Chapter 26: Kobe at His Peak!

"This little guy doesn't have a quiet personality either," the Zen Master said with a wry smile as he watched Li Rui provoke the entire arena.

Li Rui was usually well-behaved and obedient, but the Zen Master could sense a hidden, intense passion beneath his exterior.

On the court, Li Rui high-fived Bynum to celebrate, and Kobe walked over to give Li Rui a friendly pat on the backside.

"Smack!"

It was a solid, forceful slap.

After Li Rui checked in, the Lakers' momentum shifted rapidly, much to the delight of the home fans.

Zhang Weiping remarked, "Although Bynum didn't handle that ball perfectly, his screen was timely, creating a brief window of space for Li Rui to nail that three-pointer."

Xu Jicheng added, "The Lakers need to find ways to create space for Li Rui's shooting; his ability to capitalize on open looks is exceptional."

"Timeout!"

This time, Hinrich called for a timeout after crossing midcourt.

Bulls head coach Scott Skiles was feeling frustrated by the last few possessions; it felt as if the roles of the Bulls and Lakers had been reversed. The Bulls' team play had stalled, devolving into isolation basketball, while the Lakers were executing plays that consistently generated open shots.

"Awesome, Li Rui."

"Well done, keep acting as the dark horse."

"Haha, two threes and an assist forced the opponent to call a timeout."

"You are undoubtedly China's number one shooter."

Netizens on domestic forums like Hupu and Zhibo8 were buzzing with excitement. Li Rui was providing them with a massive sense of satisfaction.

...

In 1996, Skiles began his coaching career with the Greek team PAOK, later serving as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns. He became the Suns' head coach in 2001, achieving a winning percentage of over 60% across two seasons, but was fired in 2002 due to strained relationships with players. On November 28, 2003, Skiles became the head coach of the Chicago Bulls, helping the team end their embarrassing six-year playoff drought.

Skiles glared at his team with a fierce expression before launching into a tirade: "Fuck, what the hell are you all doing? Kirk, that rookie has hit two three-pointers right over your head."

"How are you letting Kobe create open looks so easily?"

"Where is your defense? All I see is a bunch of girls out there playing basketball."

"The Chicago Sky was founded this year; do you guys want to go there? I can write you letters of recommendation—you’d definitely win MVP there..."

Having surrendered an 8-point run and watching the lead slip away, Skiles was furious.

On the Lakers' bench, Bynum gave Li Rui a firm hug around the shoulders, and the Zen Master nodded, saying, "Well done."

Although Li Rui didn't always look reliable when he had the ball, he had a knack for scoring and changing the momentum of the game, which was something one couldn't help but respect.

The entire Lakers team could clearly feel the change in atmosphere brought by Li Rui. The players seemed more willing to trust their teammates, and even Kobe was more inclined to pass the ball. Kobe was no longer grumbling on the court, instead showing more patience as he looked for ways to win.

Li Rui's active movement and his selfless, non-ball-dominant playstyle seemed to be subtly influencing Kobe. There were few point guards in the NBA who didn't hog the ball, and Li Rui was one of them; as long as the guard wasn't too attached to the ball, everyone else seemed to become more engaged.

Moreover, Li Rui was developing a reputation for reliability—if he was open, giving him the ball was the right play, as his accuracy was higher than anyone else's.

The team started noticing Li Rui's off-ball movement subconsciously and began setting screens for him, which was crucial for a Lakers team that had lacked tactical variety. Just as in the few possessions since Li Rui checked in, the Lakers' tactics had become instantly clear: Kobe with the ball, Li Rui moving, Bynum screening, and Odom and Walton acting as decoys—everyone was working in sync to set up Li Rui for open shots.

Li Rui knew exactly why the Lakers were changing; Klay Thompson’s off-ball playstyle was compatible with any system, a truly transcendent impact.

