NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

2003 6 Month 8 Day.

"Hello, everyone! Welcome to watch the fourth game of the 2002-2003 season finals!" Barkley's voice sounded on TV, and he greeted the fans happily. This guy's happiness and excitement were completely unconcealed.

Everyone can feel how he feels now: super happy!
"Charles, close your mouth. Even if the Indians win the championship tonight, it has nothing to do with you!" Kenny reminded him, "Especially since the Lakers haven't surrendered yet!"

"In the last game, which was the third game of the series, the Lakers fought the Pacers in double overtime! I think that game is one of the five most exciting finals in NBA history!"

“科比拿下40分9篮板7助攻，奥尼尔42分19篮板5盖帽，再加上马龙的17分8篮板，湖人队的三大球星在上一场比赛可是展示出了无与伦比的状态！无比渴望冠军的他们，很可能会在今晚继续着自己强硬的表现！”

"They definitely don't want to surrender like this!"

"Yes, yes! I know the Lakers are in great shape." Barkley waved his hand impatiently, "But so what? The Lakers played really well in the last game!"

“科比常规时间结束前5秒的3分让湖人队一度拿到了2分的优势，奥尼尔在第一个加时赛结束前3秒的2+1也让湖人队拿到了3分的优势，可那又怎么样呢？”

"Michael hit the mid-range jumper we still talk about before the end of regulation, and Lin hit a 40-foot 3-pointer at the end of the first overtime to drag the game into the second overtime."

"Then, Lin dominated the second overtime. He scored 7 points in the second overtime and led the team to a 10:2 offensive frenzy, defeating the Lakers and getting the match point!"

"I know Shaq and Kobe's stats and form are great, but are Lin and Michael any worse? In the third game of the series, Lin played for a full 57 minutes, rested for only 1 minute throughout the game, and scored super stats of 51 points, 7 rebounds, and 8 assists!"

"Although Michael 'only' played for 51 minutes, he also scored 39 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists. The combination of Michael and Lin is only stronger than OK!"

"The Lakers want a championship and don't want to lose anymore?"

"What I want to say is: The Pacers are equally eager for the championship, and they are equally unwilling to lose!"

"They have won all 15 games in this year's playoffs! This is another chance to win all games in the playoffs! The Pacers will not give up this opportunity! They will not let such a good opportunity slip away."

"So, I agree with you that Game 3 was one of the top five games in NBA history, Kenny."

"But I don't think the Lakers can win this game, I don't think they can beat the Pacers tonight!"

"Tonight, the Pacers will be crowned their fourth consecutive champion! We'll see!"

Here, Barkley and Kenny were arguing about the outcome of the game. The ten starting players from both teams had already stepped onto the court.

The Pacers still didn't change their lineup tonight. They had won three games in a row and they had no reason to change.

But the Lakers, after losing three games in a row and being pushed to the edge of the cliff, finally changed!
In other words, Jackson is finally going to take a gamble!

He made a change that no one expected, or even believed.

Take Fisher.

Well, okay, signing Fisher is not a shocking change. After all, if the Lakers want to change their lineup, signing Fisher, who has the lowest presence and the most mediocre performance, is the most appropriate and conventional approach.

What was shocking about Jackson was the people he replaced.

Not the team's regular rotation players like Shaw, Horry or Fox.

The player he got was a rookie selected by the team this year, who didn't play for a single minute in the first two games of the series and only played for 1 minutes in the third game because of the foul problem of the main players.

Tayshawn Prince!

In the Lakers team, which is strong and aims to win the championship, Prince did not get any good opportunities all year. He played only 41 games in the regular season, averaging less than 8 minutes per game and averaging only 2.1 points and 1.4 rebounds per game.

In the playoffs, he was basically DNP, appearing in only 5 games in total, with a playing time of less than 5 minutes in each game, or in other words, he only appeared in garbage time!
The 8 minutes in the last game was the first time Prince entered the team's rotation in this year's playoffs.

As for his performance
It was okay, he contributed a steal and a rebound, and scored 1 points with 1 of 2 shot on the offensive end. Apart from that, there were no other statistics recorded.

No matter how you look at it, this guy shouldn't be the starting player for the Lakers at this time.

"Jackson's use of players is really hard to understand! Why would he send out a rookie who has never been in the team's regular rotation at this time? Even if it is a fake starter, even if it is just a test, there is no need to be so thorough and exaggerated."

"Jackson could definitely have a better way and person!"

Kenny also said that he couldn't understand Jackson's substitution at all!

