NBA: Start by torturing Jordan and add points to upgrade

"You played well in the first quarter." Lin Tian stood up and said to his players, "But remember, the pace is fast tonight. Both sides may score more than 120 points tonight, so a mere 3-5 point advantage is nothing and means nothing. If you're not careful, you could be back to square one in 30 seconds!"

"So everyone must not let their guard down and must give it their all! We must seize every detail we can, expand our advantage, and win the game!"

"Yao, Carlos, Jeremy, Derrick, and Lamar, the five of you playing together at the start of the second quarter, that's when our offense is most versatile and the hardest to defend!"

"Because when the five of you come at us together, we can execute any tactic!"

"Remember this, remember it clearly. We should be as fast as possible. Yao and Carlos, don't rush. You can follow slowly from behind. If there are no opportunities for transition between offense and defense, then slow down and fight a positional battle with them."

"Also, whether we're fast or slow, the most important thing is to stay calm. Stay calm, don't make mistakes, and don't rush things and cause errors. Tonight, we must be fast while completely suppressing our number of errors!"

"With this lineup, we have the most isolation players and ball-handlers. If anyone is being targeted, just switch players to handle the ball. Remember, our three core elements at the beginning of the second quarter are consistency, no turnovers, and unselfishness! Okay, everyone, go for it!"

Lin Tian clapped his hands, signaling that the player he had chosen could come on for the second quarter.

After the players took to the court, Lin Tian suddenly looked at Stevens next to him and said, "Brad, you and Jeff switch positions. I want to sit next to Jeff in this series."

"Why!" Stevens exclaimed in disbelief. How had he been relegated to the sidelines?
"Because of Stephenson on the other side, no, Stephenson, no, Sventsen, never mind what he's called. We already have enough of you and Lance, and now there are three of us. I don't want to call him by the wrong name."

"Do you know how hard it is to distinguish between the three of your names? Do you know that I have to double-check before I say them to make sure I'm not mistaken?"

"So, let Jeff sit next to me. I'll try not to talk to you during this series to avoid making mistakes."

Faced with Lin Tian's illogical yet seemingly irrefutable reason, what could Stevenson say? He had almost forgotten his own name. He could only stand up and switch places with the reluctant Van Gundy.

"What kind of scheme are you planning now?" Van Gundy looked at Lin Tian warily.

"You're really hurting me, Jeff! I paid the $5 fine you got for yelling at the referees during the Eastern Conference Finals, and now you're saying I'm up to something?"

"Wasn't that handed in by Michael? What does it have to do with you?" Van Gundy retorted, "Don't give me that! I'm watching every single expense and income of the team!"
“I told him, do you think that miserly old man who picks his ass and sucks his fingers could afford this? Let me tell you, this money was basically pulled out of his back door by me with a spiked club! And you’re still here making sarcastic remarks.”

"I'm truly in pain!"

Lin Tian's personality of constantly acting silly and teasing others has become his trademark. But no matter what his original purpose was, or whether he had no purpose at all and was just having fun, the final result was always the same.

The tense or solemn atmosphere always lightens up after a few words from him.

At least for now, Van Gundy's hand, which had been constantly reaching into his pocket as if trying to find some life-saving secret, has been put back at his side and is no longer groping around.

The others on the bench also showed a slight smile.

Our coach and our boss are so confident and arrogant, so what are we afraid of!

Let's just do it, that's it!
Although the players on the field didn't hear Lin Tian and the two coaches' nonsense, they certainly played with great spirit!

Although James of the Mavericks only rested for 1 minute at the end of the first quarter before returning to the game, Dirk Nowitzki, who rested for only 2 minutes longer than James, also returned to the court at the start of the second quarter.

But the Bobcats weren't afraid at all when facing the Mavericks' two stars!

Driven by their three ball-handlers, the Bobcats were able to maintain their pace in the second quarter and, even with the Mavericks' defense coming back and blocking their path, they were able to settle into their half-court positions and score through pick-and-rolls or Yao Ming's inside scoring.

