Legendary star

Chapter 268 Unchangeable
"Anna, why have I felt that the head coach is a bit different since the playoffs?" On May 2001, 5, just before the start of the fourth game of the Lakers-Spurs series, Meng Xu entered the system space In the movie, after using a bottle of enchanting potion, Meng Xu found Anna, hoping that Anna could solve his doubts.

"What do you think is different about him?" Anna sat on the edge of the training ground with a poke of popcorn in her arms, watching Meng Xu seize the time to practice mid-range shooting in the training ground.

"Mentality, I think the coach has been very tense during this period. He is not like this in the regular season. Although he looks very strict in the game, he often jokes with us in private, and even talks about it. Some dirty jokes, and the coach's tactical flexibility is obviously not as good as in the regular season. The Spurs' tactics in the playoffs seem to be very rigid and lack of change." Meng Xu put away the basketball and walked to Anna. Sitting next to him, Meng Xu could clearly see the current change of Popovich.

"To use a phrase from your home country, Popovich wants to win but is afraid of losing. Although he can be regarded as a successful coach now, he is not yet a great one, and this season is likely to be one. He has gone from success to a great season, so now he must be very entangled in his heart. This is also a problem that everyone will face. Most people will have a mentality of worrying about gains and losses when they are only one step away from success. It is the so-called inner demon, and as long as you cross this inner demon, you will naturally let the birds fly in the sky and the fish jump in the sea, but once you fail, you will probably suffer a very big blow to your mentality, so At this time, Popovich will definitely choose a game style that he is better at and more confident in. It's not that he doesn't want to change, but the mentality of fear of failure from the bottom of his heart prevents him from changing. The situation is more common among players, and maybe you will experience it soon." After Anna finished speaking with a smile, she grabbed another popcorn and put it in her mouth, then looked at Meng Xu with deep meaning.

"Will I meet you again in the future?" Looking at Anna's positive expression, Meng Xu shook his head. As long as he tried his best, winning or losing doesn't matter so much. Although he hates losing, but Just like Magic Johnson said, it is better to fight vigorously than to lose in a wimpy manner.

"Don't believe it, once you become the core of a team in the future, you will definitely encounter this kind of problem in the future. Even Jordan can't avoid it, let alone you, go experience it." Anna said After finishing, he got up and left, but before Anna disappeared, he said something that made Meng Xu furious: "Forget it, with your current mentality and state, you can't experience this feeling."

At around 6 p.m., in the locker room of the visiting team at the Staples Center, Duncan, who had just finished hanging the water, sat on a chair in front of the closet with some languor, flipping through a psychology book.

Meng Xu, on the other hand, was sitting on a chair next to Duncan with a calm face. Due to the use of the enchanting potion just now, Meng Xu's face looks a little flushed now. Until now, Meng Xu's mind has been reverberating Those words that Anna said to herself.

Now in the Spurs locker room, although the atmosphere seems to be very calm, everyone is watching Popovich and Steve Kerr explaining tactics seriously. It seems that everyone can see that in this calm Under the atmosphere, there is still a trace of tension and weirdness.This game tonight is only the fourth game in the series between the Spurs and the Lakers, but now almost everyone knows that this game is actually no different from the battle of Tianwangshan. Once the Lakers keep the home court , then the Lakers will get the match point for the entire series with a big score of 3 to 1.And if the Spurs win, the Spurs will also restore the home court advantage while equalizing the big score, and the next game between the two sides will be played at the Spurs' home court. The high morale after this game is likely to be a boost.

The same Popovich now, while explaining the tactics, looks extremely dignified. The importance of this game is self-evident. If you lose, everything will stop, and if you win, the Spurs will still retain the elimination. Lakers hope.Moreover, as Anna said, this season's playoffs is undoubtedly the most important year for Popovich in his coaching career. As long as the Spurs win the championship this season, then Popovich Qi will realize his long-standing dream and become one of the greatest coaches in the entire league. On the contrary, if he loses, then Popovich will continue to work hard for several years, or even longer.

