NOVPUBChapter 768: Chapter 507 Welcome to the “Telling the Truth is Being Negative” Era_3 Chapter 768: Chapter 507 Welcome to the “Telling the Truth is Being Negative” Era_3 No, Kobe wasn’t any normal person either.
Could someone who mends injuries in a hotel and doubles as a waiter be considered normal?
That is to say, the three major stars backed by Nike, none of them were normal.
Yu Fei returned to the backcourt, and thought, if the world was abnormal, then perhaps it was he, the normal one, who was actually the abnormal.
This thought persisted for a while, then, the arena lights dimmed.
The home DJ for the Lakers loudly announced the starting players for both teams.
But when the DJ announced the Lakers, they played a tune that was very familiar to the fans: the overture “Sirius” from Alan Parson’s Project’s album.
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This was the introductory music used by the Chicago Bulls during the Jordan era to introduce their starting lineup.
As the music played, the Staples Center crowd seemed to envision the KJ duo leading the Lakers to many championships in the years to come.
Moreover, compared to the DJ at the United Center, the DJ at the Staples Center was even more cheesy, adding nicknames as he announced each player.
Matador Pau Gasol, “Silky” Hamilton, “Downtown” Jamison, King James, and Black Mamba Kobe.
This didn’t sound like an NBA game.
The DJ successfully made the audience think they were watching a WWE live broadcast.
In terms of momentum, the arena already had it, and the Lakers were determined to win.
Tyronn Lue took a deep breath; he was too familiar with the Staples Center.
It was where his NBA career started, but now, much had changed.
Some Lakers fans teased him, saying that his most famous moment with the team was being stepped over by Iverson in the finals.
They forgot that he actually played excellent defense on Iverson that night.
For the most part, Iverson was inefficient, but, as a superstar, he needed only a moment to nullify all of Tyronn’s efforts.
The noise was overwhelming, but Lue told himself to stay calm as the starters gathered around him.
Lue reminisced about the times when Karl was coaching.
If Karl were here, what would he remind him?
“Play a great game and shut up the crowd!” Lue decided to follow his gut, he wasn’t Karl, he had his own style, and his style was to stir up the players’ emotions like Rivers did.
The game started with the jump ball, and Gasol easily won it.
The Lakers were quick on the offense. James sped the ball upcourt, didn’t engage with Yu Fei, passing directly to Jamison.
Jamison shot immediately upon receiving.
He missed, but the rebound fell right to where Kobe was positioned.
Kobe was up against Anthony Moro; this was a definitely favorable matchup.
Because of Supersonics, Moro had become a well-known sharpshooter in the league with a continuous two-season 40% shooting rate from beyond the arc, but defense was not his strong suit.
Kobe playing him didn’t require complex maneuvers; a dribble, collect, then pull up.
2 to 0.
The Lakers aimed to speed up the game, and the Supersonics didn’t mind.
Yu Fei also wanted to see which side was better at playing a fast-paced game.
Just past the halfway mark, the Lakers’ defense hadn’t yet steadied.
Like the Supersonics, the Lakers’ starting five also had two defensive weaknesses.
One was Hamilton, the other was Jamison.
Just as Durant got into position, Yu Fei’s pass came flying in.
The pass was very quick, rapid.
Having been teammates with Durant for almost three years, he immediately realized that Yu Fei wanted him to shoot the moment he caught the ball.
However, Hamilton didn’t lose his position.
Scarlett’s red lips flashed through Durant’s mind—screw it, just shoot!
Durant decided resolutely to take the shot.
Hamilton didn’t expect him to dare to do so.
This was the Western Conference Finals, was he really playing like this? Frye allowed this?
Hamilton had no time to think further because the shot, delivered above his head, sunk straight into the hoop.
That felt right.
Durant thought he was in great form, while Yu Fei had, through Hamilton, found his current game template.
Though Durant entered the league as a top draft pick with a stunning template above Maiker, in the first three years of his career, his ball-handling capabilities made him unable to become the team’s core ball handler at such a young age like Yu, McAdoo, or Maiker.
In the first two seasons, Durant was much like the future Michael Porter Jr., focusing on catch-and-shoot.
This season, however, his dribbling and ball protection skills had improved, and he began to use his long legs to step past small forward defenders.
Yet, ball handling is not something you can master overnight; despite grasping the tricks, it would take him a few more years to evolve into what Yu Fei had seen in his previous life.
Thus, at this stage, Durant was essentially the same as he had been in the previous two seasons.
His style was like a 208 cm tall Richard Hamilton. 𝓃𝓸𝓋𝓅𝓊𝒷.𝓬𝓸𝓂
Able to handle the ball on offense, but shooting remained key.
With his height and wingspan, he had the ability to shoot over anyone, and it was this very talent that set the limits on the ceiling difference between him and the likes of Hamilton.
“Nice shot,” Yu Fei teased, “If you keep shooting like that, I’ll have Scarlett bring you a basin of foot-washing water.”
Durant glared at Yu Fei unhappily.
Yu Fei’s flippant tone completely shattered his beautiful fantasy.
Subsequently, the Lakers shifted the ball extensively, but Durant, using his long arms, disrupted a pass.
This looked like a counterattack opportunity for the Supersonics, but the disrupted pass somehow ended up magically in Hamilton’s hands.
Hamilton took the ball, glanced at the basket, Durant hadn’t yet got back in position.
“!#@￥@#!￥”
Inside Staples Center, the frenzied fans’ cheering coalesced into a force that urged Hamilton to take a three-pointer.
