This decision was considered risky by the Lakers' coaching staff and even more so by the Knicks' coaching staff, viewing it as an emergency measure born out of the Lakers' insufficient strength. Or perhaps, it was because the Knicks' defense was so effective that it forced the Lakers to seek opportunities on the perimeter. Therefore, when He Xi Meng hit that contested three-pointer, Coach Van Gundy didn't pay much attention. He believed that under the Knicks' overall defensive pressure, the Lakers couldn't possibly defeat them by shooting threes. Especially not with such an un-tactical, contested shot, where the accuracy relied entirely on the player's feel, and its reliability and sustainability were very poor.
Little Van Gundy thought the Lakers intended to use this tactic to force the Knicks to extend their defense to the three-point line, thereby creating opportunities for the Lakers to break through the Knicks' interior defense. But he didn't expect the Lakers to have so few elaborate plans. He Xi Meng's suggestion to Coach Aris was to rely entirely on the outside, using shooting to catch the Knicks off guard and win the game before they could react!
This was a risky style of play, and a necessary one for the Lakers given Shaq's absence and their weak interior presence.
However, this strategy received full support from Kobe and Glen Rice. After all, both were players who primarily relied on mid-to-long range shooting, with layups as a secondary option.
With the second, third, and fourth options united in choosing to shoot their way to victory, Coach Harris went with the flow and approved He Xi Meng's suggestion.
Judging by the first two possessions, the effect seemed quite good. At least, the Knicks hadn't reacted yet.
On the Knicks' third possession, they still tried to find Ewing. However, Knight's outstretched hand nearly intercepted Allan Houston's pass. Ewing, having lost his position after regaining possession, chose to pass back to Allan Houston, who had cut inside, as backing down would take too much time.
After receiving the ball, Allan Houston stopped and shot, avoiding He Xi Meng's pursuit and block, and calmly made the shot.
Although Coach Van Gundy's offensive focus in the opening stages was the interior, Allan Houston, as the absolute main player for the Knicks this season, couldn't resist showcasing his mid-range shooting ability.
On the Lakers' third possession, He Xi Meng called for Horry's high pick-and-roll again. But this time, Larry Johnson was close, risking being beaten by He Xi Meng's first step, but unwilling to give him space for a clean three-point shot.
After getting past Larry Johnson, He Xi Meng didn't drive all the way to the basket. Instead, he deliberately shifted sideways into the middle, drawing the attention of Charlie Ward, who was defending Kobe, and then passed back to Kobe!
Kobe caught the ball and adopted a shooting stance for a three-pointer, prompting Charlie Ward to fly in for a block. Kobe faked, drove one step, got past Charlie Ward, then stopped and shot, making a long two-pointer! Compared to three-pointers, Kobe was more confident in his mid-range game. Even for a long two-pointer near the three-point line, just one step away from a three, Kobe's first choice was still a two-pointer, not a three.
In this regard, Kobe's habits were indeed different from He Xi Meng's.
Ultimately, Kobe was a disciple of the Flying Man, his initial dream being to imitate and surpass him… And the Flying Man, his mid-range game was invincible, but his three-point shot… was just so-so…
He Xi Meng was different. He Xi Meng admired Jordan and respected him, but not to the same extent as Kobe. Especially in terms of playstyle, He Xi Meng had witnessed too many top stars and was familiar with too many league-best skills. He found Jordan's signature fadeaway jumper, which everyone admired and imitated in that era, to be not that impressive.
No wonder Kobe always called He Xi Meng a "three-point freak" in their daily training!
Because He Xi Meng was obsessed with passing and three-pointers, while shying away from the flashiest and coolest individual skills in basketball, what else could he be but a freak?
After He Xi Meng and Kobe had both scored, Glen Rice also received a brilliant pass from He Xi Meng in the left corner and hit an off-ball three-pointer!
Glen Rice could play with the ball or without it. In terms of offensive skills, Rice was a relatively excellent scorer. It was his average defense that prevented his overall ability from being more prominent. His peak years were spent with the Hornets, a team infamous for being a league doormat, with low strength, a small market, and weak influence… which led many fans to consider Glen Rice a player with little presence.
Even after joining the Lakers, Glen Rice had been adapting to the team's rhythm. Neither his statistics nor his team status had drawn much attention.
He Xi Meng, however, had been subtly guiding Glen Rice towards becoming a spot-up shooter off the ball. The results over half a season seemed quite promising.
At least when the Lakers needed Glen Rice to step up and hit a couple of shots, his shooting percentage was generally quite stable.
In the early stages of the game, when He Xi Meng, Kobe, and Glen Rice were frequently shooting from the perimeter, the Knicks didn't pay much attention.
The stubborn Coach Van Gundy always believed that the Lakers' perimeter offense was just a feint, and their main attack would still focus on driving to the basket.
Little did he know that the Lakers' main attack had already begun from the moment the game started.
As the first quarter drew to a close, the Lakers, with their high three-point shooting percentage, had successfully extended their lead to six points.
Coach Van Gundy began to sense that something was wrong. Because of the Knicks' strong interior defense, it hadn't posed much of an obstacle to the Lakers' offense. The Lakers were mostly taking mid-to-long range shots, leaving the Knicks' interior players with no opportunity to exert their strength. Instead, the constant back-and-forth movement had visibly depleted the stamina of Ewing and Al John.
Van Gundy kept watching, feeling increasingly uneasy, and finally decided to make substitutions.
He replaced Ewing and Larry Johnson with Marcus Camby and Latrell Sprewell. This adjustment made the Knicks' lineup younger and more mobile.
In the previous rounds of the playoffs, the Knicks' frequent upsets, their journey from eighth seed in the East to Eastern Conference champions, and their successful advancement to the Finals, were greatly contributed by the sixth man off the bench, Sprewell, and the seventh man off the bench, Marcus Camby.
With this adjustment, head coach Van Gundy intended to use Sprewell's excellent scoring ability and Marcus Camby's outstanding defensive capabilities to help the Knicks close the deficit left by the starting lineup…