Bryant's offense hit a weakness on the Rockets' defensive end.

McHale wants to use Beverley to protect Harden and make him less attrition and fouls on the defensive end.

When Harden was with the Thunder, he always played the sixth man position.

With about 30 minutes on the court per game and Durant and Westbrook in front of the team, Harden can do a lot.

After arriving at the Rockets, he became the absolute core, and his energy was mainly focused on offense.

Physical strength is not Harden's strong point, this kid is fat and tired.

If you consume too much on the defensive end, the Rockets' offense won't be able to watch.

So when McHale put Beverley on the board, he let Beverley carry the Lakers' firepower.

How do you know that Kobe Bryant is a thief, and he wants to hit Harden.

Nash came over to block and dismantle, Harden couldn't help but follow, and after changing defenses, the basket was empty, and he couldn't watch it.

The result, of course, was educated by Kobe.

McHale watched anxiously from the sidelines, limping around the sidelines, shouting "protect" toward the court.

This protection is not only a requirement to protect the midfield, but also a requirement to protect Harden.

But this is a playoff game, and if you take advantage of your opponent's weaknesses, you will definitely hammer to the death.

Nash and Kobe Bryant are both old rivers and lakes, and the most valuable point of the Rockets is Harden, who will you fight if you don't hit him?

On the Rockets' side, Garcia hit a three-pointer from the outside, and the veteran is still reliable.

Coming back, when the Lakers saw that Harden was allowed to defend Nash, Kobe Bryant handed the ball to Nash for a single.

Pulling away in four directions, Nash used the dribble and footwork to change direction continuously, and after hitting the inside, he hit a low throw with his right hand.

Lateral movement isn't Harden's strong suit, and it's a bit of a struggle for him to defend against Nash.

Well, if you don't guard against Nash, then who are you going to guard against? Defend the world?

It's not that I haven't guarded against it in the first section, and I can't prevent it.

And what if Ci Shiping comes another elbow?

Or go to Howard?

If Harden had gained a little more weight, he might have been able to consider it.

In the end, the Rockets communicated back and forth, and felt that it was most appropriate for Harden to defend Li Liang.

In the second quarter, Li Liang's main role on the offensive end was to squat in the bottom corner.

Squatting in the bottom corner, this Harden is good at it, and he can cross his waist for a while.

Li Liang looked down on Nima and asked Harden to defend me?

McHale, don't you know that Lao Tzu is the real core of the Lakers?

But it's okay to think about it, core to core, there's nothing wrong with this alignment.

The two sides entered a period of stalemate, and the Lakers stabilized the margin at 12 points.

On the Rockets' side, they are desperately trying to find a way to protect Harden, and on the other hand, Harden is also trying to create better scoring opportunities for the Rockets.

After Delfino and Garcia came up, the Rockets offense did live a lot.

Delfino is more experienced, and he doesn't play frizzy, and Li Liang can't run blindly anymore, he has to keep an eye on it.

At the end of the second quarter, the two sides played at 56:43, and the Lakers led the Rockets by 13 points to end the first half.

Throughout the first half, Parsons and Jeremy Lin combined for four points.

Harden scored 15 points, including six free throws, to hold back the Rockets' offense.

Li Liang didn't play much on the offensive end in the second quarter, just look at Kobe and Nash, and the elderly two turned.

The two of them have a lot of experience in the arena, and they have a good offensive rhythm and crush the rockets to death.

There were few quick counter-attacks, and Bryant also fouled Harden three times.

That's bad news for the Rockets, who would have surrendered if Harden got into foul trouble in the second half.

In addition to Li Liang's brilliant performance in the first quarter, the rest of the work was decent, and he did the basic work conscientiously.

He had already grabbed seven rebounds in the half, and he felt like a reliable blue-collar player.

In fact, Li Liang just kept playing at all, he felt that playing rockets was not as good as the red chicken from the Pistons and playing magic.

Although Harden is excellent, his style of play is more chicken thief, not as fierce as Maddie.

The battle with Maddie made Li Liang feel what a knight duel is.

Besides, there is Kobe Bryant on the team, and it is not Li Liang's turn to deal with Harden.

Feeling a little bored, Li Liang thought about it, why don't you have a wave of three-pointers in the third quarter.

Doesn't the Rockets like to play fast, don't they like three-point matches, then soar.

He silently called up the [three-point shooting rate improvement post (b)] from the system, which can increase the three-point shooting rate by 5% in 15 minutes.

Five percent of the effect is mediocre, but it lasts for a long time.

And it can be increased by 5 percentage points, and if the amount is large, the effect will be obvious.

The break passed quickly and Mike Brown didn't do much to set it up, just asking his team to keep the first half in shape.

Before going on the court, Li Liang said to Mike Brown: "Mike, don't shout about timeouts later." ”

Li Liang was afraid that his props would be suspended and consumed too much.

Mike Brown scratched his bald head, I had nothing to do with the timeout, and said, "Okay, I won't." ”

After saying that, it doesn't feel right, I'm a coach, do I want you to guide me if I shout a timeout?

Forget it, forgive him.

At the beginning of the second half, the Rockets took the lead in attacking.

After the adjustment of the midfield, the Rockets' starting lineup is still unchanged.

However, McHale was determined that if the situation changed, he would immediately replace Smith and go to Beverley or Delfino.

This mainly depends on whether Li Liang's three points will be opened.

In the first half, Li Liang made a three-pointer and didn't score yet.

