Champions Creed

Chapter 240 239: You should pray, Kobe (ask for a monthly ticket!)

Pierce and Roger each gave each other an assist after the opening.

They took the initiative at the home court of a team that had won 16 games in a row.

What made Shark most angry was that both of these goals were scored over his head.

When this Hawks team was first formed, people joked that Roger and Pippen were of the same kind, but it turned out that they were Roger and Pierce!

Under Pierce's trash talk of "the best second-in-command in the basketball world", the Shark got a little anxious: "Paul, what qualifications do you have to say that about me? Aren't you just a second-in-command? No, even Scott's status in the team is higher than yours!"

"Yeah, so I'm praising you. You're the best second-in-command in the basketball world, you're Kobe's best helper, and no one can compete with you for the second place in the Lakers. You're so complacent about it. You're really amazing." Pierce replied in a sarcastic tone.

Shark's trash talk only got him into trouble. Pierce can openly admit that he is just the second or even third in command, but Shark cannot.

The furious O'Neal took his anger out on Big Ben. In this round, the Shark played like a football player. After getting the ball, he rammed Big Ben hard, completely pushing him away, then turned around and made a close-range shot.

After scoring the goal, the Shark did not forget to show off his muscles to Big Ben.

"This is an undisputed offensive foul!" Lenny Wilkens yelled at the referee in great dissatisfaction.

The referee didn't say anything, but you have to admit that the superstar whistle is real.

As the hottest team this season, the Lakers' star players will naturally receive preferential treatment at home.

The same preferential treatment is also reflected in Roger. When Roger plays in the Philips Arena, he can bite the opponent with more fierce confrontation on the defensive end without worrying about being called for a foul. This is a fact.

O'Neal's goal helped the Lakers tie the score, and he was trying to prove that this was his team.

Big Ben rubbed his chest, tonight was going to be a very difficult night for him.

The Sharks' destructive power reached its peak at this stage. The Eagles' inside line was fast enough, but too fragile for the Sharks.

In this era where blatant zone defense is not allowed, the power of help defenders has not been maximized.

The era of traditional big men like Shaq is not over yet.

Lenny Wilkens certainly knows this. No coach would expect two inside players less than 210 cm tall to lock down the Sharks.

But teams don’t need to lock up the Sharks.

The Hawks have other ways to deal with the Lakers.

The game continued, and Roger made a mid-range jump shot after receiving a screen from Ben.

The main defender of Roger today is Ron Harper, a veteran of the Magic dynasty. He is indeed experienced in defense, but his physical function has declined too much.

Now he is unable to quickly bypass Big Ben's cover to chase Roger.

The Sharks are typically undefendable, so it was easy for Roger to score.

After successfully scoring, Roger deliberately yelled at Kobe: "Ron, is your backcourt partner so cowardly? You let an old man like you defend me?"

Harper didn't respond, he knew Roger was actually criticizing Kobe.

Kobe shook his head disdainfully: "You don't come to defend me either."

"Oh, then you'd better pray that I never have to defend you."

In the next few rounds, Roger used pick-and-rolls against Harper three times in a row, making 3 of 2 shots.

Since the start of the game, Roger has made 5 of 4 shots and scored 8 points.

This offensive efficiency is comparable to that of the inside line.

Phil Jackson didn't know why O'Neal had this defensive habit. He remembered that O'Neal could still defend when the Magic won their first championship.

At that time, the defense formed by Shark and Roger made it difficult for Jordan to attack.

But since the first championship, O'Neal's defensive enthusiasm has become less and less year by year.

The inertia brought by honor and money is vividly reflected in sharks.

Although O'Neal was determined to win this year, his determination clearly did not include defense.

There are two main reasons why the Sharks don't defend, the first being ingrained bad defensive habits.

The second is physical fitness.

O'Neal needs to take a lot of shots on the offensive end, and he weighs more than he did during his time with the Magic.

Therefore, he had to examine his remaining energy every minute like the most stingy businessman.

Compared to defense, the Sharks prefer to save their energy on offense.

After Roger used this to hit the Sharks repeatedly, Phil Jackson called a timeout.

He knew that talking to the Sharks about defense was a complete waste of time.

The Zen Master didn't want to waste any more time on this topic, as he had to save his tongue to serve Jeanie Buss.

Regarding O'Neal's defense, the Zen Master has become accustomed to one thing: if you can't change the shark, then clean up the mess for the shark.

During this timeout, the Zen Master waved his hand and said, "Kobe, you guard Roger."

Anyway, Kobe doesn't have any heavy tasks to do in the first three quarters, so let him consume Roger.

