lakers championship

Chapter 365 Temporary Bet
After Wharton's voice fell, Kuzma and several other rookies showed doubts.In their view, the team has won 23 consecutive victories, which can not only kill the Suns and Celtics, but also narrowly beat the 76ers and Rockets.Execution must be executed, spirituality must be spiritual, and everything is perfect. How come the biggest weakness suddenly pops up from the coach?
After the veterans Tianyang and Kobe looked at each other, Carter said: "We lack three points, which is different from our previous estimate. It will be difficult to play against teams like the Rockets and Warriors. Last time we won against the Warriors. It was Thompson with four fouls, and this time the Rockets won because of Ariza's key mistakes."

After Carter finished speaking, Tianyang and others nodded in agreement. The biggest problem facing the Lakers now is really the three-pointer.

At the beginning of the season, when the team was just formed, Wharton called Tianyang and others to hold a lineup analysis meeting. At that meeting, Carter did not agree with the lineup characteristic of "lack of three points".

Carter believed at the time that with Tianyang in charge, plus him and Kobe, the Lakers would definitely not be bad for three-pointers.

The fact is just as Carter expected. After the first 20 games of this season, the Lakers made 36.4% of their three-pointers, ranking eighth in the league, which is not bad.

But starting from the 21st game, the Lakers encountered the Warriors and the Rockets one after another, which made the two teams' "three-point counterattack" tactics a headache, and the problem of the Lakers' weak three-pointers was exposed.

The main reason is to play in anxious moments. Unless there are special circumstances, there are usually five young people on the court. No matter how strong the three-pointers of Kobe and Carter are, it is useless. People are average.

This is a big hidden danger, and Carter confessed his own analysis.

Kuzma and Tatum nodded and admitted that they both understood that their three-pointers were indeed weak.

Seeing that several experienced players in the team were aware of this problem, and the young players did not show any resistance, Walton knew that it would be very easy to make adjustments. He asked with a smile, "Then do you have any suggestions?"

Kobe pointed to Kuzma and Tatum, "You two need to strengthen the three-point practice. Let's do it! Carter, one of us is responsible for guiding the other. Let's compare who can make them improve more. What do you think?"

The bet was entirely Kobe's impromptu idea, but he wanted to win all of this, it's really Mamba spirit.

Seeing that Carter was interested, and Walton, Tatum, and Kuzma did not express any objection, Kobe continued: "With the remaining games of this month as the deadline, the loser will have a meal for the whole team, how about it?"

Carter chuckled, "If you make a bet, I should choose someone first."

Bryant shrugged and raised his hand for 'please', and Carter nodded, dragging his chin in thought.

"Vince, choose Kuzma. He takes more three-pointers and has a more stable shooting rate." Rondo put forward his opinion.

Since the Lakers' 23 games, Kuzma has averaged 5.6 three-pointers per game, shooting 36.6% from the field, and Tatum's shooting rate is 43.4%, but the average shot is only 3.0 times per game, which is very prone to ups and downs.

"Vince, choose Tatum. For the rest of this month, except for the Cavaliers and Warriors, the small forwards of other teams are relatively weak, and Tatum has more room to play." Rose also expressed his opinion.

In December's schedule, the Lakers will face the 12ers, Knicks, Grizzlies, and Clippers. These four teams' power forward positions are either strong in offense or defense. Kuzma will struggle on both ends of the offense and defense.

Carter is a smart person. After thinking about it for a while, he hesitated for a long time and said, "I choose Tatum."

"Then I will choose him." Kobe pointed to Kuzma, "you have to work hard."

Kuzma nodded seriously, "I will definitely win!"

Tatum rolled his eyes, "Let's see."

Tianyang was happy on the sidelines. He knew that although Kobe and Bryant made a bet, their main purpose was to help Kuzma and Tatum improve their three-point skills.He also believes that Kuzma and Tatum will not mess around on the court to win the bet.

The essence of this bet is still to strengthen the three-point shooting training. As for inviting the whole team to dinner, that is trivial.

