Chapter 834: Chapter 834: Using the Same Trick Again
Chapter 834: Using the Same Trick Again
Beep!
On San Antonio’s next possession, Duncan demanded the ball and attacked through contact.
Whistle.
Foul.
Duncan had clearly gone into the play looking to draw contact.
San Antonio’s perimeter shooting had been unreliable all night, so attacking the paint and forcing New York to defend physically was the logical adjustment.
The problem was Duncan’s free throw shooting.
He made only 1 of 2.
62 to 47.
Over the next several possessions, San Antonio became much more aggressive.
Drive.
Attack the paint.
Force contact.
The Spurs’ momentum improved, but the scoreboard still refused to cooperate.
By halftime, Chen Yan had scored an absurd 38 points by himself.
New York led 66 to 51.
15 points.
During the halftime broadcast, one analyst laughed.
"Chen looks like he is headed for 50 tonight."
His partner immediately objected.
"50? That is conservative."
He shook his head.
"With the way he is playing, 60 is absolutely in play."
The first analyst nodded.
"If he gets 60 in an NBA Finals game, that is something else. Chen has scored 60 before, but doing it on this stage against San Antonio is completely different."
The discussion continued.
"The real question is whether Popovich changes the coverage in the 2nd half."
"If San Antonio keeps guarding Chen with single coverage and refuses to consistently double him, then with the rhythm he has tonight, even 70 would not shock me."
Almost everyone expected a major defensive adjustment at halftime.
Popovich’s mind, however, had moved beyond ordinary tactics.
Sometimes strategy was enough to win.
Sometimes it was not.
Tonight looked like the second kind of game.
Chen was on fire.
Curry was shooting well.
San Antonio’s perimeter offense was inconsistent.
Winning through normal basketball alone was becoming increasingly difficult.
The 2nd half began.
New York opened with a more offensive lineup.
Curry.
Chen Yan.
Shane Battier.
Al Harrington.
David West.
San Antonio kept its regular starting group.
Both teams started cold.
3 straight possessions passed without a basket.
San Antonio finally broke through first.
Parker received a handoff and attacked the paint.
Harrington rotated over.
He immediately realized he could not stop Parker cleanly.
So he grabbed him.
Whistle.
Foul.
It was a deliberate tactical foul.
Harrington had entered the possession with only 1 personal foul, so he had no reason to worry about using another.
New York came back down.
The Knicks ran the elevator door action again.
This time, Parker immediately abandoned Curry and rushed toward Chen.
San Antonio had made its priority clear.
They would rather give another Knick space than allow Chen an easy shot.
Chen saw the rotation instantly.
Flick of the wrist.
Pass to Curry.
Catch.
3 pointer.
Swish!
San Antonio responded.
Ginóbili took control.
He received the ball, used a screen, changed speed, and drove into the paint.
David West stepped up.
Manu did not attack him directly.
Sudden stop.
Lean backward.
Floater.
Good.
It was the kind of strange shot Ginóbili had built a career around.
The more awkward the body position looked, the more natural the finish seemed for him.
His momentum carried him backward.
After releasing the ball, he fell to the floor.
Before Ginóbili could even stand up, New York had already inbounded.
David West grabbed the ball behind the baseline.
Long pass.
Chen caught it and immediately attacked.
New York wanted to punish San Antonio while Ginóbili was still behind the play.
Curry sprinted across half court as well.
His presence beyond the 3 point line mattered.
As long as Curry remained a shooting threat, San Antonio could not recklessly send every defender toward Chen.
Chen accelerated.
At first, nobody stepped up to slow him.
By the time San Antonio reacted, he had already reached full speed.
Leonard was the first defender back.
He planted himself inside the restricted area.
In his mind, the situation had only 2 possible outcomes.
Either Chen failed to stop and crashed into him.
Or Chen recognized the charge opportunity and passed the ball away.
Chen found a 3rd answer.
Like someone refusing to accept the options written on the page, he created his own.
He kept coming.
Full speed.
No hesitation.
