Champion Creed
Chapter 689 - 689 239 You should pray Kobe asking for monthly tickets!_2

689: 239: You should pray, Kobe (asking for monthly tickets!)_2 689: 239: You should pray, Kobe (asking for monthly tickets!)_2 You have to admit, Kobe was a guard who complemented Shaq very well.

He liked solving problems from mid to long range, which perfectly staggered the offensive space with Shaq, enabling him to take charge when Shaq was entangled by the frontcourt bruisers.

Kobe was also very skilled at feeding the ball inside, though most of the time he preferred to deliver it directly to the basket, avoiding the middleman to save the mark-up.

But when he did decide to feed it, he could get the ball where it needed to be as soon as the inside player positioned himself.

Another crucial aspect was that, during this period, Kobe excelled at screening off players, thereby perfectly protecting Shaq.

Any player trying to use a pick and roll to deal with Shaq would find their hopes dashed against Kobe.

After stopping Roger, Kobe sprinted forward, receiving the counterattack pass from Harper and scoring a layup despite the contest from Roger.

After scoring, Kobe’s smile shone even brighter, “Roger, ready to become the next Michael?”

The Zen Master believed his adjustments had worked; no one would disturb Shaq now, and Shaq could attack at ease.

The Zen Master didn’t know that Roger had been using the pick and roll against Harper and Shaq, not to score, but precisely to force Kobe to defend against Roger.

From now on, the Hawks truly had control of the situation!

Kobe continued to stick to Roger, inserting his hands directly under Roger’s armpits, almost hugging him.

Roger tried to shake him off, but since he couldn’t get rid of Kobe, the two of them seemed to be spinning in a circle together.

The referee didn’t blow the whistle; he tolerated that level of physicality.

Today’s official had been having trouble sleeping for three days straight; he was genuinely concerned about a brawl breaking out between the Lakers and Hawks, similar to what happened last season.

Normally, to prevent conflict in such a tense game, the best approach is to limit physical contact and call a tighter game.

But today’s officials decided to take an unorthodox approach.

They opted to allow more contact, enabling the players to be as physical as possible.

You shove me this round, I’ll hit you the next.

By allowing it to be released in the game, the chances of coming to blows were naturally reduced.

The “star treatment” alongside a lenient scale meant that today’s game was rarely interrupted by whistles.

With Kobe clinging on like that, Roger shouldn’t have had much of a chance to score.

Even if he could get rid of Kobe, the intense confrontation would have already taken a toll on his touch.

But Roger didn’t give up; he motioned for Pippen not to rush to pass the ball to someone else.

He wanted to take the charge this round!

“Damn!” Kobe hadn’t expected that even with such intense defense, Roger still wanted to make this offensive play, so he rammed into Roger even more wildly.

The two extremely competitive players showcased their competitive spirit in this round.

Eventually, Roger brutally backed Kobe down, gaining just enough space to receive the pass, and Pippen seized the moment to lob the ball to Roger.

However, as soon as Roger caught it, Kobe was tightening his grip on him again.

But with the ball in his hands, Roger was confident he could finish.

He dribbled once and then forcefully backed into Kobe, turning for a jump shot before A.

C.

Green could double him, and the ball banked in!

It was a hard-earned play through and through.

The contention between Roger and Kobe was nearly non-stop, but Roger overcame all obstacles to make the shot.

After scoring, Roger gave Pippen a thumbs-up, “Good pass, don’t worry about those annoying mosquitoes, just give me the ball!”

Pippen didn’t respond to Roger.

Mosquitoes?

Even a defensive master like Pippen couldn’t foresee what else Kobe could have done just now.

The defense by number 8 was absolutely perfect.

Yet Roger still scored.

That’s why Roger was listed as number one on “Pippen’s Career Most Reluctant-to-Defend Players List” and he would remain there forever.

Roger’s “You defended well but still can’t handle me” scoring was truly morale-boosting.

However, Lakers’ head coach Phil Jackson wasn’t worried.

Kobe had succeeded in making Roger expend so much effort for just 2 points.

And it was only the first quarter.

How long could Roger keep this up?

The game continued at this pace, with Roger taking a lot of shots to go one-on-one with Kobe.

Even if he could score, they were all labor-intensive, high-difficulty shots.

Only in certain rounds when there was genuinely no opportunity, or when Roger was resting, would Pierce take over.

After two early cooperations, Pierce’s presence wasn’t very strong, and there wasn’t much connection with Roger.

For some reason, the Zen Master felt that the Hawks were deliberately reducing their use of Pierce.

Maybe it was just an illusion?

Phil Jackson didn’t ponder it further; he didn’t want to give himself too many confusing psychological suggestions that could interfere with his tactical planning.

Kobe’s defense was very good; he gave Roger no unusually easy opportunities to score.

But by the end of the third quarter, the Lakers were still trailing.

O’Neal was completely dominating the inside lane, and he had just dunked on Kurt Thomas after backing down Big Ben.

Big Ben’s defense was sufficiently spirited, and the timing of Kurt Thomas’ help was pretty perfect.

But Shaq still smashed the Hawks’ rim.

Shaq’s weight was a double-edged sword; excessive weight cost him some agility and forced him to be even more careful with his stamina.