Champion, please stay!

Chapter 208, Section 206: A one-on-one duel—it all comes down to the Great Emperor!

Since Okafor joined the Hornets, and Paul has been able to play in the five games, the Hornets have allowed only 23.4 points in the first quarter on average, the lowest in the league. The Cavaliers, Spurs, and Hawks are all inferior to the Hornets when they have a full roster.

Chandler is disliked because he lacks the ability to protect the rim on his own, which has been a sore point for the Hornets for the past two years.

Okafor, who excels in rim protection, help defense, and assist defense, fills this gap. Paired with Posey's top-notch one-on-one defense at the two and three positions, Paul's best help defense among all guards in the league, and David West in his prime, whose defense is not a burden, even with Peja as a backup, when Paul, Posey, and Okafor are at their best, their defense is the best in the league!

Meanwhile, in these 5 games, the Hornets averaged 28.2 points in the first quarter, with an average first-quarter margin of victory of nearly 5 points.

When Paul was on the court, this five-man duo had one of the strongest offenses in the league. Even against the Suns, they led by 6 points, 29-23, in the first quarter. Although they were eventually overwhelmed by Nash and Stoudemire's mid-range jumpers and suffered a comeback defeat, at least they had the upper hand against the Suns at the start.

Paul really didn't expect to concede 30 points in the first game against the Knicks!
It's mainly Yi Shui and Curry!
Of the Knicks' 30 points, Paul remembers 9 were made despite the Knicks' tight defense. Curry made one tough three-pointer over his close defense, and he made one unreasonable long two-pointer each at the start of the game, before the official timeout, and in the last few seconds of the quarter!
These two second-year players have raised the Knicks' offensive ceiling at the start of the season!
Furthermore, Yi Shui's offensive threat is even stronger than Stoudemire's. In order to slow down the pace, they even affected their own offensive efficiency, scoring a little less than usual!

Paul was frowning, and Curry... was also in a bind.

Two days ago, Yi Shui had just developed a slalom, stop-and-shoot turnaround jumper, and he dared to use it tonight, and he even made it... When he passed the ball, he also felt that his older brother would definitely make it.

Yi Shui himself was quite happy to make the buzzer-beater at the end of the quarter, as his shooting percentage wasn't dragged down... mainly because the half-skill effect of 'Braking Genius' worked in tandem with 'Tower Sniper'!
While I was happy, I was also a little annoyed. Why didn't I think of learning Hamilton's trick sooner?
However, developing technology inherently requires a certain amount of inspiration, which is why practical experience is so important.

...

After the break, D'Antoni, as planned with his assistants and Yi Shui before the game, fielded a lineup of Curry, Hughes, Yi Shui, Harrington, and Gibson.

Curry played the entire first quarter tonight, but Duhon did. Curry rested for a little over half the quarter after playing for 4 minutes, and didn't return to the court until the last 3 minutes of the quarter.

This adjustment was made based on the Hornets' situation when they had a full roster this season.

Yi Shui and his teammates came onto the court, and as he expected, even though they were behind, Okafor, who had played the entire first quarter, was substituted at the start of the second quarter!

Byron Scott fielded a lineup of Paul, Devin Brown, Posey, Darius Sangella, and David West.

After his rookie season, in the summer of 05, Okafor blindly gained weight to 125 kilograms in order to better compete with the number one draft pick of the same year. His ankle could not withstand the weight, and he suffered a stress fracture in his joint less than two months into the 05-06 season, ending his season.

Although he recovered, his athleticism, which was compared to that of peak Ben Wallace when he first entered the NBA, declined somewhat.

The crucial growth period was also missed. The summer after the rookie year was spent gaining weight, the second year was overdue, and the third year involved losing weight again to adapt to the old playing style. Two years later, he was at his peak at 25.

The biggest impact on Okafor was his physical condition!
As a rookie, he played 35 minutes a game without getting tired. After that serious injury, his playing time exceeded 30 minutes, and his performance on both offense and defense declined rapidly. He never played like he did in his rookie season again.

This problem was also evident in the five games where the Hornets played alongside Paul. The Hornets started each game like the best team in the league, looking no worse than the Celtics last season. They were a well-rounded team on both offense and defense, and with Paul as their super ball-handling core, they always led by more than ten points in the first half. However, their net point differential in the five games was only eight points, and they lost in the second half of each game.

