Next, after giving a few simple instructions to Posey, Garnett immediately let Qin Yue feel the weight of a veteran.

Using his experience, Garnett perfectly anticipated the location of the Warriors' high-post pick-and-roll and spun around like a small forward to position himself in front of the ball.

The Warriors took about eleven seconds of offensive time before forcing the Supersonic to switch from a man-to-man defense to a 2-3 zone.

Though the Warriors' increasingly fast offensive rotations had aroused Carlisle's concern...

As for the Warriors, who usually had already completed their offense and started defense by this point, the time spent being consumed by the Supersonic's offense...

meant they were destined to find it hard to pick up the pace of this game.

Seeing this, and knowing the danger of letting hesitations affect actions, Qin Yue proactively slowed down the pace of this attack.

The Warriors' offense at the start of the night was too hurried, unable to achieve the intended results.

In the high post, until his teammates settled into their positions around him...

Qin Yue, holding the ball, then accelerated.

This was a breakthrough that left Garnett incredibly surprised.

In a flash, one moment Garnett could keep up with Qin Yue, and the next, he was left dizzy by Qin Yue's double crossovers.

The long-silent Oracle Arena was finally ignited by Qin Yue's hand.

At the moment his powerful pull-up jumper swished through the net, the twenty thousand fans in the stands immediately began to chant "MVP, MVP" for him.

In fact, Qin Yue never opposed the slower game pace.

Because his height and weight dictated that a slower pace allowed him to better conserve his energy.

Thus, a half-court game almost extinct this season at Oracle Arena officially commenced.

To address Ray Allen's external threat, Mike Malone, realizing the potency of the man-to-man plus zone was undeniably effective, no longer cared what it was called a "kids' tactic"?

Midway through the first quarter, the Warriors' improvised man-to-man plus zone unexpectedly troubled the Supersonic coach Rick Carlisle.

Perhaps the Warriors' impromptu man-to-man plus zone wasn't as tightly positioned or disciplined as the well-prepared Supersonic.

But to break a man-to-man plus zone, the Supersonic needed someone to organize and coordinate.

Throughout his career, Ray Allen was never an expert in this regard.

As for Watson?

This guy's status in the NBA is no different from a nobody's in the entertainment industry.

Moreover, like the Supersonic, the Warriors' man-to-man plus zone wasn't aimed at shutting down the Supersonic completely.

After all, with Garnett, the Supersonic could easily turn the Warriors' man-to-man plus zone into a traditional zone.

But as Garnett became merely a passing point on the court, the Warriors' defensive strategy became instantly clearer.

Because with Garnett having to stay high to distribute the ball...

How could he use his high-quality screening and off-ball movement to disrupt the Warriors' defensive system?

One must admit, Mike Malone had an astonishing insight.

After quickly summarizing the Warriors' strengths and analyzing the Supersonic's weaknesses, he escaped the dilemma of having to use tactics to break the Supersonic's man-to-man plus zone and instead began to strategically outmaneuver Carlisle.

The Warriors are not a team that can't play at a slower pace.

Last season's finals, it was through a half-court game that the Warriors directly overpowered the Heat.

Despite the Supersonic's despair-inducing twin towers inside that greatly hindered Qin Yue's drives...

But Qin Yue could still use his powerful pull-up jumper to punish the Supersonic's zone defense.

Additionally, Malone had absolute confidence in the Warriors' bench depth.

Most of the Supersonic's bench consisted of role players.

To utilize these role players, Carlisle had to stagger the playtime of the Big Three.

And the Warriors?

Malone only needed to heavily rely on Qin Yue.

If the Supersonic were a team with a fast enough pace, Malone might have to think of other ways to give Qin Yue a break.

But since the Supersonic was a team destined to be sluggish...

At the end of the first quarter, glancing at the scoreboard reading 28 to 24, Malone immediately turned his eyes affectionately towards Qin Yue.

"Tonight, I want you to play a bit longer."

Upon hearing this, Qin Yue, who in the new season had almost developed a mental shadow from checking out after three quarters, immediately stood up and said, "Mike, remember to sub me out after I'm dead!"

At that moment, recalling when Mike Brown asked if coaching Qin Yue was exhausting, Malone couldn't resist the urge to rush to Brown.

Look, this is what a franchise star is!

He never forces himself onto the court during garbage time; he always steps up in crucial moments!

But bravado aside...

Before the start of the second quarter, Qin Yue still specifically requested an interior partner from Malone.

Since Yao Ming only played 7 minutes in the first quarter and was substituted, Qin Yue was well aware that the Supersonic's lead in the second quarter would definitely be Yao Ming.

Therefore...

Private Adonal Foyle, step forward!

As the temporary block leader in Warriors history, Foyle, who returned to the Warriors this summer, weighed over 275 pounds (125 kilograms).

Although Foyle couldn't defend Yao Ming.

But knowing that Yao Ming would be the main offensive point leading the bench, Qin Yue did not want to waste too much energy on defense.

This was the necessary energy trade-off for a "single-core" team playing against a "three-core" team.

And since it was "three heroes against Lu Bu"... how can it be too much for Qin Yue to bring along a few more Red Hare horses?

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