The next day, Derrick Rose returned to the Cavaliers. With the help of the dical staff, he began rehabilitation therapy.
It was clear—he had abandoned the idea of retirent.
Coach Malone gave Han Sen a thumbs-up, marveling, "There doesn't seem to be anything you can't handle."
With Rose back on track, Malone focused on implenting the new strategy. He wasn't planning to unveil it imdiately; these things required a process.
Ti flew, and by early December, the first month of the new season had wrapped up.
The Cavaliers played 15 gas in November, finishing with a 10-5 record. Including the season opener, they now sat at 11-5, ranked third in the Eastern Conference behind the Celtics and the Bucks.
The Bucks had made a notable trade in early November, sending Greg Monroe, a future protected first-round pick, and a second-round pick to the Suns in exchange for Eric Bledsoe.
After acquiring Brook Lopez during the offseason, the Bucks had been missing only a capable point guard, and now they had one. Bledsoe had averaged over 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists per ga with the Suns over the past two seasons. Though only 6'1" (1.85m), his explosive athleticism, scoring, and defensive abilities made him a complete player.
These moves had vaulted the Bucks into the upper echelon of Eastern Conference teams.
Trailing just behind the Cavaliers were the surging 76ers.
The addition of Jimmy Butler had transford the Sixers into a more clutch team, filling the leadership void for their younger stars. Joel Embiid, in particular, seed to thrive under Butler's presence.
"I feel like I'm the best player in the world," Embiid boldly declared.
Much like Kuzma's self-crowning antics, Embiid mimicked LeBron by claiming the unofficial title of "world's best". Intentional or not, the jab was unmistakable.
But Embiid had reason to be confident. He was averaging 27.5 points, 13.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.9 blocks per ga. And this was just his second season in the league.
Of course, Embiid's penchant for trash talk was no surprise. If Kuzma was dubbed "the next Han Sen" for his trolling and antics, then Embiid deserved a similar title—not as a LeBron hater, but as an outspoken personality.
From the mont he entered the league in 2014, Embiid had made waves. Early on, he brazenly pursued Kim Kardashian on Twitter, only to shift his attention to Rihanna after being ignored.
His infamous tweet—"Rihanna is seriously considering my offer"—went viral. Rihanna replied with a condition: if Embiid made the All-Star team, she'd consider going on a date with him.
With his current performance, an All-Star appearance seed inevitable. A rise in status, fa, and perhaps even a date with Rihanna—it was no wonder Embiid's confidence was sky-high.
As December began, Coach Malone decided it was ti to unveil the new strategy he'd been refining for weeks. And the perfect test awaited—the 76ers.
Malone believed in trial by fire: only strategies that worked in high-stakes matchups were worth keeping.
The ga, held at Quicken Loans Arena, drew a full house. NBC's pre-ga headline had stoked the flas: "I killed a lion at six years old. Han should fear ."
The quote, attributed to Embiid during an interview, had quickly gone viral. According to the full report, Embiid had said, "At six, I killed a lion and brought it back to my village as part of my coming-of-age ceremony. I've never known fear. If anything, it's my opponents who fear ."
While the details of the story were likely exaggerated, it added yet another layer of intrigue to the matchup.
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The arena buzzed with energy as the starting lineups were announced:
Cavaliers: Han Sen, Kyle Korver, Robert Covington, Tristan Thompson, Nikola Jokic.
76ers: Ben Simmons, Jimmy Butler, Jae Crowder, Dario Saric, Joel Embiid.
Embiid won the opening tip for the Sixers and imdiately established himself in the post, backing down Thompson. After receiving a feed from Simmons, Embiid began his low-post attack to a chorus of boos from Cleveland fans.
In today's small-ball era, true centers were rare. Players like Anthony Davis and Karl-Anthony Towns were technically power forwards. Only Jokic and Embiid stood out as elite, traditional big n.
Standing 7'0" (2.13m) tall with a 7'6" (2.29m) wingspan and weighing 280 pounds (127kg), Embiid looked every bit the classic post-up bruiser. But once he started his move, it beca clear he wasn't purely old-school. After a strong bump against Thompson, he spun for a smooth fadeaway jumper, a move reminiscent of Towns.
Thompson contested aggressively, but Embiid's height and touch made the shot nearly impossible to defend. The ball swished through the net, and the referee's whistle followed—Thompson had fouled him.
Smiling, Embiid raised his arms and gestured for the boos to grow louder. If Towns played with restraint, Embiid was his polar opposite—bold, brash, and unfiltered.
Embiid sank the free throw, completing a three-point play to open the ga.
On the other end, the Cavaliers unveiled their new strategy.
Han called for Jokic to set a screen at the three-point line, but instead of rushing into the pick-and-roll, Jokic stayed in place, drawing Simmons with him. Han then pulled back, creating space to analyze the defense.
Jokic slowly rolled into the post, demanding the ball. anwhile, the rest of the Cavaliers spread the floor: Korver and Covington stationed in the corners, with Thompson lurking in the dunker spot. This alignnt created mismatches—Jokic against Simmons in the post and Han against Embiid on the periter.
