The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball-Chapter 154 - 111 "I Allow You to Call for a Screen

Randolph continued to play in the low post, and this time after he received the ball, he quickly spun to the baseline after a body check against Anthony and took a fading shot before Heat’s help defense could arrive.

With his size, he executed the technical movement very smoothly.

Anthony did have decent shot-blocking abilities, but Randolph’s experience was too extensive. The early confrontation prevented Anthony from jumping in time.

"Swish!"

The basketball went straight through the net.

Randolph was heavily relied upon by a coach like Hollins, who had been in the League for many years, and the team’s tactics were designed around him, not just because of his skills. He was a standard low-post juggernaut.

About five minutes into the first quarter, the score was 10 to 2 with the Grizzlies leading.

These five minutes could be called James’s public execution time.

Of course, Guy couldn’t guard James every play, though his physique wasn’t at a disadvantage, his lack of speed meant that at best he could only limit James.

However, the key problem was that among the five players on the court for the Grizzlies, Guy was the worst defender!

James had to strain to get past Guy and due to a lack of stable mid-range shooting ability, he could only continue to break inside.

But waiting for him in the paint were either Randolph or Little Gasol, and more often than not, it was Randolph.

With Randolph’s bulk, any direct physical challenge would certainly put James at a disadvantage.

Moreover, Heat’s center Joel Anthony had virtually no offensive ability, making the situation even more painful than during James’s time with the Cavaliers.

O’Neal could score if you got the ball to him, but passing to Anthony was almost tantamount to a turnover.

Four shots, zero made, zero points, two rebounds, one turnover, one foul—this was the stat line James handed over after five minutes.

Furthermore, in the last offensive play that just ended, Little Gasol gave James a volleyball-style block.

Wade maturely allowed James to play first, and James presented a "my stomach hurts, I have diarrhea" performance.

You could only say that Hansen’s earlier judgment had been spot on—the Grizzlies’ lineup was simply too much of a restraint on James.

Especially since the referees weren’t indulging him now, he didn’t even need to exert force.

The scene was restless.

None of them could have anticipated such a start for The Big Three.

Or rather, they didn’t want to think that way, despite Stan warning the Heat about their problems in the paint earlier and the LeBron fans realizing that the Grizzlies would be a tough matchup.

After all, this was The Big Three at their peak!

You could say that the Grizzlies’ start had completely dumbfounded the Heat.

In the crucial moment, it was Spoelstra who bailed James out by calling a timeout.

After coming back from the timeout, James sat down to rest and Mike Miller suited up to play.

Miller, a fifth overall pick in 2000 and a friend of McGrady, was known for his three-point shooting and is a former player for the Grizzlies, where he had won the Sixth Man Award.

With Miller on the court, Heat’s offense visibly improved.

This wasn’t just because James’s ball-handling was ineffective, but also because Heat’s previous starting lineup was too crowded.

Can you imagine that within the starting five for the Heat, Wade was the best three-point shooter?

But with Miller on the court and a stable three-point threat on the perimeter, Wade’s penetration space obviously improved.

And Wade was smart. After training with Hansen over the summer, he knew the trouble Hansen could cause on the defensive end, so he kept trying to initiate offense with Bosh through pick-and-rolls.

Bosh was versatile, quick, and posed a significant offensive threat, much faster than the Heat’s previous starting center, an injured O’Neal.

Whether Hansen switched or not, such pick-and-rolls were sure to be fruitful.

Spoelstra also showcased his coaching skills by not continuing to match Anthony against Randolph on the defensive end, but switching to Bosh.

Bosh’s defense wasn’t as robust as Anthony’s, but he could keep up with Randolph’s moves and his height of 2.11 meters and wingspan of 2.22 meters allowed him to sufficiently disturb Randolph’s shots.

Ten minutes into the game, the score had changed to 18 to 14, with the Grizzlies still in the lead, but their advantage had been markedly reduced.

These past five minutes served as a contrasting experimental group.

Before James made his decision official, some fans had speculated that if the Heat were built around Wade and Bosh with quality 3-and-D players and a sixth man, they would be stronger.

Such an assertion was scoffed at then, for the impact a superstar could bring to a team was far greater than a role player’s contributions.

The Heat’s performance during this stretch of the game was a fierce slap in the face.

Main players from both sides took turns resting, and Hansen was also replaced by Tony Allen at this point.

Now on the court for both teams were, for the Grizzlies: West, Tony Allen, Guy, James Johnson, and Haddadi.

For the Heat: Mario Chalmers, Mike Miller, James, Haslem, and Ilgauskas.

Guy was in Hollins’ plan, James...

This was like two generations of cars taking the road at the same time but passing each other by.

The style of the game during this period was completely opposite to that of the starting lineup.

Guy and James weren’t matched up on the court; both scored relying on their respective abilities.

And both coaches tacitly allowed their players to play this way.

There was no choice, the Grizzlies needed Guy to stabilize his emotions with his scoreboard contributions during this period, and James needed this time to boost his stats.