Chapter 5: Missed free throws and poor defense. Lin Fei scored 3 points again!
Driven by Lin Fei's three consecutive three-pointers, the Target Center Arena was completely boiling.
Timberwolves (82): (86) Lakers.
"Zen Master" finally couldn't sit still this time. He quickly stood up and blew his whistle and called a long timeout to the referee.
Lin Fei, an Asian undrafted player, suddenly went berserk, completely disrupting the Lakers' offensive and defensive arrangements.
When a player hits three consecutive three-pointers in less than two minutes, and also makes a super difficult run to catch the ball for an elegant 3+3,
Even if he is unknown, the opponent must regard him as the focus of defense.
"Derek, next you have to give me a strict eye on No. 22 of the Timberwolves. You must not let him have another chance to easily catch the ball and shoot a three-pointer!"
"Zen Master" looked solemn and turned to look at Karl Magong:
"Karl, you take a rest for a few minutes and let Devin George come on. The Timberwolves mainly play three shooters from the outside, and the shooting percentages of these three guys are not low tonight!"
"So we must match enough perimeter defensive strength!"
"Gary Payton, you go after Floyd and give Wally Szerbiak to Devin George!"
"Bryant, you continue to struggle with the 'madman', your defense is more trustworthy than your offense!"
In terms of the Lakers' perimeter defense today, Kobe is definitely the best.
After all, the Black Mamba has been selected to the best defensive team for 00 consecutive years since 5, and 4 of them were first defenses.
But "Zen Master" would not be stupid enough to let Kobe switch to guard Lin Fei.
Even if this cuts off a role player's scoring, it will cause "Madman" Sprewell to explode directly.
Except for Kobe, the Lakers currently have no one who can limit the "Madman", but even Kobe allowed the "Madman" to score 50+ with a shooting rate of more than 20% tonight.
Ma Long was obviously dissatisfied with the arrangement of "Zen Master", and pushed him to the bench at the critical moment, but he had no choice but to blame Lin Fei for his anger.
"Where did this Chinese boy come from? Damn, how can the three-pointer be so accurate!"
O'Neill was a little disapproving, and said lazily:
"I don't believe this kid can keep advancing! Role players are role players after all, and they can't make big waves!"
Kobe's cold eyes also looked at No. 22 Lin Fei in front of the Timberwolves bench, and the fire in his eyes burned crazily:
"The outcome of the game will definitely not be controlled by a little-known kid from China. Tonight we will definitely win the Timberwolves and reach the final!"
Veteran fisherman Derek Fisher has a different view.
Just now, when he was chasing Lin Fei's elegant three-pointer from the closest distance and was beaten 3+1 by the opponent, the horror in his heart was indescribable.
Sharp running position, decisive catching and shooting, extremely accurate three-point touch and innate big heart,
It’s definitely not something that can be summed up by just “luck”.
Fisher felt that his defensive pressure instantly increased.
Here at the Timberwolves,
Players rallied around head coach Flip Saunders,
While listening to the head coach's tactical arrangements, he smiled at Lin Fei from time to time, patted Lin Fei's shoulders and head, and gave a thumbs up.
Lin Fei's three consecutive three-pointers are really crucial for the Timberwolves.
We were only 4 points behind in the last 4 minutes of the game. Didn't the probability of a reversal suddenly increase?
The team's little transparency, which had been ignored, instantly became the last straw for the Timberwolves.
Head coach Phillip Sanders was also amazed by Lin Fei's three consecutive three-pointers.
Especially the last three-pointer after a conscious movement, this is definitely a quality only top shooters have, even the team's top scorer Szebiak,
At this time, compared with Lin Fei, it seemed to be dim.
"Lin, your movement is very sharp. Keep doing this and disrupt the Lakers' perimeter defense!"
"Kevin, Wally, and Latrell, all three of you can take the initiative to cover Lin and then look for opportunities to pass the ball!"
"Even if the Lakers will use Derek or Gary Payton to focus on marking Lin, their defensive focus will still be on Kevin and Latrier!"
"Mainly focusing on Lin, the outside firepower point, will be the key to our surprise victory!"
Flip Saunders made a risky move because he knew that if he focused on the Wolf King and the Madman, the Timberwolves would continue to fall into tonight's predicament.
To Philip Sanders' surprise,
The other main players of the Timberwolves actually agreed to the head coach's arrangement and chose to unconditionally believe in Lin Fei at the last moment.
Lin Fei was also a little surprised. It seemed that his three consecutive three-pointers were really a nuclear weapon in the era of hand-to-hand combat inside.
After returning from the timeout, Lin Fei took the lead to go to the free throw line to prepare for an extra penalty.
