Chen Xi came up from the wing to receive the ball, then once again found himself matched up against Jalen Smith.
He still didn't rush into a one-on-one attack. Instead, he waved for Drummond's Pick-and-Roll Screen, then dribbled laterally to the Top of the Key, forcing the Pacers to switch before targeting Myles Turner.
If this had been a Western Conference team, seeing Chen's setup would usually have prompted them to show hard on the screen and quickly send a double-team at him, forcing him to pass.
But this was the Eastern Conference. The players here knew Chen Xi was dangerous, but their understanding of just how dangerous he was was still too vague.
Turner cautiously stepped up to hedge, but didn't signal for a double-team.
And Jalen Smith actually seemed perfectly comfortable handing the job of guarding Chen Xi over to Turner.
What did you call that?
A gift!
As soon as Chen Xi read the defense, he immediately activated Domain Expansion and went to work with his signature mismatch isolation.
After an in-place Between-the-Legs Crossover, he suddenly hit a Push Dribble Change of Direction and drove left.
After taking two steps, he abruptly stopped, hit a Hesitation Bait Buddha, then exploded into a second drive.
The sequence of moves had practically become one of Chen Xi's signature skills, and it left Turner in the dust with ease.
Then Chen Xi glided into the paint, gathered the ball, and leaped for a One-handed slam dunk, hammering it through the hoop.
BANG!!!
"Whoa! That was too easy! Chris drives right past Myles Turner! He's so fast that the Pacers' wing help defense doesn't even have time to react!"
"That's Chris for you! To him, a defender guarding him one-on-one is the same as being wide open! And this is a