugged by Barnes.

The "gunpowder smell" between the two sides gradually increased. In the last round, Gasol's "8 rings" were so lethal that when Kobe walked to the free throw line, he was still staring and kept responding:
"I'm a champion guard! I'm the best shooting guard in the league. What qualifications do you have to point the finger at me?"

"You're just a wimp!"

Gasol next to the paint area also responded with a glare, and the referee had to warn the two again. Seeing this scene, Zhang Weiping on the CCTV commentary seat also started to bring up the past:

"In the 08 Olympics, if Gasol hadn't been injured in that collision, the US team might not have won the championship. At that time, Kobe just played recklessly and couldn't even open up a gap in the fourth quarter!"

"The referees tonight are interesting. Dan Crawford, Joe Crawford, and Scott Foster. These three have refereed too many finals."

"But the Knicks are not afraid of this standard at all. Li You still responded after falling, but Kobe doesn't have this ability."

Mamba made one of two free throws, allowing the old man to lose a lot of points. As the referee blew the whistle again, Yang Yi quickly took over the conversation and talked about the trend of the game again:

"Another free throw for Li You, a foul on Farmar. If the Lakers continue to play like this, they will most likely be punished. This is exactly the same as the previous two games."

"There are 6 players in rotation tonight. Phil Jackson doesn't seem to plan to let the main players rest for too long. Coach Zhang, do you think the Lakers will have a surprise player?"

Yang Jian then threw the question to the old man. Zhang Weiping glanced at the technical statistics and thought of Phil Jackson's retirement announcement before the game. He couldn't help but sigh:
"There really is no one left. Vujacic may play for a while. There was also Shannon Brown in the regular season, but he is useless now. Once the score difference exceeds 10 points, the game is basically over."

"It's still Kobe's problem. The core can't respond. He is 31 years old and in his prime. Except for his posture, he is nothing like Michael Jordan."

When Kobe missed his last three-point shot, Zhang Weiping was too lazy to respond. The score was 33:23, just 10 points difference. He firmly believed that the Lakers were finished.

The Staples Center is getting quieter. Although the 10-point difference is not big, old fans have witnessed too many such games. In terms of control, no one in the league can compare to the Knicks.
Some fans sitting in the back rows even began to cover their faces. During the break, only the stars on TV continued to smile.

After the second quarter started, the Knicks continued to rotate as planned. Duncan and Kobe only rested for more than a minute before returning to the court. The extreme rotation made Jeff Van Gundy frown:
"The Lakers always encountered problems in the second half with such adjustments. They collapsed in the fourth quarter of Game 1 and were beaten by their opponents in the third quarter of Game 2."

Mark Jackson on the side had a different view. Perhaps it was because Phil Jackson's retirement announcement before the game made the retired veteran feel the same way. He said with a sad tone:

"The Lakers have no way out. It is clear that Phil Jackson has gambled everything. If they lose Game 3, they will most likely be swept." "The Knicks' lineup depth is enviable"

After losing the backcourt rebounds for two consecutive rounds, Duncan on the court shouted angrily. Ibaka grabbed the rebound and threw it outside, and the Knicks organized continuous attacks.

With the help of Gasol's screen, Chalmers moved laterally to get rid of the defense, stepped back and made a jump shot from the left wing. Fisher's defense was in vain and the basketball went into the net!
The excited rookie jumped up and down, the score difference reached 11 points, and Kobe, who received the ball, was so angry that he smashed the ball hard. Fortunately, he finally found his touch in the offensive round and made a quick jump shot near the free throw line.

The two sides fought for more than 4 minutes. With Li You's return, the rhythm of the game stabilized again. Although the confrontation between the two sides became more and more intense, the score difference never narrowed.

With 1 minute and 42 seconds left in the first half, Kobe made a series of back-to-back shots in the left blocking zone, but was suddenly met with help from Marion.

Li You pushed hard from behind, and Marion interfered with his long arms. Under the siege of the two, Kobe, who turned towards the baseline, couldn't see the basket at all. Mamba didn't pass the ball, but leaned back and shot the ball, which hit the side of the backboard.

"Shet!"

