Kayce, of course, couldn't tolerate Chris Paul's hit-and-run behavior, so during the break, he directly requested a defensive switch from Coach Brooks.
"Coach, I'll guard Paul for the rest of the game. Let Russell have a little less pressure on defense."
Coach Brooks considered Kayce guarding Paul, and Russell guarding Devin Brown would indeed be no problem. Although Russell and his opponent had some height difference, he hoped Kayce could limit Paul's passing.
"No problem, but that will have to wait until the third quarter. In the second quarter, we need to make some rotations. Guys, cheer up! If you get an opportunity, take the shot decisively. They are giving us mid-range jumpers, and we need to respond!"
Coach Brooks no longer specifically emphasized tactical requirements but encouraged everyone to shoot decisively. The offensive space on the court was getting smaller and smaller, which was not what the coaching staff wanted to see.
The Hornets made extensive rotations in the second quarter. Marcus Thornton replaced Chris Paul, James Posey and Darius Songaila came in at forward, and center Okafor continued to play.
Although interim Head Coach Bower's ability was average, the Hornets' the coaching staff was reliable, consistently maintaining an advantage in the paint. Their tactical intention was very clear: to target the Thunder's weak interior defense.
For the Thunder, Kayce played small forward, Menor and Thabo Sefolosha partnered in the backcourt, Ibaka temporarily moved to center, and I Tang Thomas played power forward after coming on. This lineup's offense mainly relied on Kayce's individual ability; he had to go all out on offense as soon as he stepped on the court.
After the second quarter began, the Thunder attacked. It was still Ibaka's back screen. When Kayce popped out, the Hornets' attention was all on Kayce. Ibaka rolled to the basket, received Menor's pass, and easily slammed it down with one hand!
"Clang!" The roll to the basket resulted in a dunk.
The Hornets attacked. After Marcus Thornton brought the ball past half-court, he first passed the ball continuously with his teammates on the perimeter to attract the Thunder's defensive attention. After Okafor and Songaila set a cross-screen under the basket, he immediately passed the ball to Okafor, who had successfully established position.
Facing Etan Thomas's defense, the latter held the ball in his right hand, took a big step up the baseline, then executed a direct spin move, confidently hooking the shot with his left hand.
"Swish!" The two points under the basket went in steadily.
Kayce saw that even Okafor, a defensive center, was starting to show off his low-post offense and knew that the opponent must be playing well, able to execute various technical moves.
After Menor brought the ball past half-court, both of the Thunder's big men moved to the elbow to set a screen. Kayce cut horizontally from the right side to the left side, 45 degrees out from the three-point line. After receiving the pass, he faced Songaila, who had switched onto him.
After a triple threat, he quickly put the ball down with his left hand, faking a drive. Feeling the opponent's defensive Center of Gravity shift, he twisted his body, changed direction between his legs, and accelerated with the ball in his right hand. Seeing Okafor already retreated to the basket, he pulled up for a mid-range jump shot.
"Swish!" The two-point shot went in steadily.
Although the shot went in, Kayce felt increasingly uneasy. The opponent was gambling that Ibaka's mid-range shot would be inaccurate, directly giving up that area. All their defense was concentrated in the paint, strictly preventing the Thunder's drives and facilitating offensive rebounds.
In the next few minutes, the Hornets defended on the perimeter, stepping on the three-point line, while Okafor and Songaila completely collapsed into the paint, focusing entirely on rebounding. Although Ibaka and Etan Thomas made a few mid-range shots, this still couldn't change the opponent's defensive strategy.
Kayce made all three of his shots and dished out three assists, but he couldn't narrow the score difference because the Hornets' continuous interior attacks also had a very high shooting percentage, even causing Ibaka's third foul.
With 6 minutes and 16 seconds left in the second quarter, Coach Brooks called a timeout. He had to let Kayce and Ibaka rest; the third quarter was the decisive moment.
When Durant and Russell came on, the Hornets' defense changed again. They started to double-team Durant at appropriate times.
If the Thunder's record was poor, many teams might not want to lose face, as double-teaming a rookie was indeed a bit excessive. But now, no one would consider such things. Western Conference First Seed? We must take you down.
Since the Thunder currently only had Russell who could distribute the ball, but he was having a terrible shooting night, double-teaming Durant to force him to pass sometimes had a good effect. After all, Durant was not Kayce, and he had difficulty passing out of double-teams.
