Chapter 1 Williams's Explosion

"Bang!"

In the stunned eyes of the fans in the arena, Williams slammed the ball into the basket with a one-handed alley-oop.

The arena instantly exploded.

How heaven-defying must his physical talent be to complete a one-handed alley-oop!

This was rare, not just in the NCAA, but even in the NBA!

Williams's physical talent definitely made him the number one rookie this year!

The scouts at the scene nodded frequently. In the NBA draft, talent was the most important aspect. Williams's explosive talent was enough to make him a top three, or even top two, player in this year's draft. As for the final draft order, it would depend on the choices of the Cavaliers, Timberwolves, and Raptors.

Williams's alley-oop dunk greatly boosted the morale of the University of Arizona. Back on the defensive end, Hill directly stole the ball from Lamb. After the University of Arizona scored another 2 points on a fast break, the point difference had reached 5 points!

Calhoun called a timeout.

When Hill went off the court, he signaled to the audience for some cheers. The cheers from the University of Arizona fans were deafening. This was a prelude to a comeback.

When the timeout ended, Calhoun substituted all the starters back in ahead of time.

After returning, Oriakhi and Olander grabbed offensive rebounds one after another, and UConn launched a 4-0 run to widen the point difference again.

The University of Arizona's small lineup had a clear effect on defensive counterattacks, but because of its height disadvantage, it could not protect the rebounds, making it even more passive.

Seeing that the momentum was not right, Miller also switched back to the regular lineup.

The two head coaches were now battling wits.

However, unlike the beginning of the game, Williams's condition on the University of Arizona side was completely different. Seeing Olander giving him some space, he shot directly from mid-range.

"Swish!"

He scored as soon as he shot.

On this side, Walker's layup went wide, and Williams was still there on the frontcourt, hitting another catch-and-shoot jumper.

His shooting was unstable, but not nonexistent. After scoring continuously with the small lineup, his entire state had completely heated up.

Continuous shots forced Olander to step forward. As soon as Olander stepped forward, Williams directly changed to a breakthrough, using his speed to get past Olander and continue to score.

Calhoun's timeout had an effect, but it could not stop Williams from continuing to exert his power.

At the end of the first half, led by Williams, the University of Arizona had managed to chase the score from a 12-point deficit to a tie at 38.

After a poor performance in the first ten minutes, Williams had an explosive performance in the last ten minutes, scoring 18 points and 6 rebounds in the half.

"Chris, he's worthy of being the top pick." Wally Szczerbiak, a scout for the Timberwolves, turned to Chris Mim, a scout for the Cavaliers, and said.

"No, we need Irving more."

After the two finished speaking, they smiled at each other. The truth was mixed with falsehood, and no one could guess what the other was really thinking.

Both sides entered a 15-minute half-time break.

In UConn's locker room, Calhoun finished analyzing the first half of the game, but suddenly stopped there.

In fact, his tactics had worked completely, but Williams's improved state had negated their effect.

It would be fine if Williams's state declined after returning in the second half, but if he continued to be as efficient as he was in the first half, then UConn would really be in trouble.

In other words, the initiative in this game was already in Williams's and the University of Arizona's hands.

The feeling of having his fate controlled by others made him feel very uncomfortable.

"Old man?" Calhoun didn't speak for a long time, and Ollie called out to him.

"Well, the tactical approach in the second half is the same as in the first half. Williams consumed a lot of energy in the first half. If he keeps playing like this, his shooting percentage will definitely drop. Stay focused, and we still have a greater chance of winning." After Calhoun finished speaking, he pulled Ollie and left the locker room first.

The players were seizing the time to rest.

Walker took out the cake he had prepared in advance and started eating it. The intensity of this game far exceeded the previous one, and he was double-teamed continuously, so he was very physically exhausted.

"Tang, aren't you eating?" Seeing that Tang Tian was sitting there without moving, Walker asked.

"I'll go out for a while." Tang Tian said, getting up and leaving the locker room.

Walker had a piece of cake in his mouth, his face full of doubt.

After leaving the locker room, Tang Tian went straight to the coach's office.

He could basically guess what Calhoun was thinking, and Calhoun's final decision was basically fine.

But he had better suggestions. It wasn't convenient to speak in the locker room before, so he had to talk about it in private.

Now that the game had reached this point, victory or defeat was very important to him and this team. It was no longer the time to consider trivial matters such as whether it was appropriate to do so, or saving face.

Tang Tian knocked on the door and entered. Calhoun and Ollie both looked at him with puzzled expressions.

"Coach, I have a tactical suggestion."

When Tang Tian said this, Ollie frowned noticeably. He and Calhoun were discussing the tactics for the second half, and there wasn't much time left.

Although Tang Tian had shown talent in this area before, players and coaches were completely different groups. Tang Tian's current approach was very irrational and inappropriate. If he were Calhoun, he would definitely ask Tang Tian to leave.

"Kevin, close the door." However, Calhoun really relied on Tang Tian. After hearing what he said, he not only didn't get angry, but instead signaled him to sit down and continue talking.

Ollie was stunned for a moment, but since Calhoun had spoken, he had no choice but to close the door.

"What suggestion? Tell me." After Ollie closed the door, Calhoun looked at Tang Tian and asked.

"I'm not saying that the coaching staff's decision is wrong, but relying on the opponent's state to determine victory or defeat is very passive," Tang Tian said.

"Of course we know that, but do you have a better way?" Ollie said unhappily. What Tang Tian said was complete nonsense.

"Yes."

"..."

Calhoun smiled and signaled Tang Tian to continue.

"Williams's physical talent is very strong, and after he gets into a rhythm, he's almost unstoppable on the offensive end, but he also has weaknesses."

"What weaknesses?" Calhoun asked curiously.

"Defense. He's good at defending in the paint, but once he's outside the three-second area, his defense is very bad. This has something to do with his body type."

Calhoun nodded after hearing what Tang Tian said.

This was indeed true. Because Williams's height was limited, he inevitably had to gain weight in order to increase his physical resistance. However, after gaining weight, his speed would inevitably decrease. This was not obvious on the offensive end, but it was very obvious on the defensive end.

Take the game between the University of Arizona and the University of Tennessee before, for example. Although Williams scored 30 points, Harris, who was guarding him, also scored 25 points. Harris was a forward who mainly relied on shooting, which was very telling.

"So, your suggestion is?"

"I'll start at the four in the second half," Tang Tian said.