Free Web NovelChapter 585: Chapter 179: Struggling to Adapt to the Playoffs? (Part 3)
But the Kings chose such a defense, and the teammates didn’t find it strange at all. Zhang Hao realized the difference between the playoffs and the regular season just one second after the game timer started.
Both being California teams, they faced each other four times in the regular season, but the Kings never defended like this in the regular season!
Tactical fouls are a plan allowed within the rules.
The Lakers fell into a half-court battle. After being fouled by a tactic, Zhang Hao, without much expression, invested in the offense, faced the defense from Billy Owens, who the Kings exchanged for Walter Williams from the Heat after the All-Star weekend.
They have been opponents many times, with Brooklyn Nets once, the Lakers versus the Heat twice, the Lakers versus the Kings twice, Owens is already very familiar with Zhang Hao’s playing characteristics.
After being interrupted brutally by the opponent’s foul at the start, Zhang Hao deeply understood how different the playoffs are from the regular season.
He got destroyed!
The super rookie, who is second in the regular season’s average scoring list, was blown up by a group of role players from the Kings!
The playoffs seem to be a place where NBA players’ animal instincts are unleashed, and defense is like wild brutal confrontation. This feeling is like encountering the Cavaliers and Heat in the regular season, but slightly different; the Kings directly from the start reached a point of playing desperately. Despite Zhang Hao’s thorough mental preparation, he encountered a disoriented moment at the start!
...
Half-quarter game, 0-for-2 field goals, 1-of-2 free throws, grabbed 1 steal and 1 defensive rebound.
That’s it.
In the latter half of the first quarter, Zhang Hao was substituted for rest by Del Harris.
The Lakers side, from the coaching staff to the veteran players, were mentally prepared for Zhang Hao to be dazed by the opponent at the start.
Some things, just knowing them, just saying them, or even seeing them, are hard to truly have a direct understanding.
If not, why is playing time so important when developing players?
Clearly, all technical skills are acquired through training; if actual game experience wasn’t important, then we could select a few geniuses, high school or college students, lock them away to practice daily, and once their skills are honed, put them to play games.
With Zhang Hao’s overly calm nature, Del Harris didn’t even expect to emphasize the difference in the playoffs through language. Either he was already adequately prepared, or his preparation was still insufficient; the possibility of unpreparedness does not exist.
Currently, the issue is that the attention given is still inadequate.
This is normal, nothing wrong with it, a rookie, playing the playoffs for the first time, and only 19 years old...
In the latter half of the first quarter, Del Harris used the combination of Van Exel, Anthony Peeler, George Lynch, Jason Williams, and Campbell to counter with tough defense and Van Exel’s solo plays.
The playoffs are where the real test of a star’s value happens. At this time, ball-handling players have more advantage than off-ball players; like the difference between Reggie Miller and Klay Thompson, where the former can handle the ball well and even can score an average of 30+ in a playoff series, while Klay Thompson’s playoff scoring is almost always lower than his regular season, except for occasional outbursts.
Zhang Hao has given serious thought to this match, thinking he shouldn’t be negligent and must treat it earnestly, but his thinking was still built on the foundation of believing the Lakers clearly have a superior advantage in strength.
Fortunately, he is calm and focused, and after half a quarter of uncomfortable play, being benched for rest, he immediately reviewed his status while thinking about the styles of Van Exel and Jason Williams, who were the best performers on the court.
In the regular season, although there is a chance of upsets happening, when you sum up a whole regular season, those games that can truly be called upsets, where the performance gap reaches at least 10 games, you might have around a dozen.
But looking at approximately 1200 regular season games a year, it’s only about 1% chance.
In the playoffs, things are different; there’s almost always an upset every year!
The team that is first in the West, with over 20 games advantage, when facing the eighth seed in the West, can still lose!
Watching Van Exel playing even wilder than in the regular season...
"We shouldn’t treat the match as a game where we have an advantage and can’t be careless, we must recognize this as a win-or-be-eliminated match!"
Recalling the opponent’s defense just now, as a rookie with mainly off-ball play and only a couple of moves in ball-handling, wondering how he can enhance his performance offensively... wait!
"I’m a shooter! Somehow, I was only thinking about how to get more shooting opportunities myself, my biggest role is to hold and shoot where I have good chances and can receive the ball; it has to be me shooting that makes sense.
What else can I do..."
Watching the players on the court fiercely competing without sparing their stamina, Zhang Hao’s eyes lit up...
...
After the first quarter, the Lakers were behind by 3 points, trailing the Kings 22 to 25 entering the quarter break.
Fortunately, relying on Van Exel’s desperate playing in the first quarter, scoring 9 points and 2 assists, otherwise the point gap would be unpredictable!
Without Zhang Hao to limit Adeny, Doug Christie and Anthony Peeler had to take turns defending Richmond, which was indeed tough.
Luckily, Van Exel held up well; it’s a pity that the point gap in the first half couldn’t be fully closed from 8 to 14, otherwise the second-quarter pressure would be much smaller.
During the quarter break, Del Harris hesitated for quite a while, but finally decided to put Zhang Hao back in the game. freewebnøvel.coɱ
At this time, he recalled the thoughts he had when trading for Zhang Hao—he’s too young! Can such a young rookie be counted on to win games?
On the other side, Adeny, who seized the point against Van Exel scoring 10 points and 2 assists in one quarter, was excited; he felt he might be more suitable for the playoffs than Zhang Hao!
He seems to have a chance to surpass Zhang Hao in the playoffs!
