One Year Left to Play

People have different perceptions of the same thing, such as the change in Zhang Hao’s playing style this season.

In the first two games of the Lakers, even in the game against the Raptors, Zhang Hao spent most of the time playing off the ball, with containment as the primary goal.

To others, it felt like Zhang Hao’s tactical standing in the Lakers had decreased. Bill Walton and Hubie Brown had an argument about it, but the focus of the audience was on the argument itself between the formerly stuttering Bill Walton and the famously sharp-tongued Hubie Brown. No one cared about the content of their discussion.

Some people did care and agreed that Bill Walton’s view made more sense because it aligned with common sense.

Bill Walton’s view was that — because the Lakers have Kenny Anderson, Barkley, and O’Neal, Zhang Hao’s tactical position has decreased. As a second-year player, even if he was selected for the All-Rookie First Team in his rookie season, his ability shouldn’t be as strong as Barkley and O’Neal. Looking at the Lakers’ play in the first two games is a good confirmation of this point.

The Hornets also believed this to be the case, so their defense focused on cutting off Zhang Hao’s space to receive mid-to-long-range passes, and they had Clifford Robinson to do this perfectly.

But Zhang Hao took the initiative to demand the ball for offense! Moreover, he leveraged the threat of his teammates and the Hornets’ defensive positioning to score easily.

And he completely didn’t care about making his teammates unhappy!

In the NBA, it’s not just about having the ability or being able to do something that allows you to do it, like when Larry Johnson was around, did Glenn Rice have the chance to throw the ball more than 20 times per game? Obviously not, but once Larry Johnson left, Glenn Rice’s offensive ability was completely unleashed, not only did his shot attempts increase, but his shooting percentage also reached a new high, and he played more freely.

People’s experience is essentially analyzing upcoming events based on personal or commonly observed patterns, making judgments.

Obviously, the real situation of the Lakers was something the Hornets could not foresee.

The Lakers have many star players, but each is lazier than the other. Does Kenny Anderson want to be the leader? He has no choice! Zhang Hao took the initiative to seize the opportunity to request the ball and shoot, and he was thrilled to make decisive passes.

In the following several rounds, the Hornets’ defense was messed up by Zhang Hao’s proactive tactics under the basket.

Problems also appeared on the offensive end; Boggs, their offensive initiator, was struggling!

Zhang Hao’s ability to defend smaller players left the Hornets in shock.

There was nothing they could do about Zhang Hao’s physique, like a BUG, looking about as tall as Matt Geiger, making people think Matt Geiger had shrunk, and the scariest part was Zhang Hao’s defensive awareness. He didn’t try to block every move Boggs made but simply covered Boggs’ mid-to-long-range shooting space, as entering the paint, even teammates were an obstacle in Boggs’ offensive strategy!

A little over four minutes into the first quarter, the Hornets called a timeout!

After a 5-2 start, the Hornets were countered by the Lakers with an 8-3 run!

The score was 10-8, as the Lakers, relying on Zhang Hao’s command on both ends of the court to adjust teammates, seized back control before the opponents could translate their on-court advantage into a score lead!

These few minutes made Del Harris want to light a cigarette...

Better to predict the opponent’s rotation and make lineup adjustments and fill in the gaps.

Life, it’s just this way... smooth and easy!

No need to stress and think, hey, our kid solved the problem!

But the rotation has to be well-prepared, can’t always let the opponent create an advantage first and then find a solution, just in case the kid can’t manage, he’ll have to strain his brain.

After some thought, Del Harris pulled Barkley out and sent in the lineup of Kenny Anderson, Doug Christie, Zhang Hao, Jason Williams, and Magician.

Coming back from the timeout, the Hornets also made adjustments, sending in the lineup of Dale Curry, Tony Smith, Glenn Rice, Clifford Robinson, and Little Anthony Mason.

Despite the surprise at Zhang Hao’s change in style, the Hornets were not flustered and adjusted their strategy to Zhang Hao’s changes on the offensive end.

Zhang Hao can defend point guards and is strong at collapsing the basket, so no need for Boggs, don’t worry about defense, focus on getting the offense right.

After this adjustment, the Hornets’ strategy became clear, with dual inside players supporting and focusing on Glenn Rice’s shooting, using Dale Curry as the main solo point.

This adjustment was formidable, as the Lakers were completely unable to defend against Glenn Rice, who might be the league’s pure shooter with the strongest shooting ability!

However, on the flip side, there is no center, and this year, the Magician’s greatest improvement in offensive skill is his three-point shooting from the sidelines, spacing the floor well. Zhang Hao, with Jason Williams setting screens in the mid-range, couldn’t be restrained by the Hornets either!

The Lakers’ head coach Del Harris made a very appropriate adjustment, as the Magician’s cutting threat was almost non-existent, but it opened more space, and even if he doesn’t take the shot upon receiving the ball, his passing vision and ability are stronger than Barkley’s. Jason Williams’ off-ball screens and rebounding protection have been done very well, creating excellent scoring opportunities for Zhang Hao.

Zhang Hao and Glenn Rice were shooting back and forth!

Nobody knows why, but in games against other teams, Zhang Hao might not always have the chance to shootout with an opponent, but against the Hornets, it always happens. During the preseason, he had shot out with Dale Curry and Larry Johnson, and now Glenn Rice had the chance to showcase his full abilities, and Zhang Hao was shooting out with Glenn Rice again.

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