"Or, I'll just continue then!"
Seeing that Jonas and Coach Guo couldn't convince each other on this issue, Yao Ming stood up.
Tang Long glanced at Yao Ming, intending to exchange a bottle of stamina potion for Da Yao, but hesitated for a moment and held back.
Yao Ming's stamina issues had always been a tactic exploited by various teams. If he were to exchange a stamina potion for Yao Ming at this moment, they might not do so once they entered the knockout rounds.
By the time they truly reached the finals, these guys originally planned to use fast breaks to deplete Yao Ming's stamina.
Then they found out Yao Ming was full of energy throughout the entire game. Imagining their surprised faces, it would surely be interesting.
Jonas and Coach Guo also glanced at Yao Ming and began to explain the tactics for the second half.
...
"What kind of garbage is this, and they want me to be a spokesperson?"
Yang Anbi casually tossed the business card in front of her into the trash can.
What kind of "Grand Prize Handheld Camera"? Never heard of it. Besides, who uses a mobile phone to take pictures? Can a mobile phone capture her beauty?
If she were to be a spokesperson, it would be for camera brands like Sony or Canon.
While she was still fuming, her agent Feng Lu returned from outside with an iced beverage.
"Honestly, it takes so long just to buy something."
Yang Anbi impatiently took it.
Her impatience was mainly because her agent hadn't secured good seats, and on such a hot day, she had to come watch a bunch of men chasing a basketball.
What was the point of that? They might as well give everyone a basketball.
"Anbi, I've already contacted them. There's a domestic cosmetics brand watching the game, and they're interested in cooperating. They want to have dinner together after the game."
"A domestic brand?" Yang Anbi frowned. "I'm telling you, if the price isn't right, I won't take it."
"I know!"
Feng Lu gave Yang Anbi a look that said, "Don't worry."
"Really, what's so good about this darn game that we have to wait."
Seeing Yang Anbi getting more impatient, Feng Lu quickly said, "Anbi, let's not stay outside. Let's go back and watch the game. Maybe we'll have something to talk about later."
"That's the only way."
Yang Anbi nodded and followed her agent back to the stadium.
This time, the two of them didn't dare to switch seats and quietly returned to their original positions.
...
In the second half, Jonas still made a substitution, replacing Yao Ming with Da Zhu.
Coach Guo was also conflicted. If Yao Ming rested more, his stamina would be better in the subsequent knockout rounds.
But if Yao Ming rested, Tang Long would have to return to the inside, and the Greek team would definitely play well from the outside, increasing the defensive pressure on others.
Jonas had clearly considered this as well, so he didn't have Tang Long play inside. Instead, he used Yi Jian to play inside.
He guessed that the Greek team would also let Spanoulis rest, so it wouldn't be a problem for Yi Jian to play center for a while.
It was pretty much in line with Jonas's prediction...
In the third quarter, the Greek head coach indeed did not field Spanoulis from the start. After all, Greece had already secured qualification, and they also needed to consider the stamina of "Little Shaq" for the knockout rounds.
Moreover, the Greek team was leading at the moment, so they had no pressure.
With Yao Ming resting on the court and Yi Jian playing center, the Dragon Country's offensive speed suddenly increased.
At the same time, Sun Yue's shooting touch also began to rebound.
Just as the game started, facing Greece's full-court press, Tang Long received the ball near the half-court line. Diamantidis was a step slow, giving Tang Long an opportunity to break through with the ball.
Driving to the three-point line, two opposing players double-teamed him. Tang Long smoothly passed the ball to Sun Yue on the other side!
Three-pointer made!
43-46.
Spanoulis then used his speed to shake off Sun Yue and hit a two-point shot in return.
Immediately after, Tang Long drove into the paint and made a layup, drawing an offensive foul from the opposing player.
A 2+1 play, 46-48.
The Dragon Country team, by accelerating their offensive pace, began to create openings in Greece's frontcourt pressure.
The overly spacious court gave Tang Long more opportunities to move and advance the ball.
Papadopoulos missed a shot, Yi Jian grabbed the rebound, and Tang Long immediately hit another two-pointer.
"Sun Yue, let's try a frontcourt press on them too!"
"No problem, watch me."
The Dragon Country players, who had tied the score, were full of fighting spirit and also switched to a frontcourt press.
The Greek players didn't need Tang Long to personally apply pressure. He focused on the second point.
Spanoulis received the ball, and Papadopoulos moved up to receive it. Tang Long left a large gap between them.
Indeed, the relatively safe distance made Spanoulis a bit careless.
When facing Sun Yue's press, Spanoulis immediately passed the ball to Papadopoulos.
In a flash, Tang Long surged forward and intercepted the pass at the front line.
Two points scored, making the score 50-48.
Not long after the start of the third quarter, Dragon Country had regained the lead.
The spectators in the stadium could finally stand up and cheer loudly, their suppressed emotions from the first half finally released, their roars reaching the heavens!
Ioannis directly called for a timeout. The Dragon Country players had gained momentum, especially with the faster pace in the second half that had left the Greek players a bit stunned.
...
"In the first half, we were trailing because of too many turnovers. Once we solved the turnover problem, our score immediately went up."
In the broadcast studio, the three commentators felt a sense of relief.
Although the viewership for this game wasn't as high as for the USA game, it still had over 200 million viewers!
"At first, we hadn't adapted to the full-court press tactic, but this also shows that the opponent took us seriously enough."
Old Bai chimed in, "Ioannis undoubtedly did his homework."
"The Greek players didn't expect us to use the same tactic against them, which made them a bit hesitant. Especially Tang Long's steal, I have to say, Tang Long's speed is truly incredible."
"Tang Long averages 3.5 steals per game in the NBA. Even if we take it as three, that's already six points gained for the team. Not to mention Tang Long's outstanding rebounding and assist abilities!"
"Fortunately, Tang Long is our player. Any coach who could have such a player would surely be overjoyed in their dreams."
With the lead regained, the three commentators finally had the confidence to continue praising Tang Long.
...
After the timeout, Dragon Country maintained an extremely fast offensive pace, fully utilizing Tang Long's super-fast dribbling ability!
Diamantidis, who was fronting Tang Long, was also helpless. When Tang Long received the ball in the frontcourt, he would throw a lob pass when being fronted. Tang Long's starting speed was too fast for him to keep up.
The Greek full-court press tactic easily created space for Tang Long to attack, allowing Dragon Country to fully leverage Tang Long's speed!