I just play ball

Chapter 91 All-Star Lineup

"He used to be good at scoring, creating offensive opportunities for his teammates, and analyzing the opponent's technical characteristics, and now he is proficient at how to guide his teammates' emotions and help them play a stronger role, like a veteran who has been fighting for many years like Billups. , This is very rare." Assistant coach Clifford said, "And he never backs down, never complains, and always goes all out."

"The most difficult thing is that he is willing to trust his teammates," assistant coach Darwin said. "Many stars have long since given up."

"Compared to the final result," D'Antoni added to the discussion, "maybe this is the biggest gain of the night."

After the words fell, everyone on the bench nodded silently. The Lakers lost three main players. It is definitely luck to win, and it is normal to lose. But Li Yue has made such progress, and the next game for the Lakers is bright.

As time passed, the two teams finished the first quarter of the game, and the Lakers were only one point behind the Spurs.

The coaching staff summarized and emphasized various key points, and D'Antoni specifically comforted Goodlock not to be nervous about previous mistakes.

After the start of the second quarter, according to the rotation practice, Li Yue and Gasol sat on the sidelines to rest, and Howard led the team first.

As expected, except for Howard's advantage at the center position, the Lakers' other positions were crushed. The Spurs' lead quickly reached 8 points, and D'Antoni was forced to send Li Yue and Gasol in advance.

Popovich didn't try his best, and then replaced Duncan and Parker. The main players of the two sides canceled each other out.

In this way, the two teams finished halftime, and the Lakers were still 8 points behind.

The Lakers returned to the locker room and learned that Blake was also injured, but the degree was much milder than that of Kobe, and he could catch up with the game after two games of rest. The slightly depressed atmosphere was swept away.

Sitting in the locker room, Li Yue watched the ESPN live broadcast and found that Mike Brin and Jeff Van Gundy praised him like a torrential river. Kobe also took the initiative to mention him in an interview, thinking that his performance was perfect.

During the break, general manager Kubchak came to the locker room and told the whole team that regardless of the result of the game, they would have a dinner party as planned after the game to relax the team's tense nerves and make full preparations for the next game.

After listening to the summary of the first half and the prospect of the second half, the whole team returned to the court ahead of time and warmed up shooting as usual. Many spectators shouted in unison, demanding that Li Yue and others must stop playing. The result of this game is not important. Don't try to get hurt.

Li Yue told his teammates, don't care what the fans say, just play as you want.

In the third quarter, the leading Spurs did not relax in the slightest. Popovich even let the main players such as Duncan and Parker play a few more minutes, as if it was the last game, and the Lakers could only catch up.

By the fourth quarter, the impact of the one-day gap between the two teams G2 and G3 was fully revealed.

The number of turnovers of the two teams increased sharply, the shooting percentage dropped sharply, and the high-level confrontation turned into a low-level mutual pecking.

However, the Spurs relied on slowing down the offensive rhythm, mainly relying on Parker and Duncan's high and low connections to score slowly, but the Lakers could only rely on Li Yue's post-up singles. At the beginning of the game, he performed post-up singles, did not consume too much energy, and could always hit the ball in time.

...

With Parker hitting a long two-pointer, the Spurs led 101 to 95 with the last 2 minutes left in the game.

The Lakers asked for a timeout, the audience stood up and applauded, and the BGM of "Never Give Up" sounded in the arena.

ESPN commentary seats.

Brin looked up at the big screen in the center of the court, "28 points plus 15 assists, at first glance, I don't think it's that great, but when you think about it, it's terrible. He's just a 21-year-old rookie player, God!"

"It's only an average performance for him. In addition, he made more turnovers than before tonight, which can even be said to be abnormal," Van Gundy smiled badly. "He has made us very critical."

"Back to the previous topic, how do you think the two teams will handle the last 2 minutes?" Brin asked.

"Howard had 5 fouls and Gasol had 4 fouls. The Spurs will [-]% attack the inside." Van Gundy put away his smile. "It's hard to say on the defensive end, because the initiative is in the hands of Li Yue."

...

The whistle sounded and the timeout ended.

The Lakers attacked, and Goodlock caught the ball in the backcourt and advanced.

Li Yue ran to the right waist ahead of time. Seeing that his defender was replaced by Leonard, he hesitated for a while and bent his back. After some fighting, he finally got stuck in his position, but just as he raised his right hand high to ask for the ball, an overwhelming force passed again. to the waist.

