unfinished glory

Chapter 220 Quiz

The Grizzlies returned to the second place in the West, which made the local fans breathe a sigh of relief. The team is just adjusting, and there seems to be no problem.

But then the team will usher in another big test, at home against the Los Angeles Lakers.

After last season, the fans nicknamed these four teams the "Big 4", and the Grizzlies are one of them, because the strength of the teams that reached the Eastern and Western Conference finals was significantly higher than other teams.

This made the fans of the Grizzlies a little swollen, thinking that they were the top team in the league, and they didn't pay attention to teams with ordinary records in their words.

But this season, when the Grizzlies faced other strong teams, they didn't win a game, and they couldn't help being laughed at by fans of other teams.

This game against the Lakers is an opportunity for the Grizzlies to rectify their name. Only by winning can they show that they are still competitive.

……

The Lakers also attach great importance to this game. Facing the top three games in the East, they all won, which is also the direct factor that they are most optimistic about.

If it weren't for Kobe's stats that are not as good as James and Li Chongxiao, he should be at the top of the MVP list, not just third.

Kobe didn't think about defeating Li Chongxiao, but the Lakers must beat the Grizzlies.The teams in the east are a bit far away, and the teams in the west, looking around, only the Grizzlies can pose a threat to them.

The first confrontation between the two sides was a process of probing, and it was also a process of undermining the confidence of the other party.What's more, this kind of direct confrontation with competitors, one game can be worth two games, and whoever wins can take the lead in the competition for home court advantage in the playoffs.

At the beginning of the game, the Lakers were somewhat anti-customer-oriented, and they were more active than the Grizzlies' offense.

Kobe also changed his previous game style of playing hard at the back, and dominated the Lakers' offense as soon as he came up.His offensive state came quickly, scoring four of five consecutive shots and scoring 8 points.

The Grizzlies played a half-court offense step by step. Gasol and Li Chongxiao got a good chance. They also made four of the five shots and scored 9 points.

After the first few minutes of rushing and testing passed, the Lakers began to return to regular play.Kobe also temporarily restrained and integrated into the triangle offense.

The next game is to play their own way. The Grizzlies keep advancing according to their own routine, and the Lakers also have an offensive and defensive rhythm.

The two teams have the same fear of each other, regard each other as the biggest competitor, and have thoroughly studied each other.When the strength of the two sides is equal, it is difficult to complete their work in one battle and kill the opponent in one or two quarters.

It doesn't make much sense to fight hard and laboriously to grab the rhythm just to gain a short-term lead. It's better to save time for the last quarter.

And the tactical play of the two teams is also like this. The Grizzlies like to slow down, a bit like the Spurs in the previous seasons, just grinding, slowly digging holes for the opponent, and finally dragging down the opponent.

The Lakers are different. Their style of play is very arrogant, which is in line with the "noble" temperament of their team.In the first three quarters, he was lazy and didn't try his best, just trying not to widen the gap with his opponent.In the fourth quarter, he suddenly accelerated the pace of the game, increased the defensive intensity, and then took them away in a wave.

They have the confidence to play like this. The Lakers' defense was good at first, but now they have added Artest, which is even more powerful.The Kobe-Artest-Yao defensive triangle is too much for most teams.

On the offensive end, Kobe and Yao Ming have enough explosive scoring power to maintain their offensive firepower and open the score in one fell swoop when others do not score.

When this trick is against the Celtics, the opponent can only shoot from the outside in the last quarter; when it is against the Cavaliers, it basically locks up James; against the Magic, it is the easiest, Yao Ming can handle Howard on the inside alone. .

But facing Li Chongxiao's team, Mayfair Jackson was not sure.This man can be called the most explosive scoring player in history, who can score at any time and in any scene.

In the last game between the Grizzlies and the Suns, Li Chongxiao not only evened the 11-point difference in the last two and a half minutes, but also hit a game-winning shot in a three-man double-team. ball.The Suns' lead throughout the game turned out to be nothing.

Li Chongxiao's performance is also one of the reasons why other teams call the Grizzlies a "pseudo-strong team" this season. The No.2 in the Western Conference of the Grizzlies is based on his many last-quarter explosions and four lore wins. here.

Whenever the Grizzlies fans are proud of the team's record, there will always be fans saying: "Don't you just have Li Chongxiao?"

……

Of course, the Lakers didn't want to become another footnote of Li Chongxiao's brilliant career, so they played this game very focused, even Odom was not distracted, and when he brought a substitute, he could play well.

The Grizzlies also have the momentum to show their shame. Regardless of the main force or the substitute, they have basically experienced the battle of the Western Conference Finals last season. This game is also very active. With the mobilization of people, we can work hard to defend and actively fight.

Fans watching this game can feel the excitement. Although it is not as fast and high-scoring as the last game against the Suns, it is still more popular.Because the two teams are full of confrontation, you come and go, there are always exciting goals and exciting responses.

However, it is a little regrettable that the two top scorers, Li Chongxiao and Kobe, did not rise to the top. After three quarters, they both scored more than 20 points.

Soon the game entered the fourth quarter, and the Lakers began to increase the intensity of the game from the bench time, strengthening physical contact and confrontation.

But the Grizzlies are unafraid, single-handedly tough, and no one in the two teams can make a big deal.Even the famous "evil guy" Artest would be deflated when he met Da Ben, and he only dared to vent his anger on the fans.

The arrival of Big Ben brought this kind of tough temperament to the team, and he was not afraid of any physical contact at critical times.

The meat grinder-like style of play caused the two teams to fall into a scoring drought at the same time. They failed to score a point in 3 minutes, and the Lakers maintained a 4-point lead.

When the main players played at the same time, the offense of both sides improved. However, both sides focused their energy on defense, and the offense began to be intermittent, with one goal and one goal.

In the last 5 minutes, Li Chongxiao and Kobe stood up at the same time, and the two teams officially sounded the horn of attack:
Kobe took the lead in scoring a three-pointer against Battier's defense, and Li Chongxiao quickly responded to Artest's head.

Kobe broke through the inside line and hit the board with a high throw; Li Chongxiao made an emergency stop and made a mid-to-long-range shot.

Kobe catches the ball and hits a fadeaway jumper; Li Chongxiao makes a low-handed layup 2+1...

The well-loved high-scoring confrontation finally came. Not only the audience at the scene were tense by the changes in the situation on the field, but the audience watching the broadcast was also dizzy.

In just 4 minutes, the two faced off for seven rounds, all of which made seven shots and scored 17 points.

(End of this chapter)