The Bobcats' offensive intensity showed no signs of waning during the break.

It's worth mentioning, however, that even though the Bobcats' offense was almost flawless, they were unable to pull away or take control of the game.

Because the Mavericks didn't follow their pace at all. With both James and Nowitzki on the court, James was able to steadily slow down the pace each time, allowing the team to advance slowly before deciding how to attack in half-court situations.

Clearly, Johnson knew what the Mavericks' strengths were and how the team could play to maximize their benefits.

He wasn't in a hurry at all, and he told his players not to be in a hurry either, just to test their patience against the Bobcats!
In any case, in terms of years of experience, experience, and the quality of star players, the Mavericks still have an absolute advantage.

For the Bobcats, the Mavericks' style of play is clearly a huge test.

After all, back in the Eastern Conference, the pairing of Rose and Lin as point guards always caused immense pain to the opposing defense and allowed them to control the tempo of the game.

Their dual-engine drive system made them virtually invincible in the East.

But this approach didn't work on the Mavericks.

If they can't get the rhythm going, it will be difficult for Lin Tian's lineup to maximize their advantages!

About three minutes into the second quarter, the Mavericks launched their first counterattack!

They exploited the Mavericks' lack of height in their two guards and the fact that only Odom on the wing had enough mobility to match up against James, launching a targeted offensive.

Johnson fielded an all-out offensive lineup featuring Nowitzki, Marion, James, Butler, and Terry!
This lineup is not only capable of scoring, but also tall and strong, and its mobility is unparalleled. It can be said to be a nearly perfect lineup except for the lack of an inside tank!

More importantly, at least on paper, this lineup has an advantage over every point on the Bobcats!

Butler can post up Lin in the low post, Marion can use his mobility and speed to cut to the basket constantly, leaving Boozer unable to catch up, and Nowitzki can completely avoid the three-point line, leaving Yao Ming to be caught between two options, unsure whether to guard the paint or defend Nowitzki's three-pointers on the perimeter.

In addition, Terry is a top-notch one-on-one player. Although he is not very good at anything other than one-on-one, that one skill is enough for him to take down Rose!

As for James facing off against Odom, James is now invincible in individual matchups against anyone!
And when these players came on the court, the Mavericks clearly had Johnson's approval. They stopped trying to control the pace and instead started running with the Bobcats!
"You want to go all out, huh? You want to race? Let's go then!" Johnson stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed, his eyes fixed on the court. Although he had absolute confidence, he was not relaxed at all.

As he predicted, this lineup immediately gained the upper hand once it was deployed!

First, everyone pulled Butler aside, allowing him to take advantage of his height to score 2 points against Jeremy Lin. Then, Nowitzki blocked Yao Ming's hook shot, and the Mavericks launched a fast break. James dribbled the ball up the middle and found Marion following up on the other side.

A no-look pass successfully assisted Marion, allowing him to complete a beautiful two-handed dunk!

Then, although Rose stumbled and made a layup, he fell off the baseline and couldn't even get up before the Mavericks' offense surged across the court again, and Terry caught the ball and pulled up for a three-pointer.

"Shh!"

After another crisp sound, the Mavericks went on a 7-2 offensive run in the blink of an eye!
Their scoring efficiency and the speed of their offensive and defensive transitions are truly astonishing.

This is the offensive firepower of the strongest team in the West!

At this moment, Lin Tian reacted quickly, immediately calling a timeout, indicating that they needed to change the lineup.

"Marvin, you take Carlos's place. If they want to run, then we'll run with them!" Lin Tian shouted. "Keep an eye on your own men, compete in speed and mobility, compete in offense and scoring. We won't lose to anyone! Go, all of you, go!"

At this moment, Lin Tian was actually quite conflicted. He finally understood what it felt like to use the all-around Odom to bully others in the previous rounds of the series.

