Chapter 52: Starting Today, the Five Position Will Be Our Crucial Low-Post Offensive Weapon

At noon, the Hornets flew toward Cleveland.

On the evening of the 8th, at the Richfield Coliseum.

In the away locker room, General Manager Dave Twardzik walked in and said to Tang Bei, "Tang, your jersey sales skyrocketed by 2,000% today compared to yesterday."

"Whoa?"
"What?"

The players were stunned.

Tang Bei's eyelid twitched. Yesterday, it seemed they had only sold one jersey. A 2,000 increase meant twenty jerseys. Well, that wasn't too bad either.

Next, head coach Gene Littles announced the starting lineup and then stated, "Starting from this game, the five position will be a crucial offensive force for us in the low post."

"What does that mean?"

Hearing this, Larry Johnson felt his scalp tighten, and his temples began to throb.

Last season was his rookie year, and with Kenny Gattison as the starting center holding no tactical status, the low-post offense was orchestrated entirely by him.

Coach Littles's words made it crystal clear: low-post scoring would no longer be his sole responsibility, and his touches and shot attempts would decrease. This left him extremely displeased.

In stark contrast to Larry Johnson, Tang Bei was thrilled, because the coach's words meant he would finally receive the treatment he deserved.

Kendall Gill looked a bit dejected upon hearing this.

Although the competition in the low post had little to do with him, he could read between the lines and realize how much the team valued and supported Tang Bei.

As for the rest of the players, they all grasped one fundamental truth: another competitor had emerged for the throne of team leader and franchise centerpiece.

At that moment, Coach Littles continued, "If Tang establishes position in the low post, the other positions must clear out to create one-on-one opportunities for him. OK?"

"OK."

Kendall Gill and the other players responded one after another.

Only Larry Johnson let out a cold snort, completely ignoring the coach's words.

At half-past seven, both teams announced their starting lineups.

Charlotte Hornets: Tang Bei, Larry Johnson, David Wingate, Kendall Gill, Muggsy Bogues.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Brad Daugherty, Larry Nance, Gerald Wilkins, Mike Sanders, Mark Price.

The game was not nationally televised, receiving only regional broadcast coverage with commentators Neal Jones and Phil Mottel.

Once the live broadcast commenced, Neal Jones began setting the stage:

"The Cavaliers finished as the Eastern Conference runner-up in the regular season last year, successively eliminating the Nets and Celtics in the playoffs, and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals before falling to the Bulls. They possess immense strength and can be considered the first golden era in the franchise's history."

Phil Mottel followed up: "Their starting center, Brad Daugherty, was the number one overall pick selected by Cleveland in '86, standing 213 centimeters tall and weighing 111 kilograms. He has entered his prime, earning four All-Star reserve selections, making the All-NBA Third Team last season, and entering the 20+10 club for two consecutive seasons. He is also adept at passing, averaging 4 assists per game, and serves as Cleveland's interior anchor. Furthermore, he is the first player in franchise history to break into the 20+10 club, making him an absolute elite center in the NBA."

Neal Jones continued: "Their perimeter core is All-Star point guard Mark Price, a two-time All-Star reserve and two-time All-NBA Third Team selection, who has also entered his prime. The third Cavaliers All-Star is power forward Larry Nance, a two-time All-Star reserve, one-time All-Defensive First Team, and one-time All-Defensive Second Team selection. Although he is now 33 years old, he still appears to be at the peak of his powers."

Phil Mottel remarked, "On paper, the Cavaliers boast three All-Stars in their prime, while the Hornets don't have a single one. Cleveland definitely holds the upper hand."

At this point, Neal Jones suddenly turned serious and said, "I must remind Brad Daugherty here: your opponent Tang may be a rookie, but his playing style is vicious. In his very debut, he collided with and injured the sixth overall pick, Gugliotta."

Phil Mottel nodded and said, "Indeed, Daugherty suffered a severe injury in the 89/90 season, missing 41 games. Although he has recovered to an All-Star level now, caution is paramount."

At eight o'clock, the tip-off commenced.

Tang Bei and Brad Daugherty went up for the jump ball, winning it easily to give the Hornets possession.

Upon landing, he quickly circled around Daugherty to enter the paint.

Daugherty's lateral speed was noticeably a step slower, failing to keep pace and falling out of rhythm.

However, power forward Larry Nance's help defense was lightning fast. He immediately slid over two steps to obstruct Tang Bei, allowing Daugherty to recover and block Tang Bei's path.

Tang Bei arrived at the left low post, with Daugherty bracing himself behind him.

A fierce physical battle immediately ensued between the two. How could Brad Daugherty possibly hold his ground against Tang Bei? The gap in strength and tonnage was simply too vast.

Within a single second, Tang Bei exerted force continuously, squeezing three small steps inward—nearly a meter gained—leaving him just over a meter away from the basket. He had carved out deep, impregnable post position.

Simultaneously, Larry Johnson was also fighting for position and calling for the ball on the right low block.

Larry Nance weighed 107 kilograms, but his strength fell short of Larry Johnson's. He was shoved about a foot deep into the paint, which also qualified as deep position.

The two defenders were practically back-to-back, passively forming an airtight barrier around the rim.

Witnessing this scene, whether it was General Manager Dave Twardzik, Head Coach Gene Littles, or point guard Muggsy Bogues, all felt a headache coming on.

The three-second offensive violation countdown was rapidly approaching. If the ball couldn't be fed inside, the positioning of both Tang Bei and Larry Johnson would go to waste, squandering their stamina for nothing.

"Fuck you!"

At that moment, Larry Johnson felt extreme resentment toward Tang Bei and let loose an outright curse.

"Damn it!"

Tang Bei was equally displeased and muttered his own catchphrase.

At the final juncture, Bogues chose to pass to Larry Johnson. After all, he was more familiar with Larry Johnson, and Johnson was also the core player cultivated by the management.

Although the head coach had just stated that the five position was a crucial low-post offensive weapon, Bogues knew very well that this did not mean Larry Johnson's standing within the team had diminished.

Most likely, the proportion of interior scoring would simply increase at the expense of shot opportunities for the other three positions.

Consequently, a scenario that had played out multiple times in the previous game repeated itself. Daugherty, who was guarding Tang Bei, instantly turned and quickly converged to form a double-team on Larry Johnson.

"Clang!"

Facing the double-team, Larry Johnson forced a turnaround jump shot, but it missed the mark, the basketball clanging off the rim and rebounding outward.

Capitalizing on the moment the two defenders doubled Larry Johnson, Tang Bei, who had already penetrated deep into the paint, claimed the prime rebounding position.

He leaped high, leveraging his exceptional verticality to snatch the caromed basketball from amidst a forest of players, and violently slammed it toward the hoop.

"Bang!"

An explosive dunk echoed through the arena, rattling the goal support and silencing the raucous Cleveland home crowd.

Larry Johnson's eyebrow twitched. The shot he failed to convert had been put back successfully by Tang Bei. Wasn't this a direct slap to his face?

"How are we going to resolve this?"

Neither young player was willing to yield an inch—it was a clash of titans. Hornets General Manager Dave Twardzik harbored a profound headache.

If things continued this way, given their personalities, the conflict would inevitably turn public. By then, forcing a trade of one of them would be the only option, but that was absolute the last thing he wanted.

Whichever of these two young talents were traded away, it would break his heart and cause him immense agony.