Bryant walked back to the arena at the Great Western Forum Arena, where the fans cheered frenetically and almost madly.

The second half is about to begin, Jazz 62:73 Lakers.

Just looking at the total points of the two teams, you will think that the two teams that only have offense have won the data, and the total score in the half is as high as 135 points, which is very rare in this era of high-scoring games. In this era of defense and interior king, slow-paced offense is the mainstream.

It's also very common for a team to score a total of 70 points and 80 points in a game, and it's rare for an absolute powerhouse like the Lakers and Jazz to play such a high-scoring game. Both sides are among the best in the league defensively, and if not the first, they are definitely in the top five. Even so, the offense of both sides is still efficient and scary, which shows how strong Kobe Bryant and Jazz's offense is.

Bryant looked up at the Jazz players on the other side of the court.

Wow, it's still a scrappy expression. Kobe Bryant bowed slightly, he still admires these veterans very much, the spirit of never admitting defeat of old-school players is rare in later generations, and he has only seen such a style in the two guards of Wei Shao and Lillard. And in this era, this spirit of never giving up can be seen in many players.

"The lineups of both sides are the same as the starters, there are no adjustments, and it should be noted that a lot of players are in foul trouble, Horry has four fouls, Ostertag has four fouls, Antoine Kyle has three fouls, and Karl Malone has three fouls."

'If the game is still like in the first half, then I expect a lot of players to be sent off. Jazz wants to keep hacking sharks? I don't think it's going to work, the Lakers and their point gap has been stretched to 11 points, and cutting the shark will slow down the pace of the game even further, and there is no way to chase points with a slow tempo. ”

"Especially since they still have a lot of players with fouls on their backs, let's see how Jerry Sloan's tactics adjust next!"

"The matchup between the Jazz and the Lakers is by no means just the superstars on the court, but the matchup between the two coaches, Jerry Sloan and Silver Fox Harris, is also a very good attraction. It's a matchup between veteran coaches, with Harris already winning the Coach of the Year award in '94-95, while Sloan's coaching career has been fruitless so far. ”

"It's a sure thing that Harris will win this year's Coach of the Year trophy, and the coaches who have a good chance below him are Jerry Sloan, Pat Riley, George Carr, and Lenny Wilkens."

"The referee blows the whistle! The game continues! ”

Hornacek serves the ball from the sideline and passes to Stockton.

Stockton advanced with the ball, and the Lakers still arranged for Eddie Jones to defend Stockton, so that Kobe's physical strength could be used more on offense, but it was really at the last moment, so Kobe Bryant would still take over the task of defending the first ball handler.

Stockton tossed high to Malone, Malone handed a sideways hand to hang Eddie Jones, Stockton received the ball and cut inside, and singled out Horry in the middle distance.

"Be careful not to foul!" Kobe Bryant realized that Stockton's intention was to play big and small, and he wanted to take turns with Malone to beat Robert Horry, an indispensable panacea for the Lakers' offense, so that the Lakers' offense would drop more than one notch, and Kobe's off-ball three-pointer would be one less important playmaking point and blocking wall.

Horry was obviously a little restrained after Kobe Bryant's reminder, and was found by Stockton to hit directly from mid-range.

Jazz 64:73 Lakers, the point difference is back to single digits.

The Lakers are Kobe Bryant advancing with the ball and handing it to Horry at halftime, and before Horry is beaten down by six fouls, the Lakers will definitely have to make the most of it and use this axis more.

Bryant began to run without the ball, and an awkward problem arose in front of the Jazz.

Bag or not?

The Lakers' lineup is Kobe Bryant, Curry, Jones, Horry, Shaq.

Who to give up to bag Kobe Bryant?

Sloan's choice was to release Eddie Jones and let Hornacek, a smaller player, chase Bryant's off-ball.

The Lakers' blocking ability of this system is weaker than in the second quarter, although there is such a top wall as O'Neal, but no one else except O'Neal can carry out a high-quality blocking and dismantling, O'Neal can not solve it by doing the wall Jazz, one person shrinks the basket, and the other person chases Kobe.

Horry first had time to find Kobe, but Kobe Bryant's few runs didn't involve open space, and then Horry passed the ball directly to Eddie Jones in the bottom corner.

Malone struggled to pounce, and Malone, who has always stood and played on the defensive end, has done his best in this game.

It's useless, Eddie Jones's gap is too big, and he has it with his hands open.

The score difference has once again widened to more than 10 points.

Stockton gritted his teeth, damn it, I feel that playing the whole team like this is full of loopholes, under the Lakers' system of one science and one shark and three shooters, the bag is simply a point away.

The Jazz and the Lakers played a few more rounds, and the Lakers relied on the open spots created by the Jazz's bag to hit back-to-back shots. Sloan called a timeout.

There's no way, Kobe Bryant can't score, and the scoring efficiency of these terrifying three-point shooters is not low at all.

Malone continues to be puzzled, but no matter how cross-handed, he can't compare to these top shooters who practice shooting in open positions.

Okay, don't just take precautions.

Jerry Sloan's adjustment gave Kobe Bryant another chance to make a move.

"John, do you believe in God?" Bryant smiled at Stockton.

"Hmm." Stockton didn't understand what Kobe Bryant meant, as a white man, or in Utah, the stronghold of Mormonism, Stockton still believed in God more or less.

"Then you'll see him soon."

“？？？” Stockton didn't understand what Kobe meant.

Then he understood what Kobe Bryant meant.

Many years after Stockton retired, looking back on his career, what impressed him the most was not the blocking and dismantling with Malone, not the all-night long talk with Sloane, or the frustration of not being crowned for the rest of his life.

It was today's game, which became Stockton's nightmare, the biggest fear when he woke up in the middle of the night.

Looking back on his magnificent career, Stockton can be said to have no regrets except for the championship. Although he didn't win a championship, Stockton has done it with a clear conscience, and he believes that there is no place to be sorry for Utah in his 19-year career.

"At that moment, I didn't understand what Kobe Bryant meant." The aging Stockton looked embarrassed, and the biggest reason he didn't accept Sloan's offer to join the Jazz coaching team after retiring was that he never wanted to see Kobe Bryant again.

"Kobe Bryant walked up to me like that and asked me if I believed in God."

I nodded. When he said that I was going to see God later, I was still a little disdainful in my heart. ”

"Unfortunately, by the time I got it, it was too late."