met free Chapter 419 The Suspenseful Final Battle of the Regular Season!
Chapter 419 The Suspenseful Final Battle of the Regular Season!
In this game, the Pacers ultimately failed to break their own NBA record for the largest winning margin set in the first half of the season.
After all, winning by another 70 points or so is indeed quite difficult.
Especially in the fourth quarter, Collins completely abandoned his dignity and fielded a chaotic lineup that nobody recognized. His instructions to his players were incredibly simple.
"Your two tasks when you come on in the fourth quarter are: make yourselves happy, and make the opposing team's key players happy too, so they can get off the court as soon as possible!"
"Also, even if the opposing team puts in guys like Arenas or Ginobili, don't go all out. Let them have fun playing basketball, to the point where they don't even want to play against you, understand?"
Collins vividly remembers Arenas and Ginobili's ruthless scoring spree during garbage time!
The reason why those two 70-point blowouts were lost by so much was because those two guys were still able to score like crazy during garbage time.
Who could stand this?
This is something you absolutely must pay attention to!
They must be the focus! They must be ignored!
Until they themselves are too embarrassed to attack!
Our main objective is to absolutely not lose by 70 points again!
As for the Wizards players, they also felt that Collins' method was the only way.
Unless they want to lose by 70 points, they'll have to resort to Collins' tactic.
The other side still has a sense of shame.
Well, I have to say, Collins made the right bet.
The Pacers players really have a sense of shame.
In the fourth quarter, neither Jordan, who scored 59 points, nor Lin Tian, who had a triple-double of 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 14 assists, played. Arenas and Ginobili, the two sharpshooters, were holding back, wanting to make a big splash and show the Wizards what they were capable of.
Wizards: Okay, okay, we got it, we got it, you guys are awesome!
We're lying down, do whatever you want, we won't resist! We won't resist!
When Ginobili finds himself able to drive straight into the paint without even needing to accelerate, and then easily score a layup with no one helping or protecting the rim; when Arenas dribbles past the three-point line and the opponent doesn't even bend over before watching him shoot a three-pointer.
Sorry, I can't fight these two guys.
It's too boring not to resist.
The mentality and playing style of the rest of the Pacers team are roughly the same.
Feeling listless, bored, and lacking energy.
In this situation, no matter how loose the Wizards' defense was, their scoring efficiency plummeted.
Even two minutes into the fourth quarter, Ginobili and Arenas started passing the ball to each other at the top of the key.
"Come on in."
"No, no, you, you come here!"
"Hey, hey, come here. I already won the Rookie Game MVP, so tonight's MVP is yours."
"Oh, you're too kind, Gilbert. I just played a 'one,' it's your turn."
"I've already hit two in a row, it's your turn, Manu."
"I've already hit several, you go first."
"Buzz!"
The two of them were just standing there at the top of the arc, acting cute and silly, passing the ball back and forth several times, when the 24-second timer went off.
Pacers, 24-second violation!
YES!
Collins, sitting on the sidelines, almost jumped up to celebrate.
Plans are in place!
I knew it would work!
What is a genius coach? What is extraordinary talent? What is a tactical genius?
I am Lao Tzu!
As for Carlisle on the other side of the court, his expression was quite interesting. He really didn't expect the other side to be so shameless, even resorting to non-resistance mode. They really had no bottom line.
Then, after playing for another two minutes, Carlisle decided he didn't want his key rotation players to continue playing on the court.
Arenas, Ginobili, and Parker were all substituted.
Stop hitting him! If you keep hitting him, he'll have mental problems.
A few kids, if they keep beating the other side so badly they develop psychological trauma or PTSD or something.
That would be a huge sin!
Replacement
Given the current state and mood of both coaches and players, the rest of the game is going to be incredibly boring!
The final minutes of this game could even be considered one of the five worst quarters in history.
High school competitions are more exciting than this.
The viewership ratings for this game plummeted dramatically in the latter part of the fourth quarter.
During Jordan's dominant performance in the second quarter, the game peaked at 1100 million viewers, but by the latter part of the fourth quarter, that number had shrunk to less than 80.