After receiving the pass, Li Yue feinted and quickly turned around to slip to the baseline, intending to pull the Spurs' defensive formation first.

It was thought that Duncan gave up Howard without hesitation to double-team, joined Leonard to block two paths, and blocked all passing routes by the way, almost putting him in a desperate situation.

Li Yue turned his head quickly, held the ball with both hands, retreated to the right corner, and threw the ball to the right wing before Leonard was close to him.

Because the players on the field paid attention all the time, his passing action was equivalent to an announcement, and Parker and Goodlock scrambled into a ball.

Li Yue rushed up, caught the pass and hugged it with both hands, jumped between Parker and Leonard, jumped to the right elbow, and was blocked by Duncan and Splitter without warning. Pass the ball to Artest at the top of the arc.

Artest took the ball and pretended to raise his hand, Green was not tricked into taking off, and the Lakers' offense stagnated.

Li Yue hurried back to the right waist, caught the ball again and hit back, with only 8 seconds left in the attack time.

Leonard defended sideways, blocked the route to the free throw line, and actively left space on the baseline.

Li Yue swayed several times in a row and turned back, but stopped in the middle of the turn, and turned forward with his left foot as the axis.

Generally, in this situation, the ball holder has a 90% probability of jumping and shooting, because there is no way to go forward, the speed slows down, and a strong collision is easy to be blocked, unless he has a height advantage and a hook shot.

Li Yue has a 2 cm height advantage, but his wingspan is much shorter than Leonard's, so he dare not take risks.

Parker noticed this, and couldn't help turning around slightly, showing a look of wanting to help defend.

Seeing this, Li Yue's eyes hinted that Goodlock knew how to start and rushed to the bottom corner. At this time, the attack time was only 3 seconds.

Parker failed to react at the first moment, Li Yue took the opportunity to take a step back, handed the ball to Goodlock, and erected a wall to stand still, spreading his hands to block Leonard and Parker from delaying.

Goodlock received the ball, calmly raised his head and aimed at the basket to take off, and made a steady three-pointer.

Swish!The basketball was hollow into the net, and the 24-second offensive violation sounded at the same time. The Lakers chased 98 to 101.

The audience cheered and shouted, Li Yue turned and retreated, and gave Goodlock a high-five in the air.

"The MVP of the Development League is also capable. Goodlock has made 7 of 4 three-pointers so far, which fully reflects why Li Yue encouraged him like that. This goal is very important to the Lakers."

"I used to like this kind of player when I was a coach. There must be teams willing to sign in the summer."

...

The Spurs attacked, Parker brought the ball to the top of the arc, used the cover of Splitter to rush into the inside line, faced with Howard and Goodlock's double attack, braked to slow down and transferred to the right wing, and passed the ball to the right waist.

Duncan caught the ball and hit Howard on the side. There were no complicated technical moves, just a strong head.

Howard didn't dare to take 5 fouls on his back, so he could only retreat with the rhythm, always ready to take off and block shots.

Where did Duncan give a chance, after adjusting his posture, he turned around 45 degrees skillfully and hit the board.

Howard jumped high to no avail, the basketball rebounded and hit the rebound, and the Spurs led 103 to 98.

Howard gritted his teeth, picked up the basketball angrily, and strode back out of bounds to serve.

The Lakers attacked, and Li Yue, uncharacteristically, chose to settle on the left elbow.

But Leonard also did not take the usual route, instead going around the front to interfere with the pass.Goodlock's scoring ability is not bad, but his passing ability is far inferior to Nash and Blake's. When he brought the ball to the top of the arc, he saw that the two were desperately stuck, so he didn't dare to pass for a while.

Gasol quickly raised his hands to respond, holding the ball with both hands high, and turned his head to observe.

Li Yue ran back decisively, gave up the card and changed it to the card, received a pass from Gasol, and rushed down to the basket.Leonard chased after him, Duncan shrunk and intercepted while blocking the passing route with his hands down, the defense was airtight.

In the blink of an eye, Li Yue forcibly braked, caught Duncan taking one more step and could not quickly lower his center of gravity to steal that little time, separated Leonard sideways to grab that little space, and hit the ground vigorously to pass the ball to the top of the arc.

Gasol receives a pass back and makes an open shot.

The basketball crashed into the net, and the Lakers fell behind 100 to 103.

At this time, with 1 minute and 05 seconds left before the end of the game, Popovich did not request a timeout.

