NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 657 "God" guides me. (Daily Chapter)
Los Angeles fans bought expensive tickets hoping to see a thrilling victory, and many fans are looking forward to Game 3 of the Finals!
The game that started at 20 p.m. on Tuesday night excited the fans who bought tickets. Kobe's "first quarter show" made everyone excited. This was what they expected to see.

But as the game time passed, the Lakers fans at the scene gradually discovered the problem. Mamba seemed to be getting more and more stubborn.
During the rotation phase, the Knicks first used Raja Bell and Marion to take turns against Kobe. Perhaps it was the "Law of Conservation of Character" that came into play, and Mamba led the Knicks to counterattack many times.

Marion, who did not perform well at home, showed his talent. The scene of him blocking Kobe's fadeaway jump shot with his long arms almost turned the Staples Center into a library.

Fortunately, the Knicks also wasted some opportunities. When Kobe missed shots continuously and began to focus on connecting the team, Duncan and Odom stood up and stabilized the rhythm of the game.

But at the end of the first half, the score was still fixed at 57:58, and the Lakers failed to expand their lead.

Kobe made 5 of 1 shots in a single quarter, 15 of 7 shots in the first half, 4 of 2 from beyond the three-point line, and 6 of 5 free throws, scoring 21 points efficiently. Such a performance did not win much cheers, but instead made the Lakers fans at the scene worried.

With the support of the home court whistle, the Knicks' defensive intensity dropped significantly.

The starting lineup did not have an outstanding performance, while the substitute lineup played steadily. The defending champions did not play a wonderful game, but still caused considerable trouble for the Lakers.

After the second half of the game started, in the crucial third quarter, as the game progressed, Kobe tended to disappear again. It was not that Mamba didn't try hard, he just couldn't make the shot.
The consecutive high-difficulty jump shots after the opening completely disappeared. When Kobe began to force his way to the basket and repeatedly stood on the free throw line, a scene that made the Lakers fans at the scene unable to hold back appeared. He didn't make any free throws!
With 3 minute and 1 seconds left in the third quarter, Kobe missed his second free throw again. Li You, who was standing outside the three-point line, could no longer hold back the smile on his face. When he received the ball, boos resounded throughout the arena again.

The three commentators at the ABC commentary booth were speechless, as if God was helping Li You. Kobe had shot 9 of 2 from the second quarter until now, which was so bad that they couldn't comment:
"I don't know what happened to Kobe! After the first quarter, his performance was a disaster!"

"There is no doubt that the Knicks were not able to let go on the defensive end. Lee's confrontation when defending Kobe was significantly reduced, and even free throws had problems. Kobe must adjust in time."

Mark Jackson thought that the Lakers would expand their lead in one go, but as the game progressed, it was the Knicks that were getting stronger and stronger.

Marion, who came off the bench, played his best performance in three games. Gazuric also successfully helped Gasol overcome the foul crisis. The defending champions not only tied the score difference, but also surpassed their opponents.

Kobe, with a ferocious expression on his face, retreated to the left wing and gave instructions loudly. Seeing Li You dribbling slowly across half court, Van Gundy said regretfully:

"Lee wasn't focused on scoring tonight. This was the Lakers' best chance, but they didn't take it!"

"."

As the game time kept passing, Duncan standing under the basket became more and more anxious, but Li You was still the same as before, calmly calling on Gasol to set a screen, and by the way, he loudly reminded Marion on the left wing.

Duncan was unable to use his strength. He watched Gasol fake a screen and Li You ran into the two people's encirclement and slowed down to defend. For a moment, he was so angry that he cursed:
"Shet!"

Ariza, who was trying hard to squeeze to the side, was knocked away by Li You's butt, and Odom failed to bend down in time to lower his center of gravity. Facing the second acceleration, he was almost passed by one step again.

"shush"

Amidst the boos, Li You accelerated for the second time and first moved his right hand in and out with a big swing. Then he instantly increased his stride, easily got rid of the defense, and came to the right side near the baseline before making another emergency stop.

After a fake raise of the ball, Odom, who was defending him, jumped out of the baseline. Ariza, who was defending him, did not jump around, but when he squeezed to the side, Li You had already passed the ball.

Marion, who cut into the paint from the left wing, took three steps forward immediately after receiving the ball. Gasol squeezed to the basket and blocked Duncan, allowing his teammate who cut in to shoot calmly.

"And One!!"

Marion threw the ball in with his right hand in the air. Kobe yelled after being hit on the arm, but the referee still did not react, but just indicated that the goal was valid.

83:79, the Knicks quietly expanded their lead.

