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Chapter 276 When the Demon King Satan Returns

That night, Qin Yue's outstanding performance even made Warriors fans forget that they had a star guard recovering from injury.

On the sidelines, Eric Spoelstra, whose gaze fell on Qin Yue, who moved freely through the Heat's zone defense, said to his mentor Pat Riley, "He's practically a bug in the game of basketball."

Upon hearing this, Riley said calmly, "But the fact that we were able to force him to act like this is enough to prove that our current joint defense strategy is successful."

Since Qin Yue entered the league, breaking through the zone defense in various ways has become his daily routine.

However, it differs from the zone defense strategy adopted by other teams when facing the Warriors.

With the players' extremely high tactical execution on the field.

The Heat, who can seamlessly switch between zone and man-to-man defense, clearly aimed to cut off Qin Yue's connection with his teammates by sticking to the zone defense.

This forced Qin Yue to first establish the team's tone through individual attacks in order to break the deadlock.

And as the GOAT of the new era.

秦岳也不出莱利意料，在首节前半段7投5中，其中三分球2投1中，罚球3罚3中，仅用半节便拿到了14分4篮板。

However, during the official timeout in the first quarter...
At American Airlines Arena, the score between the Warriors and the Heat was 17-18.

During the game, through intense physical confrontations off the ball, "The Farmer" Riley once again demonstrated the points he made last season.

In other words, as long as the NBA remains a league that allows physical contact, the number of players who can consistently provide three-point output for their teams under such intense physical contact will always be a minority.

"I don't think basketball will become a game where every team takes fifty or sixty three-pointers every game." When talking about the future development of basketball, Riley said, "Because that doesn't conform to the objective laws of basketball."

"Three-pointers will definitely become more and more important in modern basketball. But how can you ensure that your three-point shooting percentage remains above 35% in one high-intensity game after another?"

In Qin Yue's previous life, during the 24/25 season playoffs shortly after his transmigration, the Celtics, who frequently attempted fifty or sixty three-pointers in the regular season, proved this point with their defeat.

Admittedly, for modern basketball, the three-pointer is a very cost-effective way to score.

However, once on the court, the opponent no longer provides you with a good shooting environment as they do in the regular season.

As Riley said.

How can you guarantee that every player on your team is like Curry and Klay?
High-intensity physical contact will inevitably affect a team's overall shooting percentage.

Especially on this night without Curry.

In Riley's view, the Warriors clearly lack a super shooter who can break through the physical limitations on the court.

This is also the main reason why the Heat have been sticking to their zone defense on the court.

Because in the real world, there are no "ifs" or "what ifs".

There's no need to consider whether the Heat could still play like Riley and Spoelstra if Curry hadn't been injured. What they need to do is lead the Heat to victory against this Warriors team without Curry.

Therefore, in order to counter the Heat's zone defense, Warriors head coach Malone substituted Ray Allen and JR Smith early in the second half of the first quarter.

The former, though old, was still sharpshooting and a seasoned marksman.

Even though his current three-point production is not comparable to that of his younger days, as long as Ray Allen is on the court, you must give him the respect he deserves.

As for the latter, it is a famous, unpredictable knife.

JR Smith's three-pointers never depend on whether the opponent is defending him properly.

It's not about whether he can make the shot himself.

However, the Warriors, who brought in Ray Allen and JR Smith at the same time, were forced to call a timeout after playing for less than three minutes.

Because on this night, the Heat forcefully raised the game to playoff level.
Dwyane Wade, the Flash who punched the Warriors' kindergarten and kicked the Golden State's retirement home, immediately entered "God Zhao Yun" mode after Ray Allen and JR entered the game.

On the court, the defensive possession before the Warriors called a timeout.

Qin Yue, who had twice made crucial plays for his teammates from the high position, couldn't have done any better.

But with the Heat players constantly pulling and pulling on the court, Qin Yue could only helplessly watch as Wade pierced through the Warriors' defense.

TNT television station's Shaquille O'Neal said, "Praising Qin Yue is just a job, loving LeBron James is life. If it were LeBron on this defensive play, I think he would have immediately expressed his dissatisfaction with his teammate by shrugging his shoulders."

Upon hearing this, Barkley, who felt that O'Neal's love for James wasn't deep enough, said, "Shaq, you're overthinking it. If it were LeBron, why would he waste his energy to create two large-scale delays for his teammates in a row?"

O'Neal laughed and said, "Indeed, if we do this kind of defense a few more times, where will LeBron find the energy to steal a fast break on the court?"

On the sidelines, Malone was surprised that the Heat would put in so much effort for a regular season game.

As a master strategist.

In Malone's view, if possible, the Warriors, who were already short-handed, didn't need to fight the Heat to the bitter end tonight.

