During the transition between offense and defense, Hughes pushed forward to the frontcourt and saw Zhang Yang defending in front of him. He passed the ball to James, then ran towards the right baseline.
James received the ball and broke past Hill, drawing in Zhang Yang and Millsap for a double-team before passing the ball to Hughes.
Hughes passed again as Pavlovic, using a screen set by Gooden, shook off Rondo and moved to the left corner to catch the ball and shoot a three-pointer. It was a hit!
Then it was the Knight’s turn to attack. This time James was very focused defensively, concentrating on preventing Rondo’s breakthrough.
Seeing this, Rondo lobbed the ball to Zhang Yang, who was leaning against Hughes.
As Zhang Yang received the ball, Hughes attempted to get around him... but was firmly blocked by Zhang Yang from the front.
In the past two seasons, when Hughes defended Zhang Yang, he had a slight advantage in their encounters. Now, he couldn’t hold him off anymore.
Zhang Yang caught the ball, backed into Hughes, turned to the right, and drove down the middle!
The moment James moved towards the free-throw line to help, Rondo was ready. As soon as James moved to double-team Zhang Yang, Rondo instantly cut in to receive the pass, then passed the ball again...
Okafor caught the ball near the right baseline and made a close-range jump shot. It went in!
The Cavaliers took their turn on the offense. James bypassed Hill to the inside, and this time the double team coming at him was Okafor and Zhang Yang. James, pressing against Okafor, pushed two more steps deeper into the defense, and amid the confrontation, passed the ball to the left side of the three-second area.
The extra two steps James took drew the following defender, Hill, to the left side of the basket to guard against his baseline move, creating more movement time for Big Z.
Big Z got the ball and shot from mid-range... It scored!
Carlisle stood by the court, hands in pockets, watching as the duel he had expected unfolded successfully.
Next to him, Vincent remarked, "Using Grant to defend James simply doesn’t work."
Carlisle replied, "As expected, Raymond containing KING is not merely a joke. With him around, defending against James isn’t too strenuous. Though we could position ourselves to guard James, the effort would outweigh the benefits."
"The ’Cost-Benefit’ concept of the bad boys, huh?" Vincent felt that his old friend was quickly becoming like Jarett...
Watching James miss Rondo again as he focused on others, Vincent said, "What a pity for James... He really could have combined the talents of Gerald and Wright."
Carlisle responded, "Indeed, the potential he has on the defensive end is just like Jack’s offensive potential— possibly the strongest in history.
But he doesn’t want to be that kind of player. He wants to make spectacular plays.
He seeks to block shots, steal, force turnovers, and mess up the opponent’s shooting... He wants to be the man in the spotlight.
He won’t bother with Rajon; he’ll surely focus on Jack, and Rajon will get many opportunities. With his speed and offensive instincts, he can seize those chances well."
Vincent: "If they use James to defend Jack... no, Brown won’t arrange that. James can’t handle Jack’s ability to disrupt rhythm effectively, even if he tries. With Jack having an easier defensive duty tonight, he can fully focus on attacking one-on-one against James."
"So that’s why you positioned Jack against Hughes for a feint with the ball, while actually playing without it. But with this plan, are you confident about winning?"
Carlisle shook his head, "I don’t know what the result will be, but it’s better than being passive and following their defensive grind. That’s not our strength right now. Even if we can’t control the initiative, at least we won’t let them control it either, and lately, our offense has been quite good."
Vincent: "... You’re right."
Thinking of Carlisle’s blend of extreme "bad boy" basketball philosophy and his own foundation-plus-high demands concept, Vincent’s lips twitched uncontrollably as he realized how much his old friend had changed in his coaching style since joining the Knight’s coaching staff.
The Knight’s coaching staff seemed relaxed as they chatted casually, while Mike Brown sat on the Cavalier’s bench, his expression that of a downtrodden man.
Tonight, with Felton out injured, Mike Brown felt there was a chance to win against them. He really wanted to seize this opportunity.
For this, he was fully prepared to engage in a war of attrition!
Defensively, he used Hughes and James in a rotation to wear down Zhang Yang.
Although Hughes’s mobility declined due to a knee injury, relegating his defensive capability to the fringes, Zhang Yang had significantly improved both physically and technically since last season. Yet in wearing Zhang Yang down in one-on-one entanglement, Hughes could still handle it well.
James, this season’s best defensive player on their team, wasn’t suitable for guarding Zhang Yang, but his physicality was undeniable, always making some trouble for Zhang Yang.
Additionally, flanking from the wings and the inside was also set up, not fearing that Zhang Yang would burst out like he did in the last game. Their defense was much stronger than the Nugget’s, ranked within the top ten of the league.
Offensively, they used James to exhaust Zhang Yang.
Mike Brown believed Carlisle would definitely have Zhang Yang defend James.
One-on-one, Zhang Yang certainly couldn’t contain James, but neither could Felton. What worked was the control from the Center and the flanking attack from the wings.
Zhang Yang, although not as adept as Felton, was much better than Jarett Jack, Rondo, Alan Houston, Hill, and others.
If the offensive and defensive strategies were executed as planned, they could greatly exhaust Zhang Yang in terms of stamina and shooting touch.
Mike Brown drafted this game plan based on previous encounters, where the Knight’s strategy was simple: lock down James and let Zhang Yang attack.