The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 386 - 197 Rest Assured, LeBron_2

Chapter 386: Chapter 197 Rest Assured, LeBron_2

As long as Yao Ming sets a high pick and roll, the Pacers would use the more mobile Shaquille O’Neal to follow, switching defense directly.

Having Shaquille O’Neal defending Kobe, and Su Wan taking Yao Ming to intercept passes.

After all, once Kobe crossed the free throw line, not to mention Su Wan, even Artest didn’t have that many tricks to stop him from attacking the basket.

Shaquille O’Neal, with his long arms and legs, was better suited for defense.

Even if he couldn’t stop the shot, he could still be disruptive.

While Su Wan defended Yao Ming, his agility made Kobe hesitant to pass the ball back—firstly, Kobe’s passing ability was not top-tier, lacking in flashy pass plays and fine control over pass strength; secondly, passing to Yao Ming was technically challenging. His center of gravity meant he couldn’t catch low passes.

The strategy was notably effective; in the first five minutes of the first quarter, Kobe and Yao Ming failed to coordinate even once.

In the last match at this point, they had already assisted each other in a pass play.

However, this time there was another reason: the Pacers were more spirited and executed their tactics with greater intensity than in the previous game.

Phil Jackson noticed this as well.

Unusually today, he was shouting from the sidelines, reminding the Lakers players of their positioning on the court.

Phil Jackson in the 90s was also a "screaming emperor," but as he got more championship rings, he started "wandering spiritually" by the sidelines with a demeanor of self-respect.

Even though Kobe and Yao Ming’s coordination was halted, by halftime, the score was still close at 51-48.

Relying on Calderon’s catch-and-shoot three-pointer, the Pacers narrowly lead by three points entering the second half.

Rick Carlisle said to Su Wan in the locker room, "Buddy, you need to attack the paint more in the third quarter, wear down Yao’s physical fitness!"

Su Wan gritted his teeth and nodded.

That was not an easy task.

Because the person defending him was Kobe.

As the number of encounters increased, Shaquille O’Neal’s pick and roll became very familiar to Kobe, who managed to bypass it preemptively many times.

Speaking of defense, it really is greatly related to proactivity; when the defender is active, even a high-quality pick and roll can hardly be effective every time.

Especially for a defender like Kobe...

Shaquille O’Neal, in the league, was considered a very good pick and role player, yet still could not stop Kobe.

But charging towards the paint, Su Wan could only call for help with a screen inside.

If Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t effective, Su Wan had to have Foster help with the screen.

He had a wider frame.

But there was one problem—Foster wasn’t Shaquille O’Neal; he lacked varied offensive moves after receiving passes, especially at the high post where he basically acted as a "wall" with little use of the ball once he got it.

The essence of pick and roll lies in a dual-thread offense.

Screening is one part of the essence, rolling is the other part.

With Foster, the pick and roll consisted only of the screen, without the roll!

As the second half began, when Kobe and Yao Ming saw Su Wan and Foster’s screen, they both reacted swiftly. A second after the pick and roll formed, they both rushed towards Su Wan.

Seeing this, Su Wan decisively entered "The zone" mode, simply floored the throttle, and burst through between Kobe and Yao Ming, charging to the basket to complete a stunning slam dunk.

The local Indiana crowd, just a second ago worried about Su Wan losing the ball in the double team, the next second saw Su Wan soared into the air, completing the bombardment, and involuntarily screamed out loud.

Kobe and Yao Ming both looked as if they had seen a ghost.

They could feel more directly the sudden burst of instant power from Su Wan at that moment.

What the heck is "The zone"?

In Kobe’s eyes, they blazed with intense fire.

Isn’t that why he loves competing against Su Wan?

You tell me...

How could this not be exciting?

For Su Wan, Kobe was the best opponent.

No need to say more.

In the third season of his career, following Shaquille O’Neal’s remark "Never trash talk him," the number of players daring to provoke Su Wan, or talk back to him, significantly decreased.

This season, the Pacers were about to finish their 60th game, but Su Wan had activated "The zone" less than 20 times.

Only in games against the Lakers could Su Wan consistently activate "The zone"!

Su Wan scores, Kobe retaliates, on the right side three-point line facing Artest, provocatively glanced at Su Wan preparing to help on the defense, his expression seemed to say:

Right, right, right!

Come on, come up!

Both of you come at once!

Not indulging him, Su Wan shouted from behind Artest, "Ron, I’ll defend him!"

Kobe actually waited for Su Wan to switch places with Artest, then initiated his attack.

"Everyone will know, between you and me, who is the better one!" Kobe’s trash talk was quite dramatic.

Su Wan curled his lip: "For a dog’s bark?"

Kobe: "..."

Actively seeking body contact, as Su Wan closed in, Kobe, with a sideways "freeze frame," used a half-turn acceleration to directly create a breakthrough.

But to his surprise, Su Wan actually reacted, hastily stepping back a large step, dodging his elbow, and then shifting sideways again, perfectly intercepting Kobe’s forward path.

But Kobe, seeing this, quickly stopped, adjusting his body balance in a step-back move and then releasing a "backward jump shot," the ball cleanly falling through the hoop.

The entire motion was exceptionally smooth.

This was Kobe’s greatest ability:

After last season’s "crazy season" training, Kobe had now integrated various offensive skills and could switch seamlessly.

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