Chapter 520: Diverse Playstyles
As soon as the shot dropped, Nowitzki turned and immediately told his teammates to get back on defense.
There was only 1 proven way to beat the Suns, force them to play as many half court possessions as possible.
Nash organized from the top of the arc. After missing 3 shots earlier, he was more cautious now and deliberately slowed the tempo a little.
Chen Yan reached for the ball, but Artest locked him up before he could even get into position. Their arms tangled, their bodies pressed close, and from a distance it looked less like basketball and more like ballroom dancing.
With the kind of pressure Artest was applying, Chen Yan simply could not seal him off. In pure strength, he was at a disadvantage.
Seeing that, Nash swung the ball to Diaw on the wing.
The moment Nash released the pass, Chen Yan spun and sprinted along the baseline.
Stoudemire immediately set an off ball screen for him, and Chen Yan burst toward the corner.
This time the Mavericks completely botched the coverage. Dampier and Artest both chased Chen Yan around the screen, leaving Stoudemire free.
A defensive miscommunication always comes with a price.
Diaw instantly floated the ball inside, and Stoudemire rose for a violent dunk.
5 to 2.
Stoudemire's dunks always looked explosive in a way few others could match. That came from his raw burst and power.
The Suns were finally on the board, and the home crowd responded with another surge of noise.
Kidd brought the ball across midcourt. Phoenix stayed in its mixed defensive scheme.
At the top of the arc, Kidd held the ball with his back to the basket. Ray Allen curled off a Nowitzki screen into the lane.
Kidd flicked a pass with his right hand and found him immediately. In terms of vision and imagination, Kidd had never been inferior to Nash.
Ray Allen caught it and accelerated. Stoudemire was waiting under the rim, and Chen Yan fought his way around the screen and came flying in from behind to trap him.
The Suns completely ignored Dampier in the corner.
For a moment, Ray Allen looked boxed in. Even then, passing to the wide open Dampier never crossed his mind.
Dampier could not shoot and could not create. If the ball went to him, the possession was dead.
Ray Allen slowed, leaned back into Chen Yan to create contact, then tried to steady himself.
That was a veteran's move. If Chen Yan chased too hard, there was a chance of drawing a foul. If Chen Yan stopped, Ray would have room to work.
After a short pause, Ray Allen finally kicked the ball back out.
Kidd caught it and took the 3 immediately. Resetting the offense would have taken too long.
The shot was confident, but the touch was off. The ball clanged off the rim.
Chen Yan turned, secured the rebound, and took his time bringing it up. He was never the kind of player who forced a fast break just for the sake of speed. If there was no numerical advantage, all that meant was charging into a set defense.
He had never planned to outrun Dallas from the opening tip anyway. The Mavericks were retreating hard on every possession, and that constant sprinting would wear on them. In the half court, Chen Yan still had ways to make them miserable.
Once he reached the top of the arc, he quickly gave the ball back to Nash, then cut again without it.
The action was exactly the same as the previous possession. Stoudemire screened for Chen Yan. This time Dampier was ready. He switched out for a step, then immediately retreated and let Artest continue the chase.
Artest squeezed around the first screen and almost recovered, only for Diaw to set a second one for Chen Yan.
2 screens were enough. That was all the Suns needed.
Those openings lasted for a fraction of a second. They demanded instant recognition from the passer and instant release from the shooter. Phoenix happened to be elite at both.
The ball touched Chen Yan's hands and was gone just as fast.
Swish.
5 to 5.
Dallas went back to work through Nowitzki.
Dirk faced up, jabbed, then dribbled right, but he could not get around Diaw, who was quick enough laterally to stay attached.
He did not try to force it. He gathered the ball and flowed straight into his signature fadeaway.
Diaw had already seen it coming. His basketball IQ was far from low.
Sure enough, the moment Dirk picked the ball up, he turned and lifted into the one leg fadeaway.
Diaw got a hand up on time, but it did not matter. The shot was too high, too far back, and too clean.
That was what made Nowitzki so difficult. Even when a defender read the move, even when the contest was right there, he could still put the ball in. The one leg form also made defenders think twice about crowding him too tightly.
Swish.
7 to 5.
After the make, Dirk again motioned for everyone to get back.
Phoenix ran another half court set.
By now Artest could already sense what was coming, and he hated it.
Chen Yan reached out as if he wanted the ball, then spun and slipped past him in one motion.
Artest's turn was nowhere near as sharp. He reacted a beat late and had no choice but to chase from behind.
Stoudemire screened him once. Artest slammed straight into the pick.
Dampier switched out, and Chen Yan curled up to the 3 point line, dragging the big man with him.
Chen Yan caught the ball and immediately showed shot. Then he put it on the floor and attacked the baseline.
Dampier did not bite fully, but he hesitated, and against Chen Yan's low stance and quick first step, that was enough.
Chen Yan took 1 step and bounced the ball inside to Stoudemire.
Dampier was stranded outside, and Nowitzki was still following Diaw high. That left Stoudemire with Artest on his back in the paint.
Stoudemire gathered and went up strong.
Artest hacked straight across his wrist.
The slap was loud enough for the first few rows to hear.
Stoudemire stepped to the line and made both.
7 to 7.
On the sideline, Carlisle was already thinking. The score was tied, but the difference in difficulty was obvious. Dallas had to work for every point. Phoenix was getting clean looks far too easily, and the biggest weak point was already showing itself, Dampier's mobility.
Chen Yan kept using off ball action to create mismatches. If Dallas switched, he dragged Dampier into space. If they did not, he punished the gap while Artest fought around screens.
It was efficient, it saved energy, and it gave the Mavericks a headache.
If Chen Yan kept playing like this, Dallas was going to have a very long night.
At the booth, Barkley laughed.
"Chen's been working off the ball tonight, and it's been killing them. Look at Rick Carlisle. He looks like a man trying to solve a math problem with a hammer. I don't think he expected Chen to play like this."
Kenny Smith nodded.
"That's what makes Chen so difficult. He can score like a classic shooting guard from the elbow. He can bomb from way behind the arc. He can isolate with the ball. He can also put on an off ball clinic. In the first 4 games of the series he was much more on the ball. Tonight he changed styles again, and Dallas is struggling to keep up."
The Mavericks went back to their own action. Kidd called for a Nowitzki screen, hoping to create a mismatch, but Phoenix switched cleanly and killed it.
Dirk got the ball, put it on the floor, and tried to drive middle.
The Suns did not let him get comfortable. The moment he turned, Chen Yan came over from the wing and pinned him with Diaw in a trap.
Dirk elevated anyway, but with Hill already rotating toward Ray Allen, there was no easy pass available.
Hill had no intention of leaving Allen free. Compared to Artest, Ray Allen was the far more dangerous perimeter weapon.
Ray Allen caught the pass with Hill flying at him, and without hesitation he zipped it to the open Artest.
Artest did not settle for the 3. He chose the safer option and drove.
He was not fast, and even with a runway he could not really explode, but he got downhill well enough. His posture on the drive looked almost like an older, rougher version of LeBron.
Stoudemire stepped over to help.
Artest drew him, then dropped the ball off to Dampier, who finished with a two handed dunk.
9 to 7.
The game was still tight, but one thing was already clear.
These 2 teams played completely different brands of basketball, and that contrast was making every possession feel like a chess match played at full speed.
.....
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