Basketball's No. 1 Anti-Fan

Chapter 145 Boomerang

A stretcher was eventually carried on the scene.

Ginobili really couldn't even stand up.

Han Sen was there communicating with the referee.

"He pushed me before he stepped back, so I jumped a little too far and it was too late when I wanted to step back."

Why is Han Sen's explanation so smooth? This is how James tackled him during the regular season against the Heat.

Anything that can be used by James must have been tested in actual combat.

As expected, the referee finally gave Hansen a technical foul, the same penalty as Ginobili's previous foul.

This type of judgment means that the two of them were deemed to have done it unintentionally, but had a dangerous tendency.

After the penalty was announced, Popovich looked very excited. He rushed to the sidelines and shouted:
"He did it on purpose! He did it on purpose!"

He was 1% sure because Han Sen was the one who came to him and told him that it was intentional before the G game.

But his shout was not responded to by the referee, just like Hollins' previous protest against Ginobili's action.

After the technical timeout, the game continued.

Ginobili's injury has a significant impact on the Spurs, because with Duncan's poor performance, they can only rely more on Parker.

However, the problems faced by the Grizzlies are big and not small.

Without Randolph, the Grizzlies' control in the interior declined significantly, and Hansen was forced to play with the ball more often.

Popovich double-teamed Hansen because he didn't pass the ball enough.

And Duncan also began to perform.

Although he could no longer press that super giant switch, he still scored frequently through offense under the basket.

Johnson's body size doesn't match up with Duncan, and Gasol Jr. looks a little immature next to him.

Randolph's absence not only affects the offensive end, but also the Grizzlies' ability to defend in the restricted area has declined significantly.

About 10 minutes into the first quarter, the score was 21 to 15, with the Spurs leading.

Hansen and other starters were substituted off for rest.

After Ginobili was injured, the Spurs' bench strength plummeted, and they did not have the strength to widen the score during this period.

But again, the Grizzlies didn't have the ability to close the gap.

You have to know that their substitutes were already poor, and the inside rotation was even more stretched after Randolph was expelled.

So the game in this section was a bit like a fight between two weaklings.

Han Sen looked at the situation on the field and fell into deep thought.

Theoretically speaking, it doesn't matter if the Grizzlies lose tonight's game. After all, Randolph was only ejected, and Ginobili's performance is probably ruined.

But there are too many variables in the future.

After watching for a while, he called Gasol Jr. and Conley together for a discussion.

Hollins noticed the action behind him at this time. He looked back but said nothing.

The Grizzlies' current problem lies in offense. If they want to turn the situation around, they need to find a breakthrough on the offensive end, but Randolph's departure makes it impossible for them to start.

Four minutes into the second quarter, both sides replaced their main players one after another.

The score at this time was 28 to 20.

The Grizzlies' offense came on.

Hansen did not continue to hold the ball, but instead played a pick-and-roll with Gasol Jr., and it was a [Cunningham pick-and-roll].

McDyess was a little disoriented by Hansen, and Conley's pass had already been delivered to Hansen.

Han Sen didn't hesitate at all and shot a three-pointer.

"Shh!"

Knife up and down.

What advantages can the Grizzlies still exploit on offense tonight?
Han Sen's touch.

He got off to a hot start tonight.

So instead of being forced to play with the ball, it is better to create off-ball opportunities through tactics.

This off-ball situation is also different from the previous ones because it shifts the tactical focus from the inside to the outside, which is equivalent to a new attempt.

Fortunately, the Grizzlies play as a team and use tactics, so the transition is not difficult.

"Defend! Defend!"

Hansen's three-pointer reignited the emotions of Memphis fans.

And along with this shouting, the Grizzlies' defensive enthusiasm is also increasing.

Parker's breakthrough was blocked by Gasol Jr., and Duncan's tip-in was also blocked by Gasol Jr., who grabbed the defensive rebound.

Gasol Jr. used all his strength in this round.

And after grabbing the rebound, he immediately raised the ball with his right hand and then looked towards the three-point line.

Han Sen and Conley had already rushed out.

This was the second advantage they could exploit following their earlier communication on the bench.

Previously, because of the twin towers, the Grizzlies had a greater advantage in positional play, but now that they have lost the twin towers, they have an advantage in running play.

After all, they are essentially a young team, and young people can run and jump.

On the other hand, Duncan of the Spurs was pinned to the ground by plantar fasciitis. If he ran too much, he would be crippled.

As for McDyess and Blair, one is old and the other is slow, and the Spurs can only follow those on the outside.

Gasol passed the ball to Conley from the backcourt with a long throw. Conley attracted the defense and passed the ball to Hansen, who scored a layup with a gliding shot.

30:25.

The gap has narrowed to 5 points.

Popovich was a little restless, but he didn't dare go to the sidelines. He could only shout at Parker to slow down the pace.

Parker did so, but the Grizzlies' defense was impenetrable amid the defensive cheers from the fans.