James is like a fully enhanced, evolved, and upgraded Odom!
He's gone from being a top-tier sixth man to a historically top-tier player.

This point is really hard to match.

Although James didn't score a single point and only had one assist, he did a lot of things, such as spreading out the defense to pass the ball to Butler for a post-up, feeding the ball to Marion on a cut, and quickly inbounding the ball from the baseline to let Terry make a transition play.
This guy's influence in the competition is strong in every aspect.

By this point, Lin Tian felt increasingly confident in his abilities.

If my buddy hadn't started planning before the series, this series might have been a disaster! Now... hehe.

No rush, there's plenty of time!
After bringing in Marvin to maintain the team's mobility, the Bobcats returned to the court to battle the Mavericks.

However, this personnel change was not very successful.

The Bobcats have improved their mobility, and at the same time, they can still ensure that Yao Ming, a strong point under the basket, is on the court to protect the rebounds and launch strong attacks under the basket.

Including players who can compete with James, there are now Williams and Odom.

But it was no use. Overall, the Bobcats still couldn't keep up with the Mavericks. James's intimidating presence and the Mavericks' all-around offensive style of play were still impossible to defend against!
In particular, after the substitution, James suddenly changed his playing style. Facing Williams, who was similar in size to himself, he played more decisively, driving to the basket several times to score layups or dunks, leading his team to widen the score gap.

Although Lin Tian called another timeout and made another substitution, it was to no avail. In the following time, James repeatedly used his ability to tear apart the defense to find his teammates and assist Nowitzki and others to score.

The point difference between the two sides widened to more than 10 points in the blink of an eye.

If the Bobcats hadn't finally found their shooting touch in the latter part of the second quarter, with Williams and Rose hitting several three-pointers in a row, the point difference between the two teams would have been over 20 points by the end of the second quarter!
Throughout the second quarter, the Bobcats were completely countered by the Mavericks' all-out offensive lineup, and their momentum from the first quarter vanished.

However, it is clear that this temporary 3-point advantage cannot change the course of the game.

With one minute remaining in the second quarter, the score was 67-55.

The two sides are 12 points apart.

James calmly compressed the offensive time, then initiated another pick-and-roll with the ball. After an exchange with Marion, the two sprinted towards the paint.

Then Marion suddenly changed direction, shifting his body sideways to block Odom.

Nowitzki rushed out to the three-point line, caught the pass back from James who had already rushed to the basket, and pulled up and shot from beyond the three-point line!
"Shh!"

After a crisp sound, Nowitzki hit a three-pointer!
He didn't take many shots or score many points in the first half of the game tonight, but after this basket, his score reached double digits!

And that's not all yet!

After all, it's common knowledge that top shooters have a continuous flow of good form!

Nowitzki, in a spectacular display of skill, once again defended Odom's layup attempt one-on-one, grabbed the rebound, and passed it back to James. Then, he jogged slowly all the way to the three-point line, where James had completely flattened the Bobcats' defense.

Nowitzki was all alone. He stood before the burly man and called out, "LeBron!"

The basketball arrived almost in the blink of an eye, and Nowitzki, at the top of the arc, drew his bow and launched another powerful shot towards the basket.

"Shh!"

Within 20 seconds, Nowitzki hit two consecutive three-pointers!

In the next round, the Bobcats, who were already in dire straits, calmed down under Rose's command. They moved in an orderly manner, quickly took their positions, and after a series of passes, the ball came to DeRozan's hands.

DeRozan used two fakes and footwork to easily shake off Peja, who had just come on, and then released a mid-range jump shot from an open position.

"Boom!"

Unfortunately, DeRozan missed a clear chance!
After James retrieved the rebound under the basket and grabbed it, he raised his hand to signal everyone not to rush and to take their time!
When he grabbed the rebound, there were still 17 seconds left in the quarter, more than enough time for the Mavericks to take their time and score.

