basketball never sleeps

Chapter 176 The show is about to begin

The dark crowd filled the entire stadium, and you could feel the oppression brought by those fanatical fans just from the TV in the locker room.

Nearly 40% of the police officers in Detroit were brought to the area around the Palace of Auburn Hills to maintain order.

Being behind 0:2 did not affect the fans' support and enthusiasm for the team.

When all that's left of the car factory is broken glass and rust, the Pistons, a blue-collar team, have become the city's new spiritual totem.

As the game time approached, the stadium did not quiet down, but became more and more noisy.

Not long after, the Heat players, who were the first to take the field as the visiting team, heard howling like hell.

Fortunately, the tickets in the front row are very expensive, and the people sitting there are usually rich people with relatively high quality, otherwise the recording equipment on the side of the field may be turned off.

O'Brien received the loudest boos, and some people on the sidelines held up photos of last year's Big Four of the Lakers crawling at the feet of the Pistons.

Aopang, who had been prepared for this for a long time, did not show too much emotion. He just glanced at everything with cold eyes. If it were not for his leg injury, he would definitely give a fiery performance to these enthusiastic fans.

Suppressing the anger in his heart, he looked behind him gloatingly.

For some reasons, he didn't make his final appearance today.

The DJ drawled out the name of the person who ran out of the shadows.

"WIN——!!!"

The fans who had been brewing their emotions for a long time did not readily vent their remaining negative emotions.

A considerable number of people chose to remain silent, and the remaining boos were far less loud and firm than before.

Just like some Japanese actresses with no acting skills, they have a half-dead beauty.

Mo Wen had a gentle smile on his face and even had the time to say hello to the familiar fans on the sidelines.

Ao Pang muttered something unfair and wrong in disappointment. He turned around and saw a female fan who looked pretty good. Just as he was about to take a second look, he realized that the jersey number on the female fan's body was actually No. 66.

Of course, Mo Wen is not so charming and can turn fans into friends. This phenomenon is also attributed to Mo Wen's management team and Nike's operation.

They customized the character and script for Mo Wen. Mo Wen only needs to occasionally cooperate in some activities, try to keep his mouth shut during normal times, and don't do things that touch red lines.

This is similar to the model of Grant Hill and Ajan.

Mo Wen had no reason to refuse. Reggie Miller's defiant style seemed very satisfying, but the pattern was ultimately too small.

Danzi, who is as confident and arrogant as Hou Sanlian, usually likes to talk about respect.

Under the management of several parties, Mowen's reputation in Detroit is still acceptable. At least you won't be shot by a sober person when you walk on the street.

Moreover, as Mo Wen's performance becomes more and more outstanding, some fans even imagine that Mo Wen will return to the Pistons after this contract ends.

"Have you heard the boos? Don't think that just because these fans are booing Mo Wen, they are severing ties with Mo Wen. You can tell by listening to the difference between him and O'Neal's boos before." Director Zhang said.

The broadcast room happily explained to the fans.

"In the playoffs, play away from home."

Mo Wen's time did not last long.

Amid the roar of the DJ and the cheers of the audience, the Pistons players also walked out of the tunnel with solemn expressions on their faces.

The starting lineups of both teams remain unchanged.

But after returning to the home court, the Pistons' momentum seemed to be stronger than that of the Heat.

The Pistons are also famous for their home games and away games. They lost 29 of 82 regular season games this year, including only 9 of 41 home games. The difference in winning percentage between home and away games is as high as 25%.

This is why many Detroiters firmly believe that the Pistons can complete their comeback.

The game begins.

Rashid once again won the ball without any pressure.

Offensively, the Pistons didn't make much change.

The Pistons' offense relies on two things - jump shots and attacking the paint.

With the big money, O'Brien can squat comfortably under the basket and block the inside. The only way left for the Pistons is to shoot jumpers.

As for jump shots, if there is no three-pointer, the height of the ceiling is limited.

What's more, Larry Brown can't play tricks either.

But back on the defensive end, the Pistons made a bold adjustment, which made the Heat uncomfortable.

In the first two games, although Mo Wen's statistics dropped a lot compared to before, his presence and role in the game did not decrease. Larry Brown, who learned from the painful experience, could only reluctantly shift the focus of defense from Mo Wen to Wei.

