This year's No. 10 pick, Paul George, replaced Carter as a starter in the third quarter. His purpose on the floor was simple, defend "Melo" Anthony!
Rookie George came in for Carter.
This was not the first time Alvin Gentry had made this adjustment. Many fans knew it was meant specifically to let George guard Anthony. The question was, how well would it work?
No one knew yet.
Knicks (68): (55) Suns.
Suns ball.
Nash held the ball at the top of the arc. Blake Su curled out to receive the pass and faced Anthony one on one, while Fields once again watched from the side, ready to pounce.
Then.
"Step!"
Fields quickly pressed up, once again putting heavy defensive pressure on Blake Su.
Blake Su signaled with his hand. George stepped up to set a screen, and Blake Su went around Fields to face Anthony one on one. He accelerated into a drive, and Billups rotated over to help again.
"Whoosh!"
After drawing the defense, Blake Su decisively passed the ball again, finding Curry waiting in the right corner. Curry raised his hands and launched a three.
"Swish!"
With a crisp sound, the ball dropped cleanly through the net.
"Nice shot!"
Nash pumped his arm.
"Smack!"
Blake Su and Curry slapped hands.
The possession changed.
Billups continued to push the ball up the floor, then lobbed it high to Stoudemire on the left low block. Blake Su pressed up on him, using his long arms to smother him. Seeing that Blake Su was the defender, Stoudemire passed it out.
"Whoosh!"
Anthony caught the ball at the top of the arc. At the same time, George slid over and faced Anthony one on one.
Buzz!
George narrowed his eyes, his expression extremely serious. He was not Blake Su. Facing one of the league's top three small forwards, there was no way he could stay completely calm.
Even with that tension, his determination to defend was firm.
"Thud, thud, thud!"
Anthony glanced at George casually, clearly not taking him seriously. He used a jab step to threaten the drive, and the instant he saw George's center of gravity sink.
"Whoosh!"
He rose up into a jumper right over George's defense.
"Step!"
George's gaze sharpened, and he rushed forward to contest, but Anthony still hit the shot steadily.
On the next possession.
With Stoudemire locked down by Blake Su, the offense once again went through Anthony. Facing George's defense again, he used another jab step and fake drive.
Because Anthony's drive was such a huge threat, George had no choice but to retreat. Anthony, who had been reading the defense the whole time, seized that fleeting opening and pulled up for another jumper.
"Step!"
George lunged forward with all his strength to interfere.
"Clang!"
This time, the contest worked.
The ball hit iron and bounced out.
"Oh?"
Anthony narrowed his eyes slightly, a little surprised by George's impressive leaping ability. But that was all.
The rebound?
Blake Su beat Stoudemire to it and tipped the ball away, but Fields grabbed the offensive rebound and sent it back to Anthony.
"Whoosh!"
The instant Anthony caught the ball, he accelerated past George and immediately collided with him. From that contact, he suddenly realized something.
George was much stronger than he had imagined.
Even with one hard step into his body, Anthony failed to knock him off balance.
"Whoosh!"
Still, Anthony had far too many offensive tools. With George close to him, he used a quick half spin and pause in rhythm, then accelerated again.
"Screech!"
With one explosive step, he shifted sideways into a stepback and instantly created more than half a body of space from George.
"Whoosh!"
Anthony confidently rose into the stepback jumper, certain George could no longer contest it. But just as he released the ball, George's big hand covered him once again.
"What?!"
Anthony was startled and quickly raised the arc of his shot before sending the ball out.
"Clang!"
The ball hit the rim again. Was it going to miss? No. After bouncing up, the ball dropped back down and fell into the net.
Good!
"That was an incredibly difficult shot by Anthony!"
In the ESPN studio, Van Gundy clicked his tongue in amazement.
Mike Breen nodded in agreement, but then said, "Still, George defended that possession very well. Anthony making that shot came down entirely to individual talent.
"George is doing a good job.
"Even though he's a rookie, he's facing one of the league's top three small forwards with active, desperate defense. That alone is worthy of praise. And more importantly, his defense really is solid."
Yes.
On the court, even though Anthony had made that shot, he no longer underestimated George, the rookie.
In the following possessions, Anthony became more serious, and George continued to defend with extreme focus. Of course, against a fully locked in Anthony, George still could not completely stop him.
But compared with Curry and Carter, the results were much better.
On the bench.
Alvin Gentry watched this scene and nodded in satisfaction. "That's it, George. This is exactly the kind of defensive strength the team needs from you right now.
"Keep working.
"This still isn't enough. You need to work even harder and become even better. Only then can you contribute more to the team."
Just as Alvin Gentry had said, after receiving his encouragement, George trained even harder than before, improving himself by starting on the defensive end.
Back on the court.
Anthony could still score, but under George's relentless defense, his points no longer came as easily as reaching into a bag and taking something out. At times, his offense was even stopped.
At the same time, on defense, Blake Su continued to tie down Stoudemire. On offense, after being tightly double teamed, Blake Su kept looking for Curry. Nash did the same.
At the left side of the arc, Curry curled out and received Blake Su's pass. He turned and fired another three, even though he had already missed two threes before that.
He was still full of confidence.
"Swish!"
The ball pierced the net for a clean make.
On the next possession, Blake Su drew the first wave of defensive attention and passed to Nash on the perimeter. Nash faked a three, then sent the ball to Curry cutting into the right high post.
"Whoosh!"
Curry caught the ball and immediately accelerated toward the rim. Facing Turiaf's block attempt under the basket, he hung in the air, then finished with a reverse layup off the glass from the left side.
"Swish!"
Another make.
Curry had been fed the ball for two full quarters.
He did not disappoint. He took on the responsibility of being the team's second option.
Not only did he finally hit from beyond the arc, but he also increased his physicality and attacked the basket. Once his touch came back, he scored repeatedly with both drives and jumpers.
And then there was Blake Su.
He was a player who could never be completely shut down. Even while constantly facing high intensity defense, he could still contribute on offense.
George handled the defense.
Curry handled the offense!
Blake Su drew defenders and attacked on his own!
The Suns' three young players all made their impact at the same time. With one minute left in the third quarter, they had somehow erased the entire 13 point deficit and tied the game.
"Hehe!"
Mike Breen smiled as he watched the deficit disappear. "Since the start of the second half, George and Curry have both played very well. One is handling the defense, and the other is handling the offense.
"The two young players are doing everything they can in their roles.
"And of course, there is Blake Su, the 'strongest rookie.' The Suns really are brimming with energy right now!"