After losing weight and going all out, he can still confront O'Neal, and tonight O'Neal is clearly off his game.
After being consecutively scored on by Gan Guoyang, tension and panic gradually spread deep within O'Neal's heart — is he going to lose again? Is he going to experience another failing season?
This is already his eighth season, and he has yet to truly prove himself with a championship. Are the criticisms and humiliations of past summers going to continue?
O'Neal's concentration was visibly lacking, and in the next attack, after being double-teamed by Gan Guoyang and Sabonis, he made a passing error.
He handed the ball intended for the cutting Robert Horry, but the pass was too high and went out of bounds, handing the ball to the Trail Blazers. The situation was becoming more and more dire.
Seizing the opportunity during a dead ball, Phil Jackson made a substitution, replacing Tracy McGrady with Ron Harper. He needed the veteran to stabilize the lineup.
On the Trail Blazers' side, Gan Guoyang remained the Sea-Calming Needle, drawing the Lakers' double-team immediately upon receiving the ball at the low post, leaving the outside open.
Gan Guoyang made a pass to Brellock on the outside, who shot a three-pointer and scored!
The Trail Blazers' bench erupted in celebration, while the Staples Center grew even quieter.
15:7, the lead expanded to 8 points, and the situation was becoming increasingly unfavorable for the Lakers.
The Trail Blazers' compressing defense became tighter; they knew the Lakers didn't dare to shoot.
O'Neal didn't even attempt a probing attack upon receiving the ball, he handed it off to Harper, who drove down the middle and was blocked by Gan Guoyang.
Kobe grabbed the ball but didn't counterattack, instead slowing it down for a positional play, giving the ball to Gan Guoyang again as the Lakers doubled up.
Gan Guoyang passed the ball to Kobe, who then passed it to Little O'Neal on the wing, whose mid-range jump shot was successful!
17:7, the lead was now 10 points, prompting Phil Jackson to call another timeout. If the game continued like this, the Lakers would unravel.
Unable to stop Ah Gan resulted in a total collapse of the Lakers' offense and defense, and most importantly, the mentality of the players had crumbled.
After the timeout, the Lakers' offense showed little improvement, and their lack of accuracy in outside shooting was a fatal flaw tonight.
The Trail Blazers fearlessly continued to compress, with the paint area tightly blocked by Gan Guoyang, Little O'Neal, and Sabonis.
Jide's pull-up jumper missed, and O'Neal tipped the rebound out, with Harper grabbing the ball and charging inside but still failing to score on a floater.
Conversely, Gan Guoyang received the ball in the low post, making Lakers fans anxious, and when triple-teamed passed inside, Sabonis caught the ball and dunked it.
19:7, tension and panic continued to spread.
At this point, the referee finally intervened, with Jide's drive causing a foul on Little O'Neal.
Both free throws made, followed by the Lakers' strong physical defense leading to a successful steal, with Robert Horry driving from the baseline and scoring on a pull-up jumper for two points.
The Lakers had managed to pull back four points, uncovering a flaw in the Trail Blazers' lineup: Little O'Neal sometimes had to guard the three position, which he couldn't match in speed.
The score stood at 19:11, slightly alleviating the situation, but Gan Guoyang quickly attacked upon receiving the ball on the low post, hitting a hook shot after a spin move.
21:11, restoring the lead to 10 points as Gan Guoyang's hook shot seemed unstoppable tonight, with the Lakers unable to defend against it.
The next three possessions yielded no scores for either side, with the game's pace alternating between fast and slow, chaotic, with low shooting accuracy and intense jostling under the basket.
Harper finally hit a two-pointer, but Gan Guoyang quickly responded in the low post.
The defender assigned to Gan Guoyang had switched to Thorpe, who knew how to defend against hook shots, needing to stick closely and disrupt the rhythm.
Gan Guoyang spun past Thorpe, cutting into the basket for a one-handed dunk for two points, as Thorpe was too close.
O'Neal didn't dare to help and block the shot due to two fouls being too risky for him.
23:13, Gan Guoyang was like a stabilizer; whenever the Lakers narrowed the gap to within 10 points, he would act to widen the lead again.
The quarter ended with the score at 25:15, with the Trail Blazers leading the Lakers by 10 points; the Lakers had faltered offensively while Gan Guoyang was in full throttle.
He alone scored 16 points in the quarter, outscoring the entire Lakers team.
Meanwhile, O'Neal scored nothing in the first quarter, being the most significant reason behind the Lakers scoring 16 points and falling behind by 10 points.
On the bench, O'Neal still looked bewildered, having forgotten how to engage fully against Ah Gan.
He didn't seem to realize that this was a war, having made no preparations to confront Ah Gan on defense.
Phil Jackson had miscalculated, knowing that tonight O'Neal struggled to be a decisive factor, being suppressed by Ah Gan.
The potential for a comeback depended on Tracy McGrady and Jide, particularly Tracy McGrady, whose ball-handling skills and shooting ability would be critical weapons in the gritty fight.
But can McGrady do it? Can he handle the immense pressure and responsibility in a game seven battle?
Jackson was uncertain, regretful over not insisting on trading Tracy McGrady for Pippen with the Nets during mid-season.
Tracy McGrady was still too young, lacking attacking skills and experience, particularly with a soft personality that made Jackson doubt his ability in hard games.
Pippen still had enough in the tank to hold his own against the 36-year-old Ah Gan; otherwise, things wouldn't be so dire.
Jackson's thoughts drifted into the future, but the second quarter soon commenced, with Gan Guoyang going to rest and Barkley stepping on the court.
The Lakers had a chance to catch their breath, starting a fervent comeback effort.
Of course, in a playoff game seven, star players don't rest on the bench for too long.