stonecrandall Chapter 360 A decisive blow? A counter-decisive blow? No, it's a counter-counter-decisive blow!
Chapter 360 A decisive blow? A counter-decisive blow? No, it's a counter-counter-decisive blow!
The sight of Kobe Bryant playing with his superior skills and Shaquille O'Neal practicing his free throws simultaneously in front of Lin Tian didn't frighten or intimidate him. On the contrary, Lin Tian was completely excited!
Come on! Let's do it!
It's just Rational Science and Diligent Shark!
I, Laozi, am the king of divine beasts, how could I be afraid of the two of you?
As the timeout ended, Lin Tian barely listened to Carlisle's tactical instructions. He had been inspired by Kobe and Shaq and was completely in the zone!
Back on the court, the Pacers substituted Miller for Carter, who was in poor form and had only scored 4 points on 1-of-9 shooting so far. The other four players were their starters for tonight.
The Lakers made no substitutions and kept their five starters on the court!
The Pacers inbounded the ball, and Lin Tian caught it, standing at the top of the key. He gestured to everyone not to rush, to spread out and take it slow!
Lin Tian's current defender is still Fisher, who is completely unable to stop him.
So Lin Tian still didn't call for a screen. Instead, he dribbled the ball while observing the Lakers' defense. After seeing that no one was coming to help, Lin Tian used a crossover to easily get past Fisher again. At the same time, he pushed Fisher with his shoulder, making him stumble. Then Fisher was completely shaken off by Lin Tian!
Then Lin Tian stepped into the three-point line and, before anyone could react, pulled up and shot a long two-pointer that flew toward the basket!
"Whoosh!"
With a crisp sound, Lin Tian scored the crucial 2 points using what is theoretically the least efficient, least profitable, and most risky method on a basketball court!
1 minute and 45 seconds left!
The Lakers passed the ball to Rice, who was being guarded by Miller, currently the Pacers' worst defender. So the Lakers opted to let Rice dribble across half-court to increase their success rate.
After Rice arrived in the frontcourt, the rest of the players quickly spread out, giving Rice and O'Neal another local two-on-two opportunity! The Lakers have been using this tactic all night, and it has been their killer move all season. In fact, it is O'Neal and his teammates' local two-on-two opportunities!
It's about using strong individual abilities to simply and directly destroy all so-called tactical systems!
The ball came into O'Neal's hands, and the Pacers spread out again, with no one coming up to help defend!
There's no way around it, the Lakers' three-point shooting is just too accurate tonight! Carlisle would rather bet on O'Neal missing a free throw than gamble on any of the other players' three-pointers!
Yes! I bet O'Neal will miss his free throw!
Carlisle gave Ben Affleck a death order.
"You can't stop him, you can let him push you aside, but you can't let him score directly! Even if you have to pull him, drag Shaq to the free-throw line!"
Ben was somewhat displeased with Carlisle's orders!
Lao Tzu, Ben Wallace, can't defend Shaquille O'Neal?
Yes, he did have 40 points and 19 rebounds tonight, and his shooting percentage was indeed as high as 60%, but I did block his shots twice!
If you can get two hats, then you can get a third!
On this shot, Ben Wallace was really going all out!
Despite O'Neal's elbow hitting him twice in the chest, this guy just went for it and fought to the death!
O'Neal exerted himself repeatedly, but he just couldn't get into the paint!
But O'Neal himself wasn't in a hurry at all!
The reason he has been able to dominate the league for so many years is not just because of his invincible physique! In addition to his physique, his various center skills, such as turning, hook shot, footwork, finishing and even agility, are also among the best in the league!
It's just that those things were completely concealed by his terrifying power and talent!
At this moment, O'Neal displayed his solid footwork!
With two consecutive half-turns, O'Neal tricked Ben Wallace out of his balance, then swung his elbow again with force, and after a 360-degree turn towards the baseline, he was in the three-second zone, completely blocking Wallace behind him. O'Neal then rose up, ready to finish the Pacers off with a powerful two-handed dunk!
But just as he pulled it up, he suddenly felt a tremendous force coming from behind him!
Big Ben actually caught up!
This guy jumped up from behind O'Neal and, risking everything, slapped the basketball between O'Neal's hands from behind his head!
Well, here's a rule to clarify: a back-hook is not itself a foul, it's just that the gesture itself is prone to being a foul.