In the latter half of the second quarter, the Thunder's offense became increasingly inefficient. At halftime, it was 50-44, with the Hornets taking a 6-point lead into the second half.
During halftime, in the Thunder's locker room, Durant slumped into his seat, angrily muttering under his breath:
"F***! We're getting double-teamed again in the regular season. Do the Hornets think this is the Playoffs?"
"Maybe they just want to step on the Western Conference's top team. The media and commentators would love to see something like that happen. Sorry, guys, I was shooting terribly in the first half."
Russell had already roughly guessed the opponent's thoughts. He knew that many teams were actually jealous of the Thunder.
A good record brings exposure, exposure brings attention, attention brings fans, and more fans mean more money. To put it bluntly, it was all about the greenbacks.
"Alright, no complaining. In the second half, we're going to make some personnel adjustments. Thabo Sefolosha, you'll start the second half. Small-ball lineup, we're going to completely open up the offensive space on the court!"
"When opportunities arise, shoot decisively, speed up the offensive pace, and protect the rebounds. Guys, this is just a regular-season game. Even if we lose, we're still the Western Conference's top team because the Lakers also lost."
Coach Brooks felt that if the game continued this way, they would likely lose. He decided to boldly change the lineup, treating a loss as an opportunity to refine tactics.
"We still have a two-game lead. Come on, guys, shoot boldly. Oklahoma City fans are watching us. Serge, don't be discouraged. You're just a rookie. Even if we lose, the media will definitely criticize Kevin after the game."
Kayce also tried to motivate his teammates. As long as they weren't afraid to shoot, everything would be fine.
"Haha, you're right. If we play badly, Kevin will take the blame."
"Who told him he's already a third-year player? We can't blame Kayce and Russell, can we?"
"Guys, thinking about it this way, I suddenly feel a lot less pressure."
Upon hearing Kayce's words, the Thunder players thought about it carefully and realized it made a lot of sense. Third-year Durant might become an All-Star this season, so if they lost now, he would definitely be the scapegoat.
Durant was a bit confused by his teammates' teasing, but he quickly realized that if they lost, he would indeed be the scapegoat. He couldn't help but laugh and curse:
"Oh! Sh*t! I really don't want to see the ridiculous opinions published by those damn media. We will definitely win this game!"
After the second half began, Thabo Sefolosha immediately sank to the left corner, Durant went to the right corner, and Russell brought the ball past half-court. Kayce first set a wall-screen for Ibaka. When Ibaka came up to screen, Kayce quickly popped out.
The Hornets were naturally prepared. Before Kayce could receive the ball, David West stepped forward to interfere, while Peja quickly moved towards the corner. But Kayce didn't stop the ball after receiving it; he immediately made a bounce pass to Durant, who was cutting to the basket.
Durant moved up the baseline then suddenly cut, a simple fake move that shook off Peja's defense. Coupled with Kayce's timely pass, he cut in and slammed it down with one hand!
"Clang!" An easy dunk.
"Ah!!! Oh!"
The Ford Center erupted in a huge cheer. The team had been playing very passively, and the audience's mood was not high. Only after Durant's dunk did the home atmosphere truly ignite.
After Chris Paul brought the ball past half-court, he noticed that the defender in front of him had changed to Kayce, and he couldn't help but frown.
Kayce lowered his center of gravity, revealing determined eyes, and pulled up his shorts with both hands, adopting a stance of full-force defense: Let me see what you've got!
Paul quickly experienced the difficulty of Kayce's defense. He was very agile in getting through screens, consistently using his height to cover him tightly. Most importantly, he found that Kayce rarely fell for fakes.
The combination of Defensive Expert and Ankle Guard allowed Kayce to rarely lose his defensive balance, while the Perpetual Motion Defender allowed him to defend with full effort without overly worrying about energy depletion.
Paul tried several crossover dribbles and in-and-out moves but consistently failed to shake off Kayce's defense. Additionally, Kayce's long arms constantly interfered with him, making it very difficult for him to get a comfortable shooting opportunity.
Noticing that there wasn't much time left on the shot clock, Chris Paul decided to use his speed to drive. If that didn't work, he could always draw a foul and get to the free-throw line.
