NBA: I am a master dealer

But sometimes, the results are often difficult to predict.

Just one day later, the smug Lakers suffered a defeat.

They went to Utah to challenge the Jazz and ultimately lost the game 89:96.

George made 14 of 3 shots, 5 of 1 three-pointers, and 5 of 4 free throws. He scored 11 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists. Not only did George fail to rise, his performance fell back again, and he only had this extremely embarrassing performance.

21.4% shooting rate!
If the leading star performs like this, the others will naturally not be much better.

Randall only scored 7 points on 3 of 7 shots.

Courtney + Lee also made 7 of 3, but there were free throws, so they scored 9 points.

Larry Nance finally got it in his pocket, scoring only 4 points and 1 rebounds on 2-of-6 shooting.

Among the starters, the only one who performed reasonably well was Clarkson, who made 12 of 5 free throws, 10 of 7 free throws, and scored 19 points.

James Johnson scored 12 points on 6-of-17 shooting from the bench.

Blake scored 6 points on 4-of-8 shooting.

Joe Johnson scored 4 points on 2-for-7 shooting.

Glenn Robinson scored 4 points and Zubac scored 3 points.

Marvin Williams didn't play.

To be honest, the bench performed much better than the main team, scoring a total of 39 points.

The main force only scored a total of 50 points.

You know, the playing time of both sides is not equal, and the efficiency of playing is completely different.

Without their support, the Lakers would have surrendered long ago.

at the press conference after the game.

The reporter asked George and Walton: "Yesterday you told the world that you would lead the Lakers back to the playoffs, but today they lost to the Jazz. Is this a major blow to you?"

Walton replied with a dark face: "This is just a regular season game. We are still in the running-in stage and need to get familiar with our new teammates, so winning or losing doesn't actually matter."

And George's answer was: "The Utah Plateau suffocates me. When I run, sometimes I feel very strenuous."

Ok……

The two reasons for losing are different.

Walton used running-in as an excuse.

And George was directly suffering from altitude sickness.

But in fact, there is no problem in losing to the Jazz. After all, they are not a soft persimmon. Last season, they were ninth in the Western Conference. This season, they have acquired powerful guards like George Hill, Hayward, Gobert and others. Still continuing to grow, they are direct competitors to the Lakers and should not be underestimated.

However, it is worth mentioning that Hayward did not actually play in this game.

The Jazz lacked a leading star and still defeated the Lakers. This is what the fans cannot accept.

"I suddenly had a bad feeling."

"Although the Jazz are not weak, they are definitely not a very strong team in the Western Conference. They can be said to be direct competitors of the Lakers. It is really surprising that they lost this game."

"The most important thing is that Hayward didn't play! If he did, and both sides fought as a team, there would be nothing to say if they lost."

"Can the Lakers really do it without Xue Liancheng?"

"Didn't George boast that his leadership ability is better than Xue Liancheng's? It's time to show off his skills."

"Wharton, the bully king, boasts all the time, so don't be embarrassed."

In addition to being vaguely worried, many fans began to jeer.

Obviously.

Xue Liancheng's fans are still very unhappy about Xue Liancheng's ability to lead the team being questioned.

The media are also building momentum at this time.

The next game is the time to verify the strength of the Lakers.

Because their next game is the Oklahoma City Thunder, which is also the Lakers' direct competitor in the playoffs.

That's right.

After Durant left, the Thunder's goal changed from winning the championship to the playoffs.

Of course, they are definitely calling for the championship in words, but in fact, the public's expectation for the Thunder is to make it to the playoffs.

If you don't make the playoffs, it's a failure.

Not only was the team a failure, it was a failure for all Thunder players.

Because they didn't change much during the offseason. The only big change was that Durant abandoned the Thunder and switched to the rival Warriors.

In other words, without Durant, they can't even make the playoffs. Who can bear this?
Therefore, they must strive to reach the playoffs to prove themselves.

Especially Westbrook, he played really hard.

If the Thunder wants to occupy a playoff spot, their direct opponent will be the Lakers.

Therefore, this game will not only test Westbrook, but also test George's ability to lead the team alone, and also test whether Walton's words are bullshit.

The result of the game was shocking.

The Lakers were hung up and beaten by the Thunder in the away game. They lost 96:113 by 17 points. They seemed to have no power to fight back.

