(There were quite a few errors above, so some parts have now been trimmed and revised. For a better reading experience, a quick refresher is recommended.)
After receiving the ball, Westbrook used Chen Xi's screen on the side and immediately accelerated into the lane. He leaped into TT's defense and scored a layup through contact in midair.
This was the sort of pace the Thunder knew well. The teams they usually faced were always trying to slow the game down as much as possible and pin the Thunder in place.
They hadn't expected to encounter such an unconventional approach in the Finals.
The Cavaliers were matching speed with speed, trying to go toe-to-toe with the Thunder in transition and on the fast break.
Tyronn Lue really was a tactical genius.
It wasn't as though his idea had no merit.
After all, he had Love, a Passing Master, and James, a top-tier forward with tremendous attacking force. Fast breaks were something they were good at, too.
But whether it was truly a brilliant move was another matter.
The Thunder's fast-break pace came from turning defense into offense.
On the perimeter, Westbrook averaged 2.1 steals per game, Butler averaged 2.3, and Chen Xi averaged 1.1. The bench also had three defensive stalwarts: Wade, Roberson, and Grant.
The Thunder's perimeter defense was absolutely top-tier in the League.
Naturally, the transition offense that followed was lightning-fast.
But for the Cavaliers, neither their perimeter nor their interior defense was particularly efficient.
Only James's defense could be called top-tier in the League.
Of course, James had spent the season playing this role of both father and mother to the team.
On offense, he had to organize the attack and shoulder the scoring load. On defense, he still had to handle both man-to-man coverage and help defense.