Chapter 85: Your Weak Link Is A Bit Too Much
Facing off against Kobe is like a marathon; he challenges you in every aspect of the game.
This reminds one of those rare works in future Japan that require male actors to fire ten times at the turret within 120 minutes—everyone knows it’s edited, but you can’t help thinking, that’s insanely impressive, right?
Kobe gave Xu Ling exactly that feeling.
In the opening five minutes, Xu Ling and Kobe basically accounted for 90% of their team’s scoring.
Just as the audience thought this matchup would continue, the Lakers’ inside first broke the balance.
Or rather, Iavaroni’s order for Hakim Warrick to double team Kobe prompted Kobe to pass to Odom on the wing, and Odom then passed the ball inside.
Bynum received the ball at the basket, made no complex fake moves, purely relying on his young and strong physique and explosive strength, bulldozed two steps inside like a bulldozer, then went up strong. Gasol tried to counter this young power, but in the face of the absolute strength gap, his block was powerless.
With a booming crash, Bynum slam dunked over Gasol for the score.
That’s when people remembered that the Lakers still had other players who could play.
Although Kobe’s offense is their lifeline, this team doesn’t lack talent: the mentally stable Odom, Bynum before he got the wash-cut-blow, Fisher who doesn’t run into athletic guards, plus the usually low-CPU Kobe—this is why the Lakers have surprisingly ranked in the Western Conference top four this season.
As long as this team gets an All-Star level player, they turn into a scary squad.
Bynum’s bucket was like some omen; the game’s rhythm was about to change.
Coming to the frontcourt, Xu Ling didn’t want the ball, so Lowry passed it to Gasol posting up low.
But Gasol clearly wasn’t adapting to this intensity right away. When his teammate passed the ball, he backed down a few times and knew Bynum was stronger than him, but not going all the way would hurt morale too much, so he powered through to the end—resulting in a miss. Odom grabbed the rebound and pushed forward himself, then high-low played in the frontcourt with a left-handed layup.
Compared to the Grizzlies, this team with a soft All-Star center and rookie kids as core, the Lakers were much more mature.
Though Kobe was making noise about leaving, the team had made the playoffs for several straight years, with overall strength, chemistry, and morale all higher than the Grizzlies—they knew how to win games.
Especially Kobe, who instantly seized on the Grizzlies’ offensive stagnation and applied high-intensity tight defense on Xu Ling.
When Lowry called for a pick and roll drive but got nowhere, wandered around, and tried to dump it off to Xu Ling, he only saw the latter stuck by Kobe with no passing lane, so he had to give it to Mike Miller.
Miller’s three-point shot missed.
Odom grabbed the rebound again, drove the fast break, and made a great pass to the trailing Kobe in the frontcourt.
Xu Ling shadowed him in help defense, precisely anticipating every fake move of Kobe’s, forcing him completely into a corner.
Kobe was trapped with passing lanes sealed and shooting angles gone; all the audience held their breath, waiting for Lakers teammates to come rescue.
But the next second, Kobe twisted his body in an almost impossible way, rose in a posture defying physics, and lofted the ball high off the backboard.
“Bang swish!”
An unbelievable bank shot hit!
The lead stretched to 6 points, and FedEx Forum erupted in deafening boos and gasps. Kobe remained unfazed, coldly telling Xu Ling: “Want to lock me down? Unless you can stop me from even jumping.”
Truth be told, pre-transmigration Xu Ling only knew Kobe from Excel sheets.
If getting to know Kobe from Excel, at least to small-ball era fans, Kobe seemed very inefficient. Post-transmigration, the main impression was he could score a ton, but facing him revealed this guy really didn’t take the usual path.
In that just-now situation, unless time was out on offense, who in their right mind wouldn’t wait for teammates and force a shot instead?
Liking to challenge that high difficulty should mean inefficiency—how is it not inefficient? That’s ghostly.
But when he makes that shot, the depressive effect on the defender is top-notch.
Still, such frustrating moments, Xu Ling had experienced countless times in his previous life; now he just chalks it up to luck and hits one back.
But on the Lakers side, someone was out for revenge for Kobe—Odom excitedly ran clapping, saying to Xu Ling: “Hey, ‘next Kobe’, looks like you’re still far from the ‘previous’ one? Wanna learn how to control the dog next to you first?”
