The Fastest Forward!

"Game start!" As the bald Crawford tossed the basketball high above the Charlotte Hornets logo on the blue court, the 1998 NBA Christmas Day Games began.

"Mine!" Though O'Neal was not in top form, there was no way he could lose a jump ball to a white center. He easily tipped the ball away from Divac.

Kobe took possession and pushed upcourt!

The Hornets! They were very similar to those dynasty Bulls—the same coach, the same top star, the same tactics.

But there were also many differences!

As for the Bulls' perimeter defense, aside from Jordan, no one could stop Kobe!

They could not even limit him slightly.

Ron Harper could not do it, and neither could Pippen!

Even though the Bulls' perimeter defense had been the foundation of their dynasty, they had absolutely no way to shut Kobe down.

Michael Jordan had to go all out, battling twenty-year-old Kobe on both offense and defense. That was hardly friendly to a player nearing the end of his prime.

But with these Hornets, Phil Jackson naturally would not be foolish enough to have Jordan and Kobe clash head-on from the start, fighting to the death.

The first thing was to see whether Grant Hill's defense against Kobe would work.

"Grant, so it really is you." Kobe raised an eyebrow!

No one understood Phil Jackson better than Kobe.

If it were Larry Brown, then Jordan would definitely be guarding him.

If it were Luke Walton, then Rider would definitely be guarding him.

The Zen Master would definitely use Hill to guard him. Kobe had anticipated it before the game, and he had prepared himself for Hill's defense!

If there was one kind of defender Kobe hated facing most, it was a player who had the height and wingspan to overwhelm him, was