NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

As the competition progressed, Lin Tian and Miller continued to comment on the game, arguing and analyzing at the same time, creating a very entertaining show!

With the two analyzing and supporting each other throughout the game, the match quickly reached the crucial moment of the fourth quarter.

With three minutes remaining in the game, the score was tied at 87-82!

The Spurs, playing on the road, are currently leading by 5 points.

"Lin, what are your thoughts on the last two minutes of the game? Do you think the Spurs can hold onto their lead until the end of the game?"

"The two teams are currently showing a very close level of play, and they have been playing for a long time without a clear winner. But I still believe that I favor the Celtics. Although they are behind, they have a more complete and better system."

"They have more players who can contribute in crucial moments. Parker, Ginobili, and Duncan are all top-notch at it! They have so many offensive options that it's impossible to defend them. So I think the Celtics will be able to score an offensive possession immediately after the next timeout!"

"Oh? I think the Spurs will definitely tighten their defense. They will do everything they can to hold onto this possession. It will be difficult for either Duncan or anyone else to score easily!"

"After all, for the Spurs, if they can hold on for this possession and score another basket, they can basically lock in the victory!"

"Otherwise, what about you? You've never even been in the top five of the MVP voting in your entire life! You haven't even made it into the top ten twice as many times as I've won MVP! Do you know what that means?"

"This means you don't know as much about basketball as I do. Apart from being able to say a little about three-pointers, you're completely incompetent in everything else!"

"Let me put it this way, I'll just tell you directly, after the timeout, Duncan will definitely get the ball at the high post first, then his teammates will run around him looking for opportunities, and finally he'll cut to the basket!"

"This possession will 80% likely be handled by Ginobili; his drive will allow the Celtics to close the gap!"

"But Ginobili only scored 7 points on 3-of-8 shooting tonight! And he also had 3 turnovers." Miller looked at the stats and expressed disbelief.

"So this is exactly the perfect opportunity for Ginobili to turn the game around and become a hero! He will do it." Lin Tian shrugged and said, "Also, Reggie, I advise you to throw away the statistics. To us commentators, they're just a piece of waste paper."

"Besides reading it aloud after the game, it serves no other purpose. For us, professional knowledge and adaptability are the most important! Understand?"

Miller was so speechless after Lin Tian's rebuke that he could only smirk and remain completely utterly speechless.

Every sentence was a slap in the face, every word a dagger to the heart.

Miller could only wait and see how the game unfolded.

For Miller, as long as the Celtics fail to score, he can mock Lin Tian. He can even mock Lin Tian if Ginobili doesn't have the ball on the court next.

We've been waiting for this round.

I'll endure it!
Soon, the timeout ended, and as expected, the Celtics had Howard inbound the ball from the sideline. Duncan moved to the area above the free-throw line to screen for his teammates, and then the ball was picked up by Josh Howard.

After receiving the ball, Howard immediately moved towards Duncan, then made a reverse handoff to Duncan, and quickly circled around Duncan. This guy made a quick run without his hands, heading towards the other corner.

Then Parker and Ginobili ran towards Duncan simultaneously, one after the other, less than 3 meters apart. The two of them also made a cross-run that seemed to be a hand-to-hand pass with Duncan.

It has to be said, the Spurs' defense is really good! The Celtics' brilliant tactics failed to create any opportunities!
"See? I told you the Spurs' defensive system would help them. I told you their defense would let them hold this possession! The Celtics shouldn't even think about playing plays at this point. They'll have to rely on Duncan or other stars to go one-on-one!"

Miller had barely finished speaking, and before he could even further mock Lin Tian, ​​Ginobili suddenly made a serpentine movement, and after two consecutive reverse run fakes, he suddenly turned and ran towards the basket.

JR, who was closely following him, was caught off guard and successfully shaken off by this guy.

Duncan's pass arrived in an instant, quickly passing it to Ginobili.

After receiving the ball, Ginobili took a Eurostep and stepped out from under Martin, dodging him, and put the ball into the basket with an almost perfectly smooth and strange motion.

"What were you about to say?" Lin Tian looked at Miller with a wicked smile: "You can voice your opinions if you have any. Although I am stronger than you, more handsome than you, and have a more successful career than you, having won countless more MVPs and championships, and I saved your career."

"But in the end, this is not a place where one person can have the final say."

"You tell me, how will the Spurs play next!" Miller knew now wasn't the time to retaliate. He held out his hand, indicating that Miller should continue his analysis and see if he would be proven wrong.
"The next round will be the most important round! If the Celtics can stop James's drives to the basket, they will win!" Lin Tian said with unwavering determination. "James has the league's top-tier impact, and his breakthroughs are unstoppable."