Similarly, apart from some local football fields in China, there are no similar fouls like "jumping" in major professional leagues around the world.
In short, the referee didn't blow the whistle after Ben Wallace's slap! The basketball was sent flying by Ben Wallace's blow, soaring over the rim and landing on the other side.
Webber reacted the fastest and also observed his teammates' movements. He jumped high, not intending to catch the basketball at all. He slammed the basketball down in mid-air, changing its trajectory and sending it flying towards the three-point line!
Christie grabbed the basketball and threw it towards the frontcourt again. In the blink of an eye, the basketball crossed half-court, and the only person who crossed half-court with the basketball was Lin Tian, the fastest player on the court!
The rest of Fisher, Kobe, Rice, and others could only chase after Lin Tian in vain!
"boom!"
Three seconds later, a loud bang was heard, and Lin Tian slammed the ball in again, scoring 4 points in a row and narrowing the gap in the game to only 1 point!
With 1 minute and 20 seconds left in the game!
The Pacers' chance has returned!
At this moment, as usual, Jackson did not call a timeout. He simply blew a whistle from the sidelines and then pressed his hands down to signal everyone to calm down and not to rush.
As expected, the Lakers' offense continued until the last 7 seconds before handing the ball to O'Neal. This time, the Pacers made a decisive change. Christie rushed to help defend, and O'Neal immediately passed the ball to Kobe. Kobe then passed it to Rice, who then passed it to Fisher in the corner!
After a series of passes, Fisher, who hit three three-pointers tonight with a 60% three-point shooting percentage, got an open shot!
Even though Lin Tian chased after him desperately, it was too late. He could only watch as Fisher easily threw the ball!
The entire Staples Center fell silent. The fans watched the ball, carrying their boundless hopes, fly towards the basket, and then couldn't help but close their eyes.
A muffled thud rang out; the Lakers had failed to seal the victory!
Ben Wallace grabbed the rebound, then quickly passed the ball to Christie, who then dribbled the ball himself.
After driving all the way to the frontcourt, he was about to stop and look for his teammates when Rice didn't give him the chance. This shooter, who had never been good at defense throughout his career, suddenly increased his defensive intensity, closely guarding Christie and successfully stealing the ball from his hands!
Then the ball was passed to Kobe in the frontcourt. After receiving the ball, Kobe once again did not choose to force a shot, but passed the ball to Jermaine O'Neal, who had been completely left out by the Pacers.
Jermaine O'Neal, positioned on the baseline, was in his most comfortable and dominant scoring zone. After receiving the ball, he glanced at it briefly before immediately jumping and shooting!
"Bang!"
Another dull thud, and the basketball still missed!
The rebound was now in the hands of Christie, who had just made a mistake and was now desperately chasing back!
After his previous mistake, Christie remained calm and passed the ball to Lin Tian, letting him solve the problem!
"No rush! We'll take the lead with this ball!" Lin Tian slowly advanced while raising his hand, signaling to his teammates to relax and just keep their distance!
With 40 seconds left, the Pacers launched their attack!
119: 120!
Although trailing by one point, the Pacers, like the Lakers, did not rush to attack. Instead, they waited for their players to get into position. The numerous tough battles they had experienced in the past few years gave the Pacers a lot of confidence and they were extremely confident!
It's only a one-point deficit!
There's still about a minute left, what's the rush!
Lin Tian waited until there were 5 seconds left on the shot clock before suddenly starting his breakthrough, getting past Fisher again. But this time, the Lakers' help defense arrived extremely quickly!
Kobe, who was originally watching Christie, immediately retreated and went to help defend Lin Tian.
Lin Tian deliberately hesitated near the three-point line, and then he saw the biggest open shot on the court!
Reggie Miller in the bottom corner!
Rice, who was originally guarding Miller, chose to help Kobe cover Christie at this moment.
Normally, this choice is absolutely correct, because almost no one can pass the ball directly to Miller on the baseline from the top of the key, across half the court and three Lakers players. Normally, you would pass the ball to Christie first and let him handle it!
But that would undoubtedly add an extra passing step, enough for Jermaine O'Neal to rush over and fill the gap.
But who is Lin Tian? He's the greatest point guard of all time!
He made a direct one-handed pass, and the basketball slid at a very low height, passing Kobe and Fisher, and also passing Jermaine O'Neal, flying straight towards Miller on the baseline.
