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Afterward, Liam brought out some more tactics until the end of the timeout, and both teams returned to the court.
The Warriors still had the ball, but they were no longer obsessed with the three-point shot. After playing with Yi Jianlian, Curry dribbled the ball inside.
The Lakers didn't change their defense, Kobe Bryant circled to chase Curry, who passed the ball to Yi Jianlian, who was taken out to the three-point line. Yi Jianlian didn't hesitate and shot the three-pointer as soon as he received the ball.
After Yi Jianlian made 2 of 4 three-pointers, Zen Master stopped allowing him to score. As long as Curry and he were blocking, the Lakers decided to switch up their defense. However, Odom still crouched inside and didn't defend him.
At this point, it was time to try Curry's three-pointers again. He glanced to the side, and Liam waved his hand, shouting:
"Distribution!"
The Lakers gave Curry space for three points, and Curry had to shoot. Otherwise, it would be difficult to break through the Lakers' defense inside, and the efficiency would definitely be low. If Curry couldn't make the open three-pointer, then his form today wasn't good, and they'd admit to losing.
As it turned out, even if Curry wasn't allowed a three-pointer, if a head coach did that, it would be a joke about their position.
After Curry got Liam's approval, in just 3 minutes, he shot 4 three-pointers with the help of a single cover, making 3 of them, and helped the Warriors extend their lead to more than 10 points all at once!
This insane shooting efficiency made Staples Center go silent, and Zen Master immediately called a timeout. When both teams returned, the Lakers no longer dared to surround Curry's screens. Whenever Curry called for a screen, the interior line would inevitably defend quickly and step out to the three-point line to guard Curry.
This gave Curry space to move. He continued to make both small and big plays after screens, driving inside, either finishing himself, passing to Chandler for a dunk, or handing the ball to Yi Jianlian. The success rate was very high. The Warriors' offense was surging, and Yi Jianlian's three-pointer was already his fourth attempt.
However, Yi Jianlian's defense was much worse than Green's after all. He couldn't resist Odom like Green did. Kobe Bryant would also consciously call for screens to target him, and the Lakers scored a lot of points, so the point difference didn't widen.
At the end of the third quarter, the Warriors finished with a 12-point lead over the Lakers, 83:71. Both teams fought hard, with Curry scoring 14 points and 5 assists in a single quarter, and Kobe Bryant scoring 18 points.
As he greeted the Warriors' players off the court, Liam looked at the panting Lakers players across from him and smiled slightly.
At the start of the final quarter, people were incredulous when they saw the Warriors' lineup on the court.
Mike Breen was confused:
"Friends, you can see that Liam didn't substitute Curry, and the Warriors' lineup on the court is Curry, UAE, Chandler, Jeremy Lin, and Butler, while the Lakers are with Gasol from the bench. The Warriors still lead by 12 points. Does Liam not want to let Curry rest for a while?"
In the live-text broadcast room, the fans were also very confused by Liam's decision:
"What is Coach Liam doing? If you don't let Curry rest, what if he runs out of energy?"
"No, Liam doesn't think a 12-point lead is secure, right? The boss feels really good in this game. If he dares to underestimate the Lakers, when Curry is off the court, the boss will definitely change the game!"
"Trust Coach Liam! Do you have a coach who understands basketball? Believe in the Warriors! The Warriors will win!"
"Hehe, pseudo-fans, how can there be a leader in the main force? I'm embarrassed to be in the company of people like you..."
Amid the controversy, the final quarter began.
The Warriors continued with the tactics from the third quarter, and they were even more ruthless than before, with Curry and Jeremy Lin taking turns breaking through, playing a variant of DDM tactics, alternating to break points. Curry, Butler, and Yi Jianlian had shooting ability, and the Lakers' defense was shattered. They couldn't stop the Warriors' offense at all.
Looking back on the defensive side, Liam organized an emergency, very thoughtful service for Gasol, based on Chandler's best defense. He organized Butler's emergency attack, Gasol lost his fire instantly, and with the clumsy scoring of the Lakers from the bench, he couldn't support the Lakers' offense at all. He missed repeatedly, and the Warriors seized the opportunity for a fast break.
With the Warriors at full intensity on both ends of the floor, the final quarter lasted just over 3 minutes, and the gap quickly opened to more than 20 points. The Warriors played a 15:3 offensive climax and completely controlled the situation on the court.
At such a critical moment in the final quarter, when the opposing team played like this, Zen Master remained calm, called a timeout, and changed back to the starting lineup early.
After returning to the starting lineup, the Lakers immediately stabilized the situation, and Liam also switched back to the starting lineup, only allowing Butler to take Matthews' place.
With a lead of more than 20 points, he dared to let Klay defend Kobe Bryant alone at the critical moment of the final quarter. It was the kind of moment that really trains the players.
Eagles must challenge the storm to fly freely through the sky.
Of course, if the score became too anxious, Liam would let Tony Allen guard Kobe.
Compared to training rookies, winning was the most important. 82 regular-season games in a season meant there were many opportunities to train players, but not many chances to win against the Lakers.
In Liam's previous life, the Lakers finished second in the West that season, only behind the Spurs. If it weren't for the fact that the entire team hadn't fully recovered at the start of the season, the players were still a bit tired, and important players were absent, the Warriors' chances of winning would've been very small. Liam had to take advantage of this great opportunity.
After Kobe Bryant entered the game, he immediately used a difficult mid-range fadeaway to help the Lakers stabilize the situation.
But that was it.
Klay really couldn't stop Kobe, but the Lakers couldn't stop the Warriors' offense. The absence of Bynum deprived the Lakers of their interior defensive pillar. Gasol and Odom were stronger on offense than defense. Curry rarely misses whenever he gets inside, and Chandler uses mobility for finishing, which Gasol also couldn't stop.
On the other hand, Chandler and Green kept the Warriors' restricted area airtight. Odom and Gasol didn't have the ability to shoot threes and had to stay inside. Green could boldly help defend and join forces with Chandler to trap Gasol, and the Lakers' offense could only be supported by Kobe Bryant.
In this case, the difference stayed around 15-20 points. Kobe Bryant had been difficult to save without help from anyone. The game entered the final quarter with 9 minutes left, and when Kobe Bryant faced a three-pointer from Klay, the Warriors counterattacked again. Butler cut to the basket and dunked, reducing the Warriors' lead to 18 points.
"Tic-"
Zen Master sighed slightly and finally called a timeout, preparing for the defeat.
The first vigil, and two more vigils
more at night.
End of this chapter
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