Chapter 803: The Shooter Was Me
After a series of crossovers, Wade picked up his dribble near the left elbow.
He gave Chen Yan a pump fake.
Chen did not bite.
The instant Wade lost his dribble, Chen knew the advantage had disappeared and immediately closed the space.
Wade turned halfway and passed the ball back outside.
James caught it on the perimeter with little time remaining on the shot clock.
He had no choice but to shoot.
Clang!
Miss.
James's touch was clearly nowhere near as sharp as it had been in Game 2.
The moment the shot missed, James immediately shouted for his teammates to retreat.
Miami refused to give New York a transition opportunity.
The game had only just begun, and the Heat were still fresh. Under James's direction, all 5 defenders quickly recovered and established their half court defense.
Curry crossed half court and immediately passed to Al Harrington beyond the 3 point line.
Joel Anthony stayed close.
He knew Harrington could shoot.
Meanwhile, Chen Yan started on the right side of the baseline.
He used a screen, circled all the way across the floor, and emerged on the left side to receive the ball.
Wade fought around the screen and stayed with him.
Chen caught the pass and slowly dribbled toward the wing.
Everyone else cleared out.
Isolation.
Chen began probing with repeated between the legs dribbles.
Bang.
Bang.
Barkley laughed.
"I call this the hypnotic crossover. Chen keeps showing you the same move until you relax, then suddenly he is gone."
Almost the instant Barkley finished speaking, Chen exploded forward.
His first step was vicious.
By the time Wade turned his hips to react, Chen had already gathered the ball low and attacked the lane.
Wade had no opportunity to recover.
Before the help defense could arrive, Chen released a soft floater.
Swish!
2 to 0.
Miami came back the other way as music echoed through the arena.
Chalmers dribbled toward the left wing.
Wade circled around to receive the ball.
Chen gave him a step of space.
There was no reason to crowd Wade beyond the arc when his 3 point shot was not the primary threat.
New York was using a hybrid defensive scheme.
Chen stayed attached to Wade.
The other 4 Knicks shaded toward the paint.
The intention was obvious.
Keep Wade and James away from the rim.
With Channing Frye on the bench, Miami did not possess enough reliable shooting to punish New York consistently from outside.
Wade lingered near the top for a moment.
Then he suddenly changed direction and drove left.
Chen knew a screen was coming without even looking.
What he did not expect was 2 of them.
Gasol stepped up first.
James appeared behind him.
Chen became trapped between the 2 bodies.
He could not chase directly behind Wade.
He could not cleanly go around either.
Fortunately for New York, David West read the action perfectly.
He stepped directly into Wade's driving lane.
Wade slowed his left handed dribble and searched for another opening.
None appeared.
Chen had already fought through the screens and recovered to Wade's side.
Wade immediately passed back toward James at the top.
James had space to shoot.
Instead, he chose the safer option and passed again.
Chalmers received the ball.
Curry stayed tight to him.
Among Miami's current 5 players, Chalmers represented the most consistent threat from beyond the arc.
After hesitating for about 1 second, Chalmers passed inside.
Gasol caught the ball and began backing down his defender.
But he had received it too far from the basket.
His post threat was limited from that distance.
The shot clock continued disappearing.
5 seconds.
Gasol turned and fired a 1 handed pass back outside.
James caught it.
4 seconds.
Now he had no choice.
Pullup.
Clang!
Miss again.
Kenny Smith shook his head.
"Miami never really organized that possession. Gasol held it too long, then James received it with the clock almost gone. Everything became rushed."
Barkley added, "James still had enough time to get into a decent shot. But Miami spent too much of that possession looking for something that never opened up."
Once again, Miami recovered quickly enough to prevent a fast break.
New York settled into half court offense.
Chen positioned himself in the right corner.
Curry controlled the ball from the wing.
Then Chen suddenly exploded toward the basket.
Every Miami defender reacted.