What's even more amazing is that Lin Tian also gave this shot a very wonderful arc. The basketball was only about a meter away from the ground at first, but when it flew to Miller, the basketball was already in front of Miller's chest!
Miller received the basketball with ease, and without even adjusting or bending over, he simply bent his knees and jumped, throwing the ball cleanly and crisply before anyone could arrive!
"Whoosh!"
After a crisp sound, the Pacers, who had been dominated by the Lakers for the entire second half, finally took the lead!
122: 120!
The Pacers are leading by 2 points!
There are 17 seconds left in the fourth quarter!
"Here he comes! Reggie! Here he comes!" Barkley roared excitedly, "A true clutch shooter! A cold-blooded assassin! Reggie did it again! A game-winning shot! Reggie's game-winning shot has pushed the Lakers to the brink of elimination!"
"Let's see how the Lakers respond!"
This time, Jackson wasn't overconfident. He called a timeout to carefully plan his tactics. After all, this might be the Lakers' last offensive possession of the game!
As for the Pacers, Carlisle was also busy strategizing at this time:
"Ben, El, Vince, Doug, and Lin! You five go up and defend!"
"This possession, you absolutely must defend it! Like I said, don't foul them on mid-range or long-range shots, let them shoot! If they drive to the basket, shut them down completely! I can accept fouls under the basket, I can accept them taking difficult mid-range or long-range shots!"
"But I can't accept a 2+1, I can't accept an open shot! Understand? Everyone, get your act together and defend the last possession! Then we'll go back and have a celebration party!"
After the timeout, the Pacers made two substitutions, making their lineup stronger and taller, while also significantly improving their defensive capabilities.
The Lakers only made one change.
Robert Horry, nicknamed "Lucky Koi," replaced Jermaine O'Neal.
Jackson added an absolute spacing point for the Lakers at this point.
"Jackson's lineup is really impressive! All four of them on the perimeter have top-notch shooting skills and clutch generosity. If you give them the ball, none of them will hesitate!"
Kenny analyzed the Lakers' roster, saying, "With such a lineup that maximizes spacing, O'Neal will have an absolutely enormous amount of space under the basket! If he were to take a one-on-one shot, his success rate would be extremely high!"
Barkley said, "That's right! This Lakers lineup will be very difficult to defend. Anyone can shoot and finish, anyone can be the one to deliver the fatal blow! Let's see how Jackson sets up his defense!"
The whistle blew, and the game continued!
It was Jackson's signature Starburst offense that started the game. After a series of runs and screens, Kobe received the ball at the top of the key and then waved for everyone to spread out!
Then, just when many people thought that this was Kobe's game-winning shot, he suddenly passed the ball!
The basketball flew into O'Neal's hands in the paint! There were 8 seconds left in the game!
Then, instead of dribbling the ball for a one-on-one, O'Neal suddenly slammed the ball into the empty space to his side.
As the basketball bounced up again, Kobe had already driven in! He used his off-ball skills and O'Neal's strong gravity to fool Christie, successfully cut to the basket, got the ball O'Neal passed to him, and then pulled up for a powerful two-handed dunk!
"boom!"
After a crisp crack, the Staples Center, which had been completely silent as if Miller had muted it, erupted in cheers! A huge roar of shouts and cheers resounded throughout the entire stadium!
"Phil's tactic was brilliant!" Kenny couldn't help but analyze, "Kobe had the ball, which allowed everyone to spread out and also stalled for a lot of time."
Just when everyone thought Kobe was about to finish the game, he passed the ball to Shaq. Shaq didn't go one-on-one; instead, he set up Kobe for the final shot!
"The constant shifts in the main offensive focus of this tactic are indeed very deceptive! No wonder even Christie, one of the league's top defensive experts, couldn't keep up with Kobe and was completely outmaneuvered!"
Barkley said, "But the Lakers still left the Pacers with 3.2 seconds! And the score is now tied!"
"Will it be a game-winner or overtime? Or can the Lakers pull off a miracle, completing an offensive and defensive play in 3.2 seconds?"
"Lin! It's definitely Lin!" Jackson declared firmly from the sidelines, "The Pacers will absolutely give the ball to Lin! Kobe, you're in charge of guarding Lin, and the rest of you, stick to your men! As long as you don't leave your man open, as long as you don't lose focus and create an open shot, then this ball will definitely be Lin's finisher!"
