Chapter 9 Air Canada Centre

On the 9th, at the Air Canada Centre.

After the Raptors' meteoric rise that shook the entire North, tickets to their home games, which once struggled to reach even 50% capacity, became incredibly scarce.

Looking at the resale tickets being hyped up before the game, Raptors fans with season tickets felt like they had struck gold.

Tonight, Raptors owner Chad was personally overseeing the game. As he entered the arena, he had the fleeting feeling that he had wandered into the wrong place.

Listen to the deafening roar, like mountains collapsing and oceans surging.

Look at the dense, colorful crowd.

"Is this really our home court?"

Chad muttered to himself, trembling as he surveyed the scene.

This highly anticipated Raptors-76ers game was not only broadcast nationally in the US but also by CCTV in the Great Celestial Dynasty.

Before the game, Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao) chuckled during the preview, "Wow, it's really lively tonight. It seems the fans can't wait to see Su Feng and Jordan's performance."

Sun指导 (Sun Zhidao) added, "New season, the NBA has related viewership statistics showing that the Raptors' previous two away games have broken the NBA's viewership records."

"This is what I often say: if your game is good to watch, your popularity will naturally be high.

Moreover, this Raptors team is not only good to watch, but they can also win," Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao) supplemented.

"Huh? Tonight, the Raptors have actually arranged for McGrady to start?

Is Coach Davis planning to go with a swing lineup from the start of the game?" Sun指导 (Sun Zhidao) wondered, noticing the starting lineups.

"Others might not dare to deploy their troops like this, but in Davis's eyes, he wants to use this swing approach to gain mismatches on the court," Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao) analyzed.

After pausing, Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao) continued, "It looks like the Raptors don't have much absolute height, but if you look closely at their average height, they are basically swingmen around two meters tall.

This way, during the game, they can easily use simple pick-and-roll plays on the wing to create their own Aggressive plays."

"I see! Thanks for the insightful commentary, Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao)." Although he didn't quite understand, Sun指导 (Sun Zhidao) still gave Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao) a thumbs up.

Shortly after Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao)'s analysis, the players from both teams finished warming up and prepared for the entrance ceremony.

It must be said that compared to the 76ers' home DJ, the Raptors' home DJ was indeed a bit low...

You say you only use "No. 24 Jordan" to introduce Jordan. If you didn't know better, you'd think you were introducing that future "Little Jordan"...

Su Feng made up his mind to talk to Davis about this after the game.

As the saying goes, life needs a sense of ritual.

In Su Feng's opinion, if even a tool like Tracy's little brother, who currently has no reputation, isn't introduced for at least 30 seconds, then this DJ might as well go home and sell sweet potatoes.

Of course, although the sense of ritual was a bit lacking, when it was Su Feng and Jordan's turn to appear, the entire arena instantly went wild.

There was no way around it; for the Raptors fans who now had Gundams, who needed bicycles?

The Raptors fans were now so happy that they were even waking up laughing from their dreams.

On the court, after the entrance ceremony for both teams, Ben, Su Feng, Carter, McGrady, and Jordan stepped onto the main stage, chatting and laughing.

In stark contrast to the Raptors' "relaxed" team atmosphere, the 76ers players were basically playing with a straight face this season.

After Su Feng left, under Brown's increasingly strict military management, the atmosphere within the 76ers team could only be described as serious.

In the center circle, Ratliff, who had recently signed a big contract with the 76ers, felt like he was playing an intra-squad training match as he prepared to jump against Ben.

On the other side, Snow, the 76ers' defensive tool, noticed the Raptors' starting five tonight...

But he didn't know who he should be defending.

You say...

If he, Snow, went to defend McGrady, he couldn't let Iverson guard Carter, could he?

But if Snow went to defend Carter, how would Iverson defend McGrady?

Although as an excellent defensive warrior, Snow wasn't afraid of getting beat up, but...

The big brother he had to protect, Iverson, was equipped with a bunch of "critical strike items."

So, not knowing who he should defend, Snow could only look to Christie for help.

