Chapter 247: Chapter 52: The Magician’s Magic

Su Xi brought the ball into the frontcourt, where Atkins aggressively stepped up to challenge him. Su Xi had faced Atkins before, but he’d never seen him this "fierce." He managed to disrupt Su Xi’s rhythm.

Still, Su Xi relied on his superb ball-handling and powerful physique to get past him. The moment he broke free, before he even reached the free-throw line, Pierce came up to meet him, slamming into him head-on.

Pierce’s powerful frame brought Su Xi to a halt.

The referee made no call.

Su Xi couldn’t slice through the defense with his usual sharp precision.

On the very first play, Su Xi felt the starkly different intensity of the playoffs.

Sitting on the sideline, Celtics head coach John Carroll looked completely at ease. He had already studied Su Xi in meticulous detail and was fully confident about the entire series.

But just as Carroll thought his team was about to shut down the Pacers’ new engine, Su Xi quickly passed the ball. Seizing the opportunity, he decisively dished it to Artest on the wing. Simultaneously, he cut hard toward the paint. Little O’Neal, as if reading his mind, set an off-ball screen for him. Artest quickly lobbed the ball inside, and Su Xi soared into the air... He grabbed the ball... BOOM!

He completed the powerful dunk.

The process was a bit more convoluted, but the result was what he’d intended.

Su Xi’s powerful dunk tore through the Celtics’ basket. They had beefed up their perimeter defense, but it couldn’t hide their weakness in the paint.

On that offensive play, Su Xi showed his quick thinking. When the Celtics figured out his driving lane, he decisively changed his approach, finishing the dunk with the seamless help of his teammates.

If Su Xi usually used his own ability to break through the defense to create opportunities for his teammates, then on that last play, he relied entirely on their strength.

This actually encouraged Celtics head coach Carroll. His tactical objective had been achieved.

The game continued. Su Xi stuck to Atkins like glue on defense. But Atkins was clearly playing at a faster pace now that it was the playoffs. He was also more experienced and knew what the referees would let slide.

While being hounded, he gave Su Xi a subtle elbow, quickly used a screen from Blunt, and jumped to the side for a quick three-point shot... SWISH!

Boston scores 3 points.

One on offense, one on defense.

Su Xi was getting a true baptism by fire.

Before the game, Carlisle had discussed with Larry Bird whether they should let Jack watch from the sidelines for a few minutes to help him adapt to the pace of the playoffs.

Bird said, "Trust Jack’s ability to adapt. The Celtics should be his litmus test."

"This series might just be what allows Jack and the team to build better chemistry."

Bird was looking at the bigger picture.

The Celtics continued to target Su Xi on defense, believing that if they could lock him down, the Pacers’ entire offense would grind to a halt.

But that wasn’t what happened.

When Su Xi faced this targeted defense, it would slow him down, but the incredible sense of space he’d gotten from Magic was now well-honed—more than enough for him to find an open teammate with a pass.

Besides, Su Xi’s off-ball game was far above average.

The Celtics’ firepower in the paint was no match for the Pacers’, so Little O’Neal took over. He began to showcase the all-around game of the league’s third-best power forward. Little O’Neal could be a bit underwhelming in tough matchups, but when it came to schooling opponents who were below average, he had a deep bag of tricks.

Su Xi played for the first five minutes before being subbed out. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

For one, he still hadn’t fully adapted to the rhythm of the playoffs. The pace and intensity were several notches higher than the regular season, and he needed to evolve through in-game experience.

For another, his stamina was draining much more quickly.

"Jack only put up 4 points, 3 assists, 1 rebound, and 1 steal," Charles Barkley said on TV. "If any other player had a stat line like that in this amount of time, I’d say it’s pretty good. But for Jack... I can only say it’s barely a passing grade."

"In my mind, Jack is a future franchise superstar. How many other players get named to an All-NBA Team and an All-Defensive Team in their rookie season?"

Barkley couldn’t help but hype up Su Xi.

Beside him, Kenny Smith was characteristically sharp-tongued. "Franchise superstar? Charles, are you delusional? Little Sheep Su Xi only made the All-NBA and All-Defensive teams because the Pacers were the strongest team in the regular season. He’s just riding the coattails of their record."

"I’ll stick to what I’ve been saying: Little Sheep Su Xi is not a superstar-type player. He’s got a blue-collar playstyle. He might have his moments in the regular season, but when the playoffs arrive... he gets exposed."

"Just look at Little Sheep Su Xi’s performance tonight," Kenny Smith said mockingly. "He hasn’t shown any of that individual ability to just tear through a defense by himself. Instead, he’s just vanished within the Pacers’ system. Aren’t superstars supposed to be the ones who take over and break the game open when their team is in trouble?"

"This is hardly the Pacers’ most desperate moment," Barkley retorted. "Their lead is only growing."

After Su Xi was subbed out, the Pacers continued to extend their lead.

Even without Su Xi on the floor, Indiana was still clearly more than a match for the 35-win Celtics.

Su Xi checked back in during the latter half of the second quarter. His presence immediately ramped up the Pacers’ defensive intensity. Once he started applying his trademark hounding defense with more physicality, the Celtics were in deep trouble.

When it came to suffocating on-ball defense, Su Xi was far ahead of his fellow point guards. Even someone like Jason Kidd was merely more experienced at reading passing lanes; in terms of pure one-on-one lockdown ability, Su Xi was a class above.

On offense, however, Su Xi still hadn’t made an impact.