NBA: Destroying Irving in the opening field

Chapter 33
After Wang Hao scored five points in a row, the momentum of the game came to the Lakers.

First, Ingram and Kuzma scored consecutive points on the offensive end, and then Pope and Lopez contributed blocks and steals on the defensive end. The Lakers quickly approached the score.

With the number on the timer going to zero, the first quarter is over.

33:31, the Clippers lead by only two points.

"Very good! This is our level!"

On the bench, the big brother Luol Deng stood up and applauded for the players who successfully closed the score.

Brother Qiu also rushed towards Wang Hao excitedly, and the two of them bumped their chests again to celebrate.

"Well played!" Brother Qiu said sincerely.

"Basic operation~" Wang Hao waved his hand and said arrogantly.

Brother Qiu might have believed him if he hadn't seen him panting.

However, at the same moment, although the head coach Walton and assistant coach Brian Shaw on the coaching bench also had smiles on their lips, they were worried inside.

"Although there was a small climax, but..." Brian Shaw looked at Wharton with a worried expression on his face.

"Yeah." Wharton folded his arms around his chest and nodded.

The layman looks at the excitement and the insider looks at the doorway.

Walton turned around and looked at the exhausted generals on the bench, and sighed: "Although we had the upper hand in the second half of the first quarter, the players consumed a lot of energy in the first quarter."

"Yeah, especially Wang Hao. He played the entire first quarter. Although he is young, it is impossible for him to keep playing with this intensity." Brian Xiao looked at Wang Hao, who was sweating profusely, feeling a little distressed. .

This game is really important for the Lakers.

First of all, they've been doing poorly in the West for years.

This year, the Lakers sent away the old No. [-]-Russell, and ushered in the new No. [-]-Brother Ball.

The Lakers fans, who have always been known to be picky, may be able to endure a "trusted person", but if Brother Ball is still embarrassed, the entire team will face great pressure from the management to the players.

Secondly, they have been suppressed by the Clippers for too long!

Since Kobe fell to the altar, the Lakers have been hard to find a win against the Clippers.

The opening game of this nationwide live broadcast is an excellent opportunity for this young team to prove themselves in the United States and even the world.

　
At the same time, the Clippers bench.

"I didn't expect it. They are much better than expected. The new Lakers have great potential." Griffin said while wiping his sweat with a towel.

"Potential alone can't win the game, it's just a group of relatively strong rookies." Beverly said with narrowed eyes.

"Yeah. That Huaxia defender, what's his name is Wang Hao, he's really strong defensively. But he's obviously exhausted from behind."

"This is only the first quarter, let them understand what the difference in strength is next."

The Italian striker who had been silent all this time - Gallinari spoke.

"That's right! For so many years, we have been suppressing the Lakers, but when will the fans in Los Angeles give us the respect we deserve?! We will use our strength to slap these down-and-out fans in the face." Clippers coach - Li Firth made a final decision.

It can be seen that the Lakers' tenacious counterattack in the first quarter made them somewhat unexpected.

At the same time, this also successfully aroused their desire to win.

　
"beep~"

The time-out is over and the game continues.

The beginning of the second quarter is a transition period, and both teams have sent some mixed lineups of starters + substitutes.

For the Lakers, Brother Qiu replaced Wang Hao, who was exhausted.

He and Pope form the backcourt, Kuzma and Nance Jr. are on the front line, and Lopez guards the inside.

The Clippers have a lineup of Lu Wei + Wesley Johnson + Decker + Gallinari + Griffin.

As soon as the second quarter came up, the Clippers adjusted their offensive strategy and focused on the inside.

Griffin and Gallinari both stood up at this time.

First up is Griffin.

At this time, his skills and body are at their peak, and he has not encountered any injuries. He is definitely in the top 15 of the league.

Opposing him was the Lakers power forward Nance Jr., a blue-collar player still on a rookie contract.

A beating without any suspense.
In desperation, the Lakers can only start double-teaming Griffin.