Seemingly still upset about the two missed free throws, Kobe, who failed to concentrate, hit himself hard on the chest twice and raised his hands to signal to his teammates that it was his problem.

At the critical moment, Duncan was fouled again with his strong attack in the low post on the left side. The Lakers took free throws again. D'Antoni on the sidelines waved to Rondo and replaced JR Smith who missed the shot.

Tonight, they failed to play their signature offense, and Li You did not motivate his teammates during the halftime break. Rondo thought they would lose the game, but now they are leading.
"You're overrated!!"

Rondo, wearing a blue headband, came to the court and deliberately walked to Kobe's side, staring at him and loudly mocking him. Mamba was in a bad mood and responded to the rookie for the first time in the series:

"Blind grandma!"

The two began to quarrel with each other. Rondo ignored the referee's shouting and deliberately squeezed Kobe, staring at him and yelling:
"Don't think you're so great, you can only play next to MVP!"

Seeing the two people pulling each other, some Lakers fans at the scene booed, some followed suit, and some stood up and shouted loudly, so the referee had to pull the two apart.

The free throw was interrupted, and Duncan's patience was running out. Seeing this farce, he immediately shouted to Fisher and others, but when he took the next free throw, the basketball hit the rim and bounced out.

"Oh"

Amid low shouts, Chandler grabbed the rebound, Rondo received the ball, and Li You walked to the frontcourt, reminding his teammates to continue to slow down the pace of the game.

Without the unified shouts, even though the Lakers fans were only three points behind, they couldn't help but recall the painful experiences of the past.

Referee Joey Crawford was also helpless. He only made 10 of 4 free throws in a single quarter. It seemed as if God was helping the Knicks.
The game time continued to be consumed, and after the Knicks passed the ball continuously, Rondo reorganized outside the three-point line.

Kobe was also anxious at this time, and he took the initiative to switch to Li You's side. Seeing his "mortal enemy" trying to receive the ball with his back, he immediately pulled him.

The active interference played some role. Li You had to improve his receiving position, move to the right blocking area, jump up to catch the ball, twist his shoulders immediately after landing, pretend to release the ball with his left hand, and then twist his body in the opposite direction.

Kobe made the wrong defensive choice, and the anxious Kobe subconsciously slid to the right, and then completely lost his defensive position.
"Oh!"

With a low cry, Li You, holding the ball in his right hand, instantly broke through to the basket, took a step forward and leaped into the air towards Duncan who was assisting in defense. Kobe behind him also caught up and jumped up to try to block the shot.

The fans in the front row behind the basket subconsciously covered their mouths. Li You, who seemed to have not fully jumped, had his head level with the basket in the blink of an eye and hovered in the air to complete the accumulation of power.

Duncan and Kobe's successive collisions with Li You seemed to have no effect. He swung his right arm and slammed the ball into the basket through the defense.

After a loud "bang", Duncan staggered and sat down on the ground. Kobe also lost his balance and almost fell into the camera in front of him.

"OH——!"

The three people in the commentary booth also exclaimed, noticing that the referee blew the whistle. Van Gundy was not polite anymore and commented in a firm tone:
"Lee's dunk turned the game around! I believe the Knicks will completely regain their offensive form in the fourth quarter!"

Li You, who was still patting his chest, was soon surrounded by his teammates. On the bench, the atmosphere group also covered their faces and screamed. The sudden dunk really ignited everyone's emotions.

"MVP! MVP! MVP!" There was a sudden shout in the Staples Center. Li You stood at the free throw line and calmly dribbled the ball, turning it twice in his hands. He ignored Duncan who was complaining to the referee under the basket and made the free throw steadily.

86:80, Duncan, who was preparing to serve, hit the ball hard. The surging emotions in his heart were almost difficult to control. He couldn't believe that he fell behind again.

The Lakers' last attack still gave the ball to Kobe, but Mamba's breakthrough was almost completely covered by Li You, and finally the pass in the paint area was intercepted by Chandler.

"shush"

Amid scattered boos, Duncan walked quickly to the bench. Kobe, with a dark complexion, also walked away quickly. However, Li You smiled and continued to high-five his teammates who rushed over to celebrate, muttering non-stop:

“God guides me!”

"Listen, they are done, God is on our side"

If it had been a normal game, the atmosphere group would naturally not have believed it, but after two outrageous quarters, the mediocre Knicks actually took the lead, which cheered up everyone who had complained about the refereeing before.

