I was determined to be bad, but I went straight to the Basketball Hall of Fame

Chapter 510 Tenacity and talent

Harden hit the lore, and the Clippers won the crucial third game, which brought a major reversal in the situation of the series.

This is not an ordinary victory, but a Jedi counterattack, a big reversal.

The Clippers' key employment in the fourth quarter played a vital role.

Leonard played a huge role on the defensive end, filling the Clippers' holes on the defensive end.

Although he only scored 2 points, he had three steals and two blocks on the defensive end, which can be said to be a dominant performance.

He liberated Curry and Harden on the defensive end, giving Curry the energy to hit consecutive three-pointers, which is the basis for the Clippers to chase points.

And Harden's mid-range, ball-holding singles, organization, and final lore have become the key to killing the game.

At the end of the game, the Clippers hugged each other and celebrated to relieve the intense pressure of the game.

The Clippers have been relatively smooth throughout the regular season this year, and the winning games are basically easy and big.

After all, the Clippers do have a lot of players and are highly talented, and their opponents will fall with a little force.

Most of the lost games were regrettable defeats, players in poor condition, tactics restricted, and so on.

There is no big loss, and there is no game like this big backward reversal.

This is a kind of lack of experience for this group of young people.

Because NBA games cannot be smooth sailing, there will always be ups and downs, and adversity needs to be faced and resolved.

Tonight is undoubtedly an excellent tempering for the young Clippers. The confidence and morale of the players have been greatly improved.

After returning to the locker room, the players were still excited.

Everyone came up one by one to hug James Harden and poured ice water on Harden's head.

Harden roared loudly with his upper body bare, venting his inner emotions.

This isn't the first game-winning shot in Harden's basketball career, and it won't be the last.

But definitely a significant one.

This is the first time he has hit a lore in a key game in the playoffs.

The Clippers are behind in the score, the goal is scored, win, not scored, lost, winning or losing is between this line.

It can be said that the most exciting and charming part of basketball is at this moment.

Harden grasped it, tasted the supreme passion and joy.

At this time, in Harden's heart, this kind of happiness even surpassed the girls in the strip club and the beauties in the villa, and it would become the most profound moment in his memory.

Just as everyone was celebrating with forgetfulness, Min Congda entered the locker room.

Tyronn Lu and Steve Kerr came over immediately, and Tyronn Lu even knelt down on one knee to express his admiration for Min Congda.

"Mr. Smart, your note is so critical and useful!"

Cole couldn't help admiring that it was really a clever plan to secure the world. Mr. Smart probably didn't want to be a coach because he thought being a coach was too boring.

Min Congda waved his hand, indicating not to get too excited, it was just a routine operation.

But he thought in his heart: "If I didn't want to get an investment loan, I wouldn't help you at all! Useless things, even the Spurs can't win the seventh place, and they have to reverse? It seems that the Clippers I formed are also worthless. That's it, don't worry about getting too much out of it!"

Before Min Congda felt that he had built a top-level team, but after one game, he felt that the team was no good.

This mentality is similar to that of some fans.

My favorite team is a god and a ghost.

When I was a god, I punched Kobe and surpassed Jordan. When I was a ghost, I couldn’t pull any more. I didn’t want to read any news related to the team or players all day long. I just wanted to curse people.

In fact, this is the norm in the playoffs. Unless the team is so strong, like the Bulls in 96 and the Lakers in 01, there will always be times when they pull their hips.

For the Clippers, the sooner such a hip pull comes, the better.

Moreover, under Min Congda's "conspiracy", the Clippers successfully reversed and completed a leap in mentality.

When the Clippers players who were celebrating saw Min Congda coming to the locker room, they all quieted down obediently and wanted to listen to Min Congda's lecture.

Because seeing Min Congda's complexion is not very good, he is obviously not particularly satisfied with the performance of the Clippers players tonight.

"Guys, I don't want to say much about this game. We won, but we haven't won it completely. The series is far from over, and the Spurs are a tough opponent. As you probably know, in the final stage, I gave the coach The group handed over a note, arranged the lineup, and finally you reversed, so is it my credit for winning?"

"Sorry, no, winning is the result of your own hard work. And the 15 points behind in the first three quarters was also caused by your own failure to build well. I made a little contribution to the lead in the fourth quarter, but more depends on Yourselves, and a little bit of luck. I want to tell you, luck is not always on our side, want to win, take every ball, every possession."

"Remember, even if luck is no longer on our side and we become the most unlucky team in the world, as long as you do your best, there is still a possibility of winning."

After Min Congda finished speaking, the locker room burst into applause.

It is rare for him to play a "positive role", thinking that the Clippers can win, of course he will pour chicken soup for everyone!

Needless to say, Min Congda's level of filling chicken soup is really unbelievable.

Tyronn Lu thought to himself, Mr. Smart's speech level is better than that of Rivers.

In terms of resourcefulness and vicious vision, Smart is comparable to Jackson, and in terms of cooking chicken soup and passionate speeches, he surpasses Rivers.

