chsdbacks Chapter 320 The "Hack-a-Shaq" Strategy is Revealed! The Dirtiest Finals Matchup in History
Chapter 320 The "Hack-a-Shaq" Strategy is Revealed! The Dirtiest Finals Matchup in History
"Bang!"
O'Neal stepped up to the free-throw line and missed again.
"FUXX!"
O'Neal's shooting touch tonight was absolutely terrible; he missed all three of his free throws at the start of the game, which was clearly below his usual average.
On his fourth free throw, O'Neal took a good breath, wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead, took a deep breath, and, holding the basketball that looked like a volleyball in his hand, shot it again.
"Bang!"
Four consecutive irons!
Webber grabbed the rebound again and threw it to the frontcourt. This time, his target was no longer Lin Tian, who was being heavily guarded, but Carter, who had been left unguarded. Carter got the ball and accelerated straight to the basket to jump.
"boom!"
After another loud bang, Carter added 2 more points for the Pacers with a signature two-handed windmill dunk!
On their third offensive possession, the Lakers recklessly passed the ball to O'Neal once again.
O'Neal grabbed the basketball and once again tried to push Ben Wallace aside to vent his anger. However, this time he was eager for revenge, and the fact that he missed all four free throws made him extremely upset, so his elbowing motion was indeed a bit too much.
"puff!"
With a thud, Ben Wallace fell to the ground. O'Neal's elbow struck his outstretched arm. It was only because Wallace reacted quickly enough to raise his arm in defense that O'Neal struck him; otherwise, O'Neal's elbow would have hit him directly in the face instead of his arm.
"Beep beep beep!"
The referee blew his whistle quickly, and without hesitation, he gave O'Neal an offensive foul.
But Big Ben is not one to give up easily. His aggression has grown stronger over the years, and he's become more and more like the "Big Ben" that strikes fear into the hearts of countless attackers.
"You fucking want to fight, huh?" Ben Wallace jumped up from the floor, his chest pressed against Shaquille O'Neal's, and yelled at him, "If you can't control your elbows, I'll take them off and make a dish! You want to fight? Come on, I'll show you what a real man is!"
"But if you're angry just because your free throws are worse than my grandma's, then you're a complete piece of trash and a softie!"
"What did you say!" O'Neal was never one to have a good temper. He shoved Ben Wallace with both hands, causing him to stumble and almost fall again.
O'Neal's push completely ignited Ben Wallace's temper, but when he tried to rush over to confront O'Neal again, an arm was already stretched out in front of him.
"Keep this fat guy on the court." Lin Tian stood in front of Ben Wallace, staring at O'Neal. "We have a hundred ways to get him off the court, but tonight, keeping him on the court will be the greatest torment and humiliation for him!"
"You're right!" Ben Wallace always listened to Lin Tian without question. With just one word from Lin Tian, the guy calmed down and put on a cheeky look as he looked at Shaquille O'Neal, saying, "Shaq, I'm sorry, I was too impulsive."
"I won't let you off the field. We'll have more fun on the pitch!"
"Well done, Lin!" The three referees, who had been on high alert just moments before, all breathed a sigh of relief. If O'Neal and Ben Wallace had gotten into a fight...
Anyway, the three of them have no chance of separating the two. They're like two humanoid monsters; a fight between them would be terrifying.
But Lin Tian's single sentence instantly dissolved the conflict!
"With you here, we feel completely at ease in this game! We know there's no chance of a fight breaking out." The referee even pounded his chest, then looked at Lin Tian with an expression that said, "With you here, I feel at ease; with you here, everyone is fine."
These referees are so real! So damn real!
These bastards didn't say that a couple of years ago.
In the refereeing world, Lin Tian does have his own people, namely Fox, the fighting enthusiast who thought Lin Tian was bragging back then, but was later beaten into a fanboy by a series of punches from Lin Tian.
This guy has revealed quite a few things to Lin Tian during casual conversations about how the referees would view Lin Tian.
War messenger, death, reaper, plague, top target for prevention, serious criminal, must be kept under strict guard.
Meanwhile, the video recordings of Lin Tian's games against the SuperSonics, New York, and Jazz were repeatedly used as negative examples by the referees' association during training sessions.
The stated purpose is to make referees pay attention to their officiating standards and control over the game, and to ensure that the game does not get out of control to this extent.