The referee was clearly looking out for the other team, but Kobe, who was always accurate at free throws, only made 5 of 2 shots. The victory that was in his mouth was spit out, and the newbie Chalmers was dumbfounded:

"Incredible, we are ahead again, God has responded to Li"

After the fourth quarter started, Chalmers kept complaining to the people around him. Thaddeus Young also thought it was outrageous that Kobe suddenly played badly. He even thought Li You was letting him win:

"We're going to have match point! Unbelievable"

The two rookies chattered happily, which revitalized the previously dull bench, and there were not many opportunities to score against the wind.

The Knicks, who took the lead in attacking, replaced Dio and Gasol in the interior. D'Antoni made a normal rotation, while Phil Jackson continued to fight with the main players. Even Fish was still on the court.

The continuous passing and hand-offs exhausted the patience of the Lakers. Duncan was really anxious. Noticing that there was not much time left for the offense, he chased Li You after a pick-and-roll at the top of the arc to delay him.

Encouraged by the boss, Ariza squeezed through without switching defense and also moved quickly to the left wing.

The desperate defense of the two made the Lakers fans at the scene shout loudly. After 20 seconds of the offensive time, they were about to block Li You to the left sideline. The noise became louder and louder, and then turned into exclamations.
Near the left sideline, Li You, who was holding the ball in his left hand while moving, suddenly jumped up with his left foot, facing Duncan's block, and threw the ball casually with his left hand!

Ariza, who was chasing to the side, seemed to have a premonition of something. He stopped and looked straight at the basket. Soon he saw the basketball draw an outrageous arc and fall into the net.

"Oh my god! Lee actually made this jump shot!"

Mike Breen in the commentary booth couldn't hold it in any longer. He couldn't imagine how Li You did it, letting the basketball go into the net without even seeing the basket.

Duncan and Ariza stood still on the three-point line with their eyes wide open, but Li You seemed to have anticipated the goal. He first waved his arms in a simple celebration, and then slowly walked back:
"You have failed basketball, and God will guide me to victory!"

"."

When Duncan heard Li You's words, he wanted to refute, but when he opened his mouth, he didn't know what to say. An absurd thought even emerged in his mind, maybe God really responded to his old rival.

Ariza, who was also doubting his life, began to feel that what Li You said made sense. He also couldn't understand why Kobe suddenly became so sluggish in all aspects and lost the victory that was in his hands.

Lakers fans suddenly fell into inexplicable emotions, and when Kobe broke through with the ball on the right wing, the Staples Center became even quieter.

Kobe stopped suddenly in the blocking area, raised the ball and faked it several times, then suddenly turned quickly with his left foot as the axis. The basketball was intercepted as soon as it slipped out of his hands at the moment of the jump shot.

"Oh"

Li You, who jumped up from the side to block the shot, seemed to have predicted Kobe's move and completed the block firmly. Amid exclamations, he quickly chased the ball and then strode across the center line.

Kobe gritted his teeth and rushed forward. He didn't want to accept such a result. When he saw Li You approaching the paint area, he jumped too.

The fans behind the basket covered their mouths again, watching Li You soar into the air and still rising despite being pulled by Kobe with both hands. Everyone thought this scene was outrageous.

With Mamba's strenuous pull, Li You's dunk finally turned into a layup. He hung on his opponent and came to the lower left side of the basket. He picked up the ball with his left hand and steadily sent the ball into the basket!

"squeak!"

The referee blew the whistle again, and Kobe, who had been holding his breath, rushed out of the baseline and crashed into the camera before being supported by fans and staff.

On the other side, Li You, who scored a goal, raised his arms to show off his biceps. The quiet stadium allowed many people to hear his shouts:

“God will guide me!”

On the Lakers bench, Sun Yue, who had the best viewing position, also watched with his eyes wide open. Kobe was a heavy defender, but he couldn't break up the layup even with his hands pulling. This kind of strength was really outrageous.

Vujacic and Farmar both covered their faces with their hands. They knew very well what a double-digit score difference meant.

"MVP! MVP! MVP!"

The shouting became louder and louder, and it seemed that many fans had turned against the team. After Li You made the free throw, he pointed to the sky with one hand, and the Lakers immediately requested a timeout.

92:80, Phil Jackson's face turned red with anxiety, and the old man from KFC also felt puzzled. How could the core player suddenly become incompetent and even had problems with free throws?

"Stay focused and don't listen to what your opponent says!"

"."

Phil Jackson, holding the tactical board, kept giving out encouragement, but the people who returned to their seats had different expressions. Kobe stared at the floor, while Duncan stared at the tactical board with his eyes wide open.

The timeout was over, and everyone stood up and returned to the court. The 12-point difference made Ariza desperate. The perimeter defensive core suddenly whispered to Duncan:
“Maybe God really is helping Lee!”

"."

(End of this chapter)