Chapter 451 450: Run away until you can’t run anymore (ask for monthly ticket!)
Kobe elbowed James and yelled, and the scene made Laker Nation nervous.

The relationship between Kobe and James has always been a hot topic in the media.

However, to the disappointment of most media, James and Kobe have hardly made any news except for some minor frictions at the beginning of the season.

They had always been on perfect terms, as close as an admiral and a stone Buddha.

Nike spared no effort to promote the friendly relationship between James and Kobe, the fact that James was using Kobe’s mobile network because he couldn’t bear to give up his traffic, the moments of intimate interaction between James and Kobe, and the fact that “Kobe knows James better than his girlfriend.”

The Nike team wants to work hard to create an atmosphere where “they are equal friends.”

As a result, tonight, Kobe and James were very excited, completely breaking the atmosphere that Nike had worked hard to create.

This accident is like a female anchor on a certain audio platform suddenly turning off her beauty filter, or like an artistic actress walking out of a disc cover, with her ugliness completely exposed.

Although Kobe disguised this behavior as “just wanting to get back to the bench quickly”, fans and the media are not fools.

In the original timeline, when James walked off the court, he just “accidentally” bumped into Spoelstra’s shoulder, and their relationship became the focus of everyone’s attention. If Pat Riley hadn’t supported Spoelstra and was determined not to change the coach, Spoelstra would probably have been directly unemployed by this.

At this moment, Kobe impatiently elbowed James on the court. You can imagine the heat this scene brought.

Mike Breen was a little disappointed, disappointed with James.

He had a chance to break Roger’s dominance, and no one had a better chance than him.

Jerry Buss used the allure of the big city to put together a perfect lineup almost within the rules.

As long as everyone plays normally, the Lakers have a chance to defeat the Warriors.

But LeBron James was not afraid at all. When he passed the ball to Vujacic just now, Mike Brin really wanted to know what James was afraid of.

Jeff Van Gundy’s focus was entirely on Kobe’s elbow: “Oh, this is not good news for the Lakers. Did Kobe just elbow LeBron directly? Mike, will this change the game?”

“It will definitely affect the game, let’s see how they handle it.” This is all Mike Breen’s comment on the incident. He did not criticize Kobe for elbowing his teammate in public.

Because if he were in Kobe’s shoes, he would have done the same thing.

As a young superstar, LeBron James has never shown his killer side in the playoffs.

He passed the ball in confusion, defended in confusion, and his extremely high basketball IQ seemed to suddenly disappear at certain moments.

Kobe and James both sat on the bench, but neither spoke to each other.

This was the best outcome for Phil Jackson. The arrogant Kobe did not press on after he vented his anger. He had done a good job. You have to admit that he has matured a lot. If it were five years ago, he would have had a big fight with James on the bench, which would have directly damaged their relationship.

But Kobe held back and said nothing.

Kobe really had a lot to say to James. He couldn’t believe the performance James put out in this game.

Roger scored 31 points in three quarters, and Kobe himself scored 25 points in three quarters.

What about LeBron James? He had 11 points and 4 turnovers in three quarters, and was completely outplayed by Roger.

He plays like a fucking role player!

He didn’t understand, if James didn’t want to win, then why did he come to Los Angeles? Wouldn’t it be better to continue to be the failed king in Cleveland?
But Kobe held back, because he knew very well that once he started cursing, the Lakers would completely lose the chance of winning.

He doesn’t want the tragedy with the shark to happen again.

James did not argue with Kobe, they both remained silent.

At this moment, you can fully appreciate the meaning of the phrase “silence is golden”.

The silence of the two kept the Lakers’ last hope. At least on the surface, they had not torn their faces apart. At least on the surface, the team had not disbanded.

Phil Jackson decided to add another layer of glue to the cracks in their relationship. It might not be strong, but it would be enough to make it through this year’s playoffs.

“LeBron, Kobe, when all hell breaks loose, hide in your sanctuary.”

