Volume Five: Unmatched—Chapter 780: The Pragmatist
But in the fourth quarter, as Paul's stamina declined and the Warriors' Death Lineup took the floor, Paul's offensive efficiency dropped sharply. Not only did he lose the efficiency he had shown over the first three quarters, he could not even reach his usual standard, scoring just 4 points to finish with 40 for the game. Zhang Yu was still quite worried, reminding Antetokounmpo to protect himself and control his emotions, not letting the Rockets' rough play affect his mindset. Harden did not think there was anything wrong with his defense. This was how he had always played. He was so heavy and slow laterally; if he defended with everything he had, where would he find the energy for offense? Kerr also did not know how to exploit the Rockets' undersized lineup. When the two sides went small against small, the pressure on the rim was completely insufficient, turning the game into isolated one-on-one possessions with teammates largely disconnected from one another. Fortunately, this was Chase Center, and the Warriors had home-court advantage. Every time Antetokounmpo was fouled, the referees blew the whistle. Tucker was even assessed a Flagrant 1. Antetokounmpo went to the line 14 times, making 9, and scored 34 points in total—7 more than Curry—making him the biggest contributor to the Warriors' win. Harden had never expected it to be this difficult to call for a screen and hunt Curry. Just like the script of G1, Antetokounmpo wreaked havoc through the first three quarters, while Curry sealed the game in the fourth. In this respect, Zhang Yu resembled Sir Alex Ferguson, the godfather of Manchester United. The numbers could not reflect the damage Harden did to his team on the defensive end, but apart from Rockets fans scolding him in disappointment