Chapter 600: No Mercy, Must Slaughter

Fan Xi's words kept cutting into Paul's self-esteem, the anger on his face continually flaring. But he was helpless.

"Make this shot."

Chris Paul brought the ball to half-court, he shouted loudly.

He wanted to lift his teammates' confidence; only then could they have a chance to avoid humiliation.

Paul took the lead, this time he drove straight into the paint, aiming to create damage. Fan Xi stuck to him like a shadow, clinging to him, not giving him an easy shot opportunity.

Paul could only once again launch himself into the air.

But this time, his former teammate Tyson Chandler didn't go up to jump and block him; instead he raised both hands and stood in the key position.

This deprived Paul of the chance to draw a foul.

At that moment, he saw Fan Xi leap from his side, preparing to block; he immediately went up for a layup, and with a great extent flicked the ball out… He thought Fan Xi couldn't possibly reach him. He even felt Fan Xi had already begun to fall under gravity.

However, the very next second as he released the ball, Fan Xi's right hand appeared above the ball… smack!

Fan Xi's fingertip tapped the ball, its trajectory instantly changed, it bounced off the backboard and came back out.

Paul was shocked, he hadn't expected Fan Xi to be so fierce.

What he didn't know was that Fan Xi's hang-time ability was unmatched in the league.

As he went up for the layup, Fan Xi was still in his ascent; when Paul flicked the ball and couldn't stop its fall due to gravity, Fan Xi's hand reached out just right… the block became a matter of course.

Tyson Chandler secured the rebounding ball.

Then he passed it to Fan Xi.

Fan Xi caught the ball and showed a smile.

The arena was like a roaring mountain and tsunami.

The atmosphere exploded with hype.

The feeling of shutting out the opponent was truly superb.

Michael Jordan said: "If Paul were a bit more decisive and didn't go for the layup, Jie Ke couldn't stop him. He shouldn't challenge Jieke Fan's hang-time. When facing smart people, being resolute works better."

Jordan was the clear-eyed observer.

Shaquille O'Neal on TV shouted: "What's going on? The Rockets have only scored 1 point in the fourth quarter so far, and that's from Paul's free throws."

"This is simply a one-sided slaughter! Too brutal!"

Shaq O'Neal was saying these words.

While he was speaking, Fan Xi drove to the free-throw line, drew the double-team, and quickly passed the ball to Joe Johnson, who hit a mid-range jumper.

Nothing special.

The camera cut to Paul, his face visibly tense.

Afterwards, the camera went to the Rockets bench, where James Harden yawned on the sidelines. His teammates beside him also looked listless, appearing to have lost their fighting spirit.

Moreover, they all had the attitude of being mere spectators.

When Michael Jordan saw this scene, he knew Fan Xi's fourth championship was a foregone conclusion.

He even understood that Fan Xi's public ultimatum before halftime was precisely for this. Fan Xi targeted Paul, but what got scattered was the Rockets' unity. He turned the game into a personal punishment for Paul, allowing the others to escape the shame of defeat.

If the Knicks kept extending the lead, the players on the court would also feel it's none of their business. After all, victory already had nothing to do with them, and neither did humiliation, so they might as well just hang high.

"This is truly the destruction of Chris Paul."

Jordan sucked in a breath of cold air, and at that moment he suddenly realized Fan Xi's true terror.

Fan Xi's ultimatum was a risky move, but the payoff was enormous.

As long as he widens the gap to a certain degree, the championship will be within grasp, Paul will be abandoned by all, becoming a disgrace, definitely unable to stay with the Rockets next season, and the Rockets will fall from contenders to just another strong team.

One arrow, three eagles!

Paul and Asik set a screen, he pulled up for a stop-and-go jump shot, but missed.

He was visibly irritable.

At that moment, the Knicks changed their lineup.

On the court it became Tyson Chandler, Amar'e Stoudemire, Joe Johnson, Fan Xi, and Steve Nash.

This was a pure run-and-gun lineup.

Strictly speaking, the game became a spear versus shield battle, because the Rockets fielded a full-court defensive system.

Nash brought the ball to half-court, Paul defended tightly, even with big movements.

But Nash wasn't intimidated by him.

After setting a screen with Stoudemire, he passed the ball to Stoudemire, while the other players spread out.

Fan Xi knew Stoudemire very well.

Given Stoudemire's current skill and physical condition.

Letting him play against super teams like the Bulls and Heat, he contributes little.

But if it's about beating a fallen dog, taking on the Rockets whose fighting spirit collapses quickly, he has nine ways to destroy the opponent. Nine!

He used a probing fake shot to shift Howard's weight upward, then quickly drove with the ball into the paint, displaying his former league-leading inside presence as a power forward; he faked in the paint, spun past Asik, and laid the ball in with a soft left hand.

Very perfect.

