第454章 453：不是20分，不是30分，不是40分（求月票！）

The Golden State Warriors lead the Lakers 2-0, which means the Lakers are on the brink of life and death.

As a beacon of human freedom, America’s public security has always been too free. It is possible that on an ordinary night when you go out, you will be forced to fight a life-and-death battle on the street.

The same goes for the Lakers players.

Only two games into the Western Conference Finals, they’ve already faced a life-and-death battle.

In Game 3 of the series, the Lakers have no way out.

Although the Warriors need to win four games to advance, if the total score becomes 3-0, the Lakers will be like a ponytail guy who eats without leaning against the wall. He may not die immediately, he may be able to struggle a few more times or even grab a taxi to the hospital, but death is inevitable.

So Kobe Bryant got up at four in the morning and prepared to go directly to the UCLA Health Center.

Today is the day of the competition, and he should have had a good rest, but he couldn’t sleep at all.

People always cannot sleep peacefully in times of crisis, just like when Pentagon staff discovered that China had launched two sixth-generation fighter jets during the Christmas holiday and caused a traffic jam in front of the White House at 4 a.m.

Kobe went to the training ground at four in the morning. Only basketball could make him feel temporarily at ease.

Tonight is the most important night, and Kobe will make sure there will be no problems with his condition.

But what about the other guy? LeBron James is always the biggest unknown for the Lakers. He played well in the last game, but since his crucial pass in Game 1, Kobe couldn’t figure out that man.

Kobe kept shooting and found that his shooting percentage was getting worse and worse. He couldn’t concentrate and he kept thinking about James.

Finally, after missing five shots in a row, Kobe stopped all actions.

He decided to have a final talk with James before the game started.

At 7 o’clock in the evening, the Staples Center, one of the most watched basketball venues in the world.

Tonight, the world’s attention is once again gathered here.

LeBron James was alone in the locker room preparing for the game. He and Kobe hadn’t spoken for days, and their relationship was dead in name only after the loss in Game 1.

This even affected the preparations for the Dream Team 8. Coach K was already struggling with whether to bring Kobe and James together. If the two really didn’t get along, putting them together would likely damage the Dream Team 8’s locker room.

Tonight’s result determines everything. If the Lakers can keep the spark of reversal and eventually advance tonight, the conflict between Kobe and James will naturally disappear.

But if they lose tonight, not only the Lakers will be affected, but the Dream Team will also be implicated.

Just as James was tying his shoelaces, he saw Kobe taking the initiative to sit next to him: “LeBron, are you free?”

“What is it?” James forced a smile, as if there had never been any conflict between them.

This is exactly what Kobe finds most disgusting about him, this bastard is so hypocritical.

When he was on the Dream Team in 2006, Kobe felt that James was easy to get along with and had a good impression of him.

But after becoming teammates this season, Kobe realized that he was so easy to get along with only because he always wore a hypocritical mask to please you.

He always pretends to be harmless, but he is always plotting something secretly.

He’s as hypocritical as those bastards who dress up nicely to watch girls dance ballet. They say they appreciate art, but in fact, God knows what they are appreciating in their hearts.

His interviews, his words and actions always emphasize one thing, explicitly or implicitly – this is my and Kobe’s team.

Kobe knows what James wants because what he wants is exactly what Kobe wanted from O’Neal.

But it’s too early now. Kobe is only 30 years old. He is willing to give up his position in three or four years. But now? James is not qualified to compete with him.

After Game 1 of the series, Kobe actually told James directly what his position should be on the Lakers.

Want to be the owner of the Lakers? You have to fulfill your responsibility as Scottie Pippen first.

He knew that James would definitely be angry about this, so when Kobe saw James laughing, he felt extremely disgusted.

He and Shark never put on fake smiles or pretend to have a good relationship. They get along with each other in a manly way and solve problems in a manly way.

But what about James? He never really opened up to anyone, and only a fool would be deceived by his masked appearance and mistakenly think he was his good brother.

