While Los Angeles Dodgers' Freeman blasted a goodbye slam shot against the New York Yankees in the first playoff game of the World Series, the Los Angeles Lakers were also completing a hearty comeback at home.
Against the Suns at home, the Lakers dug a 15-point hole in the first quarter. The Lakers' offense was not bad in the first quarter, but the defensive end was blown up by the Suns, who shot 15 of 22 in the first quarter, including 8 of 11 three-point shots, and scored 38 points in a single quarter.
In the second quarter, the Suns' three-point accuracy was still terrifying, hitting eight three-pointers in a row, and the Lakers quickly fell behind to 22 points. When the Lakers' offense was weak, who stepped up and set off a counterattack? Kneckt.
In the second game of his career, the older rookie hit two three-pointers in a row to quickly narrow the gap to a trailable range, and the connection between Davis and Reaves was scored in a row, and the Lakers played 13-1 at the end of the second quarter to narrow the gap to nine points.
Even though Kneckt didn't play much in the second half, he still sounded the first horn of the Lakers' counterattack, and even he scored a three-pointer on Durant's head, which is too rare for a rookie.
Of course, the Lakers' fierce pursuit of points also has something to do with the Suns' own illness. The Suns sent 8 turnovers in a single quarter "very timely", and the insomniac Lakers were worried because the positional battle could not be opened, and the Suns immediately sent pillows. Four of the eight turnovers came from Nurkic, the ball was really unreachable, and the Lakers added a lot of physical confrontation.
So you can see that Nurkic didn't play a minute in the final quarter, and the Suns' lineup returned to the form of three guards + Durant that was a headache last season, and Durant had to be consumed on both ends of the offensive and defensive ends. In the last game, Durant defended Harden at the last moment, and today it is his turn to defend against thick eyebrows, which is really difficult.
In the third quarter, Reaves and James combined to hit four three-pointers in a row, plus the killing of thick eyebrows, the Lakers overtook for the first time. Then the Lakers temporarily lost power, and the Suns overtook back. Redick immediately called a timeout, and after the timeout, the ball was handed to James, who led the team to fight back again, and the Lakers overtook again, this time never giving the Suns the lead again.
Redick's timing of today's timeout was impeccable, and the reason why he fell behind so much in the first half was purely the Suns' invincible touch, and he couldn't stop it. A timeout was called in the third quarter to allow James to take over possession of the ball at the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth, and the Lakers were firmly in control of the tempo on the court.
Today, Davis shot 11-of-18 from the field and 13-of-17 from the free-throw line to finish with 35 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks. Under Redick's system, thick eyebrows have become the absolute boss of the Lakers, and this scene must have been wanted to see by James fans for a long time.
Reaves was 8-of-12 from the field and 5-of-7 from three-point range to finish with 26 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists, 3 steals and 1 block. During the reversal, Reaves' accurate three-point shooting played the role of the ball carrier on the court very well, connecting thick eyebrows many times, and also allowing James to save enough physical energy.
James had 21 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists in the first half, and his long-lost three-point shot in the third quarter was crucial. James, who is about to be 40 years old, is playing more and more healthily this ball, basically starting to exert force at the end of the third quarter and taking over the game at the end of every game. If the rest of his teammates can give James a good rest in the first three quarters, the game will be comfortable.
In the first game of Redick's coaching career, we saw that he established a system with thick eyebrows as the core, and thick eyebrows added a lot of drama with the ball in the high post, instead of blindly pursuing Zhan Mei's blocking. James did play more off the ball, and the Lakers won two straight games with rebounds.
Redick also gave Hachimura and Reaves more possession, and both played well in both games. Redick said: "I knew Reeves was good, but I didn't expect him to be so good! ”
Today's big reversal showed Redick's adaptability when the score was behind, Russell's poor form increased Vincent's playing time, and the defender handed the ball to James when he was in trouble with the ball. Redick also had a lot of communication with the referees during the game, which was better than having his hands in his pockets.
Compared to the cynicism when he first took office, Redick completely reversed his reputation with two games, and he really has something.