Chapter 66: If Malone Can't Do It, Let Wang Chong Do It
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In Wang Chong's understanding, Bird's success is largely attributed to his personality and playing style.
Bird was outspoken and liked to use trash talk to unsettle his opponents. He also employed various dirty moves on both the offensive and defensive ends.
In the 1980s, it was difficult to survive without such tactics, so Bird had no choice. However, these elements also contributed to his strength, which couldn't be entirely reflected in the system's ability value data.
This is why Wang Chong chose Durant. In the modern NBA, physical confrontation has become less intense. More emphasis is placed on off-ball movement, pick-and-rolls, and passing and cutting. Any slightly excessive movement is immediately called for a foul.
Although Bird is a small forward, his speed is more like that of an average inside player. His mobility on the court would not match Durant's agility in the new era. Furthermore, even if Wang Chong managed to learn Bird's dirty tricks, they wouldn't be effective in a league with more frequent whistle blows for contact fouls.
Of course, this is just Wang Chong's personal speculation. If Bird were to be transported into this era, his performance could vary greatly—he might become a demigod, or his ceiling might be closer to Nowitzki's level.
Wang Chong only had one chance to choose. He didn't want to take that risk. He chose Durant, who was already making a name for himself and would become nearly unstoppable offensively in the future league. It was the safest bet.
As the referee on the court threw the ball into the air, the game commenced.
Nowitzki easily lost the jump ball to O'Neal, who was 31 years old and weighed more than 150 kilograms.
The Lakers gained possession.
Gary Payton dribbled across half-court, waited for his teammates to get in position, and then passed the ball directly to O'Neal in the paint.
When O'Neal matched up one-on-one with Nowitzki, it was akin to a mismatch against a guard.
With his back to Nowitzki, O'Neal applied a bit of force, causing Nowitzki to stagger backward uncontrollably.
O'Neal easily reached the paint, raised his elbow, turned around, and placed the basketball into the hoop, scoring 2 points effortlessly.
"Easy, too easy."
After scoring, O'Neal executed his signature bully step and cheerfully returned to defense.
But on the defensive end, O'Neal's smile quickly faded.
Nowitzki didn't venture inside. Instead, he stayed at a 45-degree angle from the three-point line.
No one in the league is unaware of Nowitzki's sharpshooting from the outside.
Last season, this guy averaged 25.1 points per game on 46% shooting and 38% from three-point range.
He could not be left open from outside.
So, although he wasn't thrilled about it, O'Neal reluctantly dragged his massive frame out to the perimeter to guard Nowitzki.
However, Nowitzki was not satisfied. He led O'Neal on a chase around the perimeter, running from corner to corner like a guard, eventually arriving at the three-point corner on the opposite side.
Now O'Neal was really helpless. When he was younger, he could run all over the court, but now, at 150 kilograms, he couldn't keep up.
Nowitzki reached the corner, received a pass from Nash, and shot before the Lakers could rotate.
"Swish!" The three-pointer was right on target.
3:2!
"Good boy, just wait and see!"
A visibly annoyed O'Neal continued his attack in the next round.
His offense was indeed unguardable for Nowitzki. This time, O'Neal used a drop step to move directly under the basket and dunked with both hands. The force he used pulled the rim down so hard it made a "creaking" sound as if it might break.
"Shaq-O'Neal!"
The DJ at Staples Center stretched out his words and loudly announced O'Neal's name, drawing cheers from the crowd.
However, on the Lakers bench, Phil Jackson frowned slightly.
O'Neal is no longer the O'Neal of two or three years ago. His age and excessive weight have significantly affected his fitness.
During his peak years in 2000 and 2001, O'Neal not only weighed nearly 150 kilograms, making him dominant in the paint, but he was also physically fit enough to play more than 40 minutes in both the regular season and playoffs, taking 20 shots a game while still full of energy.
But the current O'Neal... was clearly different.
After several rounds of play, O'Neal's breathing became noticeably heavier, and his steps grew slower.
In the past, O'Neal could afford to be lazy on defense after using up a lot of energy on offense. His sheer size allowed him to be a deterrent just by standing under the basket.
But this game was different. As the Mavericks' center, Nowitzki matched up directly against O'Neal. His shooting ability forced O'Neal to guard him outside, which involved a lot of unnecessary movement and naturally increased energy expenditure.
"We can't go on like this."
Phil Jackson stood up decisively, gestured on the sidelines, and shouted, "Change the offensive tactics."
O'Neal's energy should be conserved across all four quarters of the game. He shouldn't waste it all at the beginning. Otherwise, how could they play the rest of the game?
The Lakers shifted their offensive focus away from O'Neal and instead had Gary Payton run pick-and-rolls with Karl Malone.
Malone's bread-and-butter during his time with the Jazz was the pick-and-roll game with his old partner John Stockton.
Although Payton was slightly inferior to Stockton in his playmaking abilities, he was still one of the league's top point guards and naturally skilled in running the pick-and-roll.
However, Malone's touch was off in this game. He missed both shots after running the pick-and-roll, allowing the Mavericks to seize the opportunity and launch two fast breaks in a row.
Another weakness of the Lakers was exposed: their mobility was painfully slow.
To be precise, the two old-timers, O'Neal and Malone, were too slow.
The Mavericks' lineup featured Nowitzki, who is 2.13 meters tall, surrounded by four players over 2 meters tall and Steve Nash. Once an offensive attempt failed or a mistake was made, the opponent's counterattack was swift and lethal.
The lead initially built by O'Neal's dominance in the paint began to erode gradually, and the Mavericks relied on Nowitzki, whom O'Neal simply could not keep up with.
Jackson frowned at his team's poor offense and shouted again, "Gary, try to run the pick-and-roll with Wang Chong!"
If Malone couldn't get it done, then let Wang Chong try!
Though Wang Chong, at 2.09 meters tall, wasn't as strong as Malone, his pick-and-roll game was decent. More importantly, Wang Chong's shooting after the pick-and-roll was quite reliable, at least in the previous training sessions and preseason games.
Phil Jackson wasn't sure if Wang Chong could maintain his efficient mid-range shooting in his NBA debut, but he was determined to give it a try.
End of this chapter
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