At the same time, it also helps referees understand the players' bottom lines: which calls you must call, which calls must be re-called without leniency, and which calls you can turn a blind eye to ensure the smooth flow of the game. Only by mastering these skills can a game be exciting, intense, and highly competitive without serious conflicts.
In fact, a couple of years ago, the referees' union even hired some micro-reaction expert and psychological expert to give the referees psychological analysis courses. They analyzed the micro-reactions and anger accumulation process of Lin Tian and other players before they took action, accurately judging the various signs before the players exploded, so that the referees could be prepared and prevent problems before they occur, so as not to be caught off guard when the conflict started.
In short, Lin Tian in the past two years has become the referee association's number one teaching material and case study! In fact, the people in this league who have watched Lin Tian's game videos the most are not the Pacers' coaching staff, not the Pacers' opponents, and not even Lin Tian himself, but the referees of the referee association!
Of course, these guys only watched the few matches Lin Tian fought.
However, as time went by and season after season passed, the referees discovered something.
That is Lin Tian today, who has become the Alliance's number one peace guarantor!
In this league, no one dares to mess with him anymore, and no one dares to make any dirty moves against the Pacers. In fact, many coaches repeatedly warn their players: Don't mess with Lin Tian, and don't use excessive dirty moves against the Pacers players.
After all, who knows if Lin Tian will do it again and take on the whole team by himself? The players are tall and strong, so they can take a couple of punches.
But the coaches couldn't hold on!
In short, the safest and least likely to conflict game among all the teams in the league right now is the one with Lin Tian on the field!
Extremely safe!
Lin Tian has essentially made a magnificent 180-degree turnaround.
Far away.
Back to the game, whether to thank Lin Tian for his "help" or because they genuinely believed that O'Neal's elbow was the root cause of everything, the referees, after a brief discussion, issued their ruling on the conflict.
O'Neal committed one offensive foul and one technical foul, giving the Pacers two free throws and one possession.
As for Ben, he did not receive any punishment.
After this ruling was made, the fans at the stadium immediately couldn't stand it anymore!
A deafening chorus of boos and curses swept in from all directions, but this time the main character was the referee.
"Foul referee! Trash!"
"Get out of the NBA!"
"You bunch of bastards who took bribes!"
"Shameless Indians, they actually paid the referee! They bribed the referee!"
Hearing the angry shouts and doubts from the fans, Lin Tian remained unmoved. He even arrogantly yawned and then lazily stepped to the free throw line.
"Whoosh!"
Lin Tian didn't hesitate when he got the ball. Without any preparation or deep breathing to adjust his dribbling, he just threw it directly.
"Whoosh!"
Effortlessly, he made both free throws.
"See Shaq? That's the level of a human free throw. Your shots are so bad, I could find a monkey in the Rockies and it would be much more accurate than you!" After making the free throw, Lin Tian didn't forget to turn around and continue to mock O'Neal, which made O'Neal curse again.
The Pacers then inbounded the ball from the sideline, and Lin Tian received the ball at the top of the arc. This was the Pacers' first set offense so far in the game!
The Lakers no longer have Harper guarding Lin Tian; instead, they've assigned Kobe to guard him. While Kobe isn't as fast as Lin Tian, he can at least cover his size. Plus, with Kobe's fierce, cockfighting spirit, he's definitely the best choice to guard Lin Tian.
However, after Lin Tian waved for Webber to set a screen, and the two passed each other, it was another signature pass and cut from the top of the arc. Lin Tian passed the ball to Webber and then quickly cut inside.
Even as Kobe yelled, "Trade! Trade! AC, trade!"
But how old is Green? If he were to pursue Lin Tian, even if he had remained a virgin for the past 40 years of his life, or even if he had remained a virgin for the previous 200 years, with his primordial yang energy never depleted, he still wouldn't be able to catch up with Lin Tian!
Lin Tian received Webber's pass and drove straight into the paint. Just as O'Neal took a half step forward to help defend, Lin Tian made a bounce pass, quickly passing the ball between O'Neal's legs. O'Neal didn't even have time to turn around because before he could react, he heard a loud bang behind him!
"boom!"
Webber, Ben, and Lin Tian once again completed their signature three-man connection!
"Shaq, where are you? You may be big, but you're really good at hiding when you're on defense! I couldn't even see you when I was dunking. Next time we have a league hide-and-seek competition, you'll definitely be the champion!" After landing, Ben Wallace continued to show off the results of his years of learning trash talk from Lin Tian.
