Slam Dunk: My Study Abroad Career in Northern Hunan

At the end of the first quarter, the Timberwolves had a slight advantage in the game, which made the Timberwolves fans in a good mood.

All fans can see that the Timberwolves are a team with stronger hard power than the Lakers.

If we compare the players of the Timberwolves and the Lakers individually, there may not be such a big gap between the two teams. The Lakers have many All-Star players, and their players' individual abilities are very strong.

Basketball is not as simple as 1+1=2. Stacking all-star players may help the management build a strong team, but it is hard to say whether it will definitely lead to a championship-winning team.

How much the players can exert their abilities on the court depends on the chemical reaction when they cooperate with each other.

Maybe five 80-point players combined are better than five 100-point players combined.

When those 100-point players are on the same team, perhaps due to mutual influence, each of them can only play 60 points on the court.

Just like the Lakers and Timberwolves at this time, when these Timberwolves players form a group, the strength they can unleash is beyond the imagination of the Lakers players.

Even if the Lakers have a player like O'Neal, there is no way for him to fully bring out his personal abilities.

It is true that O'Neal is one of the most dominant centers in the league today.

However, the way to use O'Neal is completely different from the way to use Jordan. If O'Neal is simply made into a finishing point, his personal strength cannot be fully brought into play.

Compared to Jordan, O'Neal's flaws are still very obvious, and the team needs to build a suitable lineup system around O'Neal's flaws. It is not just simply treating O'Neal as the core of the team and relying on O'Neal's dominance to compete with other teams.

It was clear that Lakers coach Del Harris did not have the instructions for using O'Neal.

The way he used O'Neal was completely wrong in Budo's opinion.

In fact, it's not just O'Neal. Coach Del Harris is also a bit rigid in his use of All-Star players such as Eddie Jones and Kobe Bryant.

Coach Del Harris, who was superstitious about O'Neal's ability, deprived these star players of many of their characteristics in order to make the team appear suitable for O'Neal.

The reason why O'Neal encountered so many failures in the early stages of his career was actually because of this.

His previous coaches all used O'Neal in a distorted way.

The way the inside core and the outside core are used is completely different. Most coaches treat O'Neal as Jordan. In the eyes of many people, since they both have unstoppable scoring abilities, there should be no difference between O'Neal and Jordan.

But in fact, there are huge differences between inside players and outside players.

What's more, in the league of the 90s, the pressure faced by inside players was completely different from that faced by outside players.

If the Lakers cannot figure this out and still blindly use O'Neal as the first finishing point and blindly believe in the other party's personal ability, the Lakers may never be able to win the championship.

During the break, the Timberwolves' rest area had a cheerful and harmonious atmosphere. They had taken the lead but did not feel too much pressure from the Lakers. In the first quarter, their players played smoothly and did not feel any insurmountable resistance.

On the contrary, the atmosphere in the Lakers' rest area was depressing.

After a little thought, Harris decided to replace Rick Fox with Kobe Bryant.

At the same time, Shaquille O'Neal was also substituted off the court. The Lakers' heavy center Elden Campbell came on as a substitute. Replacing two starting players was not enough. After careful consideration, coach Del Harris also replaced Fisher off the court. He was replaced by Nick Van Exel.

It has to be said that the Lakers' lineup depth is still quite good. Kobe Bryant and Nick Van Exel are both All-Star level players. Elden Campbell also averaged 15 points per game last season. Even if he suffered an injury this season, he is still considered a high-quality rotation.

If he goes to another team, Elden Campbell can even play the role of starting center.

Even the Timberwolves cannot compare with this kind of lineup depth.

Unlike the star-studded Lakers, the Timberwolves' rotation players in the second quarter were relatively low-end.

Wu Dao was substituted off the court for a short rest, and Tom came on as his substitute. Stanley Roberts, who had carried O'Neal with his body for an entire quarter, had also consumed a lot of physical energy, and was replaced by the white center Cherokee Parks.

