The NBA's Absolute Dominance

Chapter 82: Impact Force Up to 12 Times

On the court, Spurs guard Vinnie Denagro dribbled the ball to the top of the key.

With his 193cm height advantage, he easily passed the ball over the head of the 185cm Coles to small forward Sean Elliott, who cut inside the penalty area from the left elbow.

Elliott received the ball and was met by Tang Bei, who was back defending the front of the basket. He immediately passed the ball to Tang Bei, who lobbed it high to the left side of the basket.

David Robinson, who was cutting inside from the left wing to the basket, saw the pass and immediately sprang up like a cheetah, caught the ball with one hand on his left and slammed it down.

Although he is humble, he was still upset when a rookie dunked on him, and he wanted to return the favor.

"A powerful dunk on the rim!"

"Aerial relay!"

In the ESPN studio, Michael Brin and Tom Tolbert were shouting excitedly.

"squeak!"

As Shawn Elliott passed the ball, Tang Bei instantly performed a Tai Chi turn, his shoes seemingly smoking, and after a powerful step forward, he jumped at the same time as David Robinson.

At that moment, one player slammed the ball down, while another blocked it.

"Snapped!"

The next moment, a loud slap rang out, and the orange basketball bounced high into the air.

"Oh!"

A gasp of surprise erupted from the Spurs fans in the arena.

"Pretty!"

Sun Zhenping and Xu Jicheng shouted excitedly at the same time.

"what?"

Shocked by the solid slap, David Robinson quickly observed the landing point and prepared to retrieve the ball.

Tang Bei was in a better position. As he jumped, he flicked the ball toward Glen Rice behind Elliott. Rice received the ball and immediately turned and launched a fast break.

In the transition between offense and defense, David Robinson and Tang Bei immediately began running side by side at high speed.

"So fast!"

"That Chinese guy can actually keep up with David's speed?"

The 16,000 Spurs fans in attendance were shocked and discussed the matter extensively.

Michael Brin was also very surprised in the ESPN studio.

Of the three great centers, David Robinson is probably the most talented and the fastest, even faster than this year's number one draft pick, Shaquille O'Neal.

But Tang Bei, who weighs 135 kilograms, is no slower than David Robinson, who weighs 113 kilograms. What a terrifying talent!

Perhaps if the distance were a little longer, Tang Bei wouldn't be able to catch up with David Robinson, but the basketball court is only so long, and David Robinson wouldn't have a chance to overtake Tang Bei in such a short distance.

Glen Rice, who was driving forward with the ball, saw that the two Spurs guards had returned to the paint. He immediately glanced left and right and saw a person wearing a Heat away black jersey following him on his right rear side.

He didn't care who it was. When he got to the free-throw line, he slowed down, pulled to the left, and threw the ball towards his teammate as he turned around.

David Robinson on the left hurriedly tried to stop it, but he was a little too slow and missed the ball.

Tang Bei received the ball and charged into the penalty area with unstoppable momentum.

At that moment, the impact was so strong that I slowed down to reduce the force on my body.

With the immense force of the impact, his body shot up like a roc spreading its wings, his head level with the basket, his right hand holding the ball high, cleaving towards the basket like a battle axe.

David Robinson, who was advancing side by side, was delayed for a moment by blocking the ball, and after jumping, he was already behind Tang Bei on the left rear side.

However, he averages 3.2 blocks and 1.5 steals per game, and last season he averaged 4.5 blocks and 2.3 steals per game, demonstrating his strong defensive ability. Falling behind does not mean losing defensive opportunities.

After jumping, he deliberately leaned towards Tang Bei, trying to disrupt Tang Bei's dunk through aerial body contact, while simultaneously extending his right hand from behind Tang Bei, holding the basketball high in his right hand.

In an instant, their bodies made contact, and an aerial confrontation ensued.

"what?"

In the instant the confrontation occurred, David Robinson felt an irresistible force strike him, instantly throwing his body away.

As the ball bounced away, the right hand's block attempt naturally missed the ball and hit Tang Bei's head instead.

"Di!"

The referee blew his whistle.

"boom!"

Almost simultaneously, an extremely loud thud echoed through the arena, instantly resonating in the ears and hearts of countless Spurs fans.

