NBA: I am the card dealer

But sometimes, the results are often difficult to predict.

Just one day later, the smug Lakers suffered a defeat.

They went to Utah to challenge the Jazz and ultimately lost the game 89:96.

George made 14 of 3 shots, 5 of 1 three-pointers, and 5 of 4 free throws. He scored 11 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists. Not only did George fail to rise, his performance fell back again, and he only had this extremely embarrassing performance.

21.4% shooting rate!

If the leading star performs like this, the others will naturally not be much better.

Randall only scored 7 points on 3 of 7 shots.

Courtney + Lee also made 7 of 3, but there were free throws, so they scored 9 points.

Larry Nance finally got it in his pocket, scoring only 4 points and 1 rebounds on 2-of-6 shooting.

Among the starters, the only one who performed reasonably well was Clarkson, who made 12 of 5 free throws, 10 of 7 free throws, and scored 19 points.

James Johnson scored 12 points on 6-of-17 shooting from the bench.

Blake scored 6 points on 4-of-8 shooting.

Joe Johnson scored 4 points on 2-for-7 shooting.

Glenn Robinson scored 4 points and Zubac scored 3 points.

Marvin Williams didn't play.

To be honest, the bench performed much better than the main team, scoring a total of 39 points.

The main force only scored a total of 50 points.

You know, the playing time of both sides is not equal, and the efficiency of playing is completely different.

Without their support, the Lakers would have surrendered long ago.

at the press conference after the game.

The reporter asked George and Walton: "Yesterday you told the world that you would lead the Lakers back to the playoffs, but today they lost to the Jazz. Is this a major blow to you?"

Walton replied with a dark face: "This is just a regular season game. We are still in the running-in stage and need to get familiar with our new teammates, so winning or losing doesn't actually matter."

And George's answer was: "The Utah Plateau suffocates me. When I run, sometimes I feel very strenuous."

Ok……

The two reasons for losing are different.

Walton used running-in as an excuse.

And George was directly suffering from altitude sickness.

But in fact, there is no problem in losing to the Jazz. After all, they are not a soft persimmon. Last season, they were ninth in the Western Conference. This season, they have acquired powerful guards like George Hill, Hayward, Gobert and others. Still continuing to grow, they are direct competitors to the Lakers and should not be underestimated.

However, it is worth mentioning that Hayward did not actually play in this game.

The Jazz lacked a leading star and still defeated the Lakers. This is what the fans cannot accept.

"I suddenly had a bad feeling."

"Although the Jazz are not weak, they are definitely not a very strong team in the Western Conference. They can be said to be direct competitors of the Lakers. It is really surprising that they lost this game."

"The most important thing is that Hayward didn't play! If he did, and both sides fought as a team, there would be nothing to say if they lost."

"Can the Lakers really do it without Xue Liancheng?"

"Didn't George boast that his leadership ability is better than Xue Liancheng's? It's time to show off his skills."

"Wharton, the bully king, boasts all the time, so don't be embarrassed."

In addition to being vaguely worried, many fans began to jeer.

Obviously.

Xue Liancheng's fans are still very unhappy about Xue Liancheng's ability to lead the team being questioned.

The media are also building momentum at this time.

The next game is the time to verify the strength of the Lakers.

Because their next game is the Oklahoma City Thunder, which is also the Lakers' direct competitor in the playoffs.

That's right.

After Durant left, the Thunder's goal changed from winning the championship to the playoffs.

Of course, they are definitely calling for the championship in words, but in fact, the public's expectation for the Thunder is to make it to the playoffs.

If you don't make the playoffs, it's a failure.

Not only was the team a failure, it was a failure for all Thunder players.

Because they didn't change much during the offseason. The only big change was that Durant abandoned the Thunder and switched to the rival Warriors.

In other words, without Durant, they can't even make the playoffs. Who can bear this?

Therefore, they must strive to reach the playoffs to prove themselves.

Especially Westbrook, he played really hard.

If the Thunder wants to occupy a playoff spot, their direct opponent will be the Lakers.

Therefore, this game will not only test Westbrook, but also test George's ability to lead the team alone, and also test whether Walton's words are bullshit.

The result of the game was shocking.

The Lakers were hung up and beaten by the Thunder in the away game. They lost 96:113 by 17 points. They seemed to have no power to fight back.

And George was in his pocket again.

全场下来20中7，35%的整体命中率，三分11中4，罚球4中2，只得到20分，另外还有9篮板3助攻。

The performance is still hard to describe.

Fans are really disappointed with George.

As soon as the game ended, the fans started jumping up and yelling.

"What the hell, what kind of thing did you come back with?"

"You dare to brag about your ability to lead a team just like this?"

"This is what Walton calls a superstar."

"What the hell, if we keep playing like this, let alone the playoffs, God will bless us if we don't finish last."

"It's really hilarious. It's a complete joke."

"Ranked tenth in terms of player strength? How dare you enter the top 10 after playing like this?"

"Top offense and defense? I vomited."

"Soft! Soft! Soft! Chunchun is a big softie. If I had known, keeping Ingram and Russell would be better than this guy."

The curses were really continuous.

No one expected that George's performance could be so unbearable.

At least as a star player, George's performance is really unacceptable.

Others performed relatively much better.

Randall was in great form, scoring 10 points and 7 rebounds on 20-of-9 shooting, a near-double-double.

Although he was a rookie in 14, he only played one game in his rookie season, so strictly speaking, this is his second season.

It is indeed rare to have such a performance.

Clarkson's state was a bit worse this time, hitting 11 of 4, 9 of 3 three-pointers, and 5 of 5 free throws, and also scored 16 points.

拉里-南斯5中2拿到4分，考特尼-李3中0吞下了零蛋。

The former's defense and frame protection are indeed a big problem. He can't cover the basket very well, and his awareness of assisting defense and supplementary defense is also a bit lacking.

The latter is very active on the defensive end, but when it comes to finishing on the offensive end, it always feels like there is a big difference in meaning.

Bench.

Marvin Williams returned and scored 12 points.

James Johnson scored 11 points. After these games, he has played very steadily. He is a rare striker with balanced offense and defense in the Lakers lineup.