Duncan finally received the ball in the low post and tried to play his stabilizing role, but with the continued increase in defensive intensity, his shot off the rebound finally missed the basket.

And when he landed, he staggered and almost fell to the ground.

It was obvious that the outburst in the previous game had cost him too much energy.

The Grizzlies made another fast break. This time Hansen went to the sideline. After successfully restraining Parker, Conley scored a fast break layup in the middle.

30 is better than 29!

The difference is only 1 point!

The FedEx Center was boiling with excitement.

The Grizzlies' two rounds were completely different from what they usually saw, as if a brown bear suddenly ran like a leopard.

It's a bit weird, but very exciting!

Popovich was forced to call a timeout.

"Lionel Hollins is a genius! His adjustments have immediate results!" Barkley exclaimed in the commentary booth.

It is a genius idea to let a team that plays positional football suddenly start running and playing football.

The camera also cooperatively gave Hollins.

Hollins flushed.

He didn't do anything at all!

After the timeout, the Spurs replaced McDyess with Danny Green.

Obviously, without being able to guarantee the success rate of positional warfare, he could only choose to passively defend against the Grizzlies' defensive counterattack.

Another benefit of this adjustment is that it expanded the offensive space. Parker broke into the inside and caused Gasol to foul and go to the free throw line.

However, due to the interference of the fans at the scene, he only made one of his two free throws.

Fortunately, it was his second free throw, and the two sides entered a positional battle.

Popovich waved from the bench.

Han Sen's off-ball movement in the frontcourt was closely guarded, and Han Sen ran a pick-and-roll but had no chance to catch the ball.

Conley passed the ball to Gasol, who assisted in the elbow area and passed the ball to Hansen, who then blocked Hill. Hansen was much more decisive than when Randolph left the court. He took the ball and shot from mid-range without dribbling.

"Shh!"

The basketball went into the net again.

His hands are really hot tonight.

31 flat!
The Grizzlies have caught up with the score difference by making adjustments with both hands!
Parker passed the ball to Jefferson in the corner, but Jefferson's three-pointer went wide and the rebound was secured by Gasol Jr.

Gasol still held the ball and observed at the first time, but the Spurs' lineup retreated quickly, and the Grizzlies were unable to make a fast break this time.

The two sides moved into position again. Although the Spurs still guarded Hansen's off-ball situation tightly, he still caught the ball in a pick-and-roll.

What makes it harder to defend without the ball than with the ball is that players without the ball move in a variety of ways, which makes them more difficult to predict and defend against.

After seeing Duncan rushing out to help defend, Hansen faked a three-point shot, then accelerated and dived in.

The person who retreated to the Spurs basket at this time was Jefferson.

With an expression like "Why me again?", he jumped high towards Han Sen who was taking off.

Then, it turned into a background board again.

If it were him before he got injured, he would definitely be able to block Hansen on this ball, but there is no if in reality.

"Oh!"

"beep!"

Hansen accelerated and dunked through Jefferson's hands to score, and also caused Jefferson to commit a foul!
When Duncan was at his peak, the Spurs would occasionally play with a one-big-four-small lineup to increase the spacing in the lineup.

That is also one of the reasons why some Spurs fans call Popovich "Zhuge Vic".

But it is obvious that Duncan cannot support that system now.

Memphis fans have gone crazy.

After Randolph was ejected, anyone who was not an optimist knew that the Grizzlies were in trouble tonight.

After all, the opponent is the Spurs, not the Cavaliers.

The subsequent game situation also verified this point. Even though Ginobili was injured, the Spurs still had the upper hand.

But they didn’t expect that the Grizzlies would be able to catch up and even surpass them!

Hansen went to the free throw line.

Just at this moment, a chorus of shouts rang out at the scene.

The shout made Han Sen stop what he was doing involuntarily.

That was his first time in Memphis, and he had never heard of it even in the Game 7 against the Thunder.

"MVP! MVP!"

Everyone has a different definition of MVP. Some people define it by statistics, 27+7+7 is enough to be called MVP; some people define it by performance, being able to lead the team to score 60+ is the MVP.

But more people, like the Memphis fans in front of us, and like the Cleveland fans back then, are the ones who can turn the tide when the team is in adversity, and they are the MVPs!

The Grizzlies launched a 13-3 counterattack climax, and Hansen scored 11 points alone.

If such a person is not the MVP, then who is the MVP?

"Shh!"

Han Sen adjusted his mood and made the free throw.

The shouts of MVP at the scene turned into cheers all over the place.

At the critical moment, Green received a pass from Parker on the outside and made a three-pointer.

Although immature, he still showed the potential of a high-quality role player.

This three-pointer was quite crucial, even Popovich punched excitedly.

But looking back, taking advantage of the large amount of defensive attention drawn by Hansen's off-ball movement, Conley also shot from the outside and hit the answer ball.