Even if the opponent slams the ball into their own basket, this domineering and violent tomahawk dunk still sends their adrenaline soaring.

"Ooh ho!"

In the CCTV live broadcast studio, Sun Zhenping and Xu Jicheng instantly lost control of their emotions, slamming their fists on the table and shouting.

"it is good!"

At the basketball court, Liu Yumin clapped his hands excitedly in praise.

She had never seen such a dunk before in China; not only centers, but even guards had never performed such a dunk.

Although Yang Boyong was happy, he was also a little worried and said, "Tang Bei is too heavy. This kind of movement is easy to get injured. When he lands, the impact on his knees is too great."

Liu Yumin nodded and said, "According to some data from abroad, the impact force on the knees when landing from a dunk is 5 to 10 times the body weight."

"The impact was that strong?"

Not only was Yang Boyong startled, but everyone else was too.

They are all former professional basketball players or coaches. They are not ignorant of basketball; they know that the impact is great, but they did not know it was this great.

Liu Yumin also said with a worried look: "Especially Tang Bei's gliding dunk from several meters away, with his explosive power, can generate extreme impact on the knees, even up to 12 times his body weight."

Yang Boyong and the others twitched at the corners of their eyes upon hearing this.

Twelve times the weight of Tang Bei, who weighs 135 kilograms, would result in an impact force of 1620 kilograms, or 1.62 tons, on his knees. This impact force is comparable to that of a car crash, and repeated impacts could even destroy knees made of steel.

Yang Boyong said, "No wonder the American media all think that Tang Bei's professional career will not be very long. It makes sense. Injuries are as fierce as tigers!"

On the court, after Tang Bei dunked the ball into the basket, he briefly hooked his right hand around the rim before immediately letting go to avoid dislocating his wrist.

Upon landing, the self-preservation program of an excellent martial artist is activated.

First, the balls of both feet touch the ground simultaneously, with the legs naturally bent. The enormous impact instantly travels upwards from the feet, striking the soles, ankles, and knees.

From the deceleration before takeoff to the reaction force of hitting the basket, the right hand hanging on the basket, and the self-protection action upon landing, plus the insoles from the toolbox, all of these played a significant role in reducing force and cushioning.

Even so, the ankles, knees, and soles of the feet were subjected to significant impact.

Fortunately, his muscles and tendons were extremely strong. With the cushioning effect, the impact was evenly distributed to his lower limbs, without causing significant impact or damage to any single joint.

"Such strong aerial combat capabilities!"

David Robinson landed unsteadily, staggered two steps to the side, and fell to the floor. He was shocked to see that Tang Bei was almost unaffected by the aerial combat.

"Tang, you actually knocked down David Robinson! That's amazing!"

"Tang, that dunk was the best!"

"Tang, you should be invited by the league to participate in the All-Star Slam Dunk Contest."

The other four Heat players on the court ran over excitedly, jumping and skipping.

"Glenn, that's a good report."

Tang Bei happily high-fived Glenn Rice in celebration.

"You did a good job."

Glenn Rice said excitedly.

Tang Bei then scored a free throw, and David Robinson committed a defensive foul.

"Bang!"

The free throw was missed, and David Robinson grabbed the rebound, giving the Spurs the offensive possession.

Shawn Elliott received the ball on the left wing three-point line and went one-on-one against Glen Rice.

He faked a shot, then dribbled low and drove to the basket. When Glen Rice caught up to his left side, he immediately stopped and jumped to shoot a two-pointer.

"Bang!"

Unfortunately, it went a little off course; the basketball bounced off the rim and was caught by Tang Bei under the basket.

4:2, Heat on offense.

Bimbo Coles dribbled the ball forward and, after reaching the attacking third, passed it to right-wing defender Kevin Edwards.

But at that moment, Spurs shooting guard Lloyd Daniels, who was guarding Edwards, saw Coles' pass, quickly intercepted it, and launched a fast break, scoring on the counterattack.

4-4, Heat on offense. After several rounds of contact, David Robinson, having suffered losses, decided to adjust his strategy against Tang Bei.

The main strategy is to reduce physical confrontations and instead rely more on technique and experience to defeat Tang Bei, while also improving passing.

"Prevent assaults, not slingshots."

