Since King Arthur had made a bold promise before the game, he came out aggressively in the first quarter.
He scored 18 points in the quarter.
Wang Yi had also said he planned to average 60 points per game, but in the first quarter, he focused more on driving into the paint. After drawing in the Lakers' defense, he passed the ball to his teammates.
He passed to Bond, who dunked under the basket;
He passed to Wiggins, who took one dribble and dunked;
He passed to Tures, who also made a layup.
But more often than not, Wang Yi passed to Westbrook.
He knew Westbrook was the Kings' most reliable player apart from him.
And Westbrook certainly lived up to Wang Yi's expectations.
He made four of his five three-point attempts in the first quarter.
He also made two two-pointers.
Westbrook played only six minutes in the first quarter, yet scored 16 points.
That was even more efficient than King Arthur.
James, watching from the sideline, couldn't stop marveling.
"Sixteen points in a single quarter. Can you believe that this is a 40-year-old veteran?"
Jordan nodded repeatedly. "Westbrook really is amazing. It looks like the theory has become reality. Wang Yi keeps attacking the Lakers' paint, collapsing their defense, then passing outside to Westbrook, whose shooting has been remarkably accurate."
"This temporary change in the Kings' lineup has worked well."
"It's made things easier for Wang Yi. The Lakers and the Kings are neck and neck so far, with both teams scoring 34 points in the first quarter, but Wang Yi is clearly playing more comfortably than Arthur."
After Westbrook left the court in the first quarter, Wang Yi continued setting up his other teammates to score.
When they tallied things up at the end of the first quarter,