NBA: I am a master dealer

Confidence does matter sometimes.

It can make you decisive in your shots, stronger in your endurance, physically excited, active in fighting on the field, etc. This game reflects this.

finally.

Xue Liancheng played 30 minutes and led the team to win the game 119:102.

We clearly have a huge advantage, so why force it?
Because Xue Liancheng was already prepared to play for forty minutes, he only played for thirty minutes in the first three quarters.

As a result, the Pistons failed to withstand the pressure and were clocked out in the third quarter. He did not play at all in the fourth quarter.

In this game, he had a strong desire to attack. He took 20 shots and hit 12 of them. He made 10 of 6 three-pointers and 9 of 8 free throws. He scored a crazy 38 points. He also had top statistics of 10 assists and 9 rebounds.

George also only played three quarters and only played 25 minutes, less than Xue Liancheng. He scored 15 points on 7 of 19 shots.

Mike Brown may also be aware of the coordination issues between George and Xue Liancheng, so he staggers their playing time.

For example, at the end of the first quarter, George brought the substitutes, and then at the beginning of the second quarter, Xue Liancheng connected and also brought the substitutes. He took a two-minute break in the middle and then played full game.

The third and fourth quarters and so on.

It’s just that this game didn’t even have a fourth quarter.

Randall became more and more accustomed to his new role, rushing in and out, occasionally throwing one or two three-pointers, and scored a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds in three quarters.

Now Randall doesn't have the habit of throwing three-pointers randomly like he will in the future, or he doesn't have any desire for three-pointers. He just tries three-pointers in open positions, and Xue Liancheng has encouraged them since the start of the game.

At present, it can only be said that his shooting is average, with a 29% hit rate, which is not enough to put on the table.

But at least it's a good start. If the open three-pointers are not taken, that's fine.

Courtney Lee scored 8 points and Zubac 6 points.

Clarkson had 12 points on the bench, James Johnson had 10 points, and Marvin Williams also had 10 points.

The three of them are like a weaker version of the Big Three, holding up the entire bench.

Among them, James Johnson is more valued and is a very important part of the team's five small lineups. He can provide considerable help to the team on both offense and defense.

As for the Pistons.

Reggie Jackson and Drummond both transformed into iron kings.

前者16中6得到16分，后者17中6得到15分，不过外加还有17个篮板。

Zhuang Shen is now a bit pretentious.

After ending their two-game losing streak, the Lakers' momentum finally picked up.

However, some people still believe that the Pistons are just an underdog, and winning doesn't mean much.

Anyway, according to the current situation of the Lakers, reaching the playoffs is not as simple as it seems on the surface.

After all, 17 wins and 28 losses is indeed a bit far away from the playoffs.

Winning against the Heat and losing to the Clippers and Spurs shows that the Lakers' strength is indeed not bad, but it is not enough to form a crushing force.

In other words, it will not be easy for the Lakers to reach a 60% winning rate next.

Playing at home against the Denver Nuggets, their direct playoff rivals, just verified this conjecture.

The Lakers finally lost to the Nuggets 121:127 and lost again.

Xue Liancheng played 23 minutes and left the game with four minutes left in the third quarter because he felt soreness in his tailbone.

He was worried that this was a recurrence of an old injury, so he hurried back to the locker room without even having time to use his 100% skill.

In this game, his condition was actually pretty good. He made 15 of 8 shots and 10 of 4 three-pointers. He scored 22 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds without using his % shooting skills.

If he doesn't leave early, he should be able to harvest this game.

But for the sake of his own health, he did not waste his expression in such an ordinary regular season game.

of course.

For the current situation of the Lakers, this game is actually not ordinary, but he can't risk getting injured again to participate in such a game, right?

Then there are still thirty or forty games to come, do we still want to play?
What's more, he has a recurrence of an old injury!

He took more than half a year off to recuperate from his injury. If it relapses, it will have to be postponed, and the Lakers will be completely finished.

If something serious happens and requires another operation, which affects your career, it will really be a death...

It is different from the tiebreaker of last season's finals. It was the last game, and it only lasted a few minutes. He fought hard to win the championship. It was definitely worth a try.

In addition to this factor in this defeat, the main reason is that the Nuggets are really getting stronger.

The Lakers scored a high score of 121.