They were watching Chen's movement while also keeping track of Curry and the passing lanes.
Chen reached the paint.
Then abruptly changed speed.
He sprinted back toward the top of the arc.
At that exact moment, Joel Anthony and David West formed an elevator door screen.
Wade tried to follow.
The 2 big bodies closed around him.
Blocked.
Chen burst free beyond the 3 point line.
Curry delivered the pass.
Chen turned.
Caught.
Shot.
Swish!
Nothing but net.
5 to 0.
Wade could only watch the ball drop.
With 2 powerful screeners closing the gap around him, there had been almost nothing he could do.
Chen ran back while tapping 3 fingers against his temple.
That possession had felt perfect.
The elevator action had created exactly what New York wanted.
An open 3 pointer for Chen Yan.
Miami went back on offense.
James dribbled toward the top and directed his teammates into position.
Wade circled in from the wing.
James passed.
Wade caught it and immediately attacked left.
Hard dribble.
Then suddenly, behind the back.
The ball returned to his right hand.
Chen had followed the initial drive at full speed and was caught off guard by the change.
Wade created 1 step of separation.
His technique was polished.
Combine that skill with elite explosiveness, and even an excellent defender could be beaten.
Wade immediately gathered.
High post jumper.
Clang!
Miss.
Miami's home crowd was beginning to grow restless.
3 consecutive empty possessions.
Was the offense really going to struggle this badly again?
Even the officials were beginning to feel the lack of opportunities.
If Miami kept settling for perimeter jumpers, there was almost no chance to send them to the free throw line.
The officiating crew had entered the night with instructions to give Miami the benefit of close calls.
The league had invested heavily in this series, and a quick Heat elimination would be terrible for television ratings.
But the referees could not manufacture fouls if Miami refused to attack the basket.
This time, New York finally found its transition opportunity.
Miami's retreat was half a step slower.
Chen immediately recognized it.
He crossed into the frontcourt.
Then, from 2 steps beyond the 3 point line, he suddenly rose.
No setup.
No hesitation.
The shot came so unexpectedly that it looked more like an end of quarter heave than a normal offensive possession.
Wade reacted quickly and sprinted toward him.
Still too late.
Chen's release had already begun.
"No way!"
"That is not going in!"
"Too far!"
Miami fans shouted from the stands.
The words sounded confident.
Their faces did not.
Everyone knew Chen Yan's reputation.
For most NBA players, this was a desperation shot.
For Chen, it was part of his normal range.
The ball sailed through the air.
Swish!
8 to 0.
The arena went silent.
Chen turned toward the crowd.
He raised 1 hand to his ear.
Nothing.
Exactly what he wanted.
Then he calmly retreated on defense.
Barkley laughed.
"This looks too easy for him right now. Chen is playing like this is an empty gym."
Kenny nodded.
"Miami has to consider sending another defender. Letting Chen play straight 1 on 1 is giving him exactly what he wants."
Miami finally scored on the next possession.
James and Wade combined to create the opportunity.
Wade attacked off the dribble and drew the defense inward.
Then he passed back to James.
James used Joel Anthony's screen to move toward the perimeter.
Catch.
Shoot.
Swish!
His 3rd attempt from beyond the arc finally went in.
8 to 3.
James did not celebrate.
If anything, he looked slightly irritated.
This was not the kind of offense he wanted to play.
James preferred having 3 or 4 shooters spread around him.
That kind of spacing opened the lane for his drives.
And when defenders collapsed, those shooters could turn his passes into assists.
But Miami's current starting lineup could not provide that structure.
Wade was not a reliable 3 point threat.
Joel Anthony offered almost no perimeter spacing.
Gasol wanted to operate inside and around the mid range.
Chalmers was the only dependable shooter available to stretch New York's defense.
After several possessions, James finally realized the irony of the situation.
He wanted shooters surrounding him.
Instead, he had somehow become the shooter himself.
....
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