And George was in his pocket again.

全场下来20中7，35%的整体命中率，三分11中4，罚球4中2，只得到20分，另外还有9篮板3助攻。

The performance is still hard to describe.

Fans are really disappointed with George.

As soon as the game ended, the fans started jumping up and yelling.

"What the hell, what kind of thing did you come back with?"

"You dare to brag about your ability to lead a team just like this?"

"This is what Walton calls a superstar."

"What the hell, if we keep playing like this, let alone the playoffs, God will bless us if we don't finish last."

"It's really hilarious. It's a complete joke."

"Ranked tenth in terms of player strength? How dare you enter the top 10 after playing like this?"

"Top offense and defense? I vomited."

"Soft! Soft! Soft! Chunchun is a big softie. If I had known, keeping Ingram and Russell would be better than this guy."

The curses were really continuous.

No one expected that George's performance could be so unbearable.

At least as a star player, George's performance is really unacceptable.

Others performed relatively much better.

Randall was in great form, scoring 10 points and 7 rebounds on 20-of-9 shooting, a near-double-double.

Although he was a rookie in 14, he only played one game in his rookie season, so strictly speaking, this is his second season.

It is indeed rare to have such a performance.

Clarkson's state was a bit worse this time, hitting 11 of 4, 9 of 3 three-pointers, and 5 of 5 free throws, and also scored 16 points.

拉里-南斯5中2拿到4分，考特尼-李3中0吞下了零蛋。

The former's defense and frame protection are indeed a big problem. He can't cover the basket very well, and his awareness of assisting defense and supplementary defense is also a bit lacking.

The latter is very active on the defensive end, but when it comes to finishing on the offensive end, it always feels like there is a big difference in meaning.

Bench.

Marvin Williams returned and scored 12 points.

James Johnson scored 11 points. After these games, he has played very steadily. He is a rare striker with balanced offense and defense in the Lakers lineup.

Joe Johnson had 7 points, Glenn Robinson had 4 points, and Blake had 2 points. For now, Zubac has not gained Walton's trust and has very little playing time.

As for the Thunder.

Westbrook went berserk, shooting 21 of 11 and 6 of 5 three-pointers. He scored a crazy 33 points, plus 16 assists and 11 rebounds. Such a super triple-double was simply dazzling.

Sure enough, after Durant left, Westbrook completely let himself go and produced top-notch statistics.

After the game.

Reporters swarmed in and blocked the visiting team's locker room.

As soon as George showed his head, they pounced on him like crazy.

Reporter: "George, can you tell us about your current situation? You have lost two games in a row to your direct competitors in the playoffs."

George: "We need some time, please believe that we will adjust."

Reporter: "What do you think is the reason for losing to the Thunder again?"

George: "We play away games continuously, which will make us very tired. The season has just started and everyone's muscles have not completely relaxed yet."

Reporter: "Do you still insist that you can reach the top four in the Western Conference by leading the team alone?"

George's face turned dark instantly, "We'll see."

Dropping these words, he left directly.

But the reporters did not disperse, but stayed where they were.

Wait and wait!
Finally, Walton came out.

Reporter: "Sir, can you tell me what happened?"

Walton: "We have too many new players in the new season, which makes us make a lot of unnecessary mistakes and fail to seize many scoring opportunities. That's it..."

Let’s talk about running-in.

Reporter: "Then do you still think George can lead the Lakers into the playoffs if he leads the team alone?"

Wharton's eyelids twitched: "Of course there is no doubt about it."

Reporter: "So what do you think will happen if Xue Liancheng comes to lead the team?"

Walton's face didn't look good either. "This assumption is not valid. What we have to do is hope that he can return to the game as soon as possible."

After saying this, he left.

And because Xue Liancheng didn't play and didn't need to wash up, reporters waited for Xue Liancheng to wait but didn't wait for Xue Liancheng.

After the game.

Public opinion was indeed in an uproar.

Wharton's bragging has already revealed his bones.

George's ability to lead the team has also been questioned.

But the Lakers had no time to breathe, and headed to Indiana non-stop the next day to challenge George's old team, the Pacers.

