Auerbach Training Center, Main Training Field No. 1.
Ben Wallace, shirtless, stood below the free-throw line with Tyson Chandler Chandler and Mehmet Okur.
Since the Christmas Day game, slow-motion replays on major sports programs across the US have been meticulously analyzing Big Ben Wallace's off-ball positioning frame by frame. On various basketball forums, fans are discussing Big Ben's bench press and strength advantage every day. Big Ben has completely shed the psychological burden he's carried for the past two weeks, and even his voice has become a bit deeper.
"Watch my heels," Big Ben Wallace said, lowering his hips and using his broad back to brace himself against Chandler behind him. "You can't mess up your footwork when you're going downhill. If you run straight at the referee, he'll be watching your every move. You have to slide sideways and cut in, using your back and hips to block his thigh."
Big Ben Affleck pushed off with his hips and sat back, causing Chandler to lean back and take a half-step back.
" Tyson Chandler, you're tall, but your lower body is too unstable," Big Ben Affleck patted the outside of his thigh. "As long as you lower your center of gravity and establish position beforehand, your opponent's forward momentum won't be able to come through. As long as the referee sees that your feet are firmly planted and you haven't moved again, and there's no pushing or shoving, even if your opponent is thrown to the ground, it's a clean contest and positioning."
Okur, observing from the sidelines, understood the technique and followed suit, mimicking Big Ben's power-generating movements. The Boston center's physical skills were passed around rapidly among the young big men.
The other half of the match had just finished three rounds.
Wade got into form very quickly today, using screens to drive into the paint three times in a row at full speed. On the first possession, he used his explosiveness to dodge the help defense in mid-air and scored with a layup. On the second possession, he forced his way into the crowd and drew a foul on the substitute. After scoring twice in a row, Wade was clearly on fire. On the third possession, just past half-court, he didn't even glance at Garnett who was calling for the ball at the high post, and directly drove hard into the double team. Facing Chandler's long arms, he jumped and launched a floater, the ball bouncing off the back of the rim.
After these three possessions, the entire half became a one-man show by Wade. Garnett on the high post and Pierce on the wing couldn't even touch the ball and could only run back and forth.
Gary Payton suddenly slapped the basketball out of Wade's hands.
"Stop, stop, stop!" Gary Payton, bent over, yelled at the panting Wade, " Dwyane, is your brain full of shit?"
Wade rested his hands on his knees, his chest heaving, sweat dripping from his chin onto the floor. He looked up at Gary Payton, his lips pressed tightly together.
Gary Payton walked up to Wade, pointed to Garnett standing at the high post, and then to Pierce on the wing.
"I'm asking you, are you playing point guard or shooting guard now?" Gary Payton spat. "When a shooting guard gets hot, all they think about is the basket, and nobody blames you for hitting three in a row. But you're playing point guard! I've seen this problem with you more than once. As soon as you make two good shots in a row, you get so high you lose your bearings. When you get the ball, all you know is to bury your head and charge in. What, are you the only one who can play in Boston? Do you think the other four guys on the court are just wooden stakes to create space for you? Do you think you're Allen Iverson or Kobe Brian, with the other four guys standing around watching you play by yourself?"
Rick Carlisle, standing on the sidelines, listened quietly with his arms crossed, without making a sound to interfere.
"A shooting guard thinks about how to make the shot, a point guard thinks about how to get all five players involved at the same time," Gary Payton said, raising a finger and tapping his temple. "When I won four championships in Boston, I had the ball most of the time, but you can't play like that. At the start of the first quarter, the whole team is full of energy. That's when you have the ball, use screens to shoot or drive. Get eight or nine points in the first quarter, break down their defense, and force them to focus their defense on you."
Gary Payton turned around and grabbed Garnett, who was standing next to him. "Once you establish your offensive threat in the first quarter, the opposing defense will definitely try to target you in the second quarter. That's when you need to get your teammates moving. Look who's standing next to you! This is Kevin Garnett, the most versatile power forward in the entire league, and you're just driving straight in when you're playing with him?"
Garnett pulled up his jersey to wipe the sweat from his face and muttered to himself, "I called for the ball twice on the right side of the free-throw line, Rasheed, who was guarding me, was out of position."
"Did you hear that?" Gary Payton glared at Wade. "There are so many ways to play against Kevin! You pass the ball to Kevin in the elbow area, pretend to run to the perimeter, and then use his body as a screen to cut directly to the basket. His pass can be delivered to you anytime. Or you can pass the ball to him, run around him in a high post handoff, and have him screen for your defender. Even if Kevin goes down to the low post to back down, after you feed him the ball, don't just stand there watching from beyond the three-point line. Cut directly into the paint, or set an off-ball screen for Chris Paul on the weak side. Kevin can shoot threes, mid-range shots, post-up moves, and playmaking. You're playing him so crudely; it's a complete waste of his talent!"
Gary Payton took a breath, his tone softening slightly. "You need to use these plays to let Kevin and Chris Paul comfortably carry the offensive load in the second and third quarters. Once they've got their touch from mid-range and outside, the opponent's defense will naturally open up. In the final minutes of the fourth quarter, when it's a fierce battle, the opponent's energy is depleted, and their defense is overwhelmed. At that point, whoever has the hot hand among the three of you can take the shot, and the game will be easily won. If you just blindly charge in from the first quarter, by the fourth quarter you'll be exhausted, and Kevin and Chris Paul's shooting touch will have cooled off. What are they supposed to do if you just pass them the ball in crucial moments?"
Wade stood there listening, his tense shoulders slowly relaxing. He wiped his sweat and nodded, saying, "I understand. I did get carried away with those two baskets and didn't pay attention to Kevin's position."
"You still don't quite understand," Gary Payton shook his head, picked up a basketball from the side, and slammed it heavily on the floor. "I told you to set up your teammates, not to become a traditional point guard like John Stockton hands the ball out as soon as you cross half-court. If you just stand there and pass the ball after crossing half-court, the opposing guards won't even bother to defend you. Kevin and Chris Paul will still have to face a double team when they receive the ball. What's the point of having you then?"
Gary Payton dribbled the ball to the top of the arc, signaling for Big Ben to come up and set a screen, while slowly dismantling Wade's footwork.
"What I taught you was how to use your scoring threat to make things easier for your teammates," Gary Payton dribbled around the screen. "How did you play your third shot just now? You went past the screen, took two steps, and jumped. That's how a shooting guard plays. Once you're in the air and Chandler covers you, you can't find anyone to pass to; you can only force a shot and leave it to fate."
Gary Payton stopped a step inside the free-throw line, tucking the ball between his waist and hips. "Remember, after you get past the screen and into the free-throw line, as long as no one fouls, you absolutely cannot stop the ball! Use your back and butt to block the chasing guard behind you, then dribble one more step to the side. Use your drive to force a mistake from the opponent, then feed the ball to your teammates. That's what makes it easy for your teammates to play!"
After saying that, Gary Payton moved Wade to the left low post. "And here. You're taller, heavier, and stronger than 80% of the point guards in the league. If the opposing team sends a smaller player to guard you, just back down! You take the ball and drive in a couple of times, how dare the opposing wing not come to help? As long as they dare to come in and double-team you, there will be wide-open shots in front of Chris Paul and Raja Bell on the weak side. Use your body to beat smaller players, use your vision to find open shots, it's much less tiring than you sprinting from the three-point line every time!"
Wade's eyes lit up. Last season, Mark Jackson taught him low-post back-to-the-basket techniques, Strickland taught him some driving tricks, but no one had ever integrated individual offense and team coordination so thoroughly as Gary Payton.