NBA: The God of Basketball Begins with Precise Scoring

Chapter 2: Targeted Defensive Strategies – Curry's Last Hope!

Li Xingchen scored again, with the clock stopping after 25.6 seconds.

The entire Chase Center erupted in cheers, with the audience nearly lifting the roof off the stadium.

This was the opponent's possession, and it was in the hands of their star point guard, Morant, yet Li Xingchen managed to steal the ball one-on-one and then pull up for a three-pointer!

It's important to understand that three-pointers with the ball and three-pointers with the catch are practically two completely different skills. Most of the league's best 3D players—represented by Klay Thompson, who is still recovering from injury with the Warriors—are skilled at perimeter defense and three-pointers with the catch, which is enough to make countless opponents fear them.

But Li Xingchen's smooth one-man fast break three-pointer, which took only a few seconds, undoubtedly shows that he has extraordinary talent in ball handling and shooting. His potential is far more than just a 3D wing player!

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr couldn't help but light up in the corner.

However, now is not the time to think about talent development and realization; the current match is clearly more important!

The score is 100-106, and 12.2 seconds have elapsed.

Judging from the score difference and the remaining time, this is still a game with almost no suspense – after all, to take a six-point lead, it would take at least three possessions, and there is only one possession left in the remaining time.

It's worth noting that Li Xingchen scored six points in less than 15 seconds!

Who knows what will happen next?

"Beep—"

Grizzlies head coach Jenkins promptly called a timeout.

This was their penultimate timeout, while the Warriors had one timeout left, giving them room to maneuver.

"Hey guys, wake up!" Jenkins clapped his hands loudly. "If we lose this game, we're going back to Memphis to sleep!"

Dillon Brooks said grimly, "Don't worry, they basically have no offensive rounds left. I'll stick to him like glue!"

"Whom do you want to stick to?"

"Of course it's that Eastern kid who just scored two goals in a row! That guy's got incredible luck today, his hands are practically on fire!"

"What about Stephen Curry?"

"..."

One sentence silenced the aggressive Ti Lung.

They almost forgot that Xingchen Li, who had just caused them trouble, was just a benchwarmer for the Warriors.

Dillon Brooks' primary task throughout the game was to defend Curry. The impact of being faked out by Li Xingchen was so strong that he almost forgot about his main mission.

Keep in mind that Li Xingchen is just an unknown Asian player!

But if the opponent brings back all their key players, plus Li Xingchen who's on fire today, how should their team's defense be arranged and dealt with?

Given the current point difference and situation on the field, this is almost inevitable!

During the brief timeout of just over a minute, Jenkins quickly devised a defensive strategy for the upcoming playoffs.

Although the Warriors are currently mounting a strong comeback, the point difference is significant, and with only a little time left, as long as they implement targeted defense, securing the victory should be relatively easy.

On the other side, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was indeed preparing to bring in his starters.

In the NBA, while there aren't many memorable moments where substitutes bring both teams' starters back onto the court after the game has entered garbage time, they do happen.

Moreover, this is a do-or-die game for the team; even if there's only a sliver of hope, they should give it their all.

Soon back to game time, the Grizzlies still had their five starters, while the Warriors had center Kevin Looney, power forward Draymond Green, small forward Andrew Wiggins, and point guard Stephen Curry.

And Li Xingchen, the substitute shooting guard who just made a great contribution, will replace the Warriors' starting shooting guard Kent Bazemore!

After all, it was Li Xingchen who helped them win the game, so even if they brought back the main players, they would definitely keep him on the field. As for why Cup Cat was replaced, it's not because Cup Cat is the weakest among the starting five, but mainly because of his position.

The Grizzlies inbounded the ball from the baseline, and this time the entire team was extremely cautious, especially Morant, who handled the ball and did not show the slightest weakness.

The system did not provide any suitable interception route suggestions, obviously because it was impossible—even with cheats, there was no way to defy basic common sense and give Li Xingchen a skill like "Flash," that would be too absurd.

Seeing that a steal was hopeless, the Warriors quickly chose to foul, otherwise, if the Grizzlies ran out of time, even if they didn't score, the Warriors would have no chance at all.

Although Morant has only been in the league for a few years, he still has a big heart as a rising star, and he calmly made both free throws.

100:108, the score difference is back to eight points, with only 21.4 seconds left.

The Warriors' hopes of a comeback seem to have been dashed once again.

Li Xingchen's eyes, however, were incredibly bright and full of fighting spirit—he still had nine points of credit left to use!

The team inbounded the ball, and Curry received it and quickly advanced to the frontcourt. Dillon stuck to him like glue—the matchup had changed, and Dillon had taken on the responsibility of defending Curry again. Meanwhile, Li Xingchen was facing the opponent's second defender, De'Anthony Melton, who was also given full respect.

Curry knew that there was little time left in the game and he had to go all out. So he barely stopped the ball. After crossing half-court, he was still two steps away from the three-point line when he gathered the ball and raised his hand, intending to take a super long three-pointer. It wasn't that he wanted to show off or take a reckless shot. In fact, given how much the opponent valued his three-pointers, if he took two more steps forward, at least three players would rush up to help defend and double-team him, and then he wouldn't even have any space to shoot.

However, what he did not expect was that even though he left two steps of distance, the enemy's pincer attack still came as expected—was it a pre-arranged tactic?

Yes, this tactic of having the center move up and the wings help defend to form a triple-team will leave the paint area empty. If the Warriors make some passes, they can easily get an easy layup opportunity.

However, given the current point difference between the two teams, if the Warriors want to turn the tide, they can only rely on three-pointers, and they must be fast three-pointers. Where would they find the time to pass the ball around?

That's why the opponent is so recklessly rushing to the three-point line to double-team Curry, and then just giving you the two-point shot, asking if you want it or not.

Curry felt a sense of despair. This was a season where he couldn't carry the team alone. He had faced double teams like this countless times. His teammates had many excellent open shots because of him, but when he passed the ball, very few of them made the shot. In the end, he had to win the scoring title despite being double-teamed to get the team to where it is today.

And at this moment, isn't it a microcosm of the entire season? All his shooting routes were immediately blocked after he received the ball—ultimately, he couldn't fight against so many opponents, and was he about to be completely defeated?

Suddenly, he saw a pair of hands with a distinctly Eastern skin tone, raised high as if asking for the ball.

It's Li Xingchen.

It's Li Xingchen, who just hit two three-pointers in a row and is on fire!

A glimmer of hope rekindled in Curry's eyes.

He suddenly jumped up, faked a shot and then passed the ball to Li Xingchen, dodging several large hands surrounding him.