Facing the Lakers again in the mid season championship, the Suns lost again. In terms of personal output, James had 31 points, 8 rebounds, 11 assists, and 5 steals, slightly surpassing Durant (31 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists), but the progress of the game was not as single-minded as the results showed.

After a long hiatus of not meeting each other in the previous five years, this season, the series of James and Durant's "big and small kings" battle can be considered a satisfying experience for fans.

In today's quarterfinals of the mid season, the Lakers and Suns faced off for the third time since the start of the season. With the added label of the mid season, the intensity of the game's confrontation and the targeted nature of the two sides' tactics are more distinct than the previous two games.

In the first two encounters of the season, the Lakers were both the latecomers who reversed and won. But in this game, Coach Ham didn't seem to be playing a regular season game at all. He prepared it completely according to the standards of a playoff life and death game, and from the moment of the opening jump ball, the Lakers developed a "suffocating" defensive level.

Ham is clearly aware of the strengths and weaknesses of the Lakers, and with the team's current lineup, there is no way out for them to compete with the Suns in attack and shooting from the outside. Especially considering that both Durant and Booker were present in this game, supplemented by two stable pitchers, Grayson Allen and Roundface Deng, the Suns have a one big and four small configuration, hoping to establish a competitive advantage early with the most elite scoring firepower currently available in rotation.

But the Lakers seemed to have foresight about the Suns' deployment, as they gave them strength from the beginning, especially Booker. Throughout the first quarter, he was completely lost in the defensive jungle of the Purple Gold Army, his attacking space with the ball was severely compressed, and most of his dribbling routes were blocked.

It should be noted that Booker's offense has undergone a new evolution this season. In most games, he is quite confident in holding the ball and playing singles, and his shots have become more stable and resolute. Moreover, beyond his individual abilities, Booker's ability to connect has also significantly improved. Although the sample is limited, if we count all the games since the start of the season, Booker's single core leadership performance is better than Durant's (single core leadership).

Previously, Booker's only silent match was against the Raptors more than a week ago. In that game, under the entanglement of the Raptors and their strong attacking men, Booker only scored a dismal 8 points. His only weak link in all individual qualities - the weakness of physical confrontation - was finally exposed. And in this game, the Lakers' blockade of Booker may have also drawn inspiration from the Raptors game.

From the beginning of the first quarter, Booker was caught in an endless physical battle with the Lakers, with Prince, Redish, and substitute Van der Biao taking turns to put pressure on Booker. However, under the continuous confrontation, Booker's performance was disheveled to the naked eye. He had already made 5 mistakes in the half, only scoring 8 points on the offensive end, with a positive and negative efficiency value of -12... With Booker's silence, the overall attack of the Suns naturally came to a halt. At halftime, the Lakers not only took the lead, but also surpassed the Suns in indicators such as creating mistakes and rebounding in the front court. It can be said that the Lakers achieved a complete victory in these two quarters strategically