The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 388 - 197 Rest Assured, LeBron_4

Chapter 388: Chapter 197 Rest Assured, LeBron_4

But this was already the best support the Lakers could muster besides Kobe and Yao Ming...

Bill Walton, after watching the game, felt, "The OK replica has enough dominance, but they still lack a sufficient helper, which should have been Lamar Odom, but he didn’t accomplish what he should have in this game."

The reporters in Los Angeles were also criticizing Odom.

"Lama" actually didn’t care about these media criticisms, but he knew very well the look Kobe would give him after seeing the news the next day. Therefore, sensing he would be overwhelmed by media opinion the next day, Odom took the initiative to send Kobe a message on the bus ride back:

— Kobe, I think I need extra practice.

He almost trembled as he pressed "send" with his thumb.

Then he watched as Kobe unlocked his phone and then turned to him with a surprised and relieved expression:

You’re finally growing up, kid!

Watching Kobe’s reaction, Odom thought to himself:

Physical exhaustion is always a bit better than mental exhaustion!

It’s just being tormented for a while, far better than being stared at every day by Kobe with his venomous snake eyes.

On the Pacers’ side:

Su Wan scored 14 points in the third quarter, ultimately tallying up 34 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks for the game.

His performance was almost on par with Kobe’s.

But he knew, aside from a few full-power plays, he was mostly suppressed by Kobe at other times, able to only look for mismatch opportunities.

What could he do, when Kobe was the premier real-time power player of the league at that time?

Perfect age, best condition, and sharpest skills.

Most likely, no one could gain the upper hand against such a Kobe.

However, a thought suddenly popped into Su Wan’s head:

I wish I were also a rookie from the "96 generation."

Matching Kobe at his peak would definitely be enjoyable...

Hmm...

Su Wan didn’t realize that he, too, was a "Fierce Fighter."

Because Kobe was fully focused on Su Wan in this game, the other two cores of the Pacers performed very well:

Jermaine O’Neal scored 25 points, while Artest had 19 points.

Often, when these two could contribute sufficient firepower on offense, the Pacers were able to crunch the opponent.

The only difference was...

In the past, such performances by these three players would have ended the game much earlier.

Tonight’s game against the Lakers, they won by just 7 points.

But considering they were facing Kobe and Yao Ming, the "replica OK," a hard-won victory was understandable.

Rick Carlisle seemed to realize something, and immediately after the game ended, he had his assistant coaches start gathering more information about the Lakers.

The Lakers were also favorites for this year’s championship, so the Pacers’ coaching staff had been studying their games.

However, before this game, the Pacers’ coaching team had been more inclined to believe that the Mavericks would be the team to break through from the Western Conference. Now having fought a "second battle" against the Lakers, Rick Carlisle felt the Lakers were more likely to be the ultimate "obstacle."

A team with advantages both inside and out against the Pacers, only the Lakers existed in the league.

Of course, the Pacers also had their own advantages against them.

It’s just that in this game, the Pacers did not capitalize on that advantage.

Mainly because Yao Ming was too fierce recently, always holding the ball to attack the basket. freewēbnoveℓ.com

Plus, there was Kobe outside.

If they rashly switched to a "small lineup," likely, the "replica OK" duo would each take a hammer and directly knock out the Pacers.

Rick Carlisle needed to study the Lakers more meticulously, analyzing from Phil Jackson’s use of Yao and Kobe to determine the best timing for deploying the "small lineup."

Anyway, the Lakers’ weakness was laid out there:

Yao’s physical fitness!

Then this game also proved that the link between Kobe and Yao Ming could be disrupted.

These aspects combined, Rick Carlisle had some ideas on how to target the Lakers.

It’s just unfortunate...

The Pacers had no more regular-season games left against the Lakers.

But winning this game at least allowed their regular season record against the Lakers to stand at 1-1.

And as the side that had accomplished their revenge, they held a psychological advantage.

Not only that, but the next morning, Indiana announced to the whole world that the Pacers had returned to the number one spot on the power rankings.

"What Lakers, merely so-so!"

And after defeating the Lakers, the Pacers went on a "three consecutive victories" streak.

At this time, however, everyone’s attention shifted away from them.

The Cleveland Cavaliers had become the focal point of everyone’s attention.

Not just because they achieved a "four-game winning streak."

But also because this wave of "four consecutive victories" of the Cavaliers happened without LeBron James!

What’s more...

The caliber of the opponents was not low!

The first game was against the Pistons, the third in the Eastern Conference, directly competing with the Cavaliers.

At that time, this was also the first game LeBron James sat out, and the Cleveland media were very worried the Cavaliers would be disastrously defeated by the Pistons.

But as it turned out, Gibson exploded in this game with 31 points and 7 rebounds, helping the Cavaliers to a victory of 89-80, a 9-point difference.

The second game was against the Dallas Mavericks, which was a tougher team compared to the Pistons.

For the Cleveland media, surprised and delighted by the victory over the Pistons, they thought for sure the Cavaliers were going to lose this one, and LeBron James’ absence would be greatly felt in this game.