But on the Warriors' bench, after noticing Qin Yue's spirited gaze, Malone immediately seemed like a different person.

Holding a tactical board in one hand, Malone quickly drew tactics on it and said, "Next, when we're on offense, we need a second ball-handler to relieve Messiah's attacking pressure."

After saying that, Ma Long immediately turned his gaze to JR Smith.

"I?"

“That’s right, ‘Jr,’ we need you to be the second ball-handler on the court,” Malone laughed. “You don’t need to think too much when you’re on offense; you only need to think about two things.”

"What two things?"

"To complete the attack by playing one-on-one or with the help of teammates' screens."

In his time with JR, Malone had already realized that he was a player you couldn't program too much into.

To make good use of JR, Malone can only minimize the number of instructions he gives JR.

Then, turning his attention to Brown, Malone said, "It's your turn to play next, Kwame."

Seeing this, Brown, his large knife itching for a bite, said, "Don't worry, as long as you hand over the inside to me, I won't let a single mosquito in."

Although since last season, Malone was probably the Warriors' coaching staff member who most wanted to trade Brown.

But when he needed Brown, Malone's attitude towards Brown was, if not entirely sincere, at least deeply affectionate.

What constitutes the self-cultivation of a top coach?

On the court, after the timeout, the Warriors' lineup, adjusted by Malone, became Brown, Qin Yue, JR, Ray Allen, and Livingston.

American Airlines Arena, Warriors' offensive possession.

JR, who was called upon in a critical situation, missed an easy layup under Qin Yue's cover.

This was an offensive blunder that left JR feeling incredibly frustrated.

Because of the coach's trust and his teammates' help, he had clearly made a beautiful individual attack.

But at the end, he made a basic mistake that even Westbrook would have cursed, "How could he miss that?"

Fortunately, Qin Yue has never liked to express his dissatisfaction with his teammates in front of the camera.

After all, deliberately finding the camera to complain about teammates on the field only proves that he is very strong and that his teammates are not good, but in Qin Yue's eyes, it does not help the team at all.

So, while retreating on defense, Qin Yue patted JR on the shoulder and said, "Let's play like this from now on. Next round, pay more attention to my position. I'll go over and set screens for you again."

Upon hearing this, JR felt a warmth in his heart and quickly nodded.

Back to the Warriors' defensive possession.

Livingston, who was able to help defend the forwards during the defensive play, successfully slowed down Wade's pace.

At the moment Wade chose to pass the ball, Brown anticipated Wade's intended lateral pass to Anthony on the opposite side. Then, following Qin Yue's visual instruction, he passed the ball to JR.

Even Brown himself probably never imagined that he would unintentionally deliver such a historic assist.

Why was Brown's pass to JR considered an assist of the century?

Because JR quickly dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, with "I want to repay the Qin" on his mind, he rode on Anthony, who was unusually playing desperate defense, and slammed a tomahawk dunk that shook the entire arena!
JR Smith?
No, this is Michael Smith.

This is the "true high-flying man" whom even Jordan would have to toast.

At that moment, Anthony never imagined that he would become the background figure of his former underling.

And the moment he landed after the dunk, JR didn't even glance back at Anthony.

Instead, she ran straight to Qin Yue and bumped into his arms.

Barkley joked on TNT, "'Melo' might be sad for a whole day, but we have to thank 'Jr' because he made a dunk that will be remembered for at least ten years."

On the Warriors' bench, Sacre and Varejao, waving towels at JR Smith, also became a beautiful sight.

It was only then that Ray Allen realized why this Warriors team would always be a champion.

In the final three minutes of the first quarter, Malone made timely tactical adjustments to the team and successfully used Qin Yue's inherent attraction to make JR press the switch button that brought Jordan into his body.

At the end of the first quarter, the score was 33-31.

The Warriors have taken the lead over the Heat in the score.

In response, O'Neal remarked, "Why are his teammates always able to perform at a superstar level? I think before this night began, no one would have imagined that 'Jr,' who only earns three million dollars a year, could rival 'Melo' and 'D-Wade' in terms of quality."

Barkley nodded and said, "This is the 'Qin' we want to see. He is a true captain who can lead the team to any destination."

In the second quarter, the Warriors were led by Livingston and Jamison.

This was a golden opportunity for the Heat to close the gap, as they had kept Anthony on the court.

But in the play when Qin Yue returned to the court, Jamison, who had been going head-to-head with Anthony for half a quarter, said to him: "It seems you really don't know how strong I am without LeBron."

It has to be said that even though LeBron James's glory days are over, his legend still lives on.

On the court, veteran Jamison's sudden outburst successfully disrupted the Heat's comeback plan.

