NBA: Miracle Workers

Chapter 711 See you in Boston! (Daily Chapter)

On Tuesday, May 2010, 5, after the league announced the most important award of the season, more fans began to pay attention to the semi-finals.

ESPN's morning show reviewed last night's semifinals, and the Lakers' outstanding performance of scoring 118 points at home finally got attention!
G1 was affected by Li You's award, and the Western Conference semifinals were not very popular, causing many basketball critics to ignore the Lakers who were in good form.

This is also related to O'Neal's DNP. The old shark's appearance is basically a side effect. Without the "grudge game", Steve Nash can't support the traffic.

As a "shrunken version of Li You in all aspects", Nash's ability to lead a team is actually very outstanding. The fact that the Suns were able to catch up after the All-Star Game is the best proof of this.

Championship forward Stoudemire was also a little frustrated. They made it to the semifinals by defeating their opponents, but no one paid attention to them. It seemed that most commentators assumed that they would lose.

Originally wanted to save face and give his opponent a hard time, but Duncan exploded in G2. This low-key leader played for 43 minutes, made 19 of 11 shots, 10 of 7 free throws, and scored a game-high 29 points!
Stoudemire, whose physical condition declined, had no choice but to watch his opponent end the suspense of the game. Thinking of his own efforts, the champion forward complained at the press conference after the game:

"We had to be more aggressive and we had a chance to win the game"

Rudy Fernandez, who partnered with Nash in the backcourt, performed well in both games, but the Suns' defense still couldn't withstand the Lakers' offense.

Nash, who had 15 assists, was also criticized by the commentators. When the Suns needed a core player to score 50 points, Nash always failed to live up to everyone's expectations.
105:118, although the score difference is not big, but after two games, in the eyes of basketball critics, the Lakers have secured a spot in the divisional finals!
Kobe Bryant, who scored 21 points, 5 rebounds, 13 assists, 2 steals and 2 turnovers efficiently, did not mock his old partner. He was still unhappy after winning the game. Like Duncan, he stated expressionlessly at the press conference:

"We didn't achieve anything! You know, my goal was never to win the division championship."

"No matter how you evaluate me, it will not affect my performance. The Lakers will enter the finals again, and you will be surprised by the Lakers' performance!"

"."

Since O'Neal did not get much playing time in the loss, he naturally would not attend the press conference after the game, but the old shark also accepted an interview.

When asked about his feelings about returning to Los Angeles for the last time in the playoffs, O'Neal just smiled and responded:

"This is no longer my stage! I am very happy to witness my little brother chasing the championship."

"But I also want to remind Kobe to be prepared for failure in advance. He is not young anymore. I hope he can enjoy the happiness that basketball brings him."

In the past, Kobe would have been furious at the old Shark's sarcasm, but Mamba has matured and seen through his old partner's tactics, so he simply kept silent.

Kobe Bryant plans to speak with basketball, sweeping the Suns 4:0 and personally sending his old partner fishing!
In another Eastern Conference semifinal, the Cavaliers did not give the Hawks any chance at home, opening fire from beyond the three-point line, not only playing excellent offense but also completely dominating their opponents on defense.

76:116, after a 40-point win, head coach Mike Brown almost grinned to the back of his head.

Black Bread was idle the whole time. Under the instigation of the two core players inside and outside, the Hawks had no power to fight back. This round of the series has lost its suspense!

Al Horford shot 9 of 2 and scored 4 points. After the game, Dwight Howard did not hide his emotions and mocked his opponent in an interview:
"I swear! This is even easier than the regular season. It looks like they have no other options except fouling!"

"Me and LeBron only played 30 minutes together and we were already thinking about the Eastern Conference Finals."

"."

James was also smiling as his partner boasted. This year was the easiest playoffs he had ever experienced. In front of the camera, the Chosen One still gave face to his opponent and only praised the Cavaliers' shooters:

"When our three-point shooting percentage is over 35%, only the defending champions in the league can compete with the Cavaliers!"

"The coach is right, we will get the match point as soon as possible and everyone is ready."

Good brother Ilgauskas basically fell out of the rotation, and Channing Frye played a more important role;
Mo Williams and Raja Bell did not disappoint James' trust. They became more and more courageous in the two games and once again demonstrated their qualities as the god of war with the wind.

The triumphant Cavaliers have already secured a spot in the divisional finals, and many pundits hailed them as the Knicks' only rival.

