One day later, on June 10th, the highly anticipated second game of the finals kicked off.
This time, both Zhang Yang and Kobe couldn't get going. Both parties strengthened their defense against these two, willing to sacrifice defense in other positions to limit them.
The first game was played so well, yet they only won by 4 points, nearly getting overturned. Carlisle couldn't allow Kobe to continue shooting from either side of the free-throw line with his over 45% mid-range shooting percentage. That area was too stable for Kobe; once their attack stalled, the opponent's advantage would rise.
Carlisle felt that Kobe taking a lot of shots would lead to losing control of the game, and the Zen Master thought similarly about Zhang Yang. That three-pointer was incredibly strong, more accurate than spot-up shooters!
When both were tightly guarded, it created opportunities for others.
