On the next possession, the Jazz again relied on their backcourt duo of assassins to drive to the basket and score.
Coming back the other way, Zhang Jiacheng passed the ball to Wang Yi. Wang Yi didn't even try to drive; he sent it straight back to Zhang Jiacheng.
Zhang Jiacheng was wide open.
He took the shot beyond the three-point line, holding the ball in one hand.
The ball traced a beautiful arc.
Swish!
Another three-pointer.
On the next possession, after the Jazz's duo of assassins scored, Wang Yi faced Horton Tucker's defense beyond the three-point line and forced up a pull-up three. It went in again.
At that point, Jazz head coach Will Hardy had no choice but to call timeout. Their offense had been efficient lately, with every shot going in, but the Raptors had caught fire from three-point range.
The Jazz had made five two-pointers, while the Raptors had hit three threes, added a three-point play, and made another two.
That put the Raptors four points ahead.
If they'd been trailing by four while struggling to score, that would have been acceptable.
But they were still four points behind despite shooting 100 percent. That meant their opponents' offense was operating at an absurd level, so Hardy had to call timeout and talk things over.
During the timeout, Will Hardy stressed to his players:
"When we're on defense, focus on cutting off his passing lanes. Even if you let him shoot on his own, don't let the other Raptors score."
The players all stared at Will Hardy, looking a little incredulous.
Their star, Keegan Murray, said, "Coach, other teams defend the Raptors by locking down Wang Yi and forcing him to pass. They'd rather let his teammates score than let him shoot, since his teammates aren't nearly