Finally, Griffin turned off, but Gallinari, another Clippers striker, stood up again.

As an All-Star star player, Gallinari has a tough style of play and outstanding static conditions, but lacks dynamic abilities such as speed and jumping, so he cannot go further.

But more than enough, he is definitely more than enough to deal with the Lakers' young strikers.

After a few rounds, Gallinari pressed the opposing Kuzma on the ground and rubbed hard.

He shot from inside and outside, and he scored six points in a row, and the score gap further widened.

At this time, Gallinari fouled Kuzma again and stood on the free throw line.

Lakers bench.

Wang Hao held his forehead with a headache.

Since his rest, the performance of the Lakers can only be described as a drastic drop.

Facing Beverly's marking, Brother Qiu became invisible again; Kuzma, Nance Jr. and others were also suppressed by the Clippers' striker.

Perhaps because of the experimental lineup at the beginning of the season, head coach Walton did not replace Wang Hao quickly.

He who pursues egalitarianism wants to try to see how different player combinations will perform.

But the result is obvious, without Wang Hao, they are not the Clippers' opponents.

It's not that the other players of the Lakers are so weak, it's just that the style of play was completely restrained by the Clippers.

First of all, without Wang Hao, the Lakers would not be able to withstand the Clippers' offense on the defensive end.

After finally stifling Griffin's offensive, Gallinari stood up again, and there was Lu Wei who felt hot on the court.

Failure to defend means that there is no chance to switch offenses.

In positional battles, the Lakers lack a stable scoring method, and it is difficult to get easy scoring opportunities.

After failing to score, the Clippers counterattacked.
The Lakers are caught in a vicious cycle.

Seeing that the game was about to end, Wharton finally gave up the idea of ​​​​rehearsing the lineup.

He knows that the Lakers' management also attaches great importance to the result of this game.

"king!"

As Gallinari walked to the free throw line, Walton beckoned to the bench behind him.

After Wang Hao came to his side, Wharton asked, "If you are asked to defend Gallinari, do you have the confidence?"

As soon as the words came out, assistant coach Brian Shaw looked at Wharton in surprise.

Doesn't Wharton trust Wang Hao's defense too much?

Although Wang Hao did defend against a small forward like Kuzma in the training game, it is definitely a risk for a guard who is less than two meters tall to defend against a star forward who is nearly two meters tall.

"I'll do my best." Wang Hao nodded seriously.

Faced with such a huge stature gap, he was not fully sure.

But... there is no other way.

So with 3 minutes left in the second quarter, Wang Hao went into battle again.

Wang Hao was replaced by Kuzma.

During his off-court rest, Kuzma can be said to have carried the banner of the Lakers' offense.

Can't get out of tactics in positional warfare?

Kuzma singles!
Shot with one second left or no chance?
Kuzma throws and catches the pot!
After playing as a father and mother for so long, Kuzma's physical fitness has also reached its limit.

Life is not easy, the handsome guy sighed, and Kuzma walked towards Wang Hao who was waiting outside the boundary.

"I'm sorry, the score has been stretched again." Kuzma gave Wang Hao a high-five with a tired face, and said with a wry smile.

"You have done a good job." Wang Hao comforted.

"Leave it to me." His tone was flat, but full of firmness.

"Huh?" Kuzma glanced at Wang Hao in surprise.

[This game can be reversed! ]
For some reason, when he heard Wang Hao's words, he felt an inexplicable confidence.

With Gallinari's second free throw, 48:35, the Clippers closed the gap by 13 points.

"It's a pity, it's back to the previous situation." Seeing Wang Hao on the field, Beverly immediately came to match up, and started talking trash again.

"No matter how hard you try, the result will not change. This is the gap in strength between us."

"However, I still have to say thank you for your meaningless efforts."

Beverly was smug, with a villainous smile on his face, obviously trying to get back the face he lost in the first quarter.

"Oh." Wang Hao said.

"!!!" Beverly frowned again.

(End of this chapter)