After dribbling the ball up the court, James was about to wave for everyone to spread out so he could take the final shot when Johnson on the sidelines suddenly yelled, "Give it to Dirk! Spread out and let Dirk finish this attack!"

"Peja, Sean, cover for Dirk!"

James's expression visibly changed, but he only hesitated for a moment before quickly passing the ball to Nowitzki, who was calling for it at a 45-degree angle, while he himself quickly moved to the other side.

"We've got this tonight!" Lin Tian had, of course, heard Johnson's loud, hoarse voice. At this moment, he seemed completely oblivious to the huge gap between the two sides, instead displaying an air of confidence.

Van Gundy next to him even rubbed his eyes and then glanced at the scoreboard again to make sure he wasn't delirious and that the team was indeed down by 18 points.

So, since I'm not crazy, there's only one possibility.

"Are you crazy?"

"You're the one who's crazy, your whole family is crazy." If he wasn't afraid of getting a technical foul from the referee, Lin Tian would have definitely given Van Gundy the middle finger right now.

How could anyone talk like that?
"Then tell me, how do we secure this?" Van Gundy had barely finished speaking when Nowitzki unleashed his signature one-legged fadeaway jumper, turning and stepping back to shoot, and sinking the shot once again!
As the ball went in, the whistle blew to end the first half, officially ending the first half!

In just one minute, Nowitzki went on a scoring spree, racking up 8 points in a row!
Not only did he score 15 points in the first half tonight, but he also successfully extended the Mavericks' lead to 20 points with this buzzer-beater!
"Twenty points now." Van Gundy knew that saying this was quite discouraging, but he couldn't help but ask, "How can we secure this?"

"Because the opponents are giving us an advantage," Lin Tian said, standing up. "Just based on that silly thing Johnson said, I believe we can turn things around in the second half! Let's go to the locker room and talk about it."

After Lin Tian finished speaking, he turned around first and called to the players, who were now exhausted and dejected, to walk into the player tunnel.

The players' current state is exactly as Lin Tian expected. Who can still laugh when they are down 0-2 in the finals and trailing by 20 points in the first half of the third game?

Yes, there are.

That's me, Lord Lin!

Especially before Lin Tian left the court, he saw the entire Mavericks team rush to Nowitzki and celebrate wildly with him. Even the team's owner, Cuban, who had come to the away game, rushed over and hugged Nowitzki.

"I knew it! I knew we could do it, Dirk! You were the best decision I ever made! I knew we could do it! It's all thanks to you! Tonight, we're all thanks to you! My forever MVP!"

Lin Tian saw more than just that. He also saw that James didn't rush over to celebrate, but instead straightened his shorts and bent down to tie his shoelaces.

Then he quietly blended into the group and walked into the players' tunnel with everyone.

Little brother, are you feeling down?
It's not enough to just feel uncomfortable.

But we still have to turn our grief and anger into skill and strength!

Back in the locker room, Lin Tian didn't rush to hold a meeting with the dejected players. Instead, he took out his phone, pressed a few buttons, and sent a text message. Then, he looked at everyone, coughed, and signaled for them to focus.

"I'm so excited right now!" Lin Tian's words left everyone in the room a little speechless.

Brother, we're about to fall behind 0-3, what are you excited about?
"I loved this kind of scene when I was a player, and I've experienced it many times!"

"I have experienced adversity, desperate situations, death situations, and even being kicked off a cliff, a situation where I am sure to die in mid-air."

“Every time I’m super excited! Because I know that my time to be a hero has come! My time to become a superhero and save the world has come! I have gained a life where everyone looks down on me, everyone thinks I’m finished, and everyone laughs at me.”

"And then the chance to win!"

"Isn't this exciting? Hey, hey, hey, I'm telling you guys, haven't you all fantasized about the team being down by a large margin, and you single-handedly hitting 3-5 three-pointers in a row, scoring 50 points, leading the team to a 20-0 run, and then turning the game around?" (End of Chapter)