But...

Like Snow's worries, Christie, who was still playing for the Raptors last season, was also getting unfamiliar with this Raptors team.

Originally, when he was traded to Philadelphia as a trade chip, Christie was quite happy.

Because even if he enjoyed his time in Toronto, Christie still thought it was better to go to Philadelphia and play in the playoffs.

However...

After seeing the Raptors soaring to new heights this season, Christie admitted he was envious.

"Erick, you guard Vince, I think Allen can handle Tracy."

Of course, envy was envy, but life still had to go on.

Therefore, after calmly analyzing the situation, Christie thought that if neither he nor Snow could make shadow clones, they could only leave the least threatening swingman on the Raptors to Iverson.

On the 76ers' bench, unlike Christie, Snow, and others who were worried about their big brother's defense, Larry Brown was not surprised, but even wanted to laugh when he saw the starting five that John Davis had put out.

John, is this your change?

In Brown's opinion, the lineup Johnson put out had no advantage in height at all.

Brown, who had carefully studied the Raptors before the game, believed that the Raptors had been able to dominate in New York entirely because Van Gundy's defense lacked focus.

Moreover, Ewing's terrible state had also caused the Knicks to lose the winning weapon they could have used to crush the Raptors.

But, how can the light of a firefly compete with the brightness of the moon?

The defensive zone composed of Ratliff and Willis, in Brown's mind, even if the Su-Carter-McGrady-Jordan quartet went berserk, it would not be easy to break through.

Therefore, as long as the 76ers could protect the restricted area, what did they have to fear from the little Raptors?

In addition, on the offensive end, relying solely on Ben, what could the Raptors rely on to compete with the 76ers in terms of rebounding?

Therefore, in conclusion, if it wasn't because he had always been too cautious, in Brown's eyes, this game could even be declared over in advance.

"Young people, after all, are still young."

Looking at Davis on the opposite bench, who was completely "unable to hold his breath," Larry Brown, with his arms crossed, shook his head with a sneer.

Just as Brown issued a "death sentence notice" to the Raptors, on the court, as the referee tossed the ball into the center circle, this highly anticipated focal battle kicked off.

Pa————!

In the tip-off, Ratliff defeated his fellow countryman and friend Ben, winning the first possession for the 76ers.

Snow steadily dribbled the ball through the half-court.

It must be said that the 76ers' opening attack tonight made it clear that they were "old school."

On the court, Snow, who was receiving close attention from the "Old Rogue," didn't dare to be careless. His apprehensive expression made it seem as if he was afraid that Jordan would snatch the basketball from his hands in the next second.

But in reality...

The current Jordan was fine defending the inside, but defending the outside, he was just a paper tiger.

After spending a lot of time waiting for Iverson to run his position, the 76ers' first attack was Iverson one-on-one against McGrady on the wing.

And although Tracy's little brother defended very seriously on this play, it was no different than drinking water for Iverson to shake him off.

But...

Just as Iverson shook off McGrady, Su Feng moved in advance and completed a perfect help defense for McGrady.

As the tallest player on the Raptors, Su Feng knew very well that it was unrealistic to expect McGrady to defend Iverson's breakthrough.

But the problem was...

For this 76ers team, when the Raptors' group of wing swingmen help each other on the court, would they have any psychological burden of worrying about leaving their man open?

Originally, Christie's three-point shooting was decent last season with the Raptors.

But this season, in the first two games combined, this guy only threw three three-pointers.

You say, with this kind of outside threat, what did the Raptors care if they let the 76ers shoot?

"Wow, Su Feng's help defense on this play was too crucial; Iverson was just blocked by him," Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao) said on CCTV.

"After all, Su Feng and Iverson were teammates for two years; they not only know each other well, but they also know each other's strengths and weaknesses," Sun指导 (Sun Zhidao) chimed in.

On the court, after Iverson was blocked by Su Feng, don't think that Iverson's smile this season wasn't as frequent as last season's; Su Feng would never doubt Iverson's fighting spirit.