The effect of this adjustment was immediate. When Roger used a pick-and-roll against the Shark again, Kobe squeezed through the screen in the first time, stayed firmly in front of Roger, and interfered with Roger's jump shot, causing it to miss.

Kobe, who successfully completed the defense, couldn't help laughing. Roger could hear the pride in his tone: "Feeling frustrated? It doesn't matter, go back to the hotel and let your 19-year-old model girlfriend coax you. Maybe, go to Santa Monica Beach to ride the Ferris wheel? This activity is more suitable for you."

I have to say that Kobe is a guard who is very suitable for the Sharks.

He likes to solve problems in the mid- to long-range, which allows him to perfectly stagger his offensive space with Shark and solve problems when Shark is entangled by the inside meat shield.

Kobe is also very good at feeding the ball to the inside, although he prefers to feed it directly to the basket most of the time and refuses to make a profit from the middleman. But when he is willing to feed the ball, he can deliver the ball in time after getting to the position in the inside.

And the most important point is that Kobe during this period was very good at squeeze screens, which perfectly protected the Shark.

All players who try to use pick-and-roll against the Sharks will have their hopes dashed by Kobe.

After defending Roger, Kobe ran forward quickly, received the counterattack ball from Harper, and made a layup in the confrontation with Roger.

After scoring the goal, Kobe smiled even brighter: "Roger, are you ready to be the next Michael?"

The Zen Master believed that his adjustment worked. No one could harass the Sharks from now on, so the Sharks could attack with peace of mind.

The Zen Master didn't know that Roger had just used pick-and-roll against Harper and the Shark again and again, not for the purpose of scoring, but to force Kobe to defend Roger.

From now on, the Eagles are truly in control of the situation!
Kobe continued to cling to Roger, inserting his hands directly under Roger's armpits, almost hugging Roger together. Roger wanted to get rid of him, but he couldn't get rid of Kobe, so the two of them just hugged each other and spun in circles.

The referee did not blow the whistle, tacitly approving the intensity of the confrontation.

The referee on duty today has not slept well for three consecutive days. He is really afraid that there will be another big fight between the Lakers and the Hawks similar to last season.

Normally, the best way to avoid conflict in such a tense game is to limit physical contact and blow the whistle more frequently.

But today, several referees on duty decided to take a different approach and do the opposite. They decided to increase the level of physical contact between the two sides as much as possible.

If you push me this round, I will hit you in the next round.

If you can be released during the game, you will naturally not resort to violence.

The superstar whistle and the large-scale whistle, these two factors mean that today's games are rarely interrupted by whistles.

Roger should have no chance to score since he was entangled by Kobe like this.

Even if he could still get rid of Kobe, the fierce confrontation had already worn out his touch.

But Roger did not give up. He gestured to Pippen not to rush to give the ball to others.

He still wants to take over this round!
"Damn it!" Kobe didn't expect that even though he had increased the intensity of his defense to this extent, Roger still wanted to launch this attack, so he rushed towards Roger even more frantically.

Two extremely competitive people showed their competitive spirit in this round.

Roger finally pushed Kobe away with his back to the basket, gaining a little space to catch the ball. Pippen seized the opportunity and passed the ball to Roger.

But just as Roger received the ball, Kobe stuck to him again. But as long as he got the ball, Roger was confident that he could finish. Roger dribbled the ball, then suddenly hit Kobe with his back, and turned over and shot a jump shot before AC Green could double-team him, and the basketball hit the backboard!
This was a completely hard-fought round. The confrontation between Roger and Kobe almost never stopped, but Roger still overcame all difficulties and scored the ball.

After scoring the goal, Roger gave Pippen a thumbs up and said, "Good pass. Don't mind those annoying mosquitoes. Just give me the ball!"

Pippen didn't respond to Roger, Mosquito? Even a defensive master like Pippen didn't know what else Kobe could have done.

That No. 8's defense is absolutely 100 points.

But Roger still scored.

That's why Roger is number one on the list of players Pippen least wanted to defend during his career, and he will always be number one.

Roger's goals like this, "You defended well but you still can't do anything to me," are very morale-boosting.

But Lakers coach Phil Jackson is not worried.

Kobe has succeeded. He made Roger spend so much effort to get 2 points.

And this was only the first quarter.

How long can Roger keep going like this?
The subsequent games continued at this pace, with Roger taking a large number of shots to challenge Kobe. Even if he was able to score, they were all very physically demanding and difficult goals.

Only occasionally when there was really no chance or when Roger went off the court to rest would Pierce take over.

After the two cooperations at the beginning of the game, Pierce's presence was not very high, and there was no connection between him and Roger.

