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As the game progressed, the Spurs began to feel that something was wrong.
Firstly, inside, Aldridge, who had always been able to deal with Green's defense with ease, started to see his shooting percentage drop, and even missed all his attempts during a few consecutive possessions.
With those missed shots, Aldridge's mood also became irritable, and he actually pushed someone and committed a foul while grabbing a rebound, resulting in his second foul.
The Spurs' situation on the court worsened due to Aldridge's actions.
Head coach Popovich called for a timeout, subbed Aldridge out, and brought Duncan into the game.
Aldridge, sitting on the bench, had a sour expression on his face, murmuring something under his breath.
Seeing this, Popovich squinted his eyes and glanced at Green, who was standing opposite Aldridge on the court.
So, the question is: what is Green's greatest strength?
Is it his tough defense? No.
Is he an all-around player? Neither.
It's his ruthless character and dirty tricks.
If you can avoid them, fine. But once Green can't prevent you, then I'm sorry, you'll need to protect your vital points, especially the groin area, or your lower body's happiness might be destroyed by his hands.
Aldridge was clearly a player who was very hard to defend against for Green, and since he couldn't stop him, Green had no hesitation in using some dirty tactics. The key here is that the referee didn't notice much of it, and Aldridge got frustrated by Green's actions, which led to consecutive misses.
This used to be the Spurs' favorite move off the board. But I must admit, although this move is ruthless and doesn't emphasize martial arts or technical skill, it really does require some talent, and not everyone can pull it off.
The Spurs have had a notorious reputation since Bruce Bowen. After Bowen's retirement, very few players could execute such a move at the cost of ruining their own reputation.
Green, of course, belongs to the self-taught category. Having firmly established himself as the starting small forward for the Lakers, he is more afraid of his team losing in the playoffs for his own reasons. If he loses his starting position, he will regret it for life. So when facing players he can't protect, he doesn't mind doing whatever it takes to confront them.
Duncan, as a veteran who has been around the NBA for more than ten years, certainly isn't afraid of Green's set of tricks, but the problem is, Duncan isn't as bold as he used to be at this point.
By now, in the playoffs, Duncan was averaging only 5 points and 4 rebounds per game as a backup for Aldridge and Gobert, and he had completely transformed from a superstar to a role player.
The Spurs became a combination of Duncan + Gobert inside, which greatly reduced the pressure on the Lakers' restricted area defense.
At the same time, Wang Chong on the outside continued to exert his power, holding the ball and playing against Leonard, completely suppressing this budding young star both offensively and defensively.
Thus, under the nervous gaze of the Spurs' home crowd, the Lakers gradually began to extend their lead.
The Spurs managed to hold on until the second quarter, and Aldridge returned to the court, hoping the latter would sustain the Spurs' inside offense.
However, when Aldridge stepped onto the court, he was surprised to find that the opposing player guarding him had changed from Green to Wang Chong.
Wang Chong was defending Aldridge, and Green was now guarding Leonard.
In fact, this was the best defensive setup for the Lakers, as everyone matched well in terms of height and size.
However, the reason Wang Chong didn't make this arrangement at the beginning was that he wanted to target Leonard.
Facing such an unreasonable statistical monster, the psychological pressure of playing directly against him was considerable, even if he's nicknamed "the robot" for his calm demeanor. Describing him as someone who acts with unflinching calmness, without mood swings, anger, frustration, or fear of strong opponents, but still getting almost unilaterally beaten by Wang Chong made Leonard sluggish.
Now that the defense had changed, Green's defense wasn't bad, but Leonard, who had a cold shooting hand and a somewhat explosive mindset, was also hard to manage, and on the other side, Leonard and Wang Chong were even more finished.
The two were similar in size, but Wang Chong's arm span was greater, and at the same time, his speed, strength, rebounding, explosiveness, and other dynamic talents formed a crushing advantage over Aldridge.
The result of Wang Chong's handling of Leonard was no different from his performance against Aldridge.
Wang Chong single-handedly defeated the two main offensive cores of the Spurs, and Popovich on the bench had nothing to do.
