NBA: I am a master dealer

The media also reported Xue Liancheng's comeback.

"Facts have proven that Xue Liancheng is still the most dominant player in the league"

"With the power of one person, he changed the temperament of the entire team, Xue Liancheng showed MVP level strength"

"The biggest BOSS is online, this season's championship will rise again"

"The Lakers Officially Announce: The Strongest Purple and Gold Legion Returns"

"Xue Liancheng comes back, builds the league's facade and brand, and is supported by Hollywood superstars"

"Defeat the Eastern Boss, Xue Liancheng Announces the Return of the King"

Almost all media are praising the Lakers' transformation, and they only need Xue Liancheng's comeback to complete the transformation. This shows how powerful Xue Liancheng is.

The next game further verified this.

薛连城只登场了22分钟，就14中9拿到了26分13助攻的顶级数据，并帮助球队以121:96轻松击败魔术，获得了两连胜。

Although the Magic's record this season is still not very good, they still have 16 wins and 22 losses, which is much better than the Lakers' 14 wins and 26 losses.

But from the beginning to the end of this game, the Magic showed no resistance. It can even be said that they were beaten on the head.

What does this show?

It shows that after Xue Liancheng's comeback, the Lakers have indeed transformed into a top team.

George still performed brilliantly, scoring 18 points on 11-of-27 shooting. His efficiency was much better than before, his scoring output was also very stable, and his energy on the defensive end was gradually increasing.

This is why the Magic only scored 96 points.

Xue Liancheng's return not only revitalized the Lakers' offensive system, but most importantly, boosted the confidence of all Lakers members, allowing them to devote their energy to exerting energy on the defensive end.

As a well-known forward and defender, George plays a very important role in defense. He has excellent performance in both single defense and assist defense.

Some time ago, because Xue Liancheng was away, he had to take on too many roles and responsibilities, and he had no time to care about defense. This is why the Lakers have been criticized.

Otherwise, with the Lakers' personnel configuration, the defensive power cannot be underestimated. Courtney Lee, George, Glenn Robinson, James Johnson, and a large number of core defensive personnel on the forward and defensive lines have built a defensive system. , it should be very easy and easy.

But the previous Lakers did not have such ability.

The reason is due to a lack of focus on one thing and a gradual loss of self-confidence.

In addition to George's stable performance, Randall, as Xue Liancheng's best player, also scored 19 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists in this game.

Everyone knows that Randall plays with passion and energy.

But he has a shortcoming, that is, he is a bit stubborn, and it is easy to hit the ball when he gets it.

And now after two games with Xue Liancheng, he has begun to know how to share the ball. This change is quite rare.

Zubac still started the game, but he only played about 7 minutes and scored points, which is considered good.

Courtney Lee also became passionate, but he focused more on defense. He didn't have many opportunities on the offensive end and only scored 4 points.

James Johnson on the bench is now being reused. He scored 9 points on 6-for-17 shooting in this game. He is the most important core member of the fast-break small lineup. This performance can be regarded as repaying Mike Brown's trust.

Marvin Williams scored 10 points. Due to his lack of defensive ability, his playing time was also reduced under Mike Brown's arrangement.

Clarkson, who was put on the bench, only scored 9 points, which is normal.

When the team's scoring power is weak, it may be Clarkson's time to perform, but since Xue Liancheng's return, the Lakers' offensive explosiveness does not need Clarkson to maintain it at all.

Therefore, as a pure point guard substitute, his playing time has plummeted, and he has been severely exploited in his tactical position.

If you want to say that the player who has been most affected after Xue Liancheng's return, it must be Clarkson.

However, although Clarkson's role has become smaller now, it does not mean that Clarkson is useless.

When one of Xue Liancheng and George is weak offensively, Clarkson's ball-holding ability can come in handy and become another X factor to replace them in launching the offense.

This is also the reason why the Lakers are willing to pay a large price to keep Clarkson.

As for the Magic, it seems they still haven't been able to find their own direction.

Ibaka scored the highest score of the Magic team, with a double-double of 20 points and 10 rebounds, which is still very good.

Fournier made 16 of 6 shots and scored 19 points.

Harrison also made 16 of 6, but only scored 15 points.