For some reason, the Zen Master felt that the Hawks were intentionally reducing the use of Pierce.

Maybe it's just an illusion?

Phil Jackson didn't think much about it. He didn't want to give himself too many messy psychological hints that would interfere with his tactical arrangements.

Kobe played very well on defense and didn't give Roger any easy scoring opportunities. But at the end of the third quarter, the Lakers were still behind.

O'Neal completely played to his advantage in the paint. Just now, after he pushed away Ben, the Shark directly dunked over Kurt Thomas who came to defend. Ben's defense was hard enough, and Kurt Thomas's timing of defense was also perfect.

But the Sharks still smashed the Eagles' restricted area.

The shark's weight is a double-edged sword. His excessive weight makes him lose some flexibility and forces him to allocate his physical energy more carefully.

But it also made him more dominant on the offensive end than during his time with the Magic.

After this dunk, O'Neal, who had already scored 31 points, left the Lakers trailing by 18 points with 4 seconds left in the third quarter.

Yes, the Sharks had a huge advantage in the interior, but the Eagles still led thanks to Roger's offense.

Kobe was sweating profusely and his defense on Roger was excellent, but that doesn't mean Roger couldn't score.

Most of Roger's difficult shots went into the net, making Kobe's efforts in vain.

So far, Roger has scored 30 points.

Considering that Roger is a guard and Shark is a center, the one-point difference between them is almost negligible.

You can't deny Kobe's efforts. Just look at how pitiful the Philadelphia 76ers were before. That's the result of not having a one-man defense like Kobe.

If Kobe wasn't there, it wouldn't be an exaggeration for Roger to add 15 points to his score.

But one fact that everyone must admit is that no matter how good the defense is, it can only limit Roger.

Kobe has been working very hard. Ever since the Zen Master asked him to defend Roger alone, he has devoted himself to defense and has been very serious in every round.

In order to defend Kobe, he even disappeared from the offensive end and has only scored 8 points so far.

But even though he tried so hard, he could only restrict Roger slightly.

The Zen Master stood on the sidelines, watching the last round of the third quarter.

Kobe had been biting Roger since the off-ball stage, and he didn't intend to let up even in the last round.

When Pippen crossed half court, there were only 13 seconds left.

Roger used a reverse run to shake off Kobe, then received the ball on the left side outside the three-point line.

Kobe held on to Roger tightly and suddenly snatched the ball the moment Roger caught it!
Roger reacted quickly, holding the ball with one hand and pulling it back to avoid being intercepted.

“It feels good to have a pair of big hands.”

“Mine is huge too!”

"Ah, yes, yes, Shaq always says that, you two are both so unique in your own way."

As soon as Roger finished speaking, he suddenly started moving, holding the ball with one hand, forcefully pushed Kobe away, gained space to accelerate, and went straight to the inside.

The Sharks were blocked by Ben Wallace on the other side of the basket and could not make up for the loss in time. So Rick Fox, who came off the bench, volunteered to go back to the basket to stop Roger.

But the impact force after Roger reached his full speed was totally beyond what Rick Fox could withstand.

Roger knocked Rick Fox down directly in the air, then dunked with a powerful force. From the handsome start with the ball held with one hand to the dunk over his opponent in the air, Roger completed a finish with a very shocking visual effect!

"Without a doubt the best shot of the day, Roger's performance deserves the attention of this game! He said he would be the first player to beat the Lakers this season, and he is fulfilling his promise!" Magic stood up and cheered for Roger. The same cheer never appeared on the Shark tonight.

The ball went in and Roger scored 32 points, surpassing the Shark by 1 point, widening the gap to 6 points.

Roger ignored Rick Fox who was sitting on the ground, and looked back at Kobe who was thrown away: "I won't be the next Michael Jordan, and you don't have to dream of becoming the next Roger!"

After three quarters, Roger had the upper hand in the duel with Kobe.

But Kobe doesn't think he has been defeated by Roger: "You may not have the last laugh."

Kobe said this not only because he was unwilling to accept the result, but also because the fourth quarter would be his moment!
Given that Shark has trouble catching the ball and making free throws at critical moments, Kobe is often the one who ends the game.

The Zen Master also thought so. Roger's large number of shots and forced finishes in the first three quarters had wasted too much of his energy.

There was no way his efficiency wouldn't decline in the fourth quarter.

Although Kobe had a hard time on defense in the first three quarters, he was just defending after all.

As long as the defensive burden on Kobe is reduced in the fourth quarter, he will still have the energy to play a more efficient offense than Roger.

The Zen Master also told Kobe immediately after he sat down: "In the fourth quarter, I allow you to let go and score!"

