Rekindling the dream of becoming a star

Chapter 250 Highlights and Downs

At 10:20 p.m. on October 6, the Staples Center was packed with guests. The opening game attracted countless California celebrities. Even the Chinese audience watching TV on the other side of the ocean could recognize several of the people sitting in the first row.

CCTV sent the combination of Zhang Weiping and Su Qun, but they were also complained about, so these are the only people qualified to go to the front for on-site commentary.

The CCTV commentary booth was right next to TX Sports. The two of them, Duan Ran, Ke Fan and the other two sat together and chatted while both sides were still warming up.

"Teacher Zhang, why is Chen Fang a substitute?" Ke Fan couldn't help but ask.

Although Mr. Zhang didn't understand, he had to pretend to be confident. He smiled and said, "You don't understand this, right? The Lakers can't defend themselves against this."

Duan Ran smiled in his heart. There was nothing wrong with these clichés. He heard Su Qun say, "Maybe Chen Fang came off the bench in the preseason and scored the highest number of points so far. Rivers wanted to see if Chen Fang would be better as the sixth man?"

"But, it doesn't make sense for the second pick to play against the sixth man." Ke Fan still felt that something was wrong.

"It's not like you'll always be a substitute. This is only the first game of the 82nd regular season. There's no need to worry about this." Duan Ran pulled Ke Fan to his seat.

After they sat down, Duan Ran said to Ke Fan, "There's no point in being anxious about this kind of thing. Every head coach in the NBA has a lot of things on his mind. When the game is over, we'll naturally know why."

"But that's the starting lineup. What does it mean? How can this be?" Ke Fan still didn't accept it. He just felt that Chen Fang was being suppressed. His stats were so good and his skills were so comprehensive, so why wasn't he given the starting lineup?

"What does starting mean? Mr. Duan, it means a tactical core position. Just think about how many stars got mad and went against the team because they were demoted to the bench. Let me put it this way, letting the second pick play as a substitute is an unprecedented news." Ke Fan expressed his inner thoughts with great sorrow.

Duan Ran was also in a dilemma. He wanted to explain, but he felt that it had nothing to do with him, so he had to say, "What you said makes sense, but please don't show it when you are explaining."

"Be careful to control your emotions." He reminded at the end.

On the court, Chen Fang took a short break. He came to the row near the Lakers' bench and walked in front of Kobe.

"I thought you wouldn't come." Chen Fang said.

"I came to see your first game. I don't want to show up in the Clippers' away game." Kobe stood up, shook hands and hugged Chen Fang.

"Have you given them any bad ideas again?" Chen Fang asked with a smile.

Kobe raised his eyebrows and said, "You're not even a starter, are you still worried that I'll target you?"

Chen Fang's smile faded, he heard the hidden meaning in Kobe's words.

"Get your starting position first and then talk to me. I never chat with substitutes!" After saying that, Kobe sat back.

Chen Fang burst out laughing. He knew that Kobe was deliberately provoking him, but he still felt angry.

I walked back angrily, just as the team finished warming up and returned to the locker room.

In the locker room, Rivers emphasized the tactics that the starting five needed to execute after the start.

"Blake, I need you to be more aggressive and score as many points as possible to force the Lakers to shrink inside."

"DeAndre, pull to the top of the key, I need your pick-and-roll screen."

"Danilo, I need your autonomous killing ability. Doncic, do your defense well. Austin, you take care of the open spaces in the corners and on the wings."

"After the start, I need you to open up the situation quickly. Don't think about the meaning of starting now. No one's position is stable. Do your best to perform, otherwise I will make adjustments."

Just as Rivers was planning the tactics, the live trio was in charge of the scene in the ESPN commentary booth.

Ryan Ruco, Dave Pass, Mark Jones.

It is well deserved for these three to be the commentators for the Western Conference focus game. With at least 15 years of experience in the industry, they are actually the backbone of NBA live commentary.

Ryan's style is more tactical, Dave focuses on the players' characteristics, and Mark's is the simplest, he just needs to make mindless accusations.

Compared with the Chinese-style two-person commentary, with the good cop and the bad cop, American-style commentary usually involves three people: one to smooth things over, one to explain the essence of the matter, and one to explore the point of view.

Today Mark’s focus is on Chen Fang’s debut.

"I don't understand. Doesn't a guy who scores nearly 20 points in the preseason deserve a starting spot? Which player on the Clippers' perimeter can do that? Why not Da Falcon? Is this discrimination? Even though I'm not Asian, I'm still angry."