For example, when defending against Tang Bei's low-post offense, he decided to focus on preventing Tang Bei from penetrating the basket.

The reason, of course, is that Tang Bei's ability to score close-range two points is not good enough, and he has no ability to score mid-range two points. With his footwork and defensive ability, letting him shoot is not very effective or threatening.

Tang Bei received the ball and was about to execute a Tai Chi turn when David Robinson inside immediately retreated a step. He had just turned and cut into the penalty area when he was blocked again.

"Oh!"

He crashed headfirst into David Robinson, who was knocked to the ground, but his ball rolled out of bounds.

"Just use this method to defend."

The defensive strategy that had just been decided was a success, and David Robinson was very happy, but his face showed no emotion.

On the Spurs' offense, David Robinson received the ball in the left elbow area, and under Tang Bei's defense, he suddenly turned and jumped to shoot, making a two-pointer and taking the lead.

"Snapped!"

Tang Bei dribbled the ball and spun down the court again, intending to drive to the basket. However, David Robinson retreated to defend early again, and just as Tang Bei stood up, he was blocked solidly.

The ball was still in play when David Robinson grabbed it, and the Spurs launched a counterattack, with Elliott scoring the winning goal.

The first time Tang Bei thought it was a coincidence, but this time he was blocked again, so he couldn't think it was a coincidence anymore. David Robinson had seized on his weakness.

"Defend against drives but not shots? This super center is seriously underestimating my close-range two-point ability!"

He was indignant, but when he thought about his own shooting and hook shot, although he had been improving, he was still no match for a super center like David Robinson.

"A true superstar center is indeed strong, excelling in both offense and defense, much stronger than a pseudo-superstar like Barkley."

While he was inwardly cursing, he forgot that before hitting Barkley, he had tripped him up. Even if he had held back, that trip would have definitely affected Barkley's performance.

With two successful defensive plays, the score was 4-8, forcing the Heat to call a timeout.

Xu Jicheng analyzed: "The Heat's offense is now in trouble. David Robinson defended against Tang Bei's two attacks."

Moreover, it was one-on-one defense, with no help defense. David Robinson truly deserves to be called a super center; his offensive ability is outstanding, and his defense is equally outstanding.

Looking at the data in front of him, Sun Zhenping said, "He was the shot block leader last season, and also the DPOY, which is the best defensive player. He was also selected to both the All-NBA First Team and the All-Defensive First Team, which is called a double All-NBA First Team."

Head coach Kevin Longley looked serious in front of the bench.

David Robinson's one-on-one defense against Tang Bei wasn't a tactical issue; it was a matter of the player's individual ability.

Tactics cannot solve Tang Bei's problem unless Tang Bei's low-post offense is abandoned, but that is impossible.

He thought for a moment and said, "Tang, you must increase the diversity of your offense next, and you must have nearly two points of attack."

Otherwise, David Robinson wouldn't be guarding your shot; he could easily retreat to the basket earlier, making it quite difficult for you to drive to the basket.

"I know."

Tang Bei nodded.

At this time, many Heat fans were also discussing related issues in their homes or in bars, watching TV.

In a bar, a group of fans were discussing it.

"I think the Chinese Tang dynasty is not as useful as the Sekali."

"That's right, David Robinson doesn't find it easy to defend Ronnie Secarly, but he can easily shut down the Chinese player."

"We've only attacked twice, and Tang is a rookie, so we need to be more patient."

"That's right. David Robinson is a superstar center, while Tang is a rookie. Isn't this kind of performance normal?"

"Didn't O'Neal also have a very tough time when he faced off against Hakeem Olajuwon last time? We should trust Tang's ability; he has consistently performed better than O'Neal."

"If Tang can beat a super center like David Robinson right now, then he's a super super center."

The timeout ended, and neither side made any substitutions; the Spurs still only fielded their two starters.

Tang Bei ran towards the left wing, still thinking about how to attack.

The head coach instructed him to increase his shot attempts by nearly two points; if he made those shots, he could break David Robinson's defensive strategy of defending against drives but not shots.

It's not that he doesn't take close-range shots; when he was with the Hornets, about a third of his shots per game were close-range shots.

