Second quarter.
First came the battle between the benches.
In the past.
The Lakers' bench had been far stronger than the Suns'.
But tonight, with the Lakers down 0-2 in the series and trailing by 11 after one quarter, their bench's offense dipped under the pressure, while the Suns' bench was overflowing with confidence.
And under that contrast.
In just 3 minutes and 2 seconds of rotation time.
The Suns' bench stretched the original 11-point lead all the way to 15.
The game looked like it was about to get out of hand, and for the Lakers, the situation was moving in the worst possible direction.
"Beep, beep!"
Phil Jackson quickly called a timeout. Or rather... this was the timeout Kobe wanted. He wanted to check back in early.
He had to check back in early.
Fisher came back with him, along with Odom, Shannon Brown, and Barnes. The Lakers' lineup on the floor was now very strong.
As for the Suns.
With a 15-point lead, they kept things unchanged for the moment.
So.
Over the next two minutes, the Lakers seized the opportunity and gradually cut the 15-point deficit down to 10, giving them a glimpse of hope.
But.
All of this was still within Coach Alvin Gentry's control.
"Beep, beep!"
Alvin Gentry called a timeout.
The starters returned.
A well-rested Blake Su once again began guarding Kobe, and the effect was still excellent. Kobe had just scored 6 points against the Suns' bench and seemed to have regained his rhythm.
Now.
"Clang!"
"Clang!"
Under Blake Su's defense, his shots missed again, and even his layup bounced off the rim.
Soon.
The lead widened back to 14 points.
"Beep, beep!"
Seeing that, Phil Jackson quickly called another timeout.
"Kobe, we can't keep playing like this. You can't keep attacking Blake Su one-on-one. You need screens. You need mismatches.
"I know what you're thinking, and I understand you.
"But.
"We have to win tonight. And to win, we have to rely on your offense. You're carrying a heavy responsibility.
"Do you understand that?"
"Hah..."
Kobe leaned back on the bench and breathed lightly. He did not answer right away. After a moment of silence, he nodded and said, "I understand."
"Good."
Phil Jackson nodded, then looked at everyone and said, "Everyone has to come together too. Don't just stand there watching Kobe go one-on-one with Blake Su.
"Screens.
"Keep setting screens. Keep using the triangle offense to create better scoring chances for Kobe!
"Defense.
"Use better defense to stop the Suns' offense, push back in transition, and play at our own offensive rhythm instead of letting the Suns' run-and-gun drag us around."
"Oh!"
Everyone responded, their morale fierce.
Back from the timeout.
The tactics were executed.
"Step!"
Artest stepped up to screen for Kobe.
"Step!"
Pau Gasol set an off-ball screen for Kobe on the wing.
"Step!"
Fisher faked a drive and passed the ball to Kobe.
In short, the entire Lakers team was doing everything possible to create opportunities for Kobe and give him the best chances to finish.
And so.
The opportunities appeared.
But what made people uneasy was that even when Blake Su was not the one guarding him, Kobe still could not hit. His efficiency had dropped.
"Clang!"
"Clang!"
No fadeaway. No layup.
Miss after miss.
After Blake Su had defended him into invisibility, Kobe's own efficiency began to fall, and his offense was no longer smooth.
Under those circumstances, even with second option Pau Gasol working hard on offense and Bynum wreaking havoc in the paint.
And even with the defense actively keeping up.
Still.
Against the Suns' elite offense, against the unstoppable offense of "Monster Rookie" Blake Su, the Lakers without Kobe's scoring were still not enough.
Halftime.
Lakers 48, Suns 68.
The first half was over.
A 20-point deficit. The game had truly gotten out of hand.
"It's over!"
"It's done. If Kobe can't get his offense going, how are they supposed to win?"
"Their leader is being limited by a rookie? Made invisible? Sigh... a dynasty really isn't that easy to build. The Lakers' dynasty run is about to end."
"Sigh..."
During halftime.
In the stands, the atmosphere among the home Lakers fans was freezing cold.
It was not just because of the full 20-point deficit. More importantly, their team leader, their number one option, Kobe, truly could not get his offense going.
That was the real source of their despair.
Inside the studio.
Hubie Brown watched the game and Kobe's performance, shook his head slightly, and said, "Tonight... the Lakers are probably finished."
"Yeah."
Dave Pasch nodded as well and said, "Blake Su is putting too much defensive pressure on Kobe. Miss after miss has caused Kobe's form to drop sharply.
"With the situation as it is now.
"The game is almost out of reach, and the Lakers have basically lost their chance to win.
"And if they lose this one, the Lakers will be down 0-3, which would put the series in serious danger. Even though the Suns pulled off that 'coming back from three down to win four straight' reversal not long ago.
"But.
"Anyone who understands the game knows how incredibly difficult that is. Even calling it impossible would not be an exaggeration."
"That's right."
Halftime.
As the two commentators spoke, there was not a trace of a Lakers comeback point in their words.
At the same time.
The Lakers' locker room.
Down 0-2 in the series, now trailing by 20 at home, with Kobe defended into invisibility by Blake Su. Every single part of it pointed toward defeat.
It also made the atmosphere in the locker room drop to freezing point.
"Sigh..."
Phil Jackson leaned against the locker room door, looking at the team's terrible situation and feeling the suffocating mood in the room.
For a moment, he was lost.
He let out a long sigh, not knowing what to say.
Because in Phil Jackson's eyes, in the Lakers head coach's eyes, the Lakers' current situation had already fallen into desperation.
Coming back would be very difficult.
Right now, the entire Lakers locker room was filled with a defeated atmosphere. It felt like they had already lost, or rather, like they were waiting to lose.
For quite a while.
The locker room remained silent.
They did not know what to do, and they did not know what they should say.
Until... until one man stood up, walked to the center of the locker room, and stood at the center of all the players.
It was none other than.
Kobe Bryant.
"Hah..."
He took a deep breath, then slowly said, word by word, "'I can accept failure, but I can't accept not trying.'
"Those are Michael's words.
"They inspired me for a long time.
"And for me, never giving up is my attitude toward the game!"
At this point.
Kobe smiled faintly and said seriously, "Guys, it's only a 20-point gap. Trust me, we can definitely come back tonight!"
...
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