And this quarter, Zhang San and the old Ironsmith’s ti arrived!
Zhang Yang went 6 for 3, including 1 for 1 in three-pointers, plus 2 for 2 in free throws to grab 9 points. Kobe went 5 for 3, plus 3 for 3 in free throws for another 9 points, leading the team to score 30 points in the quarter.
Harden, on the other hand, with his team’s strongest eting point underperforming, fought desperately, went 9 for 4, plus 4 for 4 in free throws, scoring 12 points in the quarter, still powerless to match the opposing team’s wing and guard line’s two stars.
Quarter score 30 to 24, through three quarters the Lakers lead the Thunder by 12 points, with a score of 98 to 86, expanding the gap to double digits!
The Thunder were unwilling to give up their ho court advantage so easily and launched a fierce counterattack in the final quarter, orchestrated by the combination of Reggie Jackson, Harden, Durant, Ibaka, and Perkins, scoring 32 points in the quarter and restricting the Lakers to their lowest score of 26 points throughout the ga...but the losses in the first and third quarters were too big to overco in the end.
Durant’s half-ti score and accuracy soared past Zhang Yang, but eventually Zhang Yang overca him again, with 26 for 13 including 4 three-pointers out of 10, plus 6 for 7 in free throws, snagging the second-highest score of the ga with 36 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks.
Zhang Yang tonight was 22 for 13, with 7 for 7 in three-pointers, plus 5 for 5 in free throws, achieving the ga’s highest score of 38 points, adding 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals, leading the Lakers to a 124 to 118 victory over the Thunder!
Seeing the glaring big score like fresh blood, Durant, Harden, and Ibaka stood together, their negative emotions through the roof, yet sohow there was a sense of habit...
Previously when watching the Lakers and Spurs G4-G6 footage, they already knew this opponent is not soone they can defend against, but they didn’t truly grasp the concept, only after actually facing them did they realize how scary the three old guys and Zhang San are when they hit their stride!
Doesn’t this an that, in the first three gas of the second round where they pressured the Lakers, they also needed Kobe and Zhang Yang to explode in scoring to reverse and beat the Spurs, who have a stronger overall power?
Durant had a flash of relief at this thought - Duncan is 38, Nash is 40, Kobe is about to be 36, they won’t be able to play for much longer, while he is only 26.
The Thunder’s offensive core, top scorer, and defensive core adjusted their mindset and left the court together to find a place to discuss what went well and what didn’t in tonight’s ga...They no longer bothered about the coach’s unreliable command, already used to adjusting themselves when facing problems.
...
The Lakers lead away 1 to 0, taking the ho court advantage right away, the dia and fans are not very surprised.
Both teams reversed to win in the second round, with the Lakers receiving higher evaluations than the Thunder, and most dia predicted pre-ga that the Lakers at least would take one away ga.
The hottest topic after this ga - Zhang Yang made 7 three-pointers with 100% accuracy!
In NBA history, only forr Lakers player Robert Horry, during the 1997 playoffs against the Jazz, perford such three-point astonishingly, making 7 three-pointers with 100% accuracy, which Zhang Yang matched!
He also tied Horry’s Lakers playoff single-ga three-point record.
But the shooting environnts were completely different!
The Lakers in 97 had O’Neal as an inside force and Eddie Jones and Van Exel outside, pulling with three All-Star distractions, Horry’s 7 three-pointers were all big open shots, whereas Zhang Yang’s 7 three-pointers, only two could be called open shots obtained off fast movent screens, the other 5 were two quick-focused shots, 1 fast-break assistance three, 1 solo fight three, and 1 challenging catch-and-release stepp-back three against defense — the difficulty level wasn’t in the sa tier!
Zhang Yang and Curry’s debate over who is the best three-point shooter surfaced again.
Looking at the regular season, Curry is undoubtedly stronger, with 42.4% accuracy and averaging 3.3 threes per ga; compared to Zhang Yang with 39.6% accuracy and 3 three-point average.
In the playoff first round when the two were directly confronted, the situation was quite delicate, Zhang Yang scored more, Curry had higher accuracy, as their averages only differed by 0.1, therefore logically it should overwhelmingly be believed that Curry’s three-point ability is stronger, but the actual situation is not like this.
Fans supporting Zhang Yang’s three-point prowess hold a claim difficult for Curry fans to counter — Curry is more accurate, but when he encounters a defender of Zhang Yang’s level, he can’t make the shots!
Zhang Yang can throw under any conditions, even if returning to before the NHC rule introduction, Zhang Yang’s three-point attempts were hard to restrict, Curry was not the sa.
Of course, Curry fans though unable to counter this argunt, also don’t accept Zhang Yang as being superior.
However, regardless of Zhang Yang fans or Curry fans, no one knew a rule change would soon allow both players to soar completely, their ascendance just an incidental result of the rule...
In this ga, Zhang Yang in the Thunder’s encircling defense fired an extraordinarily difficult 7 for 7 three-pointer performance, overshadowing Curry in public opinion.
Even losing, the Thunder received elevated evaluations — like the Spurs, considered as one who would even win the championship if they took down the Lakers.
Zhang Yang 7 for 7 from three, with 59% accuracy scored 38, Kobe, Gasol, Nash leveraged his threat, under the three’s lead Lakers excluding him scored 86, the Lakers racketed so fiercely, the Thunder only lost by 6!
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