As Jackson spoke, he clapped his hands again and said, "I'll say it again, get your spirits up! Give it your all! Don't let anyone slip through, keep an eye on your own men! And Kobe, take down Lin!"
"I won't give him any chance to shoot!" Kobe declared confidently. "I'll shut down every angle he can shoot from!"
On the Pacers' side, Carlisle took out his clipboard and drew on it repeatedly, but he was still unsure what kind of play to execute!
Two points? Three points? Draw a foul? Should the ball be passed directly to the key player, or should it be passed around a bit more to fool the Lakers' defense?
Should we give the ball to Lin Tian to solve the problem, or let Lin Tian make a feint attack while the others look for opportunities?
After all, it was his first year as head coach and his first time playing in the Finals! Even though Carlisle was a genius coach, full of talent, he was still a little nervous when it came to this moment!
"Leave it to me, Rick!" Lin Tian's voice suddenly rang out. He snatched the clipboard from Carlisle's hand and said, "Everyone, set a screen for me. I'll make a run into space. Then, Chris, you pass me the inbound pass, and then..."
"I'm going to unleash a super jump shot and end the Lakers' game!"
"Let's go, get on the field!"
After saying this very simply, Lin Tian turned around and walked straight towards the court!
Carlisle knew this was a one-off play, so he stopped hesitating and said directly, "Chris inbounds the ball. Ben and Brad, you two go up and screen for Lin! Reggie, you go to the far corner and draw at least one of their defenders' attention!"
"Then, give the ball to Lin, and he'll bring us a victory! It's that simple!"
The Pacers players all nodded in agreement.
Then the four people who were called followed Lin Tian's steps and walked onto the court together!
With Lin Tian around, they will always be incredibly confident!
They had absolute faith in Lin Tian!
I believe he can handle any problem!
Even if the score is tied now, and Lin Tian misses his shot, the two teams can still go into overtime! Even if the Pacers are down by 2 points now, Miller and Webber can still completely trust Lin Tian!
Lin Tian is the miracle itself!
As the timeout ended, all ten players from both sides went onto the court. Kobe stood in front of Lin Tian without hesitation, his eyes flashing coldly, without saying a word. He had made all the preparations!
"beep!"
With a whistle, the referee gave the ball to Webber.
Webber received the ball and began to observe, while all ten players from both sides began to run at top speed.
With the help of Ben Wallace and Reggie Miller, Lin Tian initially sprinted towards the baseline. However, just as Kobe was close behind him, he suddenly made a reverse run, bursting out from the right 45-degree angle. Webber didn't hesitate and seized the opportunity to pass the ball to Lin Tian.
Lin Tian received the ball at a 45-degree angle on the right side. He first used a feint to move his upper body towards the inside to slightly deceive Kobe's center of gravity. Then he immediately started dribbling along the three-point line. Kobe's defense was almost perfect. He spread his arms and locked all of Lin Tian's offensive space.
He caught up with Lin Tian!
After Lin Tian dribbled three times in a row, he was still outside the three-point line, where Kobe was sticking to him tightly.
Just as Lin Tian reached the top of the arc, he knew he couldn't wait any longer!
Even though he hadn't shaken off Kobe at all, Lin Tian still caught the ball and jumped!
He used a somewhat awkward posture, and his body wasn't even fully turned to face the basket!
Kobe jumped right after Lin Tian. His taller stature and longer wingspan allowed Kobe's arms to completely block Lin Tian's shooting angle and also obstruct his view, completely blocking Lin Tian's view.
"Got it!" Kobe was overjoyed; he knew he had done it! With this level of defense, even if Lin Tian were a god, he couldn't see the rim right now! He could only shoot randomly based on his instincts!
In other words, Lin Tian can only guess one of these balls!
Lin Tian forcibly twisted his body in mid-air. Although there was nothing but darkness in front of him and he couldn't even see the basketball hoop, Lin Tian did not hesitate or feel afraid. He adopted a posture similar to riding a horse and shooting an arrow, increased the arc to avoid Kobe's block, and increased the power so that the basketball could fly to the hoop.
Then, with a flick of his wrist, the basketball bypassed Kobe's fingertips and flew straight toward the basket!
There were still 0.5 seconds left before Lin Tian made his move!
If this ball goes in, it will be absolutely valid, and it will be an absolute game-winner!