With a 100% winning rate in his coaching career, but he hides his merits and fame deeply and doesn't want to coach anymore, Smart is indeed a legendary figure.

Min Congda's words not only motivate the Clippers players, but also impart some life experience to these young people.

Career competition is the same as life experience, it will not always be smooth sailing, there will always be bumps and bumps.

Failure in competitive sports is even more normal. Even the god of basketball has lost more than 300 games in his career.

Failure is not terrible, what is terrible is not knowing how to face failure and how to stand up again in failure.

At present, the Clippers have gone very smoothly since the 2009-2010 season.

Losing to the Lakers in the first round in 10 and losing to the Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals in 11 were all expected. It was a surprise to win, but it was no big deal to lose.

This year everyone's mentality is different. The second place in the Western Conference has begun to look forward to the finals and even the championship.

As a result, in the first round, they faced the traditionally powerful Spurs in the West, but they stumbled, which would damage their confidence.

As Min Congda said, sometimes luck may not always be on your side. The real top teams can still win despite various objective factors.

Two days later, the fourth battle between the two sides will be at[email protected]Center continues.

The Spurs are a very seasoned team. Although the third game was aggrieved, they suffered a reversal and a lore.

But they have encountered this kind of situation a lot, regardless of the regular season or playoffs, so they have experienced a lot of failures. They know how to face failures and then stand up again.

In terms of talent, because the owner of the Spurs is too poor (NBA's wealth value is the bottom one), except for Duncan, they can only pick up leaks and plan carefully.

Therefore, during Duncan's peak period, the Spurs have never been able to achieve consecutive championships, and they are only a small step away from the top dynasty.

In 04, he was killed by Fisher in 0.4 seconds. At the last moment of 06, Manu Ginobili made a fool and was equalized by Nowitzki and lost in overtime.

It is a pity, a very sighing loss.

Imagine if the Spurs can afford the luxury tax and equip Duncan with stronger teammates. With the stability of the Spurs, it is entirely possible to win 5 championships in 4 years, including a three-peat in the middle.

That Spurs would be a stronger dynasty than just an odd-numbered dynasty.

But on the other hand, this regrettable defeat also created the Spurs' tough and powerful team temperament.

The Lakers were once strong enough to win three consecutive championships, but because of the arrogance of the talented players in the team, they fell apart after failure.

Kobe stayed in the Lakers and spent many years wasting the peak before ushering in his own Lakers era.

Therefore, a loss that was reversed and a lore did not make the Spurs players fall.

And they got it right in Game [-], the Clippers didn't really find a way to contain it.

Leonard's performance in the fourth quarter has an element of luck. After all, he is still a rookie and his performance is not so stable.

In the fourth game, Tyronn Lue still let George start, and at the same time asked George to help defend more and pay more attention to the breakthroughs of Parker and Ginobili.

As a result, in this game, the Spurs' outside three-pointers broke out.

Gary Neal, Richard Jefferson and George Hill hit difficult three-pointers one after another.

The Spurs played smoothly from the outside and once again established a double-digit advantage in the first half.

This makes the Clippers coaching staff and players feel anxious, can they really not beat the Spurs?

In the third quarter, the Clippers, with the experience of the previous game, began to sink their hearts and start from defense to contain the Spurs' rapid offense.

The Spurs' outside three-point shooting rate began to decline. When the inside's assault force was weakened, the outside rhythm was gradually disrupted.

It can be said that starting from the fourth game, both sides have gradually found the main theme of this round of confrontation in the series:

Can the Clippers contain the Spurs' assault power on the defensive end; on the offensive end, can the creativity of the two guns in the backcourt be brought into play.

Can the Spurs do a good job of protecting the basket and three-pointers on the defensive end; on the offensive end, how much fuel is left in the Spurs' backcourt duo.

Leaving aside this main theme, the impromptu performance of the remaining players or the small tactical game of the coaching staff are all small ups and downs.

The cornerstone of the Spurs is Duncan, but Parker + Ginobili's strange international perimeter has indeed been underestimated.

In fact, their combat effectiveness in the playoffs is quite strong, and many teams are helpless against the two.

In the third quarter, the Clippers gradually stabilized their position and gradually narrowed the point difference to 5 points.

At the end of the third quarter, the Clippers suddenly resorted to foul tactics and cut Duncan!
In 2 minutes, Duncan stood on the free throw line three times, made 6 free throws, and only hit 3 goals.

For the Clippers, that meant the Spurs lost one of every two possessions.

The Clippers seized the opportunity, and Harden hit consecutive three-pointers from the outside!
Harden's three-pointers were not particularly conspicuous in the regular season, and they were not as accurate as Curry's shots.

But when facing the Spurs in the playoffs, Harden's three-pointer was extremely accurate, which made the fans' scalps tingle.

At the last moment, Harden also assisted Milicic for a layup, and the Clippers tied the score!
The two sides returned to the same starting line again, and the Spurs couldn't hold it anymore.

After the start of the fourth quarter, the Clippers changed their strategy, and Randolph began to attack Duncan and Split in the low post.

