Chapter 593 - 594 Game 4 NBA Finals 2
594: Game 4 NBA Finals 2 594: Game 4 NBA Finals 2 âCongratulations on the victory, Jake.
It was a very exciting game, and you did really well even with those players marking you and not giving you much freedom,â Eva said.
âThank you, Mom.
It was indeed a very tough game.
My teammates were very nervous, and the New York Knicks players were performing at their best,â Jake replied.
Jake didnât want to tell Eva that his teammates had a poor performance in that game.
He knew that some things were better left unsaid, even when talking to his mother or friends.
Eva also had a good understanding of basketball after watching Jake play for so many years.
She realized that the Los Angeles Lakers players hadnât performed well in that game.
Still, she didnât mention it since their team had won.
Eva continued to praise Jake and chat with him for some time.
Then, Jake left Evaâs room and went to Kateâs room.
He wanted to talk to his girlfriend and see if she was doing okay after reading the newspapers that day.
Jake knocked on Kateâs door, and she opened it after a few seconds.
He noticed that Lily wasnât in the room, and some newspapers were spread open on the bed.
Fortunately, Jake could see that Kate was relaxed even after reading the news.
Kate already knew that attending Jakeâs games in New York was equivalent to admitting that they were dating.
She was concerned about the news repercussions and the potential criticism she might face when it was confirmed that she was dating Jake.
So, she felt much more relaxed when she saw that there werenât many criticisms in the news about her relationship with Jake.
Kate was relieved that the worst part was over, and soon when they officially acknowledged their relationship, they wouldnât have as many problems.
âJake, congratulations on the victory.
When you win one more game, the Los Angeles Lakers will be the NBA champions,â Kate said.
âThank you, Kate.
With you watching the game, it gave me the strength to have my best performance.
Iâll do my best for the Los Angeles Lakers to win the next game, and we can become champions,â Jake replied.
âI saw the newspapers this morning.
Are you okay?â Jake asked.
âYes, everything is fine.
Thankfully, I didnât receive many criticisms from the newspapers saying that we were dating.
Lily even said I would get more criticism if I hadnât come to watch your games when we revealed that weâve been dating for a long time,â Kate said, smiling.
âIâm glad to hear that.
I saw the news in the newspapers this morning when I was with the other players, so I was worried that you might not be okay after reading the news,â Jake said.
Kate was happy to see how concerned Jake was after seeing the news.
She liked to see how Jake took care of her and understood the issues she had.
In reality, they hadnât announced their relationship publicly because of her career.
Jake and Kate talked for a few more hours and spent some time together.
Jake couldnât talk to his friends because they had gone out into the city to have some fun.
Jake knew they had left because he took a while to talk to Kate.
After leaving the hotel, Jake went to the place where the Los Angeles Lakers were going to do some recovery exercises and prepare for Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
Jake would arrive early, but it was better than going to the teamâs hotel and then heading to the training location.
Soon, the other players from the Los Angeles Lakers arrived and saw that Jake was already doing a warm-up run.
They realized that Jake seemed almost recovered from the fatigue of the last game, unlike them, who were still tired.
Jakeâs teammates already knew that he had more endurance and strength than normal.
Many thought Jake had good genetics and was very young, but not getting so tired after so many tense playoff games was more impressive to them than running a marathon.
The coaches of the Los Angeles Lakers were different and only felt happy to have a reliable, skilled, and incredibly resilient player like Jake, who could play every minute in every game and recover easily.
The players engaged in a light exercise to relax their muscles and rest better before the next game.
The Los Angeles Lakers had already won all three games and had the physical and morale advantage.
All they needed was a strong performance to secure the NBA championship.
After everyone finished the light training, Coach Kurt Rambis began to show the video of the last game to the entire team.
Almost all the players were anxious because they knew they had performed poorly in the last game.
Coach Rambis initially showed the entire game to the players without making any comments.
The players were professionals and could see that they had made several mistakes that they wouldnât normally make in that game.
Rick Fox was the most embarrassed when he saw the errors he had committed.