"Ben, that kind of nutmeg pass isn't something you can get through every game." Lin Tian reached out and bumped hands with Ben. "Some inside players may have a lot of space between their legs, but they also have something extra between their legs to help them defend."
"But Shaq doesn't have that! Even if he did, you couldn't see it at all! His thing is so small it's completely hidden in his fat! It's a complete waste! So tonight, be ready to catch my nutmeg! This is a rare opportunity."
Lin Tian and Ben Wallace were working together, which made O'Neal so angry that his hair was about to grow back.
8: 0!
The Pacers had already gone on an 8-0 run in the first two minutes. The Lakers did have a chance; if O'Neal had made a few of his four free throws, not only would the Pacers have been unable to launch fast breaks, but the Lakers wouldn't still be scoreless.
At least for tonight's start, O'Neal completely became the team's liability!
"Hey! Hey!" Jackson stood up from the sidelines, shouted twice at the players on the court, and then whistled to alert them.
Jackson was a head coach who loved to whistle during games to remind players to concentrate and even to call out tactics. His shrill whistles were always a very distinctive feature of the league.
There are countless legends surrounding Michael Jackson's whistling.
Some say he uses variations in the length, volume, and rhythm of his whistles to announce tactics and remind players what tactics to use next.
There are countless legends about Kobe playing a quick game with one long and one short shot, or a quick attack with one long and two short shots, or a quick attack with one short and one long shot, or even just praising Kobe for playing recklessly.
Some people say that Jackson's whistling was just a cover; he didn't actually use whistling to convey his meaning. His loud whistling was just a cover. The real core was the movement of his ten fingers when he whistled. The random placement of his ten fingers and the angle and order in which certain fingers were raised were the tactics he was actually calling out.
Some people even say that Jackson's whistles have syllables, and if you listen carefully and every day, you can hear the words and pronunciations hidden in his whistles!
Faced with all sorts of legends that were practically indistinguishable from urban legends, Lin Tian, who had once played under Jackson, declared: "They're all nonsense!"
Morse code, syllable transformations, and hand seals are all utter nonsense.
No matter how Jackson whistled, it all meant the same thing.
"You bunch of little brats, do you fucking want to die? Get your ass up and fight properly!"
Well, it's that simple, that plain and simple. To put it simply, Jackson's whistle was no different from swearing.
Yes, there are elegant, elegant swear words too.
Although it was swear words and didn't have any deeper meaning, the Lakers finally scored on the next offensive possession!
Kobe shook off Christie, drove to the mid-range, and pulled up for a jump shot that went in, finally breaking the Lakers' scoring drought.
Then, for the next two minutes or so, perhaps realizing that O'Neal wasn't feeling well tonight, the Lakers didn't get the ball to O'Neal much anymore, and it was Kobe and Rice, the two outside stars, who were in possession of the ball and attacking.
Although their efficiency was indeed not as good as O'Neal's, at least they could make the shots, and the Lakers finally started scoring. The team's offensive system and the players' movement also became more active.
With about five minutes left in the first quarter, the score was temporarily 16-8, with the Pacers still holding an eight-point advantage.
It wasn't until this point that the Lakers once again spread out as a team and passed the ball to O'Neal.
When O'Neal doesn't score, it's like the Lakers' anchor has been pulled out, making everyone feel uneasy.
After receiving the ball, O'Neal faced off against Ben Wallace. After briefly assessing the situation on the court, O'Neal suddenly released the ball, first making a fierce impact on Wallace from the side, and then displaying agility completely disproportionate to his physique. In the blink of an eye, he spun towards the top of the court, leaving Wallace completely behind!
Just as O'Neal bounced up and was about to launch a powerful dunk...
He felt an immense force surge through his arm once again.
"FUXX!" O'Neal was about to jump when he was held down. He cursed angrily, and the force from the arm almost knocked him to the ground.
"Snapped!"
With a muffled thud, O'Neal lost his balance and fell to the ground in a disheveled state.
Given his strength and size, it's definitely not a common occurrence for a single foul to take him down!
The person who commits the foul must possess the same overwhelming strength and the determination to commit a vicious foul, and must not be afraid of Shaquille O'Neal, this monstrous giant. All these elements are indispensable.
In the Pacers, there are no players who would dare to do that.
Okay, I can count at least seventeen or eighteen. These thugs from Indiana have no one they're afraid of!
The one who fouled O'Neal this time was Lin Tian.
