The NBA's Absolute Dominance

Chapter 90 Where is the meat shield?
"ball!"

On the left wing, in a low position, Tang Bei faces upwards, squeezing inwards while calling for the ball.

BJ Armstrong's defensive ability is only average. He is mainly steady in one-on-one defense and has a strong ability to anticipate passing lanes.

He only blocked Coles's downward passing lanes at the top of the arc, ignoring the defensive routes on both wings, so he defended very well, and Bimbo Coles did not pass the ball down in time.

With three seconds left, Tang Bei, who was trying to get into a deep position, had to come out first, and then try to get into position again, wasting some of his energy.

"The Heat can't get the ball in," Xu Jicheng said on CCTV.

"The ball is passed to Glen Rice, the small forward on the left wing," Sun Zhenping said.

"Kid, can you handle the ball and attack?" Michael Jordan stared intently at Glen Rice, trash-talking him while giving his all in defense.

Glen Rice is a pitcher, and his ball-handling and offensive skills are not very good, but he has teammates. At this moment, Tang Bei came out of the paint and ran up to set a screen.

Although Tang Bei's mid-range shot is poor and his pick-and-roll skills are average, his height makes him an excellent screener.

Using Tang Bei's screen, Glen Rice dribbled to the side, took a step to get past Jordan, and then launched a three-pointer from behind Tang Bei, making a very decisive shot.

Tang Bei quickly turned and lunged towards the paint to fight for the rebound.

"brush!"

At that moment, water splashed up, and the three-pointer went in.

"it is good!"

"Pretty!"

Xu Jicheng and Sun Zhenping shouted excitedly at the same time.

"call!"

Glen Rice, who had been a little nervous, breathed a sigh of relief; this shot had restored his confidence.

Tang Bei came out to set a screen for him; it was a tactic the team had arranged for the two of them.

After the ball is separated, he can shoot on his own, dribble past defenders, or pass the ball to Tang Bei who cuts into the penalty area; his tactics are very flexible.

3:0, Bulls attack.

BJ Armstrong dribbled the ball up the court and passed it to Pippen on the left wing three-point line, where Pippen began to orchestrate the offense.

Jordan, on the other hand, began to move off the ball.

Bill Carterwhite primarily used his low-post back-to-the-basket offense, supplemented by mid-range shots. However, now that he's older, his mid-range shots are mainly used to screen for Jordan's wing offense.

He moved to the free-throw line, and Tang Bei followed, standing two meters below the free-throw line, no more than two meters from the basket. He only needed one step to get back to defend the basket.

At this point, Pippen began to attack on the left wing to draw the Heat's defense, causing the Heat's defensive formation to shift to the left wing.

Meanwhile, Jordan repeatedly spun back and forth on the right wing, shaking off Edwards's pursuit.

"Whoosh!"

Pippen suddenly passed the ball across the box, and Jordan received it in the right elbow area and quickly drove into the paint.

"Squeak! Squeak!"

Tang Bei quickly moved to the right front of the basket, securing his defensive position.

Facing the menacing Tang Bei, Michael Jordan unexpectedly did not choose to force a shot, but instead flicked the ball with one hand, sending it flying to Bill Carterwhite on the left side of the free throw line.

This is exactly Bill Cartwright's screen tactic: once Jordan's offense on the wing is thwarted and he gets an opportunity at the free-throw line, the ball will be passed to him for a shot.

"Squeak..."

Tang Bei moved continuously, his lateral movement incredibly fast, and lunged at Cartwright as he attempted a jump shot.

The ball didn't touch him, being a half-beat too late, but the incredible bounce forced Cartwright's shot to become somewhat distorted.

"Bang!"

The ball bounced off the rim and bounced back. Grant Long, who was defending the basket, and Pippen, who was rushing in to grab the rebound, got into a scramble and flicked the ball into the air.

"Snapped!"

Tang Bei leaped high and caught the basketball.

"here."

On the right wing, beyond the three-point line, shooting guard Edwards, who had been shaken off by Jordan, shouted as he sprinted down the wing.

"Whoosh!"

Tang Bei shoved the ball over, and Edwards caught it, drove across the center line, and went straight for the basket.

BJ Armstrong tracked back from the edge of the box and caught up with Edwards after he broke into the penalty area from the left elbow.

"Bang!"

Edwards attempted a layup while carrying BJ, but missed. At that moment, Glen Rice rushed in and grabbed the rebound.

