He held the ball in both hands and surveyed New York's defensive adjustments.
Well, the New York side had made no adjustments at all.
Clearly, the Knicks players had absolute confidence in Horford's low-post defense.
Neither Chen Xi, George, nor Hartenstein showed any intention of shading toward the strong side to help.
And so Giannis was handed a chance to go one-on-one in the post.
He lowered his center of gravity as he put the ball on the floor, then slammed his body inward, using his terrifying strength to create a little space. He spun, gathered the ball, and faked a layup, then turned again around his pivot foot and opted for another turnaround Fadeaway Jumper.
This time, however, he missed.
Giannis still hadn't developed it into a sufficiently reliable offensive weapon.
Another important factor was that Horford's post defense was far more effective than Toppin's.
He had the right amount of bulk and an exceptionally solid base. Even when someone managed to push him back, it didn't knock him out of position.
That made it hard for even a monstrous interior player like Giannis to get much out of attacking him.
His "Anti-Giannis Armor" nickname was certainly no empty boast.
That elite low-post defense could severely limit Giannis's close-range attacks on the rim, forcing him to finish from farther out.
And in fact, even if Giannis had made this shot, Horford's defense would still have counted as a success.
Forcing Giannis into a less efficient turnaround fadeaway, making him expend more energy to attempt a finish farther from the basket, was absolutely the right approach.
The reason was simple.
Giannis's mid-range jumper wasn't going to kill anyone.
At least, up to this point, he had never shown any ability to change the course of a game with his mid-range