But their current ability to score close to two points is really not very useful. When they are behind, if they miss a few more shots, the Heat are already weaker, and it's an away game, so they are bound to lose.

He didn't want to lose this game since he first joined the Heat, and he especially didn't want to lose to the superstar center David Robinson in their matchup.

Analyzing the first two offensive plays, the ball was passed down before the ball could be positioned deep enough to reach the basket. The player with the ball was far from the basket and had to dribble.

So this time, as soon as he reached the low position on the left wing, he began to exert force to squeeze inward.

David Robinson fought hard to defend, knowing full well that he couldn't let Tang Bei get to the deep post, otherwise it would be troublesome if Tang Bei got the ball near the basket.

However, his strength was far inferior. Tang Bei took less than two seconds to squeeze in two small steps, only 1.5 meters away from the edge of the basket.

At this moment, the basketball was passed from the top of the arc to the left wing. Glen Rice, who was holding the ball at the three-point line, saw that Tang Bei was going to the deep post. Without hesitation, he immediately lobbed the ball over Elliott's head.

With the three-second shot clock about to expire, Tang Bei received the basketball, and the three-second shot clock was immediately reset.

The moment he received the ball, he performed a Tai Chi turn.

He turned his body downwards like a tiger, without dribbling, and with one step, he sprang up and slammed the ball toward the basket with both hands.

David Robinson stepped back to defend the basket, and as he jumped, he raised his hands high in the air to block the shot.

Because it's right under the basket, this is the only way to block; there's no space, so I can't make a more powerful volleyball-style block.

But how could such a blockade possibly stop Tang Bei's power?

Moreover, he jumped vertically, while Tang Bei used the momentum of the Tai Chi turn to jump higher, with his hands only reaching Tang Bei's wrists, a difference of ten centimeters.

"boom!"

In the next instant, Tang Bei smashed David Robinson's hands away, and with a loud bang, the basketball pierced through the rim and crashed down, knocking David Robinson to the ground.

"Di!"

The referee's whistle blew at the same time.

"Oh!"

Seeing their star center get dunked on and everyone tumbling around the basket, over 10,000 Spurs fans erupted in gasps and sighs.

"Ooh ho!"

The Heat's bench erupted in cheers, white towels were waved, and the players on the court rushed towards Tang Bei.

"Fantastic! Tang Bei gets close to the basket and shoots again, David Robinson can't stop him!" Sun Zhenping shouted excitedly.

Xu Jicheng excitedly analyzed, "It's just like fighting a war. When Tang Bei gets close to the basket to attack, David Robinson loses his defensive depth, making it twice as difficult to defend."

Under the basket, David Robinson got up, panting, after being dunked on by a rookie. Even with his humility, he felt humiliated.

The referee then made a ruling that David Robinson had committed a foul by hitting the ball, and Tang Bei was awarded a free throw.

"brush!"

The Spurs make the free throw, making it 7-8. They attack.

"Bang!"

Shawn Elliott faked a shot and drove to the left elbow area, then pulled up for a jump shot. The opportunity was there, but he missed, making it +1.

During this process, Tang Bei attempted to help defend, but David Robinson cut to the basket in time, forcing him to abandon his attempt to help defend.

Just then, they grabbed the defensive rebound while defending the basket, and the Heat went on offense.

"brush!"

Glen Rice drove to the basket from the left wing and made a jump shot.

"9:8, the Heat have taken the lead," Sun Zhenping said happily.

Spurs shooting guard Lloyd Daniels, 201 cm tall and 93 kg, received the ball on the right wing three-point line and faced Kevin Edwards, 191 cm tall and 86 kg, in a one-on-one situation, where he had the advantage in both height and weight.

He was an undrafted player who earned a minimum salary of $14 with the Spurs, while Edwards was the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 88 NBA draft.

When the ball was passed to the right wing, the Heat's defensive formation shifted to the right wing, and Tang Bei entered the paint.

David Robinson did not enter the penalty area, which kept Tang Bei's defensive attention at bay and prevented him from providing sufficient support on the right wing.

"brush!"

Daniels then scored on a one-on-one play, making a mid-range jumper.

9:10, Heat on offense.

In the next possession, both teams missed a shot, and it was the Heat's turn to attack again.

(End of this chapter)