Perhaps because the Thunder were too aggressive in their last encounter, the Magic's defense was very intense from the start of the game at home. They all defended at the three-point line and engaged in fierce physical confrontation during off-ball screens.
After Kayce dribbled past half-court, he noticed that Durant, who was originally posting up in the low block, was directly pushed out to the three-point line by Carter, who switched onto him.
The Magic were very attentive to the Thunder's hand-off passes on the perimeter, quickly closing in each time, forcing Russell, Kayce, and Durant to be unable to cooperate effectively beyond the three-point line.
After running two figure-eights consecutively, there were still no good opportunities. Kayce knew that his teammates' intensity in confrontation hadn't kept up, and they were stunned by the Magic's aggressive start.
Kayce directly used his arm to shield Michael Pietrus, aggressively pushing against him while extending his hand for the ball. Fortunately, Russell passed quickly, otherwise Kayce would have been pushed out as well.
Many NBA players might be a bit lacking in lateral movement, but their stamina and strength are usually maxed out for most players.
Especially stamina; if expressed in values, players who have played for four or five years generally reach 95.
Because this is a basic requirement. To be a qualified role player, you need strength, stamina, and defense. If you can't even do these few things well, then the Head Coach will definitely trade you.
After receiving the ball, Kayce quickly put it down, dribbled to accelerate and break through. Near the baseline, he pulled his right hand back, then quickly gathered the ball and shot a fadeaway floater.
"Swish!" The two-point shot went in.
"Be decisive, guys! If there's an opportunity, attack decisively, don't hesitate!"
Kayce shouted loudly as he retreated on defense. The Magic clearly wanted to come out and directly challenge them. If they flinched now, their momentum would be gone.
The Magic's offense wasn't played too fast. The old chocolate, Jason Williams, although his physical abilities had declined, his on-court experience was incredibly rich. After crossing half-court, he passed the ball to Carter, signaling Howard to come up for a screen.
Kayce, of course, had to fight through the screen; Carter's three-point shot was no joke. But Howard's large frame set a solid screen, and Carter, after the screen, dribbled with his right hand and accelerated to break through.
Kostić also came up to defend at this point, not allowing a mid-range shot. But Carter, while moving, threw a high lob, and the cutting Howard leaped high, slamming the ball into the basket with one arm!
"Slam!" "Ah ah!!"
The alley-oop dunk also drew huge cheers from the Amway Center crowd; they loved watching Howard dunk, full of power.
"Wow!! Beautiful assist!"
Howard, delighted with the dunk, immediately came over to high-five Carter in celebration. The happy beast was back!
"A beautiful alley-oop by the Magic! Howard showcased his excellent athleticism with a spectacular dunk!"
In the Sina studio, Ke Xiaofan also praised Howard's dunk.
The Thunder quickly inbounded the ball. After Russell dribbled past half-court, Kayce came over to receive the ball. Jeff Green made a fake screen and drew away the defender.
Facing Rashard Lewis's defense, he dribbled with his left hand, accelerated, and broke through. The Hundred Million-Dollar Man's defense didn't keep up, and Howard in the paint came over very quickly to help defend.
Kayce, while moving, flicked his left wrist, making a bounce pass to Kostić. The latter caught the ball and went for a layup, but Howard quickly recovered and delivered a big block!
Seeing this, Kayce's mouth twitched. What kind of movement speed, what kind of vertical leap was this? Inhuman!
"Roar!"
Howard let out an excited roar after the block. The Magic launched a fast break, and the Thunder players quickly retreated on defense.
Carter, with the ball in his right hand, continuously accelerated, quickly rushing past half-court. Kayce tried hard to physically confront him from the side, but it seemed to be of no use.
Seeing Carter about to drive for a layup while being defended, Jeff Green immediately came over to protect the rim.
But Carter didn't force the shot. In mid-air, he faked a layup and made a true pass, finding Rashard Lewis wide open in the corner. The latter caught the ball and, without hesitation, shot a three-pointer.
"Swish!" The three-pointer went in cleanly.
"The Magic's fast break was very quick. Kostić was slow to get back on defense, and as a result, Rashard Lewis hit a transition three-pointer. This play was mainly due to Carter's excellent pass and wide vision!"
Ma Jian also praised Carter's performance.
The first quarter continued for another two minutes. Perhaps intimidated by Howard's defense in the paint, Kostić's aggressiveness disappeared, which made things very difficult for the Thunder.
The Magic were now simply not allowing shots, forcing them towards the basket, where Howard was waiting. Kostić failed to finish twice in the paint.
Coach Brooks saw that the situation was not right and quickly called a timeout.
"Don't hesitate on offense, be decisive! Kevin, play aggressively! Kayce, pay attention to the offensive rhythm, speed it up a bit!"
Kayce knew that the Magic must have studied Durant's game footage. In this game, they were tightly defending his lower body, not giving him shooting opportunities, and allowing Durant to drive.
In the first few minutes, Durant played with some hesitation. He was indecisive between driving and shooting.
"Kevin, don't hesitate. If you drive, try to draw fouls. If your jump shot doesn't go in, we'll immediately get back on defense. If it feels good, shoot!"
Before taking the court, Kayce reminded Durant again. The Magic's small-ball lineup with one big man was a perfect counter to the Thunder's current lineup. Once Russell and Durant's jump shots were gone, the game would be very difficult to play.