Coach Philip considered that the Lakers might keep O'Neal on the court in the second quarter to chase points, so he still put out a three-in-the-field lineup.

With Budo out, Timberwolves fans clearly felt like something was missing in their hearts.

Obviously Tom is also an All-Star level player, but for some reason, the fans feel that the Timberwolves have no way to compete with the Lakers.

Wu Dao's departure left the Timberwolves fans feeling uncertain.

As players from both teams returned to the court after the break, the cheers from the Timberwolves fans were noticeably quieter.

In the second quarter, the Timberwolves got the first attack. As the basketball came out from the baseline, Marbury dribbled the ball and slowly advanced to the frontcourt.

After Wu Dao left the court, the Timberwolves lost their traditional first scoring point.

Marbury's judgment and personal abilities can be fully utilized and demonstrated on the court. When Wudao is on the court, Marbury's top priority is not how to connect the offense, but to always observe whether there are opportunities on Wudao's side.

But after Budo left the court, Marbury had a lot less to think about.

He can play the way he wants.

As Marbury approached the top of the arc, facing the pressure from Nick Van Exel, Marbury suddenly accelerated. After mobilizing the opponent's defense, he quickly changed the direction of his breakthrough in disguise.

Nick Van Exel, who had just come on the court, was full of energy and had good concentration. The moment Marbury changed his form, he quickly adjusted his pace and chased after him again.

Faced with the pressure defense, Marbury stopped suddenly and changed direction again. After three consecutive times, he finally got some gaps under the opponent's high-pressure defense. At the same time, he also rushed to the position in front of the free throw line. Marbury quickly received the ball, and his left hand was directly against the defender's body. He made a lob while moving and forced a shot.

Marbury's ability in running games is actually quite good, but perhaps because his touch had cooled down after a few minutes of rest, Marbury did not successfully put the ball into the net in this offensive game.

The basketball hit the inner edge of the basket and bounced out.

The rebound was also grabbed by Elden Campbell who was well prepared. Between offense and defense, Elden Campbell served the ball from the baseline and the basketball in his hand was already in the hands of Nick Van Exel, who controlled his own pace and waited until all the players entered the front court before speeding up and entering the Timberwolves half.

He did not move toward the top of the arc, but went to the wing.

At the same time, the young Kobe also came to the top of the arc, facing Tom's defense. As for Eddie Jones, he fell to the bottom corner on the same side, and his position also brought Garnett to the baseline.

The left half of the Timberwolves' half looked a bit empty, while the right half looked a bit crowded.

Nick Van Exel quickly passed the basketball in his hand to Kobe at the top of the arc. After Kobe received the ball, he moved the ball with his left hand toward the left along the three-point line.

As for Nick Van Exel and Eddie Jones, who had just passed the ball, they both stood there without moving, and it seemed that they had no intention of participating in the next attack.

Under the gaze of all the fans in the stadium, Kobe took the ball and went to the left wing despite Tom's defense.

The Lakers' offensive positioning gave people the feeling that they were planning to let Kobe go one-on-one.

On the side of the court, Coach Philips touched his chin and focused on the dynamics of the court. At the same time, on the side of the paint area before the baseline, Elden Campbell used his broad back to push Cherokee Parks behind him, and raised his hands high to ask Kobe for the ball.

Coach Philip, who saw this scene, immediately reminded Garnett who was dragged to the right corner: "Kevin, pay attention to the basket!"

However, Coach Philip's reminder seemed to have missed the point. Kobe, who got the ball, passed it directly to Elden Campbell in the interior over Tom's head, and had no intention of attacking himself.

In a one-on-one match under the basket, the stronger Elden Campbell had a considerable advantage over Cherokee Parks.

