Chapter 18

"Beep"

The pause in play ended, and both teams returned to the court.

As Chen Mu stepped onto the court, he felt something was off.

"Hmm...? Where's Turiaf?"

Looking around, he couldn't see the figure of Turiaf, who had been his primary opponent, and even upon closer inspection, the other bench players were nowhere to be seen.

"Hmm...?"

Below the court, D'Antoni also noticed something amiss, his brows furrowing as a sense of foreboding began to grow.

"Hey, Phil, Phil, such a bold plan isn't like you, but I like it, hahaha!"

In the commentator's booth, Barkley opened his mouth wide and laughed heartily, "Kenny, look at the Lakers' lineup now, it's so interesting, there's going to be a good show, a good show indeed!"

"Um, the Lakers' current lineup is: point guard Jordan Farmar, shooting guard Kobe is back on the court, small forward Vladimir Radmanovic, hmm... Sasha is a legitimate shooting guard, it seems Phil is preparing to play small ball."

Kenny Smith, while watching the Lakers' players on the court, analyzed, "Then the power forward is... hmm? Devin George??"

Devin George, a tough and versatile player for the Lakers, could break through on offense, control the ball on defense, grab rebounds inside, and shoot from outside.

However, like all versatile players, George was good at everything but not great at anything. Due to his unique and comical appearance, he was often jokingly called "Pig Head" by Chinese fans.

"Phil rarely does something so bold...!" Kenny Smith shook his head slightly, "Devin George is a pure small forward, if he plays inside, he'll be dominated by the Chinese kid!"

"NO, NO, NO~~"

Barkley, eating a sandwich, shook his head mysteriously, "You used to be a professional player, Kenny. Look at the Lakers' center, and you'll know what's going on."

"Hmm, the Lakers' center on the court is..."

Kenny Smith took a closer look and was instantly stunned. After a moment of shock, he seemed to understand something and sighed, "Phil Jackson, the man with nine championship rings, lives up to his reputation...!"

"Step, step, step"

"Huff, huff"

On the court, the game resumed, with the Lakers on offense. Farmar steadily advanced to the front court.

"Step, step... bang"

Chen Mu was defending in the paint, and a tall figure appeared in front of him. He leaned back and raised his hands high.

"Lamar Odom...!"

Chen Mu was startled, and before he could react, Farmar had already passed the ball into the paint. Odom, with his long arms, caught the ball steadily.

"Odom?! Odom playing center...?!!"

Chen Mu couldn't believe it. He remembered that in this season, Odom mostly played as a small forward. Although he had versatile skills, especially in rebounding, he didn't truly transition to power forward until the 2008 season when the Lakers traded for Gasol.

Currently, Chen Mu's actual position in the Suns was center, leading four shooters and ensuring rebounds. Odom's matchup with him proved that Odom was indeed the Lakers' center on the court.

"Clap, clap"

Odom dribbled with his back to the basket, leaned slightly, felt Chen Mu's defensive stance, and then suddenly turned and accelerated past Chen Mu on his left side.

"So fast...!"

Chen Mu couldn't react in time and quickly slid to the side. But just as Chen Mu shifted his weight to the left, Odom's center of gravity changed again.

"Step, step!"

Odom quickly stepped, taking advantage of Chen Mu's momentary off-balance, and smoothly moved past Chen Mu on the right side, raising his hands to shoot quickly.

"Clap, swish!"

The ball cleanly hit the backboard and went in. Odom didn't even look back, as if he knew the ball would go in the moment he released it, and turned to run back to the defensive end.

"Damn...!"

Chen Mu cursed under his breath, helplessly throwing the ball in from the baseline. The Suns advanced to the front court and ran their usual pattern, with Barbosa taking a three-point shot.

"Beep, beep, beep"

It didn't go in!

Chen Mu knew his chance to shine had come, and he quickly rushed into the paint, heading for the flashing circle. Suddenly, a shadow appeared in front of him.

"Bang...!"

Chen Mu couldn't stop in time and crashed into the person. The referee's whistle immediately blew.

"Suns' No. 5 offensive foul, Lakers' ball!"

"Oh oh!!"

The situation finally eased, and the Lakers' fans began to revive, their cheers rising again, making the entire arena lively once more.

"Ah...!"

Chen Mu sighed, frustrated by his consecutive mistakes on both offense and defense.

As he retreated, Chen Mu recalled the situation, feeling something was off.

