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Chapter 205 - 115. Fierce Battle!_2

Chapter 205: 115. Fierce Battle!_2

Although Gerald Wallace was a top athlete, he was still a bit slower compared to Felton.

No player over two meters was faster than James, no small forward was stronger than James, and Gerald Wallace couldn’t remain in front of James like Felton did.

Since the head coach decided to use Gerald Wallace to wear out James’s perimeter shooting touch at the start, they had no choice but to rely on offensive firepower!

Just as Zhang Yang thought, in the following rounds, the Bobcats and the Knights unfolded a battle of offenses.

James made a mad dash for the basket, and the Bobcats’ double defense couldn’t stop him. Okafor had to fall back to the basket, Gooden and Big Z had excellent support capabilities, catching James’s passes and scoring continuously.

The Bobcats also attacked with all their might, Felton initiated pick-and-roll plays on the perimeter, Gerald Wallace powered through James with solo drives... However, there was one difference from the last time they faced off, the Bobcats had another solo scoring option starting tonight—Okafor!

Gooden’s defense was standard fare, his advantage was mobility and the ability to help and cover defensively, but his one-on-one defense was indeed ordinary, which Okafor was able to handle with his post-up game.

Last time, Felton and Gerald Wallace took on James together and were outmatched. The twenty-something-year-old James had explosive strength, forcing Bickerstaff to bring Zhang Yang in ahead of time. But this time with Okafor, it was three against one, and the Bobcats slightly edged ahead!

Bickerstaff watched the clock, feeling that the timing was about right, and gestured to his players to change formations on the defensive end!

The score reached 11 to 9, with the Bobcats leading by two points.

The Knights were on the offense again, with James advancing to the frontcourt, and facing him at the top of the arc was Felton!

Seeing this matchup, the crowd erupted into fierce cheers.

But many fans seeing this matchup for the first time were worried.

The physical discrepancy between the two was just too great. Felton, well under 190 centimeters, was a solid tank among players of his height, but he looked two sizes too small in front of James!

If Gerald Wallace couldn’t resist James’s drives, how could the little tank?

Contrary to the expectations of some fans, facing Felton, who stepped back a long way on defense, James didn’t barrel through directly. Instead, he slapped the ball forcefully, caught the quick bounce, jumped, and shot a three...

Amidst the exclamations from the fans, the ball "clanged" off the left side of the rim.

The shot was so sudden; the Bobcats were a step slow to cover, and the rebound was taken by Gooden. Guarding the ball, he passed to Snow, who then passed back to James.

Although they got the offensive rebound, James’s mood became even heavier.

If the three-pointer had gone in, the opposing defense would have been broken without any effort. Although Gerald Wallace hadn’t stopped him, he had worn out James’s shooting touch considerably.

James wasn’t able to launch an attack with his teammates. Opposite him, the twin towers were more problematic than the Lakers’ high school duo. Okafor’s low-post defense might not be as good as Kwame Brown’s, but Perkins was a lot stronger than fellow high school rookie Bynum.

As for his guards, Ronald Murray had been able to go solo in the past, but after running with the SuperSonics’ three musketeers for two years, he lost his ball-handling abilities and became a pure shooter. His style fit James perfectly, and he was traded back to the Knights. James also liked pairing with this teammate, but under the present circumstances, he couldn’t rely on him.

Not to mention Snow, a rare "playmaking point guard," with a career average of only 7 points but 5.3 assists. His unusual points-to-assists ratio and his excellent vision and accurate passing meant that few teams dared leave him open for orchestrating the offense, but to expect him to score singly...

James chose to force a drive!

Felton defended with great focus, retreating as he battled, and with his agile footwork, he remained between James and the basket. Before James could step into a position where he could use his footwork, Felton pressed up, stuck on him, and went for the steal!

James was forced to turn and protect the ball just outside the right sideline of the three-second zone!

James wanted to catch the ball a step earlier to start a three-step drive to the basket, but he failed. The opponent’s defense had improved since their last encounter!

James wanted to find Big Z or Gooden, but this time Okafor didn’t fall back to the basket. Instead, he blocked the left sideline of the three-second zone, along with Perkins, who had receded to the basket, the Bobcats cut off the middle lane!

This time James was much more determined. He backed into Felton, stepped out, turned, and shot a jumper...

The day before, he rejected all interviews and worked hard on his turnaround jumper at a private basketball club in Charlotte. His trainer shouted 666 at him as he practiced.

It’s just that sometimes effort isn’t enough, especially with only half a day of it.

James’s forceful turnaround jumper sailed over the bridge!

Perkins secured the defensive rebound!

Unfortunately, Zhang Yang wasn’t there. Despite Felton and Gerald Wallace’s surge, they were held back by James, Snow, Ronald Murray, and Gooden. They had to fall back into a positional battle.

Still, this had the crowd in an uproar!

The fans seeing Felton "solo defend" and hold off James for the first time went wild!

The TV commentators reacted differently, some fell silent, some explained, while others laughed out loud.

Commentators didn’t all wear the same pants; there were those who supported James, and naturally, those who did not.

For example, Barkley and Bill Walton mocked James relentlessly, setting personal opinions aside; after all, one was a TNT commentator, and the other was with Time Warner Cable Sports, inherently clashing with ESPN’s promoted players.