At 7:00 p.m., the home game between the Bobcats and the Magic began.
Howard won the tip-off against Okafor... and then things turned bleak.
Tonight, Bickerstaff started Perkins as Center.
As soon as Howard made it to the frontcourt, he was marked by Perkins.
Perkins ignored everything else, with Okafor ready to step in from the middle and Gerald Wallace on the strong-side wing, he stationed himself between Howard and the basket throughout the game.
On the first attack of the game, Nelson’s rushed shot clanked off the rim under Felton’s tight defense, and Howard’s first attempt to rush for the offensive rebound was firmly blocked by Perkins, leaving him to watch helplessly as Okafor swooped in to grab the defensive board.
After that, Howard remained in the same situation. His only method of one-on-one play was to power through, which was impossible against the heavier Perkins. His options for cutting in to receive passes and for offensive rebounding were all nullified, and instead of being the formidable potential superstar center, he was reduced to an explosive but blue-collar inside presence.
After a few rounds, Okafor’s obsession had completely dissipated.
It turns out, all it really took was one Perkins to hold off Howard.
Okafor was glad he listened to Zhang Yang’s advice and lost weight in time. In fact, in the early stages of his weight loss, it was a struggle. His weight was so great that he did not dare to increase his training volume—the pressure on his ankles and knees was too much at 128 kilograms. By then, he was sure that what Zhang Yang said was right. Fortunately, he had the willpower to stick it out and even completed the weight loss and rehabilitation schedule nearly a month ahead of time, returning to the team to help them seize the opportunity of the 11-home-1-away series, boosting the team’s win rate to 50%.
Furthermore, Howard’s mobility, judgment for offensive rebounds, and choice of cutting routes, combined with his physical condition, convinced Okafor that this fellow top draft pick would be a nightmare for most interior players in the future.
Okafor now understood that to compete with Howard in the future, he must maintain his current mobility, diversify his offensive skills, and learn to play better with big men centers. In any case, becoming a slow-footed anchor at center would definitely lose out to Howard, even without injuries.
The twin towers of Okafor and Perkins effectively shut down Howard.
The progress of the game... was surprisingly smooth for the Bobcats!
Logically speaking, though the twin towers of Perkins and Okafor were their best combination for rim protection, they did not pack the same offensive punch as Brezec and Okafor. Perkins sometimes even dragged the team down with poor positioning, limiting the offensive space for Gerald Wallace and Felton.
The Bobcats players felt they had the advantage over the Magic, but considering the inside offensive space, the advantage wouldn’t be too significant.
The reality was that the Bobcats played the Magic with a score of 14 to 6 in half a quarter!
Rushed shots, idealized passes, defensive lapses... After half a quarter of playing the Magic, Felton understood why Zhang Yang said the Magic were too impulsive.
Not long after the season started, the media were saying that Francis and Hill were holding the Magic back.
Indeed, that was the case; for the first two months, the Magic’s second unit played better than the starters whenever the two of them were not on the court.
By January, after Hill was out again due to injury, the Magic’s record improved instead of declining, confirming this view.
Before the trade deadline, the Magic successfully swapped Francis for Arroyo, Milicic, and others. Convinced that Francis and Hill had been holding them back, the Magic players were instantly confident, thinking they were about to take off. In interviews, they bypassed other playoff contenders and compared themselves with the Miami Heat, Nets, and Knights... and then went on to win 2 and lose 8.
Last night, Zhang Yang analyzed this to Felton, and at the time, Felton didn’t quite understand, but after playing against them, it all became clear.
The recent string of continuous losses didn’t calm the Magic players down; instead, they became even more impulsive.
Hearing his teammates surprised about how poorly the Magic were playing, Felton chimed in, lifting his round head, and said, "They’re too impulsive..."
After the official timeout, Zhang Yang was substituted in, bolstering the Bobcats’ outside offensive firepower, and they scored 17 to 8 in the latter half of the quarter.
At the end of the first quarter, the Bobcats led the Magic by 17 points at 31 to 14!
In the second quarter, after the Bobcats brought in more rotational players, their lead didn’t grow further. After all, the rotational players each had their flaws, and quite noticeable ones at that. The difference in score hovered around 15 points; the Bobcats couldn’t pull further ahead, and the Magic struggled to close the gap to within 10 points. Every time they did manage to close it to 9 or 8 points, after their climax, the Bobcats pulled it back to a double-digit lead.
However, the Bobcats maintained their defense on Howard. As long as Howard was on the floor, Bickerstaff kept Perkins in to watch him.
If Howard had a fast-break opportunity, that couldn’t be helped; even Okafor couldn’t run as fast as Howard.
But in set plays, they didn’t give Howard a single chance.
Bickerstaff also knew about Okafor’s fixation, and to avoid Okafor gaining weight irrationally again, he decided to target Howard specifically.
After all, teams only face each other four times in the regular season, and this was the last one. Bickerstaff decided to let Okafor enjoy himself.
At 9:21 p.m., the final whistle blew, and the Bobcats easily defeated the Magic 108 to 92, bringing their record to 35 wins and 34 losses!
The biggest beneficiary of the Magic’s defensive impatience was Zhang Yang, who was good at seizing opportunities.