On this play, after dribbling and twisting twice, Iverson successfully created a shooting opportunity.

Unfortunately, under the interference of Su Feng's long arms, the ball still veered off the rim.

Clang—!

And in the restricted area, Ratliff and Willis, who Brown thought had a height advantage, also failed to grab the offensive rebound.

You know, a swingman lineup like the Raptors can also do a good job of protecting the rebounds.

To be fair, Riley might have problems, but his judgment was definitely right.

Five swingmen, in a certain sense, are indeed the most unsolvable lineup on the basketball court.

Using fast rotations and help defense, tonight on the court, it wasn't just Ben who was responsible for grabbing rebounds.

Su, Carter, McGrady, Jordan, and Ben all had good rebounding abilities, and the athleticism of these five people was more exaggerated than the last. So, even if Willis and Ratliff had a height advantage, in the Sky City, they had to accept air traffic control.

In Toronto, whether they can fly or not is up to the Raptors' Gundams.

On the 76ers' bench, Brown didn't feel any surprise after Iverson missed the first attack.

In his basketball philosophy, whether the offense can score or not is not important.

Look, with the 76ers' speed of retreat tonight, how could the Raptors possibly launch a fast break?

However...

Who told Brown that this Raptors team only knew how to play fast breaks?

After Carter secured the rebound, Jordan was responsible for dribbling the ball past half-court.

Because he had promised Su Feng before the game, this possession, after casually observing the situation on the court, Jordan unhesitatingly passed the ball to McGrady.

According to the pre-game arrangement, the Raptors only had one tactic tonight.

That was, whoever was guarding Iverson would be the one to attack.

On the Raptors' bench, Nash, who had been the subject of Su, Carter, McGrady, and Jordan's exercises in yesterday's training session, secretly wiped away the tears of shame that flowed from the corners of his eyes.

As the saying goes, only a defensive black hole can understand a defensive black hole.

No matter how hard Iverson defends, could he possibly block McGrady, who was more than 20 centimeters taller than him?

When playing against Iverson, McGrady didn't even need to drive.

Bang—!

On the court, after bumping into Iverson, McGrady, creating space to shoot, raised his hand and fired.

During the lockout, with Su Feng's guidance, McGrady's fadeaway success rate still needed to be improved, but McGrady's shooting posture was now full of Feng's flavor.

Swish—!

This ball, with almost no interference, McGrady successfully switched to training mode and flicked the ball into the basket.

0 to 2.

On the sidelines, Brown was a little dissatisfied now.

But...

No big deal.

Because Brown had carefully studied McGrady before the game, and in his opinion, McGrady could not possibly shoot the 76ers to death.

Okay...

To be fair, Brown's judgment was indeed correct.

Because the current McGrady really couldn't shoot the 76ers to death.

Unlike Nash, who was a pure defensive black hole, Iverson's defense was the kind that he could still resist a little.

So, on the premise that Iverson couldn't lie down and be fucked like Nash, Tracy's little brother, who still needed to level up, was indeed just Tracy's little brother compared to Carter, who could still fight alongside Su and Jordan.

But...

Who told Brown that McGrady would shoot the 76ers to death tonight?

On the court, after Iverson missed two consecutive attacks, the Raptors countered, and this time, after getting the ball from Jordan, McGrady brought Iverson to the high post, completing a positional swap with Jordan.

There was no way around it; Christie, who was responsible for guarding Jordan, couldn't help but switch on this play.

Because Jordan, who weighed 107 kilograms, was so solid during the pick-and-roll that even if you let Christie's wife whip him with a leather whip, he couldn't budge him.

Therefore...

A cruel scene appeared.

Jordan, who was more than 20 kilograms heavier than Iverson, chased Iverson all the way from the top of the arc...

Because Su Feng, Carter, and McGrady all had a certain shooting range from the outside, the 76ers' perimeter players didn't dare to help defend when Jordan was cruelly tormenting Iverson.

As for the inside...