"ball!"

Tang Bei's voice rang out from behind.

Glen Rice had a sudden inspiration. Without turning his head, he tossed the ball behind his head and quickly dodged away from under the basket.

"Shet!"

BJ Armstrong, standing under the basket, saw a giant already flying through the air, pouncing towards the basket above his head. He panicked and retreated while cursing.

"boom!"

Tang Bei received the ball three meters past the free-throw line, jumped, and unleashed a fierce and powerful two-handed slam, the resounding thud of the ball hitting the rim echoing loudly.

Under the terrifying impact, as his body swung high forward, the Bulls' basket rack slumped downwards, pulling the rim to a ninety-degree angle.

"Oh!"

A huge gasp erupted from the massive Chicago stadium, followed by complete silence.

In a panic, BJ Armstrong took two steps back. To avoid being hit, he deliberately rolled backward and fell to the floor, looking quite disheveled.

Upon seeing this, Jordan instantly sped up his chewing, and a murderous glint appeared in his eyes.

He wanted to teach Tang Bei a lesson tonight, but he didn't expect to lose face at the entrance of the away team's locker room. And now, on his best basketball court, before he could teach Tang Bei a lesson, Tang Bei stole the show.

"it is good!"

After hitting the bottom line, Zhang Heli shouted excitedly.

"Pretty!"

In the CCTV live broadcast studio, Xu Jicheng excitedly said, "Tang Bei sprints down the court and spikes the ball in on the second attack. It's a powerful spike, a strong two-handed spike."

Sun Zhenping said excitedly, "The Bulls are good at fast breaks, but the Heat's fast break ability is not weak either, because Tang Bei can run fast breaks."

Xu Jicheng laughed and said, "Tang Bei has the speed of a small forward, no slower than Pippen."

"give it to me."

5-0, the Bulls are on offense. Before inbounding the ball, Jordan spoke to Pippen and the others.

The Bulls' next tactic was quite simple: after getting to the frontcourt, they passed the ball to Jordan, the others spread out, and Jordan held the ball on the right wing, one-on-one against Edwards, drove to the basket, pulled up for a jump shot, and made the basket.

5:2, Heat on offense.

Tang Bei stopped positioning himself deep in the box and instead positioned himself outside the penalty area, fearing that the ball wouldn't be able to be passed in and he would waste his energy.

BJ Armstrong continued to block the downward passing angle from the edge of the box, forcing Bimbokors to pass the ball to Glen Rice on the left wing.

The Bulls didn't switch on defense this time; Pippen guarded Glen Rice, small forward against small forward.

"Snapped!"

The instant Coles passed the ball, Pippen made a precise anticipation, quickly stepped forward, intercepted the pass, and then made a fast break down the court.

"Oh dear, Glen Rice was standing there waiting to receive the ball. He was careless; the defender was Pippen!" Xu Jicheng said disappointedly.

"boom!"

The Heat couldn't get back on defense in time, and Pippen drove into the paint, unleashing a powerful one-handed tomahawk dunk that shattered the Heat's rim.

Pippen's right hand was hanging above the rim, and he didn't let go immediately. As his body spun and swung, he pointed at Tang Bei with his left hand, his face full of provocation and domineering aura.

"WOW!"

The Chicago stadium immediately erupted in cheers for Pippen.

"Pippen, the second oldest of the Bulls, is known as Pippen the Second."

Tang Bei muttered to himself with a smile, and finally concluded, "He really is a complete idiot."

5:4, Heat on offense.

This time, Bimbokors didn't go to the top of the key. After crossing the center line, he moved directly to the left wing. Glen Rice saw this and quickly ran to the top of the key.

Passing the ball from the left wing perimeter to the left low post at a much wider angle than passing it from the top of the key to the left low post, means BJ can't lock down all the angles.

Upon seeing this, Tang Bei decisively began to move deeper into the enemy's territory.

Under the immense force, Cartwright, who weighed only 111 kilograms, was unable to withstand it and was forced to take two steps back.

He also used a low stance and strong lower body stability, so even when Cartwright tried to pull the chair away, it had no effect.

When Coles passed the ball in, the Bulls decisively implemented a collapsing defense.

Pippen at the high post, Jordan at the right elbow, and Grant at the right low post all quickly collapsed towards the paint and under the basket. "Snap!"

