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Chapter 261 I won't hit him if he hits me!
After more than half a year of honing his skills, Durant, who used James as a whetstone, has been tempered into an unparalleled sword.

Oracle Arena, Knicks' offensive possession.

Although Wallace quickly slid and switched to defend Durant, Durant, who was faster, still managed to get the shot first.

His gaze was resolute, yet tinged with a hint of ferocity.

At that moment, Durant's three-pointer drew a perfect C-shaped arc in the air.

This is telling the world who is really in charge of the Knicks' C team.

Swish-!
6:4.

On the court, Durant's early and dominant performance undoubtedly became a major headache for the Warriors' forwards and guards.

On the sidelines, on the Warriors' bench, Malone knew better than anyone that if he wanted to truly match up against Durant on defense, he had no choice but to have Qin Yue personally guard the young Grim Reaper.

But unless absolutely necessary, Ma Long doesn't want to do that in this round of the finals.

why?
As Durant continues to develop, the cost for Qin Yue to lock him down will inevitably be enormous.

“Leon, do you know what makes me different from other head coaches?” Malone turned to Hollins and said.

After a pause, Malone added, "That means I've never been just a coach who only helps teams win."

In Malone's view, simply leading the Warriors to victory would not demonstrate his coaching ability.

Only if the Warriors win and Qin Yue puts up impressive statistics on the court can he prove that he is the only coach in the current era qualified to coach Qin Yue.

Therefore, Malone, knowing that high-intensity defense would inevitably have an irreversible impact on Qin Yue's offense, naturally did not want the Warriors to defeat the Knicks in this Finals series at the cost of sacrificing Qin Yue's personal statistics.

On the court, it was the Warriors' turn to attack.

James, who had been called out by Durant twice in a row, helplessly switched onto Qin Yue to defend him.

James's helplessness stemmed from his deep-seated fear of Qin Yue.

But to be fair, James wasn't as helpless as he thought during this defensive play.

As a Defensive Player of the Year, Howard immediately signaled to the other Knicks players to switch to a zone defense.

Furthermore, Howard's positioning was always in a posture of flanking Qin Yue.

This can be described as a perfect textbook example of a half-double-team defensive positioning.

However.
This still doesn't change the fact that James, who only claims in front of the media that he will never give up no matter how many times he loses to Qin Yue, harbors a deep-seated fear of Qin Yue.

On the right wing, Qin Yue easily dribbled past James' defense.

Then, a sudden stop and pull-out.

Swish-!
On the court, seeing James not giving him any chance to help defend, Howard immediately spread his hands, both venting his helplessness and complaining about James's lack of commitment on the defensive end.

"This is the Finals, Brown."

Howard said earnestly to James, "We can't let him have it so easy."

This is likely the episode where "giant baby" Howard shows the most mature mindset.

Don't ask, the answer is: no matter how immature he is normally, on the stage of the Finals, doesn't Howard also want to win?
Then the problem is coming.

Doesn't James want to win?
The answer to this question is clearly no.

But if James could win whenever he wanted, why would he have assisted one new king after another in Qin Yue's memory?

That night, James was forced to wear a mask of pain after only a few rounds of play.

And what's more painful than pain is...
In the first quarter, all four Knicks starters besides him performed well.

Durant scored 14 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist in the first quarter, making him the second-best performing superstar on the court after Qin Yue.

Harden, who was in charge of controlling the game for the Knicks, also contributed 4 points, 2 rebounds, and 4 assists.

As for Iguodala and Howard, they basically did everything they could.

The former made both of his two three-point attempts.

The latter, without actively requesting any low-post isolation plays, was diligently setting screens for his teammates in almost every offensive possession.

In addition, Howard's excellent protection of the defensive rebounds ensured that the Knicks did not allow the Warriors to score too many second-chance points.

Only James seemed to have become an outsider on the court.

Throughout the first quarter, James went 0-for-2 from the field, the only difference being that he was practically invisible.
When Qin Yue used pick-and-rolls to target him, he provided the Warriors fans in the arena with an unprecedented sense of security.

TNT's Barkley, who is unhappy with his life, said: "According to statistics, 28 of the Warriors' 35 points in the first quarter were scored against LeBron's defense."