"Maybe, it will work wonders." Barkley tried to find Prince's draft report from a stack of information in his hand.

"A mature senior player with average potential but high completion, slender figure, near-perfect size, strong will, tough defense, a natural defender, good at 3-pointers, fast breaks and layups, with good finishing ability and excellent basketball IQ."

"The downside is that he's too thin and his ball handling skills are average. He knows a lot on offense, but most of it is not at the NBA level."

After reading Prince's rookie report, Barkley looked at Kenny and asked, "Why do you think Jackson suddenly replaced Prince at this time?"

"I think the biggest reason is maturity and calmness!" Kenny said: "Tayshaun played in the NCAA for four years. Compared with other rookies, he is definitely more experienced. There is no need to worry about him being stage fright. At the same time, his size, defense and speed can greatly help the Lakers on the defensive end."

"This is also the help that other Lakers bench players cannot provide."

"But do you think he can explode in this game and become the winner of the game?"

"I can only say that I don't know. We won't know until the fight starts!"

"But from any perspective, I hope that tonight's game will be exciting and intense! I hope Prince and all the players on the court will perform well and give us a perfect night!"

"Okay, let's see, the players from both teams have entered the field, and the game is about to officially begin!"

"Dudu!"

The referee quickly blew the whistle to start this win or go home game for the Lakers!

O'Neal showed his tremendous strength at the beginning and slapped the ball into Kobe's hand with a fierce slap. As the only guard in this lineup without a point guard, Kobe raised a hand to signal everyone not to be in a hurry.

Then, he slowly carried the ball to the front court, ready to attack.

While directing his teammates' movement, Kobe had no intention of attacking himself. Since he was playing the role of point guard, Kobe had to suppress his personal desire to attack.

Especially tonight, when the team has been completely forced into a desperate situation, Kobe needs to stay calm!
Still starting with the pick-and-roll with Malone, Kobe quickly opened up space to face Webber, and then waited for Malone to sink into the low post, then Kobe passed the ball to Malone and asked him to single out Christie.

Facing Christie, who was much shorter than him and at least 20 kilograms lighter, Malone easily controlled her. Relying on his height and weight, he turned around and shot the ball, scoring 2 points steadily!
"The Lakers' offensive strategy has really changed! It's no longer O'Neal and Kobe starting with a one-on-one, but Malone is going to attack Christie in a mismatched position! This tactic is indeed somewhat unexpected. At the same time, if Malone attacks Christie in a mismatched position, the success rate is also quite guaranteed!"

Barkley just finished speaking, Lin Tian had already rushed to the frontcourt with the ball. Facing Kobe's defense, Lin Tian dribbled the ball between his legs continuously and suddenly accelerated, forced his way to the basket with one hand, and the basketball avoided O'Neal's block and hit the rebound!

Kenny then said: "The Lakers seem to want to start with role players, but the Pacers are relying on superstars to solve the problem. In this round, the other Pacers players didn't even touch the basketball, and Lin Tian almost scored this layup all by himself!"

"Let's see if both sides will continue to stick to the strategy of this first round!"

The Lakers' offense was still led by Kobe who held the ball. He then screened with Malone again, but this time Kobe attracted a double-team and passed the ball to Kirilenko. Kirilenko held the ball and took a step toward the inside before passing it again.

Prince got the basketball in the corner, and then without any hesitation or nervousness, he shot it from outside the three-point line!
"Shh!"

"Good shot!" Kenny shouted, "Prince withstood the pressure. This 3-pointer is definitely a good thing for his self-confidence! He will probably play more confidently next time! If he can make some more contributions on the defensive end next time, the Pacers will have even more headaches!"

Both commentators spoke very fast, but the Pacers' offense was even faster!
Kenny hadn't finished his words yet, and he even wanted to praise Prince for his decisiveness, but Lin Tian couldn't wait to start attacking!

In the second round, Lin Tian used the Pacers' trump card.

Lin Dan pick and roll!

Lin Tian held the ball, and Jordan quickly moved forward and did a pick-and-roll with him.

Then the two of them, one on the left and one on the right, cut into the inside at the same time.

Lin Tian was dribbling the ball at a high speed and when he came to the outside of the 3-second zone and met O'Neal's help defense, he suddenly put the ball behind his back with one hand, making O'Neal think that Lin Tian was going to pass the ball behind his back.

But O'Neal had just moved towards Jordan, and before he even took a step, Lin Tian's left hand had already come forward again, and the basketball was still in his hand!

"You can't fool me!" O'Neal roared. This time he no longer hesitated and quickly rushed towards Lin Tian. He felt that Lin Tian would definitely do it himself!

