NBA: I just want to play soy sauce, you let me win the championship

Chapter 30 Saving Private O'Neal

All eyes were on the referee Dick Bavetta who blew the whistle to see how he would make the penalty.

Is it Lu Yuanzhi's offensive foul, or O'Neal's defensive foul?

Dick Bavetta wanted to slap himself, why couldn't he stop talking?

No one has fouled O'Neal for so long, making him forget to protect O'Neal.

But there was no choice as to how to judge the ball. O'Neal stood in the reasonable collision zone. If either Lu Yuanzhi or O'Neal wanted to foul, it could only be O'Neal's foul.

Can we force O'Neal to not be seen standing in the legitimate collision area, and then call Lu Yuanzhi an offensive foul?

In the field, of course, you can do this, but after the fact?

Once the Kings refuse to let go, the league executives will definitely investigate this penalty, and then they will see that O'Neal is standing in a reasonable collision zone, calling Lu Yuanzhi an offensive foul will be a very obvious misjudgment.

Misjudgments will result in relegation and downgrades, the inability to whistle for the playoffs, and even internal fines.

In order to protect O'Neal in the regular season and keep him from fouling, is it worth paying such a price?
Certainly not worth it!

The money is yours and your future is yours, why should you risk your career for a player?

Dick Bavetta quickly figured out the stakes.

"Yellow No. 34, defensive foul!"

Immediately, the curse of "Referees Suck" sounded, and then the sound became louder and more orderly.

Hey, know why my swearing is so natural?Captain Li taught it!

Fuck, O'Neal only made 5 fouls and was not sent off. Why are you idiots spectators calling me for it?

Dick Bavetta felt that he was wronged.

By the way, there is also the kid from the Kings, number 77, right? I remember, you set me up, next time I want you to look good!

Seeing the referee's penalty, the four people on the field quickly ran over, pulled Lu Yuanzhi up, and then excitedly slapped Lu Yuanzhi's buttocks and back.

"Nice job, boy!"

In the studio, Buckley was also clapping his hands vigorously and laughing!

"Kenny, did you see that? I'm really liking this kid more and more. He's so smart!"

"Indeed, after this defensive round, O'Neal will return to the bench," Smith nodded. "When he comes on the court again, he will no longer be threatened by fouls."

"But this rookie's charge has completely changed the situation. Now that O'Neill has 5 fouls, he won't be able to make another appearance until the last 5 minutes!"

Barkley continued to grin, "No, Kenny, the game will be over before the last five minutes. The Lakers are already panicking. They can't withstand the first few minutes of the fourth quarter."

Lu Yuanzhi stood on the free throw line and began to execute free throws with confidence, well, at least it seemed so to others.

Good luck, two free throws.

What Barkley said about the panic ratio of the Lakers was not wrong, it even came a little earlier, and even Lu Yuanzhi, a rookie, could see it.

In the last minute of the third quarter, the Lakers players on the field ran around like headless chickens. The ball seemed to be a hot potato. Everyone who held the ball wanted to give the ball quickly, but they couldn't find a suitable pass. opportunity.

"Give me the damn ball!" Kobe couldn't stand the team's chaos on the court anymore. What kind of tactic was this?It’s better for me to do it alone!

The only thing Barkley said wrong was that only the other four Lakers players were panicked, but Kobe was even more motivated.

Just now O'Neal played well in the paint, but Kobe didn't feel good, so he handed over the ball to O'Neal, as if he was a little transparent on the court.

But now, Kobe must step forward.

The Lakers quickly opened up and gave Kobe a chance to play singles.

Christie stepped forward to mark, and Lu Yuanzhi went up to double-team and interfere from time to time, but it was useless. The more unreliable his teammates were, the sharper Kobe's offense became, as if arousing the bond of "outstanding".

Kobe was at the top of the arc, strong against Christie's posting defense and Lu Yuanzhi's supplementary defense to block, and forced the ball in.

Looking back, the Kings missed the opportunity and Divac missed the shot.