While Kobe was still in the air, he turned around to look at the result of the shot. For some reason, Kobe, who had just been confident that he had completely defended Lin Tian's shot, had a bad feeling.
"Bang!"
The basketball hit the backboard.
"Whoosh!"
Then, the basketball bounced and fell straight into the basket!
Time had already come to an end when the basketball was still flying in mid-air!
The whistle blows, the ball goes in; the light comes on, and the game is won!
An absolute game-winning shot!
The Lakers have no chance to mount a comeback!
125: 122!
"A game-winning shot! A true game-winning shot! An absolute game-winning shot! The Lakers have lost Game 1 of the Finals!"
The moment the ball went in, Barkley immediately cheered wildly!
"Even if they dominated the entire second half, even if they almost won the game, the Pacers have Lin!"
"Where there's Lin, there's a miracle! Congratulations to Indiana for winning Game 1 of the Finals!"
"Finals score 1-0!"
Kenny quickly added, "A stunning play! Absolutely stunning! Kobe's defense was phenomenal! If Kobe had been just a tiny bit more aggressive, it would have been a foul! Kobe defended to the best of his ability without committing a foul!"
"Anyone could come! Anyone! No matter who came here, they couldn't defend better or more perfectly than Kobe! But Lin just made it! He did it! He just hit it!"
"He hit that incredible game-winning shot when the opponent's defense was perfectly in place! This shot will go down in history! For the next 10 or even 30 years, we will see this again and again, and we will be amazed by Lin's incredible clutch performance every time!"
While the two commentators were praising him wildly, Lin Tian, after scoring the goal, hopped back to his bench, raised his hands, and had a stern expression!
Cool!
That was an amazing goal!
Lin Tian's teammates came forward one by one to hug him, celebrating the hard-won victory and Lin Tian's incredible goal that will go down in history!
An absolutely perfect finishing move!
The Indians celebrated amidst the lamentation and despair throughout Staples!
They won!
The Lakers did their absolute best in this game! They couldn't have done any better!
奥尼尔今晚23投13中，22罚14中拿下40分19个篮板6次盖帽4次助攻的完美数据，他的搭档科比拿下26分15次助攻，并且锁死了卡特，让卡特只拿到了4分！
另外莱斯靠着第三节那一段连续的11分，全场比赛命中5个3分，拿到21分，小奥尼尔则拿到17分7个篮板2次盖帽，首发中唯一得分不上双的费舍尔，3分球也5投3中拿下9分！
All five key players performed exceptionally well, maintaining the Lakers' lead for 99% of the second half, yet the Lakers still lost!
Because the Pacers played better!
The Pacers' number one hero in tonight's victory was, of course, Lin Tian!
今晚的林天全场28投12中，其中3分球9投4中，罚球22罚20中，爆砍48分11助攻9篮板4抢断3盖帽的漂亮数据！
Although his shooting percentage was less than 50%, in the third quarter when both the team and he were having a very bad shooting night, he helped the team stay close in the score and lock the point difference with his repeated breakthroughs and crazy performances of throwing himself into the air, thus keeping the team's chances of winning alive!
In the final moments of the fourth quarter, Lin Tian single-handedly shouldered the responsibility of leading the team to a comeback, demonstrating his versatility in everything from passing to scoring!
Tonight, Lin Tian proved once again that he is the best player in the league and the most deserving of the MVP award!
Besides Lin Tian, Pacers' Webber nearly achieved a triple-double with 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists. Although Ben Wallace only scored 6 points, he grabbed 15 rebounds and delivered 6 blocks! Three of those blocks were directly against Shaquille O'Neal!
From this game onwards, everyone will consider Ben Wallace to be among the league's top defensive centers!
Miller also scored 21 points off the bench tonight, Christie had 11 points, and Harrington had 10 points and 5 rebounds!
The Pacers, with five players scoring in double figures, gave it their all tonight, giving everything they could!
Tonight's Pacers deserve the title of defending champions, and they live up to their ambitions!
Only by delivering performances like this can a team be qualified to build a brand new dynasty!
The Pacers are just three wins away from their initial goal of winning three championships in four years!
After that night, Lin Tian's performance, O'Neal's performance, and the performance of both teams were naturally mentioned again and again by fans and the media.
"40+19 wasn't enough to save the team; what else does Shaquille O'Neal need to do to become a true MVP?"