Germany.

Prince, who was originally responsible for guarding Mo Wen, also left Mo Wen and switched to guarding Wade.

Letting a 206 big bamboo pole defend a 193 small steel cannon is a bold decision.

But after several rounds of fighting, the effect was not bad.

As a heavy guard, Wade's outside breakthroughs at the beginning of his career mainly relied on his explosive power and top-level upper body strength combined with smooth dribbling.

Simple and efficient.

With the support of NH rules, it is difficult for ordinary defensive players to stop him without fouling.

But Prince's large defensive range and flexible and solid footsteps gave him the possibility to guard Wade.

In addition, the whistle at the Palace of Auburn Hills today was looser than in the previous two games.

After the first quarter, Wade's several attacks failed to break into the penalty area and were stopped by Prince. Unconvinced, Wade's several forced shots ended in failure.

During the timeout, Mo Wen reminded Wade that he could play more decisively.

Historically, the Pistons let Prince defend Wade in this series.

It did have a good effect at the beginning, allowing Wade to surrender a poor performance of 16 points on 7-of-25 shooting.

However, once Wade got used to Prince's defensive tightness, he quickly regained his sights.

To put it bluntly, Prince's defense is like a serious girl's righteous rejection. As long as you are not afraid of the sanction of the law, you will eventually get in...so don't test the law by yourself.

Wade followed Mo Wen's suggestion, but looking at the gradually widening point difference, Da Fan still couldn't be as calm as a Zen master, so he asked Wade to play more reasonably.

Maybe because he didn't have much confidence in his own touch, Wade still chose to listen to Da Fan's words, reduce his shots, and start passing the ball.

Kobe in front of the TV shook his head in disappointment when he saw Wade's performance later.

If you don't listen to the old man's words, you will suffer losses in front of you. This young man's mentality still needs to be practiced, and he will retreat when encountering some setbacks, but some things cannot be solved by avoiding them.

Ao Pang, who performed well in the last game, was not particularly efficient today.

In addition, the feel of free throws has returned to normal levels, and the desire to attack is not strong.

Billups, who switched defenses from Wade to Mo Wen, did not have an advantage in height and weight, but with the support of the home court, he did a good job of interfering.

Mo Wen picked up the ball in the second half and led the Heat in a counterattack, once tying or even overtaking the score.

But the Heat couldn't keep up with their subsequent efforts, and were slowly suppressed by the Pistons.

At 89:85, the Heat lost to the Pistons with a 4-point difference.

Larry Brown made the game turn into the ugly look he expected, but he was still not completely satisfied.

Because after being loosened, Mo Wen once again scored high.

Wade and Ao Pang's arrows are soft, but Mo Wen's rod is still hard.

He made 10 of 22 shots, 3 of 7 three-pointers, and 5 of 5 free throws. He scored 28 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals.

The shooting percentage is not high, but he is already the Heat's most accurate outside shooter.

The disadvantage is that it didn't reach 30 points, otherwise Larry Brown would have been scolded even if he won the game.

Wade hesitated amid the suggestions of Mo Wen and Da Fan, and the result was that he could neither break through Prince's defense nor maintain his scoring efficiency until the end. He made 7 of 18 shots and 0 of 2 three-pointers.

He made 2 of 2 free throws and only scored 16 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal.

However, he did a good job on the defensive end. With his strength hitting the wall everywhere, he could only inherit Kidd's will and vent his frustration on Billups, allowing the latter to only score 9 points.

In the fourth quarter, O'Brien patted his chest and said he would lead his two younger brothers to win the game, but the Pistons insiders disagreed.

The audience at the scene knew that the ball would definitely be in O'Pang's hands at the last moment, and the Pistons players on the court naturally kept their eyes on O'Pang.

As long as O'Pang receives the ball comfortably, then what awaits O'Pang next is bound to be a vicious foul.

The Pistons don't have many other things, they just have a lot of inside players, and the Sharks can take care of them.

Lokomotiv Ukraine, who was traded for Milicic, completed his task in 4 minutes and came off the field with a full foul.

After all, Ermao is not a big man, so he cannot mistake a black bear for a Siberian hamster.