The blue fat man has reached his peak state in the past two years, and he has succeeded in the low post continuously, establishing the Clippers' leading edge.

Once this advantage was established, the momentum of the game was almost reversed.

Min Congda felt that the Clippers were about to win this game.

However, the Spurs' toughness was beyond imagination. In desperation, Duncan bared his fangs and also launched a low-post attack. He turned around and walked to the bottom line for a layup, and made a frontal throw.

The defensive end even gave Harden a big hat for the breakthrough. Gary Neal hit a difficult three-pointer in the counterattack, and the Spurs took the lead again!

The two sides entered a fierce battle, and the Clippers players' psychology, skills and tactics were severely tested.

At this time, Min Congda didn't hand over the small note, because he knew that this kind of moment was not a question of tactics or staffing, but a decisive battle between the players' body and mind.

The Clippers players must not have the delusion that "throwing a three-pointer can win a big victory", nor can they think that the opponent was black eight last season, and this year the opponent is only seventh, but go all out on both offense and defense.

At the last moment, the two sides contributed an extremely exciting high-quality duel.

Curry made a decisive three-pointer after a single block from the outside to tie the score again.

Manu Ginobili immediately responded with a serpentine breakthrough.

Leonard continued to play in the fourth quarter, but this time he failed to win the ball from Ginobili.

He was blown off a walk...a clutch turnover on offense, but Tyronn Lue didn't replace him.

Then, Parker made a simple mid-range jumper and the Spurs expanded their lead.

The Spurs players were very hard at the critical moment.

Harden also shot a mid-range jumper from the top of the arc, biting the score.

In the last minute, the score between the two sides came to 1:99, and the Clippers trailed by 97 points.

It can be seen from the score that this game is still in the rhythm of the Spurs in general.

The Clippers' offense did not usher in a big explosion, and they were still led by the nose by the Spurs.

At this time, the Spurs demonstrated the experience of the dynasty team at critical moments. Duncan responded at a high position and passed the ball to Parker after the pick-and-roll.

Parker broke through with the ball in the middle and gave it to Duncan who was keeping up. Duncan caught the ball and dribbled in and took a step in a feint to shake Gasol away, and then easily put the basket!

A very simple pick-and-roll tactic, Parker's breakthrough, Duncan's catch and layup, the stability is unbelievable.

With a 4-point difference, the game situation became difficult for the Clippers.

Tyronn Lue called a timeout to arrange a key offensive tactic.

The Clippers have many tactical options. Harden, Curry, Randolph, and Gasol can all execute the main attack.

Tyronn Lue still chose Harden this time. Harden worked very well against the Spurs in this series.

Harden lived up to expectations, and after the timeout, he cut into the pick-and-roll and scored two points!

He has scored 27 points in this game, the highest in the team.

But Duncan then assisted Ginobili to cut to the basket for a layup in the middle.

This time Leonard still made up the defense in time, but was called a foul by the referee when he blocked the shot!
Leonard felt very helpless, and Min Congda was so angry that he recited the Three Character Classic to the referee on the sidelines.

Tonight, Min Congda really put all his heart into hoping that the Clippers could win, but the referee really didn't give face.

Ginobili made two free throws, 103:99, and the point difference came back to 4 points.

But Harden passed the ball to assist Curry again, and Curry hit a three-pointer!
103:102!The accuracy of the Clippers' 09 double guns in the backcourt is terrifying.

Curry has also scored 25 points, and the old Spurs' scalp is numb with two-shot shots.

But the Spurs were very sophisticated and called a timeout without giving the Clippers more opportunities.

There was no error in the serve. The Clippers fouled and sent Parker to the free throw line and made two free throws.

The Clippers finally had a chance to tie the score, but Harden missed a three-pointer after receiving the ball. The Clippers lost 105:102, regrettably.

The score of this game is very close to the previous game, but the Clippers lost this time, and the strength of the Spurs cannot be underestimated.

The Clippers had to go back to Los Angeles and the Spurs to fight Tianwangshan for a match point.

Min Congda cursed and left the arena. It's a pity that the referee didn't dare to do anything to him. Naturally, it is difficult to get a fine.

However, Min Congda knew in his heart that although the Clippers lost this time, they had completed a sublimation psychologically.

Harden and Curry, both tactically and personally, will become the absolute core of the Clippers.

Last year, the Clippers black eight Spurs, the main force is Randolph, and the outbreak of Baron Davis.

Harden and Curry belong to the tactical supporting roles, which play the role of icing on the cake.

The situation is different this year. Harden and Curry have become the protagonists. Randolph still plays a big role, but Duncan, who has recovered, has proved himself to be a top superstar in history. Randolph and him are not at the same level. Influence is not on one level.

If the Clippers want to win now, they must rely on the outside double guns to completely defeat the Spurs.

The schedule did not make the fans wait too long. Three days later, the Clippers and the Spurs played against each other in the fifth game at the Staples Center.

Harden and Curry teamed up to score 81 points, leading the Clippers to a big win over the Spurs at home!
Show the tough Spurs what real talent is.

(End of this chapter)