《48+11+9VS40+19！林天和奥尼尔今晚谁更优秀？》
"Los Angeles players missed crucial shots, Jermaine O'Neal and Derek Fisher squandered a winning opportunity!"
Who will pay for the Lakers' loss? Jackson: I will!
"Kobe Bryant as a perfect point guard: When the Lakers struggle to win even with Kobe's passing, should his shot attempts be increased?"
Excellent team performance! A seemingly perfect defeat?
A last-second game-winner? A last-second game-winner! A last-second game-winner! The tide turns in the final 40 seconds as both teams trade brilliant clutch shots!
Lakers suffer a poor start, losing their first home game; could the Pacers secure the victory within five games?
Various reports emerged after the first game, but the most discussed topic was Lin Tian's incredible game-winning shot!
"Extremely frustrated! Rumors suggest Kobe Bryant smashed up the entire locker room after the game!"
The Lakers are in dire straits after suffering a heartbreaking buzzer-beater loss, leaving the entire team demoralized!
Photos from the scene: The magician's face is filled with terror at the moment Lin Tian makes his game-winning shot!
"Life is meaningless! West closes his eyes, unable to believe his team was defeated by Lin Tian's last-second shot!"
Barkley: This was a top-three game-winner in history!
Kenny: This is the most incredible game-winning shot I've ever seen in my career!
Jackson: I coached Lin for two years, and I know he can do a lot, but this shot was beyond my expectations!
Kobe has pushed his defense to the limit! Slow-motion replays show Kobe has cornered Lin!
How else can you defend against it? After the basketball went in, Jermaine O'Neal looked utterly hopeless and bewildered!
The shot that laid the foundation for the Indiana dynasty! Who will beat the Pacers in this series?
"A Glimpse into the World of Staples Center: After Lin Tian's Game-Winning Shot, Entire Los Angeles Falls into Silence!"
Reports and photographs, from various angles, repeatedly brought up Lin Tian's goal and analyzed it from all aspects.
Whether you like Lin Tian or not, whether you support the Lakers or the Pacers, everyone has to admit that Lin Tian's shot was truly spectacular!
Even in the entire history of the NBA, this shot truly deserves everyone's praise in terms of its brilliance, difficulty, and importance!
As Barkley said: This shot really ranks in the top three in history!
After the game, Bird and Carlisle were perhaps the calmest and most composed people on the entire Pacers team; at least, that's how they appeared to be.
For example, after the team returned to the locker room, they celebrated for less than 5 minutes before Bird interrupted them, signaling everyone to change clothes, take a shower, and then follow him.
Many players thought Bird was going to show his sportsmanship and have a big party, but instead, Bird had the bus take the whole team back to the hotel. Then, he and Carlisle issued another strict curfew order to the team.
This time, Carlisle made it clear: the curfew will be in effect until the end of the final game of the Finals! Until then, no one is allowed to go out for fun, nor are they allowed to bring anyone into their rooms for fun!
Because Carlisle and Bird knew very well.
They did win the first game, but it was a very lucky and difficult victory. Their away game in Los Angeles wasn't over yet, and they didn't have home-court advantage.
Under the 2-3-2 format of the Finals, even if the team wins the first game, as long as the Lakers can drag the series to more than 5 games, the last two games of the series will be played at the Lakers' home court. This will be extremely difficult for the Pacers!
Therefore, Bird will not relax, and the cautious Carlisle will not relax either!
The two of them will set an example and make the entire Pacers team play this series quietly and obediently!
Even as many were feeling resentful and contemplating sneaking out under the cover of darkness, Bird declared, "Don't think it's only 1-0 now. Even if it were 3-0, I wouldn't allow anyone to go out and have fun at this hour!"
"This is the Finals! This time we're facing a real bunch of jerks, the strongest team we've ever faced. We can't afford to lose. If we relax even a little, if anything goes wrong, the tide will turn, and the scales will tip back in the Lakers' favor!"
"So, I don't care how many bitches you know in Los Angeles, or how many guys are waiting for you to go out and have fun, you'd better stay in the hotel! That includes when we return to Indiana!"
"Stay home obediently, train hard, compete, and watch videos!"
"We did all this not for the championship!"
"What we're doing is building a dynasty!"
After Bird's speech, a few of the Pacers' troublemakers finally gave up on going out to have fun. Even Lin Tian declined Julie's invitation, who happened to be in Los Angeles at the time, saying that he couldn't leave the team hotel.