Therefore, today's game, whether it is for Popovich or for the Spurs, is a game that must be won: "I won't say much else, I hope everyone can forget the previous The game, in this game, play our tactics and tough defense, this game, we must win." As the team with the best defense this season, the Spurs actually let the Lakers Averaged 3 points per game.

"We must win, we must win, we must win..." When Popovich shouted the slogan of must win, Meng Xu was the first to stand up from his seat, waving his arms, and cooperated Popovich shouted the slogan of winning, and the rest of the Spurs players followed Meng Xu and shouted.

"In this game, I don't know if Popovich will make tactical changes. Although Duncan was affected by a cold and was a little out of shape, in these games against the Lakers, the Spurs played too rigidly. Compared with the ever-changing Spurs in the regular season, they are completely two teams." When Meng Xu was the first to walk out of the player tunnel and waved to the Staples fans in the face of boos, the Magic While Johnson was smiling, he was also a little worried about the state of the Spurs.Although Magician is a legend of the Lakers, Magician is now ABC's signing commentator. Therefore, from the perspective of ABC and even the league, the Spurs and Lakers are naturally fighting as fiercely as possible. If possible, the two teams A 7-game battle is the best result, but as far as it is concerned, the two sides are likely to end this round of the series within 6 games.

"In today's game, the fans at the scene are very excited." Unlike Magic Johnson, Michaels' focus today is on the fans at the scene. Naturally, such a crucial game will not There is a lack of Hollywood big names who come to catch popularity.At the same time, because I haven't tasted the taste of a championship for too long, in today's game, facing the biggest opponent in front of me, the Lakers fans who have always prided themselves on being noble, today also behave like fans of ordinary teams. , greeted the first Spurs player with boos.

"Phil, will Popovich make tactical changes in this game?" Looking at the players of the two teams who have already started warming up, Lakers assistant coach Kurt Rambis asked the head coach with some concern Phil Jackson.Before the start of this game, Phil Jackson did not make any changes to the tactics of the previous game, but ordered the players to continue to play according to the arrangement of the previous game. Kurt Rambis was very worried about this Yes, after all, Popovich is also a top coach and a scheming guy at the same time.

"Don't worry, Kurt. From what I know about him, Popovich won't make any changes in this game, and he can't change if he wants to." Speaking of this, Phil Jackson also revealed With a slight smile, Popovich's current mentality and what he is going through, Phil Jackson has experienced it before, so Phil Jackson can figure out Popovich's mind more accurately now than ever before.

Looking at the confident Phil Jackson, Kurt Rambis did not continue to speak, but Phil Jackson's smile did not eliminate Kurt Rambis' worries. The Lakers have been waiting for this championship too much. It's been a long time, and this year, no matter what, I can't fail again.

"In this game, the Spurs' changes are very small. Derek Anderson sat on the bench again today after replacing Mario Elie in the first game. Several starters for the Spurs are still point guard Meng Xu. , shooting guard Mario Ellis, small forward Sean Elliott, two insiders Tim Duncan and David Robinson." After reading the Spurs' starting lineup, Magic Johnson also had some regrets, and the change he expected , did not appear, the Spurs will continue to stick to their defense in this game, and fight the Lakers to the end.

"On the Lakers side, nothing has changed. The starting center is still O'Neal, power forward Horace Grant, small forward Rick Fox, shooting guard Kobe Bryant, and point guard Ron Haber. During the game, Isiah Ryder also appeared on the Lakers' bench, as for whether he can play, it depends on Phil Jackson's next arrangement." After Magic Johnson finished reading the Spurs' starting list, Michael Smith then announced the Lakers' starting lineup.

"Ervin, in fact, the two teams have no room for adjustment until now, and in the past few seasons, the Spurs and the Lakers have played against each other for more than 20 games, so the two teams are actually very familiar with each other. Yes, there is no hole card that can be hidden from the opponent." After seeing that the change that Magic Johnson expected did not happen, Michaels said after a moment of contemplation.

However, after hearing what Michaels said, Magic Johnson shook his head and did not speak.

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　　Please take a leave of absence today. After a busy day, I am really tired. I will make an update today. I am very sorry.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)