Chapter 138 - Power And Speed (2/2)
If Bruno used power to make his way to the basket, then Antony Grigor made use of speed and quick drives to the basket to achieve the same.
Shun looked at Antony and frowned, he had seen Antony drive to the basket many times, and Shun could do the same now, but no matter what route he took, he couldn't get results.
Shun: 'What am I missing?'
He watched Antony once again getting the ball.
Antony waited with a smile on his face and said just before taking off.
Antony: ”Hey! Hey! Hey! Here I go!”
Then the Russian small forward charged to the basket, he followed a curve on the court, and for some reason, Antony didn't meet a single player in his way.
At the basket, Gilbert jumped to block Antony, but Antony didn't slow down one bit. He just smiled and said, before jumping.
Antony: ”Why are all of you guys here all so tall? Kinda irritates me.”
Even though Antony complained, he didn't pass the ball, and spun mid-air, used his arm to bar out Gilbert, and laid the ball in with extreme control.
Gilbert was a little irritated at Antony.
Gilbert: ”Why is this guy so nimble?”
Antony got to the floor and celebrated.
Antony: ”Oh, Yeah! As I thought, I am so awesome!”
Gilbert g.r.o.a.n.e.d and added.
Gilbert: ”And, so hyperactive. Just looking at him makes me tired.”
-*-*-*-
Shun sighed as he reviewed what he knew about Antony.
Shun: 'Antony drives straight to the basket, and scores at the rim, and he can't drive to the basket, he shoots from the perimeter.
His attack timing is always quick. He doesn't give the defense to get into position. Even his defender has difficulty getting used to his timing.
For moves, he is adept at double-clutches, and mid-range shots.
I think he prefers layup to dunks, even though he can do both.
His dribbles are quick and rely on sharp direction change.'
Shun grumbled in irritation, as he still couldn't get figure out the reason why Antony could get past the ground defenders, but he couldn't.
Shun stared at Antony for a while and decided.
Shun: 'I should just go and ask him.'
Shun approached Antony and asked.
Shun: ”Antony, how do you not get caught by defenders on the ground?”
Antony turned to Shun and replied.
Antony: ”Well, I look where others are and then run where they aren't. It's really simple.”
Shun sighed as he didn't get any information from the statement.
Antony chuckled and spoke.
Antony: ”Young Shun. I know you are trying to copy me, but you are going at it in the wrong way.”
Shun frowned as he asked.
Shun: ”What do you mean?”
Antony: ”What do you look for when you decide where you dribble to?”
Shun thought for a second and answered.
Shun: ”I look at the positions of the defenders and find the most optimal route to the basket.”
Antony smiled softly and responded.
Antony: ”It is not about choosing the optimal path by looking at the defenders.
You have to see if your teammates are ready to screen the defenders. It is possible to charge your way to the basket, but you won't be able to do it every time.
I don't take the optimal route. I take the route that my teammates make for me.
Screens are the way to direct charge to the basket. All I do is work at the rim. The rest of it is just teamwork.
So, don't just take the defenders into account, you need to take your teammates into account as well.”
Shun took the advice and decided to look for routes that are being cleared by screens.
As Shun walked away, he slapped himself at the back of his head and thought.
Shun: 'Screens! I forgot about the screens! Of course, screens would be able to secure better paths.'
Shun's current approach was to look for paths that were already cleared, but he didn't take in the paths that could be cleared by screens by the time he got to the point.
Shun took a deep breath and said to himself.
Shun: ”Let's try this.”
-*-*-*-
Shun got the ball on the right side of the court, outside of the three-point arc.
Shun looked at the positions of the players. He discarded the most obvious path and looked for the route that would be the most stable one backed up by screens by his teammates.
Shun: 'Got one.'
-*-*-*-
At the route that Shun had chosen, Antony stood and looked at Shun.
He saw Shun looking at the path, and thought.
Antony: 'Come, I will pave a path for you.'
As soon as Shun moved, Antony set up a screen and blocked Ivan from interfering with Shun.
He grinned as Shun dashed past him.
Antony: ”Excellent.”
-*-*-*-
Shun dribbled past Antony and Ivan. And, at the basket, he got into the Dee, and Rafael jumped for a block.
Shun instincts commanded him to use the formless shot to put the ball in, but his mind was in control, and it told him to become Antony Grigor.
Shun twisted in mid-air, used his arm to bar-out Rafael, and put the ball into the net with a double-clutch.
Rafael was for a moment, saw Antony in the shadow of Shun.
-*-*-*-
Antony looked at Shun's score and spoke.
Antony: ”Now, that was awesome.”