"Rivers pays great attention to player relations. I believe he has done a good job of coordination and communication with both the management and the team. This decision seems more like an experiment," said Dave.

"What's the test? Are you going to let Chen Fang play as the sixth man?" Mark insisted.

"Of course you can't think like that. This is just the first game, not the end of the regular season. Mark, you need to calm down."

"Of course I am calm. I will ask Rivers this question after the game. I also hope Ryan can help us solve it."

The topic was brought to Ryan, one of the two bald men among the three. He had crescent eyes when he smiled, and looked gentle and kind. He replied: "Rivers' tactics have not changed much from the Celtics to the Clippers."

"His system emphasizes pick-and-roll cooperation. During his time with the Celtics, he relied on Pierce and Garnett, two inside and outside players with independent offense, to open up the situation and gain an advantage."

"When he got to the Clippers, he had Chris Paul and Blake Griffin, and he made a change and added some open shots from the outside."

"Now that Paul has left and Chen Fang has arrived, he will have to modify the system for this purpose. What exactly should he do? This game may give us some clues."

"Ryan, many people say his system is outdated. What do you think?" Mark asked.

Ryan didn't fall for it. "Who said that? I've never heard such a statement."

"Then what do you think of his system? Can it adapt to survive and gain an advantage in the current tactical trend?" Mark came up with another plan when the first one failed.

"Strictly speaking, he is not suitable. In the small ball trend, his understanding and use of space are weaknesses."

"He is good at playing superstar ball and has coached Tracy and Pierce before, but Chen Fang is completely different from them. He has never coached a player who can play from 1 to 3 or even play part-time at the 4 position."

"Because he knows that he can't improvise, he will spend his energy on changing the rhythm and not putting it on display, which means that he still doesn't know how to use it."

“This is my conclusion. He needs more competitions to figure out how to use Chen Fang.”

Ryan's words led to a new idea, and Mark immediately asked: "In other words, you think he won't use Chen Fang."

"Yes, not letting Chen Fang start is a reflection of his desire for safety and his lack of confidence," Ryan confirmed with gritted teeth.

"Well, the game is about to start. Let's see how the substitute No. 2 will perform."

"The Lakers' lineup remains the same as in the preseason: Paul, Clarkson, Ingram, Randle, Lopez."

"The Clippers also used the same starting lineup that defeated the Lakers last time, Teodosic, Blake Griffin, Jordan Jr., Danilo Gallinari, and Reeves Jr.."

"The Clippers have a deep lineup, but poor adaptability, no strong points on the outside, and are easily targeted."

"But it's also hard to be suppressed. Rivers doesn't want to dig a hole for himself. His first consideration is that the score difference will not widen."

"I still don't understand. Will it be pulled apart if it is placed on the table?" Mark asked.

"Would it be any different if we replaced the Europeans with Chinese?" Mark asked.

Ryan had no explanation for this and could only shrug to express his regret.

At this moment, the game began.

Lopez made a successful jump ball, and Paul got the ball immediately and advanced to the frontcourt. Instead of playing it safe, he suddenly accelerated and relied on Doncic to enter the inside. When the Clippers' inside players were forced to assist in defense, he passed the ball to Clarkson on the wing.

The latter made his first three-point shot, causing a large number of Lakers fans at the scene to cheer loudly.

It was the Clippers' turn to attack. Griffin and Gallinari exchanged positions. Griffin received the pass from Doncic and made a mid-range jump shot in the right elbow area.

3: 2.

Both teams were in good form and both scored points in the first round.

Chen Fang sat on the bench, rubbing his legs and moving his ankles. After a while, he stood up and walked to the empty area at the baseline, which is the default small warm-up area for players. Most substitute players would choose to move their hips here.

Chen Fang sat down and used yoga movements to press his hips and stretch his legs.

There were reporters nearby, and one of them boldly called out to Chen Fang: "Hey, Da Falcon."

Chen Fang looked back. Seeing Chen Fang's reaction, the reporter became bolder and asked, "How many points can you predict today?"

Chen Fang raised his finger and made the number three gesture.

"Wow." Everyone else was surprised.

No rookie would be so bold as to say this in his first NBA game.

Although both CCTV and TX Sports used official camera angles to commentate on the match, there was a free throw at the moment, and during the break, the camera caught Chen Fang warming up, and the "three" gesture was also captured.

All the Chinese reporters were immediately excited; this gesture was so familiar and classic.

But who dares to say it directly? All they can do is suppress their excitement and wait for the show to begin.

Brian ran over and waved to Chen Fang. After Chen Fang stood up and approached, he whispered in his ear: "Play good defense and seize the open opportunities. If the tactics don't work, you can handle it yourself."