Qin Yue's one-on-one play and the Warriors' passing and cutting combinations dealt a devastating blow to James's poor defensive habits.

On the court, even if James was willing to defend, he couldn't stop the Warriors, led by Qin Yue, from doing whatever they wanted in front of him.

Even at 27, James' defense is still as immature as when he was 18.

After a short break, the Knicks started the second quarter with Harden, James, and Iguodala leading the team.

This should have been a perfect opportunity for James to take advantage of off-peak travel and prove himself again.

After all, in the first half of the second quarter, the Warriors fielded a second lineup mainly composed of veterans.

However, the Knicks' first offensive possession
Driven by the seasoned Barnes, James immediately helped Brown create a memorable moment.

As another representative of the "Nightmare Shake" in the current era, Brown keenly sensed James's timing for the layup and turned what should have been James's first field goal into his own block stat.

In the Warriors' paint, James, whose shot was blocked by Brown, looked at the referee with a puzzled expression the moment he landed.

This is a scene that spans almost the entirety of James' career.

In other words, even if the opposing defender makes an undeniable block on James during the game, James must still pretend to be aggrieved to prove that he was blocked simply because the defender violated his cylinder.

However, Brown did not indulge his "good brother" who had once worked with him at "Dream Factory" to figure out how to profit from the new traveling and ball-closing rules.

On the court, watching James shrugging and complaining even after Nash completed the fast break, Brown said to him, "When are you finally going to grow up?"

Faced with Brown's probing questions, James immediately revealed an expression of uncontrollable rage.

But the so-called "wrath of the emperor" can frighten others.

Against this warrior team.
Who can James intimidate?

"This is the Bay Area, kid!"

At the Warriors' halftime, Barnes shoved away James, who was trying to argue with Brown, and said this.

The next second, James, who was clearly pushed in the chest by Barnes but fell to the ground covering his face, displayed somewhat clumsy acting skills. Especially the moment when James covered his face as he fell while simultaneously peeking at the referee with his hands outstretched.
"Doesn't he know that with the advancement and development of technology, there are no blind spots in broadcast camera positions nowadays?"

On the Warriors' bench, watching the slow-motion replay on the big screen, Ben Wallace exclaimed in surprise.

Meanwhile, Barkley of TNT said speechlessly, "LeBron, you're a player who weighs over 270 pounds. Can't you stand up straight and fight your opponent like a man?"

Smith, standing nearby, said, "You guys used to say Matt Barnes had learned Chinese kung fu, and now I believe it, because if he hadn't used Chinese kung fu, how could Matt have pushed down LeBron, who is 50 pounds heavier than him?"

James's fall did not bring him the punishment he wanted, as the referee penalized Barnes.

Furthermore, James even received a warning from the referee.

"Stop flopping, LeBron."

Fake fall?

No!

Didn't you see Barnes use the legendary Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms on me just now?
Sorry, the referee really didn't see it.

In his previous life, Qin Yue was as strong as Lu Zhishen, but when he fell to the ground, he resembled Lin Daiyu. James did indeed always benefit from this.

But at Oracle Arena, in the Warriors' home arena, if the referees dare to support James's flopping this time, how can the referees call the next game?
On the court, after this little incident, Warriors rookie Jimmy Butler also got to enjoy the benefit of being matched up against LeBron James.

Using off-ball cuts, Butler went 4-for-4 in the first half of the second quarter.

In his first NBA Finals appearance, Butler scored 8 points in just 6 minutes of playing time. Butler doesn't want to say that James is greater than Qin Yue.

But as it turns out, James is greater than Qin Yue when it comes to helping his opponents regain confidence.

The Knicks' bench, now free from the "loyalty" filter, finally saw Durant for who he truly was, and now they hate their own cowardice and incompetence for agreeing to the Westbrook trade last summer.

"If Russell were still here, we would never be so passive during the transition period." At this moment, Durant thought to himself.

Previously, with James' help, the Pacers successfully played the Knicks to a full seven games.

That same night, with James' help, the Warriors led the Knicks by 14 points at halftime.

At halftime, the scoreboard read 68-54.

On TNT, Barkley commented, "In my opinion, both the Warriors and the Pacers rely too much on LeBron."

