80

The entire third quarter played out at this same rhythm.

Pistons head coach Flip Saunders requested another timeout and redrew the tactics board, hoping to rouse Wallace, who was gradually losing his way.

In the third quarter, Wallace isolated Lin Feng four times, and all four possessions ended in failure.

He immediately lost his temper, and when he faced Lin Feng, he didn't dare to make a move. He was afraid of suffering again at Lin Feng's hands, or even making a fool of himself.

If it weren't for Chauncey Billups leading his teammates, the game would have collapsed early.

Fortunately, the Pistons' outside players were strong and kept the score close.

They were seven points behind the Lakers just moments ago, but now the gap is back to five points.

With two minutes left in the fourth quarter, Flip Saunders replanned the tactics and allowed Wallace to shoot from medium and short distances.

After all, Wallace also possesses mid-range shooting ability, similar to the Wolf King Garnett.

As both are power forwards, Wallace's mid-range shooting ability is weaker than Garnett's, but overall, he can still showcase his skills.

After Wallace changed his strategy, it did have some effect.

Lin Feng defended the mid-range shot and didn't dare to get too close.

One reason was that he was afraid of getting too close and being beaten off the dribble by Wallace, leading to an easy layup.

Secondly, getting too close could easily lead to fouls and infringing on the cylinder of the player with the ball.

Third, Wallace's mid-range shooting wasn't as deadly as his post-up game, so Lin could give him some space and let him shoot.

If he made the shot, it was luck; if he missed, it was just a rebound.

Lin Feng plays basketball very smartly and calmly, and he knows exactly how to break down his opponents.

Just as he expected, Wallace's mid-range shooting ability was limited. Starting from the third quarter, being stifled by Lin Feng greatly affected his performance.

Therefore, his shooting touch was poor, and even though Lin Feng gave him a step to shoot, he only made one shot.

Naturally, the rebound was easily secured by Lin Feng. Lin Feng was able to predict where the rebound would land. Standing inside, almost all the rebounds belonged to him.

In just the third quarter, he grabbed nine rebounds, a rebounding miracle in NBA history.

In this way, the two sides entered the fourth-quarter duel locked in a life-and-death entanglement.

The overall score was now fixed at 65-60, with the Lakers still leading the Pistons by five points.

The outcome of this game was uncertain. Chauncey Billups could still lead the outside players to defeat the Lakers.

Entering the fourth quarter, both teams' physical strength gradually reached its limit.

Even Kobe, a physical marvel, felt his legs weaken and could hardly run in the fourth quarter.

After all, playing against the Pistons is very taxing. The defensive intensity is high, and the players naturally tire more quickly.

Only Lin Feng remained unfazed. There was no sweat on his forehead, and he looked relaxed, as if he were there for amusement rather than playing basketball.

"Oh my god! I'm truly curious, is Lin's physical strength bottomless? Why have I never seen Lin look tired?"

Albert was stunned. This level of physical endurance was more terrifying than that of any NBA player.

Jerry Allen said, "In fact, I discovered this problem a long time ago. Lin has played six games for the Lakers. In these six games, Lin has never appeared tired, and he rarely goes to the bench to rest. He's a freak!"

"Hahaha, yeah, Lin must be a freak, so scary!"

The two commentators were very curious about Lin Feng's physical strength.

…

Time ticked by with each passing second.

After the start of the fourth quarter, the score remained tight.

With only two minutes left in the game, Chauncey Billups made a heroic three-pointer, drawing a foul on Kobe and resulting in a three-plus-one play.

The score was tied by one point!

It must be said that the Pistons are the strongest team in the Eastern Conference and are very resilient.

Even though Wallace didn't perform well in this game, Lindsay Hunter, Chauncey Billups, and others stepped up.

They tied the score with crucial three-pointers from the outside, and the game was currently tied at 85-85.

The ball belonged to the Lakers. Kobe dribbled forward, and Lin Feng moved without the ball.

Wallace, furious, defended Lin Feng relentlessly. Lin Feng had embarrassed him throughout the game, and he needed to save face.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to survive in the NBA.

"Damn it, you dwarf, I won't let you score that easily."

Wallace took a defensive stance and shouted at Lin Feng.

Lin Feng sneered and said lazily, "Your name is Rasheed. I think you should stop calling yourself the Roaring Lord and just change your name to the 'Laxi' Lord!"

"Also, I've already scored 23 points in this game. How about you? It seems like you've only scored two points since the third quarter."

"Damn you!"

Wallace was about to explode with anger. Lin Feng had hit a nerve.

Since Lin Feng had been defending him one-on-one, he had only scored a pitiful two points, and he was lucky to make a mid-range shot.

Otherwise, Wallace wouldn't have scored a single point since the third quarter, which was humiliating.

"Only two points? Even the dogs in our village can score that."

Lin Feng delivered another even more cutting piece of trash talk. He particularly enjoyed the trash-talking culture of the NBA.

"Goudan"?

This phrase, translated into English, was no different from swearing.

Wallace was beyond angry; his lungs felt like they would burst. His eyes were wide open, and he glared at Lin Feng viciously.

"Asian boy, you have a bad mouth. I'm going to teach you a lesson!"

"You are welcome to try, but hold on a moment. Kobe didn't pass the ball to me. When the game is over, I will score on you from that spot!"

Lin Feng pointed to an area near the baseline, the same position where Kobe once hit the buzzer-beater against the Toronto Raptors.

Wallace smiled coldly upon hearing this. Lin Feng wanted to hit a game-winner?

Was he even qualified?

Everyone around the world knew that with only seconds left in the game, the basketball had to be in Kobe's hands, and Kobe would make the buzzer-beater.

Soon, Lin Feng squeezed into the inside while exchanging trash talk with Wallace.

He knew Kobe was going to play one-on-one and enter his invincible one-on-one mode.

In this situation, trusting Kobe was the right move. If Kobe missed, Lin Feng would be there for the rebound.

Facts had proven that the more critical the moment, the more trustworthy Kobe was.

He made a tough three-pointer from the left corner, and Maxiell became just another background player.

The two sides traded blows, and with an assist from Chauncey Billups, the Pistons made a long-range shot.

They thought it was a three-pointer, but Lindsay Hunter's foot was on the line, so the referee only counted it as two points.

The entire Pistons team even ran over to complain to the referee, insisting it was a three-pointer.

However, in the slow-motion replay, Lindsay Hunter received the pass from Billups and did step on the line when shooting, so the basket only counted for two points.

Two points were still two points. Something was better than nothing. It was better than missing the shot entirely.

The Pistons were now one point behind the Lakers with one and a half minutes left in the game.

When people saw this, they all knew that the 'Kobe moment' and the 'Lin Feng moment' were approaching!

There would definitely be a buzzer-beater in this game. In such a tense match, it depended on who could hold on until the end and use the buzzer-beater to prove that they were the strongest team in the league!

…