Grizzlies head coach Mark Iavaroni was already wanting to call timeout.
He wasn’t a seasoned coach, or rather, he trusted Xu Ling more than himself—normal coaches would 100% call timeout at a 7-point deficit to steady the rhythm, but he wanted to see if Xu Ling’s response ball could continue.
By now, people were starting to feel Kobe was controlling this game.
As Kevin Harlan said: “We have no reason to be disappointed in Eli; he doesn’t flinch against the best active player, not only holding his own in one-on-one but single-handedly carrying the team—but you have to admit, he’s too young.”
“Yes, that might be his biggest weakness,” Doug Collins said meaningfully. “He took on a whole team too early, and excelled so much that the Grizzlies couldn’t stay in tank mode, meaning they can’t use the draft to get Eli enough quality help. I mean, Eli might never get his own Scottie Pippen.”
As the TNT duo discussed the Grizzlies’ seemingly dim future, Lowry had steadily brought the ball past halfcourt.
Then, Lowry saw Xu Ling reaching for the ball two steps outside the left three-point line.
“Time’s still early, steady this possession!” Iavaroni shouted from the sideline.
Lowry hesitated but passed it over. Xu Ling caught it two big steps inside the three-point line, a choice that puzzled the commentary table.
“That’s too far out,” Harlan said. “Xu should reset the offense.”
Then came Xu Ling’s shocking catch, gather, and with 16 seconds left on the shot clock, a super long three over Kobe’s surprised face.
“No! Don’t shoot it like that!” Iavaroni nearly jumped up.
The entire arena went silent instantly, all eyes following that super high arc.
“Swish!!!”
The crisp net sound exploded like thunder!
“Luck shot!”
Odom blurted out.
“Yes, that’s Eli’s scary part!” Harlan said excitedly. “He hit two LOGO-range buzzer-beaters in NCAA—that’s no fluke. Once in the frontcourt, any spot can be his launch point!”
FedEx Forum, previously stifled by the Lakers’ pressure, regained its energy; fans grew even more fanatical about Xu Ling.
Even the most die-hard believers couldn’t believe Xu Ling was holding his own against Kobe in this situation.
However, Xu Ling didn’t retreat to the backcourt; he stayed upfront, ready to tight-mark Kobe in return, and also pass a message to the trash-talking Odom: “Lamar.”
Odom was set to inbound, but Xu Ling staying upfront made him uncomfortable.
Xu Ling continued: “What you should worry about most right now is where you guys, the teammates Kobe’s eager to ditch, will get traded to once it happens.”
Odom’s expression shifted slightly; Kobe stayed composed.
Xu Ling tight-marked Kobe like a one-on-one full-court press.
Odom’s great mood was ruined by Xu Ling’s words; he was simple-minded, and crucially, addicted to everything in Los Angeles, unwilling to leave no matter what. The thought of Kobe getting traded meaning Lakers rebuild, then them…
And in that instant Odom zoned out, his inbound hesitated a beat! Slower speed, higher trajectory—Kobe barely caught it jumping hard, and the offensive rhythm was disrupted.
Kobe quickly passed to the frontcourt; Odom dazedly ran to the top of the arc, got the ball but instead of swinging, rushed a shot due to distraction.
“Bang!”
The ball clanged off the front rim and out.
But right then, a burly figure soared up, using explosive power to overpower the help defense Miller, grabbed the offensive rebound one-handed, and violently slammed it home!
Andrew Bynum!
After landing, Bynum pumped his fist roaring—from his form, he might have all the makings of a great center.
Xu Ling’s impression of him came mostly from Lakers fans in the basketball community reminiscing: his talent, his fall, his hair—seemed all destined, but now he looked like Eddie Curry idealized.
This guy’s inside toughness and explosiveness surpassed Gasol’s, but the Lakers were still an outside-core team; he could only eat Kobe’s scraps.
Still very threatening.
It was Bynum going off inside that shifted the Xu Ling-Kobe duel, boosting the Lakers’ others—while on Grizzlies, Lowry could drive Fisher but couldn’t challenge Bynum et al. at the rim, passing out habitually to Xu Ling, so over time Mike Miller et al. went cold, and even Paul Gasol played worse.
Core guards are key because they dictate game rhythm, and the Grizzlies currently had no one fitting that role well.
