The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 697 - 259 They Fouled! They Fouled!_3

Chapter 697: Chapter 259 They Fouled! They Fouled!_3

However, the referee did not blow the whistle.

After the Heat formed their peak "Three Giants," it wasn’t just LeBron James who was influenced by the whistle but also Dwyane Wade.

But Wade’s "Wade’s Fall" was indeed solid. Even without relying on the whistle, it was a genuine "Ace move."

LeBron James saw Wade score and immediately gave him a thumbs up, also telling him, "Man, don’t worry about my position, just play your game, play it firmly!"

Wade was deeply moved by these words.

To him, this was LeBron sacrificing himself so Wade could play comfortably!

Wade responded immediately, "I believe we can definitely win tonight, LeBron!"

Nothing could be better!

LeBron knew very well that after he made his point, Su Wan would definitely focus on him. Additionally, with Tyson Chandler defending, he had almost no chance to perform tonight.

To win, they had to rely on the performance of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

As long as they won tonight, he would surely gain public support, and his precarious starting position would be preserved.

In his view, as long as he could preserve his starting position, his performance tonight wasn’t important.

Hmph Hmph!

Looking at Su Wan glaring at him, LeBron felt extremely content inside.

Tonight, Su Wan was just a part of his ploy!

In the following moments, Wade let loose; whether facing Artest or Stephen Curry, guarding him was as good as nothing.

One lacked speed; the other, physique.

Wade was like playing in a tutorial game.

Meanwhile, on the New York Knicks side, Su Wan turned LeBron James into a sieve.

To be fair, LeBron’s defensive attitude tonight was quite good.

Much more focused than usual.

Once he realized that Su Wan was specifically targeting him tonight, he didn’t avoid it anymore. Instead, he faced up, with fighting spirit in his eyes, trying to defend against Su Wan.

But the problem was his side’s poor defensive habits...

Su Wan could break through and shoot, play off-ball and with the ball, switching between various modes; LeBron simply couldn’t guard him.

By the end of the first quarter, Su Wan had scored 16 points against LeBron, hitting 7 out of 8 shots, including 2 out of 3 three-point shots, and had received no free throws.

The only highlight of LeBron James’s defensive effort in the entire first quarter was...

He had not fouled!

The rest related to defense was a mess.

Of course, if you wanted to find a bright spot, you could.

For instance, he was the Heat’s most successful perimeter defender against Stephen Curry tonight. Curry didn’t score on him because he hadn’t faced Curry at all tonight.

However, aside from Su Wan, the other New York Knicks members didn’t perform well offensively in the first quarter.

Even though they had extra practice yesterday, Stephen Curry and Danilo Gallinari, who had just recovered from injuries, were out of form, and together they only managed 7 points in the first quarter. This included the two free throws Curry made on behalf of the team.

Without those free throws, their performance would have been even worse.

Barkley muttered again, "Why hasn’t Vince Carter made any noise?"

Kenny Smith provided the latest info, "He should be traded before Star Weekend!"

Barkley responded, "If Vince Carter comes to the New York Knicks, the team’s perimeter shooting would stabilize a lot."

Kenny Smith said, "Do you think the current Knicks lineup resembles the lineup LeBron had with the Cavaliers over the past two years?"

A lightbulb went off for Barkley.

Actually, it’s quite similar.

Both have numerous shooters, really spreading out the space.

However, the tactics played by the teams differ, LeBron played the ball-holding big core "One Star and Four Shooters," whereas the Knicks’ Point Guard’s ball possession in one game is longer than the Cavaliers’ Point Guard in a month back then.

Stephen Curry is better accustomed to a two-guard style of playing, but when Felton is on the court, he’s playing a standard Point Guard, with the ball mostly in his hands, then distributing it according to tactics.

In the meantime, most of Su Wan’s play was without the ball.

For this reason, although their formations were similar, the role players’ level of activity in each team was completely different.

Cavaliers’ other players could only shine when catching and shooting.

Next to Su Wan, everyone could freely exhibit their talents.

Taking Stephen Curry for instance, although he didn’t break through individually, he had already made 3 assists in the first quarter.

All these assists led to points scored by Su Wan.

On the Heat’s side, apart from Wade’s performance, Chris Bosh also slightly shone in the first quarter, scoring 8 points.

When Wade returned to his own style of attacking, Chris Bosh’s style of moving and catching the ball to finish plays was also activated.

This was the style Bosh excelled in.

As for why he couldn’t play this tactic with LeBron...

First, LeBron needed someone to screen for him so he could break through.

Second, his final move after a dribble penetration was always a layup.

With the area under the basket packed, even if Chris Bosh received the ball, it was typically in the corner.

Don’t ask why he was in the corner; that’s the only place LeBron could throw the ball out...