Basketball miracles

Chapter 247 [Controversial, Overwhelming Aura]

The Timberwolves were on offense. Olavokandi had a clear physical advantage over Grant and called for the ball in the low post on the left. Cassell passed the ball to him.

Olafokandi displayed his signature "butterfingers" move, dropping the basketball directly to the ground and then rolling between his legs to Grant's feet. Grant was practically burying his head in his crotch trying to retrieve it, looking utterly embarrassed.

Grant retrieved the ball and made a steal, then immediately passed it to Xiao Tu to launch a fast break.

When Xiao Tu countered, he was matched up against Madsen. As he closed in, he successfully dribbled past Madsen with a behind-the-back dribble, stopped abruptly on the right side of the three-point line to draw Garnett's help defense, and then passed the ball to the middle with a bounce pass.

Odom is open, catches the ball, takes three steps, and slams it home with a left-handed dunk! 5-0.

At that moment, Olavokandi was leisurely strolling around midfield with Grant. He was only focused on Grant and didn't care about anything else.

Flip Saunders shook his head on the sidelines and said after the game that Olavokandi was useless. "That guy's a complete slacker, he's got the contract and doesn't care about signing another one."

Later in his career with the Clippers, Olavokandi began to exhibit a rather volatile temper, even publicly insulting fans. After joining the Timberwolves, he became increasingly lazy and self-destructive, not only skipping training but also frequently appearing in nightclubs to numb himself with alcohol.

The only reason the Timberwolves signed Olavokandi was that management felt the team needed a center and wanted him to compete against O'Neal in the playoffs.

That's wishful thinking. How could such trash possibly guard Shaq? He couldn't guard any star player. He's way worse than Kwame Brown, the Wizards' number one draft pick.

Sprewell made a strong breakthrough with the ball on the outside, and after getting past Jones, he jumped up and was met with Xiao Tu's help defense.

Xiao Tu left the role power forward Madsen two meters away, allowing him to freely help defend under the basket. Madsen won two championship rings with the Lakers but lacked offensive ability, averaging 3.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game last season.

The madman made a mistake while forcing a pass to Garnett in mid-air, and Odom intercepted the ball.

Odom drew Garnett's defense in the middle and passed the ball to Xiao Tu on the left wing for a fast break. Xiao Tu quickly advanced to the frontcourt, where Cassell left Wade open and double-teamed him with Madrile.

Xiao Tu had made too many three-pointers in previous games, and all the coaches in the league knew they couldn't let him shoot from the perimeter. Xiao Tu's strength allowed him to overpower Sprewell, who is 196cm tall and weighs 89kg, creating mismatch opportunities.

Xiao Tu passed the ball to the middle, and Wade, without hesitation, caught it and made a three-pointer. 8-0.

On the way back on defense, Wade excitedly high-fived Xiao Tu in celebration.

He doesn't want to be constantly guarded, and making this three-pointer will greatly reduce the pressure on him from the outside today.

Barkley commented, "The Heat's secret to winning this season is three-pointers; they take the most three-pointers in the entire league. Shaw set a record for the most attempts, and everyone else takes them when they have the chance."

Kenny Smith laughed and said, "Shaw plays like that, and his teammates will definitely want to learn from him. He draws double teams and passes the ball, which often gives his teammates open shots. He should definitely take those shots."

Neither of them understood the "Moreyball" theory; they just felt the Heat scored very quickly and dominated the game from the start. However, when the opponent began to tighten their defense on the three-point line, the Heat's offensive firepower would decrease.

The Timberwolves were on offense. Garnett set a screen for his teammate and then cut to the basket, only to be double-teamed by Jones and Xiao Tu. The Heat players knew who the Timberwolves' focal point was, and they were focused on preventing Garnett from scoring, leaving other players open for shots.

Odom is also known for guarding five positions, and he immediately switched guards when he saw the Madman trying to break through.

Garnett, under pressure, attempted a shot using his height advantage but missed. He immediately rushed forward to grab the rebound but failed. Xiao Tu made an accurate judgment and used his long arm to catch the moon with one hand.

In the Heat's half-court offense, Xiao Zhong received the ball a meter beyond the three-point line in the middle of the court, posing a triple threat, which gave Garnett a headache.

Garnett seriously doubted the coach's opening defensive strategy was flawed; their ability to contain McGrady was directly related to McGrady's reluctance to run pick-and-rolls. Xiao Tu's playing style is more flexible; he can't position himself too far out.

Just as Garnett was thinking this, Grant's cover came up.

Xiao Tu dribbled the ball to the left, taking a step to get rid of Garnett, but Olavokandi came out to defend him this time. Xiao Tu clearly wasn't going to shoot, so he forced his way through with the ball in his left hand, drawing a foul from Olavokandi at a 45-degree angle. He casually tossed the ball out, but it didn't go in.