But the basketball disappeared again!
It’s still a pass from behind!

After Lin Tian pulled the ball in front of him, he pulled the ball back behind him again and passed the ball to Jordan on the other side from behind.

At this time, no one can stop Jordan from attacking the basket!
"boom!"

After a loud bang, Jordan dunked with one arm and scored 2 points for the team!
Then it was the Lakers' attack again, and this time they finally got the ball into O'Neal's hands in the low post.

O'Neal held the basketball with one hand, observed the Pacers' defense, then suddenly greased his feet and quickly turned to the baseline. Then, at the moment Webber came forward to assist in defense, O'Neal also showed his organizational talent!
He made a one-handed pass, and the basketball slipped past Webber's waist and flew into Kirilenko's hands behind Webber.

Jump up and shoot.

"Shh!"

Kirilenko continued his cold-blooded side, taking the ball and making a jump shot for 2 points!
Then, when Kobe immediately entangled Lin Tian and prevented him from easily receiving the ball and advancing, Jordan got the basketball and started to advance towards the frontcourt in place of Lin Tian.

Then, it was Lin Dan's pick and roll again!
Lin Tian stepped forward to block Kirilenko, and the two quickly switched positions at the top of the arc, and then both of them cut inside and rushed to the basket at the same time!

The only difference from the last time was that this time Lin Tian only ran one step inside and suddenly ran back, rushing out of the 3-point line. Kirilenko was stunned for a moment, and Lin Tian quietly pushed him with his shoulder when he ran outside, giving him a force that made Kirilenko stumble and fail to catch up in the first time.

Just the blink of an eye was enough for Lin Tian to get out of the three-point line, receive the pass from Jordan, and then make a three-pointer!
The Pacers' duo are firing on all cylinders today as well!

On the Lakers side, the person who scored this time became Malone. Kobe dribbled the ball and broke through into the inside, then attracted a double-team and passed the ball to Malone, assisting Malone to make a slam dunk!
The Pacers did not play pick-and-roll this time, but went directly to Jordan, and then let him single-handedly beat Kirilenko in the low post!

"Beautiful! Both teams played beautifully on offense tonight! And we can all see that both teams brought out all their trump cards and strengths tonight!"

Barkley couldn't help but continue to analyze: "And if you look closely, you can actually see that the playing styles of the two sides are completely different!"

"The quality of the stars on both sides is unquestionable. I even dare to say that four of the top five players in the league today are in tonight's game!"

"But even though both teams have top stars, the Pacers' style of play is for their two core players to keep attacking and scoring. All of their points so far have come from Lin and Michael."

"The Lakers are just the opposite. They use Kobe and O'Neal as bait, using their distraction to constantly pass the ball to the other players, allowing the other players to score. Up to now, except for Kobe and O'Neal, the other players of the Lakers have scored!"

Kenny continued, "Two completely different basketball styles, a confrontation and collision of two philosophies! Let's see tonight whether the Lakers' team basketball is better and allows them to escape death, or whether the Pacers' superstar basketball can allow them to win their fourth consecutive victory and hold the O'Brien Cup!"

Along with the analysis of the two commentators, the game on the court was also progressing rapidly. Just as they both said, the Lakers played the two elements of sharing the ball and teamwork to the extreme tonight!
Jackson, who has always been said to win by relying on superstars but lacking a system, proved tonight that when he wants to play tactics and team, he plays better than anyone else!

The Pacers continued to implement the style of play with superstars leading the way, either Jordan playing one-on-one, or Lin Tian playing one-on-one, or the unstoppable pick-and-roll between the two of them. In short, the Pacers' offensive shots were almost all concentrated on the two of them.

第一节比赛，双方的效率都算不错，湖人队登场的7名球员全部有得分入账，而球队的绝对核心科比和奥尼尔这两人却在第一节分别只拿到4分2板3助攻和5分4板2助攻。

Their offensive firepower was completely dispersed!
The Pacers were just the opposite. Lin Tian and Jordan scored 13 and 11 points respectively, which accounted for more than 70% of the team's total! Apart from the two of them, the rest of the Pacers only scored 9 points in total!

33: 31!

In the first quarter, the Pacers temporarily led by 2 points!
In the second quarter, both teams did not let all their main players continue to play, but let the rotation lineup play on the court.

After all, when the season reaches this point, no matter how sufficient the physical reserves or how excellent the physical fitness of the players are, they have almost reached their limits and may collapse physically at any time.

