God's hand behind the scenes

Chapter 467 F4
Here the Pistons have completed a 4-0 sweep and advanced to the finals first, while the Lakers and Spurs are still fighting fiercely.In Chang Wei's view, these two teams can be said to be rivals in chess and talents, with luxurious F4 on one side and rising GDP on the other. The two sides drew 2-2 in the first four games. A true reflection of their respective strengths.

After eliminating the Pacers, the Pistons returned to Detroit the next day, but Brown did not let them disband, but asked them to return to the arena at night and watch the live broadcast of the Western Kings Mountain battle in the conference room.This is also Brown's consistent approach. Although the players are not required to participate in the discussion of team tactics, at least they must know what kind of opponent they will face next. , are not easily dismissed.

At 7:50 p.m., the largest conference room in the Palace of Auburn Hills was brightly lit. The team thoughtfully transformed the conference room into a movie theater for the time being, hoping that the players could watch the game better.The players seemed very relaxed, and the excitement of qualifying for the Finals hadn't passed. For most of them, watching the game was just watching the game.

Contrary to them, all members of the Pistons coaching team sat upright, holding various notebooks and tactical boards in their hands, intending to analyze the Lakers and Spurs.However, a consensus has been basically reached within the team. Everyone believes that the Lakers are more likely to become the opponents of the Pistons in the Finals. Compared with the Spurs, they are still too young.

This point of view is also supported by Chang Wei, of course, this is not what he said directly from the memory of his previous life.The Lakers this year are indeed quite strong. Although their substitutes are not very good, the starting five must be the strongest in the league. Although they were defeated by the Pistons in the regular season, Zen Master decisively let the Lakers start directly at the beginning. After Malone and Payton were exhausted, they resumed the style of play they played when the OK combination led the team last season, avoiding the team's disadvantages to the greatest extent.

The Spurs are actually not weak. The GDP combination of the former Megatron Alliance has all put on the silver and black army uniform. Unfortunately, Parker and Ginobili have not yet reached their peak state. It can be seen from the first four games of the Western Conference Finals Come out, the only thing the Spurs can rely on is still Duncan. Parker and the others can only add to the cake but can't help, which is undoubtedly fatal.

While everyone was chatting, the screen had cut to the Staples Center, and the game was about to start. O'Neal and Duncan came to the middle circle to jump the ball.Although O'Neal is so fat, his bounce is not lost to most insiders. This time he still helped the Lakers get the ball in the first wave of offense.The Lakers did not rush straight to the basket as soon as they got the ball like in previous seasons, but stabilized the rhythm and started playing positional battles. This made Chang Wei frowned quietly. Such a Lakers is not easy to deal with!

The Pistons have never been afraid of those teams that play transition offense without incident. Their style of play is enough to form restraint, but now the Lakers are starting to grind their offense like them. When it comes to the overall strength of the players, it is difficult for them to be one-on-one. Kill the opponent.When Chang Wei was thinking deeply, the Lakers already had the advantage on the court, and the Spurs could only rely on Duncan to score.

Although Parker has advantages in physical strength and speed when facing Payton, Payton has quite a lot of experience. He cleverly stuck Parker's position to prevent him from speeding up, which made the latter feel very awkward.Parker, who can't get up to speed, is naturally not a big threat. It can be said that apart from Duncan, the Spurs have no other person who can score. This is equivalent to him fighting against the Lakers F4 alone.

In order to open up the situation, Popovich took the lead in making substitutions. He put Ginobili and Malik Rose, the two sharp knives on the bench, on the field, hoping that they could help Duncan.Although Ginobili is only a second-year rookie, he has a lot of experience in the game. After playing, he decisively took over Parker's possession of the ball, and his consecutive breakthroughs finally led the Spurs' offense.There is no doubt that Ginobili is the Spurs' super sixth man, but if he is allowed to play so early, what should we do next?
Moreover, the improvement of the Spurs' scoring ability does not mean that they can complete the overtake. The Lakers' F4 is not a vegetarian. Coupled with a Szczerbiak who puts cold arrows on the side from time to time, it is difficult for the Spurs to prevent them from scoring on the defensive end.At the end of the first quarter, the Lakers took a 36-30 lead, and their substitutes were not at a disadvantage compared to the Spurs.

In the second quarter, the Lakers returned to the OK combination + Szczerbiak mode. This is also their best style of play in the past few seasons. Popovich can only continue to put GDP on the court, so as not to be caught by the opponent. Wave flow directly away.Even so, the Lakers players played more and more smoothly, and they finally opened the point difference to double digits with 4 minutes and 17 seconds left in the second quarter.Without waiting for Popovich to make adjustments, Zen Master replaced Payton and Malone again, helping the team hold the lead.

Maybe it was what Popovich said during the intermission. After the second half, Duncan uncharacteristically kept asking for the ball in the low post. No matter how O'Neal and Malone defended, he still continued to use mid-range shots on the board and footwork at the basket to score. The Spurs Once narrowed the difference to single digits.Just as they were about to overtake the score in one go, the Lakers suddenly switched to playing inside and outside. Kobe and Szczerbiak hit consecutive three-pointers from the outside, and once again opened the score between the two sides.

However, the Spurs' counterattack was effective. At the end of the third quarter, they chased the point difference to within 10 points and fell behind only 62 to 69.However, such a score obviously angered the Lakers. Amidst the cheers of the home fans, they played a wave of 8-0 spurts, widening the point difference to within the safety line.Although Duncan still did not give up scoring consecutively, it was too late, and the other players of the Spurs had no fighting spirit. It is obvious that he alone cannot help the team reverse and win.

When the number on the timer was 12 seconds left, all the fans stood up and applauded the team they supported, congratulating them on winning the crucial Tianwangshan battle.The final score of the two sides was 105 to 96. The Lakers' careless offense and defense at the last moment allowed the Spurs to keep their last bit of dignity, but a loss is a loss.

In the conference room at the Palace of Auburn Hills, Brown picked up the remote control and turned off the projection screen, signaling that everyone could go back to sleep.But the expression on everyone's face is very dignified. Both the Lakers and the Spurs have shown great strength. Whoever advances to the finals, the Pistons will no longer be able to win as easily as before. This is their last and biggest obstacle.

(End of this chapter)