This is what James calls his dominance, comparable to Michael Jordan's.

In Qin Yue's previous life, James not only never dominated even one era, but he was also always dominated by the superstars of his time.

Duncan was among the first to benefit from the James era during his early years with LeBron James.

And Nowitzki followed suit, using James to shed his "soft" label.

Next up are Curry, Jokic, and Edwards.

In short, if James can be compared to Jordan...

That's not Jordan's tragedy.

That's just James using his marketing to prove that in the 21st century, even if you don't live up to your reputation, as long as your packaging is exquisite enough, who isn't a GOAT?

After halftime, Durant, who was still leading the Knicks in a desperate battle, made up his mind completely that night.

Throughout the second half, Durant did not say a single word to James.

He just silently scored, scored, and scored again.

The final score was 110 to 127.

Durant, who scored a total of 39 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists for the Knicks in the game, said in a post-game interview: "I've said it before, this is my team, so I won't shirk responsibility for this loss."

Then, Durant changed the subject, saying, "But if LeBron James only scores 8 points in such an important game, then we are destined not to beat this Warriors team."

8 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

James, who usually shifts the blame first, never expected Durant to be so ruthless as to directly pin the blame for the Knicks' first loss on him.

Yes.

James admitted that his performance in this game was not very good.

But isn't the reason he didn't perform well because his teammates didn't provide him with enough support?
"I did only score 8 points, but I only took 9 shots in this game," James defended himself. "I haven't found my scoring rhythm yet, and if you watched this game, you would have seen that I focused all my energy on the defensive end."

"On the defensive end?"

In response to James's statement, Durant immediately retorted: "When LeBron said he focused all his energy on the defensive end, did he mean that even a rookie like Jimmy Butler could score 14 points over him?"

“KD’s criticism of me is a bit harsh.”

James, who didn't understand why Durant was so strict with him, said, "We're a team, he should give me more trust."

"Trust? What kind of trust does he want from me?"

After choosing to break ties with James, Durant, who suddenly felt an immense sense of liberation, said: "In Cleveland, LeBron wanted more trust, and in New York, he wanted more trust too. So the question is, why doesn't LeBron himself think about why he can never earn trust?"

During the interview, reporters, realizing that Durant and James had completely broken up, immediately followed up with an excited question: "'KD,' LeBron said that your criticism of him made him very sad. What do you think about that?"

Upon hearing this, Durant pondered for a moment what Qin Yue would do if he were in this situation, and decisively said, "Sad? Since he's sad about it, then he doesn't need to play in the upcoming Finals."

"'KD,' you mean you'll DNP LeBron?"

“Yes, that’s exactly what I mean. And I believe we’ll actually play better without him,” Durant said. “If I remember correctly, he’s lost 21 straight to Messiah, right?”

The first game of the finals has ended.

The heated post-game exchange between Durant and James (with James being the one to be criticized) has become the focus of attention.

"After 'KD' publicly expressed his desire for the Knicks to bench him, LeBron James stated in an interview that 'KD' has no right to decide whether the Knicks put him on the court." — ESPN Headline
"Sources close to LeBron James say that 'KD's' public criticism of his teammates after Game 1 of the Finals is tearing apart the Knicks, a team that previously had excellent team spirit." — San Francisco Chronicle

"The falling out between 'KD' and LeBron has already cast a shadow over the Knicks' prospects in this year's NBA Finals. But in all fairness, even if 'KD' is 1% at fault, doesn't LeBron bear 99% responsibility for his poor performance in Game 1 of the Finals?" — The New York Times

Before Game 2 of the Finals began, Knicks head coach Mike D'Antoni suddenly had a headache.

Durant's strong stance on DNP James completely exceeded the expectations of the Knicks coaching staff and management.

"I won't hit him if he hits me."

At an emergency team meeting convened by the Knicks, Durant spoke with absolute certainty.

……

PS: A belated but welcome update. (Also, was A-Qiao's prediction in the group correct? Putting aside off-court factors, as long as the Warriors don't hold on in Game 5, the Rockets have a real chance to come back from a 1-3 deficit. As for the Clippers vs. Nuggets series, even though Jokic is very strong, A-Qiao still favors Kawhi Leonard in a Game 7.)

(End of this chapter)