Chen Fang nodded continuously. He walked to the technical platform in the center circle. He did not choose to squat, but stood upright with his hands on his hips.

"Hey, get out of the way," a technician shouted.

"I don't like squatting." Chen Fang said to the technician behind him with a smile.

The opponent could only spread his hands to express his helplessness. Fortunately, Paul's dribbling was fouled, resulting in a dead ball.

The buzzer sounds and Chen Fang comes on stage.

He replaced Doncic, and the European's problems were seen through. He had been named twice and scored two points each by Paul and Clarkson.

Many European stars have trouble acclimatizing in the NBA. The biggest problem is that they rely on help and double-team defense for defense, but in the NBA, single defense ability is the most important. Unless you have a super strong offense, defense will limit your playing time.

Chen Fang's appearance triggered the first unanimous cheer from the Clippers' home fans. They had high expectations for the Chinese. Their previous performance made them happy. They found that they could finally have a gorgeous outside star like the fans of other teams.

Ignoring other things, a dunk is worth the ticket price. For fans who pay to watch the game live, witnessing a few exciting moments with their own eyes is the first factor that entices them to come to the scene.

This is the simplest way for fans to watch football.

Chen Fang ignited the enthusiasm of the Staples Center when he touched the ball for the first time.

Griffin broke through with the ball, but was double-teamed by Randle and Ingram. After being forced to die, he relied on his height to find Chen Fang on the wing.

After receiving the ball, Chen Fang did not choose to jump shot. Instead, he touched Clarkson who was coming up to block the ball, and then cut in diagonally. Facing Yingge's flank defense, Chen Fang quickly did a Buddha-worshiping pass, which prompted Yingge to jump up and block the ball in advance. After touching two people in succession, Chen Fang took a step towards the penalty area, jumped up quickly, and rose to the highest point faster than Lopez. He made a fierce slam dunk with one hand. He did not let go, but grabbed the basket and raised his legs.

Because at this moment, there are so many people under the feet.

Griffin was very happy. He hugged Chen Fang's waist and lifted him down like a child.

Chen Fang was warmly congratulated by his teammates after landing. Everyone reached out their hands, patted him, and shouted, "Nice dunk."

This was also the Clippers' first dunk in the game, and the 17,000 fans everywhere were instantly excited.

Chen Fang's body shape, which is neither thin nor stout, coupled with his slender body proportions, makes this breakthrough very pleasing from a visual perspective.

It was like a snake-like advance, with two consecutive swings and pauses, but the last dunk was so swift and powerful that even Kobe pursed his lips and frowned, showing a shocked expression.

A camera captured this scene. ESPN commentator Mark joked: "It is said that Chen Fang has been following Kobe in the summer. It seems to be true. This action is very similar to the 22-year-old Kobe."

"Kobe in 0102 hadn't gained weight yet and preferred to play from the outside and break through. The move just now was indeed very similar," Dave agreed.

Chen Fang, who contributed a wonderful dunk as soon as he came on the court, also stimulated both sides. From the fourth minute, the offensive and defensive rhythm of both sides began to speed up.

Paul had learned from the previous defeat. He knew Chen Fang's speed, but if he fought a positional battle, it would open up Chen Fang's three-pointers, so he would rather speed up to cut off the connection between Chen Fang and his teammates.

His idea was recognized by Lakers coach Walton, so the Lakers' tactical plan today is to play offense and defense with the Clippers.

This undoubtedly gave Chen Fang a greater degree of stimulation. Coupled with the stimulation before the Science Games, Chen Fang's emotions gradually began to move towards insanity again.

When he was asked by reporters to predict the score, he made the 30 gesture, which was a strong psychological hint.

Chen Fang played street basketball in his previous life. When he was in the CUBA team in college, he was the undisputed core of the team. He gained his status without any struggle, so naturally he had no idea what it meant.

For most of his high school years, he couldn't even make the school team and was just happy to be able to play.

Playing street ball is all about money. If the money is paid, it would be best if you can get a chance to play. There is no concept of starting or main players.

Under these three circumstances, Chen Fang has little interest in idealistic things and pays more attention to practical matters.

I went to see Kobe after realizing it, but was provoked by him instead.

Chen Fang felt uncomfortable at the time, so when the reporter asked him, he expressed a strong desire to score.

It’s not that I have the urge to grab the starting position, but I feel that I am being looked down upon and am simply uncomfortable.

After all, Chen Fang's basketball career has always been spent choosing between two options. After his rebirth, he has been the undisputed core of the school team, the youth training team, and the national youth team.

