Almighty legend life

Chapter 246

On May 1998, 5, the Lakers defeated the Utah Jazz again in Salt Lake City. In this way, the Lakers successfully eliminated the Jazz with a total score of 24-[-] and entered the finals for two consecutive years.

The results of the Lakers sweeping the Jazz to advance to the finals surprised many people. Last season, the two teams fought seven games. The Lakers successfully came back from a 3-2 deficit. But this year, the Lakers did not give the Jazz Any chance, they almost made the Jazz helpless.

In the four games of this round of the Western Conference Finals, Liu Han, the core player of the Lakers, averaged an astonishing data of 25.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 8.9 assists per game. The [-]% three-point shooting rate is still amazing, which can almost be said to be the most efficient perimeter player in the league.

The excellent performance of the Lakers and Liu Han's superb performance made the media in Los Angeles extremely excited. They almost felt that the future dynasty of the Lakers was about to be established.Many of these media who pay attention to big data have not been able to discover another amazing data of Liu Han, that is, his three-pointer data after entering the playoffs. After advancing to the finals, Liu Han's current postseason The number of three-pointers in the game has reached 52, and it is four short of tying Reggie Miller's three-pointer record in the playoffs. Now the Lakers have advanced to the finals again, which means that Liu Han has at least one There are four games to play, and according to his scoring pattern, it is very likely that he can surpass this record in the next game.

Just when the Lakers returned to Los Angeles to celebrate their two consecutive years of reaching the finals, the Bulls in the East encountered a tenacious confrontation from the Pacers.

On May 5, the second game of the Eastern Conference finals was played in Indianapolis. The Bulls led by eight points at the end of the first three quarters and were successfully overturned by the Pacers in the last quarter.

In the first two quarters, the Bulls played smoothly. In response to the Pacers' defensive tactics in the last game, the Bulls specially arranged for Turkish shooter Toni Kukoc to start the game. In the two quarters, the Bulls established a six-point lead.

In the first two quarters, the Pacers only relied on center Rick Schmitz's height advantage of [-] meters to attack the inside and struggle to catch up with the score. The Pacers were in poor form today.

Entering the second half, the Pacers' outside players began to rise, and point guard Travis Best, who came off the bench, also performed well.

Entering the fourth quarter, the Bulls led the Pacers by eight points, but the Bulls suddenly fell into a slump in the fourth quarter. Various shots missed, and the Pacers, who had recovered, seized the opportunity to attack in one fell swoop. The climax, and finally defeated the Bulls 96 to 94, won the victory of this crucial game.

Although Jordan still scored a game-high 28 points in this game, his shooting percentage of 27 of 12 shots was nothing compared to that of Liu Han, who had already advanced to the Finals. The media reporters mocked Jordan, and the depressed Jordan was gloomy and didn't even say a word.

The Pacers tied the total score at two to two, which was beyond most people's expectations. In many people's eyes, this round of the Eastern Conference finals should be less suspenseful than the Western Conference finals, but the Pacers used their tenacity for everyone. Everyone has learned a lesson.

The Lakers ended the game early and can wait for work, but George Crent did not let the players rest wantonly, but still arranged a practice day.

After returning to Chicago for a day off, the Bulls ushered in the challenge of the Pacers at home on May 5.

Back home, the Bulls finally played a championship-level performance in this very important game. They not only limited the Pacers' offense well on the defensive end, but also played a smooth cooperation in the offense.From the data, it fully shows the content of this game.

The Bulls scored 8 blocks, 46 rebounds and 27 assists.On the other hand, the Pacers, except for the starting power forward Dale Davis who scored 5 blocks, no one in the Pacers had any blocks. The Pacers had only 35 rebounds. They lost to the Bulls with 11 rebounds and assists. It is only a poor 13 times, more than half behind the Bulls.

In this game, Jordan reduced his solo fights and began to focus more on catching and shooting. As a result, his shooting percentage reached 29%, and he scored a game-high [-] points.

After the Bulls returned to the home court, the total score was 3 to 2, and the Pacers fell into the brink of elimination.

After a day off, the Eastern Conference finals moved to Indiana again, and the Pacers ushered in a game they had to win.

The Pacers, who returned to the home court again, played a big defense in this most critical game, and they invested 120% of their energy in defense.

The game was very tangled from the very beginning. The two teams led alternately. Jordan of the Bulls was still the starting point of the team's offense. He repeatedly attacked the Pacers' defense and caused fouls. He didn't look like a 35-year-old player at all. .

On the other hand, the Pacers, their core player Reggie Miller fell into a downturn in this game, repeatedly missed shots from beyond the three-point line, and was repeatedly broken by Jordan in defense.The Pacers only relied on the strong attack of the two tall players inside to keep the Bulls from breaking the score. This is incredible from the performance of the Pacers in the past. You must know that they have always been a team with Reggie Miller as the core. team.

The two teams played until the last moment of the game and could not tell the difference. Jordan's mid-range shot at the last moment tied the score at 89 for the Bulls, leaving only 0.7 seconds for the Pacers.

Just when the Bulls thought the game would enter overtime, Reggie Miller, who made zero three-pointers and six shots, stood up. He pushed away Jordan's defense and took only 0.7 seconds to catch the ball and shoot the lore. The team dragged the Eastern Conference Finals into the tiebreaker.

In this game, Reggie Miller only scored 8 points. He made only 13 of 2 shots and 7 of 1 three-pointers. The shooting percentage was less than [-]%. Dividing the ball redeemed himself.

The Pacers dragged the Eastern Conference finals into the tiebreaker, which was beyond people's expectations. In recent years, only last year's Lakers and this year's Pacers have brought such troubles to the Bulls. alliance.

Facing the tiebreaker, the Bulls returned to Chicago did not miss this last chance.

The Pacers had exhausted their physical and mental energy in the last game against the Bulls until the end. Facing the pressure of the tie-breaker, the Pacers showed their inexperienced side.

In the game, Jordan first attacked by himself to attract the firepower of the Pacers' defense, and then he began to support his teammates to score. Toni Kukoc, who started again, became the Bulls' surprise soldier. He made 11 of 7 shots and scored 21 points. .

Of course, the core of the Bulls is Michael Jordan. He played 42 minutes in the game and scored 29 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists in a quasi-triple double.

Although Reggie Miller scored 13 points on 7 of 22 shots for the Pacers, his teammates had no choice but to lose the fearlessness of yesterday. No one scored in the twenties.

In the end, the Bulls relied on their experience and Jordan's performance to beat the Pacers 91 to 83, reaching the finals for the third consecutive year, and also played against the Lakers in the finals for the second consecutive year.

(End of this chapter)