December rolled around, and with Zack's minutes getting cut, the reigning champions started to feel their foundation shake, big time. On paper, Coach Malone was only giving Zack an extra three minutes of rest per game, aiming to get his average playtime down to 35 minutes. But those three minutes? They were enough for the Warriors' opponents to start realizing this team, which had snagged two straight championships, was losing its edge.
Three minutes. In a league where games hover around eighty possessions, that's roughly five offensive and defensive sequences. Back in the day, the Warriors had plenty of ways to tough out those five possessions. But now, with Davis out for the season and Artest self-destructing, Malone was in a real pickle, like a master chef with no ingredients.
To make things worse, after their early December games, the beautiful team doctor, Ryan, warned Malone again: Zack needed even fewer minutes. Her reasoning? This season, Zack was carrying way more of the offensive load than ever before. This increased burden was all thanks to the Warriors' depleted roster, which was short on guys who could attack the basket. Sure, for the past two seasons, the Warriors looked like a team that lived and died by the jump shot. But without the inside presence of Zack, Davis, and Artest drawing defenders, how could the outside shooters possibly get those easy looks?
Because of this, even with his minutes dropping, Zack's average shots attempted actually climbed to a career-high of 24. The Warriors needed their King to pull off more high-difficulty plays on the court, hoping it would spark a team that was missing two key players. And this situation was clearly going to stick around until Artest recovered from his injury. Why? Because only when Artest was back and cleared by other teams could Chris Mullin trade for a forward who could help ease Zack's offensive pressure.
"Chelsea," Malone asked, sounding almost at his breaking point, "in your opinion, how many minutes should Messiah be playing from now on?"
Ryan thought for a moment. "Thirty minutes a game."
Thirty minutes? What the heck are we supposed to do with that?! Keep in mind, this Warriors team, both offensively and defensively, revolved around Zack. If he could only play thirty minutes a game, there's no way the Warriors could maintain their level of play in a 48-minute NBA game.
Seeing Malone's despair, Lionel Hollins, an assistant coach Malone brought in this summer, chimed in, "What if we intentionally slowed down the pace of the game to reduce the number of possessions? Could Messiah's playing time stay the same then?"
Ryan pondered for a bit. "That might be a solution. Theoretically, a slower pace would indeed reduce Messiah's risk of injury."
Malone's face lit up. "Great! If we only play 75 possessions per game, Messiah could play up to 38 minutes!"
Ryan frowned. "Mike, please don't joke about Messiah's health! He's a 211-centimeter (about 6'11") player in shoes, weighing over 124 kilograms (about 273 lbs). His physical toll in games is far greater than that of a typical perimeter player!"
Malone pursed his lips. "I was just saying. I'm not one of those coaches who wants their star player to play all 48 minutes."
---
So, from mid-December, the Warriors' playing style did a complete 180. The team that used to love pushing the pace transformed into a slow-paced squad, focusing on half-court sets, physical play, and making every possession count to win games. Malone called this style change a necessary evil. But it actually boosted the Warriors' recent win rate.
On defense, Zack and Brown, working seamlessly together, always used their talent and experience to win those gritty inside battles for the Warriors. Brown, who had shed even more weight over the summer, was the cleaner-upper, sweeping up anything that came his way. Zack, protected by star calls, was in charge of collecting tolls from anyone brave enough to challenge the Warriors' no-fly zone. The defensive presence of this top-pick duo not only set a high floor for the Warriors but also significantly improved their chances on nights when their outside shooting was off.
As a defensive specialist, Hollins even crafted a pocket defense system for the Warriors. From mid-December, the Warriors' perimeter defenders often focused on funneling opponents to one side, pushing them into the strong side where Zack and Brown's defensive range could effectively disrupt their offensive schemes.
But injuries, those darn injuries, remained the Achilles' heel for the Warriors this season. Even the beautiful team doctor, Ryan, felt helpless. Before drafting Zack, players like Richardson and Murphy on this Warriors team had never even played in the playoffs. So, the unusually high number of games the Warriors played over the past two years indirectly led to most of the team being at a high risk of injury.
The Warriors weren't the first near-dynasty team to be plagued by injuries. Historically, the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls also faced frequent injury setbacks. The NBA's previous dynasty, the Los Angeles Lakers, were relatively lucky. Back then, when O'Neal was out with injuries, they still had Kobe to lead the team. Malone didn't want to say that the Lakers' luck mainly came from having a second-in-command who could fully commit on both ends of the court, but without Kobe, it would have been incredibly tough for the Lakers to get through that difficult period.