A drop of over 90%—this decline is likely to go down in history.
The more thrilled the fans were watching Jordan dominate in the first half, the more scathing the curses became, especially in the fourth quarter when the TVs were turned off.
Especially those fans who were called over by a friend during the third quarter or halftime, turned on the TV to watch the game, and kept grumbling and cursing.
If it weren't for the technical statistics on TV, they would definitely think their friends were playing a trick on them!
What kind of junk is this? Why did it insist that I come back to see it?
The intensity of this match is even lower than the beginner mode in NBA Live.
Regardless of the fans' protests and disappointment, the Pacers easily won the game, ultimately defeating the Wizards by a whopping 55 points!
With a net win of over 200 points in three games, no matter how the two teams play in the next game, the Pacers' bloodbath and humiliating victory over the Wizards this year will definitely go down in history.
In NBA history, no team has ever lost to another team in a single season, losing so many times and in such a terrible way.
Even the American team struggles to win by such a large margin against Japan.
Meanwhile, the match between these two teams also illustrates a point.
Never mess with someone you absolutely cannot afford to mess with!
After all, besides the team's crushing defeat, the continued lottery draw, being ridiculed by various parties, and even the players suffering psychological trauma, the most painful situation for team owner Pollin is that a large number of fans have canceled their season tickets, resulting in the team's average attendance rate this season being less than 85%, ranking last in the league!
Denver, the second-worst team in the league, still has a 93% attendance rate this season.
They were utterly crushed by the second-to-last team!
The Wizards have seen a massive drop in revenue from merchandise, tickets, and arena drinks this season. Although the final financial report hasn't been released yet, everyone knows they'll definitely be last!
In addition, many of Pollin's businesses and assets have shrunk significantly due to the controversy with Jordan. The Wizards' market value has also fallen from the middle to the bottom of the league, and his company's stock has plummeted as a result.
It's only because Paulin had a strong constitution and a resilient mind that he survived such a huge blow; otherwise, someone with average mental fortitude might have suffered a stroke or something similar.
But no matter how Pollin handles this crisis, or whether he sells the team, one thing will remain unchanged.
The Wizards have become a laughing stock in the entire league!
They have become a negative example.
Everyone was laughing at them.
Even setting aside the NBA, the Wizards' recent performance is a major joke in the entire sports world.
At the same time, after this game, Jordan's form finally returned to its full potential!
His slump and poor form that started in February with the All-Star Game have disappeared, and he has started to exert himself again, with significant improvements in his personal statistics and efficiency!
With Jordan's return, the Pacers' record naturally improved steadily. In the first half of March, they achieved another 7-game winning streak with Jordan's return!
Then they lost to the Dallas Mavericks on the road. In this game, the Pacers were completely overwhelmed by the Mavericks' relentless and indiscriminate attacks. Although they scored 118 points, the Mavericks' three forwards also played at their best, with the team scoring 130 points and winning this high-scoring battle!
It's worth mentioning that although the Pacers lost this game, Lin Tian delivered an incredibly brilliant performance, racking up a perfect 52 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists, leaving Nash practically speechless.
Keep beating them up!
It's just that the Mavericks' offense was really good tonight; otherwise, with Lin Tian beating Nash so badly, it would have been incredibly difficult for them to win the game.
After scoring 52 points, nearly achieving a triple-double, Lin Tian was clearly very unhappy. How could a normal person be happy about losing after such a great performance? Lin Tian simply couldn't understand the behavior of scoring 7-80 points, losing the game, and then taking photos in the locker room.
There's nothing to celebrate when you lose!
If we want to celebrate, we should wait until after we win!
I will not be the leader of an empty-handed group; I will start with myself!
So, in the following day's back-to-back away game against the Spurs, he continued to unleash his powerful scoring ability, scoring 51 points with inside drives and outside shots, leading his team to a 29-point victory over the Spurs!