And O'Brien, who scored 17 free throws in 10 minutes, lived up to the expectations of the people of Detroit.

Stable performance, 7 of 17 shots.

The Heat had no choice but to replace O'Brien in the last 2 minutes. Free throws are not counted as shots, but they also consume offensive rounds.

This kind of free throw scoring efficiency is not as good as Mo Wen's three-pointer in response to interference from the outside.

After playing 30 minutes, O'Pang scored 26 points with only 12 shots, which shocked the past. As for the 22 free throws in a single game, O'Pang tore them off the statistics sheet...

If you don’t say anything, it’s 0 penalty!

Although the Big Three still scored a high score of 70 points together, 80% of today's shots were concentrated on the three of them.

Of course, they are not alone. The main reason is that the rest of the Heat are not accurate in the Pistons' desperate defense.

Wade's ability to attract defense has declined, and the Mowen running tactic alone cannot create the kind of openings that can obliterate the Pistons' defense.

Although the Pistons, who were on the edge of the cliff at 0:2, could not slide down the Tigers and penetrate the steel plate in extreme anger, they were able to operate their defense to the extreme.

When the Big Three are not on the court together, the Pistons' forward line is all about double-teaming and one-two defense.

Coupled with the rough defensive moves like your worker grandfather, and a change of skin color, if you say this is the Naadam Conference, some people will believe it.

The fans at the scene were also delighted.

Later, the Pistons players didn't cheer much during the offensive round, so they just left the defensive round to make noise!

Welcome to the NBA spin-off show "This! It's Defense!"

Stern: Destroy it, hurry up, I’m tired...

Perhaps because he felt something was wrong with the game, Stern came directly over to supervise the game in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals.

Then···

In the second quarter of this game, someone anonymously called and said there was a bomb planted in the arena...

happy!

But fortunately the game is played in the Pistons, and the Pistons are quite experienced in this.

Because after the battle at the Palace of Auburn Hills, a game between the Pistons and the Pacers was delayed for nearly 90 minutes because of a bomb threat at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

They say Florida doesn’t support idle people, and Detroit is no different.

Last time, the bomb threat to the arena was made before the game, but today, in the middle of the game, why do you do this?

After Stern learned the news, he was stunned.

Fights and fights are still beyond his comprehension. Even if you escape the security check and bring a gun into the stadium, he won't be surprised. What the hell is a bomb in the Nima Arena?

Fortunately, after that incident, the Pistons installed relevant prevention facilities and early warning systems in the arena.

In addition, the governor and several other dignitaries were in the arena, so today's case was solved extremely efficiently.

Fortunately, it was just "telecom fraud"

So the game was interrupted for half an hour and then restarted without being informed of the reason.

It was during halftime that the players finally knew the reason for the emergency pause in the middle of the game, but of course the fans would not be informed.

It would be even more troublesome to cause riots and then have the Hillsborough disaster.

That is to say, after the game, the league delayed announcing the reason.

The Heat originally wanted to try their best to win this game and return home (22111 in the Eastern Conference Finals) to win the cup directly.

But I don’t want this incident to cause trouble, and most people’s mental state will be affected to some extent, and they will not be so full of energy.

In addition, Rasul's ankle was slightly sprained due to long-term fatigue. Although he could still play, the defensive end was somewhat affected, and his pursuit was half a step slower than before.

Hamilton seized a wave of opportunities and scored 34 points.

In the end, the Heat lost the game again with a 4-point difference, and the two teams tied with a score of 2:2.

(Note: The bomb incident was not fabricated, it actually happened)

"We dominated the Heat, did you see it? We fucking dominated the Heat with defense!"

After the game, in the home team's locker room, Rashid, who scored 20 points and 10 rebounds in Game 4, grinned and showed off his mottled yellow teeth, and vigorously waved the gold belt he designed himself, with a very aggressive attitude.

"I heard that Miami has prepared a float for the championship parade? It's really ridiculous. When they win the championship, the float will probably be turned into an antique!"

Hamilton, who had kept a low profile before, also smiled in front of the camera.

