NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 232 Completely Overwhelmed

The Heat made a very obvious defensive adjustment in this game. The player who guarded Jia Fei in the last game was now guarding Milwaukee, and Wade was the one guarding him.

It's worth noting that in the last game, he was defended by Runner and Battier, but their one-on-one defense wasn't very effective. He's too fast; both of them are heavy forwards, and they couldn't keep up with his speed.

Wade, once known as "The Flash," is now older and not as fast, but he still has a lower center of gravity, and his lateral movement is better than that of the "Running Man" and Battier. He can barely keep up with Jia Fei on defense, using his strong physique to contest the shot. The weakness is the height difference between them, making it difficult for him to contest Jia Fei's jump shot.

Originally playing off the ball, Jia Fei was forced to take over possession early, and the Heat double-teamed him very aggressively, preferring to leave the weak side open in order to cut off his connection with teammates like Korver.

Under intense defense, the Hawks' shooting percentage dropped, and the Heat launched many fast breaks.

Under tight defense, the magic of Antić from the previous two series vanished; he was effectively shut down. Korver was also shut down, struggling to get good shooting opportunities against Battier's close marking. Outside shooting opportunities lay with Mills and Teague, but their outside shooting was inconsistent, resulting in numerous missed shots and further solidifying the opponent's relentless double-teaming of Jia Fei.

This game perfectly illustrated the strategic importance of Bosh, whose speed, ability to switch on defense, and participation in double teams were crucial against the Hawks, who lacked a strong interior presence. Antić simply didn't have a good solution against such a defense.

This game also exposed one of Jia Fei's weaknesses: while he can pass and has good passing vision, he lacks the ability to accurately find the weak side, and his ability to break through extreme double teams is still relatively immature. Another weakness on the offensive end is his lack of consistent back-to-the-basket punishment when facing shorter players.

The Hawks ultimately lost by 16 points, having no chance of winning throughout the game – a truly crushing defeat. This was their most humiliating loss so far in the playoffs, a lesson thoroughly taught to them by the experienced defending champions.

The away team's locker room was quiet after the match. The defeat felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over their heads. Several players, who had been carried away by their previous victory, left the locker room early.

Jia Fei also seemed somewhat disappointed. Facing Wade's defense and the opponent's relentless double-teaming, he only scored 17 points throughout the game and also committed 4 turnovers, a far cry from his performance in the previous game.

The series is now tied 1-1, and the Hawks still have home-court advantage. Winning one of the two away games wouldn't be entirely unacceptable.

However, the reality of Game 2 revealed a difficult problem, a problem specifically for the Hawks. One issue the Hawks' coaching staff needs to address is how to break down the opponent's double-teams. Besides Jia Fei, who can truly step up?

At this moment, the Hawks truly missed Horford; if he were there, double-teaming Jia Fei wouldn't have been so easy. Horford could do so much, and Antic could certainly shoot and facilitate, but beyond those two things, his contribution to the team was quite limited.

On the way back to Atlanta, Jia Fei kept thinking about one question: how to break the Heat's double-team.

The Heat's double-teaming is effective because none of their five players are defensive liability. Bosh isn't great at guarding the paint, but he's excellent at helping and double-teaming the perimeter. Chalmers isn't tall, but he's a very strong defender. It's difficult to find a single player on this team who can be singled out. Their defensive rotations are quick and their positioning is excellent.

The saying "You only realize how little you know when you need it" rings true. Jia Fei felt he hadn't mastered weak-side passing and diagonal passes, making it harder for him to break through double teams. It wasn't that he couldn't pass the ball, but when he did, his teammates couldn't finish it effectively, causing significant problems for the team's offense.

If playing off-ball, Teague, the primary ball-handler, also struggles to distribute the ball. Ultimately, this Hawks team lacks a true second strong player who can complement Jia Fei. Team-wide hot shooting like in Game 1 is ultimately a rare occurrence and difficult to replicate.

After Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, those haters, who had been holding back for a long time, finally got their chance to unleash their fury. They mocked Jia Fei, saying he would falter against truly strong teams, that he wasn't a real superstar, and that he was just an ordinary All-Star.

Some even argue that Jia Fei only made it to the Eastern Conference Finals due to luck, and that the Hawks only had a chance because there were no other strong teams in the East besides the Heat. They claim he's a player who hasn't proven himself in the West, and is simply benefiting from the East's dominance.

Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals won't be played until the 25th, so the Hawks have several days to prepare.

On the 23rd, the Hawks held their first practice after Game 2. After the practice, Coach Buden called Jia Fei over, and the two had a brief conversation.

"Jay, don't be discouraged. The series is only tied 1-1. We haven't lost our chance!" Coach Buden's smile was warm and comforting. He didn't want the loss in the last game to make his young star too frustrated.

"Yes, thank you, Coach. I'm fine." Jia Fei smiled slightly. He was actually in a good mood. He knew his own shortcomings best. Even at his peak, Iverson was never a true playmaker.

"Take it slow. You're only 22 years old. You have many years of professional career ahead of you. Practice your skills gradually. I believe you will become the strongest player in this league!" Coach Buden said with anticipation.

"But I still can't break through the pincer attack!" Jia Fei said with a wry smile. While his mindset was good, solving the immediate difficulties was the most important thing.

"What do you think about us playing a small lineup?" Coach Buden asked.

"Small lineup? Like the Heat?" Jia Fei was somewhat surprised; he didn't quite understand why Coach Buden would have such a surprising idea.

"I want to try changing the lineup. Ja, changing the lineup might not make us better, but if we don't change the lineup, we might have a hard time winning. What do you think?" Coach Buden's eyes remained as gentle as ever.

"Uh..." Jia Fei knew in his heart that that was not a good idea, but he couldn't think of a better solution. The Hawks didn't have much room for adjustment after losing Horford. They only had these players, and in the playoffs where they had to rely on short rotations, they couldn't afford to trade small change for larger ones. The players who were on the court either had some flaws on offense or some problems on defense, and there were still too few players who could play both offense and defense.

In high-level games, many problems will suddenly be exposed. Jia Fei's technical deficiencies are one aspect, and the team's current lineup structure is another.

The Hawks actually have a lot of players who can play, and they have many point guards, but they don't have a well-rounded point guard who doesn't have any major defensive problems. He's the only one who can function as a center and play both offense and defense on the wings.