So I am the god of basketball?

Da Ben clenched his fist unwillingly.

It's such a pity that we didn't protect the rebound that was right in front of us.

Meng Lang also felt it was a pity.

But this is where Ben Wallace is lacking. He has enough ability and can judge the rebound position reasonably. But he lacks experience. The job of rebounding, rebounding sense and "little moves" under the basket are more important than physical fitness and reaction ability.

This is also why Rodman can still get so many rebounds at his age.

Moreover, the new generation of "rebounders" are easily fooled by the experienced "old men" of that year. Of course, this phenomenon is not only present in rebounding. Kobe's offensive skills are actually very well polished now, but he can't show his true level on the court because of his lack of experience. Any player at the "best defense" level can deal with him, except Eddie Jones.

Jones is a typical person who can't bear to hurt his teammates and "little brothers", so he was always bullied by Kobe during training games.

But other "best defense formations" won't care who your "little brother" is. Once they catch you, they will beat you to death.

This is also what makes Kobe depressed now. He clearly met Eddie Jones in the training game and was able to deal with him well. Why can't he do the same when facing other good defenders?
Ok……

He also subconsciously ignored Meng Lang's defense against him.

Even though Meng Lang has not been included in the "Best Defense Team" yet, in Kobe's mind, Meng Lang should be considered different. He cannot be lumped in with other players. This is the psychological reaction left by being abused since he was 16 years old.

He wanted to get rid of it, but he couldn't until he truly defeated Meng Lang.

Once again, the Pacers stalled the Lakers’ offensive passing game.

For the young players of the Lakers, the Pacers' old-school, entangled defense is really torturous.

It is worth mentioning that although Larry Brown is gone, after two or three seasons, you can still see the "Larry-style" defense in this team.

Putting aside the negative aspects of this old man's personality, old-fashioned, stubborn coaching style, and a lot of trash talk, Larry Brown's ability to coach defense is qualified, and this defensive ability can continue.

This is his "comfort zone".

After Divac received the ball near the high post, the Lakers' offensive situation was no longer so passive. After dodging two consecutive black hands, the ball was passed to Meng Lang who was approaching.

Meng Lang pulled out and made a long-range shot. The defender in front of him didn't react. When he stretched out his hand, the ball flew out of Meng Lang's hand and fell directly into the basket.

ESPN's broadcast camera gave Larry Bird a close-up shot at this time. The silent camera language seemed to say:

He made two consecutive shots. How are you going to limit Meng Lang?
Larry Bird responded:

There is no restriction, just follow the opening.

The Pacers' defensive strategy today was very simple. They single-handedly defended Meng Lang and immediately switched defense when encountering a pick-and-roll. The Pacers' starting wingers this year are Jalen Rose, one of the "Five Tigers of Michigan", and Reggie Miller, both of whom are over 2 meters tall.

Moreover, the current Jalen Rose is not the Jalen Rose who later allowed Kobe to score 81 points in a single game with the Raptors. At this time, his physical fitness is online, so he still has defensive capabilities.

Besides, he is still on the Pacers.

The culture and spirit of the team can influence a player. Take the later "Grizzly Bear" Zach Randolph for example. He was a "lazy man" when he was on the Trail Blazers, but when he arrived in Memphis, he immediately became the "protector of the court."

The most important thing is that someone on the Pacers is suppressing him.

"Little brothers" all have the awareness of being "little brothers", so... he is extremely serious when switching defenses, which is really very different from the "data brush" that came later.

The main thing is that he and Reggie Miller don't need to do much. They just need to stick close to Meng Lang when defending him. The other members of the Pacers have already shrunk their defense and are waiting inside.

From Larry Bird's arrangement, we can see that if you have the guts, just kill me with a mid-range shot, I'll accept it!
How effective is this defensive strategy?

Not bad, Meng Lang scored 16 points in the first quarter with an exaggerated efficiency of 9 of 7 shots and only conceded two goals.