Kobe did not smile at James, still with a straight face. He wanted to tell James with a serious expression that this was a serious conversation: “I just want to make sure your goal is to win. You performed very well in the last game. I will give you more opportunities on the offensive end in this game. I said, I don’t care about anything else, I just want to beat Roger. In the final analysis, this Lakers team will be yours in the end.”

James still kept smiling. Yes, it will be mine sooner or later. The question is how soon or later?

Of course, James didn’t say what he thought. As the Godfather says, never let outsiders know what you are thinking. So what if he only read the title page of the original book? James watched the movie five or six times.

“Of course I have no problem. If I had a problem, I would not have chosen to sacrifice in the last game.”

At this time, the skier Radmanovic was standing in front of Kobe and James. The locker next to James belonged to him, and Kobe was sitting in front of his locker, so he couldn’t take anything.

But Kobe obviously had no intention of giving up his seat. He glared at Radmanovic, and the latter walked away tactfully.

This scene almost made James want to laugh. Kobe always said some high-sounding words, but look at this locker room, everyone knows who is the boss, everyone knows whose team this is, and it is completely meaningless for Kobe to say those high-sounding words.

After the skier left, Kobe continued.

“Good LeBron, that’s all I need to know. If you have a chance on offense tonight, you can do it, just don’t get distracted on defense. Roger said he’s going to take over the Staples Center, so fuck that bastard!”

This is the game that will make or break our season. You know, Shaq told me a truth that Roger told him. When the team wins, the stars will get all the praise. But when the team loses, they will also be the biggest slander and abuse. Enjoy the praise, and you must bear the responsibility after the loss.

This is the fairest exchange in the world.

LeBron, you don’t want to be a villain among villains, do you? Or are you willing to be the most veritable clown of this era in Roger’s words? “

After saying that, Kobe stood up and left, leaving James alone to think.

Kobe finally grasped the point this time. The promise of “The Lakers will be yours sooner or later” is too empty to cause any ripples in James’ heart.

But the media and outside voices are what James is urgently concerned about now.

The move to Los Angeles has caused his reputation to plummet to the bottom, and he is now treated as a villain by the entire league and the entire basketball world.

What if you become a villain and end up losing?

James couldn’t imagine how bad his image could be.

He really can’t lose. Tonight is not only the Lakers’ last chance, but also his last chance to save his career.

James will never have any more random thoughts tonight. If he loses tonight, he will lose everything.

Half an hour later, the players from both teams entered the court. Tonight’s Game 3 was as lively and star-studded as Game 1.

The camera scanned the female stars on the sidelines. This was the game that the live director would play every time Roger played an away game in Los Angeles.

Among the fans, the game is called “Find out how many women Roger has fucked on the scene.”

Tonight, in order to boost the morale of the Lakers players, the Lakers held a starting players’ entrance ceremony, and the fans at the scene did not hold back on their enthusiasm.

This was the first time LeBron James had heard fans cheering for him in days.

The two games in Mission Bay were simply a nightmare for James. The endless boos and insults even made him doubt himself.

And tonight, someone finally cheered him on.

“LeBron, lock up that asshole, you can do it!”

“Take the Staples Center for yourself? Let that arrogant bastard die!”

“Don’t give a damn if you are Scott Pippen or not. You only have one identity: champion!”

“You are not Roger’s greatest rival, because you are about to become the only one who can conquer Roger!”

These shouts penetrated James’ ears, making him feel the power flowing through his blood vessels.

He vowed that he would give his all on defense today.

Lakers championship!
Kobe was also affected by the cheers. He woke up at four in the morning just for this moment.

He approached the center circle and yelled to Roger, “No one can occupy the Staples Center except us.”

Roger smiled and shrugged. “Everything has a price, man. As long as the price is right, the Staples Center can be sold. Look, your issue in Colorado was all about money. I’m different from you. I’m very generous. I will not hesitate to use a victory to turn this place into my paradise.”

Kobe suddenly grimaced and was already very angry before the game even started.

He stared at Roger and answered word by word: “No one can take this place as their own. This is our home ground!”

