The Opponent's Defense Isn't Tough Enough, So They're Having a Teammate Help Defend Him?

James thought for a moment, then said:

"From what I know of Wang Yi, the stronger the opponent, the more excited he gets. The harder they defend him, the better he plays."

"He's like a spring. The harder you press him down, the harder he bounces back."

"But the Spurs haven't defended him very aggressively today. They've assigned Vassell, who's one of their strongest players physically, to guard Wang Yi, but they've only had Vassell play man-to-man defense."

"If Wang Yi gets past Vassell in one step, there's no one else to help defend him. That must make Wang Yi feel bored, like there's no point to it."

"That's why he hasn't taken any three-pointers. Instead, he insists on driving inside to challenge the taller Wemby and Little Duncan."

"If I had to come up with a reason Wang Yi isn't taking threes, I'd say that's a somewhat plausible explanation."

Jordan heard that and said he understood.

"Yeah. When the other team isn't playing tough defense, it really kills your desire to attack."

That was exactly how Jordan himself used to be.

If an opponent talked a lot of trash before the game, played physically on the court, and kept running their mouth at him,

then the more he wanted to attack.

He wanted nothing more than to knock them down and step all over them.

On the other hand, if they spent the time before the game showering him with compliments,

and played normally on defense without getting too physical,

then, especially if they weren't very good to begin with, Jordan would feel that it was all too boring and wouldn't have much desire to attack.

That was why the Bulls sometimes found themselves trailing at halftime against weaker opponents.

In situations like that, Jordan would often psych himself