Lakers seized control with better rhythm, ending the first quarter 27-22.
In the second quarter, Grizzlies subbed out Xu Ling, shifting offensive core inside; Darko Milicic had some impact, but Lakers under smart role players like Luke Walton ran premium team offense, widening the lead.
When the gap hit 9, Iavaroni had to bring Xu Ling back.
Returning with Xu Ling was Paul Gasol.
Iavaroni slid Xu Ling to point guard.
Xu Ling, learning from Lowry, fed Gasol repeatedly; facing Kwame Brown, Gasol finally shone, hitting two post-up scores in set plays to rebuild confidence.
Lakers went back to full starters; Kobe hit a three right away, while Xu Ling kept running 1-5 pick and rolls with Gasol, like force-feeding the Spaniard till he puked.
Gasol went from cold to hot in half a quarter, but still not enough to tie the score.
In FedEx Forum’s VIP box, Jerry West paced back and forth—whenever Grizzlies had a home game and he saw bad play, he’d get antsy.
And today, that unease started after Xu Ling took over at point.
Should say, Grizzlies overestimated Xu Ling too much, or rather, they craved a savior mastering both scoring and organization.
Xu Ling past and present was just a guest at point, never truly shouldered core point guard duties. He had the ball-handler techniques but lacked the long-cultivated playmaking instinct. Playing him at PG wasn’t impossible, but the cost was his individual offensive edge dulling under “organize first” constraints.
With Xu Ling’s All-Star level firepower at shooting guard,
West’s gaze drifted to the desk piled with recent trade proposals: Baron Davis, Chauncey Billups, Andre Miller, even… Jason Kidd. He’d mulled each name repeatedly, some with initial contacts.
But the problem loomed—Kobe.
Kobe’s future hung undecided like thick fog over the league. Countless teams fantasized “we have a shot,” not grasping: Kobe didn’t want a new scene, but a contending roster to prove he could top without Shaq. Those gutted non-contenders didn’t catch his eye.
Kobe alone hit pause, stalling the whole trade market in weird limbo—no one dared move.
Now, up to the last possession of the half, Lakers still up 6, Grizzlies ball. Xu Ling, 18 points in first, just 5 in second but 5 assists, faced Kobe but called Gasol’s pick and roll, exploded one step—not just past Kobe but through Bynum’s help, crashed inside, jumped full over help Fisher, smashed him aside, and powered home.
“OMG!!!!!”
Kevin Harlan roared excitedly: “Eli just murdered Derek Fisher in the air!”
Not only that, Fisher got fouled, with just 1.1 seconds left in the half.
Lakers had no time for a last shot.
Thus, a perfect buzzer-beater offense.
Xu Ling turned to hear Kobe’s take: “You only bully little guys?”
He realized Kobe favored this cold-water trash talk—sounds civil but drenches like ice water, enough to dismay unstable foes.
Perfect for Xu Ling’s taste. As a player loving opponent banter, he enjoyed all trash talk styles, especially with Kobe’s plentiful “flaws” to poke.
At the line, Xu Ling smirked: “I just like targeting the weakest link.”
Xu Ling paused deliberately, eyeing other Lakers on the sideline, then drawled, “And your team seems full of those links.”
Words done, he nailed the and-one.
Then Kobe tried a half-court super long three but didn’t touch the rim.
Halftime: Lakers led 61-58 by 3.
Shockingly, Xu Ling didn’t crumble under the league-first player’s all-around pressure, delivering a stunning half.
Kobe steadily output, nearly single-handedly fueling Lakers offense with 32 points 5 rebounds, marching toward his third 50+ vs. Grizzlies.
Xu Ling, as a rookie, matched him: 26 points 6 rebounds 6 assists, steadily absorbing every pressure Kobe threw.
“Granted, Kobe’s points mostly from unguardable isolations, peak individual skill; Eli didn’t iso Kobe much,” Kevin Harlan said at halftime. “But don’t forget, Kobe’s not just the world’s best offensive player but top defensive guard. Few stay steady under his full-pressure intent.”
“For a sub-20 rookie, Eli’s tonight proves all the attention and hype around him is real. He’s a true, foreseeable superstar tomorrow.”
With Harlan’s wrap-up, the marquee matchup hit halftime rest.