In the United States, he was recruited by Tatum and was the natural second-in-command. He never thought about competing, nor would he compete.

It was not until Frank played a trick on him that he decided to become the leader of a weak NCAA team, instead of immediately changing his mind and transferring to another school, which is a basic operation for a five-star player in an American high school.

In the end, because he knew the future too well, he put a lot of thought into the draft and came to the Clippers.

The Clippers knew that Griffin would leave sooner or later, so they didn't waste their time on it. Instead, they focused on improving their personal abilities and were humble and gentle to everyone.

He did not have the experience of most players who fought their way up from a marginal figure to a starter and then became a core player. His story itself is a process of pursuing a dream, pursuing the big dream of entering the league. This psychological level cannot be measured by ordinary people's thinking.

So many people think Chen Fang is weird. That’s the weird thing. His thinking is always different from that of others.

I guess this is also the label of a reborn person, always having a different perception from ordinary people.

Back on the court, no one knew what Chen Fang was thinking, but Chen Fang's performance was attracting everyone's attention.

He dribbled the ball across half court and passed it to DeAndre Jordan who was pulling out. Then Chen Fang had a strong physical collision with Clarkson who was sticking to him, and used the wide body of Jordan to break free from the latter's entanglement.

Today, the Lakers' defensive strategy gave more weight to Clarkson, who is faster, and Ingram, who covers a larger area, to assist in double-teaming.

Unfortunately, today they met Chen Fang who was just trying to vent his unhappiness.

Let’s return to Chen Fang’s psychological problems again.

His previous life was miserable, and his rebirth was happy, but it did not completely wash away the hostility deep in Chen Fang's heart, it just hid it.

Even if a person who has been ignored and humiliated is given mountains of gold and silver and a position above everyone else, he will remember the pain more clearly, and once he encounters stimulation and provocation, he will experience stress.

Epilepsy is the specific manifestation.

The people who provoked him were just sitting on the sidelines. Chen Fang had to show off and let Kobe see, "I admire you very much, but please also respect me."

Don't keep saying it's for my own good and then create trouble for me and irritate me.

This is very real, and it is a true reflection of Chen Fang's psychology.

Going around DeAndre Jordan, Chen Fang held the ball and faced Randle, who was less than two meters away. As a player who was doing well in the Lakers and was vaguely the second-in-command, Randle had the ability to play both 4 and 3. His speed, strength, and skills made him a worthy opponent.

But Chen Fang didn't care about that. Perhaps only the current Xiao Ka could scare him, as for the others he would rush forward without any hesitation.

He changed hands with a low center of gravity, but his footsteps were reset to a suspended step. This combination of a drop step and a digging step was fast and fierce. Defenders never looked at his feet, but judged based on their shoulders. However, Chen Fang lowered his shoulders very quickly. In just a blink of an eye, Chen Fang cut Randall through his right shoulder like cutting butter.

"So fast!" Randall, who had no time to act, could only exclaim in his heart.

After passing Randall, Chen Fang was about to take off. Lopez, who pounced from the short corner, subconsciously looked up and saw Chen Fang already leaping into the air. He instinctively stopped and watched a big falcon fly past him.

The ball flew out of the rim with both hands, and then he let go. The whole audience exclaimed, and the surprised expressions of the crowd at the baseline made Chen Fang feel a little better.

He didn't celebrate, just shook his hands, turned around and ran towards the bottom corner.

"Chen Fang feels so strong today!" Ke Fan exclaimed.

He made two consecutive dunks and clearly had the opportunity to shoot, but he still went in. No one would believe that he didn't show any emotion.

Even the Clippers coaching staff sensed it, but Rivers just sat there calmly. His first job was to coach McGrady, who was just reaching his peak, with the Magic. It was also with McGrady's performance that he earned the first respect from the league. But he was also fired because he didn't know how to truly use McGrady's abilities.

This experience made him always have mixed feelings towards forwards and guards, until he met Pierce, and suddenly he felt at ease.

Therefore, he prefers veteran floor-flow forwards like Pierce, who are not only stable but also useful.

In fact, when Chen Fang came to the Clippers, he immediately thought of the combination of Pierce and Garnett.

All the work is done in the hope of replicating this combination, but Chen Fang is not Pierce, he is more like McGrady, so many times, Rivers is unsure and has no idea how to arrange Chen Fang.

Chen Fang is really a lot like McGrady, with the physical talents of a supermodel in both dynamic and static aspects, and unreasonable scoring methods. Apart from being very generous financially, he is very similar to McGrady in many aspects.