At the start of the game, Dwight Howard won the first attack ball for the third consecutive game.

In the stands, Shaquille O’Neal sneered disdainfully: “He is still young and can still jump. When he reaches my age, he will be obedient.”

Bill Simmons sat next to Shark. He had arranged to interview Shark for Roger’s autobiography. Shark happened to be in Los Angeles, so the two of them simply came to watch this epic battle live.

“You’ve never liked Dwight. Why?” Bill Simmons asked.

“Why? Would Roger like LeBron?”

“It’s impossible, because LeBron is not as good as Roger, but he is always compared with Roger. It’s like you bought an Alfa Romeo, polished it to a shine, but when you drive it on the street, people who don’t know cars keep comparing it with other brands of cars. Do you think you would like this feeling?”

“Bingo, this is why I don’t like Dwight. Wait, what’s going on?” O’Neal, who was staring at the court, sat up in surprise, and other fans had the same reaction.

Reggie Miller frowned. “In the Lakers’ first attack, Roger was in charge of defending Chauncey Billups. I don’t know if this matchup was accidental or if the Warriors adjusted their strategy.”

In the past two games, Roger was directly facing James on the defensive end, and the fans have become accustomed to this kind of matchup.

The matchup between James and Roger is also one of the most exciting highlights of this round of the series.

But today, Roger was responsible for defending LeBron James, and the responsibility of defending James fell on Tayshaun Prince.

This change in position was the key to victory that Roger and Spoelstra discussed after the previous game.

The Warriors can win if Roger and James face off, but it is too dangerous because Roger’s firepower is dragged down by defense. Although James’ personal score was less than 15 in two consecutive games, it was all earned by Roger’s tireless and active defense.

If we want to win the game safely, we must free Roger up on the offensive end.

In the last game, Billups has proved that it is difficult for him to play well in the division finals. So using Roger to defend Billups can achieve good defensive results even without much effort, which allows Roger to save a lot of energy on the offensive end.

As for James, although the little prince suffers a disadvantage in confrontation, as long as there are defensive players to help, James will still not have an easy time.

To put it bluntly, this positional adjustment is to reduce Roger’s defensive pressure, allowing him to go all out on the offensive end and get the game out of the rhythm of a defensive battle.

A defensive battle is like a bare-handed fight, both sides will experience pain, and it is difficult to determine the winner. But what if one of the parties suddenly gets a long sword as a weapon? The game may end quickly.

Tonight, Roger is that sword.

In the last game, Chauncey Billups’ poor shooting percentage put him in sage time, and he has no desire to attack until today. What is the powerlessness of middle-aged men? It means that after a passionate battle, it takes a long time to recover and get into the next fierce battle.

So Roger didn’t even touch Billups, he just passed the ball to No. 23 who was out of the loop.

James’ state was the opposite of Billups’. He was particularly excited. Roger finally stopped defending him, which meant he could finally score well.

He has decided to take more actions today!

Three straight games with less than 15 points? Screw it!
No one plays for stats? No one really believes this, right?

James can’t wait to fill his scoring statistics, he firmly believes that tonight will be his great moment.

Since Kobe said that he can play freely on the offensive end today, there is no need to be polite.

After James got the ball, he didn’t pass it or call for a screen, but rushed in. Prince couldn’t control this real tank at all. He tried his best to push, but it was completely useless.

After LBJ went deep into the basket, Stoudemire immediately helped to protect the frame.

But James did not dodge. Instead, he jumped up to confront Stoudemire and forcefully scored the ball.

James is like the Shark. Maybe his shooting touch is a little stiff, but his touch near the basket is excellent, and it is not difficult for James to finish in a confrontation.

The ball went in, and James roared like King Kong: “Are you scared, Roger? No one else can defend me!”

This is what Kobe expected James to be like, and this is also what fans expect James to be like.

Before this, James’ performance was like putting gold rims on a shit pot. His talent was completely wasted because of his mentality problem.

Tonight, James performed very strongly from the start and fully demonstrated his talent.

