Play resumed, and James forced his way to the basket, drawing another foul and earning two free throw opportunities.

He was quite serious as he took the free throws, sensing that the Pelicans were different tonight.

However, he only made one of the two free throws.

Gasol secured the defensive rebound, and the Pelicans advanced to the frontcourt. Tang Tian himself launched a sudden three-pointer from the outside.

"Swish!"

The basketball went cleanly through the net.

Tang Tian's three-pointer went in too!

15 to 4!

The point difference had reached double digits!

The fans in the arena were in an uproar.

Game 5 of the series, based on the two teams' past encounters, was expected to be a fierce battle.

And in a fierce battle, the Lakers would have a better chance of winning with their home court advantage.

But now, the situation was completely different from what they had expected!

The game was one-sided!

With just over nine minutes left in the quarter, the Pelicans were already leading the Lakers by a full 15 points, 29 to 14.

The arena was much quieter than at the start of the game, and the fans' eyes revealed a look of despair.

Vogel still held onto hope.

Not just because he was the head coach, but because he felt the game wasn't over yet.

Especially at this point in time, with both teams gradually entering their rotation lineups.

In the past three games, the Lakers had gained the upper hand during the bench stretches, widening the score when they were ahead and closing the gap when they were behind.

Compared to the Pelicans' bench players, the Lakers' substitutes had performed significantly better in this series.

On the Pelicans' side, Siakam was still on the court, while Alexander, Kuzma, and Harrell entered the game one after another.

Including Green, who had been substituted in earlier, Stevens was using a nine-man rotation in this game.

On the Lakers' side, Middleton and Durant were on the court, while Simmons, Frye, and Zubac were gradually substituted in.

Vogel was using an eight-man rotation.

Back on the court, the Lakers' first offensive play saw Simmons cut to the basket and score a layup after receiving a pass from Zubac.

Simmons had been relegated to the bench this season, and coupled with his breakup with Jenna, his career and love life were both at a low point, plus this was a contract year.

Aside from his still-undeveloped shooting skills, his performance in other areas was better than in previous seasons.

Vogel was pleased to see this.

That was how it was.

Although the Pelicans had gained the upper hand at the start of the game, if the bench could close the gap, they would still have a chance to win the game.

This was Game 5, and if the Pelicans wanted to win easily, they would have to ask him and the Lakers for their permission!

In the Pelicans' frontcourt, Alexander was organizing the offense.

Siakam came up to set a pick-and-roll, and then dribbled towards the inside.

Kuzma and Green on the weak side were both making off-ball movements to occupy the defense.

The Lakers' defensive focus was on the Pelicans' outside shooters and Siakam.

With Stevens using a nine-man rotation and Davis unable to play, the Pelicans' lineup had very few ball-handling points on the court.

If they could defend those off-ball players and Siakam, the Pelicans' tactics would basically fall apart.

But just then, something happened that the Lakers hadn't expected: after Alexander broke through to the inside, he went for a floater directly over Zubac!

Zubac had made great progress this season, even pushing McGee to the bench.

But he was a traditional big man with slow speed, and he didn't have time to interfere with the shot.

"Swish!"

The basketball drew an arc in the air and went cleanly through the net!

Alexander's floater went in!

The arena stirred.

The bench players cheered.

Parker's eyes were full of gratification.

Back in the regular season, Alexander had already put on some outstanding performances, and his floater was becoming increasingly refined, increasingly reminiscent of Parker's.

On the Lakers' offensive play, Durant's jump shot after receiving a pass from Zubac bounced out, but Zubac used his height and wingspan to grab the offensive rebound and score with a putback.

Harrell was still at a bit of a disadvantage on the defensive end.

Cheers erupted from the crowd.

Compared to the starters, the Lakers' bench was clearly performing better!

"Defense! Defense!"

As they retreated, the fans in the arena chanted in unison to cheer them on.

Now was a good opportunity for the Lakers to build momentum!

The Pelicans' frontcourt offensive plays didn't pan out, and Alexander ended up dribbling and breaking through.

"Collapse! Double team!"

Vogel knew that time was running out, and he shouted at the players on the court.

The Lakers collapsed from both wings, no longer giving Alexander the same floater opportunity as before.

However, Alexander had been mentored by Nash and Parker, two Hall of Famers, and he knew more than just the floater.

After noticing the change in the Lakers' defense and estimating the time remaining, he simply flicked the ball to the outside.

Kuzma caught the ball and quickly shot.

Just as the ball left his hand, the red light on the sidelines came on.

It was a buzzer-beating shot.

Although Kuzma didn't have much time to adjust, he shot the ball squarely.

"Swish!"

With a crisp sound, Kuzma's buzzer-beating three-pointer went in!

After scoring, Kuzma pointed at Alexander.

It seemed like a pass made in desperation, but he got a completely open three-point opportunity.

Fortune favors the bold.

The arena was in an uproar.

Vogel almost choked on his breath.

This three-pointer was deadly.

The most direct evidence was that, after these possessions, the Lakers had not only failed to close the gap, but had instead fallen behind the Pelicans by 16 points!

On the Lakers' offensive play, Simmons used Zubac's screen to charge to the basket and was about to go up for a layup after squeezing past Harrell.

But just then, Kuzma appeared near the restricted area and quickly planted his feet.

Simmons couldn't stop in time and collided with him head-on.

Kuzma was knocked to the ground.

The referee blew his whistle, signaling an offensive foul on Simmons!

Kuzma, still lying on the ground, pounded the floor hard after seeing the referee's gesture and couldn't help but roar.

Others might not know, but in fact, he and Simmons were quite connected.

Because his current girlfriend, Jenna, was Simmons' ex-girlfriend.

To avoid unnecessary trouble, Jenna had not come to the arena to watch this series.

But Kuzma knew that Jenna was definitely watching the live broadcast.

The competition between men wasn't just about length, diameter, or time; the head-on, direct confrontation on the court was also a part of it.

Simmons jumped up and ran to the referee to question the call, indicating that Kuzma was standing inside the restricted area.

The arena was filled with boos.

The referee, under pressure, reviewed the replay.

The replay showed that Kuzma was standing outside the restricted area, and he had established his position.

The baseline referee's call was accurate.

Kuzma had been helped up, and after seeing the referee confirm the call, he clenched his fist again.

Out with the old, in with the new; he was more worthy of Jenna than Simmons.

The Pelicans' frontcourt offensive play was also the last offensive play of the quarter.

Alexander continued to break through and pass to Kuzma, and Durant pounced fiercely on this play.

Kuzma faked a shot and broke through directly, and after drawing the help defense from the wing, he chose to pass to the corner.

Green received the ball, a very good three-point opportunity.

He adjusted himself, this buzzer-beating shot of the quarter.

Under the nervous gaze of the fans in the arena.

"Swish!"

The basketball went cleanly through the net!

Green's three-pointer went in too!

From the starters Carter and Gasol to the bench players Kuzma and Green, the Pelicans were firing on all cylinders; they had received a team-wide buff!