Don't be fooled by Chen Fang's modesty. Rivers specifically used his connections to ask USC head coach Andy and other coaching staff, and their feedback was to communicate well with Chen Fang and not to rudely interfere with his ideas and decisions.

Just when Rivers was distracted, Paul, who was out of position against Griffin, missed the mid-range shot. Jordan had just jumped up to grab the rebound when someone jumped faster than him and grabbed the basketball that was still rising in the air with one hand.

This is probably what it's like to pick the moon from the sky. Witnessing Chen Fang's super rebound, Duan Ran couldn't help but think in the commentary booth.

After landing, Chen Fang used inertia to rush forward. His dribbling was known for being sticky. Inspired by Han Nuo, Chen Fang put his knowledge into practice in the past two years and achieved great success.

Yingge gritted his teeth and retreated. He knew that Chen Fang was very fast, so he didn't want to think about anything else and the best option was to retreat to the penalty area first. However, Chen Fang caught up with him in the blink of an eye. When Yingge was about to interfere, he was shocked to find that Chen Fang actually jumped up.

"No, is this distance okay?" Looking at Chen Fang jumping up from the free throw line, Yingge felt numb.

The huge inertia and the increased bullet speed made Chen Fang feel that this distance was okay. He just did what he thought in his mind and didn't care about anything else. He slowly thought about the next step in the air.

Chen Fang leaped up and held the basketball high with one arm at first, but the next moment he felt that he could not dunk it, so he immediately took the ball and switched to his left hand. Looking at the rapidly approaching basket, he held up the basketball with his left hand and lightly lifted it with his left arm. Chen Fang, who had rushed over the backboard, turned around in the air and looked back. When he landed, he staggered backwards. Just as he was sitting on the floor, resisting the group of reporters behind him, he saw the basketball fall from the hoop.

"Wonderful, wonderful, what kind of gliding is this? Five meters, six meters? This is a glider. This is the first time I have seen such a goal in my life!" Ke Fan jumped up with surprise.

Not only him, all the commentators were screaming, and the exclamations of the audience quickly merged into one.

Is this ball difficult?
In fact, many people can do it, but no one can glide as far as Chen Fang and make the movements so natural.

Yingge, who was standing under the basket in shock, looked at Chen Fang who was sitting on the ground, his eyes full of disbelief.

First it was one person, then everyone. The reporters in the back row put down their SLRs and all got up to help Chen Fang.

How can you not be moved by such a goal?

Chen Fang stood up and was cheered by the audience, but Chen Fang still didn't smile. He just patted his chest, then put his hands on his mouth and blew a breath.

The situation was completely opened up by Chen Fang. The Clippers, who had been leading slightly, now led by 18 points with 12:8.

It was already the end of the second half of the first quarter, and with the official forced timeout, Chen Fang returned to the bench.

Rivers naturally didn't talk about tactics. He himself couldn't talk about tactics on the spot. Just one sentence could be used for many years.

He just silently adjusted the playing order, replacing Griffin, Jordan Jr., and Gallinari with Kuzma, Zubac, and Thornwell.

Let Chen Fang and Rivers Jr., with this lineup of 4 small and 1 big, play until the last quarter.

Chen Fang, who continued to play, suddenly restrained himself. He started to play as a point guard, distributing the finishing rights at the top of the arc and focusing his energy on defense.

He was decisive and brave in double-teaming Paul and Ingram.

The Lakers were unable to score continuously. At the end of the first quarter, the Clippers entered the second quarter with a 30-point deficit of 21:9.

ESPN commentator Ryan said in reviewing the first quarter: "Walton's top priority is to target Chen Fang. There are not many ways to contain a player like him. Either someone has to bite and defend him, or use the overall advantage to interfere with strong confrontation."

At the beginning of the second quarter, Walton did as Ryan predicted. He asked Clarkson to bite Chen Fang and formed a high-post zone defense. As long as Chen Fang had the ball, he would double-team him.

Chen Fang passed the ball quickly. He did not choose to force his way forward, but instead took advantage of the Lakers' high position to let his teammates go to the bottom. Although this formed a separation situation, he used his good vision to pass the ball to his teammates who were in position.

When Chen Fang focused on supporting, Rivers discovered this benefit. Chen Fang's deterrence forced the Lakers to make extreme adjustments. He reacted quickly for the first time and let Griffin play.

Griffin's deterrence is no less than that of Chen Fang. The Lakers made adjustments again, replacing the more flexible inside players and letting Randle and Lopez partner up in the inside again.