No. 23 brought his excitement to the defensive end. He began to press Roger as soon as he crossed the midfield line, using his strong body and abnormal athletic ability to block Roger at all times.

He had not forgotten his promise to freeze Roger.

Roger was not intimidated by James’s pressure. Instead, he took advantage of the situation and said, “What a good dog. You are trying so hard to protect your master’s territory.”

“Shut up Roger, this is my fucking territory!”

This is the first time that LeBron James has publicly expressed his inner desires.

The goal just now completely ignited his emotions, so he is now speaking without restraint.

Kobe heard James yelling and he was not surprised by James’s thoughts.

And like he said, he only cares about winning now. Who owns the Staples Center? It doesn’t matter, at least not yet.

Roger did not intend to pass the ball when facing pressure. He needed a shocking attack.

Roger lowered his center of gravity, changed direction to the left, took a step forward, and then forgot to move to the right side.

Just as James caught up, Roger dribbled away with his back for the second time in a row, passed by James, then broke through to the mid-range position and made a quick stop jump shot.

Roger didn’t even bother to wait for the basketball to enter the net. He turned around and glanced at No. 23 behind him: “Maybe you thought you were the center of the world, but I will let you find out that you are just a clown on the stage.”

“brush!”

These two voices reached James’ ears at the same time, but he felt nothing in his heart.

He must deal with Roger, he must!
One round later, James punished Prince’s strategy of letting him shoot but not drive with a mid-range shot. The fans at the scene cheered for him, as if a constant source of strength was being injected into James.

So he continued to defend Roger’s side seriously and continued to put pressure on him.

Although the game has only been played for a few rounds, Reggie Miller has already concluded: “The Lakers will have the best LeBron tonight!”

But before the Lakers fans were satisfied, Roger immediately responded.

In this shot, Roger dribbled continuously outside the three-point line. When everyone thought he was going to break through, he went straight towards James and pulled up.

James raised his hands and rushed forward as fast as he could, thinking that he had done his best in defense.

But the basketball still went in.

In the first two games, once James interfered to this extent, Roger could no longer score.

But tonight, with the same interference, Roger was able to hit the target easily.

The reason? Roger, who was exhausted on the defensive end in the last game, didn’t have a very good shooting touch.

But tonight, Roger had almost no pressure on the defensive end, so his offense was difficult to contain.

5 to 4, the Warriors took the lead, Roger pointed at James’s data on the big screen and said: “Is this how you freeze me?”

In the next first quarter, James found that Roger seemed to be ignoring his defense.

No. 14 has such a good touch that he can guarantee his hit rate as long as there is a slight gap for shooting.

Roger tonight was his most powerful offensively since entering the Western Conference Finals.

He switched back and forth between holding the ball and not seeking, making it difficult for the Lakers to target him.

Phil Jackson tried to double-team in the middle of the first quarter, but Roy and Stephen Jackson’s three-pointers dispelled the idea.

The three-pointer is a terrifying weapon, and just a few shots are enough to widen the gap, which is why even Yao Ming started to pull out and shoot three-pointers.

Moreover, shooting tends to get smoother the more you shoot, so you’d better cut off the opponent’s three-point momentum in time.

Reggie Miller praised: “The Warriors’ role players always give Roger the greatest support, and the Lakers’ double-teaming strategy has failed!”

Indeed, the Warriors’ role players can always support Roger in time and seize three-point opportunities when there are open spaces.

But this is not only because the Warriors’ role players are strong, but also because Roger is a master of distributing the ball.

He undoubtedly dominated the first quarter, and he played alone for many rounds. But he would occasionally pass the ball to others, even if his teammates couldn’t score.

In Phil Jackson’s view, this was proof that Roger had fully understood the game of basketball.

Phil Jackson has always believed that in a long season, you must allow role players to hold the ball and play several games in a game. He places great emphasis on sharing the ball, requiring superstars to give up their good shots and digest the ball in some rounds and do some hard work, such as running without the ball, to create opportunities for role players.