"I'll add one too." Tianyang interjected, looking up at Hart, "Do you want to learn?"

Hart rolled his eyes, "Of course I want to learn! Brother, if you guide me, I must be better than both of them."

Kuzma and Tatum curled their lips at the same time and said in unison: "Cut..."

The Lakers laughed, and Kobe nodded: "You are welcome to join, but Hart is a guard himself, and he must have higher standards."

Carter also nodded: "At least 5% increase, otherwise you will lose directly."

Tianyang didn't care about Carter's words, but Hart was a little confused. His current shooting rate is 39%, and if it increases by 5%, it will be 44%. Considering the average of 9.2 shots per game, this is a particularly difficult task.

Walton glanced at the schedule and said: "It's not enough to count the shooting percentage. There are 12 games left in this month. After the end, the total number of three-point shots of the three of you must reach 36 or more, which is at least 3 per game. "

Kuzma and the others nodded when they heard the words, expressing their understanding.

What was originally a serious tactical discussion unexpectedly turned into a relaxed betting agreement, and Wharton was very satisfied.

After the whole team discussed a few things to pay attention to next, they disbanded and returned to their respective rooms.

……

On the afternoon of the 7th, after ample rest, the Lakers team landed in Philadelphia.

In the game against the 76ers that night, the Lakers intend to increase the number of three-point shots. Among them, Kuzma and Tatum took 6 and 5 shots respectively at the end of the half, but they only hit 2 goals. The Lakers also fell behind the 76ers. 9 points.

In the third quarter of the game, after Hart came on the court, he scored 2 three-pointers in a row to open the situation. Kuzma and Tatum also hit a three-pointer each, and the Lakers directly evened the point difference.

In the decisive battle in the fourth quarter, Wharton sent five more young people to strictly implement the tactics of letting go and not letting go.

As a result, Simmons and Fultz made worse three-pointers than Kuzma and Tatum in the first half.

In the end, the Lakers defeated the 107ers 101 to 76, winning 24 consecutive victories.

After defeating the 76ers, major media such as "Sports Illustrated" and "Bleacher Report" praised the Lakers, Sky Ocean, and Kobe Bryant at length, and made predictions that the Lakers' winning streak could only be broken by the Warriors.

On the 9th, the Lakers challenged the Hornets away, and Kobe took a rest.

Kemba-Walker, Batum, and Howard performed well in the first quarter, helping the Hornets take a 31-27 lead, and they can enter the second quarter. The Lakers started to exert their strength, tied with a wave of three-pointers and led by 8 points .

In the end, the Lakers defeated the Hornets 110 to 99, winning 25 consecutive victories.

After the game, WOJ broke the news that Jordan was very dissatisfied with the performance of the team's Big Three and thought of trading, but Batum's rubbish contract was stinky and long, no one was willing to take it over, and Howard was worthless. Kemba Walker, who can be sold, cannot be exchanged for good bargaining chips.

On the 12th, the Lakers were a guest at Madison Garden to challenge the Knicks. Kobe and Rondo took turns at the same time.

Although the two-dollar generals are rested in rotation, the Knicks are a bad team with no resistance. Kuzma, Tatum, and Hart directly played in the training game. The number of three-point shots far exceeded the previous average. The Lakers still easily got 26 consecutive victories.

On the 14th, the Lakers went to the Eastern Conference for the final game of the four-game winning streak, and Tianyang took a break.

The rotation of the core players and the continuous away games have had a great impact on the Lakers.

In addition, LeBron met Kobe in a fierce state, and a group of Cavaliers' substitutes also played well. The Lakers finally lost by 2 points regrettably, and the winning streak also stayed at 26 games.

Surprisingly, after the winning streak ended, the major media did not find fault, but instead praised the Lakers for becoming a truly strong team.

Fox Sports wrote: "The Lakers seem like billionaires now, and they don't feel bad if they can really lose 100 million."

(End of this chapter)