Amid the boos, Duncan cursed under the basket, and when he returned to defense, he loudly signaled Kobe to pass the ball in time. Mamba had a furious look on his face and bared his teeth while defending, but as a result, the right wing was forced to pull and committed a foul.

Unable to keep up at all, Kobe gasped for breath. He didn't want to believe that the gap was so big that Li You's ordinary acceleration could shake off his defense.

The first half of three consecutive games were exactly the same, with frequent whistles, a poor viewing experience, and no fancy offense. The Lakers' style of play became uglier as the game progressed.

The ball was kicked out from the sideline, Fisher cooperated with double-teaming again, and Li You promptly passed the ball back to JR Smith at the top of the arc. The latter threw the three-pointer as soon as he received it and it went into the net!
"The three-point shot is on! The Lakers can't hold on any longer, the game is over!"

Watching J.R. Smith high-fiving Li You, Zhang Weiping, on the CCTV commentary stand, began a new round of output. Noticing Kobe's sudden stop near the right sideline and missed a long two-pointer, he immediately added:
"Still playing randomly! Kobe really can't get through, Li You's defense is like a solid wall, DPOY is awesome!"

Unable to grab the rebound, Duncan angrily high-fived as he retreated. He could feel that the team was collapsing. It was clearly a life-and-death battle, but his teammates were in poor form.

By the time the Knicks were making their final attack, Kobe, who was defending Li You, no longer dared to foul. In the center circle, facing a three-man siege, Li You rode his horse and shot the ball out.

"Oh!!"

The lights came on when the ball went in, and the New York fans at the scene stood up and celebrated wildly. 59:45, the score difference was 14 points, and the game was secured!

Duncan had a blank expression on his face as he quickly walked towards the player tunnel. The Lakers players following him all looked frustrated, and everyone had lost confidence in the game.

The Knicks players behind him were still celebrating happily around Li You. Kobe, who was lagging behind, pursed his lips. He made 13 of 3 shots in the first half and 4 of 3 free throws. He scored 9 points but was still lame.
"Lee showed us DPOY-level defense! Kobe seemed to have no way out."

"I think it was the sheer difference in strength between the players. Lee dominated the game on both offense and defense."

Jeff Van Gundy started his routine praise again, Mike Breen was also smiling, the 14-point difference in the first two games was more stable, and the awards will be presented the day after tomorrow:
"Feel sorry for Duncan, he made 14 of 7 shots and contributed a team-high 19 points. His 4 offensive rebounds were impressive. He gave everything for this game!"

"."

In the Lakers locker room, Phil Jackson, holding his waist, was already in despair. He didn't expect Kobe to rebound at all. It was very likely that Mamba would go all the way tonight.

The "chicken soup" was no longer delicious, and no one spoke. Duncan lowered his head and stared at his hands. His teammates who saw this scene didn't know how to comfort him.

After the second half of the game started, the Staples Center was filled with cheers from New York fans. This year, a large number of fans came to witness the championship. When they got the match point, everyone couldn't wait to present the awards.

Duncan still didn't give up. The Lakers' shooting was not good. Under his leadership, everyone started to rush for rebounds.

There were more and more physical confrontations and the referee started to blow the whistle again. The score difference was always fluctuating around 11 points. The anxious Duncan completely broke down and, completely changing his usual expressionless image, he complained loudly to the referee for several rounds in a row.

Kobe was sweating profusely after missing his shots, and Mamba wished he could use the art of splitting himself. It seemed as if his "mortal enemy's" stamina bar had no end, and his speed was getting faster and faster.

At the end of the third quarter, the Lakers' perimeter defense had completely collapsed, and Li You was always able to break through the double-team and pass through the gaps between people.

There were problems with the backcourt rebounds again. Facing the Knicks' fierce attack, Phil Jackson could only roar loudly.

With 3 seconds left in the third quarter, Kobe was dribbled past on the right wing. It was too late for Odom to retreat to the basket and he watched Li You layup with one hand.

A dull attack suddenly took a dramatic turn. Duncan, who was near the left baseline, suddenly quickened his pace, looked at the basket and stretched out his right foot.

