"I'll pass you the ball later, and you give him one back!"
Billups quickly calmed Rasheed Wallace's emotions, fearing he would impulsively do something irrational.
As the team's brain, he also had to be responsible for ensuring the psychological state of every teammate.
Rasheed Wallace then nodded, his emotions settling down.
Billups arrived at the frontcourt and signaled for Rasheed Wallace to set a screen for him.
He had witnessed Tang Long's physical abilities and knew that having Wallace single-handedly attack might not be effective.
Wallace also obeyed and quickly stepped up to set the screen.
Billups very cleverly manipulated the defense, causing Wallace's defender to become Larry Hughes, creating a mismatch opportunity.
Then, with a bounce pass, he accurately delivered the ball to Wallace in the low post.
A mismatch in size was too easy for Wallace.
Drew Gooden on the other side couldn't rotate in time, and the Cavaliers' perimeter players were wary of the Pistons' outside shooting, so they could only let Wallace easily dunk the ball.
After the dunk, Wallace roared at the Pistons fans, venting his emotions.
The Pistons fans naturally supported Wallace enthusiastically.
"Roaring Thunder! Roaring Thunder!"
"Great dunk! Kick their asses hard!"
"Don't let the Cavaliers be arrogant, this is our territory!"
Wallace enjoyed the fans' cheers, pounding his chest with one hand.
"Only knows how to attack shorter guys, and you call yourself Roaring Thunder? Might as well change your name to Rushing Diarrhea!"
Tang Long glanced at Wallace with a look of disdain.
Wallace felt much better after the dunk and sneered, "Damn Tang, you just got lucky with that dunk earlier, and now you're taking it seriously? Got the guts to go one-on-one with me again?"
Tang Long, of course, wouldn't refuse such an offer and immediately nodded.
Larry Hughes brought the ball up the court and saw Tang Long signaling for it.
Having just been scored on by Wallace, Larry Hughes was already unhappy, so he immediately lobbed the ball inside to Tang Long.
Tang Long caught the ball, and Billups, guarding him, moved in, ready to steal.
As an excellent point guard, Billups's steal awareness was comparable to Iverson's.
Tang Long's current ball-handling and ball-protection stats weren't that high yet, making him not very adept at dealing with such agile steals from smaller guards.
After dribbling once, he immediately chose to gather the ball and turn, using his powerful physique to drive inside.
Fake pass, real assist!
Tang Long, pretending to finish with a small hook shot, passed the ball to Larry Hughes on the perimeter.
Hughes adjusted his shot and made a three-pointer!
5-2!
"Tang! That was a great pass!"
Larry Hughes gave a thumbs-up. He was losing face, and Tang Long immediately helped him regain it.
Tang Long laughed. He could have driven for the basket himself, but basketball was a team sport, so it was natural to create opportunities for teammates.
Wallace's muffled voice came from behind: "That last one-on-one was just a fluke, wasn't it? Why aren't you attacking yourself now?"
Tang Long smiled slightly and ignored Wallace.
There would be opportunities for one-on-one plays. Why the rush?
Wallace, however, thought Tang Long was scared and became even more arrogant, spewing trash talk incessantly.
Upon reaching the frontcourt, he again actively demanded the ball, wanting to score on Tang Long.
Billups slightly shook his head, not wanting to give him the ball.
Unexpectedly, Wallace escalated: "Chauncey, don't doubt me! I can take down that kid from Longguo!"
There was no choice. If he didn't give Wallace the ball, he might lose control of his emotions. Billups reluctantly passed him the ball.
Wallace received the ball and made no extraneous moves. He simply backed into Tang Long, his trash talk continuing.
"Kid, let me show you what an NBA-level post-up is. Yours was just child's play!"
Before he finished speaking, Wallace himself was pushed back.
Humiliated, Wallace pushed back again with all his might.
However, Tang Long remained immobile, like a mountain blocking Wallace's path. He couldn't budge him at all!
Wallace was stunned. This guy was so strong?
His core strength was incredibly formidable!
After much thought, he had no choice. Seeing that the shot clock was about to expire, he was forced to turn and finish with a jump shot.
As a center with shooting ability, the jump shot was also one of his common finishing moves.
Many centers couldn't keep up with the rhythm of a jump shot and could at most extend their arms to contest.
This Chinese big guy in front of him was surely no different.
As he was contemplating, Tang Long in front of him had already taken off!
His outstanding long reach covered his entire defensive area.
The basketball flew directly out of Wallace's hands!
Tang Long's immense strength made Wallace unable to hold onto the ball!
A thunderous block!
"Oh!"
Wallace cried out in pain and stumbled back several steps.
Tang Long, not forgetting to add a disdainful remark, said, "So this is the roar of Roaring Thunder? It's really pleasant to hear! If you roar a few more times, perhaps I'll let you off!"