The team then traveled to Houston to face another weak team in Texas. Lin Tian once again exploded, scoring a triple-double of 44 points, 11 rebounds, and 14 assists, leading the team to two consecutive victories and ending the team's final journey to the West this season.
Next, the Pacers will return to Indiana to prepare for the remaining games. They will not be playing any more away games in the Western Conference this season, except for the NBA Finals!
I have to say, Stern is a man you can get along with!
Having received the bribe, he really got things done, and the Pacers' schedule this season is truly very easy!
It's also worth mentioning that after Lin Tian's three consecutive 40+ point outbursts, his and Jordan's average points per game have once again narrowed the gap!
Jordan had started to widen the gap thanks to his performance in the first half of the month, but Lin Tian had a crazy outburst in these three games while Jordan kept a low profile, and the gap between the two quickly narrowed!
After this game, Jordan's total score was only 18 points ahead of Lin Tian's!
For example, if Lin Tian scores 40 points in the next game, while Jordan only scores 22 points or less, then the scoring title will change hands!
Because of their unique situation of competing for the scoring title as a two-person team, it is easy for one person to perform well while the other takes fewer shots. When this happens, the gap between the two people will indeed narrow rapidly!
This is an effect that two people from different teams cannot achieve.
In the remainder of March, the Pacers continued their strong performance, losing only one more game in a tough matchup against the Nets, winning all the remaining games!
整个3月，步行者队拿下了14胜2负，他们的总战绩已经达到了60胜14负了！
They continue to firmly hold the top spot in the league.
The Lakers, currently second in the league, have only 57 wins and 17 losses, while the Nets, third in the league, have only 52 wins and 22 losses.
The gap between the Mavericks, Kings, Magic, and other teams that followed was even wider!
With only 7-8 games left in the regular season, the Pacers have essentially locked up the top spot in the league. Unless they experience an outrageous losing streak, the Lakers have virtually no chance of overtaking them.
As April arrives, the regular season is truly coming to a close, and all the teams in the league are about to start their final battle for their place in the standings!
The Pacers are under very little pressure because they have already secured the top spot in the league. For the Pacers, the most important thing in the remaining games is to avoid injuries!
Carlisle also began rotating the team around players starting in April.
The team's key players were divided into three groups to take turns resting!
In early April, Jordan and Webber rested for two games, followed by Lin Tian and Ben Wallace, and then rotation players such as Christie, Arenas, Ginobili, and Parker also rested for two games.
In these 6 games, the Pacers only managed 3 wins and 3 losses. However, it is clear that the Lakers behind them have given up on catching up. O'Neal and Malone, the two absolute core players in the paint, did not play in April. They rested for almost half a month and did not return to the court until the last two games of the regular season!
So even with a 3-3 record, the Pacers remain firmly in first place in the league! And with only two games left, they are still 3 games behind the Lakers. No matter what happens in the remaining games, the Pacers will not fall from the top spot in the league!
In the penultimate game of the regular season, the Pacers, who had rested a large number of players, finally gathered all their key players tonight. The rest period was over! They were about to start preparing for the playoffs!
As for their opponents, they are determined to lose so as to secure their second-to-last place in the league, the Cavaliers!
This season, the Cavaliers are determined to acquire their city's son, LeBron James. They are determined to get this super talent so that the team can return to its peak. They have nothing in mind except the number one draft pick!
So, that night, the Cavaliers also opted to rest their players!
What can I say about the Cavaliers' behavior?
If you don't rotate your players, even Lin Daguanren wouldn't recognize your starting lineup. Now that you're doing this rotation system, I really won't recognize any of them!
I don't know a single one of them!
Since we don't know each other, let's just torture each other!
110: 71!
Another resounding 39-point victory!
More noteworthy than the game itself was Lin Tian's 44 points, while Jordan only took 14 shots and scored 21 points.
在这场比赛之后，林天出战79场，场均31.3分9.4助攻6.1篮板2.6抢断！
乔丹出战79场，场均31.4分2.9助攻4.8篮板2.2抢断！
The battle for the scoring title between these two players has truly reached a fever pitch! They will decide the winner in the final game!