The whole movement was smooth and extremely fast, and exclamations soon rang out in the stadium. Li You, who landed, knocked down Odom on the other side, who leaned forward and fell on Kobe.

"OH-! GOD!"

In the commentary booth, Mike Breen exclaimed like many fans. Li You on the floor was holding his right foot with a painful look on his face. On the other side, Kobe was rolling over, holding his left knee and slapping the floor in pain.

Three people fell to the ground in one round, and Duncan, who received the ball, was also stepped on and crippled. He was now staggering and holding on to the basketball hoop.

It happened so fast that the referee was stunned. When he saw all the Knicks players rushing over, he rushed over.

"Fuck! You did it on purpose, you bastard!"

Gasol saw clearly that although MVP did not look at the person when he stretched out his feet, his pace was wrong. When the Knicks players heard this, they immediately charged forward without seeing what was happening.

The Staples Center was finally boiling at this time, especially when Gazuric rushed behind Duncan and directly choked him. The violent conflict made the shouting unable to stop.

The scene was in chaos. The medical staff of both teams waved their hands at the same time. Odom saw Kobe holding his knee and gasping for breath in pain, and for a moment he didn't know how to comfort him.

Subconsciously turning his head, Odom was stunned to see Li You standing up and stomping his feet. He even thought he was hallucinating because he just saw his ankle turned almost 90 degrees.

"Fuck! I can still go on!"

After the pain passed, Li You was about to tie his shoelaces tightly to teach his opponent a lesson, but he was almost tricked due to his carelessness. The opponent's skills were indeed excellent and his sense of positioning was great. He cursed in anger and turned around to raise his eyebrows at his younger brothers.

However, the team doctor firmly disagreed, especially when he saw that Li You was limping a little, he hurriedly called the coaching staff.

On the other side, James Dolan didn't care about yelling and cursing anymore. He came to the player tunnel with a red face and asked the team staff to ask Li You to come back for inspection.

Security personnel pulled Duncan and others out of the crowd in time. The Lakers had already carried Kobe out on a stretcher, and the two team doctors of the Knicks also carried Li You to the player tunnel.

On the Lakers bench, Bruce Bowen was also stunned. Duncan's precise positioning was better than his. He didn't expect that his old teammate would actually do it.

I don't know who punched him twice, but Duncan's face turned red. However, when he sat down, his eyes were full of fighting spirit. He didn't care about Kobe, but shouted to everyone:

"The game isn't over yet! Lamar, we're in zone defense, give me the ball!"

"."

The big screen above the stadium was still replaying the accident that had just happened. Li You's ankle was sprained and Kobe's knee seemed to be extended. Both of their injuries looked very serious.

Phil Jackson came back to his senses and became alert. He called out to everyone and began to arrange tactics. Only Odom's eyes were still wide open, and he muttered subconsciously:
"monster"

At the end of the third quarter, although the Lakers were still trailing by 3 points, the situation on the court suddenly changed, and the game was completely out of control after the start of the last quarter.

The moves of the players on both sides became more and more exaggerated. Duncan showed his MVP style. After elbowing Gasol, he fought against Ben Wallace who came on as a substitute.

Such a fierce attack made the Knicks assistant coaches unable to hold back. Charles Oakley was just eye-opening. The old guy saw MVP doing the dirty work and finally yelled in anger:
"Niko! Watch your legs!"

Oakley's ejection did not affect Duncan. Vujacic, who replaced Kobe, made consecutive three-pointers with the leadership of the MVP and Fisher.

Duncan seemed to have taken stimulants, constantly helping the team narrow the gap. After being stabbed in the eye by Ben Wallace, he squinted his eyes and made both free throws.

Demonstrating his superstar physique, the "durable" Duncan led the Lakers to tie the score. With 58 seconds left in the game, he tilted his body and threw in a three-pointer from the top of the arc.

"what!!"

Punching his fist and roaring, Duncan, who was having a bad time, released his emotions to the fullest. The Knicks failed to complete the response at the last moment, and the Staples Center was boiling.

105:109, amid cheers, Duncan threw the ball into the air, his face full of anger and he yelled:

"I won! I did it!!"

"."

(End of this chapter)