NBA M3 - Chapter 552: Talent vs. Talent? A Brutal Block and a Poster Dunk (Patreon)

“Wow...”

“Yao Ming couldn’t stop Cousins, so Blake stepped up and took the matchup himself.

“And he’s going to guard him in the paint?

“Can that really work?!”

At the commentary table, Charles Barkley, “The Round Mound of Rebound,” looked openly doubtful.

“Exactly.”

Shaquille O’Neal frowned as well.

“We all know Blake is an exceptional athlete.

“But strength has never been one of his biggest advantages. Asking him to defend Cousins inside, where it turns into a pure physical battle, raises a real question.

“Can Blake hold up?

“Still, if he volunteered for the matchup, then he must believe he can stop Cousins.

“And remember, most of what we know about Blake physically comes from last season.

“He had an entire offseason to improve.

“This is the same Blake who came back and scored 82 points on opening night.

“So how much stronger has he actually become?

“We’re about to find out.”

O’Neal was still speaking when Blake and Cousins were already matched up on the floor.

“Thud, thud, thud!”

Cousins had just bullied Yao Ming on consecutive possessions and was full of confidence.

Seeing Blake in front of him did not make him hesitate at all.

He immediately lowered his shoulder and drove his body into him.

The force of the collision hit Blake like a hammer.

Last season, Blake would have had no choice but to give ground.

Cousins’ physical gifts, especially his strength, were outstanding even by NBA standards.

Now, however, Blake possessed fifty percent of rookie Shaquille O’Neal’s strength.

He still could not turn himself into an immovable wall and absorb every hit without budging.

But Cousins could no longer use brute strength to create easy space whenever he wanted.

“Thud, thud, thud!”

After several more collisions, Cousins exploded into Blake one more time and finally forced him back half a step.

He immediately gathered the ball and rose for a short hook.

It looked like exactly the kind of shot Cousins could finish almost every time.

Unfortunately for him, he had underestimated everything Blake could do besides simply match his strength.

Blake planted his foot after that half-step backward and exploded off the floor.

His long arm shot upward, and he took control of the space above Cousins before the hook could even get away cleanly.

“SMACK!”

Blake swatted the ball straight out of Cousins’ hands.

“Wow!”

“Blake just stuffed Cousins right in his face!”

George recovered the loose ball on the perimeter and immediately pushed the break.

He moved it to Curry on the wing.

Curry reached the top of the arc.

A pull-up three in transition?

No.

“Whoosh!”

Curry pushed the ball ahead again.

George was already flying toward the rim.

He rose, caught the pass with one hand in midair, and finished the play.

“BOOM!”

Alley-oop.

Phoenix’s transition attack was lightning fast.

“Tch!”

Cousins remained under the basket with a dark expression.

He had managed to force Blake backward.

From there, he could have attacked the rim directly, and his short hook was normally an extremely reliable option.

Yet even after creating that little bit of space, Blake had still blocked him head-on.

Cousins had never expected that.

It made no sense to him.

“Hmph!”

Still irritated, Cousins went right back at Blake on the next possession.

He wanted to score on him one-on-one and win back some pride.

But after repeatedly trying to force Blake backward with contact, Cousins had to take a difficult contested shot.

“Clang!”

Another miss.

And it was not just those two possessions.

Throughout the first quarter, whenever Blake became Cousins’ primary defender, Cousins’ efficiency dropped sharply.

That was a serious problem for Sacramento.

Cousins was the Kings’ best player.

Once his offense stalled, the rest of the team started falling apart with him.

At the end of the first quarter, Phoenix led 31-22.

A nine-point advantage after one.

During the break between quarters, O’Neal tapped the desk as he explained what had happened.

“Cousins is still stronger naturally. Even Blake is a little behind him in pure strength.

“But the important part is that Cousins can’t completely move Blake out of the way when he attacks the paint.

“He can’t create those effortless finishes at the rim anymore.

“And if he can’t do that, Blake can use everything else he has, his height, his leaping ability, his explosiveness, to bother Cousins or even block him.

“That’s why Blake can contain him.”

“Exactly.”

Barkley nodded, then shook his head in amazement.

“But Cousins is seriously strong.

“Even Yao Ming was having trouble absorbing that contact.

“Blake has never been considered one of the stronger centers in the league, yet tonight he’s almost holding his own against Cousins physically.

“That’s surprising.

“And after watching that first quarter, there’s no question Blake has gotten noticeably stronger.”

“Yes.”

O’Neal picked up the thought.

“Blake was already nearly impossible to stop one-on-one.

“He could already get to the basket, and now that he’s stronger, he’s going to be even more dangerous when he attacks the rim.

“Blake came back from the offseason better again.

“He’s stronger, and he’s even harder to deal with.”

“That’s right. This guy is becoming more frightening to the entire league by the day.”

...

The second quarter began with the bench units.

For 5 minutes and 11 seconds, the two sides traded baskets without meaningfully changing the gap.

Then the starters returned.

Cousins had learned his lesson.

Rather than keep challenging Blake directly, he tried to attack George instead.

It was a better matchup, but it still was not especially comfortable.

On the other end, Sacramento continued double-teaming Blake.

The problem was that this Suns team was completely different from last year’s.

If the Kings left Curry or George obviously open, those two were capable of finishing the possession.

There was no easy answer.

Blake himself was still the most dangerous option on the floor.

Give him even the smallest opening, and he could turn it into points.

So Sacramento made its choice.

If Phoenix’s supporting players were going to beat them, the Kings would live with it.

By halftime, the Suns had stretched their nine-point lead to 14.

In the second half, Blake clearly wanted to finish the game in the third quarter.

He continued creating opportunities for his teammates, but he also began attacking much more aggressively himself.

Cousins took the defensive assignment.

He wanted to answer Blake on that end of the floor.

Instead, Blake punished him twice.

At the 6:13 mark, Blake cut into the lane and rose directly over Cousins for a vicious dunk.

Then, with 2:14 remaining, he did it again.

Another cut.

Another leap.

Another brutal poster.

On defense, Blake had stuffed Cousins at the rim.

On offense, he was dunking over him.

Cousins had opened the new season in excellent form, but tonight Blake finally broke through his composure.

The harder Blake attacked, the more frustrated Cousins became.

After three quarters, Phoenix was ahead by 23.

Blake was done for the night again.

Most of the other starters from both teams still appeared in the fourth quarter, but everyone already knew who was winning.

At the commentary table, O’Neal laughed.

“Cousins is only in his second season, and he’s already starting to turn all that talent into production.

“It’s just unfortunate for him that he ran into Blake.

“Put their talent side by side, and suddenly Cousins looks a whole lot less special.”

“That’s right.”

Barkley sounded just as impressed.

“Blake clocked out after three quarters again tonight.

“He hit six three-pointers and finished with 31 points, 11 rebounds, 12 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks.

“Another triple-double.

“That makes four straight triple-doubles for Blake.

“For a center, that’s remarkable.”

“Haha!”

O’Neal laughed.

“Yeah. To be fair, Blake isn’t an elite passer in the traditional sense.

“His individual threat is just enormous, and his height lets him see over the defense.

“When he draws extra defenders and moves the ball, his teammates are often wide open.

“If they make the shot, Blake gets the assist.

“And besides...”

“Hey!”

Barkley suddenly cut him off.

“Blake played like this last season too.

“So why wasn’t he getting this many triple-doubles back then?!”