You have to know that these are all mid-range shots, which shows how stable he is.

Now, besides Jordan, he has a place on the "Mount Rushmore" of mid-range shots.

Maybe it already existed.

But even so, the Pacers still led by 27 points with 23 to 4.

Like other teams, the Pacers are trying hard to lock down other Lakers players tonight. However, unlike other teams, their excellent defensive configuration can further lock down Meng Lang in the mid-range.

It's like adding an extra layer of insurance.

However, Larry Bird still felt a little uneasy.

The disturbing thing is that Meng Lang’s performance tonight was really great.

As a former top star in the league, he knew too well what kind of impact a player like Meng Lang's explosive touch would have on the entire game. So a mere 4-point lead was not enough for him to breathe a sigh of relief.

He needs to continue observing to see if the Pacers can gain a greater advantage before the end of the second quarter, or whether Meng Lang's efficiency will decline.

As long as one of these two points is met, the Pacers' chances of winning the game will become much greater.

"Big Bird" was very cautious. In his opinion, this was the respect that a player of Meng Lang's level should have. However, he did not expect that the process of the second quarter could be described as "double happiness".

It wasn't just Meng Lang's condition that declined. Although his shooting percentage was still a scary 50%, it had dropped significantly compared to the first quarter. Then the Pacers successfully opened up a nearly 10-point lead.

Before the end of the second quarter, the Pacers led by 52 points, 44 to 8.

From a 4-point difference to an 8-point difference, the Indiana fans at the scene became more excited.

The fans leaning against the player tunnel excitedly waved their hands towards Meng Lang who was leaving the field, and tried to stimulate Meng Lang with all kinds of exaggerated movements and unpleasant screams.

At the end of the first half, Meng Lang's score was fixed at 28 points.

He scored 16 points in the first quarter and 12 points in the second quarter. He was in really hot form.

But even in such a hot state, the team is still 8 points behind. It seems that the high score tonight will turn into a "wasted game", which must be a very uncomfortable feeling.

Just thinking about making Meng Lang so uncomfortable, the Pacers fans were shocked.

They were extremely excited throughout the halftime. This was the easiest job for a live DJ. He had no doubt that even if they played the opening song of Teletubbies at this time, these people would be able to shake the ceiling of the entire stadium.

Their noise was in stark contrast to the Lakers' silence.

After three consecutive losses, the Lakers have dropped to fourth place in the Western Conference. If they lose this game tonight, they will only be one win ahead of the Timberwolves, who are fifth in the Western Conference.

If they really lose, the impact on the players' morale caused by this game will probably continue. If they continue to slide down to fifth place, it won't be a big surprise.

The most uncomfortable thing for the Lakers media is:
Meng Lang has done his best, but the team is still 8 points behind!
"Maybe Meng Lang should change his playing style. He should lead the team like he did last season..."

This can at least ensure that the team can beat some weak teams.

As for the growth of newcomers and the impact caused by the departure of Johnson and others, they should not be more urgent than winning the game, right?
This is the opinion of some experts.

They can analyze that the reason why Meng Lang changed his playing style is to let Jones and Kobe get more balls and improve their ball-holding ability. But the problem is that now it seems that whether it is Jones or Kobe, their growth is far less than expected.

This was especially evident after Barkley rested.

There is almost no one in this team who can help Meng Lang now.

This is the most deadly.

Under such circumstances, it doesn't seem strange to lose to the Eastern Conference powerhouse Pacers...

Meng Lang had no idea what was being discussed outside. Looking at the dull locker room, he first followed the others in silence, closing his eyes to rest until 5 minutes before returning to the game. When he opened his eyes again, he stood up and said, "Everyone look at me. If we lose this game tonight, the responsibility is all on me!"

"So you don't have to feel any psychological burden!"

"This is my team after all!"

These words had no practical impact and everyone was still very depressed.

Because Meng Lang's performance is there, everyone can see it.