The last time the scoring title race was this close and fierce on the last day of the season was during the 93-94 season when O'Neal and Robinson battled it out!
That year, O'Neal scored 41 points in the last game and thought he had the scoring title in his grasp. But who would have thought that Robinson, who came on later, would go on a scoring spree and not leave the game even when it was garbage time.
Robinson even had his teammates intentionally foul him late in the fourth quarter to save time, giving him more opportunities and possessions to score.
Ultimately, Robinson exploded for 71 points, averaging 29.79 points per game, surpassing O'Neal's 29.35 points to win that year's scoring title!
This competition will definitely be more exciting and thrilling than the last one!
First of all, Jordan and Lin Tian's stats are closer!
To date, Lin Tian has scored a total of 2473 points, averaging 31.30 points per game, while Jordan has scored a total of 2485 points, averaging 31.45 points per game.
The gap between the two of them is smaller than that between O'Neal and Robinson.
To put it more directly, if Lin Tian scores more than 12 points higher than Jordan that night, he will be the scoring champion; otherwise, Jordan will be the champion.
What's even more exciting is that these two play on the same team!
In their final game, they will play together. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, they will play together in the last regular season game, and in this game, the two sides will also have a final battle for the scoring title!
Two people per team, that makes the competition much more interesting!
How should we compete? Should we go all out and score points like crazy, or should we be friendly and respectful, with everyone refusing to make a move, or perhaps something else entirely?
Anyway, this final game, which had nothing to do with the final rankings, whether the team made the playoffs or the draft picks, was highly anticipated by everyone because Lin Tian and Jordan were neck and neck in scoring!
They all wanted to see how Lin Tian and Jordan would handle the game and what their choices would be.
In Las Vegas, odds were released early on, allowing people to guess whether Lin Tian or Jordan was more likely to become the scoring champion.
Jordan, who currently has a higher average score, undoubtedly has lower odds and a higher probability of success. Various media outlets have jumped in to analyze this situation, and the players are naturally not immune to this question either. In every interview these past two days, they have been asked this question by reporters and asked to give their own answers.
Some people are too lazy to answer these kinds of questions and simply ignore them, while others clearly give their answers and support, and still others are just watching the drama unfold and secretly stirring things up!
McGrady is among those who don't care about this. At the beginning of the season, he said he would win the scoring title. Although he has now surpassed Kobe to become the third-highest scorer, he will not be able to win the scoring title unless he scores at least 81 points in his last game and Lin Tian and Jordan both score no points.
So when asked by reporters, McGrady seemed very impatient: "I don't care about those things. The regular season is just the regular season, and the playoffs are where the stars shine. Honestly, I have absolutely no interest in regular season honors like scoring titles. I'm mature enough!"
"Now, I'm already thinking about our first-round playoff opponent!"
Allen Iverson, who has been struggling with injuries this year and is currently averaging only 27.5 points per game, has shown a completely different mindset from Tracy McGrady: "I'm really looking forward to it! If we didn't have a game that day, I would have even gone to Indiana to watch the game live!"
"I don't know what will happen to Michael and Lin, but I'll definitely watch carefully! I'll be right in front of the TV!"
"McClean and Lin are rivals; they're competitive, aggressive, and never give up." Knowing he needed to score at least 100 points to surpass Lin and Jordan, Kobe told the camera, "I expect them to finish this game with crazy scoring and unrestrained play."
"Their opponents are in for a rough time!"
"The two of them are likely to unleash a scoring frenzy at this point, and may even continue scoring during garbage time. I don't think there's anything to be ashamed of or afraid to admit, it's all for the scoring title."
"Shaq did something similar back in the day!"
"I didn't do it! It was David Robinson who did it, it has nothing to do with me."
"But I'm curious, what's the highest combined score by two players on the same team in the league right now?" O'Neal asked curiously, sitting next to Kobe. "Whatever that number is, I think Lin and Michael will break it tonight!"
"I'll be glued to the TV."
Lakers head coach Jackson then revealed his cunning and sly side: "To be honest, this game is a test for Lin. The ball is in the point guard's hands. Should he pass to Michael or not?"