Because if role players are asked to spend the entire 48 minutes doing the same old defense, pick-and-roll, and waiting in the corner for three-pointers, they will lose their passion, desire to win, and touch.

Role players are also people, not NPCs made up of cold codes in the game, and you have to ensure that they are also in the game.

An occasional attack with the ball and a shot will make them more involved in the game. Only when everyone has the gaming experience can the game go smoothly.

That’s why people say Phil Jackson understands people better than any other coach.

He and Roger share a common philosophy – people are more complicated than basketball.

What Roger did happened to be in line with Phil Jackson’s philosophy. The Zen Master believed that he had a deep understanding of basketball, and so did Roger.

He is the perfect leader, the only one who can be called “God”.

It is precisely because Roger occasionally delegates power and allows everyone to participate that the Warriors’ role players will never collectively miss the three-point line. Roger knows that he has to give them the ball occasionally to stabilize their mentality and state.

So when Roger needs it, his teammates will give him back with accurate three-pointers.

LBJ had no idea of ​​this when he was with the Cavaliers, so many players who worked with him, from Shumpert to JR Smith to Deron Williams, have complained about the same thing in public.

“The team made me stand in the corner for the entire game, occasionally taking open shots, which left us with no rhythm or form. I was always defending, boxing out, rebounding, and running back and forth. I couldn’t feel the elasticity of the ball at all. I didn’t know if the ball felt cold, hot, or warm. I didn’t know how much sweat was on the ball, or how much friction it had. Sometimes you have to feel it, dribble it, pat it, and let your body feel it in order to better control the ball. But on the Cavaliers, next to LeBron, it’s hard for me to have such an opportunity.”

Playing like this can indeed allow stars to produce very good statistics, but it does not necessarily lead to victory.

To sum it up, playing basketball is like having sex. You can’t just enjoy it yourself, you have to make your partner enjoy it too.

After the Warriors made consecutive three-pointers, the Lakers had to continue defending alone.

So, Roger, who could attack with all his strength, continued to score points on James.

James tried his best, and many of his defenses only gave Roger a little space to shoot.

But Roger scored again and again. Chauncey Billups’ inaction on the offensive end allowed Roger, who did not need to defend much, to maintain an excellent touch.

James also scores, but his scoring frequency is far less than Roger.

In the 10th minute of the first quarter, Roger faced James with the ball and called for a pick-and-roll. Whenever Howard, the big devil of help defense, went off the court to rest, Roger liked to use 1-5 pick-and-roll to torture the Lakers’ defense.

Mutombo came up to provide screen, and Theo Ratliff nervously prepared to switch defense.

Roger moved to the side of the pick-and-roll, and James immediately yelled, “Delay! Don’t let him break through!”

Theo Ratliff stepped forward, ready to block it.

But Roger did not make a quick stop jump shot or continue to break through. Instead, he changed direction for the second time, preparing to bypass the screen set by Mutombo for the second time.

This screen disrupted the switch between James and Ratliff, and both of them rushed towards Roger and chased him with all their might.

But the next second, Roger pulled the ball back from under his crotch and retreated back to the three-point line!
Ratliff was completely thrown away, and James tried to change his direction, but unexpectedly slipped and fell to the ground.

Reggie Miller shook his head: “Theo and LeBron are like two puppets being played by Roger!”

Roger took a long shot and made a three-pointer with no interference at all.

The fans at the Staples Center covered their heads with their hands. After this goal, Roger had scored 17 points in a single quarter!
James may have played well today, but his desire to freeze Roger has been dashed.

After scoring the goal, Roger pointed at James on the ground and said, “Freeze me now, or I won’t get 20 points, 30 points, or 40 points today!”

“As for Staples Center,” Roger turned his head and looked at Kobe, “I’m going to take it!”

Reggie Miller had no way of knowing what Roger said, but he could guess it wasn’t something good.

As Roger’s old rival, he made a prediction after watching Roger’s performance in the first quarter.

“Roger is going to rule the night.”

(End of this chapter)