The Best Point Guard

Although Shaquille O’Neal couldn’t give Su Xi a nickname, his influence on the court was still immense.

When he got into the paint, he immediately posted up against Eddie Curry.

The Big Shark versus the Little Shark.

Eddie Curry had been training his physical conditioning with extreme intensity all season, but he still couldn’t quite hold his ground against the god-given strength of the original Shark. Still, he was already performing admirably.

O’Neal received the pass from Payton, backed him down, spun, and unleashed a hook shot!

Fluid and seamless.

SWISH!

It went in.

O’Neal’s god-given strength was terrifying. What was even more terrifying was that his post-game was also incredibly solid. It combined organically with his physique; he wasn’t just a big man who could only dunk.

On the other end, Su Xi once again made a powerful drive into the paint. After drawing a double team from O’Neal and Moning, he passed the ball to Zach Randolph, who easily sank the shot.

Then, Dwyane Wade forced a drive into the paint and passed to Moning, who hit a floater.

The two teams’ playstyles weren’t so different, as both were primarily running an inside-out game.

The two teams traded baskets, but Miami’s shooting percentage was slightly better. By the first timeout, Miami had a 4-point lead, 13-9.

Although they had played for less than six minutes, Su Xi already realized something: under this level of high-intensity play, the Knicks’ offensive cohesion wasn’t as refined or reliable as Miami’s.

After all, Miami had spent the entire season polishing their tactical system.

The Knicks, on the other hand, had spent the entire season honing player chemistry and... doing all sorts of team-building activities.

After the timeout, Hardaway came off the court to rest, and Crawford subbed in.

It was a move to add more offensive firepower.

On his very first possession, Su Xi had Crawford challenge Gary Payton one-on-one from beyond the three-point line.

In his prime, Payton was known as "The Glove." He was the first Point Guard in NBA history to be elected Defensive Player of the Year, a testament to his ferocious defensive skills.

But now, with the league’s new defensive rules, his defensive impact had plummeted, and his physical condition had also declined severely.

As a result, he failed to stop Crawford, but Crawford’s pull-up jumper missed anyway.

After clanking the shot, Crawford gave Su Xi a slight shake of his head.

As a streaky player, he knew his touch was off tonight.

When Crawford was on, he was undoubtedly one of the top scorers in the league. But when he was off, he could easily become a detriment to his team.

He had gradually become aware of this over the season. Now, when he realized he wasn’t feeling it, he would signal to Su Xi to cut back on his isolation plays.

Su Xi got the message.

He immediately felt the pressure mount.

Back on the other end of the court, Wade showed off with a pull-up jumper, sinking it over Su Xi’s defense.

Pat Riley pumped his fist vigorously on the sideline.

Although Su Xi had shaken his reputation for having a weak on-ball offense, he hadn’t yet established himself as a player who could force the issue with his scoring. This season, he was seen more as the Knicks’ commander, a tactical initiator, or even a tactical creator.

That was why Pat Riley was so excited on the sideline.

He believed that in the playoffs, Wade’s strengths would be magnified, and his impact would surely be greater than that of James or Su Xi.

Therefore, he wasn’t afraid of facing the Knight, nor was he particularly afraid of facing the Knicks.

As long as Wade played strong and O’Neal established dominance in the paint, the Heat Team was guaranteed a win.

Even if the Knicks had finished the regular season with the best record, they were still just a slightly more polished ragtag team.

When it came to a true, do-or-die series, he was confident that the Miami Heat would be the ones left standing.

Su Xi ran a pick-and-roll with Eddie Curry and passed to Zach Randolph, who sank the jumper.

The two sides traded blows.

The game was a back-and-forth affair. The pace wasn’t fast, but the defensive intensity was high.

At the end of the first quarter, the Heat were still ahead, leading by 6 points with a score of 28-22.

Back on the bench, Su Xi frowned. He hadn’t expected this; they’d held up under the defensive pressure, but their offense had failed to deliver.

They made another adjustment, bringing in Jalen Rose for Ariza.

However, Jalen didn’t live up to Su Xi’s expectations; his scoring efficiency on the wing was low.

The second quarter was a stop-and-go affair. The Knicks made several adjustments, including putting in Tony Battie and having Jerome James try to wear down O’Neal’s stamina, but nothing truly solved their problems on offense.

The halftime score was 42-50.

They entered the locker room, trailing by 8 points.

"Jack."

Just as Su Xi was about to enter the locker room, Isaiah Thomas stopped him.

He hadn’t said much all game.

Now, he had something very important to say to Su Xi. "Do you know what the most fundamental tactic in the playoffs is?"

"It’s not passing. In the playoffs, everyone’s defensive intensity and willpower are sky-high. So, the thing to do is to give the ball to your best scorer."

"Why do people say the playoffs are a superstar’s stage? Because only superstars can win a series. Teamwork, silky-smooth passing... those are bonuses in the playoffs, but they aren’t essential."

"You should be taking them one-on-one. You should be scoring with force. That’s your job."

"If you want to surpass Jordan, this is what you have to do."

Isaiah Thomas said, "When you use your own formidable scoring ability to tear through their defensive line, your teammates will all reap the benefits."