乔治表现也不赖，17中8拿到了24分6篮板7助攻，属于正常发挥。

Randle had 15 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists.

Zubac had 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Courtney Lee also had 11 points.

The entire starting lineup played well, scoring a total of 83 points, which can be said to be full of offensive firepower.

Clarkson, who came off the bench, played a lot of time in this game, scoring 16 points on 7-of-19 shooting. His efficiency was a bit poor, but it was acceptable.

James Johnson languished and only scored 7 points.

Marvin Williams didn't perform well either, scoring 6 points.

Glenn Robinson scored 4 points and Joe Johnson scored 2 points.

But overall, the substitutes were able to score 38 points without playing much, which is not bad.

After all, facing Jokic in this game, Zubac spent a lot of time fighting hand-to-hand, and the playing time of others was also squeezed again and again.

As for the Nuggets.

The porky Jokic has really come into his own, making 22 of 12 shots and scoring 29 points and 15 rebounds.
Wilson Chandler had 26 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds.

法里德20分，穆迪埃14分6助攻，加里纳利14分6助攻5篮板，初出茅庐的穆雷也有14分。

Their overall offense has started to become very smooth.

The defense is also very active, with various fights and physical confrontations.

The vitality bursting out from young people is like a volcano, full of heat.

It's just a bit fussy, with too many mistakes and too many fouls.

And this battle further widened the victory gap between the two sides.

After all, they are fighting directly, one game is worth two games!
The sarcastic voice struck again.

"Haha... You can't even beat the Nuggets, and they are still clamoring to win the championship. Just take a piece of cake and think about how to enter the playoffs."

"Is this the leadership ability of the league's number one player?"

"Ha! There are still people who respect him like a god. If he can't even make it to the playoffs, it will become a complete joke."

"With the current situation of the Lakers, it is probably impossible to reach the playoffs. Xue Liancheng seems to have relapsed from an old injury."

"Isn't it crazy? Why don't you show off now?"

The media mostly reported the news that Xue Liancheng returned to the locker room early.

For Lakers fans, this is an atomic bomb, which is directly confusing.

"We'll be back in the third quarter. I guess the situation isn't very optimistic!"

"Hey! It was just right, and here we go again..."

"If this continues, the playoffs will really be on the line!"

"Don't think about the playoffs. If Xue can't heal his injury, it will be difficult in the future!"

"If Xue Liancheng didn't go back, this game should have been won. It's really a pity."

"Mad! It feels like the whole world is dark..." That's right.

The news that Xue Liancheng returned to the locker room early after the game was really overwhelming to Xue Liancheng's fans, with no sunlight visible.

Fortunately.

The examination results were quite good, there were no abnormalities, the vertebrae and coccyx were not cracked, and the sour feeling may be a differential sensation brought about by the completion of muscle cell healing.

In other words, after the wound is completely healed, there will be sequelae, which is an itchy scarring feeling, so psychologically, it makes him feel that his injury is not fully healed.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Including Xue Liancheng, he also let go of the big stone hanging in his heart.

At this time, All-Star voting has ended.

Xue Liancheng has not played yet at the beginning of the voting period, so he is not included in the voting list. He is destined to be absent from this season's All-Stars.

The country had to divert its emotions and enthusiasm, directly pushing George to the number one starting small forward position in the Western Conference All-Stars, and he is very hopeful of becoming a starting All-Star.

But these have nothing to do with the Lakers.

Xue Liancheng didn't bother to pay attention.

The next day.

Still at home, they faced the challenge of the Pacers.

Xue Liancheng went to fight as usual.

This time, they didn't give the Pacers a chance. They played an 18:6 run in the third quarter to directly push the point difference to 20+, declaring that the game had entered garbage time early.

In the end, the Lakers defeated the Pacers 118:96 and successfully stopped the decline.

薛连城上场28分钟，15投8中，三分8中4，罚球10中9，砍下29分的同时，还有12助攻6篮板。

George made 18 of 9 shots and easily scored 25 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, proving to his old club that he indeed has three tricks up his sleeve.

Randle made 13 of 7 shots and had a double-double of 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists. This young man has become a favorite in Los Angeles and his future is bright.

Especially after Xue Liancheng came back, his performance was quite stable, basically scoring in double figures, rebounding almost in double figures, and providing many assists.