If Popovich had a prime Duncan, he might have been able to compete with the Lakers twice, but whether it was Leonard or Aldridge, the gap between Duncan's strength and theirs was more than a little larger, and even more so with Wang Chong.
The first game between the two teams ended with the Lakers winning 108-101 as visitors.
Two days later, the Spurs, sitting at home, cut the gap to 99-95, temporarily tying the series 1-1.
After all, it was the "Devil's Den" in San Antonio, and the gap between the Lakers and the Spurs wasn't particularly large. Even Wang Chong couldn't limit both Leonard and Aldridge at the same time.
Green, who had contained Aldridge with small actions in the last game, was specially monitored by the referee in this game and was ejected early after committing 6 fouls. He even received a technical foul for being too emotional.
Wang Chong wasn't surprised by Green's antics, but it's safe to say that if Green didn't do this, it wouldn't be Green.
Although they lost a game, for the Lakers, winning an away game was already a huge victory. Then, returning to their own court, the Lakers, with their geographical advantage, naturally had a higher winning rate.
And so it was.
Back on the Lakers' court, the Spurs couldn't compete with them, and the Lakers won two straight games, making the overall score 3-1, directly pushing the series to match point.
Although the Spurs, who then returned to their home court, stubbornly obtained another win, narrowing the series to 3-2, they were clearly weak at this point.
In the end, 4-2, the Lakers eliminated the Spurs in six games, successfully advancing to the Western Conference Finals, where they would face the Chicago Bulls, the king of the East.
Although the Spurs lost to the Lakers, the process of the series remained remarkable, especially Leonard, who was suppressed by Wang Chong in the early games but played better as the series went on. By the end of the six games, Leonard averaged 21 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists per game, with a shooting percentage of 42%. While the stats could only be considered decent, they were still worth watching for his future growth potential.
As for Aldridge, he averaged 24 points and 8 rebounds per game, and his shooting percentage of 46% wasn't in vain. The Spurs had spent a lot of money to acquire him last summer.
Additionally, the Spurs' center Rudy Gobert went unnoticed in the game, but by the end of the series, he was also averaging 9 points, 11 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game, with his defensive performance bearing some resemblance to Duncan's.
Although the former "Big Three" of the Spurs played very well in this playoff and had basically retired from the historical stage, the Spurs now have their new three key players, and the future is promising!
After the Western Conference Finals, Duncan announced his retirement from the league, ending his 19-year career.
Because of Wang Chong, Duncan missed out on the championship that the team should have won in the 2013-14 season. He won a total of four championship trophies in his career, but fortunately, by the time Wang Chong ascended, Duncan had already won several honors that were rightfully his in his prime. Therefore, Duncan, who now has 4 rings, 2 MVPs, and 3 Finals MVPs, still has the ranking to enter the top ten in NBA history.
It's just that, after all, with one less ring, Duncan can't push forward as originally planned, and is likely to be near the 10th position.
It's worth mentioning that Kevin, the "Wolf King," who had been competing with Duncan for almost his entire life, Garnett, also chose to retire in 2016.
In the course of history, Duncan announced his retirement on July 11, Garnett officially announced his retirement two months later in September, and Kobe Bryant, who retired officially after the regular season in April.
The retirement of Kobe, Duncan, and Garnett marked the end of an era, which could be considered quite a sensational event at the time and made many fans reminisce about the good old days.
But in this time and space, which had been completely interrupted by Wang Chong, things had changed beyond recognition under the influence of the butterfly effect.
Kobe Bryant, who was supposed to be the first to retire, was now about to compete in the Finals with his team and had a chance to win the sixth championship of his career.
No mistake, a song, a hair, an interior, a tolerance, a 6, a 9, a book, a glance!
And Garnett, because of his unique dynasty of four consecutive championships in the NBA, and the total number of championships being the same as Duncan's, was also more carefree than originally expected. The news of his retirement after the season had already been announced during the regular season, orderly and without any nostalgia.
Fans had no time to mourn the retirement of the major superstar big men of the old era because the highlight of the season, the Lakers vs. Bulls Finals, was about to begin.