Therefore, necessary rest must be given!
But the similarities between the two sides are not limited to this. Both the Lakers and the Pacers chose to only let one of their absolute core players rest.

The Pacers let Lin Tian, ​​who played the entire first quarter, rest, and Jordan, who had already rested for a while in the first quarter, led the team.

The same goes for the Lakers. Kobe, who played the entire first quarter, sat on the bench to catch his breath, while O'Neal led the rest of the team to continue fighting!

This time, both sides changed their playing styles in the first quarter again.

The Pacers were quicker and more resolute when they double-teamed Jordan because Lin Tian was not there and only Jordan was left! Facing the double-team, Jordan responded by passing the ball again and again, finding teammates in open positions again and again, letting them solve the problem!
On the Lakers side, O'Neal, who had almost no offense and shots in the first quarter, no longer hid his firepower. He kept attacking Miller's defense under the basket. Without the Pacers' help in defense, he went one on one?

No matter who from the Pacers came to defend O'Neal, he didn't care and was too lazy to observe the opponent's defensive position.

As long as he is not double-teamed, O'Neal is a monster! He can score almost anything under the basket!
No matter whether it is Big Ben, Miller or Webber, no one in the Pacers' inside line can stop O'Neal's one-on-one!
Less than 5 minutes into the second quarter, O'Neal made 6 of 4 shots and scored 8 points!
The Pacers led by Jordan were just the opposite. Because they were in such good shape in the first quarter and Lin Tian was not there at the time, the Lakers immediately double-teamed Jordan. Facing the double-team, Jordan chose to play rationally.

Parker passed the ball to the open cutter, Christie passed the ball outside the three-point line, and passed it to Ben for an aerial relay.
Compared to O'Neal's firepower, the Pacers' scoring speed is not slow at all!
In the first 4 minutes of the second quarter, both sides were still extremely tense and no one could completely change the situation on the court. Although the Lakers successfully reversed the score difference several times, they could not maintain it. Overall, both sides played extremely tensely!
43: 42!

Five minutes into the second quarter, the coaches of both teams took advantage of the official timeout to make substitutions at the same time. Kobe, Malone, Lin Tian, ​​Christie and others came on the court, and the final stage of the first half officially began!

Once the core lineups of both sides came on the field, the playing styles of both sides changed again.

On the Lakers side, O'Neal once again left his own small territory in the interior. He ran out of the three-point line, set a screen for Kobe, and then immediately turned around and went down, wanting to receive the ball to create an offensive opportunity.

The Pacers' defensive focus was immediately deceived by O'Neal, and Big Ben immediately turned around and followed O'Neal to the basket.

It's not a big deal that Big Ben turned around, but Jordan, who was supposed to defend Kobe, was caught by O'Neal, and Big Ben didn't defend Kobe outside the three-point line, so Kobe got a big open opportunity!

Kobe would not let this kind of opportunity go so easily. He paused slightly outside the three-point line to steady his body, and then, while the help defense was not coming up, he changed his previous safe and calm style of play and shot the three-pointer directly!

"Shh!"

After a crisp sound, the Los Angeles fans once again raised their arms and shouted loudly!

Ahead!
It has to be our 'Peter Pan'!
"Communicate more! You must communicate when defending! Whether you encounter a pick-and-roll or are blocked so tightly that you can't observe the situation on the court in time, you must remember to communicate!"

Lin Tian took the ball from the baseline, stretched out his hand and shouted loudly, reminding his teammates to pay attention to the Lakers' pick-and-roll and screen, while emphasizing the importance of communication on the court.

Then, Lin Tian accelerated again!

He once again broke through Kobe's defense, made his way to the basket, and overcame Malone's defense and made another one-handed layup!

After this round, the tactical thinking of the two teams became very clear.

The Lakers began to play their best trick, the OK pick-and-roll, which they rarely played in normal times. They brought out their best skills in the first half and began to frequently play pick-and-roll on the court.

As for Lin Tian and Jordan, the two were determined to turn the game into a one-man show. Almost one of them was fighting one against the other, constantly using one-on-one to destroy the Lakers' defense!
That is the Pacers. They have Jordan and Lin Tian, ​​the two one-on-one kings of the league. Any one of them can score 5-60 points in a single game and can take down an entire team by themselves.

Now the two of them are together, and they are both in good shape and focused on scoring.

At the same time, if you really dare to double-team these two people, their vision and passing ability will completely defeat your defensive formation in minutes!
When these two people are on the court at the same time, it is really a nightmare for every team in the league.

When you meet two people like this, what else can you do except pray and curse "FUXX" to express your admiration for the various magical goals they keep hitting?
Even Jackson couldn't do anything.