He had just given up on Harper, drove into the paint, and provided timely help defense, stopping O'Neal's seemingly inevitable dunk!
Furthermore, although the foul was ruthless and caused a huge commotion, almost shaking the floor, Lin Tian made his actions very clear.
A regular foul by a thug!
A very ordinary and clean foul by the attacker.
Whether it's harsh or not, it's still two free throws!
"FUXX!" Jackson cursed from the sidelines. If he still couldn't figure out what the Pacers were up to tonight, then he had won five championships for nothing.
"Hack-a-Shark Tactics!"
It's absolutely a disgusting thing invented by that old bastard Nelson.
Whenever O'Neal took a shot, they would foul him relentlessly, preventing him from attacking comfortably, preventing him from dunking, and sending him to the free-throw line time and time again.
Then watch him lose his way at the free-throw line.
Actually, if that were all, it wouldn't be so bad.
The problem is, this shark-cutting tactic has even dirtier uses.
Who says you have to have the ball to commit a foul?
The dirtiest part of this tactic is when the last few minutes of each quarter are up, when both sides have reached their foul limit, and when all defensive fouls and fouls on off-ball players are about to send players to the free-throw line.
At that point, the Lakers didn't even need to attack; they could just wait for O'Neal to make free throws.
FUXX, you country bumpkin trying to mess with me, huh?
Jackson glanced at Bird, who was sitting calmly on the sidelines, then suddenly whistled again and waved to Hubble, signaling him to come over.
This is yet another piece of irrefutable evidence that Jackson's whistling was just whistling and contained no hidden tactical guidance.
If he could use whistles to give tactical instructions, why would he need to call Hubble over?
Want to talk about life?
Jackson put one hand on Hubble's back, gave him a series of instructions, and then sat down in his chair with satisfaction, leaving the rest to the players to handle themselves.
Whose heart is dirtier?
Have I ever lost even once in my life?
Hmm, it seems I've lost before. That Lin guy's heart is much dirtier than mine.
That bastard is the dirtiest guy in the league.
O'Neal finally broke his losing streak at free throws, making one of two and scoring his first point of the game.
In the following game, the two sides continued to struggle around the 7-8 point gap, with neither side able to widen or narrow the gap further. For the Lakers, the good news was probably that O'Neal's free throws finally returned to normal.
Well, it's just that it's back to normal.
After missing all four free throws, he made 3 of the next 5. Only when Davis, who came off the bench, didn't foul him hard enough, did he manage to score a 2+1, thus preventing himself from going scoreless from the field.
在第一节打到还剩下最后2分钟的时候，奥尼尔9罚3中，投篮1投1中，拿下了5分5篮板还有2失误1犯规。
Shaquille O'Neal's performance tonight was really poor.
Although O'Neal made 9 free throws in a single quarter, the Pacers' fouls were very well distributed. So far, only Carter has 2 fouls, while the rest of the team either have 1 foul or no fouls.
The score at this point was temporarily set at 27:21.
The Pacers lead by 6 points.
It's worth mentioning that by this point, both the Pacers and the Lakers had committed more than 5 fouls in this quarter, and both teams had entered a state where every foul, regardless of whether it was a shooting foul or not, would result in free throws.
Two minutes into the game, the Lakers had possession of the ball on their first offensive possession.
Kobe was about to advance the ball when the referee blew his whistle.
The entire Lakers team and Staples Center fans were completely bewildered, not understanding what had happened.
Then a dejected O'Neal walked to the free-throw line.
Beside him stood Miller, grinning slyly. The old bastard even patted O'Neal on the backside and whispered, "Good luck, my man."
O'Neal didn't even look at him, pouting and walking reluctantly to the free throw line.
This isn't the first time he's encountered this situation, and it certainly won't be the last.
But to be so shameless, playing like this in the very first quarter of the game, is truly a first!
Bird, sitting on the sidelines, had his arms crossed, giving off an expression that said, "I'm shameless, what can you do about it?" He looked incredibly smug.
"Back then, Larry made that face at Julius, and that's why Julius beat him up!" When the camera focused on Bird, Barkley immediately recounted his rookie days with great enthusiasm: "You guys have no idea how annoying Larry was back then!"
"Julius did the beating?" Kenny said, indicating that he couldn't fool him: "Charles, what were you doing? You didn't do anything?"
"Of course not." Barkley patted his chest, beaming. "I, Charles Barkley, never bully others! I was trying to break up a fight! I was doing everything I could to stop it!"
