The Way of Basketball: Never Talk Shit to Him!

The game then officially began.

The starting lineup for the Forest Wolves was:

"Point guard LeBron James, shooting guard Kevin Martin, small forward Derrick Williams, power forward Kevin Garnett, center Dwight Howard!"

After acquiring LeBron James and Howard during the summer, the Forest Wolves also welcomed the return of Kevin Garnett. But their summer trades didn't stop there; they subsequently got Kevin Martin, a "top-tier shooter" in Off-ball Movement!

This move also sparked some discussions.

However, compared to the joining of LeBron and Howard earlier, the arrival of Kevin Martin could only be considered a "small burst," not reaching that level of excitement.

Yet, it was this trade that added some expectations to the Forest Wolves' new season from the outside world.

After all...

If he hadn't arrived, with the shooting range of these three core players of the Forest Wolves, it would really be... too embarrassing! The arrival of Kevin Martin, to some extent, alleviated this embarrassment, ensuring that the Forest Wolves' spacing wouldn't be so cramped.

The New York Knicks' starting lineup remained their regular lineup.

Amidst the howling of wolves in the stadium, the game officially started.

The Forest Wolves got the first possession.

Howard was the first to touch the ball in the jump ball segment.

LeBron received the ball and, as soon as he moved it to the frontcourt, Howard came up for a screen.

Paul George, who was mainly defending LeBron, crashed into Howard's "human wall," giving LeBron an opportunity to accelerate.

The next second, Su Wan, who was rotating to cover him, witnessed LeBron executing a "pose-filled" no-look pass, threading the ball into the inside.

"Bang!"

The cutting Howard caught the ball and executed a slam dunk, successfully scoring.

A huge cheer erupted on the scene.

The first attack of the Forest Wolves resulted in them scoring with their core tactic.

Howard excitedly high-fived LeBron!

His eyes were full of fighting spirit.

In tonight's game, LeBron was feeling angry, Kevin Garnett was feeling angry.

Even he... was damn angry!

Don't forget!

He also had a score to settle with Su Wan and the New York Knicks, and it might as well be settled tonight!

The New York Knicks counter-attacked.

It was evident that the Forest Wolves had not prepared for this game as just a regular season matchup, but had made extreme preparations targeting them.

They used Derrick Williams to defend Dior.

As the former "Little LeBron," although his transition to small forward wasn't greatly successful, his physicality and agility in defending power forwards were evident, and he wouldn't be at a disadvantage against Dior in terms of weight and strength.

But Dior was a seasoned veteran too.

He went into a "post-up" position against Williams, pushing his way towards the three-point line.

Derrick Williams, standing at just 2.03 meters, was a size smaller than Dior.

Regardless of whether Dior chose to drive or try to solve the problem through physical confrontation, originally Derrick wouldn't be afraid, but now, with Dior attempting to "bully him through size," Derrick Williams found it a bit troublesome.

Unable to disrupt Dior's dribbling, Derrick could only grit his teeth and push back, desperately trying not to let Dior advance a step.

Feeling the force behind him, Dior suddenly released, spun, and forcefully drove towards the basket.

Howard hurried to cover, and Dior, who had seen everything, had predicted this, and aimed the ball directly at the basket.

"Bang!"

Tyson Chandler grabbed the rim with both hands and completed the basket.

The Knicks successfully responded.

Philip frowned slightly.

It somewhat surprised him that Dior found the right way to attack Derrick Williams within just one possession.

As an experienced coach, he knew all too well that if you wanted to restrict the New York Knicks, you could not let Dior, their engine, operate normally.

Yet unexpectedly, this guy now had such sharp intuition!

But Su Wan wasn't surprised at all.

Kidding aside, this was the former Spurs player who, after Tony Parker couldn't handle the responsibilities of organizing the offense, stepped up to become the "ball holding big core" of the Spurs' offensive organization!

He had already mastered the Spurs' system.

Not to mention the Knicks' more "bombardment-oriented" system now.

As for how to respond to different defenders, he knew exactly what to do!

Let's just say, the original Dior had spent too much time on a bad team, and coupled with his lack of ambition, he couldn't reach the heights his talent was meant for.

But this time, he had already found "Happy Basketball" while with the Pacers, and after coming to New York, returning to Su Wan's side, he became even more seasoned and in better shape, as evidenced by the fact that he once claimed the league's "Assist King."

His current experience was incomparable to his former self.

This play silenced some of the "Husky" crowd.

The Forest Wolves planned to replicate the tactic, running another LeBron and Howard pick-and-roll, with Howard cutting to the basket.

But this time, as the Knicks quickly changed their defensive formation, as Howard went for the roll, Tyson Chandler quickly moved out from the post, and along with Paul George, they double-teamed Howard immediately.

LeBron was waiting for just this moment. He intentionally hesitated for a beat, watched as Howard was surrounded by two New York Knicks players, flashed him a helpless look, and then tried to drive the ball inside himself.