A tactical drill is underway inside the training hall of Olimpia Club Milan.
On the court, Kevin Garnett called for the ball on the left low post. Facing the defense of the Europe big man, he dribbled and bumped the ball, then used his left foot as a pivot to smoothly complete a high-angle turnaround jump shot towards the baseline.
The basketball arced high and swished cleanly into the net.
Scattered applause rang out from the sidelines. But just as Garnett was preparing to retreat on defense, an extremely sharp whistle interrupted the training.
The one blowing the whistle was Sergio Scariolo, the young coach who had been brought in by Lin Qi for a hefty sum to take charge of Olympia Milan. Standing next to him, holding a tactical board, was Igor Kokoškov, a 28-year-old Serbia tactical genius who had also been recruited to build the team's tactical system.
"Wait a minute." Scariolo, his hair neatly slicked back, walked to the sidelines in his leather shoes. " Kevin, that was a perfect individual finish. But tactically speaking, it was a 'zero-point' offensive play."
Garnett froze. In the NBA, if you managed to make that damn shot, the coach would just applaud you from the sidelines. He frowned. "Coach, I don't understand. That's two points."
" Igor, explain it to him." Scariolo turned to look at the young Kokoškov.
Kokoškov adjusted his glasses, picked up his clipboard, and walked over to Garnett. He didn't spout any abstract concepts, but instead drew a few dots on the clipboard. " Kevin, your fadeaway jumper has a high release point, making it difficult for most defenders to contest. But the problem is, when you choose to fade away, your body is moving away from the basket and away from the defenders."
Kokoškov circled Garnett's defender with his pen. "Because you were far from the basket, they didn't need to help defend at all. On that last possession, apart from the guy guarding you, the other four defenders were completely stationary, marking Chris Paul ( Pierce ) and Chauncey Billups ( Billups ). You scored two points, but you didn't break through their defense."
Garnett, an extremely intelligent basketball fanatic, gradually relaxed his brow and began to ponder the meaning of those words.
"In Europe, or rather in future high-level competitions, the most efficient superstars can't just be 'closers'," Scariolo continued. " Kevin, you have the height of a center, the vision and agility of a guard. If you only use fadeaway jumpers, it's a waste of your talent. You can become a player who draws the defense and changes the game."
"How do I do it?" Garnett's obsessive desire to learn was completely ignited.
"Come out from the low post, come here." Kokoškov pointed to the elbow area at both ends of the free-throw line. "Don't turn your back to the basket, turn around, face the basket."
Tactical drills have resumed.
As instructed, Garnett called for the ball in the upper right corner of the free-throw line. The moment he received the pass, he immediately turned around, holding the ball at his waist with both hands, facing the basket.
"Do what you do best, break through the feints!" Kokoškov shouted from the sidelines.
Garnett's shoulders slumped, and his right foot took a powerful, probing step diagonally forward. The terrifying force of his first step caused the opposing Europe center to instinctively take a large step back.
The space was instantly expanded.
"Now, if you take a jump shot directly, it won't change the defensive formation," Kokoškov said rapidly. "What you need to do is dribble decisively one step towards where the defenders are clustered together! Force out the double team!"
Garnett didn't shoot. Instead, he used the space created by the opponent's retreat to drive straight to the basket and cut into the paint with a long stride.
This immediately triggered alarm bells in the Europe teams' prized zone defense. The defenders in the corner and the power forward on the weak side, instinctively protecting the rim, simultaneously moved into the paint to surround Garnett.
"Stop! Right here!" Scariolo shouted.
Everyone froze in place. Garnett was now trapped in a quagmire where three people were surrounding him.
"Look up, Kevin. See what's above your line of sight."
Garnett raised the ball high with both hands. In that instant, he suddenly felt an unprecedented sense of openness. When he raised the ball above his head, the Europe defenders and forwards who were double-teaming him could not block his view at all.
He saw it clearly.
Because of the double-team, Pierce was wide open in the right corner. Billups was also unguarded at the left 45-degree angle. And Ben Wallace was even ready for an alley-oop under the basket.
No complicated passes or fancy bounces were needed. Garnett simply used his height to easily pass the ball over the defender's head and into Pierce's hands in the corner.
Pierce received the ball and easily made a three-pointer.
"Did you get it, Kevin?" Kokoškov looked at Garnett, his eyes gleaming with the excitement of a tactical the Madman. "This is how Europe big men play, and it's the style that suits you best. No brute force in the low post, no fadeaway jumpers to evade defense. You face the basket in the high post, use your mobility to threaten them, force them to double-team you, and then punish them with your height and vision."
Scariolo nodded in satisfaction. "When you're positioned in the elbow area facing the basket, you can shoot mid-range shots, dribble past defenders, or deliver a game-winning pass. Once you master this style of play, making yourself the tactical center, your opponent will never know what you're going to do next."
Garnett stood at the free-throw line, looked at his own hands, then at Pierce on the baseline. He suddenly felt as if a whole new door had been opened to his basketball world.
"One more time!" Garnett slammed his hands together, his eyes blazing with a fanatical fire, and roared at Billups, who was serving, " Chauncey Billups! Give me that damn ball! Get it to the elbow!"
On the second-floor stands.
Lin Qi leaned against the railing, watching the player on the field frantically absorbing Europe tactical elements and perfectly integrating his talent with the team, a smile appearing on his lips.
"This is the ultimate form of a power forward." Lin Qi took a sip of his coffee. He knew that this trip to Europe not only deepened Pierce's understanding of rhythm, but more importantly, it allowed them to cultivate a true "all-around tactical core" three years ahead of schedule in their own territory of Milan.