LeBron James, your house got robbed.

Chapter 102: Be the strictest LeBron fan

When Chen Shuo saw the message, he understood Riley's intention.

The battle between the Cavaliers and the Heat has now reached its climax, with both teams battling it out on every front.

The most fundamental element of a series is, of course, the base of the team.

The Cavaliers' roster is a natural counter to the Heat.

The three-layered defensive formation crippled James, while Paul controlled the tempo and Garnett's support cut off the Heat's counterattack.

This is a victory.

Beyond their core strengths, the Cavaliers and Heat also engaged in strategic maneuvering and rotation.

The Heat's attempt to single out Paul was easily thwarted.

James drove to the free-throw line, drawing Garnett's double team and passing to Miller, but this was thwarted by Rongabat's defensive strategy.

Spoelstra started JR Smith to punish Garnett's mismatch, but the Cavaliers' ultimate zone defense ended the game.

At this point, the Cavaliers have once again achieved a complete victory in terms of tactics. Of course, this is mainly due to the overwhelming advantage in their core players, while the Heat have no rotation options to adjust.

This is the second win.

The subsequent dark ruling, as an off-the-books tactic, represents a competition on another level.

Riley probably saw the trend of mini-ball early on and wanted to take advantage of it, but Chen Shuo just went all out and ruined the whole thing.

This is the third victory.

The score has now reached 3-1.

All Riley could do was issue a pledge, a do-or-die battle.

Start playing the strategy of unit formation.

Whether the strategist wants to break up the team is hard to say, but these words are entirely intended to give the team a boost, especially to James, who is the team's core player.

On the original timeline, the Heat were down 2-3 against the Celtics.

Riley didn't say it outright, but based on James' later interviews, Riley must have expressed something similar privately.

This directly led to James unleashing his career-saving "death stare".

Chen Shuo looked at Riley's serious face on the screen.

He didn't know why Riley would reveal this directly to the reporters.

Chen Shuo understands that the G5 is of paramount importance.

James only managed 19.3 points, 3.6 assists, and 7 rebounds in his first 5 games.

But this doesn't represent all of James's abilities; there is no defense in the world that cannot be broken.

As a die-hard LeBron James fan of 20 years, Chen Shuo has a thorough understanding of James's abilities.

When physical talent becomes terrifying to a certain extent, one can indeed do whatever one wants.

For someone like Paul to score a goal, it might require a series of changes of direction, a pause in rhythm, and seizing a fleeting opportunity.

For James, it might be as simple as driving in and shooting a layup while holding off the defender.

In Game 6 of the 12 Eastern Conference Finals, the reason why James was able to put up a terrifying output of 45+15+5 was that he stopped relying on driving to the basket and instead started to trust his post-up game and mid-range shot.

This game helped James overcome his mental block and became a turning point in his career.

James' current problem is not his skills; for his body, what he knows is basically enough.

His real problem lies in his mindset.

A detail that LeBron James fans all know is that he will keep shooting until he misses his first shot.

If you miss the first shot, you might not be very willing to shoot for the rest of the game, often finding yourself hesitant to shoot when you're on a hot streak but afraid to shoot when you miss.

The "death stare" technique largely helped James achieve a mental transformation, making him more willing to trust his shooting.

In James's logic, this is about choosing a more efficient way to score.

So when opponents lock down James's drives, they suddenly realize that he's been passing the ball to his teammates and waiting for cuts or fast breaks, which is what he considers a highly efficient approach.

LeBron James' basketball career, like his business empire, is essentially a complex arithmetic problem.

Calculating which scoring methods are efficient, how to allocate physical energy and at which stages to exert effort, while also calculating one's own data sheet.

This way of thinking cannot be completely denied, but it has indeed greatly influenced James's game performance.

Scoring players like Jordan and Kobe think in a way that if they can't make the shot, they'll keep shooting until they do.

Classic wing isolation plays, played until you're completely convinced.

James's way of thinking is that if he can't make a shot, he'll try another one; he'll never get bogged down in a pointless internal struggle over it.

This method is more efficient during the regular season.

In playoff mode, it's not about which scoring methods you choose, but about which scoring methods your opponent will allow you to score.

For example, when facing the current Cavaliers, all the resources are focused on James's drives and passes, giving you shooting opportunities, such as pull-up jumpers from the top of the key or mid-range shots from behind.

So now.

Do you want these opportunities?

It was this repeated hesitation that constituted James's biggest inner demon.

Riley was well aware of this, which is why he cut off all avenues of retreat and tried to force James to make a move.

Since Riley wanted to play psychological warfare, Chen Shuo was naturally willing to play along.

Riley wanted to cut off all of James's escape routes, but Chen Shuo insisted on leaving James a sliver of hope.

Chen Shuo not only wants to be a LeBron James fan, but also the most demanding one, completely disrupting James's path to transformation.

June 4th, the day before the game between the Cavaliers and the Heat.

The New York Times published an article:

The possibility of LeBron James returning to Cleveland.

"According to reliable sources, if the Heat break up their Big Three this summer, Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert is not opposed to James returning to Cleveland."

"With Garnett's $2100 million contract expiring this offseason, the Cavaliers will have plenty of salary cap space to make moves."

"They could try signing Garnett to balance the salary cap."

"We could even trade Ariza's $700 million and Battier's $600 million contracts to acquire James and form a Big Four while keeping Garnett."

"The Cavaliers have outstanding rookies, as well as a number of quality rotation players and future draft picks, all of which are valuable assets."

"Of course, it all depends on James's wishes. If he and his team are willing to actively make this happen, we could see the King return to Cleveland as early as next year."

"Even if the Heat are not satisfied with this offer, James can opt out of his current contract and join the Cavaliers as a free agent during the 2014 offseason."

"By then, Thompson and Leonard will both be in the third year of their rookie contracts, Garnett may have retired, and the combination of Paul and Chandler with the addition of James will still give them the ability to contend for the championship."

Such news spread rapidly across the internet, and thanks to its highly inflammatory concept, it still attracted the attention of countless media outlets and fans.

Of course, for players, such unfounded sources of information are not worth believing.

Especially Garnett, not long after the mid-season trade, the Cavaliers and Garnett had a preliminary agreement and communication regarding the contract extension, and the price and duration had already been agreed upon.

But for James, who was on the verge of collapse, this news was like a lifeline for a drowning man.

James's rationality prevented him from believing the news, while his emotions made him hope it was true.

Returning to Cleveland, where the dream began, he lifted the championship trophy, turning public opinion around in one fell swoop.

James considered the Cavaliers' formidable roster and was confident that if he replaced Garnett, he could bring more than one championship to his hometown.

As a 20-year veteran LeBron James fan, Chen Shuo would naturally help LeBron make this dream more realistic.

Rich Paul was the entry point Chen Shuo chose.

This childhood friend of James from Akron has been pushing for James to return to Cleveland.

After the New York Times report was published, Rich Paul immediately sought confirmation and received a hint from Gilbert's team.

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