Elden Campbell, who started with basketball, just made a simple back-to-the-basket shot and directly knocked Cherokee Parks away. Elden Campbell quickly turned around with the ball, raised the ball with both hands and simply shook it, immediately igniting Ben Wallace who came to defend.

Facing the Lakers' backup center, Ben Wallace was a little careless.

Elden Campbell, who got the gap, jumped forward lightly, easily broke into the basket, grabbed the ball and hooked it lightly, successfully sending the ball into the net.

Don't think that Elden Campbell is just a rough guy who relies on his body. His hook shot under the basket and his footwork near the basket are pretty good. He is a power center with both rhythm and speed.

The guy is from the same Lakers as O'Neal, and he has learned a lot from O'Neal.

As the basketball went into the net, the Lakers fans, who had been holding back for nearly a quarter, suddenly burst into cheers.

Elden Campbell's performance at this time is in line with the image of the Lakers in their minds.

On the sidelines, Coach Philip glanced at the scoreboard and yelled to Wallace on the court: "Pay attention to Elden Campbell, don't let him have a one-on-one chance to play in the basket!"

Coach Philip vaguely sensed the Lakers' intentions and felt a little uneasy.

Between offense and defense, the Timberwolves completed this round of offense in just ten seconds.

After receiving the basketball in the backcourt, Marbury quickly advanced into the frontcourt and used his personal ability to break through Nick Van Exel with a beautiful pass. The basketball in his hand was quickly passed to Garnett who was in a small open space.

Garnett also faced the defense and made a beautiful fadeaway jump shot, successfully sending the ball into the net.

With Wu Dao's departure, the Timberwolves' offensive firepower seemed to have declined in the eyes of the fans, but in fact, even the current Timberwolves have enough offensive firepower to give the Lakers a hard time.

With the strength of the players currently on the court, the Lakers may not be able to withstand the trio of Marbury, Garnett and Tom.

But compared to the offensive efficiency, Coach Philip is more worried about the Timberwolves' defense at this time.

O'Neal's departure caused some changes in the Timberwolves' defensive formation. Garnett no longer focused on the inside, but instead focused all his attention on Eddie Jones.

Don't forget that Garnett has not yet regained his face from Eddie Jones.

When O'Neal was on the court, Garnett would consider the overall situation and make limiting O'Neal his main goal.

But after O'Neal left the court, Garnett became a little selfish when defending. What he was thinking about in his mind was to hold Eddie Jones tightly and not let this star player have any chance to score.

However, the Timberwolves would soon pay a heavy price for their defensive choices.

The Lakers' offensive rotation was exactly the same as the previous one. Nick Van Exel, who received the ball in the backcourt, still did not get into position at the top of the arc. After taking the ball to the right wing, he quickly passed the ball to Kobe at the top of the arc.

The preparatory steps were almost exactly the same as the previous attack. Kobe dropped the ball with his left hand along the three-point arc to the left wing, while Campbell under the basket was again positioning himself with his back to the basket.

Cherokee Parks was completely at a disadvantage in the physical confrontation with Campbell.

Derby still passed the ball to Campbell in the inside, but this time Tom realized the threat posed by Campbell and turned around quickly, intending to double-team him.

But at the same time Tom turned around, Campbell, who had the ball, actually passed the ball directly back to Kobe on the outside.

The latter made some adjustments after getting the ball and directly shot a three-pointer.

Kobe, Eddie Jones and Fisher are completely different. Their playing styles and paths are completely different.

Kobe would focus on improving his shooting ability during normal training. He had been teammates with Budo in a training camp in high school and knew very well what the three-point shooting ability meant to a scorer. Therefore, even after entering the NBA, Kobe never relaxed his three-point shooting training.

space!

Scores who have the ability to shoot three-pointers will often have more space, which is what Kobe learned from martial arts.

Although his idol is Jordan and his skills are intended to replicate Jordan, this does not mean that Kobe will not grow. Any opponent he meets in his career will become nourishment for his evolution.

(End of this chapter)