The Lakers' lead had extended to 10 points!
Seeing the situation turning south, Trail Blazers coach Rick Carlisle, or perhaps his alias, Carlesimo, quickly pulled Dudley and replaced him with the more robust Sabonis.
Upon entering the game, Sabonis immediately scored two points for the Trail Blazers with a hook shot in the paint.
Shaquille O'Neal quickly responded, once again utilizing his post-up game and then passing to He Ximeng at the three-point line. He Ximeng faked a shot, luring the Trail Blazers' perimeter defense to close in, then dished the ball to Kobe on the wing!
Kobe, finally getting a shooting opportunity, wasn't about to let it slip away. He faked out Isaiah Rider, drove to the three-point line, and then executed a pull-up jumper at the edge of the paint!
O'Neal - He Ximeng - Kobe!
This Lakers lineup, while seemingly centered around O'Neal, was actually orchestrated by He Ximeng, with O'Neal and Kobe serving as the two primary finishing options!
Frankly, this was He Ximeng taking a shortcut, being a bit lazy.
With one inside threat and one outside threat, any point guard with good passing ability who earned their trust could create excellent offense.
How did Derek Fisher succeed with the Lakers in the past? Wasn't it by relying on the "OK" combination?
Unfortunately, due to He Ximeng's emergence, "Little Fish" was traded to the Orlando Magic, his future uncertain.
Thanks to this stretch of play at the end of the first quarter and beginning of the second, the Lakers successfully established a double-digit lead and maintained it until the end of the game.
95:77, the Lakers decisively defeated the Trail Blazers in their opener, securing a crucial first victory.
O'Neal dominated the paint with 36 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks in the first game.
He Ximeng played 24 minutes, recording 10 points, 7 assists, 2 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 turnover.
Kobe also played 24 minutes, contributing 12 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, and 2 turnovers.
Kaila wanted to celebrate He Ximeng's first career playoff win, but he "sternly" refused. During the playoffs, to prevent any potential energy dips, He Ximeng decided: abstinence for now!
When He Ximeng shared this decision with Kaila, he was met with her mournful gaze.
He Ximeng's heart softened, and he relented, agreeing to maintain sufficient energy at least during each series.
After the first round, if the Lakers advanced, there would be at least two days of rest.
Kaila happily pounced on him, nearly igniting a fire that night.
The second game of the Lakers' first-round series continued on their home court in Los Angeles.
The Trail Blazers were still unable to contain O'Neal's dominance in the paint. Coupled with the Lakers' transition offense, they couldn't stop the attacks from the Lakers' two young stars. The final score was 93:107, another loss for the Trail Blazers, who returned to Rip City trailing 0:2.
In the 1996-97 season, the NBA still employed a best-of-five format for the first round of the playoffs.
If the Trail Blazers couldn't leverage their home-court advantage to stop the Lakers in Game 3, they would be swept 0:3.
He Ximeng had a breakout shooting performance in Game 2, going 6-of-6 from three-point range, adding a layup and making both of his free throws, for a total of 22 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals!
He Ximeng's outburst seemed to spur Kobe on!
Consequently, Kobe exploded in Game 3, scoring a career-high 22 points for the first time. He shot 7-of-13 from the field, 2-of-3 from three-point range, and 6-of-8 from the free-throw line.
However, Kobe's rampage didn't bring good fortune to the Lakers. Instead, as the ball increasingly became a finishing point for Kobe, the Lakers' offensive flow during their transition game was less fluid than in the previous two games.
Therefore, before the game ended, despite Kobe's excellent performance, head coach Harris didn't praise him much. Of course, Harris didn't criticize him either. After all, everyone saw Kobe's effort. It just seemed that such effort wasn't the correct method to win.
98:90, the Trail Blazers managed to win a game at home.
In Game 4, Kobe's playing time plummeted from 27 minutes in the previous game to 10 minutes, his shot attempts dropped from 13 to 5, and his scoring also fell back to 7 points from 22.
Coach Harris hadn't directly criticized Kobe, but by reducing his minutes and shot attempts, he was indirectly reprimanding him.
Conversely, He Ximeng continued to play 28 minutes. In the last game, due to Kobe's focus, He Ximeng's shot attempts were limited to 4, but in this game, they were increased to 8!
He shot 5-of-8 from the field, including 4-of-6 from three-point range, and made his only free throw, finishing the game with 15 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal.
Without Kobe's contributions to his scoring, He Ximeng's assist numbers decreased. After all, there was one less excellent scoring machine on the court.
Coach Harris was simultaneously exploring the potential of the two young stars and constantly reminding them not to stray from his guidance and to accept his control.
Kobe occasionally displayed his rebellious nature, thus receiving periodic reprimands from the head coach.
He Ximeng, on the surface, obeyed Harris implicitly, but in reality, he frequently made unauthorized tactical adjustments during games, making him more "unruly" than Kobe.
But why was Kobe always being reprimanded by Harris, while He Ximeng rarely faced criticism from the coach?
Because Kobe always tended to confront the head coach directly. Anyone who did that would be reprimanded by the coach!
He Ximeng, however, always operated under the guise of the head coach's authority. If his gambits succeeded, it was Harris's credit. If they failed, Harris took the blame.
The crucial factor was that many of He Ximeng's adjustments had a high probability of success and a low probability of failure. In essence, he was using Harris's name to optimize Harris's tactics and strategies. What could Harris say?
Therefore, Harris never criticized He Ximeng in public; in fact, he would proactively help He Ximeng cover his tracks.
Only in private did Harris warn He Ximeng: "Don't think I don't know about your little maneuvers! I see them all clearly. I'm not saying anything to save your face, or perhaps, you just got lucky this time and pulled it off! But what about next time, and the time after that? Don't presume you can dictate to the coaching staff just because you have talent. You're still green! I've eaten more salt than you've eaten rice..."
Each time he faced Harris's stern but feigned criticism, He Ximeng would immediately admit his mistakes and promise not to repeat them, vowing to uphold the head coach's directives. However, in subsequent games, He Ximeng basically did as he pleased. After all, how could he idly follow a head coach's flawed tactical arrangement or react foolishly when the opponent's strategy changed?
Kobe, feeling frustrated and out of sorts, sat on the bench, watching his team defeat the Trail Blazers 95:91 and advance to the Western Conference Semifinals with a 3:1 series lead.