Durant scored four straight points to help the Pelicans tie the game, but on the next possession, James drove and dished, leaping into the air for a no-look behind-the-back pass to Middleton.
Middleton buried the wide-open three-pointer.
That pass could make James's top ten all-time passes. It was clear that he had truly regained his form.
On the next possession, Durant's stop and pop jumper through the double-team still missed.
His shooting touch had truly been poor this game, and Curry's shooting package had clearly not carried over to him either.
Fortunately, Davis was dominant inside. He leaped high, snatched the offensive rebound with his long arms, then spun for a bank shot score on the second chance points.
James's drive at the other end finally missed.
On the next possession, Durant took Holiday's pass, faked a shot to draw the double-team, then passed to Davis. Davis took one-step dribble and powered up, drawing a hand-check foul from Randle.
Although his shooting touch was poor, just as Curry had observed, Durant's current style of play was different from both his Warriors and Lakers days.
Beyond his shooting, he had been driving and passing well, and he had also been switching between all three seamlessly.
If they had to put it that way, he was an upgraded version of his Thunder-era self—the true Reaper version of Durant.
The Pelicans showed from the opening tip that they would not strategically forfeit this game, just as Tang Tian had told the reporters.
At the end of the first quarter, the score was 27-23, with the Lakers leading.
In the second quarter, Vogel made a tactical adjustment, changing the defensive strategy against Durant from all-around defense to prioritizing his drives while allowing him some shots.
Durant's shooting touch still had not returned, and it