But his plan was good in theory; in practice, he found Ibaka's help defense too fast. As soon as Chris Paul shot, Ibaka, who had come over for help defense, delivered a pin-down block. After Kayce secured the defensive rebound, he passed it to Russell.
The latter, after receiving the ball, accelerated at full speed, sprinting towards the opponent's basket, easily making it a 1-on-0 situation in the frontcourt. An excited Russell performed a tomahawk dunk!
"Clang!" The fast-break dunk was successful.
The Hornets quickly inbounded the ball, and Chris Paul dribbled past half-court again. Seeing Kayce defending him, he suddenly smiled and said,
"Good defensive skills, but basketball is a five-player game. You're using your cleverness in the wrong place."
After saying this, Chris Paul didn't wait for Kayce's response. After a pick-and-roll with Okafor, he quickly passed the ball to Okafor, who then made a turnaround hook shot.
"Swish!" The two points in the paint went in.
Kayce felt quite helpless seeing Chris Paul run off after showing off. This guy was too cunning and didn't give him a chance to trash talk.
During the Thunder's offense, Russell and Durant's continuous drives and passes moved the Hornets' defense. Kayce, after receiving the pass outside the three-point line, shot quickly without hesitation.
"Swish!" The three-pointer went in steadily.
This was the terrifying aspect of the Thunder's lineup. Although Russell had a bad night, all five players on the court currently had long-range shooting ability. The offense usually started with a high pick-and-roll outside the three-point line, and if there was no opportunity, they would look for screens and run plays.
Kayce constantly gestured and directed traffic on the court. Although he sometimes didn't have the ball, he was the one controlling the offensive rhythm on the court.
Kayce continuously shouted instructions on the court about what plays to run and how his teammates should move.
"Russell, baseline, move! Receive the screen, Sefolosha, top of the arc."
On this Thunder possession, Kayce and Russell executed a fake hand-off. As Russell ran up, Kayce suddenly accelerated with the ball in his right hand and drove past Peja, who couldn't keep up and could only watch Kayce drive to the paint and perform a one-handed dunk.
"Clang!" The Thunder's offense became increasingly fluid.
In the third quarter, both teams engaged in an offensive battle. The Thunder also tied the score, and the two teams began to alternate leads, which made the audience at Ford Center scream with excitement. The offense was indeed too good to watch; defense wasn't important.
This lineup indeed found it difficult to limit the Hornets' low-post offense. Asking Durant, with his slender build, to guard David West was basically giving away points.
Although they couldn't hold the paint, Kayce completely shut down Chris Paul. After consecutive misses, Chris Paul no longer forced his offense. When Kayce pestered him, he immediately passed the ball, constantly feeding it to the low post.
This also made Kayce somewhat helpless. Chris Paul was not Kobe. Although his playstyle leaned towards a combo guard, at heart, Chris Paul was still a traditional point guard. He had a clear understanding of the game situation and would not easily get emotional.
Seeing Chris Paul pass the ball again, Kayce couldn't help but tease, "Are you really not going to try to blow past me, a rookie? Maybe after the game, the media will say an All-Star guard was locked down by a rookie."
"I don't like matching up against athletic forwards. Most importantly, I know how to win. You see, David can score easily."
After saying this, Chris Paul smiled and ran back on defense, because David West had again easily put the ball into the basket from the low post.
"Shit!"
Durant was pushed aside by David West in the low post. After watching his opponent easily make a layup, he couldn't help but curse under his breath. He truly couldn't defend against the opponent's strong low-post offense, and he felt his stamina rapidly declining.
By the end of the third quarter, both teams were tied at 74. Although the Thunder's defense was not good, their offense was indeed sharp. If Chris Paul hadn't consistently controlled the pace of the game, the Thunder's score would have been even higher.
During the break between quarters, Durant was breathing heavily. He had expended a huge amount of energy on both offense and defense in this quarter, and he had to rest in the fourth quarter.
"Guys, hang in there, one more quarter. Maintain our offensive rhythm!"
Coach Brooks continued to give a motivational speech, still with a short rotation. He had already seen the hope of victory, and at this point, it was a battle of willpower and physical endurance.
But once the fourth quarter began, the Hornets first intensified their efforts on offensive rebounds, not giving the Thunder opportunities for transition offense. For the first three minutes, both teams were in a stalemate. After Durant came on, the Hornets launched a decisive run.