埃尔弗里德-佩顿手感欠佳，6中1拿到了6分6篮板6助攻，真666……

Biyombo, who started the game, scored 6 points and 4 rebounds on 10 of 11 shots.

Vucevic, who is hailed as the future of the Magic, came off the bench, shooting 17 of 8 and scoring 19 points and 7 rebounds.

That's right!

Vucevic was placed on the bench.

After going round and round, Magic finally managed to pull off such a big move, which is really surprising.

In other words, the Magic, which has been around for many years, has yet to develop a real core player. I don’t know whether it is the players’ sorrow or the Magic’s own sorrow.

After defeating the Magic, the Lakers' record reached 15 wins and 26 losses, and they had vaguely seen the light of hope.

"Playoffs, here we come."

"The Kings just haven't played enough games. It looks like they will fall behind."

"With the current strength of the Lakers, the top eight should be stable, and it will be more difficult to say anything higher."

"It's really surprising that the grizzly bear is dead and not frozen."

"No matter what, as long as they enter the playoffs, the Lakers can compete for the championship."

After two games, fans are already full of confidence in the Lakers.

In their perception, they only feel that as long as Xue Liancheng and George stay healthy, they will be the most competitive team in the league.

Frank of "FOX Sports" also spoke out at this time: Two consecutive games of 120+ points are enough to prove that Xue Liancheng is still an MVP-level superstar. This season's Western Conference will definitely be bloody.

This statement naturally received support and support from Xue Liancheng fans and Lakers fans.

But some people think that everything must be stable and don't open the champagne halfway.

After all, it’s only been two games, and now it’s getting loud?

What if we don't make the playoffs in the end?
Wouldn't it make people laugh out loud?

The next game against the Trail Blazers is crucial.

Because the two teams are in a competitive relationship, and the competition is very fierce.

The Trail Blazers currently only have a record of 16 wins and 23 losses, which is only two games behind the Lakers' 15 wins and 26 losses.

And this is a direct confrontation, the effect is that one game is equivalent to two games. As long as the Lakers win, the winning difference between the two sides will immediately be reduced to one game.

It's a big step forward from the top eight in the Western Conference.

Therefore, the importance of this game is self-evident.

Xue Liancheng understood the value of this game better, because according to historical trajectory, the Trail Blazers were the team that reached the top eight in the end, and still entered the playoffs with a 41% record of 41 wins and losses.

In other words, in the remaining games, the Trail Blazers were really killing each other with a very high winning rate.

If you can win the game at this time, you can beat the opponent first in terms of the difference between the outcome of the match between the two sides.

At the same time, it can also make the opponent's wins drop, which creates the basic conditions for the Lakers to reach the top eight.

Therefore, if you lose a game against other teams, you can still redeem yourself with the next victory.

Facing the Trail Blazers, they can only win. One game is worth two games. If they don't win, they will commit suicide... Before the game started, Xue Liancheng gave a speech: "This is our strong opponent in the playoffs. Qian Don't underestimate them, they created miracles last season, their resilience is unparalleled, we need to use 100% energy to destroy them in one fell swoop."

But unfortunately, the Lakers didn't seem to listen.

As soon as the game started, it was shot 12:4.

After the timeout, things didn't get better and they were beaten 9:2 again.

As a last resort.

Xue Liancheng stepped forward and started to activate the strong attack mode. The effect was not bad, and he barely suppressed the Blazers' offensive.

The most important thing is to activate the Lakers' offensive morale.

Second section.

The Lakers finally reacted, and under the guidance of Xue Liancheng, their offensive rhythm gradually began to become brisk.

Halftime ended.

The Lakers were temporarily behind by 42 points at 48:6.

This score difference is not too outrageous and is barely acceptable.

But they no longer had the slightest capital to relax. Xue Liancheng, who had already played overtime in the first half, was still full in the second half.

But the Lakers didn't know what happened today, and their firepower was interrupted again.

Xue Liancheng encountered serious double-teaming, and George kept hitting the iron, but the others couldn't seize the opportunity.

When the score difference reaches 10 points.

Mike Brown took the lead and called a timeout, then replaced the team's best offensive players.

Xue Liancheng, Clarkson, George, James Johnson, Randle.