"Going forward, Li, you will definitely be heavily targeted. Your focus on the court is to move, draw the defense, and create space. Lamar, you go to the backcourt more to receive the ball and bring it to the frontcourt for Kobe. Kobe, you decide how to attack based on the situation..." the Zen Master instructed methodically.

"No problem."

"Got it!"

"Let's get 'em!"

The Lakers players were fired up.

The timeout ended quickly.

Bulls' possession.

Hinrich dribbled to the frontcourt, scanning the defense. Li Rui stayed glued to him, denying him space to accelerate. Hinrich was physically strong and didn't fall behind in the physical battle against Li Rui.

After the ball moved around the perimeter, it returned to Hinrich, who initiated the attack. Ben Wallace came up to set a screen, Li Rui was caught, and Bynum was a step slow. Hinrich changed direction to the left, quickly gathered the ball, and pulled up for a jump shot.

Li Rui was too far out of position to contest the shot.

"Swish!"

16-17.

Li Rui had tried his best, but he couldn't stop it; his defensive ability wasn't yet enough to completely shut down Hinrich. Seeing the ball go in, Hinrich breathed a sigh of relief—at least he had managed to strike back.

On the sideline, the Zen Master frowned. Hinrich had exploited the lack of chemistry between Li Rui and Bynum on the switch. He didn't rush to make adjustments; Hinrich wouldn't be able to score every time.

Hinrich continued to pressure Li Rui, but Li Rui didn't look to receive the ball, so Odom brought it up. This time, Li Rui stood on the left to space the floor; the Bulls players didn't dare to be careless, and Hinrich stayed right on him, not even letting him touch the ball. Bynum tried to set an off-ball screen for Li Rui, but it was unsuccessful as Hinrich navigated around it.

Seeing no good opportunity, Li Rui continued to run to draw the defense.

Kobe initiated the attack, dribbling past Ben Gordon and driving into the paint. Between the free-throw line and the restricted area, he pulled up for a fadeaway against Ben Wallace's help defense.

It was an incredibly difficult shot.

"Swish!"

It just went in.

18-17.

The game entered a period of intense back-and-forth.

Li Rui didn't score for the remainder of the first quarter. He attempted one three-pointer but missed, though he did record another assist. With 1:12 remaining, he caught a pass from Kobe on the right side, drawing a double-team, and with a pump fake, he threaded a pass to the paint where Bynum easily muscled past Luol Deng to score.

At the end of the first quarter, the score was tied at 26-26.

In the second quarter, Li Rui shot two-of-five, hitting a three-pointer and a layup on the break, while adding two assists.

In the third quarter, Li Rui's performance was average, going one-of-four from the field; he missed both his three-point attempts, scored two points off a backdoor cut, and dished one assist.

For the majority of the time, Li Rui was running to draw defensive attention, which reduced the pressure on Kobe and allowed his scoring to soar. Hinrich had to keep chasing Li Rui, which was exhausting, leading to mediocre playmaking efficiency. However, Luol Deng and the bench players were in good form, consistently scoring in bursts.

On the Lakers' side, they relied on Kobe's sheer individual brilliance—either drawing fouls or forcing shots in. Li Rui looked on with envy at Kobe’s offensive repertoire.

Kobe was currently at the peak of his career.

One-on-one, he was unstoppable; he would take the challenge every time and convert with high efficiency.

One-on-two, the pressure was minimal; if he had a chance, he would finish, often drawing a foul.

One-on-three, there was some pressure, and while Kobe used to force these finishes alone, he was now trying to find his teammates.

One-on-four, Kobe would occasionally pull off a miracle shot.

Only when he was truly locked in and "seeing red" would he attempt these against five defenders...

Sometimes, even when the opponent had him perfectly defended, Kobe would still find a way to score.

He made the opponents respect him!

Ben Gordon and Luol Deng took turns defending him, and both were left feeling hopeless...

Li Rui needed space to score, while Kobe could create his own space. They were both guards, but their styles were completely different.