"I'm so conflicted and entangled. I really want to see the Lakers lead 3-0, but I don't want to see the Spurs trail 0-3." Brin shook his head again and again, "The game between the two teams can be called the second best series in recent years. I don't want them to end so soon."

"Actually, it's nothing. Even if the Lakers lead 3-0, they are not as stable as 3-0 leads in other series. They are indeed more lucky." Van Gundy waved his hand, "The Spurs will fight to the end. Duncan has experienced too much."

...

The Spurs attacked, Parker dribbled the ball across the center line, passed it to Leonard on the left, and quickly ran to the center.

Leonard took the ball in a three-threat pose, stepped forward and tried for a while, and then rushed to the top of the arc with the ball.

Artest's pursuit was delayed by Duncan's screen, and Gasol hurriedly switched defenses to intercept, but Leonard seemed to enter no man's land, collecting the ball without any scruples and taking off, gliding in the air with his right hand, clearly wanting to chop with one hand buckle.

How can he bear this?
What's more, it's the last critical moment!
Gasol then took off and reached out to block.

Beep!The referee blew his whistle for a foul.

The audience also booed directly.

Leonard stood on the free throw line and made the first free throw steadily.

The boos became even more violent, and several spectators behind the rack chanted, "Kawhi, the rookie contract is over and he's back to play in Los Angeles."

Li Yue wanted to laugh when he heard it, what kind of trash talk is this?

I thought, Leonard smashed the basket for the second free throw, Howard grabbed the rebound, and the Lakers launched a counterattack.

Li Yue rushed to the left elbow and settled down. Before Leonard returned to the defense, he stuck Green sideways. After receiving the pass from Goodlock, he immediately turned back and faced the Spurs. He ran in a circle to the short corner on the right, stopped abruptly and raised his hand towards the right wing, clearly wanting to pass the ball to reorganize the attack.

The Spurs players spread out one after another and prepared to man-to-man. In that instant, a big gap appeared in the middle of the encircling trio. Li Yue ignored the people and directly hit the ball in the middle. Frustrated, he found an outlet, jumped up on the spot as if returning to the peak, and smashed the basket with one hand like a superman.

bang bang bang!The basketball rebounded continuously and fell into the Nets. The Lakers chased 102 to 104.

At this time, with 32 seconds left before the end of the game, Popovich requested a timeout.

"Wonderful, isn't it? If this is the Finals, it's enough to surpass the 11-year Heat against the Mavericks." Brin exclaimed, "Who would have thought that Kobe and Nash missed two consecutive games, and the Lakers would force the Spurs under the leadership of Li Yue?" This level!"

"In fact, Kobe and Nash are absent, and the Lakers still have an All-Star lineup." Van Gundy has a serious face, "Gasol has four All-Star substitutes, Howard has started for All-Stars for six consecutive years, and only a few players play in the playoffs. The Spurs lineup Didn't take much advantage, and Manu Ginobili played abnormally, averaging only 4 points and 6 assists per game."

...

The time-out is over and the game continues.

The Spurs kicked off the ball from the sideline of the front court, and after some complicated moves, Parker received the ball at the top of the arc to organize the offense.

After a few runs without the ball, Duncan and Splitter double-blocked at high positions. Parker took the opportunity to rush to the inside. Goodlock and Gasol were both blocked. build.

But Parker did not throw the shot, but a two-stage shot, and the crisp sound of thugs could be heard in the audience.

The referee whistled, and Howard got his sixth personal foul, squatting down with his head in his hands, his face full of frustration.

Li Yue walked over and patted his shoulder, "Don't worry, we still have time to win the game."

Howard nodded silently, got up and left the field accompanied by the staff, but stopped and looked back when he walked into the player tunnel, and called the fans on both sides to cheer together.

Parker stood at the free throw line, the audience booed wildly, and several spectators behind the ball frame chanted "Eileen Barry" in unison.

With a bang, Parker made the first free throw, and the spectators behind the ball rack laughed.

"Irene Barry" continued to sound, but Parker hit the second free throw steadily, and the Spurs led 105 to 102.

...

At this time, with 20 seconds left before the end of the game, the Lakers requested a timeout, and the audience stood up and applauded.

The generals returned to the bench, D'Antoni quickly drew a tactic, emphasizing the protection of defensive rebounds, and finally arranged for Clark to play center instead of Howard.

The timeout ended in a blink of an eye, the game continued, and the Lakers kicked off from the sideline.

The referee whistled, and Li Yue started running from the basket. With the help of Goodlock's lateral screen, Clarke and Artest's elevator door screen, he got rid of Leonard twice in a row and successfully rushed to the echo to catch the ball.