"Yes, it was definitely his all-out effort to break up the fight." Kenny, who never swore and was always the one who stopped Barkley from swearing, couldn't help but curse. He had watched that game countless times and remembered the details of the fight very clearly.
Yes, Barkley didn't lay a hand on them; he was indeed trying to break up the fight.
He grabbed Bird's arms with both hands, as if he wanted to lift Bird up and shout "Stop fighting! Stop fighting!" in a way that was meant to stop the fight.
A textbook example of biased support.
"Whoosh!"
O'Neal made his first free throw, and he excitedly clenched his fist and waved it, because it was such a hard-won achievement!
"Bang!"
Then, immediately after, O'Neal's second free throw hit the rim squarely, missing the target by a wide margin. Ben Wallace immediately jumped up and grabbed the rebound. Before he could even shoot, Green, who was also next to him, suddenly grabbed him!
"Beep! Foul for pulling, two free throws!"
The referee immediately raised his hand and blew his whistle, calling a foul on Green.
Ben Wallace, holding the basketball, stared wide-eyed, completely bewildered.
What's this?
Cut costs?
"Shameless!" Lin Tian, Mullin, Miller, and Davis all cursed at O'Neal almost simultaneously.
"Why are you cursing at me?!" O'Neal, who had just been gloating, immediately became unhappy: "It wasn't my strategy, it wasn't my foul, and even if I did commit a foul, what right do you have to curse at me? Have you no shame?"
"Yes, why?" Carter looked at Lin Tian.
"Lin, tell him why!" Carter also threw the question to Lin Tian.
Although Davis didn't say anything, his eyes betrayed his thoughts.
"Because we can't stop you!" Lin Tian spread his hands and said, "You are a historically great center, the most destructive interior behemoth, the king of the paint in history who has dominated the world, we can't stop you."
"Oh, no, I'm not that good." Lin Tian's sudden praise made O'Neal a little embarrassed. He chuckled and waved his hands randomly to indicate that he was only average.
"So, if you can't stop him, you foul him. What's wrong with that?" Lin Tian then pointed at Ben Wallace, who was already walking towards the free-throw line, preparing to shoot. "You guys can't stop him? My grandma could stop him! As long as you don't let him dunk, his scoring ability isn't even as good as Michael's!"
"Of course not the Michael you know. The Michael I'm talking about is my neighbor, a 78-year-old guy who only has one hand and is severely nearsighted."
"If you can't prevent it, you'll resort to any means necessary; if you can prevent it, you'll have to do it properly! If you snatch a 3-year-old's lollipop, are you going to threaten him with a rocket launcher?"
"Hmm, if you put it that way, it seems so..." O'Neal was interrupted halfway through his sentence.
"Shaq, what are you talking to them about! You grabbed the rebound! They still couldn't make the free throws!" Jackson on the sidelines was dumbfounded.
What are you doing? You've even started chatting?
The game is on! We're still behind!
Upon hearing this, O'Neal immediately ran towards the basket, but his expression told Lin Tian and the others: You're right! It's reasonable for you to use fouling tactics against me, but it's a bit unfair for us to foul Ben Wallace.
"I heard you." Ben also turned his head, his face darkening as he looked at Lin Tian and the others. "I'll definitely beat your grandma to a pulp, and that Michael next door too!"
After saying that, Ben Wallace also stepped up to the free-throw line.
"Bang!"
"Whoosh!"
Two distinct sounds came one after the other, and Big Ben missed both free throws!
The first free throw was too forceful. On the second free throw, Ben Wallace adjusted his breathing and the force in his hand, and the basketball didn't even touch the rim. It went straight under the basket and flew out of bounds.
"Hahahaha!" Barkley excitedly clutched his stomach and exclaimed, "Airball! Ben, that idiot, hahaha, after all these years, his offensive skills haven't improved at all! If he had just learned a couple of moves from me, he wouldn't have made such a fool of himself!"
Equally delighted were the Staples Center fans, who even shouted "MVP!" at Ben Wallace to thank him for the joy this airball brought them.
However, even though Ben Wallace's penalty kick was an airball, he also had his strengths.
1. He has a thick skin; such trivial matters won't affect him at all.
2. Even if it does affect him, his skin is dark enough that you can't tell if he blushes.
When the Lakers inbounded the ball again, unsurprisingly, Mullin went up and hugged O'Neal once more.
Hehe... Go on, keep shooting free throws!