Phil Jackson used this trick again to calm the players, and it has been proven more than once that this can indeed calm a player’s emotions.

“Don’t worry, Phil, we will fight back. A 12-point difference is not the end of the world.” Kobe gritted his teeth and replied.

Phil Jackson is not worried about Kobe, he knows that guy too well, the key is the other guy.

He walked up to James, squatted down, and touched No. 23’s head: “LeBron, there is only one way for you to get rid of pressure and infamy, and that is to win the championship. The championship is like some kind of magic that can eliminate all the troubles in the world. The price is that you have to endure the pain before winning it. In the fourth quarter, I will send someone to double-team Roger with you. Don’t be nervous, it’s not over yet. You just need to stay focused, and don’t give up no matter what Roger does, OK?”

James nodded, but the damn trash talk still stung him and still made him think wildly.

How do Cleveland fans see me now? They must be looking at a failed clown.

How would the fans in Los Angeles view me? Was this still my team after that elbow?
On the other side, Roger was sweating profusely.

It was really cool to watch James break down and Kobe enforce justice on the court.

As a star player, as a star player who announced in a high-profile manner that he would kick Roger out of the league, when he played such a disgusting performance, he deserved some beating and punishment.

In the original timeline, LBJ was not punished but became the real controller of the Heat. Dwyane Wade’s operation was amazing.

And in Los Angeles, justice finally prevailed.

But the price of justice is that Roger has consumed a lot of physical energy in the first three quarters.

James’ collapse only happened at the end of the third quarter. Before that, it was undoubtedly difficult to challenge James and score a goal.

Difficult rounds will double the athletes’ physical energy consumption.

Roger needed help in the fourth quarter, so he looked to Roy and said, “Hey, it’s your turn.”

In the last minute of the third quarter, neither side played their main players. The Lakers recovered 3 points and finally entered the fourth quarter with a 9-point gap.

The 9-point gap is still not small, but there is still a chance.

So, Roy has to ensure that the Warriors’ offense will not be interrupted.

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, Kobe broke through and passed the ball to Howard, who made an easy dunk and recovered 2 points.

This is a good start. As long as James stops being distracted on the defensive end and stops letting Roger do whatever he wants, the score will definitely be equalized.

The Warriors attacked, and this time Roger controlled the ball. Brandon Roy moved aggressively, trying to get rid of Kobe.

But Kobe’s defense became stronger in the fourth quarter, and he had to lead the team to catch up with the 9 points, so he gave his all.

James and Billups double-teamed Roger, and Roger clearly passed the ball to Prince.

Just as Chauncey Billups rushed back, Prince passed the ball again.

The target was Roy, who had just temporarily gotten rid of Kobe with the help of Roger’s cover.

After Roger passed the ball, he immediately set up an off-ball screen for Roy. Kobe was unable to bypass it immediately. James’ attention was all on Roger, and he was unable to switch defense immediately. Although he still had some interference with Roy, it was not tight enough.

“brush!”

“Brandon made a decisive shot and widened the gap to 10 points! Fortunately, he did not throw the ball to Tayshawn after seeing LeBron’s defense.” Mike Breen has not yet realized that he has become a beast with an unhappy life.

One round later, Kobe shot directly from outside the three-point line and evened the score difference. Then he continued to attack Roy’s psychological defense: “Brandon, if you make one, I will make one. Let’s see who misses first.”

But Roy’s indifferent expression disappointed Kobe. He had been attacking Roy since the first quarter, but that guy has not been affected at all until now.

He always does the right thing and always brings positive influence to the team.

At least he dared to take the three-pointer just now. One round later, Kobe squeezed through the screen and prevented Roy from receiving the ball again, and the ball was finally hit into the hands of Stoudemire.

Stoudemire struggled today, and could only score mostly by cutting to the basket and catching and shooting, because the underlying logic of his independent scoring was broken.

His mid-range shooting space is based on the fact that opponents dare not defend him closely, and his ability to easily break through is based on the fact that opponents cannot keep up with him after defending closely.