"Although there was an accident in the middle, the result was wonderful. Personally, I don't know at which moment everything came back. My legs became strong again, and my shooting touch was back. And our whole

Everyone on the team did what they should do, but I think many people have forgotten that we were the champions last year!”

Compared with the jubilant Pistons, the Heat are much quieter.

They were in the lead in the first half, but when an unexpected incident occurred in the middle, the rhythm never returned to their control.

O'Pang fell into a foul trap early, Dafan's twin-tower tactics slowed down the overall rhythm, Mo Wen's touch was cold, and Wade played too impatiently...

There are thousands of excuses, and each of them seems so reasonable, but if you lose, you lose.

"Mo, after losing this game, are you still confident to advance to the finals?"

"You feel bad today, can you tell me why?"

"Mo, what do you think of the performance of O'Neal and Wade?"

Facing these interviews with obvious malice, Mo Wen did not show any irritation or impatience. He still wore a calm smile as usual. Although he didn't talk much, he stood out among the hemming and hawing Heat players.

Losing inexplicably is of course very depressing.

At 2:2, the fact that the two teams were on the same starting line was not actually a disadvantage, but the feeling of a big lead being tied was hard to accept.

But this is for other Heat players. Mo Wen, who has rich experience in overturning in dungeons, will not be sad because of this small setback.

He has never seen such strong winds and waves - his tears have long since dried up in the copy, and now only a heart like steel remains.

The NBA is not a live game or a 2K game. In the United States, a country where magic and reality intersect, nothing is unexpected.

At least in reality he can still know the reason for losing. The unpredictable ups and downs of his teammates in the dungeon are even more frustrating.

No matter what, the Heat's strength must be above that of the Pistons.

As long as Stern doesn't plan to force the Pistons into the Finals and torture the audience, according to the normal rhythm of whistleblowing, there is no reason for the Heat to stop here.

The Pistons played very well in these two games. No matter in terms of mentality and physical condition, the Heat did not give many opportunities, but they seized them.

If we follow the script of a vulgar hot-blooded anime, this group of blue-collar workers will once again burst into flames and complete the following touching scenes just like last year.

But Mo Wen, who has not had a dream for two years, does not believe this. He only believes in reality.

The Heat were beaten in two games in a row, and the outside world naturally had nothing good to say.

Major forums in North America are full of comments mocking the Heat.

"O'Neal is really old. He has been dealt with by the Wallace brothers for two consecutive years. I don't know how long he can hold the title of the league's number one center."

"The Big Three can lose like this against the Pistons without All-Stars. Stop bragging!"

"Wade played like a champ in these two games, and Mo is not as smart as before. The Big Four of the Lakers couldn't win the championship last year, and the Big Three of the Heat couldn't make it to the Finals this year. It's really funny!"

"Miami is too careless, I hope they can adjust their condition quickly!"

“···”

Fortunately, the Spurs in the Western Conference were also defeated by the Suns in two games at home, which helped the Heat attract some firepower. Otherwise...it seems like nothing would happen, because mobile phones are not so developed yet, so I don't take the initiative to go to the forum.

When looking for scraps, you can basically not see comments from netizens.

As for the media, although there is a lot of criticism, no one will die if he does not read newspapers or watch TV for two or three days.

After flying back to Miami, the players rested for half a day before being pulled back to the team to begin the painful review journey.

"Mo, do you think I still have a chance?"

Wade, who had been "criticized" for a long time, looked listlessly at Mo Wen next to him.

Mo Wen rolled his eyes, it's not like he didn't give you a chance, it's because you didn't use it if you gave him a chance.

Before the game, Wade got his first pair of personally signed boots in his life.

Previously, Converse signed rookie Wade for 1.2 million in three years. However, when Wade entered the second team candidate in the playoffs this year, they rushed to work and made a pair of leather sneakers, and then hurriedly sent them to Wade.

in hand.

On the surface, the tactics cannot be changed, but privately, Mo Wenzhong still gave Wade several chances to take action.

But in terms of effect, it has no effect.

After losing the last game, Mo Wen also figured it out. You really can't treat the Wade in front of you as the "Flash" from another world.

Although Wade has been trained and guided by him to become stronger now, both physically and technically, but because the three of them formed a team and did not have so many difficult moments, this guy's mental attributes are far behind compared to him in history.

of.