Smith exclaimed, "Beautiful! Shaw excels at this kind of small-on-big offense. Olavokandi had no choice but to foul, otherwise he would have been over there." Barkley said, "His basketball IQ is too high. Even if the opponent sends a shorter player to guard him, he can still outmaneuver the smaller player. I feel that his physical attributes are not as bad as the media says. His first step is very fast, and his physical attributes are top-notch."

Since Xiao Tu entered the league, he has always been a representative of "disability with strong will". After he put up super statistics one after another, many people realized the truth: static talent is also talent.

Xiao Tu calmly made both free throws, making it 10-0.

The Timberwolves are on offense. Cassell backs down Wade on the right side, turns 50 degrees, and hits a fadeaway jumper. 10-2.

This goal was crucial; the Timberwolves finally got their first win.

Cassell is technically gifted. Although he is not very fast, he can create shooting space with rhythm and technique, and he has an accurate mid-range shot.

In the Heat's half-court offense, Xiao Tu dribbled the ball upcourt himself. If Garnett didn't defend him out there, Xiao Tu might be able to shoot a three-pointer. If he defended too far out, even if he didn't get beaten, the Timberwolves' interior defense would become vulnerable.

The worst part is that Grant came out to cover for him again.

Xiao Tu focused intently on Olavokandi, dribbling the ball down the right flank. Seeing Olavokandi was far enough away, he took a step to the side, then stepped back with his right foot and launched a three-pointer from a 60-degree angle.

Xiao Tu's shooting distance is very far, about a meter from the three-point line, and Garnett couldn't block it even after going around the screen from the inside. This is what makes Xiao Tu unique; he firmly believes that as long as it's an open shot, it's better than a forced shot against the defense, and even if it's from a greater distance, the shooting percentage will be higher.

Because he shoots without pressure, his shot isn't affected by nervousness. It's a different story than most players having a high shooting percentage in practice but then missing a lot of shots in a game.

After the game started, Xiao Tu became more and more confident with each shot, and scored another one! 13-2.

Barkley said, "Sanders still hasn't called a timeout. His ability to adapt to the situation is lacking. You can't use a slow, stationary center against the Heat; you definitely can't defend them."

Smith said, "The Spurs defended well last game. Nesterovic didn't play much, Duncan played center for a long time, and Popovich played the 201cm Malik Rose at power forward. Other teams should also consider defending Shaw like this, but all teams have stockpiled a lot of big men."

Garnett received the ball and made a cut, only to be double-teamed again, so he passed to Madson. Madson is a liability on offense, a blue-collar player with no shooting range whatsoever. Even when he received the ball openly on the left baseline, he couldn't shoot immediately, taking a step for a layup, which missed under Grant's help defense.

Xiao Tu grabbed the rebound in the backcourt, landed with no one pressing him, and immediately launched a long pass like a quarterback into the frontcourt. Wade sprinted past Cassell on a fast break, received the pass at the free-throw line, turned, took three steps, and slammed it home with one hand! 15-2.

The Timberwolves were completely outplayed at the start, and Sanders only called a timeout after that, which was incredibly slow of a reaction.

Barkley said, "It seems like Shaw said at yesterday's press conference that he is the better core player, and the Heat will definitely beat the Timberwolves."

Smith said, "Garnett hasn't scored yet; he's not dominant on offense. He's just guarding Odom. A super scorer should step up and score consecutively at this point."

Barkley laughed and said, "People used to say that Garnett didn't have any help, but this season the Timberwolves have no shortage of scoring options, and their record hasn't been much better."

Garnett has always been a controversial figure, earning an exorbitant salary while repeatedly failing to advance beyond the first round of the playoffs. Most fans believe he's trying to piggyback on Duncan's fame for publicity, arguing that while they are considered equals, their records are vastly different.

If Garnett doesn't perform well this season, his popularity will definitely plummet.

Xiao Tu wanted to win the regular season MVP in his rookie season, and his biggest competitor was Garnett. So he made some tough statements before the game and gave it his all during the game, determined to show everyone the gap between him and Garnett.

Xiao Tu's goal is not just to win the game, but to win by a large margin. He wants to put up impressive stats while also helping his teammates defend Garnett, preventing the Wolf King from achieving good numbers.

In Xiao Tu's view, defeating the Timberwolves is worth two games, which will give him a solid advantage in the MVP competition.

Garnett, on the other hand, had absolutely no such awareness. He would be satisfied with a good regular season record in the Western Conference and even just getting past the first round of the playoffs. He could only fantasize about the MVP award in his mind; he wouldn't dare to say it out loud.

Garnett never made any pronouncements about contending for a championship, and even with two star teammates and some media praising the Timberwolves, he always remained low-key.

In terms of momentum, Xiao Tu was far superior to Garnett; it was a complete domination!
(End of this chapter)