Done in one fluid motion.

After Stoudemire scored, he happily waved his hand.

Shaquille O'Neal, who once faced him as an opponent, said on TV: "When Amar'e is happy, when he's happy he makes many exquisite, unfathomable moves. The Rockets' situation looks not good, Stoudemire is the league's best role player who adds polish…."

Fan Xi guarded Paul, sticking to him like glue, not leaving an inch.

Paul could only pass the ball to Beverley, Beverley got past Nash, he drove into the paint and drew a foul on Stoudemire.

He could have made it a 2+1, but his touch was a little off.

At that moment, D'Antoni glanced at Harden beside him. He thought, if Harden were the two-guard, stopping Nash would be a sure thing.

However, Harden had already taken off his shoes and had the team doctor tie an ice pack to his ankle.

His attitude was clear; since you want to defend stubbornly and not let me play, then I won't play.

The point difference is already over 30, yet you still put me in; am I a garbage player only fit for garbage time?

As the Rockets' core big man, don't you care about face?

The game continues.

The problems facing the Rockets are brewing.

Paul has always been regarded as a team-first player, believed to have strong organizational and linking abilities. But now he cannot truly link the team together.

Under Fan Xi's defense, his playmaking work has become more difficult.

He had no choice but to forcefully initiate offense; this time he finally assisted Asik for a chance at the basket, but Asik was fouled by Chandler behind him.

He made one of two free throws.

Scoring has become especially difficult for the Rockets.

Because they have given up on offense, most of the players they have put in are defenders.

Moreover, a negative mood is inevitably spreading.

A collapse has already formed.

This is not something Paul can stop.

He lacks this ability.

Even if he had this ability, he wouldn't have been unable to escape his fate with the Hornets, nor would he have disappeared in crucial moments during his Lakers stint… He does possess the ability to kill games in crucial moments, but he often ends up holding the ball in crucial moments of crucial games.

The Rockets' offense is like picking soil with a needle.

The Knicks' offense, however, is like pushing sand with waves.

Nash brought the ball to half-court, and Fan Xi quickly made a move. Nash and Stoudemire set a screen; Fan Xi used Tyson Chandler's screen to cut to the corner at a tricky angle, and Nash passed the ball……Fan Xi caught and shot—swish!

Three-pointer made.

Beverley's defensive will is strong, but he truly cannot stop him.

Fan Xi's made three-pointer further widened the gap, leaving only one step away from the largest margin in Finals history.

Madison Square Garden was erupting in cheers.

At this point, there were still six minutes left in the third quarter.

Led by Fan Xi, the Knicks needed only half a quarter to break the Rockets.

Shaquille O'Neal said on television: "I originally thought this would be an impossible task—who would honestly tell you to slaughter you and yet you can't stop it? The NBA has no weak teams. But now all of this has actually happened."

"This is dominance, this is genuine dominance. Jie Ke used his wisdom and basketball skill to prove to the world that the outward expression of a perimeter player's dominance can also be this obvious."

"Paul is unfortunate. I feel sorry for him."

O'Neal went on at length on television, his expression full of sympathy and regret.

It is obvious that he has already seen Paul's fate after this game ends.

Le Bu Lang Zhang Si stood up and turned off the TV.

During halftime, after he finished calling Paul, he sat quietly in front of the TV. When he saw the Rockets' starting lineup, he already knew something was wrong. And when Harden was twice stripped by Fan Xi, Harden and Paul argued during the game.

He had seen through Fan Xi's overt scheme.

Only then did he understand Fan Xi's true purpose, realizing that from the moment Fan Xi faced the camera and said those words to Paul, Paul's fate had already been sealed.

He just didn't expect the Rockets' internal strife and collapse to come so quickly.

Now, no one can save Paul.

Paul is like a person stuck in the middle of a mire; the more he struggles, the faster he sinks.

He will, under the world's gaze, watch himself become a laughingstock.

He painstakingly fought his way into the Finals, even paying the price of a two-game suspension, but all he got in return was a joke.

However, he also has nothing to regret.

At least, his foot isn't in a cast like Leonard's, requiring him to grab the rail to sit on the toilet, and his cervical spine isn't wearing a rigid brace like Durant's that makes him dizzy after looking at his phone for over ten minutes.

After Fan Xi made a three-pointer, he glared fiercely at Paul.

He no longer spoke with Yan Yuese, telling Paul: "I won't let you off."

"This loss represents the hard‑fought Los Angeles Clippers, and represents Leonard, helpless and confused on the operating table."

Fan Xi's gaze was sharp, with no mercy whatsoever.

In the eyes of the Rockets players, he is a brutal tyrant.

But who would have known that Leonard, before his surgery, called Fan Xi at midnight, his voice weak and trembling, saying: "Jie Ke, what if I lose my athletic ability?"

…