The Sharks had no objection. This was something they had agreed on long ago, and it was the basis for the Lakers to start with 16 consecutive wins.

Then the Zen Master turned his head and looked at Harper, Glen Rice and AC Green: "You are responsible for dealing with Roger, whose physical strength is almost exhausted!"

Kobe was confident that he could suppress Roger in the fourth quarter. After that, neither the aging Pippen nor the defeated Pierce would be able to defend him.

Although trailing by 6 points, the Lakers' strategy still made victory full of hope.

The intermission soon ended and the final battle began.

After holding back for three quarters, Kobe took the ball directly on the right side, ready to play one-on-one.

But after looking at the guy standing in front of him, Kobe was stunned.

It turned out that it was Roger who was responsible for defending him in the fourth quarter!

Phil Jackson frowned. Is Lenny Wilkens crazy?

As a black coach, you are also using farm tool tactics?
Roger will be exhausted!
In the first three quarters of the game, Roger was only responsible for offense. He did not defend Kobe, nor did he participate much in the double-teaming of the Sharks.

This is what allows him to be effective in tough one-on-one situations.

But now we have to let Roger attack and defend Kobe at the same time?

Roger is not Superman!
Kobe was excited, very excited.

He didn't care what Lenny Wilkens thought, he was just happy that Roger was being offered to him like a sacrifice.

In the fourth quarter, Roger had to attack and defend at the same time, so his final outcome would be to lose sight of one thing while focusing on the other!
But Roger, with his arms outstretched, raised his lips: "I'm sorry, Kobe, you didn't pray."

Kobe remembered what Roger said to him at the beginning of the game: "You better pray that I never guard you."

Nice psychological warfare, but it didn't work.

Kobe was not intimidated. He made a few triple-threat moves, then immediately accelerated, stopped suddenly, and turned around.

Turnaround jump shot? This is Roger's signature move, and it is also Kobe's usual scoring method.

But this time, Kobe was not going to turn around and jump shot.

After turning around and a half, he suddenly turned again in the opposite direction, showing off his back-to-back steps.

After a fake move, Kobe took a fadeaway jump shot.

But what greeted him was Roger's timely hand.

"What!? Damn it."

"boom!"

Capping completed!

Kobe's fake moves were completely ineffective in front of Roger!
Kobe was still in shock, but God looked at him coldly: "You should pray, Kobe, you should do what I say."

The blocked ball was snatched away by Pippen. In any situation where the ball is 50-50, you can trust Pippen.

The bull terrier will always fetch the ball as quickly as possible.

The fourth quarter that Kobe was looking forward to was ruined by Roger at the very beginning.

But the Zen Master didn't believe that Roger could continue to attack under such circumstances.

Roger ran to the top of the arc outside the three-point line to receive the ball. Harper was on standby. Glen Rice and AC Green also looked at No. 14 nervously, ready to surround him at any time.

But Roger pushed the ball with both hands and passed it to No. 34.

Paul Pierce admired Glen Rice's surprised expression and said, "Hey man, don't be nervous. You don't have to worry about being fooled by me because I can shoot from where I am."

After saying that, Pierce swayed to the left, then suddenly raised the basketball again. When Glen Rice raised his center of gravity to interfere, Pierce took a step to the left and prepared to start.

Glen Rice immediately adjusted his center of gravity and moved sideways, but Pierce's move was still just a fake. After getting the space, Pierce pulled up directly.

After three consecutive threats, he made a pull-up shot. As Pierce said, he just shot from where he was.

brush!
"Hey, I told you I'm not going to move an inch."

Pierce scored, high-fived Roger, and then Roger continued to defend back in front of Kobe.

Magic has figured out Lenny Wilkens' strategy, that old fox!
Roger focused on the first three quarters, taking crazy shots, making Kobe run around in a hurry and allowing Pierce to save energy.

And when it was Kobe's turn to attack in the fourth quarter, Roger would stand up to stop Kobe who had been exhausted.

Offense? Leave it to the energetic Paul Pierce.

That's Lenny Wilkens' strategy.

His use of Roger and Paul Pierce has achieved the effect of 1+1>2, just like the Dream Team's Jankudu. When they can complement each other, they are invincible!
Pierce scored a goal and then fist-bumped with Roger, leaving Kobe and Glen Rice stunned.

The scene of them playing with their opponents at will reminded people of the oppressive feeling of the strongest duo in history.

But magician is a better description.

"They are like Jesus and the greatest apostle Paul on the basketball court," Magic said. "They will spread victory everywhere they go. Pray for the Los Angeles fans and pray for the mercy of God and the apostles."

(End of this chapter)