Qin Yue, who continued his good form from the first quarter, made Pat Riley, the Heat's behind-the-scenes helmsman, feel an urge to send someone to assassinate Malone.

American Airlines Arena welcomed Qin Yue for half a quarter of the game.

The unruly David West had clearly grabbed Qin Yue during the defensive play.

But when West turned around, the basketball that Qin Yue had tossed with one hand still desperately sank into the basket.

"Basketball is a sport in which ten people play on the court, but the Messiah always wins."

During halftime, West, with extremely mixed feelings, said the following in an interview.

Leaving New Orleans.

West, who felt he shouldn't be competing for playing time with players like Brown and the Warriors during his prime, went through the same mental journey that Bosh had experienced over the past few years when facing Qin Yue in just half a game.

On the court, Bosh took to the air at top speed after receiving Wade's brilliant pass.

Do you think Bosh will be overjoyed by those two points he's about to win?
No.
All Bosh had was an everlasting fear of Qin Yue.

Even though Bosh did indeed complete a spectacular alley-oop dunk on the court at that moment.

But as Bosh landed after the dunk, realizing that if he were even a fraction of a second slower, he would likely be mercilessly intercepted by Qin Yue, cold sweat instantly soaked his jersey.

“I know very well that we are competing against the gods.”

Before the start of the second half, in an interview with the on-site host, Bosh said, "You can't make even the slightest mistake when playing against him."

Qin Yue's brutal rule over the current era has caused immense suffering to his contemporaries among the football stars.

That night, Bosh and West needed to be constantly wary of Qin Yue's help defense on offense.

On defense, you need to be ready to cover for your teammates at any time.

They must do their best in every round.

Only in this way can they possibly help the team defeat Daqin.

In contrast, Ray Allen, who chose to team up with Da Qin, was clearly much more relaxed.

In the third quarter, Qin Yue created an open shot for Ray Allen with no defenders within two meters of him by setting a screen with JR.

Catch the ball and shoot.

Ray Allen simply shot the ball like he did in practice, and immediately punished the Heat's defensive retreat with his accurate three-pointers.

At this moment, Ray Allen did not want to say that choosing Da Qin was equivalent to choosing success.

But throughout the second half, the helpless expressions on Wade and Anthony's faces after scoring for the Heat time and time again objectively reflected just how despairing Qin Yue's performance was that night.

The final score was 116 to 109.

全场比赛，总计为勇士斩获51分21篮板8助攻4封盖2抢断的秦岳，在进一步缩小了他与威尔特-张伯伦单场“50+”记录差距的同时，亦正式向全联盟宣告了魔王撒旦的归来。

"He completely dominated the game," said Dwyane Wade, who scored 34 points, grabbed 6 rebounds, and dished out 6 assists for the Heat after the game. "He overwhelmed us on a scale."

"You know, at times like this, I have to quote a famous saying from my good brother LeBron."

On the other hand, when asked about JR's dunk, Anthony said sarcastically, "People shouldn't just see me getting dunked on, but should applaud my hard-fought defense."

After a pause, Anthony added, "And in this game, my plus-minus was +1, which proves what? It proves that Da Qin just stole the game while I was resting."

That's right.

Anthony, who traveled at different times during the second and final quarters of the game, maintained a positive plus-minus rating until the end of the game.

Therefore, applying the "James Formula," it's not hard to conclude that this was a game in which the Heat lost, but Melo didn't.

“I know 'Melo' was just trying to relieve the pressure of losing by joking around.”

However, Warriors veteran Antawn Jamison responded to Anthony's comments by saying, "But in my opinion, he shouldn't learn from that guy."

As it turns out, even after winning two championships with the Warriors, he still achieved his goal.

Jamison still harbors resentment over his time with the Cavaliers.

Qin Yue gradually found his competitive form through practice matches in November.

December of that year.
This also turned into a month of "the team is safe, don't worry" for Curry.

Of course, the team's safety is not necessarily a good thing for Curry himself.

Because of the Warriors' recent winning streak
This has put unprecedented pressure on Curry, who is currently recovering from injury.

ESPN updated their positional rankings for the 12/13 season in mid-December.

The comment on Curry, who was ranked only tenth, was: "When the Warriors can sweep the entire league without Stephen, Stephen is to the Warriors what LeBron is to the Timberwolves. Whether they are there or not will not affect the Warriors' continued pursuit of the championship, and the Timberwolves will continue to fight for the last place in the league."

……

P.S.: I'm making a bold prediction for tomorrow: the Thunder should beat the Nuggets by a large margin. After all, the Nuggets, having played two consecutive Game 7s, are exhausted. If the Thunder can't win against that, then it just goes to show that the intensity of the NBA playoffs this year has successfully identified a bunch of fake powerhouses.

(End of this chapter)