Harris immediately made personnel changes, bringing the starting lineup back onto the court.
However, O'Neal, returning from his rest, had lost the soft touch from the first quarter, missing consecutive shots near the basket.
The chemistry between Van Exel and O'Neal was still quite different from that of the Utah duo.
The Jazz seized the opportunity and began a scoring run.
By the end of the half, the score was 50:48, with the Jazz leading the Lakers by two points.
The slight advantage accumulated by the reserve lineup at the end of the first quarter and in the second quarter was completely lost by the starting lineup.
During halftime, Kobe raised his eyebrows at He Ximeng, signaling that the second half would likely be another exciting battle.
He Ximeng shook his head, not optimistic about the second half.
Strong teams like the Jazz, especially those with a defense-first approach, rarely make the same mistake repeatedly in a single game.
As expected, after the second half began, the Jazz increased their defensive intensity.
O'Neal found it much harder to get one-on-one opportunities near the basket as he had in the beginning.
Stockton focused on stifling Van Exel's passes, then luring Van Exel into driving to the paint, where Malone and Ostertag would handle him in the post.
Seeing Van Exel repeatedly trapped by the Jazz's defense with the ball in his hands, He Ximeng, from the sidelines, felt a pang of embarrassment.
While brave, this kind of reckless courage only dragged the team down, handing over the momentum of the game to the opponent.
If He Ximeng were coaching, Van Exel would have been benched to guard the water cooler after making such mistakes repeatedly.
But Coach Harris must have had his reasons for giving Van Exel consistent playing time and shot opportunities. Was he hoping to boost his value to sell him for a good price?
Following this line of thought, He Ximeng suddenly understood many of Coach Harris's seemingly illogical decisions.
Logically speaking, Harris was already considered a renowned coach, unlikely to make so many basic errors.
Since the mistakes weren't unintentional, there must be another motive.
He Ximeng seemed to have figured out the hidden agenda. However, his understanding did not change the Lakers' situation on the court.
Under Stockton's control and the Jazz's fierce defense, the Lakers gradually lost control of the game, and the deficit widened to double digits.
Still holding onto a sliver of hope for victory, Coach Harris brought in the rotation players before the end of the third quarter, trying to replicate the situation from the end of the first and the second quarters.
Kobe clenched his fists, ready to embrace the coach's pep talk and perform a heroic comeback.
But the final outcome was as He Ximeng had predicted at halftime. As a Finals-caliber team, Coach Sloan had honed the Jazz into a well-oiled machine. How could they repeat the mistakes made at the end of the first and the beginning of the second quarter in the same game?
Especially in the critical moments that decided the game, Sloan would never allow his team to make such an error.
The Jazz's countermeasure was simple: keep Stockton and Malone, the dual stars, on the court simultaneously.
Let the seasoned Stockton deal with rookie He Ximeng, and Malone handle O'Neal in the paint.
With both stars active, they cut off the connection between He Ximeng and O'Neal, forcing He Ximeng to shoot himself or pass to Kobe.
Stockton's physical abilities might not be exceptional, but his basketball IQ was very high. On defense, Stockton had excellent anticipation, high defensive intensity, and many "little tricks."
These "little tricks" were not visible to the referees but were quite effective in actual play.
Under Stockton's relentless interference, He Ximeng struggled, missing shots and committing turnovers, looking quite disheveled.
Even complaining to the referees was of no avail.
Firstly, it was the Jazz's home court. Secondly, Stockton's subtle moves, practiced for over a decade, were very covert and rarely caught by the referees. More importantly, He Ximeng was just an unknown rookie, while Stockton was a renowned assist king and playmaker.
Before entering the league, several scout reports listed Stockton as He Ximeng's developmental template.
Even if He Ximeng argued with the referees, he would be ridiculed by the fans as a "fake" encountering the "real" one, or a "pirated copy" meeting the "original."
Therefore, He Ximeng could only endure Stockton's subtle tactics. With difficulties in connecting with O'Neal and struggling to score himself, he attempted to pass the ball to Kobe for a one-on-one play.
Kobe was a bit excited by the sudden opportunity to perform.
He Ximeng couldn't create space for him; he had to rely on his own solo efforts to carve out space.
Kobe had always dreamed of opportunities for isolation plays, hoping to emulate Jordan and win games with an unstoppable fadeaway jumper.
But Brian Russell taught the young Kobe a lesson in "brick laying."
After going 3-for-3 in the first half, Kobe contributed an embarrassing 0-for-4 in the second half.
Although Kobe shot 3-for-7 for the entire game, his field goal percentage remained respectable. However, fans who watched the game knew that Kobe's three made baskets were all assisted by teammates, particularly He Ximeng, who created space for his shots.
The shots Kobe attempted on his own all hit the rim.
On one hand, it indicated that Kobe's fadeaway jumper was not yet perfected, and its stability and accuracy were not guaranteed against NBA-level competition.
On the other hand, it also demonstrated Brian Russell's decent defensive ability. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been qualified to be a background player for Jordan in the future. Of course, whether Jordan's iconic game-winning shot would still happen as planned in this timeline remained unknown for now.
Ultimately, the Jazz, with their veteran court control, weathered the Lakers' comeback and secured the victory.
For the Lakers, it wasn't a lack of potential, but rather that their potential had not been fully tapped. There were issues with player coordination and synergy within the lineup.
In essence, these problems could be overcome when facing weaker teams, but they were all exposed against strong opponents in the league, ultimately contributing to the team's defeat.
Making the playoffs shouldn't be an issue for the current Lakers, but to become a Finals-caliber team capable of challenging the Bulls like the Jazz, the Lakers' management and coaching staff still had a lot of work to do.
He Ximeng saw many of these problems more clearly than anyone else, but as a rookie player, his best option was to speak less and practice more, striving to steadily improve his individual abilities. The team's affairs were not yet the concern of a rookie point guard, even if he was more than just a point guard.