Frustrated, Kobe slammed the ball to the floor, refusing to let him play for two possessions.
That's disgusting.
The fans at the scene switched modes in an instant, turning from cheers to waves of boos!
That Bird is utterly shameless!
"Whoosh!"
O'Neal, at the free-throw line, finally made another basket, but just as he was about to capitalize on his momentum and score again, the Pacers suddenly made a substitution.
Ben Wallace and Davis both left the court, and Perkins and Harrington came on together. This was Harrington's first appearance in this Finals series! This second-year player hasn't had his chance like Lewis has.
However, at this moment, Bird suddenly switched to this old man and the young man, and his thoughts and purpose were obvious.
This is going to turn the last two minutes of the first quarter into a free throw battle! They specifically brought on two guys from the end of the bench who aren't afraid of fouls.
My heart is too dirty!
"Bang!"
O'Neal missed his second free throw.
Then, just as Fisher, who had also just come on the court, was about to commit a foul, he suddenly froze for a moment.
His mind is still clear right now.
He suddenly didn't know who to foul. His mind raced through the free throw percentages of the five Pacers players on the court this season.
Lin Tian 84%, Miller 91%, Mullin 89%, Perkins 82%, Harrington 75%.
These five items are all incredibly accurate!
Tactical fouls against them are completely pointless!
Because it was agreed that Fisher would commit a tactical foul, the rest of the Lakers were a bit relaxed at this point. They all thought that Fisher would foul quickly and then let the Pacers continue to shoot free throws, so their defensive positioning was very loose, and O'Neal didn't even leave the free throw line.
Anyway, I'll have to come back in a bit, right?
In the blink of an eye, Perkins had already made a long pass to Lin Tian, who was near the Lakers' three-point line. His passing skills were not as good as Webber's, but this kind of pass without any contact or interference was really easy for him.
When Lin Tian got the basketball, Kobe, who was standing in front of him, was completely unprepared. He saw Lin Tian quickly turn around and pass by Kobe, then drive into the paint!
At this point, it was incredibly difficult for the Lakers to tighten up and catch up with Lin Tian again!
The only one who could get to the basket so quickly was Fox. He remembered Jackson's instructions to foul him, so he reached out and tried to hug Lin Tian.
When Jackson saw Fox's defensive approach from the sidelines, he immediately closed his eyes, unable to bear watching any longer.
What an idiot!
It's fine to commit a foul, but you're committing a foul on Lin Tian, and in such a harmless way?
If I can't make this and-one, I'll give you my life!
"boom!"
"Beep beep!"
Sure enough, just after Jackson closed his eyes, the sound of Lin Tian smashing the rim and the referee's call came at the same time.
Lin Tian indeed scored a 2+1!
It was an incredibly powerful dunk, the kind that sent Fox flying.
After landing, Lin Tian spread his arms wide, like an eagle flapping its wings, waving them up and down at the fans, signaling them to make the noise louder!
Who's going to listen to this little bit of noise?
"FUXX!" Jackson, watching from the sidelines, saw that the Pacers' morale was about to be boosted and the point difference between the two sides had exceeded 10 points. He had no choice but to surrender.
He substituted O'Neal out.
As soon as Bird saw O'Neal leave the court, he didn't hesitate at all. Harrington and Perkins went off, and Webber and Lewis came on!
You don't have Shaq?
Then I'll have to play a game of offense and defense transitions and counter-attacks with you!
Run, little ones!
The first round of coaching battles ended in a crushing defeat for Jackson!
Of course, we can't blame Jackson either.
The truth is, Shaquille O'Neal, who is inaccurate at free throws, is the most important cornerstone of the team.
On the Pacers' side, the only player who's having trouble shooting from the free-throw line is their role player, Ben Wallace!
That's not all. Apart from Ben Wallace's huge problem with free throws and Shaquille O'Neal's brilliant but weak performance, everyone else on this lousy team is incredibly accurate with free throws!
Not only do two players have a field goal percentage of over 90%, but another team has a percentage of over 85%, and the team's free throw percentage is the highest in the league at 81%!
Besides Ben Wallace, Dale Davis has the second-worst free throw shooting on the team.
This guy had a 69% free throw percentage in the regular season and a 71% free throw percentage in the playoffs!
To foul him? To pit him against O'Neal in a penalty shootout?
No matter how you look at it, it's a suicidal act!
