NBA's King of Talking

Chapter 672 Single Chapter with Double-Digit Assists

The Mavericks' offensive firepower is indeed impressive. Not only is Doncic a ball-handling superstar who can both score and pass, but Hardaway Jr.'s scoring explosiveness is also terrifying. When he gets accurate, he's like JR Smith in his prime, unleashing a barrage of three-pointers like an automatic rifle, leaving opponents riddled with holes.

However, Tim Hardaway Jr.'s offense is more about explosiveness than consistency. He can go on a scoring spree in a short period, but when he's off, he's really bad. And when he's off, his lack of defense is a liability on the court. This kind of player is actually more suited to being a substitute, where the defensive requirements aren't as high. He can come on and go, and if he's having a bad day, he should play less; if he's having a good day, he can go on a scoring spree in a short period.

Jia Fei brought the ball over and continued to call out Doncic.

Dillon's cover was extremely fierce, directly pushing Josh Richardson away.

For the Mavericks, Doncic was forced to switch onto Jia Fei.

Jia Fei vs. Doncic!

Doncic's defense was static, putting no pressure on him. Jia Fei almost caught a cold while dribbling.

Using that level of defensive intensity to guard the league's top scorer is practically suicide.

Without hesitation, Jia Fei dribbled past Doncic, who was as still as a wooden stake, with a single change of direction and charged in, only to be surrounded by four opponents!

Jia Fei flicked the ball with one hand to Bridges in the corner!

Bridges got a wide-open look! He took a shot, launched a three-pointer... and it went in cleanly!

Answer ball! 10:12, the Clippers have taken the lead again!

Jia Fei's assists +5!

"Teacher Su, Jia Fei is amazing! That pass was fantastic!" Wang Zixing exclaimed.

Su Qun nodded: "That was a great pass, the receiver had a very comfortable time!"

The Mavericks attacked, and Doncic was double-teamed after overpowering Dillon, leading to a pass to Josh Richardson.

Josh Richardson drives into the paint and passes to Powell under the basket!

Powell's strong drive was blocked by a double-team from Jia Fei and Grant!

Bridges gets the ball and passes it to Jia Fei to advance!

Jia Fei advanced, used a double crossover to get past Josh Richardson, turned and cut in, facing the help defense, jumped, switched the ball from his right hand to his left hand in mid-air, and scored with a layup off the hurdle!

10-14, the Clippers lead by 4 point!

The Mavericks have made another mistake...

Clippers offense, Dillon drives hard against Doncic, drawing a foul from the latter!

Dillon will go to the free throw line!

Dillon yelled at Doncic and threw punches wildly, as if he were playing a boxing match instead of basketball.

Dillon stepped to the free-throw line and made the shot! 10:15, a 5-point difference!

Mavericks pause!

Coach Carlisle was dissatisfied with the team's defense. He could accept Jia Fei scoring, but he couldn't accept a role player like Dillon repeatedly scoring against his team's star player.

Doncic's defense is indeed terrible, but the team's offense relies entirely on him. If he commits too many fouls, the team's offense will lose its backbone.

"Dillon has become another major offensive weapon for the Clippers. Doncic's defense is really bad. Jia Fei attacks him, and Dillon attacks him too. It's like anyone can attack him," Wang Zixing said.

"It's quite embarrassing for the team's star player to be targeted like this by the opponent. Doncic's talent is beyond doubt, but he really needs to work harder on the defensive end. We understand that you can't guard Jia Fei, but you can't even guard Dillon. That's not a matter of ability, it's a matter of attitude!" Su Qun adjusted his glasses and said earnestly.

After the timeout, Dillon went to the free-throw line, but perhaps he was too excited during the timeout, because he missed his second free throw!

However, Grant grabbed the offensive rebound, and the ball returned to Jia Fei's hands.

Jia Fei received the ball, controlled the pace, and continued to let Dillon attack Doncic.

The referees didn't call a foul on Dillon's charge against Doncic. The referees aren't stupid; if a role player knocks out the star player, what's the point of watching the game? Enough is enough!

As a result, Dillon's attack turned into a mistake...

Doncic was definitely going to get his revenge, so he used a series of fake moves to get past Dillon, drawing Dillon's second personal foul!

Dillon has left the stage...

Hart came up.

Hart came on, and Bridges became the one guarding Doncic.

The Clippers have too many elite wing defenders like these, which is one of the reasons for their strength. Their strength isn't just because Jia Fei is unbeatable; defense is their foundation. Their league-leading perimeter defense allows them to go toe-to-toe with strong teams even when their offense isn't at its best.

Even in today's small-ball era that emphasizes offense, defense will never be outdated.

The Clippers' strategy was to use a rotation system to guard Doncic. Dillon alone couldn't stop him, so they used multiple players. Even if Bridges had accumulated fouls, Jia Fei could personally defend him. Guarding Doncic was equivalent to guarding the Mavericks; everyone on the Clippers understood this logic.

The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair, with Doncic being double-teamed, yet he still managed to score 8 points and dish out 3 assists, showcasing his ability as a ball-handling superstar.

Jia Fei only scored 4 points in the first quarter, but he amazingly grabbed 5 rebounds, delivered 10 assists, and also made 3 steals and 1 block, which was simply incredible.

32:40, the Clippers were on fire on offense in the first quarter, scoring 40 points in the quarter with excellent offensive efficiency.

Jia Fei's 10 assists in a single quarter is not only a personal career record, but also a Clippers franchise record.

Even 58, who is known as the "God of Point Guards", has never delivered more than 10 assists in a single quarter, which is simply incredible.

Of course, it's not necessarily true that Jia Fei's playmaking and passing abilities are stronger than 58's, but his individual offensive ability is undoubtedly far superior to 58's. So, many times, his assists are very simple: he attacks hard, attracts a lot of double teams, and then passes the ball to an open teammate.

This is why some guards struggle to organize the offense, because their individual offensive threat is insufficient, making it difficult to form double teams. Without double teams and help defense, it's difficult to create open shots, and without open shots, it's even more difficult to assist teammates in scoring.

In the second quarter, the Mavericks began to limit Jia Fei's passing, focusing more on cutting off his passing lanes. However, seeing this, he unleashed his personal offensive mode, scoring 18 points in the quarter and completely dismantling the opponent's defense.

The Mavericks can't contain Jia Fei at all. Should they double-team him or not?

Ultimately, it comes down to the team's poor defense. Their help defense rotations aren't efficient enough, and the starting lineup consists of defensive sieves like Doncic and Hardaway Jr. Even if the fan is turned up to the highest setting, it won't work!

It's too hot, we need to use the air conditioner...

The Mavericks' starting lineup has poor defense, and the bench isn't much better. Players like Trey Burke and Kleber are strong offensively but weak defensively, so expecting them to provide strong defense is practically wishful thinking.