But Howard can not only press Stoudemire, but also immediately follow up when Stoudemire breaks through with the ball.

That’s what happened in this round. Amare Stoudemire saw Howard pressing him, so he broke through with the ball.

But Howard’s movement was also very fast, and Stoudemire’s speed had no advantage over him. In addition, Stoudemire’s strong upper limbs made it difficult for him to get to the basket, and he eventually missed the layup in the confrontation.

Stoudemire’s weakness of not being able to post up was infinitely magnified by Howard. The Lakers defended the shot, and then Chauncey Billups launched a counterattack and assisted Howard to score a dunk.

The score difference was only 5 points, and the Lakers, who were overflowing with talent, did not let the game lose suspense in advance.

In the subsequent games, the Lakers keenly discovered that Roger’s offensive frequency and efficiency were declining, and his physical strength had been greatly consumed in the first three quarters.

Roy played an increasingly important role on the offensive end, but facing Kobe, Roy could only play without the ball, which limited his output.

James?
He seemed to have disappeared, and his figure was hardly seen on either offense or defense.

Mike Breen continues to live in dissatisfaction: “The U.S. Air Force really needs to figure out what kind of invisible material LeBron is using. He is clearly on the court, but no one can see him.”

It is precisely because of the disappearance of one person that the Lakers always encounter problems when they are about to overtake.

Either Howard gets hacked or Kobe gets double-teamed.

As for another big-hearted player, Chauncey Billups, he was held tightly by Roy.

At this moment, James’s brain was fully occupied with other things: Why did Kobe elbow me? What will happen to our relationship in the future? What role do I play in the Lakers?
The game lasted until the last minute and the Lakers were trailing by 1 points. Kobe bypassed the screen and shook off Matt Barnes, then received a pass from Billups and prepared to shoot.

But Roy quickly switched to Kobe, who hooked his finger and said, “Come on, trash, let me completely turn the game around on you.”

Roy still had no expression. People were right when they said he was Tim Duncan at the guard position.

He chose to press Kobe directly. After Kobe pushed Roy twice, he suddenly started to break through with the advantage of confrontation, but he did not gain space. He could only drift and shoot at a zero-degree angle.

Roy’s defense was very good, and it could be said that there was no loophole. However, due to his poor wingspan, he could not interfere with Kobe’s backward movement, so the basketball went in. This was a beautiful singles that made Warriors fans want to cheer, and Kobe narrowed the gap to 1 point.

“If the Warriors lose tonight, you will definitely be the culprit.” Kobe continued to stimulate Roy.

The game reached a critical point again, but as soon as Roger got the ball, he was double-teamed by Billups and James.

To be honest, LBJ did contribute a lot in the second half. At least he was not distracted on the defensive end.

Roger wanted to run out from the gap between them the moment the two men completed their encirclement.

However, his exhausted physical strength greatly affected his explosive power. He failed to break through the shackles and instead crashed into Billups and James.

Roger didn’t mess around and passed the ball to Roy who was diagonally behind him.

As soon as Roy received the ball, Kobe pressed on. Even though Roy was still far from the three-point line, Kobe didn’t intend to let him take it easy.

“Come on, bitch. You think you’re a winner if you can only hide under Roger’s wings? Do you dare to single me out once? Do you have any other way to score besides catching the ball and shooting? You are a burden, Brandon. If you don’t come to the celebration party after the Lakers win tonight, no one will be able to lift the cup.”

Roy said nothing, he was silent throughout the fourth quarter.

He wanted to pass the ball to Roger, but Billups was too tight.

So Roy pushed Kobe away with his buttocks and made a fake move to the left. Kobe reacted quickly and bounced away, but Roy changed direction and sprinted to the other side. But Kobe still caught up quickly. Roy was not good at explosive power. Seeing that he could not get rid of the defense, he stopped outside the three-point line, but Kobe was still not fooled. He braked quickly and stuck to Roy again, exerting crazy pressure.

