"Kobe is our biggest threat, and we must do everything we can to limit his performance."

certainly...

The defense against O'Neal still cannot be relaxed; that task is now in Wei Guo's hands.

"come on!"

Brown said, "Defending home court is key to winning the Finals."

"We lost to the Lakers in last year's Finals."

Iverson's expression was resolute: "What I've lost, I will get back!"

This was Brown's pre-game pep talk, because the presence of Wei Guo eliminated the Lakers' biggest threat.

......

The atmosphere at the scene remained enthusiastic.

When the players enter the field...

Wei Guo was the last to run onto the court, and the arena DJ shouted, "The next player to enter the court is this season's Most Valuable Player, Defensive Player of the Year, scoring champion, rebounding champion, shot-blocking champion, and a member of both the All-NBA First Team and the All-Defensive First Team... Wei Guo!!!"

The longer the title, the more impressive it is!

When introducing Iverson, they say MVP; when introducing Mutombo, they say DPOY; only Weiguo... this title is a string of titles.

"Defend the country!"

"Defend the country!"

"Defend the country!"

The fans at the scene chanted Wei Guo's name in unison.

Starting lineup for this match:

76ers: Iverson, Jones, Harplin, Coleman, Weiguo

Lakers: Fisher, Kobe, Horry, Fox, O'Neal

"Beep!!!"

The match began with the referee's whistle.

Wei Guo and O'Neal jump for the ball.

"Smack!"

Wei Guo easily lobbed the ball to Iverson, who dribbled it up the court.

Kobe defends Iverson!

With his signature crossover, Iverson drove to the basket and drove over O'Neal for a layup.

*Smack!!!*

O'Neal swatted the ball away, and Iverson fell to the ground.

"Beep!!!"

The referee blew his whistle and called a foul on O'Neal.

"this..."

Sitting on the sidelines, Zhang Peng watched this scene unfold and wondered, "Is it that intense?"

He was a leader in the Basketball Association and was considered knowledgeable, but watching an NBA game live made him realize that there was still a significant gap between the level of domestic basketball and that of the NBA.

Putting aside the level of competition, the intensity of the confrontation is not even in the same league.

Shaquille O'Neal's slap...

If it were anyone else who got hit, they would probably collapse and not get up, but Iverson walked to the free throw line without saying a word.

"Whoosh!!!"

The first free throw is made!

Second penalty...

Iverson dribbles the ball and shoots.

Incorrect curvature...

"Go for the rebound!"

O'Neal and Coleman immediately positioned themselves under the basket.

"bang~~~"

The basketball bounced off the rim.

Just as O'Neal was about to jump, he suddenly felt his body sink, as if something was pressing down on him.

"Bang!!!"

Wei Guo jumped behind O'Neal and dunked the ball over him.

3-0!!!

The 76ers took the lead early in the game.

Zhang Peng was shocked. "There are very few players in China who can pull off that kind of putback dunk... The domestic players are not on the same level as Wei Guo."

actually...

In 2002, China Fortune still had many strong players, and some even reached the NbA level. However, reaching the NbA level was still far from being the NbA Most Valuable Player.

........

The Lakers are on offense, and Fisher passes the ball to O'Neal.

O'Neal spun around over Wei Guo and hooked the ball in.

"bang~~~"

Forging!

"It's not that easy to beat me one-on-one."

Wei Guo accepted the rebound without hesitation.

Despite his outward refusal, O'Neal knew perfectly well that Wei Guo's defense under the basket was better than Duncan's, with a wider defensive range and greater toughness. Most importantly... Wei Guo seemed to be able to anticipate his next move, making every shot O'Neal uncomfortable.

This is better than...

The hack-and-sharp tactic still bothered him.

After the first game, Phil Jackson spoke with Kobe privately, asking him to increase Kobe's isolation plays. Although some of Kobe's shots were not ideal, he is currently the Lakers' most consistent scorer.

The 76ers are on offense.

Jones passed the ball to Weiguo, who received it with his back to the basket.

O'Neill is behind Wei Guo.

"Smack!"

Wei Guo slapped the ball with his backhand, and it bounced off O'Neal's back and landed in Mutombo's hands.

Passing the ball without looking!

"Bang!!!"

Mutombo leaps from a standing position and thunders down the dunk!

"This is the most dangerous Weiguo!"

The Zen master's face darkened.

Every player has weaknesses, but he hasn't found any weaknesses in Wei Guo yet... Zen Master once said that Wei Guo is not scary when he has the ball and attacks. No matter how strong he is, his shooting percentage is only a little over 60%.

Even if he takes ten shots, he'll miss three or four. Once Wei Guo starts passing the ball, it's really hard to defend against.

These words were meant for Kobe, but it's unclear whether Kobe understood them. Furthermore, Phil Jackson analyzed the 76ers' game against the Nets and felt that Wei Guo's passing ability was stronger than in the regular season.

like...

After playing against Weiguo, Weiguo will be able to replicate the player's abilities.

........

The 76ers started strong, while the Lakers seemed a bit impatient.

17:7!!

Five minutes into the game, the 76ers were leading by 10 points.

"Lakers request a timeout!"

The Zen Master called a timeout, and as the players walked to the sidelines, he said, "You must stay calm. The game has just begun... If you lose your composure now, it will be difficult to play."

O'Neal sat on the bench, looking very frustrated!

In last year's Finals, he dominated, wreaking havoc on the 76ers' interior defense.

This year...

Offensively, it's easy to one-on-one against Wei Guo, and there's also Mutombo to help defend. Defensively, he can also limit Wei Guo. However, Wei Guo suddenly changed his playing style in this game. In the first five minutes, Wei Guo made 2 of 2 shots and scored 5 points (one of which was a 2+1 play), but Wei Guo also got 3 assists.

"Shaq, you've already accumulated two fouls."

The Zen master said, "You should rest for a while and let Samaki fight for a bit."

"coach..."

Samaki hesitated, "Do I need to defend the country?"

"certainly!"

The Zen master looked at Samaki, "Are you afraid?"

"No, no, no~"

Samaki waved his hands repeatedly!

He's a professional player, how can he say he's afraid... Even if he really is scared, when he goes on the court he'll be facing a monster with a broken basketball hoop.

........

The timeout is over, the game continues!

The Lakers inbound the ball from the baseline, Kobe dribbles to the frontcourt and suddenly unleashes a long-range shot!

"Whoosh!!!"

The basketball went into the net.

"nice shot!"

The Lakers' bench erupted in cheers.

17:10!!

"Shaq is off the court, try to pass the ball to me."

Wei Guo reminded Jones.

Iverson made an off-ball run, received a pass from Jones, broke through, and passed the ball to Wei Guo.

This was a tactic designed by Brown...

"He's here!"

"He's here!"

"He's here!"

Samaki took a step forward; he even wanted to close his eyes.