Facing the left wing, Tang Bei, who was only 1.5 meters away from the basket, received the ball.

From the right rear, Cobra Grant came in to double-team along the baseline. His footsteps were already behind him, indicating that he had reached the basket.

On the upper side, Pippen, who was attacking from the high post, was already a step away, and his large hand would reach out in the next second.

With three players surrounding him, Tang Bei was guaranteed to be double-teamed whether he turned downwards to slide to the baseline or turned upwards to attack the basket.

Later, Cartwright did his best to defend, even using his elbow, but he didn't allow Tang Bei to easily get a turnaround space.

However, Tang Bei's shoulders and back did not touch Cartwright; instead, he used his hips to press against Cartwright in a low horse stance.

The space was quite large, at least a foot, allowing his shoulders and back to maintain a distance from Cartwright's, providing enough space for him to exert force.

In the next instant, Tang Bei dribbled the ball and suddenly used his back to push off with a post-up shot.

Without any probing, he unleashed his full power.

"Oh!"

With a heavy thud, Bill Cartwright felt as if he had been hit by a bus, his entire chest feeling like it had been crushed.

"what?"

When Pippen and Grant, who were flanking him, saw Cartwright fly backward, they were both taken aback.

Michael Jordan, who wasn't part of the double team, was also shocked by this amazing scene.

"squeak!"

Amidst the sharp screech of his sneakers, Tang Bei spun through the gap between Pippen and Grant, his body exploding into the air.

Once this happened, no one could stop him anymore.

Pippen and Grant's four hands were already on Tang Bei's body, but they couldn't hold him down as he suddenly jumped up.

In their minds, what they were holding down was not a person, but a fully grown male tiger.

"boom!"

With a loud thud, the basket slammed down, and the Chicago Arena fell silent once more.

"Beep!" The referee's whistle blew at the same time.

"This kid is indeed strong, no weaker than Patrick and his two companions, and probably even more difficult to deal with."

Seeing Tang Bei steal the spotlight again, Jordan's expression turned sour. He chewed his gum at an alarming speed and with even greater force, practically gritting his teeth as he chewed.

"ah!"

On the Heat's side, the players and the crowd cheered and raised their arms, their pre-game low spirits burning as brightly as the sun.

"A low-post back-to-the-basket move... That's incredible! Tang Bei actually knocked the defender away, haha!"

"Tang Bei broke through the double-team and delivered another powerful two-handed dunk."

In the CCTV live broadcast studio, Xu Jicheng and Sun Zhenping shouted excitedly.

In the ESPN studio, Michael Breen said, "Faced with Tang Bei, a near-superstar center, the Bulls' starting center Bill Cartwright seems to be no match. The three-man double-team under the basket failed, and the Bulls' defense in the paint will face a serious test."

Tom Tolbert said, "Tang launched a strong attack in the low post with absolute power. The Bulls' collapsing defense strategy failed, and now they are somewhat passive. What will Phil Jackson do?"

7:4, Carterwhite commits a defensive foul, Tang Bei gets one free throw.

Phil Jackson called a timeout, firstly to make a substitution, and secondly to break the Heat's momentum.

He believes there is nothing wrong with the tactics. They have already used three players to double-team the basket, which is the highest level of treatment for a rookie. Do you expect him to use four-team or five-team double-team?

In his view, the Heat's successful attack was entirely due to Tang Bei's individual ability.

Moreover, he wasn't worried about Tang Bei's scoring at all, because the Bulls had someone who could score even better, with a stronger ability to score from the outside.

In comparison, Tang Bei's scoring style is too physically demanding, while Jordan only needs half the physical exertion, or even less, to achieve the same score.

As for the substitution, it was because Bill Cartwright requested to leave the game.

Cartwright's entire chest went numb; he couldn't even feel his heart beating. Terrified, he asked to leave the field.

The Bulls' backup center, Wilperdo, was the 11th overall pick in the first round of the 88 NBA draft.

Perdo is 213 cm tall, weighs 240 pounds (about 109 kg), and although he was drafted high, he is just a role player, currently averaging 14 minutes, 4.7 points and 4 rebounds per game.

The Bulls have a total of five players in the frontcourt. Apart from the two starters, the remaining three substitutes can all play the center position, but Perdo is the heaviest, so he is put on the court.

"Will, you're guarding Tang. Try to hold on a little longer, the double team will be coming soon," Phil Jackson instructed Perdo.