At this point, stopping was impossible.
Even passing the ball would not eliminate the momentum carrying him toward Leonard.
Chen calculated his final steps.
Then took off directly in front of him.
Leonard instinctively tensed and protected himself.
His expression went blank as the view in front of him changed.
First Chen’s face.
Then the number on his jersey.
Then the front of Chen’s shorts passed directly through his field of vision.
Then suddenly there was nothing above him.
Clear air.
Chen had jumped completely over his head.
Boom!
Right handed dunk.
Chen hammered the ball through the rim and grabbed it hard afterward.
The arena fell silent.
For a moment, the only sound was the rim rattling under Chen’s grip.
San Antonio had nothing to complain about.
Chen had not pushed Leonard away with his free arm.
He had simply jumped over him.
Clean.
Violent.
Humiliating.
The broadcast booth erupted.
"Chen has cleared defenders before, but I do not know if he has ever done it this decisively."
"That might be the purest version of a death dunk you are ever going to see."
Popovich immediately called timeout.
The play had done more than add 2 points.
It had struck directly at San Antonio’s pride.
No player looked more shaken than Leonard.
Even Popovich could not tell whether the rookie looked stunned or simply blank.
Leonard was pulled.
Stephen Jackson replaced him.
During the timeout, Popovich was animated.
His arms moved constantly.
His voice carried across the sideline.
When play resumed, San Antonio’s defensive intensity had changed.
More contact.
More grabbing.
More small fouls away from the ball.
Occasionally, something harder.
After about 2 minutes, Curry quietly moved beside Chen.
"Be careful."
Chen looked at him.
"They might try to hurt you."
Chen nodded.
He understood.
He knew how to protect himself.
Both players assumed that if San Antonio crossed the line, Chen would be the target.
They were wrong.
By the middle of the 3rd quarter, New York’s lead had reached 18.
Chen had remained on the floor continuously.
Nelson finally decided to give him a short rest.
Chen headed toward the bench.
Popovich’s eyes immediately changed.
The opportunity he had been waiting for had arrived.
He called Stephen Jackson over.
Then gave him detailed instructions.
One possession later, Jackson moved as though he were about to set a screen for Parker.
Curry was chasing Parker and never saw the danger coming.
Jackson’s real target was Curry.
Bang!
The collision was violent.
Curry crashed to the floor.
For a moment, the hit seemed to knock every bit of air from his body.
Then he grabbed his face.
Blood immediately began pouring from his nose.
Jackson had deliberately driven his shoulder into the contact.
Curry’s nose was broken.
The action was obvious enough that the broadcast booth immediately reacted.
"That was not a normal screen."
The other analyst quickly focused on Curry.
"He is in serious pain. Look at the blood. That could be a significant injury."
Before the team doctor could even reach the court, DeAndre Jordan, Beverley, and David West were already moving.
All 3 charged onto the floor.
Their teammate had been hit right in front of them.
They were furious.
Chen moved too.
For an instant, he was ready to rush onto the court with everyone else.
Nelson grabbed him.
Hard.
"Do not do it!"
Battier immediately locked onto Chen from the other side.
Among New York’s players, Battier was one of the few still thinking clearly.
Chen’s anger lasted about 3 seconds.
Then his mind caught up with his emotions.
The series was not over.
New York could not afford to lose him now.
Across the floor, Popovich watched the Knicks players storm onto the court.
A faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Then he saw Chen being restrained.
The smile disappeared.
Disappointment replaced it.
Stephen Jackson’s hit on Curry had never been aimed only at Curry.
The real target had been Chen Yan sitting on the bench.
Popovich wanted him to react.
Wanted him to step onto the court.
Wanted the consequences that would follow.
It was not a new idea.
San Antonio had used the same kind of tactic during the 2006 to 2007 season.
Now, years later, Popovich had reached for the same trick again.
....
https://discord.gg/KvMN2CFsMR
[If you don’t want to wait for the next update, read 50 Chapters ahead on P@treon.]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03].