After scoring five points in a row, the Rockets' lead reached double digits again.
............
In the stands, Shen Fei couldn't help but shook his head.
This shake of the head includes both admiration for Tracy McGrady's gorgeous finish and a sigh for Kobe's situation...
Gasol's performance when facing Ben was really eye-catching.
As the second-in-command of the defending champion, such performance is definitely substandard.
"overrated."
Shen Fei murmured.
In his opinion, after Gasol joined the Lakers, the team has indeed made a qualitative leap.
Two consecutive championships are the best proof.
However, many fans have misunderstood his strength because of this, thinking that Gasol is already one of the strongest insiders in the league.
In fact, Gasol led the Grizzlies to the playoffs three times before joining the Lakers.
The embarrassing thing is that not only did he not lead the team to achieve good results, he never even won a victory.
After being swept in the first round for three consecutive years and with a record of 0-12, Gasol himself may be in trouble.
Not only that...
If we say, the Grizzlies' loss in the playoffs is related to the strength of the team.
So on the personal side, Gasol was only selected to the All-Star once before joining the Lakers.
People often compare him to Bosh.
But objectively speaking, Gasol is not in the same level as the Dragon King in terms of statistics and honors.
He has strength, but it's more of a auxiliary ability.
The Lakers' triangle offense will become more versatile because of Gasol's presence.
But in terms of hard power, Jia's sister-in-law is not a first-rate star.
He is the most suitable insider for the Lakers, but he is definitely not the strongest inside player.
Gasol's performance when facing Yao Ming today is the best proof.
[Corvo better take it easy...don’t work too hard.]
Shen Fei thought to himself.
............
His eyes returned to the playing field.
After Gasol's consecutive singles failed, Kobe could only take over the team's offense again.
This time, it was Danny Green who defended him.
This second-year rookie also has good defensive abilities.
Green's defense is not as oppressive as Tony Allen's, and his steals are not as good as George's.
But he rarely loses his position and can cause greater interference to his opponents.
In the first round of guarding Kobe Bryant, Green almost touched his fingertips when he was shooting.
"Duang!"
Kobe was obviously disturbed, and his fadeaway shot hit the edge of the basket and bounced out.
A minute later, Green once again performed wonderful defense.
This time, he deliberately left a breakthrough route.
Kobe had no better choice but to "get into the trap."
Green followed him all the way and joined forces with the defender in the penalty area to prevent Lakers No. 24's layup.
Successful defense means easy offense.
The Rockets relied on counterattacks to continue to expand their lead.
After the third quarter, the score of the two teams reached 80:62.
The Rockets already lead by as many as 18 points!
During the break, most of the players of the purple and gold team were playing away games, and their mentality was already exploding.
In this game, they tried several counterattacks.
But without exception, the results were successfully suppressed by the Rockets.
It's like someone pushing your head into the water, trying your best to raise your head again and again, only to be pushed back into the water again and again.
Fresh air is so close yet so far out of reach!
"Have a good rest and we will study it after the game."
Phil Jackson suddenly said.
As soon as this statement came out, everyone was stunned, and then turned their attention to Kobe.