Han opted to attack first, driving past Embiid to pull up for a mid-range jumper at the free-throw line. Embiid couldn't keep up with Han's first step, and with Jokic occupying the low post, the Sixers had no imdiate help defense. Han's shot, however, clanked off the back rim.
Jokic, ever the opportunist, muscled past Saric for the offensive rebound and an easy putback, drawing cheers from the Cleveland crowd. Saric, at just 220 pounds (99.8kg), looked utterly outmatched against Jokic's 265-pound (120kg) fra.
The Sixers went back to Embiid on the next possession, but Han, anticipating the pass, abandoned Simmons mid-cut and swiped the ball from Embiid. Leading the fast break, Han weaved past Butler with a smooth Euro step before finishing at the rim.
"Han is far scarier than any lion," Charles Barkley quipped from the comntary booth, a grin spreading across his face.
The 76ers adjusted their offensive strategy, using Joel Embiid to set screens for Ben Simmons. However, Han Sen completely ignored Simmons on the periter, doubling Embiid instead.
When Simmons was drafted, he was heralded as the "next LeBron Jas". For once, the dia got it right—Simmons shares LeBron's glaring flaw: no shooting ability, relying solely on driving to the basket.
Han defended him by sagging far off the periter, daring Simmons to shoot.
Under pressure from the double-team, Embiid was forced to pick up his dribble. To his credit, he raised the ball high above his head, avoiding another steal by Han.
The Sixers' offense stalled until Jimmy Butler moved in to receive a pass. Embiid imdiately set a screen, and Butler used it to nail a smooth mid-range jumper.
The score shifted to 5-4.
The 76ers' competitiveness was undeniable.
Han and Jokic ran their signature pick-and-roll, again targeting mismatches. This ti, Han, aware of his shaky early shooting touch, aggressively drove to the rim instead of pulling up.
With a low dribble and lightning-fast acceleration, Han left the collapsing Sixers' defense behind. Jokic boxed out Dario Šarić, clearing Han's path for an emphatic one-handed dunk in the paint.
Quicken Loans Arena erupted. Fans jumped to their feet, cheering wildly. They might not have noticed the tactical changes, but they could see that the Cavaliers' offense was simpler yet far more efficient tonight.
On the sidelines, 76ers head coach Brett Brown rose from his seat, making a hand signal to adjust their defensive strategy. A veteran from the Gregg Popovich coaching tree, Brown had the chops to recognize Cleveland's new tactics.
The Sixers' next possession saw Butler feeding Embiid in the post instead of Simmons. While Butler wasn't an elite three-point shooter, he was light-years ahead of Simmons, allowing him to space the floor effectively.
Embiid showcased his footwork with a beautiful Dream Shake, spinning past Tristan Thompson to attack the rim. Whether or not Embiid had really hunted a lion at six years old was debatable, but it was undeniable that, at 16, he taught himself Hakeem Olajuwon's moves by studying film.
Unfortunately for Embiid, his shot didn't go in—Han had rotated back to contest it. Simmons stood uselessly on the weak side, unable to stretch the floor.
Embiid attempted to grab his own miss, but Han's quicker jump allowed him to snatch the rebound.
With Han locked in on the boards, Cleveland couldn't push the pace. Both teams transitioned back to a half-court battle.
The Sixers made another defensive adjustnt, swapping Embiid onto Tristan Thompson and assigning Šarić to Jokic. Keeping Embiid in the paint maximized his defensive presence, given TT's lack of shooting range.
The move seed sound, but Han imdiately signaled for a clear-out, instructing Jokic to post up high.
With Embiid anchored in the paint, Šarić was left to defend Jokic—a natural mismatch. Han fed the ball inside, and Jokic didn't rush his attack. Holding the ball high, he surveyed the defense.
Jokic waited for two seconds—long enough to force Embiid to make a decision due to the defensive three-second rule. As Embiid shifted toward the opposite side, Jokic powered through Šarić with a spin move, leaving him helpless. A simple layup extended Cleveland's lead.
Brown looked visibly frustrated on the sidelines. The Cavaliers' two stars weren't just dominant—they were smart. Doubling them wasn't a viable solution.
Embiid took matters into his own hands on the next possession, facing up TT and pulling off a guard-like crossover into a step-back jumper. The shot missed.
This guard-style approach, while tough to defend due to its high release point, was inefficient compared to Jokic's thod of consistently delivering easy baskets near the rim.
The Sixers kept their defensive adjustnts, but Han exploited them again. He fed Jokic in the post, who quickly drew a double-team from Embiid. Jokic spun away, raising the ball above his head, and calmly delivered a pinpoint pass to TT under the basket.
Thompson, left completely unguarded, hamred ho a two-handed dunk with authority.
Quicken Loans Arena roared again as the scoreboard ticked to 10-5, with the Cavaliers pulling ahead.
Cleveland's tactics were simple—but devastatingly effective.
(End of Chapter)
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