Before the second quarter began, Jonas pondered for a moment and decided to let Li Feng rest on the bench.
The offensive and defensive battle in the first quarter had been too fierce, akin to a meat grinder, and Li Feng had been too dedicated, his stamina depletion exceeding that of other Chinese players.
With Da Yao in the paint and Li Feng on the perimeter, both were cornerstones of offense and defense, truly exhausted.
Therefore, in the second quarter, Li Feng and Da Yao would both rest, with Yi Jianlian and Sun Dasheng leading the substitutes.
The Greek starters were not as tired because they played with greater team cohesion.
China's lineup for the second quarter consisted of Yi Jianlian, Sun Dasheng, Li Nan, Du Feng, and Liu Wei.
Although China's reserve lineup was not weak, they couldn't withstand the pressure from Greece.
Everyone discovered that without Li Feng's containment, the Greek player Span, like a beast out of its cage, was unstoppable!
With the support of his team, he combined drives and shots, and could even orchestrate plays, appearing omnipotent, decimating China's reserve lineup and bringing them to the brink of collapse.
With 6 minutes and 41 seconds remaining in the second quarter, China brought back all its main players except Li Feng, which only slightly slowed down the downward trend.
At this point, the score was 32:23, with China trailing by nine points!
However, Jonas still did not substitute Li Feng.
This made not only the spectators by the sidelines whisper anxiously, but also the commentators Yu Jia and Zhang Zhi a bit worried in the live broadcast studio.
Yu Jia asked with a solemn expression, "Is Li Feng injured? But I saw him sitting by the sideline."
Coach Zhang also found Jonas's decision incomprehensible, shaking his head slightly, "Greece is still stronger than Lithuania. Jonas's complacency is truly unwise. Of course, the head coach has his tactical arrangements; let's wait and see."
Their confusion essentially represented the thoughts of most fans.
The one who least understood Jonas was Li Feng himself, sitting on the bench.
He had played smartly in the first quarter, not only performing well himself but also motivating his teammates. At the end of the first quarter, China was still leading by three points.
Unexpectedly, Jonas kept him firmly on the bench in the second quarter. Li Feng was anxious.
But he was a player who respected his head coach, so he could only wait patiently.
He waited and waited, and by the time the second quarter was halfway through, China was trailing by nine points, and Jonas still hadn't put him in.
Li Feng became truly anxious, constantly looking at Jonas, even approaching him during timeouts.
But Jonas turned a blind eye.
Span performed exceptionally well in the second quarter, scoring another 14 points and leading Greece to a significant lead over China.
At the end of the first half, the score was 55:34, with China trailing by 21 points!
This point difference was even larger than the halftime deficit in the previous game against Lithuania.
The fans were outraged, angrily questioning Jonas!
"Why not put Li Feng in? Are you out of your mind?"
"What is Jonas playing at? Trying for another huge comeback!"
"Unbelievable, Li Feng played so well in the first quarter, and they won't let him play, idiot!"
...
Facing criticism from all sides, Jonas remained unmoved, having his own small calculation in mind.
Jonas believed that although Li Feng played well, he hadn't fully grasped Greece's tactics.
Therefore, he wanted Li Feng to watch more from the sidelines, to understand the enemy, and then, with abundant energy in the second half, crush Greece!
Of course, this was also a gamble.
After all, not every game could be a comeback.
During halftime, Span was ecstatic. He thought Li Feng was scared and didn't dare to play.
So, as he walked off the court, he showed off to his heart's content.
He not only provoked the Chinese bench but also made indecent gestures to the audience.
This infuriated the fans present, and a torrent of curses ensued.
Of course, some of the curses were directed at Jonas, blaming him for not letting Li Feng play.
Li Feng's face was ashen. He had waited an entire quarter, watching his teammates get battered, yet he was powerless.
As the players headed for the locker room, Li Feng could no longer hold back and immediately went to question Jonas.
"Coach, why aren't you letting me play?"
Jonas replied calmly and simply, "Greece's tactics are very complex. You exerted too much in the first quarter. I'm worried about you getting injured!"
"..."
Li Feng was speechless. Jonas's words were irrefutable, as he was the head coach, and he claimed it was for his own good, to prevent injury.
Amidst the curses from the audience, both teams' players headed towards the locker rooms.
Li Feng's mind was filled with Span's smug behavior from earlier, making him furious.
He secretly vowed that if the coach gave him a chance in the second half, he would absolutely dominate Span and vent his anger!
The two commentators for t.n.t., Barkley and Smith, were also very confused and questioned Jonas.
"What the hell? Li Feng played so well in the first quarter, and they're not letting him play in the second? WTF?" Barkley, shaking his bald head, kept shaking his hands.
Smith wanted to defend Jonas a bit, as the program needed them to hold different opinions.
But after thinking about it, he still couldn't understand Jonas's reason for not putting Li Feng in.
So Smith could only sigh, "Perhaps the coach is worried about Li Feng's stamina..."
"Bullshit about stamina! Is Li Feng's stamina that bad? It's simply inexplicable!" Barkley was always direct and spoke his mind. Moreover, being far away in the US, he didn't care about Jonas's reputation at all.
...
Outsiders didn't understand, and the Chinese players understood even less. Da Yao was also puzzled.
In the first quarter, Li Feng and he had developed good chemistry, with their passing and pick-and-rolls improving.
Da Yao had originally planned to dominate with Li Feng in the second quarter, but who knew that Da Yao would have to carry the load alone in the second quarter.
Although Da Yao also played well in the second quarter, scoring 11 points, Greece's overall strength was evident, and China gradually fell behind. Da Yao was very disappointed.
But Yao Ming was easygoing and wouldn't get angry at the coach; he could only sulk to himself.
In the locker room, seeing Li Feng's unhappy expression, Yao Ming walked over and patted Li Feng's shoulder, wanting to comfort him.
"Li Feng, don't worry, it's all on you in the second half!"
Li Feng felt the warmth from Da Yao's large hand, and his heart warmed.
"I'm fine, Da Yao. We'll have another tough battle in the second half. I'll give it my all! We must beat Greece!"
Their hands clasped together, and they looked at each other with determined eyes.
...
The second half of the game began.
To the expectant gaze of everyone, Li Feng finally took the court!
The Chinese fans in the stadium erupted in cheers, and shouts of MVP also echoed.
Li Feng was highly focused. He first walked to Span's side and said coldly, "You wait and see, I'm going to blow you away!"