With his stamina depleted, Durant couldn't score on offense or defend on defense. After two consecutive misses, the Hornets seized the opportunity for a fast break. Peja made consecutive three-pointers, and after Kayce also angrily missed a shot, the Hornets settled into their half-court offense, and David West scored again in the low post.
This 8-0 run also sealed the game. Chris Paul began to steadily control the pace of the game, and the Thunder's few attempts at a comeback were unsuccessful.
Finally, the game clock ran out, with the Hornets defeating the Thunder 100-94 on the road, continuing their winning streak.
Although they lost at home, the audience at Ford Center remained enthusiastic, continuing to cheer for the home team after the game.
Oklahoma City fans knew the team was affected by injuries, and they didn't really care about the outcome of the game. As long as they saw the players working hard on the court, they were satisfied.
After the game, Chris Paul initiative approached Kayce, initiating a friendly exchange of compliments.
"You're even better than I imagined, Kayce. I really want to play with you if I get the chance!"
"Wow! I'm looking forward to that day too. You really taught me a lesson today. Your control over the game's rhythm is indescribable. I'll continue to learn from you!"
Kayce also said pleasant things, praising him heartily, adding another member to the 'Superficial Brotherhood Alliance'.
In the Thunder's locker room, everyone's mood was still good. After all, even after losing, the team was still first in the Western Conference; they could afford to lose!
Durant, however, was a bit dejected. He shot 1-for-5 in the fourth quarter, directly costing them the game. At least three of those were open opportunities, but he missed all of them. Although he still scored 30 points in this game, the regrettable loss still made him blame himself.
"Guys, do you have any ways to quickly improve stamina?"
Seeing Russell, who was still lively and jumping around, and noticing the energetic Kayce, Durant asked pointedly.
"Kevin, excellent stamina is also a talent. We've discussed this before. You really aren't as good as Kayce and Russell."
Jeff Green didn't notice Durant's expression and blurted out the truth.
"Your stamina is already great, Kevin. The loss is indeed my fault. I failed to protect the rebounds in this game. Ibaka, you don't need to blame yourself either. No one expects a rookie to carry the team's interior."
Veteran Nick Collison took responsibility. Ibaka had already played very well, and he wouldn't let a rookie take the blame.
"Losing in the regular season is normal. Staying healthy is the most important thing. I suggest everyone read fewer news reports after the game; you all know what I mean!"
Kayce still maintained a normal mindset. In this game, he had 24 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, and 2 turnovers, playing very efficiently. In the fourth quarter, the team's offensive core was Durant, and he really had good opportunities; he just didn't make the shots.
He felt that this way of losing was acceptable, treating it as a tactical adjustment, after all, there were still many regular-season games left.
"Kayce is right. We still have three days of rest after this. Playing at home is comfortable. Nina recently wants to host a cake party. Lately, a group of them have become obsessed with making cakes. Everyone come to my house tomorrow night; I guarantee there will be many beautiful single girls!"
Russell indeed had a bad night, scoring 15 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 turnovers. Although the stats were decent, he was consistently given a large defensive gap by Chris Paul on the court, and his offense was truly lacking.
"I love cake parties!" "Yay, I want to bring my girlfriend!" "Maybe we can have another late-night party afterward!"
Kayce secretly nodded as he saw that everyone was no longer worried about gains and losses after the defeat.
"This is the mentality of a strong team. The Thunder are finally slowly transforming!"
Kayce still underestimated the influence of being the Western Conference's top team. Other teams, seeing the Hornets win, also became energized, especially teams with star big men. They couldn't wait to face the Thunder early and capitalize on this opportunity.
For example, David Lee of the New York Knicks was overjoyed after seeing the reports of the Thunder's loss:
"Is this God guiding me? All-Star voting is about to close, playing against the Western Conference's top team, with their big men injured—this is a blessing from heaven for me!"
David Lee was already looking forward to the away game on the 11th.
Before David Lee's anticipation, Roy Hibbert of the Indiana Pacers was already eager, even confidently speaking before the game to rally votes for himself:
"Yes, that's right, I am the best center in the Eastern Conference, guys, vote for me! Next game, we face the Western Conference's top team, the Thunder, and I will show my dominance!"
Kayce felt a bit speechless after seeing such boring reports:
"Does he really think he's a young Shaquille O'Neal?"