Courtney Ligan scored 5 three-pointers and scored 15 points. He was definitely the contributor to the team's easy win.

As for the former Lakers players on the Pacers side.

Nick Young scored 9 points on 3 of 9 shots.

Russell made 13 of 5 shots and scored 14 points. It's a bit hard to describe. He doesn't seem to have the momentum to become an All-Star.

of course.

This is only Russell's second season, and nothing can be rushed.

Lou Williams scored 15 points on 7-for-20 shooting. His personal singles ability is indeed excellent and he is currently a relatively reliable scorer for the Pacers.

But considering his defensive ability, it doesn't seem that good.

The final key figure is here. The template is Durant's No. 7 pick Ingram. He made 2 of 4 in this game and only scored points. He looked very immature.

This gave the infinitely injured Lakers fans a little comfort in their hearts.

There is a saying that it is more uncomfortable to see your ex live well than to kill yourself.

it's good now.

If they are living a bad life and their ex is not doing well either, then they will feel that this deal is still acceptable.

At least they have gained a genuine All-Star who can provide top-level offense and defense, and there is a high probability that he will not be too bad in the future.

It's hard to say for Ingram.

And Russell is currently not living up to expectations.

As for Lou Williams and Nick Young, it doesn't really matter how they performed.

Because they have been finalized, where they can go in the future can be seen at a glance, which is the positioning of role players.

Moreover, the two of them have no defense, and they don't even seem to be the first choice for role players on the championship team.

So it doesn't matter how well they perform.

After beating the Pacers, they headed straight to the away game against the Dallas Mavericks.

The two of them are in the same boat now. They are both at the bottom of the Western Conference, but the playoffs don't seem to be very far away from them.

It's just so not embarrassing.

But there are people in the team who want to lose face.

In the Lakers, neither Xue Liancheng nor George can afford to lose that person. As top superstars with surnames, if the team is at the bottom, their reputation will be really ruined.

As a great legend who is about to retire, Dirk Nowitzki, the hero of the Mavericks, naturally cannot hope that he will be the last one at the end of his career.

Just like Kobe, the halo of being at the bottom is really something that will last a lifetime. To do this at the end of his career is really damaging to his image.

So the fight was fierce.

The two sides engaged in all kinds of physical combat, all kinds of roughness, all kinds of violations, and the sound of muscle collision in the first quarter resounded throughout the audience.

In the second quarter, the style suddenly changed, and both sides pushed the pace very fast.

Especially the Mavericks. Even though they are a group of veterans, they can speed up very quickly.

of course.

They did not speed up because of one person, but the entire team ran quickly and moved the ball quickly, a bit like the San Antonio Spurs.

I have to say that Carlisle still has some talent.

The Lakers naturally welcome the increase in speed.

Xue Liancheng once again showed his style as a top offensive master, sending 8 assists in a single quarter, helping the team achieve a top offensive firepower of 42 points in a single quarter.

The fans enjoyed it so much!

In the third quarter, the firepower suddenly dropped again and entered the rhythm of the sage.

In this mode, George's brilliance blossomed. He used post-up, breakthrough, slip-up, three-pointers, and various offensive methods, and the effect was pretty good.

At least it was able to steadily suppress the Mavericks, who mainly cooperate with offensive tactics.

Section 4.

The forgotten Xue Liancheng finally showed his strength on the offensive end.

In other words, Xue Liancheng, who only scored 8 points in the first three quarters, successfully confused the Mavericks and made them relax their vigilance.

Then in the fourth quarter, he scored 8 points in just two minutes, which brought the Mavericks back to their senses.

But it's too late.

Xue Liancheng started to feel better. He made three-pointers from the running position and turned over in the low post. He directly beat the Mavericks to death.

Especially when the time came to the last two minutes, Xue Liancheng struck four times in a row, killing everyone in the sky.

In the end, the Lakers defeated the Mavericks 136:122 crazily and won two consecutive victories.

136 points is the Lakers' highest score this season.

Xue Liancheng's personal role was highlighted to the extreme.

How could Xue Liancheng score so many points before he came back?

Generally, the majority are 90+, and 130+ is simply unthinkable.

Not only did the audience enjoy this game, but the players were also very excited. The offensive rhythm of both sides was really dizzying.

(End of this chapter)