Chapter 814: Using Speed to Counter Speed
Miami inbounded the ball.
Chalmers received it and attacked the paint.
With no opening available, he dribbled back out and passed to Mike Miller.
Chen Yan was guarding Miller.
He and Battier had switched assignments tonight because chasing a perimeter shooter required less energy than dealing with Wade's constant drives.
Miller did not shoot.
He moved the ball toward James near the baseline.
Miami's first several possessions had looked exactly like this.
Pass.
Probe.
Reset.
Another pass.
Plenty of movement, but little actual progress.
The Heat preferred to play fast, attacking before the opposing defense could get organized.
Once they were forced into a slower half court game, their offense often became stagnant.
12 seconds remained on the shot clock.
James faced the basket from the corner and settled into a triple threat stance.
Pau Gasol came over to set a screen.
New York switched.
DeAndre Jordan stepped in front of James while David West followed the action from behind.
James's eyes immediately sharpened.
The extra defender was coming.
Exactly what he wanted.
James whipped the ball toward the basket.
Gasol had already rolled into the open paint.
Catch.
Layup.
Good.
7 to 2.
Kenny Smith nodded.
"That is what LeBron does so well. The defense sends extra attention, and he sees the opening immediately."
Barkley agreed.
"Exactly. If you crowd him, you better know where everybody else is, because LeBron will find the open man."
Miami had finally scored.
The home crowd immediately came alive.
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
"Defense!"
New York did not slow down.
The Knicks inbounded immediately and exploded up the floor.
Curry caught the ball and accelerated.
Chalmers could not stay with him.
Wade stepped up and reached for the ball.
Curry calmly passed out of the pressure.
Chen received it on the move.
Miami's defensive shape was already beginning to break apart.
Chen saw it instantly.
He lowered his center of gravity and attacked down the right side.
The defense collapsed.
Chen waited until the last moment before slipping the ball behind him.
DeAndre caught it in stride.
He gathered.
Boom!
Powerful dunk.
9 to 2.
Miami came back down.
Before Chalmers had even crossed half court, Nelson was already shouting from the sideline.
"Do not double him! Take away the passing lanes!"
Everyone knew who he meant.
LeBron.
On the previous possession, New York had committed an extra defender toward James and surrendered an easy basket to Gasol.
Nelson hated it.
This time, however, James never touched the ball.
Wade used a screen to create separation, caught the pass, and drove directly toward the basket.
Battier recovered perfectly.
Wade rose for the layup.
Smack!
Battier blocked it.
The decline in Wade's explosiveness was becoming increasingly obvious.
His injured knee had taken away some of the burst that once made him almost impossible to contain near the basket.
In previous seasons, a drive that deep usually ended in either a basket or free throws.
Now Battier had been able to recover and reject the attempt cleanly.
Kenny Smith reacted immediately.
"That was excellent recovery defense by Battier. Wade got into the lane, but Shawn stayed with the play."
Barkley added, "Miami's offense is getting predictable. If all they do is attack straight into a loaded paint, New York is going to be waiting."
Curry brought the ball across half court.
He paused near the top.
A trailing teammate arrived with a screen.
Curry used it and dribbled toward the free throw line.
Gasol immediately collapsed toward the paint.
Curry had no intention of going all the way to the rim.
Stop.
Mid range jumper.
Swish!
11 to 2.
Curry had found his rhythm too.
Miami returned to offense.
This time, James controlled the ball.
After crossing half court, he passed to Wade.
Wade used a screen to shake Battier and attacked DeAndre.
He gave a quick fake.
DeAndre stayed down.
Battier recovered from behind.
Wade was trapped.
He immediately retreated and passed to Gasol.
Holding the ball any longer would have invited a turnover.
Gasol caught it.
1 second.
Nothing opened.
Kenny watched the possession develop.
"Miami is stuck again. There is no flow to this possession."
Barkley looked at the clock.
"7 seconds left. Somebody has to create something now."
Gasol backed down twice.
Then turned into a fadeaway jumper.
Clang!
Miss.
James crashed inside.
He fought through traffic and tipped the offensive rebound away from the rim.
Chalmers collected it.
He took 1 step toward the basket but did not shoot.
Instead, he passed sideways.
Wade caught it.
Layup off the glass.
Good.
11 to 4.
Kenny shook his head.
"They got 2 points, but that possession was almost dead. Gasol was forced into a difficult shot, and Miami only survived because LeBron kept the play alive."
Barkley nodded.
"You cannot rely on that every trip. That is too much work just to get 2 points."
New York came back.
Chen Yan crossed half court with the ball.
He calmly dribbled inside the 3 point line.
Wade retreated in front of him, bent low and ready.
Chen reached the top of the arc.
Then suddenly exploded.
1 burst.
That was all it took.
He was past Wade.
Cleanly.
Wade had no time to react.
Chen gathered and powered into the paint.
Gasol stepped over.
Chen went straight through the challenge and finished.
13 to 4.
Miami immediately grabbed the ball and inbounded.
No hesitation.
The Heat had no desire to return to another slow half court possession.
They wanted tempo.
James caught the outlet and attacked immediately.
New York's defense collapsed quickly.
Even so, James's force created a small opening.
He drove 2 steps inside the free throw line.
Then fired the ball outward.
Chalmers caught it.
Mid range jumper.
Good.
13 to 6.
Nelson had repeatedly told his players to deny James's passing lanes.
Knowing what to do was one thing.
Actually doing it against LeBron James was another.
Players of his caliber did not simply wait for opportunities.
When none existed, they created them.
New York returned to offense.
Curry and David West ran a pick and roll.
West caught the ball at the high post and shot.
Clang!
Miss.
The instant the ball struck the rim, James was already sprinting toward the other end.
Wade secured the rebound.
He turned in midair and launched a 1 handed pass down the floor.
The ball landed perfectly in James's path.
No hesitation.
Catch.
Boom!
Powerful dunk.
13 to 8.
That was exactly why Nelson had spent so much time emphasizing shot selection.
A missed jumper against Miami could turn into 2 points at the opposite rim before the defense even understood what had happened.
James pounded his chest after the dunk.
Under normal circumstances, he would have taken a moment to celebrate.
New York refused to give him one.
The Knicks inbounded immediately.
Curry.
Chen.
Battier.
All 3 raced across half court.
James quickly turned and sprinted back.
All 5 Miami players technically made it into the defensive half.
But their formation was loose.
New York attacked before they could organize.
Curry and Chen worked together in the open floor.
Pass.
Return pass.
Another quick exchange.
Miami's defenders were forced to look back and forth between them.
Then Chen caught the ball with an opening.
He drove straight into the paint.
Right handed finger roll.
Good.
15 to 10.
Chen turned toward James as he ran back.
A slight smile appeared on his face.
Miami wanted to play fast?
Fine.
New York could play faster.
The answer was simple.
Use speed to counter speed.
Miami immediately inbounded again.
James pushed the ball ahead to Wade.
Wade cut diagonally toward the basket.
He gathered every bit of explosiveness left in his legs.
Jump.
Reverse layup off the glass.
Good.
New York responded instantly.
Chen advanced with the ball and passed to Battier in the corner.
Battier did not hold it.
Immediate swing pass.
Curry caught it outside the arc.
Rise.
Swish!
18 to 10.
The pace had completely changed.
Neither team wanted to slow down anymore.
Miami ran.
New York ran faster.
Possessions came one after another before either defense could fully settle.
The game had entered the kind of open court battle fans loved most.
Run and gun basketball.
Speed against speed.
....
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