"I wonder whose fan that Gates big shot is. If I had such a big shot among my fans as a player, even if I didn't play anymore, my life would be very prosperous!"
The appearance of a super big shot and a movie star at the Quickens Loans Arena not only excited the American commentators but also caused an uproar among domestic fans!
"I can't believe our team has such prestige that even the world's richest man is here to watch the game."
"Upstairs, there's more than one world's richest man. Old man Buffett came before too."
"I heard LeBron also had dinner with Buffett. I just wonder whose fan Gates is?"
"Do you even need to ask? It must be LeBron. Besides LeBron, who else is worthy?"
"LeBron fans, don't create enmity. Even if you're a LeBron fan, you shouldn't say that. We're all on the same team. Besides, it's not necessarily LeBron. Maybe that Gates big shot is a fan of Tang Long, after all, big shots understand Chinese culture."
"It has to be Tang Long. Don't you see how popular Tang Long is now? What's so great about LeBron? Those upstairs, it's not the Qing Dynasty anymore, the queues have been cut off!"
Originally, the appearance of many big shots at the Quickens Loans Arena received a very enthusiastic response, and in fact, most fans felt this way.
Only the LeBron fans and Tang fans on Tieba started attacking each other over whose fan Mr. Gates was.
"Stop attacking each other. The reporter will definitely interview Gates after the game, and then we'll know. Focus on the game now. Anyone who incites conflict will have their account banned!"
At the critical moment, the moderator came out to stop the dispute between the fans of both sides.
Just as the game was about to start, the dispute was finally paused due to the game's commencement.
Both teams lined up according to their coaches' defensive positions. The Cavaliers set up a zone defense, intending to defend against the Lakers' breakthroughs from the start.
The Lakers, on the other hand, adopted a 1-3-1 defensive formation, mainly to defend against the Cavaliers' initial shooting!
Tang Long and Gasol stood at the jump ball position, their eyes fixed on the ball in the referee's hand.
"Pau, I bet you were criticized by Phil after the last game. Your coach must have told you to be tougher in the paint this game, right?"
"How did you know..."
Before the word "know" could even leave his mouth, Gasol suddenly stopped.
Good heavens, he almost fell for his trick again.
This time, Gasol had learned his lesson. No matter what Tang Long said, he ignored it, focusing only on the basketball.
The referee, unable to stand Tang Long's nagging, blew his whistle and tossed the ball high into the air.
Gasol, who was fully focused, had already exerted force with his feet the moment the ball left the referee's hands. His massive body even blocked a corner of the court's lights.
Tang Long leaped up almost at the same time. The corner of the light that Gasol had originally blocked shone brightly again due to his height.
Immediately after, Gasol felt his hair stand on end. The sound of breaking air, accompanied by the whistling wind, made him feel as if he were in a silent valley, with a cold wind blowing through.
It wasn't that cold, but he felt a chill from the bone!
Their hands touched the basketball at the same time, but Tang Long's hand was clearly an inch larger and had more force!
The basketball, stirred by their struggle, spun in the air and flew towards the Cavaliers' backcourt.
Pavlovic sprinted to retrieve the ball, but Kobe had already arrived and directly stole the ball from Larry Hughes.
The "Little Flying Man" was like an owl in the night sky, agile and with a unique attacking prowess, slamming the ball into the basket!
"Oh my god, Kobe, that was amazing! Take down the Cavaliers!"
A spectacular opening dunk ignited the Lakers fans in the away stands. These fans stood up and cheered for Kobe.
Kobe also responded enthusiastically to the fans.
Throughout the first quarter, Kobe was in an excited state.
Whether it was on offense or playmaking, Kobe's movement was top-notch. Although Tang Long occasionally blocked a shot, there was no good way to contain an excited Kobe.
At the end of the first quarter, the Cavaliers trailed the home team by two points, 20-22.
Kobe scored sixteen points in the first quarter, accounting for half of the team's total points.
LeBron and Tang Long played reasonably well, and the others showed significant improvement compared to the previous game.
It was just that after the Lakers made corresponding tactical adjustments in the second game, they also put in a lot of effort on defense.
In the first quarter, Gasol matched up against Tang Long, and they were mostly engaged in a physical battle.
Although Tang Long had the upper hand, scoring was not as easy as in the first game!
Tang Long was also helpless.
Who would have thought that Gasol, who had always had a soft playing style, would become so tough in the second game!
Combined with Odom's occasional assistance, a double-team would make it very difficult for Tang Long to score in the paint.
This also forced the team to play more outside, but the Lakers had already adopted a defensive lineup that focused on perimeter shooting, which directly limited the Cavaliers' overall performance.
Fortunately, the Cavaliers' zone defense also played a role. Overall, it was a fifty-fifty situation, with the Lakers having the slight advantage!
In the second quarter, neither side made any adjustments to their lineup, allowing the starting five to continue playing!
In the second quarter, Tang Long played even more resolutely. According to his analysis of Gasol, although Gasol's playing style was tougher this game, it was not significantly different from his playing style throughout his career.
Therefore, this kind of feigned toughness could only be countered by hitting back hard!
After a few possessions of back-and-forth play, the Cavaliers regained possession. LeBron had the ball in the frontcourt, feigning a breakthrough to draw attention.
Manjocic came up to defend LeBron one-on-one, while the others remained in their defensive positions.
Seeing that the Lakers players weren't moving, LeBron didn't hesitate and drove all the way to the basket. Odom jumped up to defend, but before he could even jump, Tang Long had already pushed him aside!
LeBron made a high lob shot from under the basket, and the ball went in steadily.
Odom's physical attributes were excellent, but against Tang Long, his body seemed a bit too frail!
"F\*\*\*."
Odom was also very annoyed. If Tang Long hadn't pushed him aside, LeBron wouldn't have had such an easy layup opportunity.
He was still recalling that play when Gasol had already inbounded the ball.
Fisher was bringing the ball up the court, and everyone was setting up in the paint. However, before the ball even crossed half-court, Odom, who had just regained his senses and was preparing to receive the ball, was intercepted by Tang Long, who was rushing towards the Lakers' basket like a gust of wind!
Boom!!
A beautiful and spectacular dunk, wiping away the gloom of Kobe's opening dunk.
This dunk also gave the Cavaliers the lead again!
After losing possession right at the start, Phil Jackson angrily stood up and walked to the sideline.
What was going on?
Odom was too careless. Why wasn't he focusing on protecting the ball? Tang Long easily stole it!