Mo Wen himself was used to challenging the limits in various dungeons, but that didn't mean that others could also naturally understand it.

"If you have the energy to defend Hamilton in the next game, you can practice more free throws with Shaq these two days. The 66% free throw shooting rate in the last game is really yours, second-team guard?"

"I just had some bad luck and accidentally missed a few shots. Look at the old guy from the Western Conference next door. He didn't make 3 of 12 free throws in G4. Even top scorers make mistakes."

Wade choked and did not dare to speak loudly, so he could only laugh and retort.

"Besides, it doesn't matter if the free throws are inaccurate...can it be considered inaccurate regarding the defender?"

···

In G5 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the two teams left Auburn Mountain and embarked on a journey to climb Tianwang Mountain.

The Pistons' starting lineup remains unchanged, while the Heat replaced Rasul, who had some physical and mental problems in the last game, with Damon Jones.

At a quick glance, it can be said that the Heat's current lineup requires a high level of offense, rebounding, and shooting.

In fact, Mo Wen proposed that Da Zhi start at the 4th position and Haslem move to the 3rd position. Although this lineup also sacrifices defense to a certain extent, it at least maintains height and rebounds.

But taking into account Rasheed's recent outstanding form, Riley chose this small lineup somewhat counterintuitively.

Riley has no choice. Last year, the Heat's forward reserves were among the best in the league, but this year, the exchange of internal and external cores directly depleted his inventory.

The only one left who can fight is Rasul.

In the last game, the Heat's twin-tower tactic of Mourning and O'Brien seemed absurd - the twin-tower tactic requires the two towers to have sufficient athletic ability, otherwise they will be called out by the opponent's fast breaks and pick-and-roll mismatches.

Mourning and O'Pang's athletic abilities have deteriorated at this time.

In fact, it is also a compromise for the existing personnel reserves.

Although the Heat's twin towers are stupid, as long as they are in place, they are better than other options in both offense and defense.

As for the consumption of players, that is not within the scope of his consideration, but it is a pity that the Twin Towers did not produce very good results.

When the camera returned to the court, O'Pang simply made a gesture when jumping the ball and then directly returned to defense.

Mo Wen looked at the positions of the Pistons and looked familiar. He was careful when retreating, and within two steps he caught Billups, who suddenly accelerated his breakthrough with the help of Prince's small screen.

Although Billups' performance in the previous few games has been tepid, he is still quite confident. He doesn't panic when he sees Mo Wen. Guessing that he can't cover him, he takes a half step away from the three-point line and takes a shot.

The basketball hit the basket in a high arc and was grabbed by Wade.

Mo Wen didn't say any trash talk, but Billups could still see a little ridicule in his eyes and raised corners of his mouth.

Well, it seems that the Spurs' opening rush strategy cannot be used by them.

The Heat counterattacked, and after halftime with the ball, Mo Wen originally thought Billups would be guarding him, but he didn't expect that the person in front of him turned into Prince again.

Seeing that Mo Wen had no intention of handing the ball to Wade, Billups also had a smile on his face.

It doesn’t matter if you catch me for one round, we have anticipated your adjustments throughout the game.

Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced at the old man sitting on the sidelines. He was somewhat surprised by the Pistons' adjustment.

How can an old guy still have this ability to predict?

Of course...no.

Larry Brown's adjustment is purely for his new club.

The Knicks also want to get Mo Wen after next season. Even if Mo Wen ravages them, it's not that they get pleasure from being tortured by Mo Wen, but that they feel that a top point guard like Mo Wen joins them.

, allowing them to take off on the spot like the sun.

What, Dolan once said Marbury was his beloved relative, friend, and brother?

Don't make trouble, Ma. If you have some sense, don't take up the Knicks' salary space and influence us to pay a high salary to Brother Mo.

As for whether Mo Wen will come...

Thomas, then the general manager of the Knicks, had the same confidence as a primary school student at Tsinghua and Peking University.

No one can refuse the call of the Knicks!

After all, the Knicks represent Mane and New York!

As for the Knicks' salary space, which has exploded, they can't just trade all these big contracts. Thomas doesn't want too many, just give him a few draft picks for such high-quality players.