The effect is immediate.

Three ball-handlers, plus a transfer point, can solve most of the double attack situations.

Clarkson's explosive fighting ability is actually very suitable for Xue Liancheng's fast break, especially defensive counterattack.

Playing three games in a row, the Blazers had to call a timeout.

of course.

This lineup also has a huge drawback, that is, there are too many people who need to hold the ball, and one ball is not enough to score points. During positional battles, it is easy to get stuck in the quagmire.

There is no problem at all if Xue Liancheng plays without the ball.

Clarkson is almost the same type as Will Barton. He is very capable in chaotic battles, but if you want him to play without the ball, he can only stop and watch.

As for George, there was no problem playing without the ball in the past few years. Before Granger fell, strictly speaking, George was just a 3D. He shot and cut after catching the ball, which were his main means of scoring.

With the death of Granger, George's singles with the ball began to become the main offensive method, and finally it became what it is now, with almost no off-ball play.

This highlights a problem, the ball is not divided enough.

When Xue Liancheng got the ball, these two guys, except for occasionally passing through, had no awareness of covering and cooperating.

In this case, once the Blazers shrink their defense, they will be uncomfortable.

Besides.

The Lakers lineup actually does not have a real center, Randall just barely fills the role.

In this way, it is easy to be defeated by the opponent's strong inside line.

The Trail Blazers seized on these two points, and after the timeout, they resumed their crazy bombardment of the Lakers' inside line.

End of three quarters.

The Lakers are still 67 points behind at 75:8, and the situation is not optimistic.

to this end.

There was only a 3-minute break in the fourth quarter, and Xue Liancheng had to go into battle again.

At this time, James Johnson began to wake up and scored three consecutive points.

Randall also regained his passion and repeatedly received passes from Xue Liancheng and began to attack the basket.

George also began to have some tacit understanding on pick-and-roll screens, and achieved good coordination effects.

Midway through the fourth quarter, as Randall successfully hit the basket again, the point difference narrowed to 2 points.

The situation suddenly turned around.

The most important thing is that Lillard is really tough. Even when his hand feeling has obviously declined, he still repeatedly chooses to take hard shots, which gives the Lakers a chance.

of course.

It may also be that Lillard clearly knows the importance of this game, so he chooses to believe in himself and then stab himself desperately.

In the last two minutes of the game, the game entered a desperate situation. As George scored under the basket, the Lakers took a 2-point lead.

Morale immediately rose.

The Blazers attacked but failed to score.

Lillard still thought too highly of himself and started looking at the watch again, only to be struck by the iron.

Xue Liancheng, who only had two 100% hit skills left, no longer kept them and used them in advance.

After a wave of two consecutive attacks, the pioneers were drowned on the spot.

finally.

The Lakers struggled to hold on to win this game at home, with a score of 116:108.

Xue Liancheng once again performed a wonderful three-pointer. He played for 33 minutes in this game, which is almost the same as his normal playing time.

但其实他的状态也相对一般，20中10，仅仅得到28分10助攻6篮板的数据。

That's right!

Such data is indeed mediocre for Xue Liancheng, who plays normal playing time.

There is no feeling of brilliance at all, but it feels far less than expected.

George was in a slump again, shooting 17 of 7 and only scoring 16 points. It was indeed hard to explain, but he finally picked up in time in the second half and gave a lot of help.

Otherwise, George will be the sinner of the defeat in this game.

Randall's performance was average, shooting 14 of 6 and scoring 13 points and 8 rebounds.

James Johnson continued his excellent form, especially his firepower support from beyond the three-point line. He was the absolute contributor to the team's victory, scoring 18 points.

Clarkson played a lot of time in this game. With his fast break counterattack role, he also scored 14 points and performed very well.

Others can barely pass the standard.

But if the team wins, then all problems will no longer be a problem.

On the contrary, after the Blazers lost, Lillard's performance of 21-for-7 and only 20 points became the target of public criticism.

In such a crucial game, it is really difficult not to be criticized when the star player pulls his hips so hard and gives away his head repeatedly.

CJ McCollum was relatively stable, scoring 18 points on 10-for-25, which was considered his best effort.

(End of this chapter)