One of Ginobili's great strengths is this: if you try to make him play strictly by the book, he'll become very awkward. But if you let him play freely, to his own rhythm, he'll execute flawlessly.
On this possession, Ginobili, with full control, carefully observed the Lakers' positioning. He immediately called for a high pick-and-roll from Malik Rose and isolated Yi Da Zhi.
Ginobili, unlike He Xi Meng, showed no mercy. He had long identified Da Zhi's weakness in physical contests. With a powerful side-step drive, he muscled past Da Zhi's defense, drove into the paint pressed against him, and then, facing John Salley, used a high floater to perfectly avoid the block, sinking the ball off the glass.
Before the Lakers could even react, Ginobili had scored two points, simple and efficient.
At this stage, Ginobili might be more focused on scoring, or rather, he needs to prove his value through scoring. He Xi Meng didn't remind Ginobili to pass; as long as he could help the team score during the rotation, that was enough. Whether Ginobili scored himself or facilitated his teammates' scoring, He Xi Meng felt it wasn't something to be overly demanding about at this point.
In fact, Kobe knew that Ginobili, that headstrong kid, was not to be trifled with. Back at the Nike Basketball Summit, this long-haired Argentine kid dared to go one-on-one against him. He had a huge heart and incredible isolation skills.
As he brought the ball up the court, Kobe deliberately reminded his teammates on the floor to keep a close eye on Ginobili and not to slack off. If their defense wasn't strong enough, and they only focused on offense, the team would still be in a very passive position.
Kobe's words were understood by everyone—Fox, Horry, Da Zhi, and Salley. But understanding was one thing; how to stop him was clearly another matter to consider.
Kobe needed to contain He Xi Meng and prevent him from going off, so he couldn't apply too much defensive pressure on Ginobili. All Kobe could do was ensure the Lakers' scoring efficiency on the offensive end.
On this play, Kobe wanted to repeat his previous move, driving at He Xi Meng head-on. But this time, He Xi Meng wasn't going to sit back and take it. Since his eye-blocking move was ineffective against Kobe, He Xi Meng decided to take a risk during Kobe's gather and go for a steal.
The result was a simultaneous cry of pain from Kobe and the referee's whistle.
He Xi Meng's steal attempt failed, and he sent Kobe to the free-throw line.
He Xi Meng rubbed his hand, which had been hit by Kobe, and said angrily, "You're pretty rough, kid!"
"It's because you're too good..." He Xi Meng's words sounded like an apology, but there was no remorse on his face. "I can't defend you, so I had to resort to this, hoping for luck, a miracle, a steal..."
Kobe pursed his lips and eyed He Xi Meng, clearly not buying his act. He stepped up to the line. He made the first free throw and the second.
"See? That's what happens when you look for miracles against me... Are you going to try again?"
"Why wouldn't I? At worst, I'll send you to the free-throw line again... Besides, this is probably my first foul of the game, isn't it? I can try five more times before fouling out... If I try six times, do you think I might succeed once?"
Kobe rolled his eyes, exasperated by He Xi Meng.
"Look, Manu's already starting the fast break!"
While He Xi Meng and Kobe were exchanging words near the free-throw line, Ginobili had already received the ball from Kerr, who inbounded from the baseline, and was leading the Spurs on a fast break.
Kobe paused, then accelerated back to defend. But then he realized, "Wait, you're the one I'm primarily guarding! What does Manu pushing the ball have to do with me?"
He Xi Meng chuckled and ignored Kobe's grumbling, making a sharp cut to the right and heading straight for the right corner.
Kobe, fuming but helpless, couldn't completely ignore He Xi Meng. If he left He Xi Meng open, He Xi Meng would immediately call for the ball from Ginobili. So, Kobe had to stick close to He Xi Meng's movements, heading down to the low post to defend.
Seeing that He Xi Meng wasn't taking over the offense, Ginobili initiated his drive again, penetrating the Lakers' interior once more. This time, however, anticipating Ginobili's move, the Lakers' defense collapsed more quickly. Ginobili, seeing this, didn't force a shot. Instead, he took a risky bounce pass through a small gap, perilously getting the ball to Malik Rose in the weak-side low post.
Malik Rose was caught off guard and almost missed the pass, nearly turning it into a careless turnover.
Fortunately, at the last moment, Malik Rose managed to retrieve the ball before it went out of bounds and followed with a spin and a floater, salvaging Ginobili's risky "excellent pass."
It's unknown if the expressionless Popovich on the sidelines secretly broke out in a cold sweat for Ginobili's pass.
He Xi Meng, for one, had been ready to sprint back on defense, and Kobe had been preparing for a fast break. But then Malik Rose miraculously saved the ball from going out of bounds and scored, an unexpected surprise.
The Lakers didn't get their fast break opportunity, and Kobe had to bring the ball up the court normally, continuing the half-court game against the Spurs.
It was called a half-court game, but in the last few possessions, Kobe had been going one-on-one, with his four teammates setting screens to facilitate his isolation plays.
On this possession, Kobe uncharacteristically didn't go isolation. Instead, he called for a high pick-and-roll from Da Zhi, drawing Malik Rose out of the paint. He then used a quick crossover to get past, with He Xi Meng sagging off Da Zhi to help on Kobe. Kobe then passed the ball back to Da Zhi, who had retreated.
Da Zhi found himself open on the three-point line and hit his second three-pointer of the game.
The Lakers fans in the arena were surprised. Why had He Xi Meng left Da Zhi so open?
The domestic fans, on the other hand, were invigorated, excited to see a direct matchup between He Xi Meng and Da Zhi.
"Honestly, on that last play, you let Da Zhi shoot on purpose, didn't you?"
On the court, as they were heading back, Kobe quietly asked He Xi Meng.
"No, no, no! Don't try to stir up trouble between me and the Spurs! On that play, I was just too eager to help defend you and was careless, giving Da Zhi plenty of space to shoot... Of course, there was a bit of a gamble involved..."
He Xi Meng would never admit to "going easy," even if he had that intention in his heart.