Just as Willis and Ratliff felt that Jordan had entered their help defense range, Jordan, as the god of one-on-one, used his strength to explain what it meant to not even give you a chance to help defend.

What a handsome fadeaway this was!

To be fair, just talking about the handsomeness of the fadeaway, Jordan indeed already had about 70% of Su Feng's skills.

Swish—!

0 to 4.

The Raptors scored on two consecutive attacks right from the start.

"It seems that the Raptors are determined to attack Iverson's side," Sun指导 (Sun Zhidao) said on CCTV.

"Iverson is in trouble now; in the past with the Raptors, Su Feng would always help him with the help defense, but now, Snow and Christie are clearly not agile enough on defense," Zhang指导 (Zhang Zhidao) commented.

It must be said that Zhang Weiping's guidance was another truth.

Because if Su Feng and Iverson continued to be on the same team, even if the opponent put out such a swingman lineup to play against the 76ers in the future, Su Feng would go and help Iverson double-team and help defend.

The game in which Su Feng and Iverson jointly sanctioned Payton was a classic example.

To put it bluntly, since you want to play four-protect-one, then the other four people besides the "one" must be prepared to sacrifice themselves at any time.

Otherwise, what kind of four-protect-one are you playing?

On the court, Iverson's third attack also missed.

This time, Carter helped defend him.

And although Carter's angle wasn't as tight as Su Feng's when defending, Iverson, who had been made a little dizzy by Jordan's pursuit just now, still couldn't find his accuracy on this play.

On the court, the game continued, and this time, after McGrady secured the rebound, suddenly, Tracy's little brother accelerated and directly started a one-man fast break from the backcourt.

And just as McGrady brought the ball to the frontcourt and was double-teamed by the retreating 76ers players, the classic scene came.

Just like Nash said before.

Passing the ball to this group of swingmen doesn't require any passing talent at all.

Often, you just need to throw the ball into the sky, and then leave the rest to them to solve themselves.

Of course...

If the passer is Su Feng, then that's another story.

Air Canada Centre, this is a connection from Su to McGrady!

As the two people with the highest "movement speed talent" in Toronto, who said they couldn't play a seven-second fast break against the 76ers?

Don't use your tactics to understand my talent!

Accompanied by stretching his body in the air, relying on his wingspan, Su Feng, grabbing the ball with one hand before Ratliff, slammed the basketball towards the basket!

At this moment, it seemed like a shooting star streaked across the sky of Toronto.

This is the legendary...

————Meteor Dunk!

Bang, swish—!

For Raptors fans who hadn't seen the world, at the moment when Su Feng smashed the ball into the basket, what else could they do besides cheering "Feng Ge Niu Bi (Brother Feng is Awesome)" in American English for Su Feng?

Raptors owner Chad couldn't keep calm anymore.

At this moment, this guy was even more Cuban than Cuban.

On the court, Ratliff, who was shot down by Su Feng, felt a strange fear of a person for the second time in his life.

Looking at Su Feng's beast-like eyes, looking at Su Feng's iron fist pounding his chest, after Su Feng continuously pounded his chest and roared to the sky...

Ratliff was definitely the first person on the 76ers' side to feel Su Feng's anger.

At the same time, on the Raptors' bench, Old Curry's two sons were stealing the show again...

Stephen and Seth, imitating Su Feng's celebration, on the sidelines, stole the limelight from all the Raptors' substitute players.

Twenty years later, when reviewing this game, the barrages that noticed this scene all said, without exception:

"So, there's a reason why the Raptors' substitutes don't deserve a name!"

And on the court...

From planning this game before the game until now...

Although Larry Brown's expression was still calm, although his hands had been crossed in front of his chest all the time, after Su Feng ignited the atmosphere of this game with this meteor dunk, Brown's heart...

Started to feel a little weak.

Well, it was just that Su Feng was busy showing his brutality and had no time to pay attention to Brown's inner drama.

Otherwise, Su Feng would definitely say to him:

Don't be nervous yet, big bro, the good show is still to come!

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