Stu Lantz nodded again.
"Exactly."
"After the game, we definitely need to interview Wang Yi about his coaching philosophy."
After the Lakers raised their defensive intensity, they completely froze the Warriors' offense over the next three possessions, holding them scoreless.
Although the Lakers' offensive efficiency remained low, they still managed to score a point over those three possessions.
The reversal on the court made Steve Kerr wary. He decisively called a timeout to let his players reset.
He reassured the players on the court:
"I know their defense has been extremely suffocating lately, and it's disrupted our offensive rhythm."
"But the Lakers have never been a team built around high-intensity pressure defense. They have almost no experience using this tactic for extended stretches."
"This kind of sudden defensive intensity absolutely cannot last long."
"Don't panic. Get back out there, stick to our rhythm, execute the drive-and-kick offense, keep attacking the rim, and keep moving the ball."
After hearing their coach, the Warriors players calmed down somewhat.
After resting up, they returned to the court and continued running the drive-and-kick offense.
But what Steve Kerr never expected was that the Lakers' focus and defensive pressure showed no signs of fading.
Throughout the entire second quarter, the Lakers maintained elite defensive intensity.
Every Lakers player on the floor defended with everything they had.
When the second quarter ended, the Lakers had used that ruthless, suffocating defense to hold the Warriors to just twelve points in the quarter.
The Lakers did not score much themselves, only putting up 17 points, but they still held a five-point advantage for the quarter.
With that, the first half came to an end, and the Lakers had somehow built a huge 14-point lead over the Warriors.
No one had expected such a result.
As Steve Kerr walked