The NBA's Absolute Dominance

Chapter 53: Assisting in defense and taking damage.
When it was the Cavaliers' turn to attack, Doherty positioned himself in the low post on the left wing to receive the ball, while Tang Bei stayed behind him, preventing the opponent from entering the penalty area even an inch.

Doherty has a very good back-to-the-basket technique, a soft touch, and a consistent mid-range shot, but his strength is a weakness.

Tang Bei suddenly pushed the ball outwards when Doherty received it, almost causing Doherty to make a mistake. After receiving the ball, he was already one meter outside the left side of the paint, which is the middle two-point area.

Although he was far from the paint, Doherty did not give up the attack. He faked several shots and finally turned and jumped to shoot.

Tang Bei's center of gravity was shaken, and his rhythm slowed down by half a beat, but he relied on his amazing mobility and jumping ability to catch up with the rhythm at the last moment when Doherty made his move.

"Snapped!"

With a wave of his left hand, he flicked the ball directly into the sky.

"what?"

Doherty was startled and quickly turned around to block Tang Bei from behind.

But Tang Bei exerted his strength and immediately pushed Doherty aside, then took the ball.

In the transition between offense and defense, the Hornets launched an attack. Muggsy Bogues, with his exceptional speed, received a pass from Tang Bei and launched a fast break, scoring a layup.

4-0, the Cavaliers are on the offensive.

Mark Price dribbled into the penalty area from the right wing, drawing Larry Johnson's defensive attention before passing the ball to Larry Nance in the low post on the right wing. Larry Nance immediately launched a floater after receiving the ball.

Larry Johnson hurriedly turned and jumped, but unfortunately he was too short and lacked the defensive height; blocking has never been his forte.

"Oh!"

Just then, a huge shadow rose from behind Larry Johnson, obscuring the sky, and then a giant hand instantly pinned the ball to the backboard.

"Oh!"

When Tang Bei delivered a series of blocks, this time a resounding block, the stadium erupted in gasps of surprise.

The referee turned around, faced the Hornets' frontcourt, and made a hand signal indicating that the block was valid and the Hornets were on offense.

"ball!"

Tang Bei came to the left wing low post. As someone who had consistently delivered impressive offensive and defensive performances, he confidently and loudly demanded the ball.

This time, Bogues couldn't ignore his request for the ball and immediately lobbed it in.

Tang Bei received the ball steadily but did not immediately launch an attack; instead, he considered it for a moment.

"His turning speed is not as fast as mine, and his movement speed is not as fast as mine, so I will use speed to overcome slowness and win with absolute speed."

In the next instant, while dribbling, he suddenly performed a Tai Chi turn.

The low horse stance provides a strong grip on the ground, allowing power to originate from the root and flow through the joints. Through the twisting of the waist and hips, it ultimately creates a twisting motion in place, like a fierce tiger.

"Turn around and slip to the bottom!"

"Faster! Faster!"

"It's over!"

Doherty, who was behind him, reacted immediately, but his body just couldn't keep up with the rhythm. He tried desperately to turn around, but by the time he finished turning, he only saw that Tang Bei had already rushed past him and was taking off into the air.

When Bogues passed the ball, Larrynance on the right side of the basket retreated to the basket and decisively double-teamed Tang Bei.

But by the time he moved to the basket and before he could even double-team Tang Bei, he saw Tang Bei had already turned around and pounced on him like a tiger.

"boom!"

With a loud thud, the basket rack suddenly sank downwards.

Tang Bei, hanging above the basket, swung forward, spread his legs, and slammed his hips heavily into Larry Nance.

Larry Nance grunted, feeling as if he had been hit by a heavy truck. His upper body leaned back sharply, his feet were uprooted, and his back slammed heavily onto the floor.

"Oh!" Upon seeing this, another gasp of surprise rang out in the stadium.

Commentator Phil Motel exclaimed, "What a ferocious dunk! Hopefully Larry Nance can get back up."

Luol Johnson exclaimed in shock, "From Bill Russell and George Mikan to Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and then to Olajuwon, Ewing, and David Robinson, the league has never seen a behemoth center with this style."

Philmotl said, "It was two at once, two behemoth-like centers, both weighing 135 kilograms."

This puts their opposing centers or power forwards at a significant disadvantage. Lacking sufficient size and strength, they are at a severe disadvantage in physical confrontations and can be easily knocked over or sent flying.

Rourke Johnson said, "Speaking of which, Tang's low-post attack just now really was, as Michael Brin said, a tornado-style turnaround to the basket."

"A super-fast spin move to the basket creates tremendous impact, like an unstoppable tornado," Phil Mott exclaimed sincerely.

Rourke Johnson said, "Yes, if the main defender can't hold the line, the teammates who are helping on defense will take the damage, and this time it's the same."

"Hey!"

Phil Mott burst out laughing, then said, "Ruhr, that sounds like something Michael Brin said, it's been reported in the media."

Rourke Johnson smiled and said, "The average NBA player's turnaround time is between 0.3 and 1.5 seconds, depending on factors such as defensive strength, turnaround technique, and physical attributes."

And Tang's turning speed, I believe, is the fastest in the league, bar none; his turning time wouldn't exceed 0.2 seconds.

Phil Mott agreed, saying, "It's impossible to measure precisely, but even the best perimeter players' turnaround speed shouldn't be as fast as Tang's, which is surprising."

Rourke Johnson nodded and said, "China Tang's explosive power is amazing. His tornado-style turn could easily become his signature move."

Larry Nance was substituted. The veteran, who is almost 34 years old and has a lot of old injuries, couldn't withstand this kind of exertion. Let him rest for a while.

Without Larry Nance, the Cavaliers' interior defense immediately began to falter.

With five minutes left in the first quarter, the Cavaliers called their second timeout of the quarter. The score was 20-14, with the weaker Hornets leading by 6 points.

Tang Bei made 3 of 4 shots, missed one dunk, and made 1 of 1 free throws, scoring 7 points.

Larry Johnson took all two-point shots, making 2 of 4 for 4 points, a decent shooting percentage.

But his dissatisfaction with Tang Bei also grew, because Tang Bei occupied the offensive space under the basket, forcing him to only shoot close to two points.

Under the basket and near the rim, he is less competitive than Tang Bei; he is too short, and his shooting percentage will not be very high when double-teamed.

His 5% shooting percentage was just luck. He can't rely on luck forever. The loss of his offensive space under the basket made him feel a great sense of crisis and also made him very angry.

If he hadn't still had some reservations and some rationality, he would have already lost his temper.

"There's no coordination or passing between Larry Johnson and Don, so you can confidently double-team them without worrying about the other one."

"Remember, increase the intensity of your defense. Your defense needs to be tough and intimidating enough, OK?"

"Brad, you just need to hold off that rookie for one second, and Larry's help defense will be there."

"Cut off passing lanes from the outside, especially when that rookie is near the basket, and make good use of the three-second rule on offense."

Cavaliers head coach Lenny Wilkens has over 800 wins and is very experienced. He has emphasized interior defense and upgraded the defensive intensity. As another Eastern Conference team, and the Cavaliers' home court, winning is not an option.

"1 seconds?"

"At his turning speed, one second should be enough for him to turn five times, right?"

"But after he received the ball, he paused for at least half a second, which was my opportunity and also Larry's opportunity to help defend."

Doherty recalled the speed at which Tang Bei had turned and attacked the basket, and devised a plan to counter it.

The timeout ended, and Larrynance returned to the court.

(End of this chapter)