Team leaders must set an example at this time!
The day after the first game, the entire Pacers team arrived at the practice facility early to watch the game video!
At this time, they will not have any high-intensity training, nor will they engage in full-court scrimmage to prevent any unpredictable injuries from occurring.
So now, the Pacers spend 80% of their training time watching videos and doing tactical analysis to adjust and change some of their shortcomings in detail, so as to help the team continue to improve as much as possible.
For example, on this day, Carter was pulled aside by Bird, and the two spent the whole day watching video and talking in a small room. Needless to say, Bird was giving Carter a lesson so that he could get out of the shadow of being blocked and crushed by Kobe in the first game.
Christie specifically studied Kobe's passing and offensive choices, hoping to find some clues.
Ben Wallace even took the initiative to approach Brad Miller, whom he had previously looked down upon, wanting to learn some flopping techniques from this quick-thinking, technically skilled center.
As for Webber, he was taken away by several assistant coaches and given two more sets of strength training. The purpose was not to make Webber make great strides in strength during this short day of rest, but to make him more confident and believe in his own abilities!
Miller, Best, and other shooters found a spot on the court and started practicing their three-point shots. Their consecutive missed shots in the third quarter of the first game almost led to the team's loss. Miller and the others absolutely could not allow that to happen again!
As for Lin Tian, he and Carlisle watched a lot of game footage, analyzed it, and reviewed defensive plays from different camera angles. They hoped to find valuable details that could be used in the second game to help the team win.
In short, the Pacers did not become complacent with their 1-0 lead; the entire team maintained an absolute desire, drive, and motivation!
They were all determined: to win the second game!
Then, with a 2-0 lead, they returned to their home court and, in Indiana, lifted their third championship trophy in four years!
The atmosphere on the Lakers' side was completely different from that of the Pacers, where everyone was in high spirits and eager to play better in the second game.
Under the guidance of the mental master Jackson, the Lakers team never gets too tense, no matter what situation they are in; they never let their nerves get too taut! This is an important quality that Jackson has subtly instilled in the team over the past two years of coaching.
The bigger the stage and the more adversity the Lakers face, the more confident they become!
To maintain this calm mindset, Jackson took the whole team fishing early in the morning during the break between the two games, and then had a good meal at one of the most famous restaurants in Los Angeles at noon.
As for the afternoon? It's the famous Ron Hubble Good Friday!
Saving Private Ryan!
This is another movie that Hubble watched at least 5 times when he was with the Bulls!
This movie is way scarier for Hubble than Rocky!
Rocky only lasts an hour and a half, while Saving Private Ryan is nearly three hours long.
A nightmarish movie-watching experience.
Fortunately, this time Jackson didn't make the team watch one movie after another. After watching just this one movie, Jackson clapped his hands, signaling everyone to sit down. He had invited a special guest to have a good chat with the players.
"A top stockbroker from Chicago, who went from being a penniless homeless man to owning his own firm with tens of millions of dollars in assets—a good friend of mine from my time in Chicago, and an idol for many Black people!"
"Let's welcome Chris Gardner!"
"Hi everyone, did you buy my new book?" A smiling middle-aged Black man walked in, holding a book in his hand. He said happily, "This is my autobiography, 'The Pursuit of Happyness'! I'm planning to make it into a movie, and several production companies have already contacted me."
"But I haven't decided who to play myself yet. If you ask me, I'd like to find someone as inspiring and handsome as me to play the role. Kobe, I think you're perfect! You're my favorite basketball player, and you're just as handsome as me!"
"But if you don't want to, I'll have to let Will Smith play me, and I'm a huge fan of his too."
"Of course, that's not what I came here tonight to talk about. Phil wanted me to share my life story with you all! The first 20 years of my life were a complete failure."
Lin Tian had no idea how long Garnard's speech lasted. All he knew was that after watching the recording all day, he and Carlisle were so tired they just wanted to cry, but they hadn't found much of anything useful in it.
After all, their coaching staff and video team have been studying these things for a whole year. If they could really find something by watching for just one day, then their video team members would be unnecessary and could be fired.
Carlisle stretched lazily and looked at Lin Tian, asking, "So, Lin? Did you figure anything out?"
"Absolutely not!" Lin Tian shook his head decisively. "But we won't lose tomorrow's match!"
"We absolutely will not lose this series either!" (End of Chapter)