The Fierce Dragon Cannot Cross the River

Besides DeRozan, the Raptors' guard line also features Kyle Lowry, a quality point guard who was just selected to the All-NBA Third Team last season. This veteran, who entered the league in 2006, stands only 185 cm tall, yet he has secured a firm foothold in a league dominated by giants, relying on his exceptional defense and playmaking ability.

Add to that the additions of this year's 9th pick, Jakob Poeltl, and 27th pick, Pascal Siakam, two players brimming with talent and limitless potential in the frontcourt.

The current Raptors balance strength with future prospects—the neighboring Lakers would be drooling with envy.

The game began, and the Thunder won the jump ball. Westbrook dribbled up the court, passed to Oladipo, who drove for a break but was blocked by DeRozan, then passed back to Little Sabonis. Little Sabonis faked a shot at the top of the arc, but Siakam stayed calm, not at all like a rookie, refusing to bite on the fake. Forced to hand it back to Westbrook, Westbrook caught the ball and drove again, drew the defense, then passed back to Little Sabonis for a mid-range shot that missed.

Turning around, the Raptors attacked. DeRozan used Lowry's screen to move up and catch the ball. Roberson fought through the screen and made slight contact with Lowry. The savvy veteran, after checking the referee's position, immediately hit the floor, drawing a defensive foul on Roberson right off the bat. Roberson was speechless—a light touch and he went down. He wanted to argue with the ref, but Westbrook pulled him back.

The Raptors attacked again. Lowry lobbed the ball from the top of the key to DeRozan in the post, backing down Roberson.

The whistle blew again, but this time it was an offensive foul on DeRozan.

"That's the value of Andre Roberson, you know. A player averaging just 7 points a game, if he's still starting for a long time, he must have a special role on defense!" commentator Hubie Brown said.

The Thunder attacked again. Westbrook lobbed the ball to Adams, who posted up Poeltl. After two hard backdowns, Adams noticed the collapsing defense and immediately passed back to Westbrook. An open three-point shot... missed.

"The Raptors' defense is very targeted. They know your shooting percentage is low, so they prioritize collapsing the defense. That's also how most teams in the league defend the Thunder right now. So the question falls on Donovan: does he bring in Chris early again to provide spacing value?"

After several games of exposure, people had come to understand Donovan's habit of turning to Chen Xi when in doubt. There was no helping it—the Thunder starters' shooting was so poor. So far this season, only Oladipo had a three-point percentage above 35%. Even Grant off the bench was only at 37%, and then there was Chen Xi's cliff-like 57%, which in a way made him stand out from the Thunder.

"No, Coach Donovan chose to keep trusting his starting lineup. That's fine too, after all, it's only been a few possessions. Believing in the players' ability to adjust is something a head coach needs to do."

The Raptors made a turnover on a pass, and the Thunder quickly pushed the fast break. Westbrook led the charge, easily blowing past Lowry for an open layup.

The Raptors attacked again. This time, DeRozan dished from the post to Siakam, who hit a mid-range jumper from one step inside the free-throw line with ease.

On offense, a big man with some shooting ability always has more tools than a rugged, black-and-blue blue-collar player. That's one reason the Raptors put Siakam in the starting lineup early. Having lost Biyombo this season, the Raptors needed to use the regular season to quickly develop their two promising bigs, letting them grow fast enough to provide matchup value in the playoffs. Otherwise, forget the Cavaliers—they might not even get past the Bucks or Pacers.

After receiving the inbound pass from Adams on the baseline, Westbrook jogged the ball up the court. Using Little Sabonis's screen, he stepped into the mid-range and launched a zombie jump shot, easily sinking two points.

With his jumping ability still intact and his driving threat alive, Westbrook still had a respectable mid-range percentage. This season, it had become a key scoring weapon in his arsenal. His league-elite first step made his pull-up mid-range shots nearly impossible for defenders to contest.

As time ticked by, the game gradually entered the regular rotation phase.

Chen Xi adjusted the hem of his jersey, high-fived Oladipo and Adams as they came off the court, then slowly walked onto the floor.

After tasting success, Donovan grew increasingly fond of using this pseudo five-out lineup. Chen Xi's absurd shooting percentage always fooled opponents into extending their defense, while Westbrook could easily adjust between pushing the pace in transition and breaking down defenses in the half-court. In comparison, Oladipo's ability in that area was a notch below.

Considering Roberson's recent improvement in three-point shooting, Donovan chose to let Oladipo rest first, saving him for the second quarter to lead the bench during the transition period. This also maintained height on the wing and reduced defensive pressure on Chen Xi, letting him focus his energy on offense.

The NCAA championship coach, with his academic background, had some real skill. Having long figured out Chen Xi's current technical traits, he put in some effort to help Chen Xi maximize his strengths and minimize his weaknesses.

Similarly, the Raptors brought in Powell and Nogueira, and the game entered the bench lineup battle.

The current Powell wasn't yet the god who would dominate the corner three in 2024. In just his second year in the league, simply earning a rotation spot was already a testament to the coach's development.

Without standout physical traits like height or wingspan, he had to rely on his slowly improving ball-handling and decent shooting touch to barely survive in the league.

Thunder ball. Westbrook held the ball in the half-court, handed it off to Little Sabonis at the top to initiate the offense, then quickly sprinted to the 45-degree angle to set an off-ball screen for Chen Xi.

The Raptors' defense had a communication breakdown. Lowry and Powell both immediately rotated to Chen Xi as he popped out. Little Sabonis instantly lobbed the ball to Westbrook for an alley-oop.

Boom!!

A powerful slam from Russell Westbrook!!!

Raptors attack. Lowry ran a pick-and-roll with Siakam at the top of the key, drove into the mid-range for a floater that bounced off the rim twice before dropping through the net.

Chen Xi grabbed the ball and quickly inbounded it. Westbrook immediately pushed the pace, lifted his leg at mid-court, shifted gears, and accelerated. In three steps, he shook off Powell, then faced Poeltl with a Euro step, easily faking him out for a layup.

On the way back on defense, he did his classic rock-the-baby celebration, bringing the home crowd to a fever pitch. Fans roared with excitement, cheering for their star player.

After replaying the layup, the broadcast cut to Powell's face.

The young number 24 wore an expression of helplessness, realizing for the first time just how vast the gap in the world could be.

He really couldn't keep up. This Turtle Turtle's dribbling speed was faster than his own off-ball speed—it was ridiculous!

Searching for the book title didn't work; maybe try searching for the author—perhaps it was just renamed!