In the first three of those five matches, Okafor played more than 20 minutes in the first half, but in the last two matches, his playing time was limited to less than 18 minutes.

Paul also experienced this. During his two and a half years at his peak, Paul could play 40 minutes without any problem, and sometimes even the entire game. But after his major injury, he became extremely weak in the fourth quarter. During his time with the Clippers, Rivers even had to limit Paul's playing time in the first three quarters to less than 25 minutes, even though he was under 30 and in his prime.

The second quarter began with the Hornets on offense.

Paul and David West initiated a pick-and-roll offense, successfully stretching the Knicks' team defense, but Devin Brown, who was supposed to receive the pass, failed to get to the right spot like Peja did, and missed the mid-range jumper left open on the left side of the free-throw line!
In the transition between offense and defense, the Hornets used a mini-roster, with Byron Scott and Hilton Armstrong, both physically capable centers, and David West at center, successfully pushing the Knicks into a half-court game.

But even though the Knicks put Hughes in, they didn't seem to be playing a run-and-gun style. Yi Shui sat in the low post and dominated Posey!
When defending against Yi Shui on the perimeter, Posey was able to use his wingspan and footwork to make it difficult for Yi Shui to shoot, forcing him to post up. This is when the difference in their physical abilities truly became apparent.

Yi Shui changed direction and back-swept into the three-second zone, causing Posey, whose upper body was on top of Yi Shui's back, to be knocked off the ground! When he landed, his heels landed on the line of the restricted area!
Darius Sangela, the former Soviet center, collapsed in time, pressing forward to prevent Yi Shui from making a second impact and forcing Yi Shui to grab the ball. David West also blocked the baseline, cutting off Yi Shui's space to turn. Yi Shui, relying on his instincts, threw the ball to the left side of the basket...

Gibson leaps up from the left sideline of the three-second zone, glides in for an alley-oop dunk, and scores two points!
The Knicks led 32-25, extending their lead to 7 points!
We can't keep relying on teammates for shots! Another missed shot could see the opponent extend their lead to double digits! When it was Hornets' turn to attack, Paul signaled to his teammates to spread out and take one-on-one shots!
Hughes was defended one-on-one at the top of the key, but Paul got past him completely, without even managing to slow him down.

Paul drove straight to the basket, jumped, and made a floater over Gibson's help defense!

TV commentators kept calling him "Allen Iverson".

That play was too AI-like. Hughes clearly anticipated Paul's crossover, but just couldn't keep up. He was able to consistently shoot even with the defense inside!

The only difference is that Paul's dribbling is too simple, lacking the street style of Iverson.

However, Paul himself, who scored the goal, felt a little strange... Why were the fans who had been booing him starting to applaud? Soon, when he heard the cheers from the fans in the stadium as Yi Shui continued to drop low, which sounded like they were about to pierce the ceiling, he realized that the fans in the stadium wanted to see him and Yi Shui go head-to-head!
Pao Ge: The basketball mecca is still as captivating as ever.

Yi Shui continued to back down Bosi from a low position, while Sangaira dared to quickly retreat from a high position.

Although he is white, Sangella is very athletic. His playing style and appearance make him look like a rough guy, but he was selected for the Soviet youth team at the age of 13. He has a particularly good habit of helping in defense, and he cuts off the passing lane from Yi Shui to the high position with his arms outstretched.

However, this time David West didn't dare leave Gibson open. The Great One was really daring to pass, lobbing an alley-oop without even looking behind him.

One against two... According to the West Coast parlance, this is an open shot! Yi Shui took a step back, grabbed the ball, turned to the left, pushed past Posey, used Posey as a screen to block Sangella, took a step, leaned forward, and reached his hand to the left side of the basket for a low-handed floater...

David West's intervention came too late; he could only watch as Yi Shui, like a guard, made a backhand floater.

When it was the Hornets' turn to attack, Paul got fired up when he heard the fans chanting "CP3" loudly.