Both teams were built by Wang Chong, and they are currently the two most powerful teams in the league.
At the same time, it is also the 03 draft class, and LeBron James, the "chosen one," issued another challenge to the new basketball god, Wang Chong.
Unlike before, this time James has a great opportunity to defeat Wang Chong to win the championship, but unfortunately, he is not the leader of the Bulls.
The well-deserved core of the Bulls is Curry, who finished second in the MVP rankings and had the most solid performance during the regular season.
Not only because of the gap in stats and performance between the two in the regular season but also because the whole Bulls team, and even their fans, know what James is doing. He isn't even willing to sign a long-term deal with the Bulls, only signing a 1+1 contract, clearly indicating that he will leave once he wins a championship.
What's going on? Do you think you're Wang Chong? People go to the Cavaliers for precise relief of poverty and carry a championship to others for one year; even if they leave, they leave with confidence, and Cavaliers fans have to part ways with smiles.
But you're different; you run and hug our thighs to ask for a championship, and I have to say it's quite ironic.
But how could James care so much? This is the closest he's been to a championship, and he's going to get it in his hands anyway!
On June 2, 2016, the Finals began at the United Center Arena in Chicago.
Bulls starters: Curry, Danny Green, Ariza, James, Jordan Jr.
Lakers starters: Kobe Bryant, Thompson, Wang Chong, Green, Jokic.
The Bulls' lineup also experienced several changes during the regular season, mainly in the small forward position, with James initially at small forward and the large forward position being held by Luol Deng.
However, halfway through the season, Deng got injured and was out for the season, and the Bulls had to urgently trade for 3-and-D player Ariza to fill in.
It was supposed to be a temporary fix, but little did they expect Ariza's effect would be better than Deng's. To be precise, after Deng's age increased, his competitive ability dropped drastically, and he could no longer sustain the starting role.
The injury to Deng happened well before Wang Chong knew about it, but the Bulls managed to get Ariza due to this, and it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Even though they gave up a first-round pick for him, compared to winning the championship, these costs were insignificant.
When Wang Chong appeared on stage, the packed United Center erupted in a wave of applause similar to a tsunami.
Although they were enemies now, the Bulls' fans were extremely grateful to Wang Chong, who had brought them six championships, and warmly welcomed him.
But welcome or not, once the game began, all Bulls fans were firmly on their side, eagerly awaiting the 13th championship in Bulls history.
Jokic jumped to win the tip-off, and the Lakers were on the attack.
Wang Chong held the ball against James, accelerated the advance, and made his characteristic mid-range shot to score the first point for the Lakers.
Not to fall behind, James immediately accelerated without the ball, and after receiving a pass from Curry, he jumped and dunked with a tomahawk.
On the Bulls, James, with four shooters around him, had a deep understanding of what spacing really meant.
Even Wang Chong, who knew the Bulls' tactics well, didn't have a particularly good way to deal with this. After all, all the opposing players, including Jordan Jr., were dragged outside, and someone had to stay close to them to ensure the Lakers wouldn't be overwhelmed by the opponent's three-point shooting.
Among them, Curry was naturally the top priority.
Although Curry had always been known for his supernatural performances during the regular season and his ankle-breaking moves in the Finals, Wang Chong didn't dare underestimate Curry during this stretch. To his eyes, the threat from Curry wasn't less than, or perhaps even greater than, that of James himself!
The Lakers' strategy was to make sure Klay Thompson never lost sight of Curry.
As the league's leading scorer, although the Splash Brothers had never united on this level, Thompson was also very familiar with Curry's style of play.
As soon as the game started, both teams immediately entered into a fierce battle, with a very fast offensive pace and a considerable sense of defensive pressure, which was almost suffocating for the fans watching the game.
But Wang Chong was feeling uneasy.
The current Lakers weren't the Cavaliers and Bulls of the past, and their
offense was far more difficult to deal with.
For the first time, Wang Chong truly realized that his opponent in this Finals would be the most difficult opponent he had ever faced in his entire life.
End of this chapter
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