"If he attacks more, will Michael be angry? If he chooses not to attack so as not to anger Michael, will he be angry himself?"
"I think this game will be the perfect test of their friendship! I'm really looking forward to it, but if you let me give a result, I'd choose Lin as the scoring champion!"
"Because Michael has matured. He doesn't need a scoring title to prove himself. This season he has proven that he can play perfectly at 40 years old. He doesn't need a new scoring title. We all know he is the best scorer in the league."
"But Lin desperately needs this. He's still young. If his goal is to surpass Michael, then he needs this scoring title to give him more leverage!"
"For Lin, there couldn't be a better opportunity! There couldn't be a more perfect timing! To win a scoring title alongside Michael! Is there a more memorable moment than this?"
No wonder Jackson is considered the league's number one cunning fox. He's a master at sowing discord and stirring up trouble.
Unfortunately, both Jordan and Lin Tian had worked with him, and these two knew better than anyone how dirty this old fox was.
Regardless of how others interpret his words, Lin Tian and Jordan simply took it as him letting out a long, drawn-out fart.
However, although Jackson's move was completely ineffective against Lin Tian and Jordan, some of the things he said might have some effect.
"I think Lin will definitely win the scoring title. He's younger, more explosive, and his three-point shooting is more accurate. Unless Lin wants Jordan to become the scoring champion, it's definitely Lin's!" Yao Ming told the media with a smile.
Then, as soon as the interview ended, this guy approached Kidd: "Jason, they won't beat me up for saying that, will they?"
"What are you afraid of! I'm here! If they beat you up, I'll protect you." Kidd patted Yao Ming's stomach with a wicked grin.
Hehe, these kinds of things are all about "children's innocent remarks" and catching people off guard!
If a seasoned, cunning old fox like Kidd said that, Jordan and Lin Tian would definitely not take it to heart at all.
But if someone like Yao Ming, who seems so honest and kind, were to say it, tsk tsk tsk, it would definitely have a miraculous effect!
As for whether Kidd can stop Lin Tian and Jordan...
Lin Tian and Yao are from the same hometown, what could they possibly do to each other?
It's worth it for the championship!
In short, at this point in the season, almost the entire league's attention was focused on the Pacers. Everyone wanted to see how Lin Tian and Jordan would play their final game!
Stern even made several phone calls to Melvin, warning him not to cause any trouble at this time under any circumstances.
The whole world is waiting to see!
You can't let those two cargo ships take turns resting!
Everyone must fight; none of them can rest!
Anyway, Stern felt that if he didn't make this call, those bastards might actually give him a break and let him slack off.
Back then, fans all over the world had to send threatening letters or things like poop, women's clothing, and razor blades to NBA headquarters.
We must take precautions!
With the entire league watching them, the Pacers' final game of the season is about to begin!
In this game, their opponent is the New York Knicks!
The Knicks have already secured fourth from the bottom and have nothing left to play for!
The outcome of the game was not in any suspense, and no one even cared about it; everyone's attention was on the Pacers!
They were all waiting to see Lin Tian and Jordan, teammates, battle for the scoring title!
"Lin, Michael, you two just play your own game today." Carlisle also felt incredibly troubled about this game. He was genuinely worried that the two guys would fight tooth and nail over the scoring title, and at the same time, he really didn't know what to do.
Two people with frighteningly high self-esteem are really hard to persuade no matter what you do!
So Stern's phone call was really useful!
If it weren't for Stern's phone call and Melvin's instructions, Carlisle would have 100% given Jordan and Lin Tian a rest today!
Unfortunately, they've been targeted, so there's no way to stop!
"Boss, big brother, have you two discussed who should be the scoring champion?" Arenas sidled up to him, looking very curious.
After he asked that question, the entire locker room fell silent instantly. Everyone crowded around, eager to hear how Lin Tian and Jordan were going to play.
Do you really think only those people outside are curious?
We Indians ourselves are also very curious about what these two big shots are planning to do! (End of Chapter)