Antoine towered over everyone in the paint.
After getting the ball, he went straight up and dunked over Aiton.
Then, after getting the ball in the paint and facing a double-team, he gave a quick fake and pulled off an Eurostep.
He kept driving to the basket and dunked again.
Next, he pulled off an outrageous Free Throw Line Dunk.
Those three dunks lifted the Piston's spirits.
The Pistons started playing more smoothly, too.
By contrast, after a few minutes of high-efficiency play, the Lakers committed a turnover and missed a shot.
So by the end of the second quarter, the gap had shrunk to just six points.
That was what made the Pistons so frightening.
Whenever the team needed him, Antoine could step up.
Under normal circumstances, Antoine got the ball beyond the three-point line.
But if he got riled up, he could unleash a storm in the paint, doing whatever he pleased.
Across the entire league, few centers besides Wemby and Pang Bo could withstand Antoine's punishment.
And even Wemby and Pang Bo were at a disadvantage against Antoine.
Their disadvantage against Antoine simply wasn't as great as that of other centers.
During halftime, the atmosphere in the Lakers' locker room was subdued.
Although the Lakers still led by six points, everyone could already feel how difficult the Pistons were to play against.
They were tougher than either the Spurs or the Thunder.
Against the Spurs and Thunder, no matter how formidable Wemby was, the Lakers felt they could come up with a solution.
If all else failed, Wang Yi could simply bait him into fouling, and Wemby would have to stay suppressed off court.
And although the Thunder were deadly from mid-range, Wang Yi had never lost a mid-range shootout.
But against the Pistons, once they deployed