Hansen's performance was impressive enough, but the rest of the Grizzlies were not bad either.

There were constant cheers.

What you can clearly feel is that the momentum of the game has been reversed by the Grizzlies!
In the end, the Grizzlies defeated the Spurs 99-91 with the cheers of their fans and even though Randolph was ejected.

赛后的数据统计，马刺队帕克23分4助攻，邓肯16分10板3助攻2盖帽，杰弗森和乔治·希尔各有12分进账。

灰熊队康利15分10助攻，小加索尔12分13板3盖帽，巴蒂尔8分。

韩森手感发烫，全场22投15中，得到36分5板6助攻4失误3抢断1盖帽，打出了MVP级别的表现。

"He did it on purpose. His behavior is a crime. He should be sent to prison. He is a murderer!"
The visiting team's press conference was held earlier, and Popovich became extremely emotional when talking about Ginobili being hit by Hansen.

Just now, he received the news that Ginobili was seriously injured and his season was over, which might even endanger his career.

That was his favorite player. You know, among the Spurs players, even Duncan had to play in his system, but Ginobili was the only exception.

After the visiting team's press conference ended, the home team came to the press conference.

Hansen was in attendance with Conley.

"How did you lead the team to victory after Randolph was ejected?" Han Sen was naturally the focus of reporters' questions.

"It's not me, it's us. Mike (Conley) organized the team, Marc (Gasol) guarded our restricted area, and I just made those shots. We played the ultimate team basketball." Hansen was not being polite. Without Conley and Gasol Jr. tonight, the Grizzlies' defensive counterattack could not be launched.

"During the game tonight, the fans gave you the MVP cheer. How did you feel?"

"It's very special and touching. I think we are on a honeymoon." Han Sen's metaphors are always so apt.

"Now you are leading the Spurs 3-1. Before this, I am afraid that not many people thought you could reach this point. Have you ever thought about this?"

"I thought about it, because I said before, 'This is the match I want most.'"

"Are you worried that the team will experience the same situation as in the first round again?" the reporter asked.

"No, I have to give credit to KD and the Thunder for teaching us how to handle that situation."

At this time, Durant, who was fishing in Lake Hefner, sneezed violently.

"Do you have anything to say about the accident that happened during the game?" Finally it was the turn of the reporter from San Antonio. He couldn't wait and pointed directly to Ginobili's injury.

Reporters at the scene all looked at Han Sen. Compared to the outcome of the game, the series of events that took place in the first quarter tonight were more eye-catching.

Especially right in front, where Hansen was sitting, Popovich was so excited.

"I have reason to believe that it was not an accident." Han Sen's answer caused an uproar at the scene.

They didn't realize it for a while.

"We were up 2-0 and we were beating them by 25 in Game . The world knew they were no match for us. They knew they were going home if they didn't do something. And then you see them trying to provoke and hurt Zach, just like they did to Phoenix."

It was not until Han Sen continued to speak that they realized that Han Sen was talking about Randolph almost getting injured.

"But Randolph wasn't injured," the reporter retorted.

"Do you know what attempted crime is?" Han Sen sneered.

Is an attempted crime not a crime?

You should go find Xiao Bing Xin to teach you about the law.

"But you hurt Manu. According to the information we received, he is out for the season due to a back injury."

Really? That's great news.

"It was an accident. I just didn't control my body like James Anderson guarding Rudy Gay. I was just clumsy."

When the Spurs fans explained Anderson's statement about injuring Gay, Hansen responded to the reporter without changing a word.

"Isn't this because Manu hurt Randolph and you are taking revenge on him?" The reporter exposed Hansen because Hansen was the one who went off the court and said to Popovich, "I did it on purpose."

"What did you just say?" Han Sen was amused.

"What I mean is that Manu didn't mean it, but you thought he did, so you deliberately retaliated against him." The reporter hurriedly explained.

"Do you know Aaron Brooks?" Han Sen suddenly asked.

"When Ginobili stepped on Brooks, you said he didn't mean to do it; when Ginobili tried to hurt Zach, you also said he didn't mean to do it. How come he is a pure lotus in your hearts, and even if he did something bad, he is still pure and spotless?" Without waiting for the reporter to answer, Han Sen asked sarcastically with a smile.

"If the standard is 'anyone who hurts the Spurs is intentional, and anyone who hurts others is unintentional', then I did it intentionally. I deliberately hit Popovich and deliberately disabled Ginobili. Yes, that's it."

-Dividing line-

①: "I think it is common for players to get injured during games. It is common for people to get injured by stepping on someone's foot. Not long ago, Jefferson (Nets) stepped on O'Neal's foot, and Josh Howard (Mavericks) stepped on Pietrus' foot and sprained it. Why didn't the league warn O'Neal and Pietrus, but kept going after Bowen? Should Bowen be the scapegoat? Does he really cause injuries more frequently than others?" - Excerpted from Popovich's original text defending Bowen.

(End of this chapter)