"But the Celtics happen to have two of the best rim protectors. The three-second zone guarded by Duncan and Howard is definitely the most difficult iron-blooded defense to break through in the league today."

"Of course, if I were there, their defenses would be nothing."

"And we all know James' weaknesses. He always wants to play more rationally, he always wants to play more in line with the tactics, and he is more willing to look for open teammates rather than trying to force his way through alone. At the same time, he has absolute confidence in his breakthroughs, but he has absolutely no confidence in his shooting."

"But of course, Popovich will let him take the next offensive possession."

"So I think James will make a strong personal attack in the next possession, and will drive into the paint to challenge the Celtics' twin towers. If he succeeds, he will be even more determined to attack the basket and more courageous in using his personal abilities to change the game."

"But if his next attack is thwarted, then things can get complicated, and he might start passing the ball!"

As Lin Tian spoke, James seemed to want to prove Lin Tian right. After a screen, he dribbled and drove hard to the basket. But when he got to the three-second zone, Duncan first stood in front of him with his arms outstretched like a city wall, blocking James.

Then, when James's offensive power dropped significantly and he could only barely jump to shoot, Howard, who was behind Duncan, descended from the sky like a monster and slapped James's layup away!
"Quick attack!" Lin Tian roared, "The Celtics must seize this opportunity!"

With Lin Tian's roar, the three-man backcourt trio of Parker, Ginobili, and Josh Howard simultaneously launched a fast break, and the Celtics' signature three-line fast break spread out. Finally, the ball was passed to Parker, who had the best finishing ability. Parker made a layup and scored the crucial 2 points!
In the blink of an eye, the Celtics narrowed their deficit from a five-point deficit to just one point.

And there's still 1 minute and 20 seconds left in the game!

The suspense continues!

At this point, after Lin Tian had guessed his intentions repeatedly, Miller had temporarily calmed down. He wasn't stupid; after being on the same team as Lin Tian for so many years, Miller knew better than anyone when to charge in and when to stay calm and hold back.

At this moment, when Lin Tian was hitting the bullseye every time, like a charlatan, Miller knew he should shut up.

The final minute of the game unfolded almost exactly as Lin Tian had predicted!
After getting blocked, James did indeed hesitate. He didn't take a shot after driving to the basket for two consecutive possessions. He was really wary of the Celtics' twin towers.

But James lacked confidence in his shooting and was unwilling to test his touch at this moment, so he passed the ball to his teammates twice in a row.

Unfortunately, JR and Bosh both missed their three-pointers, and the Spurs failed to capitalize on this great opportunity!
On the other hand, for the Celtics, after Ginobili and Parker scored in succession, Duncan once again challenged under the basket, turning and hooking for 2 points. Then it was Duncan again, this guy turned around and attracted a double team when he was backing down, and then passed the ball to Howard under the basket.

"boom!"

With a loud bang, Howard slammed home a two-handed dunk, giving the Celtics a 3-point lead with 25 seconds left in the game!

"James needs to step up!" Miller couldn't help but say, "The team leader has to step up now!" "If I were the Celtics, I would make way for James," Lin Tian suddenly added. "If you guard him too tightly, a superstar like James might do something incredible in a desperate situation."

"But if you give him just a little bit of space, let him calm down and think about whether this is a trap, let him carefully consider how to play this ball reasonably, it can have a surprising effect."

"But of course, this trick doesn't work on everyone. To deal with those types who often get carried away and like to throw things recklessly, yes, I'm talking about Kobe and Iverson, you don't give them any space. Just defend them like crazy and go head-to-head with them."

"They're not going to pass the ball at this time anyway."

While Lin Tian and Miller were quickly analyzing the situation, the Spurs' timeout finally ended, and the inbound pass was directly given to Francis. Francis then found James and decisively passed the ball out.

Whether the Celtics' defense was intentionally designed or something went wrong, James actually got an open shot after receiving the ball!
But this guy raised the ball once, then dribbled it again, and he actually didn't shoot!
By the time James adjusted himself and aimed at the basket to shoot, it was too late.

Josh's defense arrived quickly, blocking James's direct shot. James had no choice but to drive to the basket and then passed the ball to Bosh on the other side. Bosh took the ball and immediately pulled up for a three-pointer.

"Boom!"

With the creation of this piece of fine iron, the suspense of this match has been completely eliminated.

Then the Celtics demonstrated what consistent and reliable free throws look like. Ginobili and Parker went to the free throw line one after another and made all four of their free throws, putting up a solid performance.

The Spurs' shooters showed what it means to have milk come when the baby dies. JR and Francis each hit a three-pointer, but when Francis took that buzzer-beating three, the Celtics players didn't even bother to defend him.

With three seconds left and a four-point lead, only a lunatic would bother with defense.