The Lakers lost not because Meng Lang’s performance was not good enough, but because the support from others was too little.

Their silence is more about blaming themselves.

The Lakers players were greeted with huge boos from the audience.

The Indiana players were extremely excited. They had been having fun throughout the entire half-time break. When they saw Meng Lang and the Lakers players come out, they couldn't control their excitement and booed loudly at them.

Under the influence of this momentum, the Pacers players were extremely excited when they walked back to the bench, their steps were a little erratic, as if they were walking on clouds. Obviously, they also felt that this time they should be sure.

Finally, finally I defeated Meng Lang once!
Finally, I can watch him leave the "cornfield" in dissatisfaction!

No, there is still half a period of time, there is still half a period of time...

When the buzzer sounded, Reggie Miller was the first person to adjust his mentality. He knew too well that the most taboo thing in the game with Meng Lang was "opening champagne at halftime": "Everyone, cheer up and keep going. The game is not over yet. As long as we keep going, we can win this game!"

The first attack of the second half belonged to the Pacers.

When Reggie Miller made a mid-range shot against Kobe, the entire stadium seemed to explode.

The score difference has reached 10 points. Who dares to say that they are unstable now?

The atmosphere at the scene seemed as if the outcome had already been decided.

The Lakers served the ball very quickly, but when Meng Lang carried it to the front court, the Pacers, urged by Reggie Miller, had already completed their defense. This represented their attitude, and they did not relax at all even when they were leading by 10 points.

Seeing this, Meng Lang was not in a hurry to shoot. After waiting for the other Lakers players to get into position, he suddenly took a step forward and shot. This was a "large three-pointer" at least one step away from the three-point line, and Reggie Miller was waiting for him on the three-point line. No one expected that Meng Lang would "give it a try" at this time...

So this time when he made his move, there was no obstruction in front of Meng Lang.

The ball fell into the basket, indicating that Meng Lang's hot hand felt slightly weakened in the second quarter, but then reignited?
Larry Bird lowered his arms from around his chest.

Some players are like this, even just a response ball is enough to make people nervous.

Meng Lang's performance in the first half was good enough, extremely good. That's why Larry Bird was secretly relieved and thought that the Pacers had a greater chance of winning the game.

But if he can play better in the second half...

Larry Bird wanted to say it was unlikely, but he also felt that it was not impossible... If it was Meng Lang, then everything was possible.

This is the guy who scored 60 points on Michael Jordan.

"Snapped!"

Steal!

At the moment when Larry Bird was a little distracted, Meng Lang, who had just made a three-pointer on the court, made another move. Reggie Miller just got the ball when he was cut off by him with a slap.

The moment he got the ball, Meng Lang quickly started a fast break counterattack.

The Pacers don't have anyone who can keep up with his speed.

"Bah!"

A slam dunk made the score difference of five points!
The Pacers team, which was so excited, was now much quieter.

"I'll fight one!"

Olajuwon tried to step up and help the team at this time.

This is also a safer choice. After all, his shooting percentage and scoring efficiency at critical moments are higher than Reggie Miller's. When the gap is only 1 to 2 points, the safer choice is Olajuwon, which even Reggie Miller cannot refute.

The moment the ball reached his hands, Chuck Daly suddenly yelled, "Double-team!"

I don't know if this sound scared Olajuwon, but you can see that his body trembled. The new players on the Lakers side may be in a slump, but their execution is still no problem.

The "scared" Olajuwon shot before the double team, and the ball...

Missed!

Ben Wallace grabbed the rebound and passed the ball to Meng Lang. Meng Lang quickly launched a counterattack, fought a "blitzkrieg", and once again completed an easy two-point layup to bring the score difference to 3 points.

The Pacers were now anxious, and Larry Bird even called a timeout.

Looking at the scene again, the Pacers fans who had just been singing and dancing were all dumbfounded.

You guys keep dancing!

Meng Lang spread his hands and asked why their dance disappeared? (End of this chapter)