Payton hesitated with the ball outside, didn't pass, and gave it to Carter in the middle, who then passed to Smith on the right side.
Payton was worried that Baker's continuous solo plays would provoke Ah Gan's anger, logically, it should have been Baker's play.
As a result, Smith's breakthrough in the center was met with China Team's tight defense and was intercepted.
Tonight, China is definitely going to focus on intensive defense to counter Team USA's relatively average three-point shooting.
Actually, in the Olympics, Team USA shot well from three-point range because the FIBA three-point line feels like a mid-range shot to them, making it much easier, with a pretty high shooting percentage.
But the volume of Team USA's three-point shots wasn't high, ranking in the middle among participating teams; where they truly led was in scoring under the basket.
And much of this scoring under the basket came from fast-break counterattacks.