This was a textbook level of one-on-one defense on the perimeter. The offensive time was getting shorter and shorter, and the Lakers were about to defend this attack and overtake the score.

Should he pass the ball? Roy can choose to pass the ball, but the offensive time is running out. Even if he successfully passes the ball to Roger or another teammate, the only option for the next player is to force a shot.

Passing the ball at this time is irresponsible behavior.

However, Roger has excellent strong shooting ability. He was born for this kind of round, so it seems okay to pass it to him.

Roy faces a decision, and he doesn’t have much time.

“Keep the umbrella to keep out the rain in Seattle.”

“Brandon, take the umbrella.”

“Do you still want that Roger to hold an umbrella for you?”

“Tonight, it’s your turn to hold the umbrella.”

These voices flashed through Roy’s mind like lightning, and he made a decision.

He doesn’t want to always rely on Roger to win!
So Roy stopped suddenly and then immediately changed direction and started quickly. He made up for the lack of explosive power with superb rhythm changes. He passed by Kobe, then raised the basketball high towards Dwight Howard and gently kicked it.

“Brandon! He challenged Kobe and scored before the end of the offensive time, helping the Warriors to widen the gap to 27 points in the last 3 seconds! The Lakers’ attempt to overtake was shattered again! Mr. Big Heart, Brandon is definitely a Mr. Big Heart. This guy didn’t show any fear when facing the second best shooting guard in active service!” Mike Breen stood up and applauded. This was a heroic shot for Brandon Roy.

After scoring the goal, Roy smiled and pointed at Roger, making a gesture of holding an umbrella next to him.

“Take it, keep the rain out of Los Angeles.”

Roger smiled and raised his fist to bump with Roy.

Matt Barnes applauded on the side. Now he was sure that the boy was absolutely qualified to take over the scepter.

The Lakers were trailing by 3 points with only 27 seconds left. Phil Jackson paused the game and gave Kobe a tactic.

But his tactics were easily guessed by Spoelstra. When throwing the sideline ball, the Warriors cut off all of Kobe’s receiving routes, and the ball finally fell into the hands of that guy – LeBron James.

This was an extremely dramatic scene. LBJ, who had disappeared for a whole quarter, suddenly made his presence felt at the most critical moment.

The whole world is watching him. This ball will determine the life or death of the Lakers and the outcome of this basketball traffic war.

Endless pressure came from all directions. Roger opened his arms and slapped the floor with both hands: “I’ll give you a chance to kill me to prove that you are not a coward.”

Then, Roger followed the traditional method, allowing James to shoot without defending against the breakthrough, giving James relatively ample shooting space.

Kobe looked at James. Will he turn the tide like Brandon Roy just did?
LBJ waved his hand, signaling everyone to move away, and then dribbled the ball between his legs continuously.

Mike Breen’s blood pressure soared: “LeBron is going to single out Roger, LeBron is going to save the game!!!”

It was so dramatic that James had the opportunity to wipe out all the previous stains with one round.

Time passed by minute by minute, and when there were only 5 seconds left on the offensive time, James accelerated and sprinted.

But Roger’s control of distance is top-notch. He always stays in front of James, blocking the breakthrough route and only giving him some space for shooting.

James stopped suddenly, and Kobe stared at the basketball, praying that James could make the shot.

The next second, Kobe’s eyes widened.

He had never seen anything as outrageous as this in his 12-season career, because the basketball did not fly towards the basket, but towards Kobe.

LeBron James pulled away, dribbled the ball for twenty seconds, and in the end he chose to… pass the ball! ?
Kobe received the ball, shot hastily, but the shot missed the target and the Lakers missed their last chance.

It was the first time that Roger looked down upon an opponent so much and the first time that he sympathized with Kobe so much.

“Run away, coward. Run away until you can’t run anymore. That’s why I say that not having you is my greatest advantage.”

(End of this chapter)