Kobe, after the team offense opened up, reduced his isolation shots and instead looked for opportunities to connect after initiating the offense. With the team offense set, his burden of organizing the offense suddenly lightened, as Kidd and Garnett took on the majority of the playmaking duties. However, unlike Zhang Yang, he took on the primary task of defending the opponent's top scorer, which was Zhang Yang.
After the start of the second quarter, both teams continued to play team offense and defense. In this quarter, the Lakers led the Bobcats 24 to 23, but by the third quarter, the Bobcats returned the favor with a 24 to 23 lead over the Lakers.
