The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!
Chapter 76 - 74 I Heard You’re Called the Little French Sports Car

Chapter 76: Chapter 74 I Heard You’re Called the Little French Sports Car

Popovich called for a timeout and made a series of adjustments during the break, starting with a specific setup targeting Tinsley’s passing.

Tinsley wasn’t a good passer; his "breakthrough pass" always went to fixed positions.

Given some time, Popovich, as a veteran head coach, could surely figure that out.

The second quarter of the game began, and Tinsley’s passing was obviously not as smooth.

At that point, a problem with the Pacers became apparent:

They lacked a pure playmaker!

No one could really connect the team together.

By the end of the first half, the Spurs had successfully caught up, leading 49 to 45—a 4-point advantage heading into the second half.

Su Wan’s stats for the first half were pretty decent with 8 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block.

Given that he hardly held the ball, his offensive responsibilities were well fulfilled.

As for defense...

Manu Ginobili made 4 of 9 shots, hit both his three-point attempts, and 2 out of 3 free throws, scoring 11 points in the half—a performance slightly above average.

But Rick Carlisle didn’t blame Su Wan.

There were few in the league who could stop Ginobili when he was on a roll.

Tonight’s "Demon Blade" was clearly in fine form!

Most importantly, Rick Carlisle believed that Su Wan could adjust his state.

Since coaching Su Wan, he had realized:

At certain moments in the game, Su Wan would suddenly enter a different state, shining on both the offensive and defensive ends, and help the team win the final victory.

Such occurrences had happened not just once or twice, not just three or four times...

Having happened so often, Rick Carlisle had come to expect it.

After all, it’s normal for a rookie to have ups and downs.

That’s probably the real level of Su Wan!

So Carlisle was almost never harsh on Su Wan.

Besides, tonight Popovich had clearly targeted Su Wan, so a rookie delivering such stats in the first half was quite satisfactory to him.

Don’t forget, this "third greatest rookie in history" is only 19 years old this year...

Both Michael Jordan and Tim Duncan, during their rookie seasons as stable, phenomenal "New Stars," averaged over 21 years of age.

A 19-year-old Su Wan was already very strong.

The second half of the game soon arrived.

Rick Carlisle adjusted the offensive tactics, shifting the offensive core from Tinsley to little O’Neal.

He was to attack from under the basket!

This was also one of the two main tactics of the Pacers now that little O’Neal had returned.

The other, of course, was Su Wan’s ball-handling solo play.

As such, the Pacers’ offensive tactic was somewhat similar to the Lakers’ "Triangle Offense," only a bankrupt version—neither little O’Neal nor Su Wan had the one-on-one ability of top-tier ball handlers.

Leaving Su Wan aside, as he still had limitless potential.

Especially little O’Neal, although he had developed low post one-on-one ability, it was clear that he had the "four don’ts":

He wouldn’t play against those taller, stronger, more agile, or more powerful than him...

Basically, his low post ball-handling offensive ability hadn’t reached the level of being a "trump card."

Clearly, a catch-and-shoot style, utilizing his athletic ability near the basket to "score upon reception," was most fitting for him.

This was evident in the shooting percentage, which for little O’Neal had dropped by about 5% over the past two seasons compared to the first two. Yet both Rick Carlisle and little O’Neal himself liked treating him as the main "ball-holding big core."

Tim Duncan naturally belonged to one of little O’Neal’s "four don’ts."

The Pacers failed to score on their first possession in the second half.

"Stone Buddha" secured the rebound with a chuckle and passed the ball to Ginobili.

"Demon Blade," facing Su Wan, didn’t hesitate to choose a solo play—clearly, the first half had given him a surplus of confidence.

But this time, as Ginobili leaned into his sinuous step, ready to burst to the other side, Su Wan kept up with his pace and quickly blocked his path.

This caught Ginobili off guard; he stopped abruptly, and the ball slipped from his hand.

He reached out quickly, reacting fast.

He was fast, but Su Wan was faster, intercepting the ball with his hand and then with a wide swing, passed the ball from behind his back to his other hand.

Ginobili was dumbfounded.

This wasn’t just about ball control, but also bodily control, which was just too...

And the surprises involving Ginobili continued. When the ball reached Su Wan’s other hand, it seemed as if he had already built up power in his feet, and he burst forward, with the ball barely moving in his hand, Ginobili was thrown off balance.

There it was...

The No Deceleration Change!

The crowd gasped, amazed at how Su Wan executed the move.

"Pop!"

Before Ginobili could react, others didn’t even have the chance, Su Wan completed the steal and counter-attack.

"Defense, defense!"

Su Wan quickly shouted as he fell back on defense.

The other Pacers instinctively focused up, as instructed, including Stephen Jackson, who had returned to the game after missing twenty-one matches.

Manu, obstinate, faced Su Wan with the ball again, not believing that over the halftime, this Huaxia rookie had grasped the essence of defending his "Snake-shaped Breakthrough."

But he had no choice but to believe when Su Wan once again successfully predicted Manu Ginobili’s change of direction, stopping him in his tracks.

In fact, defending the "Snake-shaped Breakthrough" wasn’t hard—you just needed 100% bodily control, and then wait for the change of direction... Similar to what Jordan said about shooting: jump up, wait for the defender to fall from the sky, and then shoot the ball.

The principle was "difficult for those who don’t, easy for those who do."

No actual tips were involved.

Ginobili, looking impatient, also became hasty in his plays, taking a haphazard step back and launching a three-point shot without much thought.

The result...

"Smack!"

Su Wan slapped the shot away.

Ginobili still didn’t understand the kind of "Monster" he was facing.

Such casual shots, trying to find a shooting window in front of an on-point Su Wan, was simply impossible.

The ball moved to the Spurs’ backcourt, with Tony Parker sprinting hard, but the faster was Su Wan.

And as he approached the ball, without slowing down, he dipped low and scooped up the ball, then as Parker looked on in shock, he completed a one-handed slam dunk.

"Heard you’re called the ’Little Sports Car?’" After Su Wan’s slam dunk leveled the score, he glanced behind Parker and, just as he was puzzled, Su Wan spoke, "Did someone pull out your valve core?"