But McHale knew that this No. 28 three-point shot was a very terrible weapon for the Lakers.

I don't know how many teams died in the regular season from his bald three-point rain, which poured on your head and made you die bald.

The Rockets played more patiently at the beginning of the second half, Jeremy Lin handed the ball to Smith in the corner position, and after Smith got the ball, Harden on the wing came over, received the ball hand-to-hand, and used the cover to go to the middle.

Li Liang and Howard closed the door directly, and Harden didn't hit hard and returned the ball to Jeremy Lin.

Li Liang thought that if this ball was to be replaced by Maddie, he must have pulled it up and thrown it directly.

Jeremy Lin left hand, breaking through the middle again, but still had no chance.

Li Liang defended the middle very hard, and could only return the ball to Parsons on the outside.

In the end, Parsons still gave the ball to Harden, who took the ball in his left hand and squirmed to break through.

Although the speed is slow, he is playing with a time difference, and if the opponent is fast, he will pass it in one step.

But it's Howard who defends inside, and Harden wants to throw a shot, so he gives him a big hat directly.

The Lakers counterattacked, Li Liang went down quickly, and Nash quickly passed the half.

Li Liang has already rushed to the bottom left corner, which is the previous Sun's V-shaped offensive style of play.

Nash immediately passed the ball to Li Liang, and Parsons' defense was already up.

Li Liang did not make a reluctant shot, but passed it to Kobe Bryant, who kept up.

Bryant received the ball with a shake of his shoulder, and suddenly accelerated to break through from 45 degrees, attracting two defenders.

Li Liang has run outside the 45-degree three-point line, Kobe Bryant turned around and passed, Li Liang received the ball and shot!

【Enable the three-point shooting percentage improvement sticker (b)】!

The promotion post is nothing but a kind of insurance, as well as psychological comfort.

Li Liang had no one to defend in front of him, and he hit three points steadily!

Smith didn't defend the ball well, but he can't be blamed.

Can Kobe Bryant break through and he won't chase it?

However, the Rockets counterattacked quickly, and after being scored by three points, they served quickly in the backcourt.

Harden took the ball and pushed forward, seized the Lakers' slack in defense, and plugged it straight to Parsons, who was about to go.

The Lakers leaked a clean basket, and Parsons received the ball and dunked with both hands.

This was the first quick counter-attack score of the game for the Rockets.

In the regular season, they relied on this kind of fast serve in the backcourt, played the opponent's unstable foothold, and gave full play to the team's young advantage.

The Lakers played positional offense, Li Liang no longer squatted in the bottom corner, and he began to respond with the ball.

Harden began to defend Li Liang, but he didn't stick tightly.

Li Liang first gave the ball to Howard, who was squeezed into the middle of the key position, and then sneaked to the bottom right corner and made a cross cover with Kobe.

Howard can play this ball by himself, but Li Liang has a chance in the bottom corner of the right side.

Howard chose to pass the ball, and Li Liang received the ball for three points and shot again!

Actually, this opportunity is not particularly good, because Harden still followed.

If you change to another player, you won't be able to shoot the ball.

But Li Liangcai doesn't care, what playoffs, I'll shoot, is it possible that the basket in the playoffs has become smaller?

The result is three points again!

McHale saw that something was wrong, and Li Liang opened the three points, and immediately called a timeout.

But it was useless to call a timeout, Li Liang's hand has always been firm and stable.

And once his three-pointer is opened, it means that the Lakers' offense is completely alive.

Kobe Bryant's singles, Howard's inside cake, Nash's passing, and even Ci Shiping's nerve knife.

Because as soon as Li Liang opens three points, the offensive space will become larger, and their defensive pressure will also become smaller.

And Alexander on the Rockets' side, does he still let Harden and Li Liang? It feels a little hard to follow.

Li Liang's speed is not particularly fast, but he runs very well, and he is tall and has long arms, so Harden is not good at interfering with him.

It's going back and forth like this, and it's Harden going to defend Nash.

Is Nash easy to defend?

Ha fatty, you better gain weight, and go to the center in the future, this is more suitable for you.

In the third quarter, Li Liang made 4 of 6 three-pointers, 4 three-pointers, and shot the Rockets in 5 minutes.

In the entire third quarter, the Rockets scored 19 points, and Harden, who scored 15 points in the first half, was sandwiched by Kobe Bryant and Li Liang in the second half.

Anyway, no one else can do it, just pinch Harden, and the Lakers' defense is becoming more and more unscrupulous.

And the other players of the Rockets are really not angry, and Jeremy Lin didn't score one of the three points from the outside.

Parsons made 1 of 5 three-pointers, all supported by two veterans, Delfino and Garcia.

And then there's Beverley, who took a couple of chances and hit two three-pointers in the fourth quarter to bring the score a little closer.

But it's just to bring the 35-point difference closer to within 30 points.

In the third quarter, the Lakers hit the Rockets 35:19, sending the game into garbage time all of a sudden.

After the fight, the Lakers should have played the main force, but Mike Brown has not reacted.

In the end, Li Liang took the ball and asked the referee for a timeout, and it was time to change the garbage players.

Back on the bench, Li Liang asked, "Why don't you call a timeout!" You look at the score, don't rest? ”

Mike Brown spread his hands, "You told me not to call a timeout." ”

"I ......" Li Liang had nothing to say, blame me.

The Lakers won their first playoff win without much suspense, and the difference in strength between the two sides was a little too big.