ATPnovel Chapter 172 Overwhelming the Lakers
Chapter 172 Overwhelming the Lakers
Chapter 172 Overwhelming the Lakers
When Howard wanted to attack with all his strength on the Lakers side, the Nuggets chose to foul.
Of course, Xiang Chu didn't come alone, Faried also committed two, and Howard only made one of his six free throws, which directly caused the Lakers to fall behind by double digits.
At the beginning of the season, no one would have thought that a team with Howard would fall behind the opponent by more than 10 rebounds at halftime. Howard was really beaten in the first two quarters.
He tried his best to restrain Xiang Chu, but he didn't restrain him, giving people the impression that he was completely blue-collar.
At halftime, the atmosphere on the Lakers' side was dull.
D'Antoni hurriedly poured chicken soup, "As long as you are determined to win, it's nothing to be temporarily behind. The outside world wants to see our jokes, but I know you are all fighters, and you can recover the score."
It's just that at this time, the Lakers players are not interested in listening to the old man's nonsense.
Kobe suddenly said in a deep voice: "In the second half, I will take responsibility to catch up with the score."
As the boss of the team, Kobe took the lead in expressing his opinion, but Howard felt a little flustered when he heard his proud tone. He just needs to cooperate with Kobe alone, so what is he?
Before coming, Howard had a bright prospect. He came to Los Angeles, the core city of the league, and then succeeded Kobe as the boss.
Now he can't stay any longer. He is not Kobe's younger brother. He needs more respect. He is not a blue-collar player.
The atmosphere on the Nuggets side is much better. They have met the Lakers several times this season, and they have almost figured out the details of each other, and the superstars are no different.
In other words, there are also superstars in their team, and Xiang Chu's current performance is much better than the average All-Star.
In the third quarter, Kobe and Nash dominated the rhythm of the team, and the Lakers played really well.
Kobe has been able to hold the league for such a long time, he must not only be able to play, he is no worse than anyone else in his understanding of basketball.
Facing the Nuggets, not only Xiang Chu's threat, but also the Nuggets' counterattack.
He doesn't just know how to play hard, he's just extremely confident. Now he has to play more rationally against the Nuggets' tactics, and taking responsibility is not just talking.
But there is Xiang Chu, the hole in the first half is not so easy to fill, the Nuggets are not afraid of playing reasonably, and the Nuggets are not too afraid of Kobe going crazy, unless it is a three-point rain.
The current Lakers are really not compatible with D'Antoni's running and bombing, they are too old.
Xiang Chu received the ball inside, and Howard blocked him outside the three-second zone. He calmly showed his technical movements, not as elegant as Dream's footsteps, but turned over and scored the ball by relying on height.
Obviously there is not much difference in height between the two sides, but Howard is powerless to watch the basketball fall into the basket.
Xiang Chu's appearance reminded him of Hua Guo's retired center, which was not a good memory.
But Howard must do his best to block Xiang Chu in the three-second zone, because in the three-second zone, Xiang Chu is O'Neal.
Howard, the No. [-] center, O'Neal has been unremitting. Howard thinks that he will not be much different from the peak O'Neal. Everyone's style is just different.
But now that he met Xiang Chu, he realized that his No. [-] center might really be a bit of a fluke.
Howard gritted his teeth. He put down his body and tried his best to defend. Could it be that he still can't handle the kid in front of him.
"Brother, your skills are a bit rough, if you are not convinced, call back." Xiang Chu provocatively said.
Xiang Chu didn't think they were stable, and there was no pressure to talk trash.
"Boy, don't be complacent, I won't let you continue to be rampant." Even if Howard's temper is not so violent, he still wants to hit someone now.
"Oh, why didn't I feel that you don't even score now?" Xiang Chu said cheaply.
Howard couldn't help but move a little too much. The two sides immediately pushed and shoved. The referee immediately gave each of them a foul. The referee reacted quickly in this kind of game with a lot of attention.
Howard had one more foul, and Xiang Chu had no pressure.
Kobe came over and talked to Howard, asking him to keep calm, and Howard was very depressed.
However, it was useless to be calm. Next, under the restraint of Xiang Chu, the Nuggets hit 2 three-pointers.
The Lakers worked so hard to chase a few points, and they returned to before the start of the second half.
D'Antoni simply dropped Howard to play a small lineup and fight for three-pointers. He no longer believes that Howard can handle Xiang Chu, so it is better to stagger the time, maybe Howard can handle Mozgov.
Jamison came up and hit 2 three-pointers, but that's all. The Lakers didn't catch up with many points. At the end of the third quarter, they lost 1 point less than at halftime.
After staggering playing time, Howard was really able to bully Mozgov.
Howard was also upset, and only used the extra power on Mozgov.
Mozgov wasn't happy either. He had no status as the Nuggets' number one substitute inside, and he had to be a meat shield. He couldn't beat Howard, but he could foul.
Howard was unlucky, he missed all free throws, and he didn't make free throws in the second half.
Those who say that free throws cannot be practiced have not worked hard. At least there will be no problems at the average level.
At the end of the quarter, Kobe couldn't bear it anymore, and he went up and started to play.
The Nuggets are actually okay in single defense. Although Gallinari is not up, Iguodala and Chandler can go up to the top. They cannot completely limit Kobe, but they can consume him and reduce his efficiency.
Kobe can score, and the Nuggets can also score. The score gap between the two sides is hard to close.
In the last few minutes, they managed to catch up to within 10 points. Chandler hit another three-pointer, and the Lakers' mentality suddenly collapsed.
They didn't even play three-point tactics. Kobe finally lost his interest and simply passed the ball. He was very disappointed in this game.
Now that the team has a luxurious lineup, Kobe still feels that there is a lack of helpers. If Howard can practice the damn free throw well, would they be so embarrassed now?
During the game, Kobe lost his temper and received a technical foul. He persuaded Howard before, but he couldn't help being disappointed with the game.
Kobe said after the game: "They are like a killer. We were beaten hard. Sometimes once some teams play well, all players will perform better."
D'Antoni said, "We let them score too many points in the paint, and we should do better."
Kobe has received 14 technical fouls this season, and if he receives two more, he will be suspended for one game.
D'Antoni was a little worried, "In the current situation, we can't afford to play without Kobe, especially because of this reason. He must control his temper to avoid this from happening."
(End of this chapter)