At the end of the third quarter, the two sides were still 74:74. Although the balance of victory had fallen to the Kings, Kobe said with practical actions, no, I disagree!
In the first 5 minutes of the fourth quarter, Kobe carried the Lakers' offense alone, led a group of CBA teammates, and clung to the score.

84:88, the Lakers were only 4 points behind, and it was really hard to say whether they would win or lose.

A few minutes ago, Lakers fans all over the world thought that this game might have lost hope of victory.

A few minutes later, Kobe told everyone with his tough performance, no, I have Kobe, no one can easily take the victory away from the Staples Arena!

But the single tree is always difficult to support. Kobe missed two shots in a row, and his touch seems to have declined.

On the defensive end, although the Lakers were inspired by Kobe to run and defend regardless of physical strength, but without O'Neal's inside barrier, the Lakers' defense was riddled with holes, and they were constantly attacked by Bobby Jackson and Turkoglu to score easily.

If this trend continues, the Lakers' defeat seems to be coming.

Is this the end of the game?

No, O'Neal on the sidelines slowly got up at this time and walked towards the technical stage.

Yes, at this critical time, Phil Jackson decided it was time to take a gamble.

Who told you that the 5 criminals must appear in the last 5 minutes?

The appearance of O'Neal quickly stabilized the situation. The Kings could not attack the Lakers' basket unscrupulously, nor could they deploy heavy troops to defend Kobe.

What's even more controversial is that the referee Bavetta started his performance. He either pretended not to see it, or pretended to be blocked by the players on the court. O'Neal's two fouls under the basket were missed by him.

"Look, kid, there's nothing you can do against O'Neal. Your previous efforts are all in vain. He will stay on the court and beat you to pieces!" The best actor Nicholson on the sidelines once again spat rubbish at Lu Yuanzhi. talk.

He is an old fan and knows the NBA too well. How could this kind of strong dialogue allow the referee to steal the limelight and send off the Lakers' inside core O'Neal?

Although O'Neal committed 5 fouls, he was safer than anyone else at this time. Even if he called Zen Master who was sitting in a daze on the coach's bench for a foul, he would not call O'Neal a foul.

"I'll beat him down, watch out!" Lu Yuanzhi boasted that he couldn't believe it, temporarily blocking Nicholson's words.

Fortunately, the Kings players feel that they really have a good chance of winning this game so far. They are running without distractions, executing tactics, and through teamwork, they continue to score goals and consolidate their only 2-point advantage.

"beep--"

In the last 4 minutes, Adelman called a timeout and wanted to rearrange his tactics.

Before the timeout ended, Divac called Lu Yuanzhi aside, "Max, did you see that flop I just made?"

Lu Yuanzhi nodded quickly. He fell to the ground as if he had been hit by a truck, and screamed as if three ribs were broken. As soon as the whistle blew, Divac stood up again as if nothing was wrong.

Oscar owes Divac a statuette!

Is this what you learned playing seven years in Los Angeles?

Divac put his arm around Lu Yuanzhi's shoulders and began to teach in a low voice, "Do this and this, don't do this and that."

Lu Yuanzhi's eyes lit up when he heard this, how can he still play basketball like this?
It was the King's turn to attack. Divac wanted the ball very deep this time and had already reached the edge of the penalty area.

Referee Bavetta sneered in his heart, still want to cause O'Neal to commit a foul?As long as I don't blow the whistle, what can you do?
With your old arms and legs like Divac, how lethal can you be?

Lu Yuanzhi started his daily running position and led Huo Li to cover his teammates.

Yes, Jackson still trusted veteran Horry more at critical moments, and starter Samaki Walker could only stay on the bench waving a towel.

Fox saw Lu Yuanzhi's cover and bypassed it very cleverly. He didn't want to be blocked, and then gave Stojakovic a big gap. Horry also took a very experienced step and interfered with Stoja Kovic.

When Lu Yuanzhi saw Horry take that step, he didn't hesitate any longer. He threw away the two Lakers who were defensively focused on Peja, and went straight to the inside.

(End of this chapter)