To be honest, the Lakers' defensive resources are already terrifying enough. They have O'Neal and Malone in the inside, Kirilenko and Prince on the front line, two tall and long-armed natural defenders, and even the back line has Kobe, who is one of the best backcourt defenders in history.

With these defensive resources, they were unable to withstand the firepower of the Pacers.

What can Jackson do?
He is also very helpless!

What kind of good person can bring together these two monsters!
Anyway, Jackson really has no way to deal with these two.

The only way he could think of was to fight back by attacking!
Apart from believing in the offensive firepower of his players, Jackson really has no other choice.

Well, if praying to God and asking God not to let these two guys score again is a solution, then Jackson still has this trick.

In short, in the following games, both sides once again started the offensive mode. Although the efficiency was not top-notch, overall, both sides did not have much to do with their opponents!
At the same time, the scores between the two sides remained close.

During most of the game, both teams insisted on their own styles of play. The Lakers played as a whole, and unless there was an excellent opportunity, they would always pass the ball to open space and let role players attack as much as possible.

On the Pacers side, Lin Tian and Jordan continued their duet, and the scores of these two kept rising. When facing these two, the Lakers did not dare to package them or let them go, and the game was so passive and uncomfortable.

But because both teams focus on offense and don’t put too much energy on defense, the coaches on both sides are more willing to change the team’s situation through offense rather than defense. So no matter how efficient both sides are, or whether they are scoring goals, the pace of the game is very fast!

There are not many timeouts and free throws for fouls. Even the baseline and sideline balls of both sides are eager to be released immediately so as not to affect their own advancement speed!

How fast is the pace of this game?
In the blink of an eye, the game is about to end!

105: 107!

With 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter, the difference between the two sides was still only 2 points!
The Lakers currently have a 2-point advantage.

At this point in the game, the players and coaches on both sides have almost reached their limits. Their physical and mental strength are in a state of extreme tension and fatigue.

They are all very tired!

Because when the game entered the second half, the coaches of both sides became cautious in their use of players again. The four superstars did not rest for a second, and the rest time of the other main players was only a few minutes.

This evening, coaches from both teams were extremely cautious!
Carlisle didn't want to give the Lakers any chance to turn around or catch their breath. He didn't care whether there was any team in the league's history that could turn the tables after falling behind 0:3.

Anyway, he didn't want to make history.

As for Jackson, it goes without saying that this is their last chance and Jackson will definitely seize it!
At this point in the game, Kobe had a triple-double of 21 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, which was his first triple-double in the Finals! O'Neal also had 20 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 blocks. Both of them played very rationally, restrained and reasonable on this night!

Although they both got the highest and second highest points in the team, their number of shots was far lower than the average of their previous games!
In addition to these two, Malone scored 17 points and 6 rebounds, Kirilenko scored 15 points, and Prince, who was promoted to the starting lineup tonight, did not disappoint and hit 3 3-pointers, and also broke into the basket twice, and has already scored 13 points!
In addition, Fisher, Fox and others on the bench also made some achievements tonight and helped the team on the offensive end.

The situation on the Pacers side is exactly the opposite of that of the Lakers!
So far, only three players on the team have scored in double digits, namely Lin Tian with 3 points and Jordan with 40 points! The firepower of these two players is almost equal to that of the Lakers' five starters!
While the OK combination of the Lakers listened to Jackson and played with great restraint, these two players of the Pacers completely unleashed their firepower. Judging from their current state, these two people may very well team up to score more than 100 points tonight!
During this timeout, Jackson took a look at the score, then pulled everyone in the team and said, "The next five minutes may be our last five minutes of the season, or it may be the last five minutes for this team to play together."

"If we lose again this year, I think we will most likely be disbanded next season. To be honest, after such a season, after such a season in which we gave our all, I really don't want to be eliminated like this!"

"In these last five minutes, let's give our all! Contribute everything we can!"

"Let's win this game for our dignity!"

"Kobe, Shaq! You played almost perfectly in the first 40 minutes. I couldn't find any fault with you. But now it's the last 5 minutes. The game is yours!"

"Do whatever you want! Go ahead! Release your firepower and status to the fullest and defeat the Pacers!"

"understand!"

After Jackson drank this bucket of chicken soup, the Lakers' starting five once again stepped onto the court with great momentum!

Like the Lakers, the Pacers did not make any substitutions at this time.

Full starting lineup, showdown again!

Now, let's see if these remaining five minutes are the last five minutes of this season! (End of this chapter)