The moment he stood on the free throw line, Lin Fei suddenly felt embarrassed. The attribute of the free throw he was aiming for had been cleared!
I have no choice but to bite the bullet and impose a penalty.
Although the free throw attribute is 0, Lin Fei has been playing basketball since he was a child. He believes that he still has the basic skills of free throws, and this ball may not be missed.
however……
"Bang!"
Amidst the sound of the iron, O'Neal grabbed the rebound with Garnett and gave it to Gary Payton immediately.
Then, with a face full of color, he raised his eyebrows at Lin Fei who missed the free throw and said mockingly:
"Chinese boy, are you missing your free throws? It seems like your touch is completely cold!"
Lin Fei returned to the defense and smiled back at "Shark" O'Neal's provocation. At least this guy seemed much closer than Kobe:
"Shaquille, others can ridicule my free throws, but you don't deserve it!"
O'Neill: "You..."
The Timberwolves fans at home also frowned and began to worry about Lin Fei's touch:
"Why did he hit three three-pointers in a row and fail to make free throws? Could it be that this kid's hands are really cold?"
"A water dispenser keeper scored 9 points in a row, can we ask for more from him? At the most critical moment, Kevin, Latrell and Wally still need to stand up!"
"It's true. As an undrafted player, Lin can hit three three-pointers in less than two minutes in the Western Conference Finals. This is enough for him to boast for half his life!"
On the court, Kobe went down to the frontcourt and continued to ask Gary Payton for the ball.
But instead of giving it to Kobe, the old Payton gave the ball to Fisher, who was facing Lin Fei on the weak side.
Lin Fei's heart tightened.
Oops, the old Payton is indeed an experienced point guard, and he intentionally lets Fisher play alone to test his defensive strength.
Fisher, who was beaten 3+1 by Lin Fei, was naturally angry and wanted to respond directly on the offensive end.
Judging from Lin Fei's meager physical condition, his defense should indeed not be much better.
But Fisher didn't expect that Lin Fei's defense would be so tight. He just made a simple crossover and threw the opponent away, easily taking off and hitting a two-pointer.
"Shh!"
Kevin Garnett and "Madman" on the court immediately frowned. Isn't Lin Fei's defense too bad?
"Lin, cheer up, offense alone won't win the playoffs!"
"Wolf King" took the initiative and patted Lin Fei on the shoulder to show encouragement.
Lin Fei nodded awkwardly. He knew that the Wolf King, who had always been grumpy and loved scolding his teammates, was enough to give him face.
Of course, it's not to give yourself face, but to give him face for those three consecutive three-pointers.
But can’t you really win the playoffs by relying solely on offense?
Lin Fei didn't think so.
Wally Szczerbiak was also a little strange. He knew Lin Fei very well in training. Even though Lin Fei's defense was not good, he didn't stretch his hips to the point just now, right?
It seems that the opponent is too nervous to play in the playoffs for the first time.
"Lin, don't be nervous, I believe you can do better!"
Flip Saunders, who was standing on the sidelines, also frowned slightly. Although Lin Fei's three-pointer was a great threat, his defense was too poor. Being targeted and amplified by the Lakers was also a hidden danger.
The Timberwolves fans at home also began to complain about Lin Fei's defense, but they quickly shut up.
Because Lin Fei scored three-pointers again.
The Timberwolves came to the offensive end, and this time Fisher kept a close eye on Lin Fei, not giving him the slightest chance to catch the ball.
But Lin Fei directly used the cover of "Wolf King" from the high position to quickly cross from the left corner to the top of the arc near the three-point line.
At this time, Fisher had been effectively delayed by the Wolf King. Lin Fei used a cross screen with Szebiak to instantly reach the 45-degree three-point line on the right.
The "madman" with the ball in hand has long noticed Lin Fei's ghostly movement, so he is always ready to pass the ball out.
For a teammate who scored three three-pointers in a row, no one would not want him to take another shot.
"Whoosh!"
"Madman"'s pass was obviously a bit risky. When the ball was given to Lin Fei, Gary Payton had already decisively switched to defense, sticking close to Lin Fei and not giving the opponent a chance to take action.
But Lin Fei didn't hesitate at this time, leaping high to face Gary Payton, and decisively shot a three-pointer in the face.
shhhhhh!
Gary Payton's pupils dilated rapidly and he jumped up to block the shot, but the basketball still flew leisurely within 5 centimeters of his fingertips.
"Shh!"
the fourth.
In fact, the old Payton was also suspected of being a thug in this defense, but the referee did not blow his whistle.
Lin Fei didn't care much about this, after all, he couldn't make a free throw!
It seems that after winning this game, Lin Fei must quickly increase his three-point attribute to the maximum level.
Then increase the amount of training and add the free attribute points obtained to free throws first...