noveldrama
Chapter 782 782 511 Not Just One Not Just Two_3
Chapter 782 782 511 Not Just One Not Just Two_3
?Chapter 782: Chapter 511 Not Just One, Not Just Two_3 Chapter 782: Chapter 511 Not Just One, Not Just Two_3 Kobe held his breath as he watched Yu Fei suddenly start toward the strong side. In an instant, Yu Fei switched the basketball from below his crotch to his left hand, pulled back, and shook off Kobe’s defense. With his individual ability, he turned a half-open shot into a wide-open opportunity.
Yu Fei stepped back at the top of the arc and launched a three-pointer.
6 to 3.
Yu Fei broke the scoring drought for his team, but the Lakers were quick to respond with a fierce offense.
On the court, they set up a five-out formation. Although James’s drive was affected by Bosh’s rim protection, a pass out to Kobe and a second drive led to a dish to Antawn Jamison.
After two penetrations by the Lakers, the Supersonics’ defense collapsed, and Jamison scored with ease.
“For Los Angeles, the good news is the Lakers are starting to bounce back,” ESPN’s Jeff Van Gundy said, “and they’ve made significant defensive improvements compared to the last game.”
Mark Jackson took over the commentary, “Plus, you can see they have tight control over the corners, which are a regular finishing point for the Supersonics’ offense. Control that area, and the Supersonics struggle to initiate their offense.”
Under Tyronn Lue’s guidance, the Supersonics pursued a strategy of simplicity.
He had little in the way of offensive tactics, so he largely adopted Karl’s system and gave Yu Fei the freedom to play.
Coach Lu granted Yu Fei the authority of an on-court coach on offense while he himself devised strategies for defense.
Therefore, Yu Fei had become accustomed to finding his own solutions when the offense was stymied.
The Lakers were determined to control the baseline corner, and the Supersonics couldn’t change that, but in doing so, the Lakers had to give up some defensive intensity at the 45-degree angle.
That’s the trade-off in defense.
Yu Fei began to change the offensive focal point, passing the ball to the 45-degree angle on both sides after breaking through.
Durant liked this arrangement, knowing that playing from the 45-degree wings meant he’d get plenty of opportunities.
But he didn’t appreciate the Lakers’ decision to have James match up against him.
James had been named to the All-Defensive First Team for two consecutive seasons, and this year he was even third in the voting for the Defensive Player of the Year.
It could be said that, apart from the post, he was the premier defender in the League.
If James put in the effort, his defense against Durant was akin to an upgraded version of Artest, with a stronger build and more power, better explosiveness and speed; his only slight disadvantage was in skill and experience. But with his physically gifted nature, this shortcoming was negligible.
Moreover, after the “probing” of the first game, James took control again. He had every reason to go all out and prove he could lead the Lakers to victory with a resounding win.
So, in the task of guarding Durant, James had come with the determination to completely shut his opponent down.
Durant had only ever felt this kind of “helplessness when the opposition gets serious” from Yu Fei.
In this moment, James proved that his early reputation alongside Yu Fei was more than just hype.
Under his defense, Durant struggled to shoot, and he didn’t even hit the rim.
Marc Gasol grabbed the defensive rebound, and the Lakers’ counter-attack was as quick as lightning.
Yu Fei had already hurried back to the backcourt, but with a beautiful pass in the frontcourt from James to Kobe, the latter hit a trailing three-pointer, forcing the Supersonics into a timeout.
Coach Lu finally got the timing right for calling a timeout.
But calling a good timeout was only part of the coaching job.
What about the strategy during the timeout?
Coach Lu stared at the big list of names in his hands and realized he couldn’t find a shooter to replace the underperforming Moro.
It made him realize what the Supersonics were most lacking at the moment—consistent, pure shooters.
Just as Coach Lu was perplexed, Yu Fei took the tactical board from his hands, confidently pointing at the 45-degree angles and the mid-range area.
“From now on, I’ll keep calling for pick and rolls. If they choose to sink back inside the three-point line, I’ll pass to you guys. If they switch, I’ll attack their switch player decisively,” Yu Fei told Bosh, “Chris, be ready. Then he looked at Durant, “Kevin, move more, use the screens, and don’t fall into the traps they’re setting for you. LeBron’s energy is limited.”
The timeout ended, and Coach Lu hadn’t said a word.
As a coach, he felt Yu Fei had already said everything that needed to be said.
“Is there anything left out?”
Coach Lu wondered.
Faced with the Supersonics’ pick and roll, the Lakers chose to drop back, and Bosh’s mid-range shooting quickly made them pay; hence, the Lakers were caught in a dilemma. When they were wary of Bosh’s shooting, Yu Fei challenged them with his mid-range game.
However, Kwame Brown’s lack of offensive threat when outside the paint was quickly exploited by the Lakers to counter the Supersonics’ pick and roll.
They could completely ignore Brown in order to deal with Bosh, allowing him to do whatever as long as he stayed out of the paint.
Once Brown ventured inside, Pau Gasol’s presence made him helpless.
For Brown, those glorious days of riding over Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal, taking advantage of the small-ball system and playing at a higher dimension than usual big men, were over.
As a big man, he only excelled in screen quality, switch ability, and rim protection. Beyond those, he fell short.
When the opponent utilized a traditional big-ball system, his flaws weren’t as apparent.
But today, as League teams had updated their systems, and teams like the Lakers were at the forefront of the times, they deeply understood one thing: you can’t afford to have someone on the court who isn’t significantly contributing on either end of the play.