Before the game started, George gave a passionate speech, "I don't know if you have felt that suffocating pressure. If not, it means that you all need to reflect. We have lost two games that we should not have lost." Game, now, I want to tell you that you must go all out in this game. Once the team suffers three consecutive losses, we will go through the storm and become a joke in the league..."

Anyway, Balabala said a lot.

In fact.

Everyone is feeling tremendous pressure.

Not to mention others, Xue Liancheng, who did not play, could also feel the suffocating atmosphere while following the team.

A big global market, a big market, and high attention can indeed bring huge influence.

But on the other hand, it can also bring tremendous pressure.

Two consecutive losses have brought the Lakers to the forefront, and if they lose three consecutive games, the consequences are really unimaginable.

of course.

For George, that's not the point.

The point is, he must not lose to his old club.

You can lose to anyone, but you can't lose to your old club, that's all.

If he loses, his face will be lost.

Everyone laughs at his jokes.

But sometimes, it's not what you want to do.

They once again lost to the Indiana Pacers 108:115 and suffered a painful three-game losing streak.

乔治本场比赛状态终于回暖了，14投7中，拿到了23分6篮板5助攻的全面数据。

But the Lakers were still unable to defeat the Pacers' youthful turmoil, and were directly overwhelmed by a wave of flow in the last quarter.

Randall scored 10 points and 5 rebounds on 11-of-6 shooting, which was a remarkable performance.

Clarkson shrunk this time, shooting 10 of 3 and only scoring 10 points.

Courtney Lee made 6 of 3, made two three-pointers, and scored 8 points.

Larry Nance made 7 of 3 shots and scored 6 points and 5 rebounds.

The problems of penalty area defense and frame protection are becoming more and more serious and obvious.

On the bench, James Johnson scored 14 points on 7-of-15 shooting.

Marvin Williams had 11 points, Joe Johnson had 9 points, Glenn Robinson had 9 points, and Blake had 6 points.

The entire bench scored a total of 50 points, supporting half of the sky!
On the other hand, looking at the main players, it’s really hard to describe!
With so much more playing time, so much higher tactical status, and so much more ball rights, he only scored 8 points more than the substitute players.

Isn’t this the inversion of Tiangang?
It's crazy if you can win in this state.

For the Pacers, Russell had 22 points, Lou Williams had 17 points, Nick Young also had 17 points, Myers had 16 points, Thaddeus Young had 14 points, and Turner had 9 points.

Teague also had 8 points, but he made 15 of 4 shots. Otherwise, the Lakers would have no room to struggle.

It can be said that the Pacers used all their strength and performed very good transitions and passes.

Uh……

Particularly worth mentioning is Ingram, who played 18 minutes and scored only 6 points on 2-of-4 shots.

This may be the only consolation for the Lakers. At least the main body of George's trade. This year's second pick looks embarrassing and useless, and they don't feel that much of a loss in their hearts.

But after the game, all Lakers members still suffered from the storm.

"They are really a bunch of trash! They can't even defeat a large army."

"The substitute looks okay, but Nance should not start. He will be targeted as soon as he comes up. He will be beaten by Russell, Lou Williams and Nick Young in turns."

"The most useless person is George. In the first four games, except for Clarkson's explosive victory in the first game, he basically didn't perform particularly well in the other games. Now he dares to call himself a leader?"

"I finally saw your ability to lead a team. It's so bad like never before."

"I thought the Lakers' rebuild was complete, but now it turns out they're in shambles again."

"Actually, the Lakers' lineup is not bad. Why are they playing like this?"

"Without the inner rim protection, whoever comes comes and whoever comes, gets what they want, how can we not lose?"

"You may have forgotten the reason for losing. It's because there is a useless coach in the team. This lineup can be like this. Stop playing and just leave the get out of class where it is."

"Indeed, I had no idea what Walton was doing. He watched helplessly as he was overtaken and rushed to the basket. He was so stunned that he didn't react."

"What the hell, I don't understand at all why we want to invite a runner-up chief assistant coach back. If we want to hire a champion assistant coach, we should also hire a champion assistant coach!"

"Ha! You even boasted that I believe you can lead the team to new heights. We have lost three games in a row. It's really a high level..."

Among them, George and Walton were hit the hardest.

Because the two of them attracted attention when it came to leading the team, and now it started to backfire after losing.

(End of this chapter)