Even during the game, he realized that he was open for several mid-range shots, which he missed.
Watching the replay, he understood that after a while, Latrell Sprewell didnât even attempt to return to defend against him because he knew Rick would miss.
Rick was nervous during the game because it was the first NBA Finals game the Los Angeles Lakers were playing as visitors.
He was having a bad day, and with a lack of confidence, he started missing every attempt.
But seeing the video of his game, Rick knew he couldnât even use that as an excuse.
If he had just stayed calm and followed the training, he wouldnât have missed as many mid-range shots as he did.
Coach Rambis also didnât know what to say to Rick.
He knew Rick had the skill, and he usually had a stronger mentality not to crumble under pressure.
Rick simply had a bad day, and with his lack of confidence, he had one of the worst games of his career.
Thatâs why Coach Rambis only offered a few words of encouragement to the players of the Los Angeles Lakers who had a poor performance.
After all, their issues were not technical errors, but rather problems with the pressure of the games and lack of confidence.
Coach Rambis also addressed some of the technical errors the players had made and discussed the tactics the New York Knicks might use in the next game.
In the end, Coach Rambis simply spoke some words of encouragement to the players.
âI know youâre very tired, even though this season was shortened, youâve played an entire season, and now weâre in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
Youâre tired and under a lot of pressure.â âEven though youâre tired, youâve made it this far.
Weâve already won three games in the NBA Finals, and we only need one more victory to secure the NBA title this season.
The Los Angeles Lakers can win again after 11 years.â âI know youâre currently the best players in the NBA, but for many of you with great careers, this could be your first NBA title.
So letâs all applaud the excellent season youâve had so far.â The players and the coaching staff of the Los Angeles Lakers began to applaud.
Everyone felt a sense of pride after hearing these cheers following Coach Rambisâs words.
They were all proud to have reached the NBA Finals and to be so close to becoming champions.
Coach Rambis was pleased to see the players feeling proud, and he could sense their confidence returning.
Working with professional players who were very proud could be challenging.
It wasnât just about training the players in techniques; the coach also had to consider their mental well-being.
All the players on the Los Angeles Lakers were professionals, and they all trained hard and had mastered the basics of their techniques over many years.
However, their biggest issues often stemmed from pressure, lack of confidence, and other mental factors.
âConsider that tomorrow might be the last game for the Los Angeles Lakers this season.
The greater pressure is on the New York Knicks, who have to win the next game at their home to stay alive in the NBA Finals.â âSo just stay calm, play with confidence, and do what weâve been doing in our training throughout the season.
Weâll win the next game and become the champions of this NBA season.â The players applauded once again and became excited, thinking that they would soon be NBA champions.
After the motivating speech, Coach Rambis played the game video again, this time slowly, and pointed out some errors made by the players.
Coach Rambis told the players that they needed to remain calm and have more confidence; this way, they would make the plays they missed in the last game, just like they trained.
Kobe Bryant and Shaquille OâNeal remained excited even after hearing about some of the errors they made.
They were the players with the most confidence in their abilities and knew they could do better in the next game.
Jake had also spoken to Kobe after the last game and expressed how much he trusted him and counted on him for Game 4.
Jake understood how Kobe Bryant would become a basketball genius in the future, already being one of the best players in the NBA, despite his youth.
Rick Fox was the one who struggled the most after seeing how many errors he had committed.
While Coach Rambis wanted to boost the playersâ confidence, he couldnât avoid criticizing Rick for his poor performance in Game 3.
Coach Rambis even considered starting the next game with Derek Fisher.
However, he didnât do it because he knew Jake wouldnât like to play in a different position in such an important game unless it was necessary.
If Coach Rambis had placed Derek Fisher to play as a small forward (SF), he wouldnât have had the same impact as in the last game.
Moreover, Derek Fisher wouldnât defend as well against Latrell Sprewell as Rick Fox did.
With Coach Jeff Van Gundy already aware of the potential entry of Derek Fisher, he would make the necessary preparations.
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