The lead had grown to nine points, but the Grizzlies didn't have time to dwell on it. They quickly inbounded the ball.
The key to the Death Lineup was one thing: speed.
No matter what the other team did, whether they scored or stole the ball, you had to react quickly, inbound quickly, and attack quickly.
After inbounding, the Grizzlies brought the ball up and once again sent their two main threats, Morant and Mitchell, driving inside.
Once they had collapsed the Kings' defense, they passed the ball out to Jones.
Jones had a higher three-point percentage, already at 44.3%.
So when he got the ball, he didn't hesitate for a moment. Danny was still defending him, but Jones rose up and shot over him.
Unfortunately, the Grizzlies' three-point shooting clearly wasn't there today, and the shot missed again.
Grizzlies head coach Jenkins saw this and silently shook his head.
The Death Lineup's strength lay in its speed, but that speed could mean either a fast-break layup or a transition Chasing Three-Pointer.
Without the three-pointer, the Death Lineup was half useless.
Still, he didn't immediately take the small-ball lineup off the floor. He wanted to watch a few more possessions.
Over the next few possessions, the Grizzlies kept missing their threes.
Instead, Morant, their least accurate three-point shooter, made one.
As the third quarter passed its halfway point, the lead gradually stretched to 15 points.
By then, all the Kings fans thought the game was already in the bag. The Kings were about to do what they'd done so many times before: pull away and put the game out of reach.
Even the Kings players themselves all thought the same.
Only James, Wang Yi, and Paul remained on their guard.
James addressed the players. "Trust me, brothers. I've seen too