At this moment, the Clippers' five players became Griffin, Chen Fang, Kuzma, Zubac, and Thornwell.

This lineup went through several offensive and defensive rounds, and Rivers felt secretly pleased. He said to Bryant next to him, "It seems that this lineup is more stable?"

"Zubac can protect the rim, Griffin can attack independently and set tactical screens, Chen Fang alone attracts the attention of at least two people on the perimeter, Kuzma's shooting and Thornwell's defense make up for the omissions."

"This is indeed a good lineup, but it may not be suitable for all opponents."

"Wait a moment." Rivers felt relieved.

Chen Fang's performance made him feel that there was a great chance of winning today.

Changes on the court are always there. When Griffin used an inside version of the triple threat to shake off Randle, rushed into the penalty area, and slammed it with one hand, the atmosphere at the Staples Center reached a climax.

The Lakers began to retreat, but they only briefly stopped paying attention to Chen Fang, and Chen Fang seized the opportunity and hit his first three-pointer of the day.

This also brought his statistics to 9 points, 4 assists and 4 rebounds.

Chen Fang has a characteristic, that is, once he scores, he will continue to score. This potential, which is similar to 2K games, has gradually become his label.

He dribbled across half court and set a ghost screen with Zubac at the top of the arc, but passed the ball to Griffin who came out. Kuzma came over and set an off-ball screen for Chen Fang, then retreated to the top of the arc and attracted the Lakers' perimeter defense again.

Chen Fang quietly slipped to the corner, received the pass from Griffin, shot silently, and hit his second three-pointer.

The combination of Griffin and Chen Fang inside and outside made the Lakers' deficit even worse.

But at the same time, Rivers noticed that Kuzma also had certain potential to break through from the outside, so he replaced Chen Fang after a foul.

Usually Chen Fang would play the entire second quarter, so he explained to Chen Fang who was leaving the court: "Third quarter."

There was no need for further explanation. Chen Fang understood what the coach meant. The Lakers might make adjustments in the halftime. Instead of being passive in the third quarter, it would be better to change the scheduled playing time and save the energy for the second half.

After sitting down, Chen Fang waved to the staff in the row behind him and said, "Give me some disinfectant spray." As he said that, he stretched out his arm covered with red stripes.

"There are always people who cut their nails and won't retreat! Small problem," said Jordan next to him to comfort him.

"Brother, I'm worried that you might be sick. Not everyone is like you, who can have fun and keep things steady."

"Haha." Jordan laughed.

Chen Ka-fang was talking about the last time that Jordan secretly took a girl to a small box to relax. Afterwards, he pretended to be a gentleman, but was exposed by Rivers.

In fact, no matter how NBA players play, they will not tell others. This is like giving each other handles and forming an offensive and defensive alliance.

In private, no one is shy about it and instead treats it as a way to have fun.

After spraying disinfectant, Chen Fang found the equipment manager Byron Isaac and asked if he needed an arm guard.

Usually players wear arm guards on their left arm, which is the ball-guarding hand, because a lot of attacks and escapes require the left arm to do paddling movements to assist, and the probability of cuts on the left arm is the highest.

With Kuzma's layup, the Clippers' score reached 58 points, and everyone on the bench shouted: "One more, one more."

The audience was even more enthusiastic.

Even though there were only a dozen seconds left, no one gave up.

Because there is such a setting for watching the game at home, if the score in the first half exceeds a certain value, there will be benefits, and if the full-time score exceeds a certain value, there will be benefits again.

This is kind of fun, something that people like to see and hear.

Griffin lived up to expectations. He made a pick-and-roll with Teodosic. After getting the ball, he did not choose to turn around, but instead made a big three-pointer from the top of the arc.

Although the move was ugly, it hit the target.

This also brought his score to 16 points in the first half, which was definitely a good sign. Everyone cheered, and Griffin also took advantage of the end of the halftime break and posed fiercely on the court.

Mark said in the commentary booth: "Chen Fang scored 12 points, Griffin scored 16 points, the Clippers' new combination has a good momentum, and I look forward to their performance in the second half."

Duan Ran, who was on the Chinese commentary booth, said: "He played for 13 minutes and scored 12 points, which was very efficient. He also had 4 assists and 4 rebounds. He kept his touch in the second half and felt like he had a triple-double again."

"Without exaggeration or flattery, it feels like it's easy for Chen Fang to get a triple-double. He can always grab rebounds and pass the ball for assists. This ability is rare even in the NBA."

During the halftime break, the cheerleaders and the game atmosphere group came on stage together to keep the atmosphere high, while most of the audience chose to go to the bathroom or buy snacks. From the first half, it felt like the price of the ticket was worth it.

