Chapter 4 Fourth Quarter Opens

Tang Tian was resting on the sidelines, gasping for breath.

Sure enough, even with just one-on-one play, such a frantic number of shots would take a toll on his stamina.

Every shot in an NBA game is met with high-intensity defense, let alone taking 30-plus shots in three quarters.

Even if many players gave him the right to shoot that much, he couldn't handle playing like that.

Moreover, Tang Tian wasn't purely a catch-and-shoot player like Thompson; he had to dribble to get rid of defenders, pull up for jumpers, and drive to the basket.

Every shot wasn't just the action of shooting itself, but also the massive amount of stamina required to create the shot.

Many players, like Westbrook, would drive hard at the beginning of the game, but then resort to zombie-like pull-up jumpers in the third and fourth quarters.

This was actually a manifestation of insufficient stamina.

Westbrook's explosive style of play looked domineering, but it consumed a huge amount of energy.

Gordon wasn't in good shape tonight. He was inaccurate during the transition periods in the first and second quarters, and he continued to make mistakes after coming on in this period.

The Lakers seized the opportunity to launch consecutive counterattacks, quickly closing the gap in the score.

"Can you handle it?"

Williams walked over to Tang Tian and asked.

Tang Tian nodded.

Gasol drew a shooting foul from Whiteside in the low post.

The game entered a dead ball situation, and Tang Tian replaced Gordon.

Gasol made both free throws.

91 to 91, the Lakers had tied the score in less than three minutes!

"Defense! Defense!"

This wave of scoring completely ignited the momentum of the arena, and the fans chanted in unison to cheer for the home team.

Tang Tian went one-on-one against Livingston in the frontcourt, a pull-up jumper after a crossover.

"Clang!"

The shot was clearly short, hitting the front of the rim.

Whiteside jumped up and grabbed the offensive rebound, then passed it back to Tang Tian.

Knowing that he wasn't feeling good, Tang Tian took the ball and charged inside, taking a shot after a close-range confrontation with Gasol.

The referee didn't blow the whistle, and the ball bounced off the front of the rim again.

This time, Gasol grabbed the defensive rebound.

The Lakers launched a counterattack, but Aminu played good defense, blocking Nick Young's layup.

Cole dribbled the ball back to the frontcourt and passed it to Tang Tian for another one-on-one opportunity.

Tang Tian drove to the basket for a layup after a series of crossovers.

Gasol provided a long-armed interference, and Tang Tian shot after the contact.

The ball grazed the back of the rim and slipped out.

He had missed three consecutive shots since being substituted into the game!

And that wasn't all. In the next few minutes, Tang Tian completely transformed into a Milanese blacksmith.

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

The rims at the Staples Center were diligently hammered by Kobe every day, and this time someone else came to continue the work.

"Selling iron! High-quality fine iron, fine iron worth tens of thousands of dollars on a normal day!"

With the shouts, business at the Milanese blacksmith shop got even better.

Tang Tian played for more than five minutes, clanking nine shots in a row, almost knocking the rim askew.

There was only one reason for this situation: his stamina couldn't keep up.

Although he was averaging a lot of points per game now, he didn't have many scoring options, and even playing one-on-one for the entire game, he couldn't handle playing like this.

Fortunately, he wasn't alone tonight. After he came on, he passed his bad touch to the Lakers' players as well.

The Pelicans didn't score, and neither did the Lakers.

The "clang" sound was endless, and the rims at the Staples Center let out waves of angry roars.

The fans felt their heads buzzing.

Then Tang Tian stopped shooting and started strolling around.

This was something that many NBA superstars would choose to do, resting on the court at a certain point in the game.

This allowed them to rest and also maintain their deterrent effect on the court.

The main players on both sides returned to the court one after another during this period.

While Tang Tian was strolling around, Davis stepped up, scoring both inside and outside, helping the Pelicans stay close.

With two minutes left in the game, the Lakers led the Pelicans 99-97 by 2 points.

The Lakers' offense saw Kobe post up Holiday in the low post, then turn and drive towards the basket, performing a mid-air pull-up to evade Davis's block and score a difficult basket.

This basket ignited the Staples Center.

Old Kobe had been cold for most of the game tonight, except for that stretch in the third quarter, but at crucial moments he was still a superstar!

A 4-point lead was enough for the Lakers to laugh all the way to the end.

Tang Tian was about to create his highest-scoring losing effort of the season.

Moreover, if the Lakers won and faced the Pelicans in the playoffs, Tang Tian scoring 60+ points wouldn't matter. It would be a huge difference in morale.

"Defense! Defense!"

The cheers in the arena were deafening; they were going to win the championship this year!

Tang Tian reached out for the ball in the frontcourt, having recovered a lot of stamina after strolling around for more than four minutes.

And at this point in the game, with this score difference, he had to attack.

The Lakers still didn't double-team him, and the cheers from the crowd were overwhelming.

Tang Tian performed a series of crossovers, also connecting with a between-the-legs dribble.

He didn't have much stamina left now, so he had to ensure space for every shot.

At this point in the game, Miles on the other side also had some stamina issues, and his center of gravity was clearly unstable.

Tang Tian seized the opportunity and suddenly took a step back for a pull-up jumper.

Miles couldn't keep up with the rhythm.

Tang Tian had an open three-point pull-up opportunity.

The ball left his hand, and Miles' defensive interference arrived.

The ball spun towards the basket.

"Swish!"

The ball went in!

After missing all nine shots in this quarter, his tenth shot finally went in!

This was putting the core idea of Kobe's saying, "I'd rather go 0 for 30 than 0 for 9," into practice.

A 1-point difference, there was still a chance!

Kobe received the ball in the frontcourt and was immediately double-teamed. He passed the ball to Gasol under the basket, and Gasol's turnaround shot against Davis resulted in the latter fouling him!

Experience was very important at this time.

Davis shook his head in frustration, and Tang Tian went over to comfort him.

Gasol adjusted his breathing and made both free throws.

The Lakers regained a 3-point lead!

There was only a little over a minute left in the game.

Tang Tian dribbled the ball in the frontcourt again, this time choosing to drive to the basket after a crossover.

Seeing Gasol's help defense, he deliberately waited a moment, using the speed difference to create space before shooting.

The ball left his hand, spun around the rim, and then rolled in!

0 for 9, to 2 for 11!

After Tang Tian recovered some stamina, his touch and form were clearly on the rise!

Still a 1-point difference!

The fans in the arena stood up one after another.

This high-profile battle, with the scoring title and playoff matchups at stake, had come down to the final moment!

The outcome of this game didn't seem to affect the Pelicans' ranking, but it was clear that they didn't want to enter the playoffs with a disadvantage in morale!

Now, both sides wanted to win!

Kobe continued to demand the ball in the frontcourt for a one-on-one, this time performing his signature turnaround fadeaway before the double-team arrived.

"Clang!"

With another roar from the Staples Center's rim, the Pelicans' opportunity had arrived.

ps: Little Eggplant has been crying non-stop since the first day of the Lunar New Year. It's really not easy being a parent. I spent an hour or so calming him down temporarily, and I'm seizing the opportunity to write the fourth chapter.