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Chapter 683 - 289. If you just give up honestly, wouldn’t you avoid being killed at the last moment?

Chapter 683: 289. If you just give up honestly, wouldn’t you avoid being killed at the last moment?

Heading into the break, Felton took Zhang Yang’s towel and said with a hint of a headache, "Their Musketeer Formation’s firepower is just too strong!"

Coach Carlisle was also troubled by this.

After a short rest of three minutes following the official timeout, Felton went back on the court, along with Alan Anderson, replacing Mike Miller and Okafor. This allowed Okafor not to play the entire first quarter and to rest for a couple more minutes.

The trio started the game together, opening up the team’s offense. During the rotation phase, either individually or in pairs, they continued to lead the offense with teammates who were more compatible, as part of Carlisle’s rotation plan.

The Bobcats’ offensive efficiency slid in the last couple of minutes of the quarter because two of the trio were benched, and Mike Miller, the team’s top shooter, was also substituted out.

However, the brief decline in offensive efficiency was something Carlisle had anticipated. They had just come back from an official timeout and went on a run to extend the lead to seven points, giving them enough cushion. Carlisle wanted to give Zhang Yang a bit more rest in the first quarter and only brought in Felton during the second rotation so that Zhang Yang would have more energy for the remaining three quarters.

With Zhang Yang not subbed in, Carlisle compensated elsewhere—using a big-small combination to defend the Trail Blazers’ perimeter shooting.

But the Trail Blazers’ "Five Gunmen" showed more ferocious firepower during the rotation phase than Carlisle had expected.

Upon hearing Felton’s remark, Hill responded, "That’s the nature of the Musketeer Formation: once a shooter starts scoring, it ignites the others like a fuse, with shot after shot hitting the mark. And that’s not even the worst part. When their perimeter starts hitting consistently, they pull the defense apart very well. Next, they’re likely to focus on the forwards setting off-ball screens for the shooters’ cuts – Aldridge and Frye making the cuts can be tricky to handle. My movement isn’t fast enough to cut off the passing lanes from the shooters while also providing help defense. It’s quite difficult to manage."

Hill looked at Zhang Yang, who replied, "I have the speed, but not the strength to hold up inside."

Felton scratched his head and said, "I can hold my own, but those tall guys can shoot over me without me being able to disrupt them. Alan has great defensive energy and the physique, but his awareness is a bit off... The Musketeer Formation is really formidable! Why don’t they always use this strategy?"

Hill said, "While it’s a strong tactic, it has its flaws. During the 04-05 season, the SuperSonics had the league’s first, third, and ninth-ranked shooters and the best three-point ability, even better than the Suns, but they only got 50 wins. In the playoffs that season, the SuperSonics played six games against the Spurs. If you look at the scores of the four games the Spurs won, you’ll be puzzled. In those games, the Spurs won by an average of over 10 points, completely dominating, as if the SuperSonics shouldn’t have made it to a fifth game.

But if you saw the broadcasts of the two games the SuperSonics won, you’d understand. They prevailed purely on the hot shooting from outside. When they couldn’t hit from the perimeter, they had nothing."

Zhang Yang said, curious, "Grant, I never realized you had researched the SuperSonics’ Musketeer Formation."

Hill replied, "I’ve drawn an NBA salary for 14 years and only played in 7 seasons, with so much free time, I needed something to do.

I’ve always followed tactics I’d never encountered before like the SuperSonics’ Musketeer Formation, the Suns’ Run-and-Gun, the Jazz’s Pick-and-Roll system, and the Lakers’ Triangle Offense... I’ve come to understand them somewhat, so when Rick talked about playing offensive basketball, I was able to adapt quickly."

Zhang Yang quipped, "What a hell of a joke that is."

Hill laughed, "Haha, I just wanted you guys to be less formal with me and not worry that bringing up ’out for the season’ would hurt me. It’s part of my career, and I’m not that fragile. I appreciate your concern, but it also gives me a headache. I hope in your eyes I’m just another teammate."

Smacking his lips, Zhang Yang replied, "I don’t know about anyone else, but rest assured, if you end up out for the season again, I won’t treat you like an injured person. I’ll push your wheelchair and take you to play soccer."

Hill asked, "Soccer? What can I do at a soccer field in a wheelchair?"

Zhang Yang answered, "Play as a goalkeeper. You might win the opponents’ sympathy, making them hesitate to shoot at you or dodge around you."

Hill said, "...Jack, you truly are a bad kid, no! A devil!"

Coach Carlisle, looking on, nodded silently once more, agreeing with Hill’s assessment.

The players rested a while, and as the break was coming to an end, Carlisle gathered them for a lineup change and briefly emphasized some tactical details without making many adjustments.

Watching Felton, Zhang Yang, Hill, Millsap, and Muhammad head back onto the court, Coach Silas asked Carlisle, "The situation isn’t very favorable for us. The other side just hit a climax, shouldn’t we prepare a bit more?"

Carlisle replied, "Grant has already pointed out the defensive issues to the others. Some problems just can’t be fixed, and there’s no need to emphasize them again.

Offensively, we didn’t have any issues in the first quarter. In fact, you could say the players performed even better than I expected. We’ve managed to stay ahead by three points even with Jack resting for half the quarter.

Our tactics are sound, the players are performing well. What comes next is a test of their ability to handle pressure and adapt on their own. I don’t need to say more and risk adding any extra pressure."