After the timeout, the Thunder attacked. Kayce also increased his aggressiveness. Jeff Green still made a fake screen to draw away the defender, and Rashard Lewis quickly came over to defend Kayce.
After a right-hand crossover dribble, he quickly pulled back, then smoothly executed another between-the-legs dribble with his left hand, stopping and starting quickly, which made Rashard Lewis retreat.
With the defense shaken off, Kayce stepped back and shot a three-pointer directly from beyond the arc.
"Swish!" The step-back three-pointer found the net cleanly.
"Good shot! Kayce shook off Rashard Lewis and hit a step-back three-pointer. This shot is very important; the Thunder started the game too sluggishly!"
Host Ke Xiaofan immediately praised loudly after seeing Kayce's shot go in.
Kayce clapped his hands and encouraged his teammates as he retreated on defense, while also giving Durant and Russell a look.
The Magic's offense still involved Kostić's screen. After Howard came up, Carter drove to the left, accelerating. Kostić didn't dare to step up too far, and as a result, Carter shot a drifting mid-range jumper.
"Swish!" The mid-range shot went in cleanly.
"The Thunder are having a hard time solving the problem of Carter and Howard's pick-and-roll. If Kostić defends too far out, Carter can drive directly. If he doesn't step up, Carter can hit the mid-range shot. It's too difficult to defend."
Ma Jian also saw the Thunder's current defensive predicament.
"Sabo, continue to sag off on defense. I'll try my best to fight through the screens quickly!"
While dribbling during the free throw, Kayce said to Kostić, who, upon hearing, patted his chest, signaling that he understood.
On the offensive possession, after a series of passes on the perimeter, Jeff Green came up to set a screen for Durant, once again switching Rashard Lewis onto him.
Durant accelerated his drive with his right hand. Near the free-throw line, he suddenly dribbled behind his back, then paused. Rashard Lewis was fooled into jumping to block, and then Durant made another in-and-out dribble, stopping abruptly and shooting a jump shot.
"Swish!" The mid-range shot went in.
"Boo!!"
The Amway Center immediately erupted in loud boos; no one liked to see an opponent show off like that in their home arena!
Stan Van Gundy, seeing Rashard Lewis continuously being targeted, finally couldn't stand it and immediately called a timeout. There were still 6 minutes and 18 seconds left in the first quarter, with the score 14-12, the Magic temporarily leading.
"That's it, Kevin, maintain your aggressiveness. Russell, keep driving, get to the free-throw line. We need to speed up!"
Coach Brooks knew that the Magic had figured out their strategy. At this point, he could only offer motivational words; anything else would be useless.
After the timeout, the Magic's offense once again gave the ball to Howard in the low post. The latter received the ball, showed off his stiff post moves, and after a triple threat, executed a spin move to score.
"Howard's low-post isolation moves are a bit stiff, but if it goes in, it's a good play!"
Host Ke Xiaofan also made a comment about this shot.
On the Thunder's offense, Kayce and Russell continuously tried to attack Rashard Lewis, but the Magic changed their defensive strategy on this point, no longer switching.
With little time left on the shot clock, Russell held the ball, without a screen, made a left-hand in-and-out dribble, then dribbled with his right hand, accelerated, and drove, charging past Jason Williams towards the rim.
Seeing Howard come up to help defend, he tried to draw a foul and continued to attack the basket, but instead, he was emphatically blocked!
"Slap!!"
After Michael Pietrus secured possession, he made a pass to Jason Williams, who, without stopping the ball, quickly passed it to Carter.
Carter dribbled with his left hand straight to the basket. Kayce jumped to block, but Carter faked a layup and made a true pass again, finding Rashard Lewis in the corner. After receiving the ball, he shot without hesitation.
"Swish!" The transition three-pointer went in again.
In the remaining time of the game, without Rashard Lewis as a target, the Thunder's offense could only chip away at the lead.
Russell and Durant also entered 'brick-laying' mode. Fortunately, Kayce continuously drove and dished to Jeff Green, who hit two crucial three-pointers.
But the Magic's offense was more efficient. The Hundred Million-Dollar Man exploded! Perhaps it was being continuously targeted by the rookie, Rashard Lewis went all out in the remaining minutes.
Carter continued to run the pick-and-roll with Howard. This time, he chose to drive directly. Kayce was a step slow in fighting through the screen. Kostić dropped back in the paint with his hands raised, but Carter still faked a layup and made a true pass.
Howard received the ball in the paint, his hand slipped a bit. Jeff Green, seeing an opportunity, immediately stepped forward to steal the ball, but Howard, after regaining control, flicked it out.
Rashard Lewis shot a three-pointer from beyond the arc.
"Swish!" The three-pointer went in again.
In the final moments of the first quarter, Rashard Lewis completely went wild, shooting over defenders after screens, hitting step-back jumpers after receiving the ball. Bang Bang hit two more shots consecutively.
The Magic's offense was flowing, and their defense became energized. Coupled with the home crowd's cheers, they launched a small run in the final moments.
30-22, the Magic had success both inside and out in the first quarter. The Hundred Million-Dollar Man was on fire, leading the Thunder by 8 points.
During the break, Kayce rested and thought about what other options there were for this game, but after much deliberation, he felt that unless his team shot incredibly well, this game was truly going to be a loss.
"The deterrence of a super center, single-handedly propping up the Magic's defensive system…" Kayce secretly felt a pang of envy.