Thomas also hopes to get Larry Brown, because he always feels that it is not his fault that he signed such a bad contract, it is purely because the previous head coach did not know how to use it.

He wanted to use Larry Brown's guidance to prove his vision.

But, as we all know, in basketball, Mo Wen and Larry Brown can only choose two out of three.

Therefore, Thomas was very confused at this time.

Originally, Larry Brown's performance against the Pistons in the first two games made Thomas doubt Larry Brown's coaching ability, but then the Pistons' two consecutive wins dispelled speculation about his wealth, but... he is still confused.

After all, men like young people.

Larry Brown felt quite uncomfortable seeing Thomas' hot and cold attitude. He was divorced by the Pistons... He had already written his resignation report. Why the hell did you tell me you still love that little bastard?

If the five-year, 50 million contract wasn't so tempting, he would have turned against him long ago.

Therefore, after saving face and the team seemed to have regained the feeling of winning, Larry Brown couldn't wait to point the finger at Mo Wen.

Although he was a little surprised, Mo Wen didn't panic.

Regardless of whether the Pistons choose to target him again, he will never give this initiative to others again.

When climbing a mountain, don't think about holding on to the bottom. Holding the bottom is far more difficult and dangerous than pulling people in front.

With a vague tactical gesture, Mo Wen first pulled the ball to avoid Prince's steal attempt, and then blew the ball sideways and crossed steps, making an intention to run towards Haslem.

Prince knew that Mo Wen was used to playing two singles first when holding the ball, so his pursuit was not thorough. He was not surprised when he saw Mo Wen turn sideways and turn his back. He pulled his center of gravity and followed him to the other side to defend.

past.

But Mo Wen didn't do what he thought. After a moment of pause, he turned around and strode towards the direction just now.

When Prince, who had been shunted away, turned around and chased after him, Mo Wen, who realized that the distance was enough, stopped looking for a pick-and-roll. He braked, and his slightly bent knee bounced smoothly. The "cannonball" was in less than half a second.

The loading was completed within a short time, and after drawing a beautiful arc in the sky, a white wave splashed in the basket.

Hmm, it feels good in the hand.

3:0.

Prince's eyes dimmed a little. Everyone praised him as a strong defensive player, but he had never really been able to seal it off, even for one game.

Turn around and the Pistons attack.

It's the familiar multiple covers again.

Hamilton ran around the wall but couldn't completely get rid of Wade.

With Wade's physical fitness, it is not difficult to squeeze out of the pick-and-roll.

Physical injuries and physical fitness are the keys to restricting performance.

Mo Wen offered to take charge of the team's offense, so he could use part of his physical energy on the defensive end.

Billups saw that Hamilton was still unable to figure it out, so he took the initiative to single out the lightweight Damon Jones in front of him.

Although Damon Jones is not strong enough, he is often abused by Mo Wen and Wade in the team. His defense is not very good, but he is somewhat clever.

He kept confronting him around the three-point line, forcing Billups to rush inside.

Not wanting to challenge O'Brien, Billups could only choose to make a mid-range pull-up jumper that he rarely took.

Although it didn't seem to be disturbed much, it was still strong.

O'Pang was rare and diligent in pushing away Rashid who was blocked, took off the rebound, found Mo Wen's position at a glance, and threw it over without pausing.

Although the ball was not very comfortable to catch, it didn't matter. Mo Wen didn't take the ball and boldly pushed the ball forward. He threw Prince away with one arm and strode towards the Pistons' half court.

"Mo received the ball and pushed back quickly. Prince was following him hard, but his teammates seemed to be a step too late. Let's see what Mo will choose."

"BANG! Folding dunk, Mo didn't choose to wait for Wade to follow him as usual, he could complete it by himself... Looking at the video, he didn't completely avoid Prince's interference, but he maintained his balance and still completed it.

Take action."

"Guys, hurry up and ask your friends who haven't watched the game yet to turn on the TV. If my hunch is correct, the show is about to start!"

Because there are flaws in the plot design of this chapter, the content of the original two chapters was merged into one chapter. The 8k word count should still be calculated as 4K. It can only be said to be a small compensation within my authority.

(End of chapter)