Also, Phil Jackson, who led the Bulls to two dynasties, was far more experienced than Malone at this point. If you compare O'Neal's and Kobe's regular season playing time during their second and third championships, you'd notice that old man Jackson wasn't just "meditating" on the sidelines; he intentionally reduced O'Neal's and Kobe's regular season minutes in the 2001-02 season.
Of course, if Davis hadn't gotten injured in that preseason training camp, Malone would have had a lot more flexibility this season. But then again, Davis's injury and all the other injuries the Warriors were facing this season—weren't they just paying the price for winning two championships in a row? In competitive sports, no dynasty team can keep winning with the exact same roster for long. And the high risk of injury for key players is just one of the costs of dominating for a while.
---
### Christmas Day Showdown: Warriors vs. Cavs
On December 25th, the Warriors hosted their annual Christmas Day game. Their opponent? The Cleveland Cavaliers, with their "A-J" combo. As last season's NBA finalists, the Cavaliers, who successfully traded O'Neal for Allen Iverson to play alongside LeBron James, were going through some serious growing pains this season as they tried to gel.
On the surface, with Iverson leading the scoring for the starters and Mo Williams heading the second unit, the Cavaliers seemed to have more offensive firepower. But in reality, Iverson's overly aggressive personality was causing a lot of headaches for James, who had admired Iverson when he was younger.
It's true that young James was obsessed with Iverson. He'd said more than once in public that he often tried to mimic Iverson's dribbling in games. "Allen is my role model. I'm glad you notice the similarities in my crossover, and frankly, I think my dribble penetration has a lot in common with Allen's."
But past admiration didn't mean that the current James could tolerate Iverson trying to snatch control of the ball and the team away from him. This season, in what would be Iverson's last peak season in history, he was still playing at a remarkably high level, just as Zack remembered. His field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and true shooting percentage all hit new career highs. However, Iverson still couldn't help but take some ill-advised shots on the court. Especially when Iverson drove to the basket for a heroic finish... James simply couldn't understand why something that seemed so easy to him was so difficult for Iverson.
This season, with an increased weight, James had nearly a 75% finishing rate at the rim. Many times, James felt that if an overly hyped Iverson would just look his way more often, the Cavaliers could run a much more efficient offense. Also, as his status in the league grew, James really didn't like how Iverson would introduce him everywhere he went, saying, "Look, this is my little brother, LeBron." If it were his rookie season, James wouldn't have minded Iverson's always-on-top way of speaking. But now, James felt like Iverson was trying to prove to everyone that the Cavaliers traded for him so James could be his sidekick. And the most frustrating part? Because of Iverson's revered status in the Black basketball community, James felt he had no choice but to butter up the arrogant Iverson.
---
Take the pre-game warm-ups for this Christmas Day game, for example. James, who had quietly become "surface brothers" with Zack, didn't even want to go over and greet him. But Iverson made the decision for him: "Hey, Brown, why don't you go say hi to your good brother?"
So, James reluctantly trudged over to the Warriors' half-court with Iverson. Half a year later, seeing James's increasingly muscular physique, Zack noticed that, next to James, he actually looked slim. Truly worthy of being the GOAT's right-hand man from his memories! Zack knew that normally, for a forward of the same height to gain James's weight, they'd struggle to even walk, let alone dribble and drive. But James could not only handle that weight but, judging by the Cavaliers' games this season, he still maintained impressive speed and agility. In Zack's eyes, if you still said a player like James didn't have historical-level athleticism, you'd basically be a hater.
The Warriors were facing an incredibly tough title defense. The Cavaliers, on the other hand, hoped to shake off their growing pains and reclaim their status as the Eastern Conference's top dog from last season.
---
Warm-ups ended, and the starting fives for both teams took their positions at center court.
Cavaliers: Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Big Z), Drew Gooden, LeBron James, Sasha Pavlovic, Allen Iverson.
Warriors: Kwame Brown, Zack, Matt Barnes, Mike Dunleavy, Jarrett Jack.
Richardson and Murphy, who were game-time decisions due to injuries, weren't even on Malone's roster for this Christmas Day game.
After the jump ball, the Warriors had possession. On the first offensive play, seeing that the Cavaliers hadn't put James on him, Zack immediately lost some interest. On the right side of the court, Zack, with his back to the basket, casually surveyed the scene and found Dunleavy cutting to the Cavaliers' basket with a no-look pass. Dunleavy got the ball and scored with an easy layup.