In the locker room, a rehabilitation therapist was giving the main players a quick relaxation treatment. Chen Fang was being served, and his arm was disinfected again. Then the equipment manager also found an arm guard.

"It's white, it matches well, thank you, Byron!" The Clippers' home jersey is mainly white in color. After expressing his gratitude, Chen Fang put it on directly and felt it was fine after some exercise.

Rivers rarely talks about tactics in the midfield, usually focusing on encouraging the team. Brian will talk about specific problems. If he doesn't say anything, it means there is no need to change anything, just keep going.

Normally, we don’t wash during the halftime unless we sweat too much and feel uncomfortable.

The entire locker room will be deodorized three times before the start of the game, before halftime, and after the game to try to alleviate and eliminate odors in the closed environment.

Body odor is a serious problem for both white people and black people. Every player must deodorize before entering the locker room.

If you smell bad and go straight into the locker room, you might be thrown out. The person who usually does this is the locker room leader.

The Clippers' locker room boss is Blake Griffin. This position is not necessarily held by the core players. The more accurate criteria are the time on the team and the league's seniority.

Just like the Rockets in the Yao era, the boss of the locker room was Mutombo. He personally convened a meeting on behalf of all the players on the team to put pressure on McGrady, asking him to change some problems and apologize.

There are many rules in the locker room, and Chen Fang is learning and listening to them little by little. At the moment, the atmosphere in the Clippers locker room is good. Everyone has gotten some playing time and has smiles on their faces.

This is the secret of Rivers. He is so popular in the league. 450 active players cast anonymous votes, and he received 146 votes, becoming the head coach most wanted by players, while Thibodeau received the least votes.

The most likely conflict between the head coach and the players is playing time, which is related to tactical position, data changes, contract increases and decreases, etc. It is obvious that Rivers, as a player-turned-coach, knows how to grasp the players' psychology very well.

Time ran out quickly, and both sides returned to the court and immediately entered the third quarter.

Chen Fang did not appear on the court, and Rivers explained the reason.

"Let's take a look at the Lakers' strategy first."

Three minutes later, he waved his hand and Chen Fang appeared on the stage again.

The Lakers' strategy has not changed. It's not that Walton is not good enough, but that these are the cards they have. If he had Kawhi Leonard, he would definitely give Kawhi the order to make Chen Fang miserable.

Clarkson is still the top player, while Ingram makes up for the gaps.

Chen Fang is very adaptable to this rhythm. He uses a static posture in the high position to stretch the Lakers' overall defense, giving Griffin and Kuzma room to display their skills.

The score was rising, but Chen Fang's statistics did not change much. He just got two chances to shoot, neither of which made the shot, and only had one assist.

After the third quarter, Chen Fang shook his head and came down. There was a problem that made him uncomfortable.

The team was in good shape, so Chen Fang had the subjective idea of not wanting to disrupt it. He was involved in high positions, sacrificing himself, but in return he gave his teammates more room to play.

He felt that except himself, everyone else had gained something, and since victory was the highest criterion, he should be happy as well.

This feeling of entanglement made him want to find someone to talk to after he left the scene, but he really couldn't find anyone.

I need to be more patient and more selfless.

Rational thoughts were reminding him, but at the same time, he was ready to take action as he had promised to get 30 points.

So when he came on the court at the beginning of the fourth quarter, he showed his willingness to take over the game.

Rivers noticed it keenly, and with a wave of his hand, he replaced Griffin with the more obedient Zubac.

At this moment, Chen Fang felt like the boss. He chose to attack more proactively, but his attempt to confront the Lakers' double-team was a bit impulsive.

Chen Fang retreated with the ball, but Clarkson did not choose to stick to him. Instead, he exchanged responsibilities with Yingge who came from the side. He became the one who made the save. So when Chen Fang got rid of Yingge in the next second, Clarkson cut off the ball in advance and launched a fast break.

After the mistake, Chen Fang did not choose to be honest, but continued to try. He wisely chose to play without the ball, but the moment he received the ball, he was double-teamed in advance and was intercepted again.

His first reaction was to chase the ball, but the Lakers obviously had a tactical plan and were fast-forwarding. Chen Fang, who had rushed across half court, could only watch Ingram dunk and score.

He turned his head to look at Kobe who was sitting there. His intuition told him that Kobe must have given him some pointers. Only he could find out the small details of his passing and tell the Lakers.

Kobe also felt Chen Fang's gaze and looked back calmly.

Shaking his head, Chen Fang cursed inwardly.