The end of the show is naturally a warm-up for tonight's two games. The Trail Blazers and Thunder did not receive much attention, and after securing their first home court, interim leader Aldridge did not make any big statements.

Instead, Andre Miller and Marcus Camby actively spoke out. The former continued to encourage the team, while the latter once again took this opportunity to mock those critics who criticized him:

"Many people forget that I am also a player of the golden generation of 96! Those who doubt my talent should shut up."

"Go check my data, don't judge me by stereotypes, remember, data don't lie!"

Camby, who was sent away by the Nuggets, was rejected by former head coach George Karl. After eliminating his opponent 4:2 in the first round this year, Camby was overjoyed and basically had to output on the opponent's face every day.

In terms of advanced statistics, Marcus Camby is not that good, but his basic statistics are still impressive. He blocked three shots in Game 1, which made Trail Blazers fans very excited.

The Trail Blazers' twin towers dominated the inside!
Brandon Roy, who missed the playoffs due to injury, is a bit awkward. The team is in a good situation and even has a chance to enter the divisional finals. He, the young leader, doesn't seem that important.
No one was surprised that the Thunder lost. This team is still too young. The fact that they were able to win by a “black 7” already surprised the commentators. Their loss in the semifinals means that they have a promising future!

Brooks, who was elected the best coach of the season, did not allow his disciples to accept too many interviews. When talking about tonight's game in front of reporters, he just said calmly:
“We’re learning to enjoy the game!”

"The Trail Blazers are also a young team. The boys are ready and our goal is still to win an away game."

Rookie James Harden got more playing time, but Harden's performance in G1 was unpredictable. Too many three-pointers helped the team win the first round, but he suddenly went silent in the semifinals.

Fortunately, there are not many commentators paying attention to rookies, and the three-pointer is also a reasonable shooting option. Harden was not criticized. Instead, many Oklahoma City fans encouraged the young man to keep shooting!
Durant, who was also in the Moneyball mode, complained about the whistle on Twitter. The number of free throws in Game 1 dropped sharply, and Batum almost stuck to him, which led to a block in the game.
The young team did not receive as much attention as the matchup with old Denver. Unfortunately, ESPN was unable to get the explosive news, and the losing Celtics became even more low-key.

Although there were rumors that Marbury complained in the locker room that Rivers did not give him a chance, the team reporter has issued a statement that the relevant news was fabricated by Knicks fans.

Without the gossip, the Celtics' sudden collapse in the final quarter at 98:115 caused a sharp drop in attention, and no one believed they could win the away game in G2.

In the afternoon, the Celtics who left the hotel were again "surrounded". New York reporters tried hard to find Marbury, and when they saw the "Son of New York" appear, someone shouted:

"Stephen! Why didn't you play in the playoffs this year?"

Under the protection of assistant coaches and staff, the Celtics players ignored the reporters and boarded the bus with blank expressions. Marbury wanted to say something, but the coaching staff didn't give him a chance. Nate Robinson also kept quiet. After losing on Sunday, Garnett "punched hard" in the locker room and strictly prohibited big mouths!
Rondo, who was sitting in the front row, didn't even look at "Old Den". Marbury, a "poison dog", wanted to play? He was the first to disagree!

Rondo, who has been working as a "part-time" assistant coach, is still somewhat dissatisfied with Rivers' arrangement. Although the double-teaming at the beginning was effective, the team collapsed in the fourth quarter and only scored 17 points, which showed that the team could not hold on to the end.

Garnett has been trying to be strong, but Rondo can see that the knee injury has taken away the explosiveness of this former MVP. He relies more on jump shots on offense, and his defensive coverage area has been reduced by more than half.

Although the coaching staff's plan is to protect the home court, Rondo still hopes to play the right basketball. It is always a good thing to consume the opponent more.

Garnett, who was behind, found that Rondo was whispering with Rivers again. He felt unhappy but did not object as he did in the past. He was taught another lesson in G1.

Garnett won three of the recent Sports Center's top ten goals.
In the fourth quarter, he was tricked by Li You's European step in the transition offense. He turned his head like a wooden stake and watched his opponent easily counterattack and layup;

Also in the transition offense, he actively retreated and pulled hard, but Li You hung on to defend and sent the ball into the basket;

The first of the top ten plays, Garnett's physical strength declined after playing for 40 minutes. He was unable to jump to block the shot when assisting in the basket, and was dunked by Li You. He was pushed out of the baseline and fell into the camera.
The score was 17:36 in a single quarter. After three quarters of stalemate, Garnett was hit hard by the collapse in the final quarter. He no longer consoled himself, saying that the commentators were right, Li You looked like he was 23 years old and had unlimited physical strength.