Back on the Cavaliers' end, Iverson brought the ball up. He pulled off a quick move to get past Jack for a long two-pointer, but it clanked off the rim, forcing James to make his first full-court sprint of the game. James, whose calls for the ball were completely ignored by Iverson, frowned. In his opinion, these heroic isolation plays were pointless showing off.
So, on the Cavaliers' next offensive possession, James used a screen from Big Z to drive hard into the Warriors' paint, successfully passing the ball out to Pavlovic in the corner. Though Pavlovic couldn't capitalize, his three-pointer bouncing off the rim, in James's eyes, it was at least a reasonable offensive play.
However, as they transitioned back on defense, Iverson said to James, "Hey, Brown, you had a perfect opportunity to attack the rim just now, why didn't you take it yourself?"
"..."
James felt like Iverson had been out of the basketball spotlight for too long these past two years due to his team's poor record. Take it myself? Didn't you see Zack already waiting in my path?
On yet another Cavaliers possession, as if to teach James a lesson, Iverson pulled off a super low-crossover outside, blowing past Jack. Then, in the Warriors' paint, Iverson spun and weaved, tricking the help defender Brown with his rhythm. But as he went up for the layup, Zack, who had rotated back, mercilessly pinned his shot against the backboard.
Iverson's height and age limited his efficiency at the rim. And his height also meant that if he drove too deep, and his teammates couldn't follow up quickly enough, his passing vision would inevitably be limited. However, despite the failed "lesson," Iverson wasn't wrong earlier. Given James's current weight and the powerful momentum it gave him when driving, if he had been more decisive on that last possession, even if he couldn't finish, he'd have a high chance of drawing two free throws.
---
In short, just a few possessions into the game, this backcourt duo, theoretically compatible, had already clearly exposed their differences in basketball philosophy. James looked awkward playing off-ball. This was partly because "young LeBron" hadn't yet mastered the scoring techniques later known as "bully ball." Later, utilizing the new gather step rule, James, often getting another burst of acceleration after catching the ball, would frequently attack off-ball through direct cuts, cuts after screens, and weak-side attacks. These simple off-ball cuts, combined with James's historically great physique, created devastating effects. But the current NBA style, and James's preference for playing with the ball, meant that Iverson's excessive ball-handling would inevitably disrupt his rhythm.
And Iverson? Iverson actually had some decent off-ball cuts. But who's scared of an off-ball cut from a 32-year-old who James would later call the GOAT under 6'3"?
In the first quarter, Zack admitted he was slowly falling in love with this under-6'3" GOAT, as he'd already snagged three blocks off Iverson, who was practically offering them up on a silver platter. This season, Iverson wasn't the "don't touch me" Iverson of old. Even when Iverson tried to beg for a foul, the referees practically ignored him.
In the second quarter, it was James, who clearly had PTSD from Zack, who showed just how much he understood this Warriors team by changing his approach. On the court, James's pick-and-roll attacks were constantly successful; none of the Warriors' bench players could contain the Cleveland King dominating their paint. Malone tried to pack the paint with defenders, but it was useless. James also had his signature jump-pass to counter any traps the Warriors set for him inside.
It wasn't until Zack and Brown re-entered the game that James immediately reined in his aggressiveness, opting instead to wisely score for the Cavaliers with some long-range shots. In this Christmas Day game, James's play style and shot selection could only be described as rational and perfect. He consistently avoided attacking during the Warriors' strong periods and never got greedy for points when he should have passed after a drive.
However, James's play style and shot selection in this game gave the impression that he was more like the Cavaliers' second option. For the entire game, the Warriors' energy was almost entirely focused on Iverson, who was taking on all the heroic isolation plays for the Cavaliers. In the second half, Zack only started his isolation game when the team's offensive efficiency dropped, scoring 27 points for the Warriors alone. He finished the game with 35 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists, 7 blocks, and 1 steal.
The final score: 88 to 104. In this slow-paced, half-court battle, the Warriors easily defeated the Cavaliers, a team with more talent on paper.
James finished with 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists on 8-of-16 shooting, including 1-of-4 from three and 5-of-8 from the free-throw line. Iverson had 23 points, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists on 8-of-24 shooting, including 2-of-5 from three and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line.
Compared to the other Eastern Conference powerhouses they'd faced, Zack felt that if the Cavaliers couldn't make quick adjustments in their upcoming games, their season was definitely doomed. This Cavaliers team had decent talent on paper, but due to their differences in basketball philosophy, they simply couldn't unleash the "A-J" duo's full potential.
As the Christmas Day game concluded, Zack turned 24. Ending the frustrating latter half of 2007, the struggling Warriors finally got some good news in January of the New Year...