Tying the Score

Divac couldn't believe that Li Chen had such explosive power; after all, he was a center, and he had been knocked flying.

At that moment, the Staples Center was set ablaze.

They chanted MVP, MVP...

Li Chen smiled contentedly as he listened to the cheers of the fans.

His eyes revealed a deep sense of satisfaction, as if all his efforts and dedication had been rewarded.

His body trembled slightly, a sign of excitement and joy, because he knew he had achieved a place in the hearts of the fans.

These cheers were not only a show of support for him personally, but also an affirmation of the Clippers he represented.

Li Chen took a deep breath and clenched his fist tightly. He was determined to defeat the Kings.

Because he didn't want to disappoint those who supported him.

Just then, the whistle blew, and the referee indicated that Divac had committed a blocking foul, awarding Li Chen an additional penalty.

Swish! The basketball goes through the net cleanly.

With the score closing to 27-31, the Clippers players on the court became increasingly excited.

At the same time, Li Chen made a fist in the air with his right hand the instant he released the shot, as if responding to the fans.

At this moment, Staples Center erupted once again.

Captain...

Captain...

Captain...

The word "captain" echoed endlessly in the Staples Center.

In the TNT broadcast room.

"Hahaha! This Eastern Kid is officially captain from today onwards."

"Let me look forward to it! Let me look forward to the young captain leading the Clippers to the highest throne!" Kenny Smith said passionately.

"Haha! If he wins the championship this year, I, Barkley, will be his biggest fan."

Kenny Smith smiled and shook his head.

The Kings on offense.

The Kings tried to break down the Clippers' 2-3 Zone Defense by using off-the-back cuts, passing, and inside runs, but the methods that were working just moments before were no longer effective.

The Clippers are gradually getting into their rhythm. After the Kings were stripped of the ball, Odom scored two more points on a fast break.

The Clippers narrowed the gap to two points, 29 to 31.

Coach Adelman frowned upon seeing this. The Kings' Princeton offense had been countered by the Clippers two or three times in a row, and they had to change their offensive tactics.

But what tactic should they use? After some thought, Coach Adelman decided to use a three-point shooting strategy, but having only Stojakovic as a three-point shooter wasn't enough, so he made a decision.

Meanwhile, the Clippers allowed the Kings a 24-second violation.

Seeing this, Coach Adelman's face was filled with bitterness. The 14-point lead built up in the first quarter had vanished in half a quarter, and his heart was bleeding.

At this point, Coach Adelman calmed his frantic emotions and called another timeout.

In the Clippers' rest area.

Alvin Gentry didn't devise any tactics; he felt that simply passing the ball to Li Chen was sufficient.

A short while later, the timeout ended, and the game resumed.

The Kings substituted Doug Christie with Bobby Jackson.

Bobby Jackson has a decent three-point shot, Coach Adelman has great faith in Bobby Jackson and Stojakovic.

The Clippers are on offense.

Seeing that Li Chen was being closely guarded, Andre Miller drove to the basket to create space, but the Kings players did not relax their defense on Li Chen at all.

Andre Miller had no choice but to pass the ball to Odom.

Odom's shot against Webber missed.

But this guy grabbed the rebound himself and won it again.

However, the Kings stopped giving him shooting opportunities, and Webber and Divac double-teamed him.

Left with no other option, Odom could only pass the ball to Wang Zhizhi, who was waving.

After receiving the ball, Wang Zhizhi did not shoot, but passed it to Corey Maggette.

Corey Maggette breaks through.

Corey Maggette is the Clippers' second-leading scorer, and the Kings can't leave him open. Stojakovic closes down on him to put pressure on him.

Corey Maggette made a layup over Stojakovic in three steps.

However, Stojakovic blocked the shot out of bounds.

Clippers' baseline play.

Li Chen serves the ball from the baseline.

His sharp eyes constantly scanned the positions of his teammates.

At this moment, Andre Miller ran up to Li Chen and passed the ball to him handoff.

In that split second, he formed a tactic in his mind.

He passed the ball to Andre Miller and then quickly ran into an unoccupied area.

Kings' Bibby was taken away immediately.

He can't afford to leave Li Chen, the team's key scorer, unattended.

Andre Miller didn't hesitate and immediately shot, shaking off Bobby Jackson, and then made a floater.

Thump! Swish! The batter hits the tray and goes into the basket.

The Clippers finally tied the game at 31-31.

This scene left the Kings somewhat helpless. In basketball, the worst thing is when the opponent has multiple scoring options. This kind of opponent is too difficult to defend, especially since they also have a super scorer like Li Chen.

The Kings on offense.

Bibby dribbled the ball upcourt, then passed it to Bobby Jackson, who had just come on, before cutting inside himself.

Li Chen stood in front of Bobby Jackson was holding the ball with his back to the goal and tried to push Li Chen away, but Li Chen stood firm like a mountain.

Out of caution, Bobby Jackson did not take a shot blindly; instead, he passed the ball to Stojakovic, who had successfully cut inside and circled out to receive it.

Upon seeing this, Li Chen knew things were going to get bad. Stojakovic was the champion of the three-point contest.

Just as Li Chen predicted, Stojakovic swiftly sank a three-pointer.

The Clippers, who had just tied the score at 31-34, are now behind again.

Li Chen turned to look at his coach, Alvin Gentry, wondering what instructions he had.

However...

Alvin Gentry smiled and nodded at Li Chen.

Clearly, Alvin Gentry meant, "Chen, hurry up and come up with your brilliant idea!"

At the same time, Li Chen, who witnessed this, was slightly stunned, thinking, "Coach, what do you mean by this? Are you telling us to play man-to-man defense?"

At that moment, Corey Maggette walked over and said, "I'm sorry, I..."

Li Chen interrupted, "Corey, don't worry about that. By the way, the coach told us to play man-to-man defense. You're going to shut down Stojakovic later."

Corey Maggette nodded emphatically.

Li Chen then relayed Alvin Gentry's message.

The Clippers then launched an attack.

Li Chen drove straight into the Kings' paint and scored with a Euro-step layup.

Li Chen's sudden and aggressive one-on-one play caught the Kings off guard.

The shift from offense to defense.

As the Kings attacked, Alvin Gentry looked on in bewilderment at the situation on the court. What was going on? 2-3 Zone Defense? How did it turn into a man-to-man press?

He was about to call a timeout to reprimand the players for changing their defensive tactics without authorization.

But then he discovered that the changed tactics worked surprisingly well.

So he patted the bald head. "Not bad, Chen, you really understood what I meant."

At the same time, Coach Adelman also gave a deep look to the enigmatic Alvin Gentry.

Two updates today, just restocking.