After he got the ball, he immediately passed it back to the baseline to Gasol, who stepped into the field after serving the ball. The second screen, ran to the low left side.

Gasol saw the opportunity to throw a pass, Li Yue caught the ball with both hands and flew forward, ignoring Splitter's defense, and forced a dunk!
The basketball 'exploded' into the net, and the center of the Staples Center was instantly filled with crazy screams!

The Lakers chased 104 to 105, and with 15 seconds left before the end of the game, the Spurs requested a timeout.

"Huh!" Brin patted his chest, "I'm almost out of breath!"

"Don't worry, there is only one timeout left for both teams, and the result will be announced soon!" Van Gundy took a deep breath!

...

The time-out is over and the game continues.

The Spurs kicked the ball from the frontcourt, the referee blew his whistle, and the team scattered around.

Li Yue followed Green to the top of the arc, but was blocked by Leonard and hurried around to catch up.

That thought, Artest was flustered and lost his mind and didn't retreat to make room, and the two crashed into each other.

Leonard was unguarded, easily ran to the right wing to catch the ball, took a step forward in inertia, and jumped directly to shoot!

The basketball went into the net, and the cheers at the Staples Center stopped abruptly like a power outage, with 12 seconds left before the end of the game.

"It's over!" Brin sighed involuntarily, "I persisted for the whole game, and there was such a low-level mistake!"

"Wait a minute, the referee has to confirm whether it is a three-pointer." Van Gundy said, "If it is two points, the Lakers still have many ways to deal with it. If it is a three-pointer, then the Lakers can only put all their eggs in one basket."

Taking advantage of the referee's inspection and defense, D'Antoni quickly called the whole team to arrange tactics.

Popovich was so angry that he kept yelling in the direction of the referee: "You are helping to buy time, I want to complain!"

...

About 20 seconds later, the referee rushed to the technical table and gestured for Leonard to shoot for two points. The Spurs led 107 to 104.

The Lakers served the ball from the backcourt, and Li Yue received it ahead of time. Facing the Spurs' full-court defense, he rushed to the right wing with the help of multiple people.

Seeing that time was running out, he took advantage of the situation to hold Leonard with his back, regardless of the difference in weight and strength, and made a strong push, but only twice, then turned forward, intending to face the basket to throw, but saw Spley Te pounced.

Clark is empty!
He didn't think much, and decisively threw the pass high.

Clark grunted and jumped up for an alley-oop dunk.

The Lakers chased 106 to 107, and with 6 seconds left before the end of the game, the Spurs requested a timeout.

The audience screamed wildly, Clark beat his chest on the spot, and roared to the sky.

"Okay, seeing Clark dunk at the last moment, no matter what the result of the game is acceptable!" Brin laughed.

"It seems that Bobo is going to send Ginobili, I think it's a little risky." Van Gundy frowned, "He likes walking a tightrope too much."

...

The timeout ends, the game continues, and everyone at Staples Center stands up to watch.

The Spurs kicked off from the sideline of the frontcourt. Ginobili rushed to the top of the arc to catch the ball with the help of four people. Li Yue, Artest, and Goodlock were all blocked, and Gasol had to watch the ball and enter the court. Seeing Duncan, Clark rushed forward.

It was thought that Ginobili took off and passed the ball, trying to assist Splitter who was unguarded at the basket, but Splitter missed the catch and the basketball went out of bounds.

The referee whistled and the Lakers got the ball in the backcourt, with 4 seconds left before the end of the game.

The Lakers asked for a timeout, cheers erupted one after another, and several spectators on the sidelines chanted lore.

The generals returned to the bench, D'Antoni did not arrange complicated tactics, and bluntly gave Li Yue a cover to let him catch the ball, and the follow-up depends on the situation.

After the timeout, the Lakers kicked off from the sideline of the front court, and the four free throw lines overlapped.

The referee whistled, Goodlock and Gasol mentioned the top of the arc and set up the elevator door, Artest went around the door and set up the wall ahead of time, Li Yue passed through to the right wing, received a pass from Clark and rushed inside to face the Spurs Surrounded by four people, they bent down to squeeze out space to pass the ball to the top of the arc.

Gasol received the hand, unguarded and took off to make a mid-range shot, and the basketball went into the net hollow.

The whistle sounded at the end of the game, and the Lakers beat the Spurs 108 to 107, leading the series 3-0.

(End of this chapter)