44 points is like drinking water! 77% thinner, 26-year-old Xiao Li is in the best shape of his career. The Lakers have everything ready and are just waiting for James?

The focus of the NBA Cup, the Lakers defeated the Grizzlies 117-112. Although the point difference is only 5 points, I believe everyone can see how big the gap between the two teams is.

Doncic single-handedly crushed the entire Grizzlies defense with 44 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists. Neither single defense nor double attack could limit this super ball-handling core. His duel and instigation are like two bottles of poison. No matter what the Grizzlies choose, it will be wrong.

Morant made 0 of 6 three-pointers. His ball-handling pick-and-roll threat is vastly different from Doncic's: the Lakers can boldly retreat and release Morant for a three-point draw, but the Grizzlies can only double-team when encountering Doncic's high pick-and-roll - the ace three-point threat is not on the same level, and the Grizzlies' defense is more difficult than the Lakers.

Doncic has already given the Grizzlies a headache, and having Reeves on the field to lead the team in the transition period can also force the Grizzlies to double-team him. The Lakers' two ball-handling cores both have the ability to block three-pointers and shoot the ball, while the Grizzlies have no reliable ball-handler except Morant. The Lakers' dual-core VS Morant, who is unstable from long range, is the most intuitive difference between the two teams.

With Doncic's comeback, the Lakers' fundamentals will be back. Scoring is like drinking water, and leading a team has never been easier.

In the focus battle, the two teams adopted completely different defensive strategies based on the characteristics of their ace ball carrier.

The Lakers sent Smart to defend Morant, switching positions 1-5 infinitely. Ayton stepped on the free throw line to defend Morant. That is to say, due to the lack of stability of Morant's long-range shooting, he only allows shots but not breakthroughs, and easily prevents Morant from entering the three-second zone with the ball.

The core defensive concept of the Lakers is unlimited switching and cutting, and encourages the Grizzlies to fight one on one. Ayton VS Morant, Smart VS 3J, these two groups are defensive matchups that the Lakers can withstand.

The Grizzlies used a double-team strategy to deal with Doncic's pick-and-roll. Coach Isalo was very afraid of Doncic's long three-pointer in the pick-and-roll with the ball. He actively double-teamed Doncic on the line to force Doncic to play the ball in the pick-and-roll, and at the same time rotated off the line to compensate for Ayton. The Grizzlies' rotation idea is also very clear. Whoever guards Smart will help make up the basket.

The Grizzlies' core defensive concept is to dismantle Doncic's pick-and-roll threat in the middle, force the Lakers to move the ball from the most threatening center to the corner as much as possible, and pinch Doncic and Ayton hard. Compared with Doncic's top ball-handling threat, the Grizzlies forced Doncic to play the ball to find Smart and Ayton who were left open, and encouraged Smart and Ayton to handle the ball. This is obviously what the Grizzlies defense likes to see.

The Lakers switched defenses and cut, and the Grizzlies double-teamed and rotated. Although their styles were different, they both set the tone of the game on the defensive end.

The theme of the Lakers' campaign is that the team helps Doncic pick-and-roll and break double teams, while the Grizzlies have to overcome the time period when Morant is not on the court.

Doncic made three passing errors in the first quarter. The Grizzlies' flanking defense and rotational destruction of passing routes had a certain effect on him. The Lakers were once forced to rely on Smart holding the ball to initiate an alley-oop to Ayton. This round is obviously short-lived. Smart and Ayton have limited threats in handling the ball. It is obviously unrealistic to expect them to kill the Grizzlies.

Fortunately for the Lakers, Doncic is in extremely hot form, and the way to break the game has become simple and cruel: Doncic uses a pick-and-roll with the defender to call Morant/Pope to score alone, or he can play a pick-and-roll with Ayton/Hayes, and squeeze into the free throw line. A solid mid-range shot, as well as the "basic skill of not making six" moves in a wide range to find a three-pointer from the opposite corner when double-teamed - the Lakers broke through the Grizzlies' iron barrel formation and suffered from Doncic's state. He also gave a perfect answer with his attitude of attacking and organizing.

Due to injuries to Jerome and Pippen Jr., it is well known that the Grizzlies' second team lacks ball handlers.

When Morant was resting, coach Isalo had no choice but to use Vince Williams Jr. as a guest point guard in the second team, but the effect was not ideal. He made two mistakes in the first quarter. The Lakers bullied the Grizzlies' second team without a point guard and easily took the lead.

Before Jerome's return, the Grizzlies relied heavily on Morant to control the court. Morant's strong-side attack attracted the Lakers' defense to shrink and then looked for a three-pointer from the weak-side corner. This is the best formulaic play for the Grizzlies at present.

Both teams are actually betting: the Grizzlies double-team Doncic, help defend the middle, and bet on the Lakers' corner three-point efficiency; the Lakers are also stacking people in Morant's face on the strong side. Once Morant enters the three-second zone, 3-4 people will surround him. Redick is willing to let Morant draw a three-pointer and also let the Grizzlies weak-side corner shooter.

It is not difficult to find that the defensive focus of both teams is to protect the penalty area. The difference is that Doncic's online shooting threat is much greater than Morant.

Doncic and Reeves took turns leading the bench, and the two kings defeated the Wu Mo Xiong in the connection period of the fourth quarter.

The Grizzlies were in trouble during the transition period when Reeves was leading the team. They also had to double-team Reeves in pick-and-rolls with the ball. The Lakers could still use Xiaoli's containment to start playing more and less. The Lakers have a dual-ball core configuration, which is obviously something the Grizzlies do not have in this campaign.

With Morant resting, the Grizzlies can only rely on Spencer, Williams, and Coward as guest point guards. The offense in positional battles is stagnant and it is difficult to score.

Doncic represents the Lakers' basic base, and scoring is as easy as drinking water: he single-handedly broke through the switching defenses of Wells, Coward, Williams and others, and he is good at both singles and instigation - single defense is basically impossible, and a double attack will miss the Lakers' three-pointer. No matter what strategy the Grizzlies adopt against Doncic, it will be difficult for the Grizzlies. This is the influence of a superstar.

Morant is more than one level behind Doncic. His long-range shooting is a shortcoming, and the three-pointer was missed by the Lakers, and he made 0 of 6. Once Morant was unable to enter the penalty area, his offensive power was greatly reduced. He only scored 8 points on 3 of 14 shots in this campaign.

On the other hand, Doncic scored 44 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists, completely surpassing Morant in terms of the team's ace comparison.

Doncic has averaged 45.3 points, 11.7 rebounds and 7.7 assists per game since the start of the season. Reeves has scored 51+11+9, 41 points, 28 points, 16 assists and a buzzer-beater in the past three games. Both brothers are in the best shape of their careers so far - everything is ready, just waiting for Lao James!