Glen Davis saw that the boss was in a bad mood and thought that Garnett was still worried about the loss of face "on TV", so he took the initiative to whisper to comfort him:

"No one will laugh at us, Bro. The coach is right. The home game is the most important thing."

"."

Garnett didn't say anything for a long time. This familiar city seemed to have entered a carnival state ahead of time, and fans wearing No. 1 Knicks jerseys could be seen everywhere.

Hardt turned his head and looked at his younger brother, no longer showing his melancholy look, and once again confidently complained:

"I don't care about these boring goals! I know New York's home court better than you rookies. The referees are standing on the opposite side. They are protecting that arrogant guy!"

"The NBA is a show now! He can perform here, and when he returns to Boston, I will let him have a good show!"

Perkins, who was in front, heard the boss talking endlessly about the unfair treatment in Madison Square Garden, and felt helpless. He was worried that the referee's whistle would not take care of them when he returned to their home court.

The refereeing standards in G1 were a bit harsh. The tough Perkins received 4 fouls early on. This whistle was not what Garnett expected.

As if seeing the doubts in the younger brothers' hearts, Garnett lowered his voice and reminded them again:

"Like I said before, the league wants to extend this series!"

Long before this round of games began, Garnett acted as if he saw through the truth, and vowed that when he returned to his home court, the referee would be on their side and they could play "hot-blooded basketball."

The reason for such confidence is mainly because the Knicks have swept the playoffs too many times. Last year, the Cavaliers almost won the game in Game 3, and Garnett saw the attitude of the league.

The boss suddenly regained his confidence. Perkins had a strange look on his dark face, leaning on the whistle, which was a bit inconsistent with his "tough guy" character:
"Bro! We'll always support you!"

Perkins turned around and bumped fists with Garnett. The surrounding atmosphere group also joined in the fun and expressed their support. Brandon Bass's eyes revealed desire, he really wanted to get more playing time.

After his younger brothers expressed their opinions, Garnett smiled again, took the initiative to greet Pierce, and started rapping with everyone.

Ray Allen has been wearing headphones to read the latest Sports Illustrated. The protagonist of this issue is Li You again, but a lot of the content is about the Knicks locker room culture:

"Hard work will pay off and the players who perform better will get more playing time."

"The level playing field means we don't have a fixed starting lineup. Everyone can challenge Lee on the training ground, and we even encourage players to form their own teams."

"."

In the interview, D'Antoni shared the Knicks' most "advanced" training method. Ray Allen was somewhat envious after seeing this content. In contrast, Rivers always likes to form small groups.

If it weren't for Rondo's arrival, Ray Allen felt that he would be isolated by Garnett's "Brotherhood Alliance" this season.

At 20 p.m. that evening, Madison Square Garden was still packed, and the New York fans in the front row continued to play at full speed. Everyone firmly believed that this was the last home game of the semi-finals, so they were particularly "enthusiastic".

The soft Garnett was constantly criticized by fans since the warm-up. Perhaps affected by his emotions, he was a little unfocused after the start of the game and had problems in several pick-and-roll defenses.

Head coach Rivers on the sidelines still loudly reminded his players that they did not double-team them crazily at the beginning of the game tonight, which changed the course of the game.

In the defensive round, Perkins went out to defend, but the noisy arena made it difficult for him to hear his teammates' instructions, and Rondo's loud reminders didn't have much effect.

At the top of the arc, Li You had just stopped and before Perkins could reach out his hand, he made a simple pick-and-roll and got rid of the defense. He suddenly stopped and made an easy jump shot next to Chandler.

Rondo, who was chasing and defending, seemed to be back on the training ground. He just squeezed past, stopped behind Li You, and watched the basketball fall into the net.

"oh!!"

Li You looked relaxed and did not forget to pat his younger brother on the back to show encouragement. The shouting in the stadium could not be stopped and the consecutive three-pointers made the New York fans very enthusiastic.

The Celtics, who insisted on single defense, also responded, but the score difference gradually widened. At the end of the first quarter, the score was 27:36 and they fell behind again.

Perhaps it was the fans' shouting that made Garnett unable to hold back. He returned to the bench and shouted back with a dark face:

"Son of a bitch! See you in Boston!"

"."

(End of this chapter)