In this round, Jackson was limited by his lineup and was outmaneuvered by Bird.
After O'Neal left the court, neither the Pacers nor the Lakers had a true center on the court, and both sides immediately chose to speed up the pace, engaging in a thrilling fast-paced offensive battle!
At this point, the Lakers could only rely on Kobe and Rice. From about one minute left in the first quarter to five minutes into the second quarter, these two guys performed quite well. Rice hit two three-pointers, Kobe made a mid-range shot, and also drove to the basket twice to score!
Thanks to Kobe and Rice's performance, although the Lakers are still far from making up for the deficit from the first quarter, at least they haven't fallen behind the Pacers' ace lineup of one big man and four small men!
51: 40!
The Lakers are still down by 11 points to the Pacers!
At this moment, Jackson called another timeout, wanting to bring O'Neal back on the court!
No matter how much he feared the Pacers' defensive strategy, he still had to let O'Neal play more!
This guy is not Ben Wallace; he has a huge role and influence on the Lakers' interior defense and even the entire team!
Without Ben Wallace, the Pacers are only slightly weaker in interior defense. After all, this team is primarily an offensive team, so it's not a huge blow.
But what if the Lakers lose Shaq?
What's the point of fighting then?
After O'Neal arrived on the court, having rested for almost 10 minutes during the break and timeouts, he was full of energy. He backed down Webber in the paint, made a strong turn and pushed Webber aside, and was about to dunk to vent his anger when Webber, who would have given up on defense at this point in the past, once again reached out his evil hand.
One hand was firmly pressed down on O'Neal's hand as he prepared to dunk. Webber used all his strength. Webber, who was already leaning back and barely able to stand, was almost knocked forward by O'Neal's pull!
Shaquille O'Neal's strength was truly terrifying, but even the most terrifying strength is powerless against a defense that doesn't aim to stop him at all.
O'Neal lost control of the basketball during his jump, and the ball flew out again.
He was awarded two more free throws.
"You haven't played in a long time, let me help you get back into shooting form! You're welcome." Lin Tian walked over with a swagger, helped Webber up when he finally lost his balance and fell to the ground, and started trash-talking O'Neal at the same time.
O'Neal walked to the free-throw line with a pout and a reluctant expression, muttering to himself.
He was helpless, and so was Jackson.
If the Pacers miss their free throws and can't score the points they conceded, what can they do?
There's nothing anyone can do!
After all, no matter what Jackson did, he couldn't just stop O'Neal from getting the ball and playing at all!
That's practically the same as surrendering directly.
"Whoosh!"
O'Neal's first free throw finally went in obediently.
The guy excitedly swung his fist.
If the penalty is scored, at least this round isn't a loss.
Then O'Neal took another deep breath, raised his hand, and threw his second free throw.
"Whoosh!"
Another crisp sound, and O'Neal made both free throws!
"MVP! MVP! MVP!"
"Your little tricks are useless now!"
"We all know Shaq can make crucial free throws! You bunch of Indians who only know how to play dirty tricks, you're doomed to lose!"
"Shaq! Shaq is the best!"
"Champions! We are the champions!"
"Kill Shaq! Let them know just how terrifying a Shaq who can make free throws really is!"
The Staples Center fans immediately erupted in cheers!
It was as if what they were seeing wasn't two successful free throws, but a game-winning three-pointer.
They were ecstatic! This was the first time tonight!
Once he's done it once, how far away can he be for it to happen again?
meeting!
Not only will it, but it will be very far!
After making both free throws that time, O'Neal made both free throws again when he stepped to the free throw line with three minutes left in the fourth quarter, and once again achieved the feat of making both free throws!
In the middle 20 minutes of the game, O'Neal went to the free-throw line more than 20 times, but only made less than half of them!
With only 3 minutes left in the fourth quarter, O'Neal made both free throws, bringing his free throw record to an astonishing 18 of 38 tonight!
20 missed free throws in a single game!
At least half of the players in the league need a month to get 20 free throws, but Shaq missed 20 by himself that night!
The only good news is that O'Neal didn't miss a single free throw!
And the hit rate is close to 50%.
From this perspective, Ben Wallace of the Pacers, under the same tactics as Jackson tonight, made 3 out of 10 free throws, and missed one of them. He made far worse free throws than Shaquille O'Neal!
The only difference is that Bird dared to take Ben Wallace off when the Lakers committed a tactical foul, but Jackson simply couldn't take Shaq off! (End of Chapter)