The Lakers counterattacked successfully again and their momentum came up. Paul assisted Clarkson and hit a three-pointer. The originally stable situation suddenly became critical.

Rivers didn't hesitate and immediately replaced Chen Fang and let Griffin play again.

Chen Fang, with no expression on his face, sat on the chair and panted. Rivers asked Brian to coach him. When the latter came, he analyzed the mistake in a harmonious way.

In fact, as long as Chen Fang remained calm and rational, this accident could have been avoided. Two minutes later, Chen Fang came on the court again.

He returned to his previous game rhythm and relied on the team to play as a whole.

He scored 4 points on fast breaks, made a mid-range shot, and had 2 more assists.

18 points, 7 assists and 6 rebound.

As a rookie's first time, this data is already very good, but Chen Fang was angry, and he was the only one who was not satisfied.

In the last three points of the fourth quarter, the Clippers led by 96 points, 88 to 8.

The Lakers' defense turned to the whole team, releasing the suppression on Chen Fang. Clarkson stood outside the three-point line, staring at Chen Fang.

Chen Fang is a person who can take it up and let it go. Since he cannot fulfill his promise, he will give up. It's good enough to win.

With Chen Fang playing nicely, it was difficult for the Lakers to exploit the Clippers' weaknesses, and the final score was 103:95.

The two did not hug each other, but Yingge walked up to Chen Fang and said, "I will win back next time."

Yingge's stats today were 21 points, 3 assists and 4 rebounds, which were also very good, but the loss, especially to Chen Fang, also made him very unhappy.

The two unhappy young men stared at each other, smiled, and walked away.

Duan Ran, who was in the commentary booth, praised Chen Fang: "Chen Fang's performance in his first game surpassed his predecessors, and it also gave us confidence that he will definitely make a name for himself in the NBA."

In the ESPN commentary booth, Mark asked his two colleagues: "What do you think of Chen Fang's performance in this game?"

Ryan: "Very good, but his loss in the third quarter also showed his immaturity. He still has a lot to adapt to."

Dave added: "This is just the first game. A long NBA career awaits him. No matter what, congratulations to him for a great start!"

Chen Fang did not go back with his teammates, but walked to the baseline and said to the reporter: "I'm sorry, I didn't do it."

The reporter was also surprised. He didn't expect Chen Fanghui to come back and express his apology on his own initiative, which made him admire him very much.

"It's already great, this is just the first one. My name is Kerry! I'm a reporter for the California Daily News."

"Nice to meet you. I will fulfill my promise! I promise!" Chen Fang thought the name Kerry was very auspicious. He developed a good impression of this white man in his thirties. He nodded, turned around and left.

"That's great, worth writing a short report about!" Carrie said to herself.

When Chen Fang returned to the locker room, he was immediately dispelled by the lively atmosphere of celebrating victory. Several players were even dancing in shorts to celebrate. Any unhappiness he had felt disappeared.

Yes, victory comes first and sacrifice is valuable.

Chen Fang said to himself.

After showering, Chen Fang and Griffin were called to attend the press conference.

This was also Chen Fang's first time in the regular season, but he was already considered a veteran. Facing dozens of reporters in the audience, Chen Fang seemed very relaxed.

Most of the questions were focused on Chen Fang. Even when Griffin was asked, they were asked what he thought of Chen Fang's performance in the first regular season.

In this regard, before coming, Chen Fang and Griffin briefly discussed the response strategies.

They praised each other for a while until a reporter asked: "18 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds, this is just your first game, can I think you have the potential to become the new core of the Clippers?"

Very sharp, especially in front of the boss.

Chen Fang calmly replied: "If I think about this now, I will definitely not play well. Basketball is a team game. Blake is our captain. As a member of the team, I have to do my best as a coach and do the job my teammates give me. This is my primary goal now."

On the way back, Griffin suddenly asked, "Do you want to be the boss?"

Chen Fang was stunned. Griffin picked a place where there was no one around.

"You are the boss!" Chen Fang said without hesitation.

"No, I don't care about that. When Chris came, I told him that if you can lead us to the Western Conference Finals, you are the boss."

"Now, I still say this to you." Griffin's eyes were bright and sincere.

"Don't worry, let's charge together." Griffin stretched out his hand.

"Charge together!" Chen Fang grabbed it.

Driving Cullinan out of the parking lot and driving on the road, Chen Fang recalled today's race.

There are highlights and there are ups and downs.

In the NBA, it’s not so easy for me to let go and do whatever I want.

Today is a lesson I will keep in mind.

(End of this chapter)