NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 745 The King of This Site

The Celtics' starting lineup for the away game is Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Al Horford, and Robert Williams.

This lineup combines height and spacing; aside from Lowe, the other four players all have three-point shooting ability. Although Jia Fei's former teammate Horford is 36 years old, he still maintains excellent form. He can shoot threes, protect the rim, facilitate, and occasionally score with a strong drive. As an inside player, he's incredibly valuable in this small-ball era.

The Clippers' entrance ceremony began, with Jia Fei, as the team leader, making a grand entrance as the last player to appear!

Although the Celtics are a powerhouse, the Clippers are the true masters of this court! As the king of this court, Jia Fei allows his opponents to take victory here!

After the entrance ceremony, the starting players from both sides took to the field, and the match was about to begin.

Jia Fei and Horford were old teammates, and the two exchanged pleasantries.

The Celtics' head coach is no longer the handsome young Stevens; Stevens has been promoted to general manager, and their head coach is now Uduka.

Uduka is also quite young, and he's a former NBA player. In 2002, he entered the NBA Development League (NBDL) through the draft, being selected 39th overall by the Charleston Crocodiles, thus beginning his professional career. On January 14, 2004, he signed a 10-day contract with the Lakers, making his NBA debut. He played for the Lakers, Knicks, Trail Blazers, Spurs, and Kings for seven seasons, appearing in 316 NBA regular season games, averaging 5.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game.

After retiring in 2012, he spent seven seasons as an assistant coach with the Spurs, including three Western Conference Finals appearances and two NBA Finals appearances, winning the NBA championship in 2014. He then served as an assistant coach for the 76ers and Nets. In the 2021-22 season, he was appointed head coach of the Celtics, leading them to the NBA Finals.

Jia Fei remembered that in his previous life, Uduka was fired by the Celtics because of a sex scandal, and later became the head coach of the Rockets.

So a young coach isn't always a good thing; their desire in that area is still very strong, and that kind of thing can happen. If you hire an older man as a coach, at least that desire is definitely not as strong anymore.

Harten and Rowe are preparing for the jump ball near the center circle; the match is about to begin.

The jump ball began, and Lowe won the jump ball against Hartenstein, giving the Celtics possession for the first possession.

Smart dribbles the ball across half-court.

The Clippers' defensive strategy remains the same: Bridges leads the defense, Jia Fei guards Jaylen Brown (one of the two young stars), Paul George guards Jayson Tatum (the other one of the two young stars), Grant guards Horford, and Hartenstein guards Lowe.

Horford orchestrates from the high post and passes the ball to Tatum.

Clearly, Jayson Tatum is the Celtics' core player. This forward is also a Mamba-esque player, extremely confident in his one-on-one skills, capable of both driving and shooting, possessing all-around defense, and having good ball-handling ability.

Compared to his idol Kobe, Tatum's mid-range shooting is relatively average, and he relies more on three-pointers on offense. He also lacks a killer move; it's hard to pinpoint a single, decisive weapon. He doesn't have McGrady's first-step speed, so he needs to rely on pick-and-rolls or pump fakes to get past defenders. His physical attributes are also somewhat average; among top-tier wing players, his physical attributes are among the worst. Of course, he's better than Doncic, but Doncic doesn't rely on speed and jumping ability. In short, Tatum is essentially a top-tier second option; Jaylen Brown is a slightly less suitable fit, but he's not exactly championship-caliber leader either.

But the Celtics' management is amazing. They brought in a lot of players with excellent immediate impact to play alongside the two young stars, so even though neither of them are top 5 in the league, they can still make it to the Finals based on their overall strength.

Tatum drove in using a screen and passed to Horford at the top of the key!

Horford took a three-pointer and made it straight in!

3-0, the Celtics take the lead!

Jia Fei dribbled the ball over, and Smart was guarding him.

Although Smart is only 193cm tall, he is as strong as a gas cylinder. He can hold his own against guards and even inside players. His neck is so thick that it is almost invisible.

Smart's defense is outstanding. He skillfully utilizes his strong physique, and he's incredibly intelligent; his flopping is phenomenal. There are many highlight reels of his flopping, and sometimes you might think he's exaggerating—he's so big! But he's a master actor, and the referees seem to fall for it.

Smart kept harassing Jia Fei, but Jia Fei's dribbling skills were very proficient, and his ball protection was comparable to that of the Great Emperor. How could a dribble king like you easily steal the ball?

Hartenstein came up to set a screen, and the Celtics took advantage of the delay!

Jia Fei suddenly dribbled past them, passing right between the two!

Before Luo Wei could even get back to his position, Jia Fei had already charged into the middle lane!

Jia Fei started, made a feint to pass to the corner, and then easily scored with a left-handed layup!

3-2, the Clippers have scored again!

"Teacher Su, Jia Fei's ball handling was really flashy!" Wang Zixing exclaimed.

The Celtics are on offense. Jaylen Brown receives the ball on the left wing and faces Jia Fei.

Jaylen Brown is known as "McGrady's disciple," and reports suggest he apprenticed with McGrady during the offseason, with the two even training together. He certainly shares many of McGrady's traits—smooth dribbling and a graceful jump shot. However, his natural talent falls short of McGrady's. First, his height and wingspan are significantly shorter, increasing the likelihood of his pull-up jumpers being blocked. Second, his ball-handling ability is far inferior to McGrady's, leading to a higher turnover rate when double-teamed. Third, his left-handed dribbling is weak, while McGrady was equally adept with both hands.

While McGrady's overall ability may not be as good as Kobe's, he's not someone Jaylen Brown can easily fool!

Jia Fei focused on defending Jaylen Brown's right hand, giving him some space to attack with his left hand, or even luring him to use his left hand.

As expected, Jaylen Brown still went for his right hand, but Jia Fei blocked it. Helpless, he could only pass the ball to Smart.

Smart attacked Bridges, bursting in and holding off his opponent, but his shot was still disrupted by Bridges' long arms...

While Smart is a well-rounded player with excellent defense, his offensive abilities are quite average. Not only is his shooting average, but his driving ability is also mediocre. He's essentially a high-level role player, still some distance from being a star.

Harten secured the rebound and passed it to Jia Fei to advance the ball.

Jia Fei brought the ball over and lobbed it to Paul George to shoot Jaylen Brown.

Paul George received the ball and attacked Jaylen Brown, dribbling smoothly before stepping back and shooting a jumper that went in cleanly!

3-4, the Clippers take the lead!

With both of the Clippers' key players scoring, the Celtics' defense faces even greater challenges.