Free Web NovelChapter 371: Chapter 114: [Going to Any Lengths to Pad Stats]
When Mike Brown completely followed King James’s instructions, taking Ilgauskas off the court and putting in a small-ball lineup to give James room to operate,
Su Xi let out a joyful laugh.
Once the game resumed, he went all out to halt LeBron James’s charge. James chose to pass, but McGinnis, lying in wait at the corner, failed to hit the three-pointer. The rebound was secured by Foster, who passed it to Su Xi.
Su Xi advanced the ball with a slow rhythm.
Abandoning the fast-paced offensive model from the first three quarters, he set up for an isolation play. Eric Snow was still the one guarding him.
Su Xi went one-on-one against Snow at the elbow.
As everyone knows, the elbow is one of the most important and most heavily defended areas on the court. When a scorer can create opportunities here, it benefits every other position. Some people also like to call this area the key.
Superstar scorers like Jordan and Kobe all possessed the ability to score from this area and overcome the opponent’s strongest defense.
SWISH!
Su Xi punished Snow with a turnaround jumper.
Su Xi’s technical skills hadn’t yet reached a god-like, unpredictable level, but they were already incredibly solid. Paired with his even more solid ability to handle contact, it was perfectly normal that Snow couldn’t stop him.
Su Xi’s basket further widened the point differential.
LeBron James went on a mad dash. He finally shook Su Xi this time and, with the help of an illegal screen from a teammate, stormed into the paint. He leaped explosively, ready to throw down a mountain-splitting dunk, but the wily veteran Tony Battie came out of nowhere and unceremoniously brought him down from mid-air.
Tony Battie willingly took the foul.
LeBron James grimaced as he walked to the free-throw line.
He was still not experienced enough. Facing a wily veteran like Tony Battie, he seemed far too straightforward.
CLANG!
SWISH!
He made one of two.
On the other end, it was Su Xi in isolation again.
Snow was the primary defender.
Su Xi wasn’t even trying any flashy moves on him now. He went straight into a back-down. THUD! THUD!
Two bumps.
He faked with his shoulder to the right, then quickly spun left, paused with a pump fake, jumped, faded back, and released the shot...
Every step was clear.
And predictable.
It was like an old married couple going through the motions, not even changing positions.
But the moment Su Xi made his move, Snow still couldn’t help but shift his weight.
It just goes to show, even with the same old position, you still groan when it feels good.
When Su Xi released the ball, Snow’s attempt to block was futile.
SWISH!
Su Xi hit another shot.
Mike Brown watched, secretly alarmed. ’Little Sheep Su Xi has improved again. If his shot from the key stays this accurate, the Cavaliers are in trouble.’
At that moment, Snow shot him a pleading look that screamed, ’I really can’t stop him!’
Mike Brown returned an encouraging gaze. ’Just hang in there a little longer.’
He knew very well that if he called for a double-team at this moment, the Cavaliers would surely fall apart elsewhere. They had already sacrificed part of their defense by playing a fast-paced offense. Plus, the Cavaliers’ natural limitations were what they were.
’This is tough. If only LeBron had the skills to score one-on-one in the key.’
The game continued.
James was on the move. He charged into the paint again, and seeing the Indiana defense collapse on him, he passed to his teammate Gooden, who finally made a basket.
Afterward, Su Xi went back to isolating on Snow.
But this time, after his post-up and spin, he didn’t jump for the shot. Instead, he executed a classic hesitation move, faking a gather to trick Snow into shifting his weight forward. He then quickly drove inside, blowing by Snow in one step. He tore into the paint with unstoppable momentum, drawing the help defense from Gooden, and passed to Tony Battie. Battie cut to the basket for a one-handed dunk.
After the Pacers slowed their pace, with Su Xi playing like a traditional shooting guard, they still maintained their potent offensive firepower.
This went on for five straight minutes.
The lead swelled to 11 points.
The Cavaliers called a timeout.
Although James was playing well, the momentum of the game was rapidly slipping away from Cleveland.
Mike Brown laid out a new strategy. He put Ilgauskas back in, reiterating they would run a half-court offense. The plan was to feature Ilgauskas in the post and fire the bullets into Indiana’s paint.
The whistle blew.
The game continued.
The Cavaliers’ change in lineup and tactics had an immediate effect. Ilgauskas played high, making his first shot right over Foster’s head.
But by using the previous five minutes of slower-paced play to recover, the Pacers’ players had also regained some stamina.
Su Xi was still in isolation, and Snow still couldn’t guard him.
Su Xi spun into the free-throw lane, drew the help defense, and passed the ball out. Tony Battie hit another mid-range jumper.
The Pacers were gradually developing a bit of chemistry.
Su Xi was very good at using his own advantages to create easy-ball opportunities for his teammates.
The difference in his and James’s playstyles was on full display in this game. Both were players with exceptionally prominent individual abilities. But Su Xi tended to crack the tough nut himself first before dishing it to his teammates. James also did this, but he preferred for his teammates to help him crack the tough nut, after which he would make the pass.
He needed specific types of players and tactics to maximize his own performance.
But Su Xi didn’t.
Su Xi could play run-and-gun, or he could settle into a half-court set, using his own offensive ability to slowly chip away at the defense before feeding his teammates.
James started running a screen and roll with Ilgauskas. Ilgauskas drew Foster away from him, and he charged wildly into the paint... while Gooden drew the other interior defender, Tony Battie.