He then said to Jordan, "Michael, we are at a disadvantage inside, so we need to step up our outside offense."

Jordan nodded without saying anything.

"On the defensive end, the main focus is on cutting off the outside shooting and Tang's passing and receiving."

"Once Tang receives the ball, his ability to assist is average, so we should immediately implement a collapsed defense."

After explaining the offensive strategy, he then outlined the defensive strategy.

"With Cartwright injured and off the court, Tang has achieved his goal of injuring one player per game. The rest of the Bulls' big men should be safe now."

Michael Brin joked when he saw Will Perdo take off his training clothes.

"Ha ha……"

Tom Tolbert laughed so hard his shoulders shook.

Michael Brin added, "Perdo is still too thin. I heard that Tang weighs 136 kilograms now, while Perdo weighs less than 110 kilograms."

He's younger and perhaps stronger than Cartwright, but I think Don could knock Cartwright, who weighs 111 kilograms, away, and he could knock him away too.

The Bulls need a low-post shield, a tank-like center, like Laimbeer, someone who can withstand Tang's strong attacks and buy time for double teams.

Tom Tolbert said thoughtfully, "The regular season has been going on for a month and a half. From the Hornets to the Heat, including David Robinson and Ewing, Tang has not yet encountered an opponent who can truly restrain or suppress him. So how to defend him should be a new challenge."

At this point, he realized he had missed something and quickly added, "Including O'Neal, he and Tang are the same type of heavy-weight center."

O'Neal's performance against Hakeem Olajuwon was mediocre, but he performed well against Patrick Ewing, who didn't have many solutions against him.

Michael Brin paused for a moment, then immediately said, "Tom, according to you, if Phil Jackson defends Don using the usual approach, the result will be unexpected?"

Tom Tolbert said, "You saw it just now, the result of collapsing the defense and triple-teaming is that we can't stop them."

He then added, "The Bulls are more likely to win the game, after all, they have Jordan, but in Tang's position, the Bulls will lose badly."

Inspired, Michael Brin suddenly said, "The Heat have become stronger and their performance is improving since they got Tang. The regular season has only been going on for less than two months, and they still have a chance to make the playoffs."

If the Heat manage to make the playoffs, I think Tang's impact will truly be on full display during the series.

"One person injured per game?"

Upon hearing this, Tom Tolbert felt a chill run down his spine.

All the NBA players, coaches, owners, general managers, and executives watching this game on TV felt much the same way Tom Tolbert did when they heard that.

Some people immediately thought of the CBA finals, where the Cats and Birds were stronger than the Seaweed team and won Game 1, but ultimately lost the series.

The reason for this is Tang Bei's terrifying ability to injure an average of one person per game during the series.
"Meat shield?"

"No, the team needs to stock up on a few meat shields."

"We'll need to bring in two big guys!"

"The center's weight must be at least 140 kilograms."

"Where can we find a meat shield now?"

"Where is the meat shield?"
Immediately, teams aiming for the playoffs began making moves to find a center with a large build.

The timeout ends and the game begins.

Tang Beijia made the free throw, making it 8-4. The Bulls went on offense.

After some movement, Jordan received the ball in the right elbow area and went one-on-one against Edwards.

Back then, Michael Jordan's almost unstoppable isolation plays forced the NBA to introduce the Anti-Isolation Rule in 88.

This rule is still in effect, demonstrating his formidable singles prowess, which has completely disrupted the balance David Stern sought.

When one team gains an overwhelming advantage, the balance of the game is broken, and when the game loses its suspense, the viewership drops sharply.

This is also the fundamental reason why David Stern wanted to limit Michael Jordan—all for the sake of the NBA league's development.

So when he received the ball and prepared to go one-on-one, Bimbo Coles, positioned high up, immediately rushed over to double-team him.

Jordan remained calm and suddenly turned around and took a fadeaway jump shot.

"brush!"

Amidst the splashing water, the basketball pierced through the hoop.

When Tang Bei saw the ball, he immediately thought of what Zhang Heli had told him before the game about Jordan's technical characteristics.

Michael Jordan's most consistent mid-range shooting spots are his left and right elbow areas, and he needs to strengthen his help defense and rotation in these two areas.

Moreover, Jordan just made a left turn jump shot, and Zhang Heli's analysis of Jordan's technique was very accurate.

(End of this chapter)