The atmosphere is amazing!
Paul blew past Hughes and drove into the paint. Gibson moved to the elbow area to help defend, but Paul stopped and started abruptly, shaking off Gibson. He rushed to the basket, slid along the baseline to avoid the collapsing Yi Shui, and made a floater on the left side of the rim.

The shooting point was almost the same as in the previous round with Yi Shui! A response shot!
Next, Yi Shui turned his back to the basket in the low post, made a strong drive past two defenders, raised the ball, and lobbed it high off the backboard for a successful shot.

Turning around, Paul suddenly stopped at close range... He really stopped, and Gibson and Harrington, who were helping to defend, both blocked the baseline or went around the top of the line, and Paul made them look like idiots.

Paul hits a close-range pull-up jumper!

Yi Shui and Paul both scored 3 goals in a row! 36 to 31, the two teams were evenly matched at the start of the second quarter!

The fans in the stadium were incredibly excited; even the 'King of the Holy Land' couldn't sway the New York fans' love of a good show.

However, Yi Shui also liked this atmosphere. Who doesn't love a one-on-one match? After his one-on-one match with Anthony, he even wanted to apply to the league to add a one-on-one match to the All-Star Game.

It was the Knicks' turn to attack again. Yi Shui didn't continue to post up, as taking on two opponents at once was too tiring. He went to the right side of the free-throw line, received the ball near Posey, turned and drove... a fake! He took a step back after turning around.

Posey defended very well, controlled his center of gravity very well, and closed in on him in time after retreating half a step.

But that little bit of space was enough for Yi Shui. He dribbled to the left, took a step to the free-throw line, and, despite Posey's interference, launched a powerful shot... and it went in!
Four goals in a row!
When the Hornets went on offense, Paul continued to drive to the basket, but this time, his floater over Harrington's help defense missed...

Paul had a great time in the first three rounds, but now he was starting to feel a bit of a headache.

Why doesn't the Emperor consider using his own threat to launch a team offensive? Is he just going to keep going one-on-one?
He had no choice but to follow suit! Peja and Okafor were both out, and David West was heavily guarded by the opposing team. He couldn't expect the two substitutes to compete with Embiid for points, could he?

In the past few rounds, the TV commentators have been saying how similar Paul and Iverson are.

The sharp breakthroughs and the ability of a 183cm tall player to score despite the pressure in the paint demonstrate a remarkable ability to outplay larger opponents.

You could even say that Paul was an upgraded version of Iverson in those three possessions. His efficiency in attacking the basket was much higher than Iverson's. Iverson's close-range shooting percentage was consistently around 55%, while Paul had a close-range shooting percentage of over 60% starting in the 2007-08 season.

However, when the team needs someone to step up and go head-to-head with the opposing star, Iverson can go on 10 consecutive possessions, and even if he only makes 5 shots, it's still better than Paul going on 5 consecutive possessions and making 3 shots.

Moreover, Paul couldn't attack for 5 consecutive possessions. Facing Hughes' long-range shooting interference, he could only score by driving to close range and shooting against the opponent's interior defense. He felt a bit out of breath after 3 consecutive possessions, as the short-term exertion was too great!
In such a head-to-head matchup, Paul might not even be able to compete with Iverson, let alone Billups, who is already 33 years old.

This time, Paul drove deep into the box but missed the shot. Hughes, who followed up, grabbed the defensive rebound and started a fast break!
The Knicks are on fire!

Yi Shui rushed to the frontcourt and received the ball on the right side of the three-second zone. Devin Brown was in position to block him, but his blocking performance was far worse than that of "Little Weight" Pao Ge.

Yi Shui faked out Devin Brown with a sideways move, grabbed the ball, took three big steps, faced Sangaila who had retreated to the basket to help defend, jumped, pulled up in mid-air, tucked his hand to his forehead to avoid the block, and released the ball... and it went in!
Sangaira's block hit Yi Shui's wrist, the referee blew the whistle, the goal was valid and an additional penalty was imposed.

Yi Shui made the free throw, and the Hornets called a timeout!
41比31，靠着易水单挑和反击2+1，尼克斯队3分半钟时间打出了11比6的比分，一举将分差拉开到两位数。

The fans in the stadium went wild at this moment!

Their emperor single-handedly overpowered CP3, the MVP favorite of the past two years!

(End of this chapter)