Let him throw it. No matter how brilliantly you score a buzzer-beating three-pointer, it won't add an extra point for you, right?
Ultimately, thanks to Lin Tian's miraculous prediction, the Celtics narrowly defeated the Spurs by one point, securing their first victory in the Finals!

"Lin, what do you think of this game?" The biggest change Miller has experienced over the past year with TNT is knowing when to be tough and when to be low-key.

After a year of exchanging insults with three top trolls, Miller's insulting skills may not have improved much, but his ability to avoid being insulted has definitely improved by leaps and bounds.

For example, right now, he completely ignored the argument he had just had with Lin Tian and directly said that he could summarize it.

"A fantastic match! I really enjoyed it. The team's tactical system and the players' individual skills were both superb!"

"I have to say, James is great, but he's still a little bit lacking. If he can continue to improve his shooting and post-up game, he could definitely become the best in the league. But unfortunately, he can't suddenly become a top shooter or a low-post monster during the Finals."

"So I think he will most likely miss out on the championship this year."

"But they've only played one game!" Miller couldn't help but say. "The Celtics only won by one point at home. Do you think the Finals are already decided?"

“We’ll see,” Lin Tian said in a relaxed but undeniable tone. “Anyway, if you asked me to predict this Finals series right now, I would say 4-0. Out of respect for James and Popovich, I would say 4-1.”

"The Spurs are missing something that they can't fix in 2-3 games, so they're destined to be dominated by the Celtics."

"Tonight's game was their closest chance to win, but they failed to capitalize on it. The experienced Celtics won't give them another chance."

"Alright Reggie, now you can look at your favorite stats. How about reading out the Celtics players' numbers to everyone?"

“帕克11中4，约什·霍华德9中3，德怀特·霍华德8中4，罚球4中1。”米勒和林天这点默契还是有的，他飞快的就将林天想让他念出来的那几个数字给念了出来。

"Look, the Celtics' three core players all played poorly at the same time, which is why the Spurs barely kept the suspense going until the end. But the Celtics can't have three players underperforming at the same time forever. What if only two of them underperform in the next game? What if the Celtics' entire team is on point in the game after that?"

"As the person who swept them to win the championship last year, I sincerely believe that the Celtics were the closest to escaping the team I swept, and they almost did it."

"They are clearly stronger this year than last year!"

"So what do you think would happen if last year's Knicks faced off against this year's Celtics?" Miller seized the opportunity to ask a precise question.

"They can probably keep us at odds with them until overtime in one of our matches. Maybe we'll have to put in a lot more effort to sweep them." Lin Tian shrugged, indicating that he could be lenient with them compared to others, but comparing them to last year's team was a different story.

Even if the Heavenly King himself came, he would be swept aside!

Miller was used to Lin Tian's shamelessness and arrogance, after all, he was one of Lin Tian's main accomplices in his arrogance back then.

However, the people who are suffering the most right now are obviously not Miller, but the fans of TD Garden.

They were conflicted.

How should I face Lin Tian?
Looking back, this bastard has repeatedly defeated the Celtics in the playoffs, from the era of Pierce and Walker to the Duncan era. The Celtics have forgotten how many times they have lost to Lin Tian.

Now, the Celtics are about to win the championship again, and their most steadfast and trusting supporter is none other than Lin Tian.

Can you boo someone who completely trusts your team to win the championship, or even to win 4-0?
Obviously not.

But if you cheer for him, this guy will say that if he hadn't retired, he could have swept you.

I feel uncomfortable, conflicted, and extremely irritable.

Fortunately, this slight frustration was nothing compared to the triumphant march through the finals.

Lin Tian's predictions came true in the second and third games of the series!

This guy seemed to have gained supernatural insight, perfectly predicting the results of these two matches.

In Game 2, the Celtics displayed remarkable unity and fighting spirit. No one faltered, and they gave the Spurs no chance. From the first quarter, they completely controlled the game and ultimately defeated the Spurs by 17 points, heading to San Antonio with a 2-0 lead and a perfect start.

In Game 3, James, who had been pushed to the brink, finally exploded! He forgot about reasonable tactics, how to share the ball, and how to pass the ball to open teammates.

他全场比赛疯狂出手33次，命中17球，拿下47分11篮板5助攻的完美数据！他几乎就以一己之力率队啃下这至关重要的总决赛第三战了。

Unfortunately for him, he ran into a fully-powered Duncan tonight!
21 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists, and 8 blocks!
Duncan withstood James' repeated attacks with a near quadruple-double, a triple-double, and a double-20 performance.

He led his team to victory in the first away game and successfully secured the match point!

3: 0!

The Celtics are just one step away from winning the championship! (End of Chapter)