บท 25: Fake Hesitation!
"Anytime, I'm ready," Stat responded nonchalantly.
The taunt from a rookie couldn't disturb the inner calm of a superstar, especially after just locking down Carlos in two consecutive attacks.
"Swoosh!"
Fields received Felton's bounce pass, cut through the middle with a quick step into the paint, and once again jumped for a low-handed layup. The basketball lightly bounced off the rim and went in. Tied score.
"Bam, bam, bam!"
Carlos dribbled the ball himself. Seeing the center crossing the half-court, Felton rushed out trying to steal the ball from Carlos, but he ended up to steal the air.
Felton looked at the confident Carlos and couldn't help but exclaim, "Such proficient ball-handling skills, doesn't look like a center."
Felton sighed and left.
At the top of the arc, Carlos faced off against Stat, rapidly crossing over multiple times, holding the ball in his right hand, lowering his center of gravity, and then... accelerating to the right wing.
"Swoosh!"
Stat's gaze sharpened; he took a step to keep up. Despite Carlos's outstanding physical attributes, Stat wasn't left behind.
"Sizzle!"
Carlos rushed to the free-throw line, glanced at the basket, and habitually prepared for a shot.
"Another jump shot. I've said it before; this one-dimensional offensive approach doesn't work against me."
Stat glanced and immediately discerned Carlos's intention. Like a fierce giant, he fiercely approached, ready for Carlos to shoot, to disturb him, or even block the shot. However, just as Stat closed in, Carlos suddenly initiated another burst of acceleration.
"What? A feint?"
"Fake Hesitation!"
Stat was momentarily stunned.
"Swoosh!"
With his center of gravity already raised, Carlos left Stat behind with a sudden burst of speed, heading straight for the basket. The sudden impact on the rim caught all the Knicks players off guard.
"Swoosh!"
Carlos jumped high and effortlessly dunked the basketball.
"What?"
"Drive and score? Was Carlos's layup a drive?"
"No... it doesn't count. Probably forced to drive under Stat's pressure, and the other Knicks players didn't react in time, allowing him to score."
Some Knicks fans in the stands spoke with uncertain tones.
In the commentary box...
Van Gundy's eyes lit up; lips aimed at the microphone, he praised, "Great play. Carlos's Fake Hesitation is so lifelike; Stat was directly deceived, and then Carlos easily scored with a layup."
"Wow!"
Mike Breen also opened his mouth in amazement. "Carlos actually shook 'Stat' clean. Honestly, Carlos doesn't look like a rookie. More like a player who has been in the NBA for years, seasoned and experienced."
"Yeah..."
Van Gundy nodded heavily, echoing the sentiment.
On the court...
"Oh? Drive and layup?"
Stat was caught off guard by Carlos's sudden drive and layup. However... that was it. In the next play, he still had absolute confidence to stop him.
Change of possession...
Felton brought the ball up, a high lob pass to Stat on the left low post, backing down against Carlos. In a simple power struggle, Carlos wasn't a match for Stat.
"Bam, bam, bam!"
Continuing the backdown and power struggle, with well-coordinated footwork, Stat pushed Carlos aside. With a half-turn, Stat created enough shooting space and took a jump shot.
"Swoosh!"
Using his terrifying jump, Carlos, despite being half a body length behind, caught up and swatted the ball away. Nash, quick-eyed and nimble, sprinted out to grab the rebound and seamlessly transitioned into a fast break, effortlessly scoring on a layup.
"Facing Stat, trailing by half a body length, and still managing to block him with a backward jump—what kind of jump and arm length does Carlos have?"
"Boom!"
One Fake Hesitation, one direct block — Carlos triumphed over Stat on both ends of the court, causing cheers, shouts, and screams to erupt in the arena.
"Tch..."
Stat scoffed, listening to the cheers in the arena, feeling a bit displeased. Indeed...
Being restricted on both offense and defense by a rookie, Stat, a player at an All-Star starting level, couldn't possibly be happy at the moment! Immediately, Stat broke through Hill's defense, fiercely attacked the basket, and dunked for a score.
Finally, Stat felt a bit better.
He then actively sought out Carlos again, his gaze sharp as a knife. Only by shutting down this rookie's offense could he erase the humiliation.
"Bam, bam, bam!"
The two faced off in a one-on-one again.
Carlos dribbled consecutively between his legs, moving through the defense like a butterfly in a flower garden. Even though Carlos had displayed consecutive dribbles between his legs before, the fact that a 215-centimeter center could dribble like a guard still amazed many fans.
"Swoosh!"
Gazing intently, Carlos accelerated. With Iverson's astonishing speed and his long legs, he covered five meters in just one step.
"So fast!"
Stat was internally surprised, but his reaction was also extremely fast. He caught up at full speed, but Carlos, the next second, raised his hand to shoot. Stat hurriedly jumped up to interfere.
However...
This time, it was another Fake Hesitation.
"Swoosh!"
In a moment of self-pity, Stat missed Carlos, and Carlos accelerated once again, rushing into the paint. Springing from the ground, Gallinari wanted to defend, but Carlos's explosiveness was just too frightening.
Gallinari didn't even get a chance to jump.
"Boom!"
A one-handed slam dunk, bombarding the basket!
"My god!"
"Carlos, a center's breakthrough dunk!"
Van Gundy exclaimed, and Mike Breen, excitedly clenching his fist, said, "If I remember correctly, this... this is Carlos's first dunk!"
"Yeah..."
Van Gundy also said in a shocked tone, "Although rare, Carlos's breakthrough dunk is both domineering and stylish!"
"Ahh!"
Some fans in the stands couldn't help but scream again, especially some female fans who were covering their reddened faces. Some even went so far as to take off their white Suns jerseys, waving them in the air.
The atmosphere in the arena heated up rapidly.
"Damn!"
Stat's face was grim. Letting a rookie dunk on him under his defense was simply a disgrace, and continuously being deceived was even more embarrassing.
"Carlos!"
Stat gritted his teeth, his fierce gaze fixed on Carlos, as if he could devour him.
"Bam, bam, bam!"
Approaching Carlos in the frontcourt, fueled by emotion, Stat attacked Carlos forcefully, intending to power through him. However, Nash, who had been keeping an eye on him, took advantage of his lack of preparedness and made a sudden move.
"Smack!"
Stealing the ball from Stat...
Initiating a fast break, although the Knicks' defense was timely, Nash, having just reached the free-throw line, encountered Felton's defense. Without stopping, he continued charging.
"Splash!"
Then passed the ball back to the oncoming Carlos.
"Swoosh!"
Stat, who had also caught up, suddenly lunged from behind to steal, but Carlos, with a graceful turn, skillfully avoided it and accelerated toward the basket.
At this moment...
Under the basket were Felton, Fields, and Chandler, three big men guarding, but Carlos, who had already charged, showed no signs of slowing down. He entered the restricted area, jumped off the ground.
Facing the defense of three players, he feigned a move in mid-air, eluding the block.
"Swoosh!"
Off the backboard, it went in...
"Unbelievable!"
"1vs3, Carlos feints in mid-air, and bank shot! Who said he only knows how to shoot? Speak up!"
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