"Barbosa took the shot, and I rushed into the paint. At that moment, no one should have known where the rebound would land. Why did Odom appear so quickly on my path?"

Chen Mu thought hard but couldn't find an answer.

"Clang!"

At that moment, the Lakers' outside player missed a shot. Chen Mu, with a surge of frustration, took a big step and grabbed the rebound firmly.

"Fast break!!!"

After grabbing the rebound, Chen Mu shouted and threw the ball to Barbosa, who was already running to the front court.

However, just as the ball left Chen Mu's hands, the shadow reappeared, leaping high and intercepting the ball mid-air.

"Step"

Odom landed steadily, smiled at the stunned Chen Mu, and then passed the ball behind his back without looking, sending it directly to the left three-point line, where a player caught it firmly.

"Phew!"

Kobe exhaled, then took a beautiful three-point shot. To Chen Mu, it seemed to hang in the air for an eternity before perfectly entering the center of the basket.

"Swish"

"Wow!!!"

The Staples Center erupted with a roar as the fans cheered and celebrated, each one shouting excitedly.

"Hoho~ Phil's unconventional move worked!"

Barkley's fat head nodded, "After Lamar came on, he used his one-on-one offensive skills, speed advantage, and basketball IQ that far surpasses the Chinese kid, to give the Chinese kid a good lesson!"

"Huff, huff, huff, huff"

Watching Odom's defensive stance, Chen Mu was suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of powerlessness.

Actually, in terms of rebounding, Odom, a near-rebound specialist, was only about even with Chen Mu. Since Odom came on, Chen Mu had continued to grab rebounds, but the game's momentum had changed dramatically.

"Chen, don't be discouraged, we're on offense!"

Barbosa reminded Chen Mu, then dribbled to the front court. Chen Mu took a deep breath and rushed forward, running the play with his teammates.

"Clang!"

Just as good shooting can be contagious, bad shooting can be too. After three shooters made their three-pointers, Barbosa's miss disrupted the rhythm of the other shooters.

This time, Eddie House's shot missed, and Chen Mu rushed into the paint early. With careful movement, he wasn't blocked by Odom again.

"Bang"

Chen Mu positioned Odom behind him, jumped, and grabbed the rebound. As he landed, he was about to pass to the outside but noticed another figure had appeared beside him.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak"

The sound of shoes scraping the floor continued. Chen Mu was near the baseline, and his passing routes were completely blocked by two Lakers players.

"Quick, help... quick, help!!"

Chen Mu shouted, but his teammates, the shooters, couldn't break through the Lakers' defensive trap. In desperation, he turned to call for a timeout from the referee.

"Clap"

Just as Chen Mu turned, a hand slashed down, and the ball was instantly stolen. The thief then turned and quickly dribbled to the front court.

"Clap, clap, clap, clap"

Kobe dribbled with incredible speed, passing two Suns players, and then at the Suns' basket, he leaped and slammed the ball through the hoop.

"Bang!!"

"Oh oh oh!!!"

The slam dunk excited Kobe, who shouted and gestured to the fans.

"Beep, beep"

At the same time, the Suns' coach D'Antoni called a timeout.

"Oh oh oh!!!"

The entire Staples Center instantly boiled over. Odom and Kobe's entry had instantly turned the tide, and the Lakers, from being on the defensive, had scored a 7-0 run in just a minute.

"Chen, Eddie, you two come down and rest for a bit."

D'Antoni substituted the frustrated Chen Mu out and brought in Diaw and Nash.

"Damn...!"

Back on the bench, Chen Mu sat down and immediately shouted in frustration.

"Chen, you were completely dominated by Lamar."

D'Antoni's face was grim as he said coldly.

"Coach, he's too fast, and his skills are great, I really..."

Chen Mu tried to defend himself, but D'Antoni stopped him with a gesture.

"I'm not substituting you out to criticize or blame you. The score has been reversed, and no amount of scolding will help."

D'Antoni's eyes flashed with a mysterious light as he grabbed Chen Mu's shoulder and pushed him forward, "From now on, you need to watch the game very, very carefully, every detail, especially the defensive and offensive choices when Diaw and Odom are matched up."

"Whether you can play in this game depends on when you figure out how to deal with Odom...!"

"Clap!"

On the court, Diaw grabbed a rebound, and Odom, as he had done with Chen Mu, immediately began to press and try to steal. Diaw, however, was unfazed, quickly moved the ball down the court, and began a series of "interference avoidance drills" that Chen Mu had never noticed before.