RNP Chapter 353 The Curse Broken? No! The curse has only just begun!
Chapter 353 The Curse Broken? No! The curse has only just begun!
No matter how well the Bucks' three sharpshooters played, they were still down by a full 12 points at the start of the fourth quarter!
For this reason, at the start of the fourth quarter, George Karl did not let any of the three players rest, but instead put all three of them on the court at the same time!
This is an away game!
This is a life-or-death battle for them—win or go home!
At this moment, Karl dared not be careless. He knew very well that the only hope of winning tonight was to go all out at every moment and to give 100% of his energy to fight against the terrifyingly powerful Pacers!
Faced with the Bucks fielding their elite players as if they were ready to have an early showdown, Carlisle remained calm and did not bring Lin Tian and Christie on the court. Instead, he fielded a five-man lineup of Webber, Harrington, Carter, Miller, and Best!
What do these five people have to say?
None of them were good at defense. Apart from Miller's tenacity and never giving up, and Harrington's energy, the other three players needed their teammates to motivate them and constantly urge them on to maintain focus on defense.
With this lineup on the field at this point, Carlisle doesn't even need to guess what the team is going to say; he can figure it out with a snap of his fingers.
attack!
A frenzied attack!
As for defense?
Just don't go too far!
The 76ers fought back tenaciously and reduced the series score to 3-2!
The Phillies have a glimmer of hope. They will return to their home court and have a chance to continue their miracle run!
After the game, McGrady and others remained silent when questioned by the media, unable to say anything of great significance. However, head coach Rivers remained confident, saying, "First of all, I have to praise the 76ers; they played brilliantly."
"We played like a piece of crap in the last five minutes. We were terrible, we were awful! I'll go back and do a thorough review, and I'll make the players think about where we went wrong. We'll watch the game footage carefully."
"Then, in Game 6, we'll close the gap. We'll win this game, and after the next game, we'll advance to the Eastern Conference Finals! We still have an absolute advantage and confidence in our strength, and we won't let this series go back to Orlando! The next game is the final game of the series!"
Rivers' confident statement undoubtedly reached Iverson's ears. The guy who had just delivered a career-defining performance and his best playoff individual show simply scoffed and said, "I don't care what he said. I'm already thinking about my next opponent!"
"Lin and Indiana? They've already advanced, right! I'm really looking forward to facing Lin again! This time, we won't lose!"
Hmm, are you Orlando fans thinking about your next opponent?
Hey, before you guys even started thinking about it—no, while you were thinking about it, I was already thinking about it too!
The Magic's unexpected upset in Game 5 dominated the headlines of sports media across the United States for the next few days. They became a laughing stock, and all sorts of jokes and discussions poured in, with the most outrageous and direct criticism coming from Orlando itself!
Orlando fans are in a terrible mood right now; they feel like they've been fed a huge mouthful of shit by their own team at home!
It's still that kind of rubbish disguised as chocolate ice cream. For the first three quarters, you eagerly watch the ice cream take shape, then in the fourth quarter, you excitedly take a bite, only to discover it's not ice cream at all.
The huge gap, the unacceptable defeat, Magic fans are absolutely disgusted!
But at this point, they were clearly only disgusted, because they didn't know that the disgusting things were just beginning!
In Game 6 of the series, the Magic changed their defensive strategy after a very rigorous and detailed tactical discussion. They became even more aggressive in their defense against Iverson, relentlessly and constantly double-teaming him and targeting him!
Rivers hopes to use this method to stop Iverson's offense, and at the same time, stop the entire 76ers' offense!
How to put it in terms of the final result?
He's halfway there!
Iverson only made 10 of 33 shots tonight, a shooting percentage of barely 30%!
While Iverson's shooting percentage was poor, barely managing 23 points from free throws, the rest of the 76ers had a collective explosion tonight!
Aaron McGee not only continued his perfect playoff form, but also took on the responsibility of organizing the team when Iverson was surrounded and unable to organize the offense!
他今晚投中5个3分球，全场比赛拿下27分11次助攻的大号两双并且只有1次失误！
In addition, with the Magic's twin towers inevitably moving away from the paint to defend Iverson, Mutombo transformed into a monster tonight, racking up a double-double of 19 points and 25 rebounds, including 13 offensive rebounds!
All the shots that Iverson missed were recovered by this African tower!
Besides McGee and Mutombo's outstanding performances, Snow, Hill, Lynch, and others also played well and had impressive plays!
With the entire team playing exceptionally well, even with Iverson underperforming, the 76ers successfully defended their home court and tenaciously tied the series at 3-3!
The series was dragged into a Game 7!
"What did that pig-looking guy say again? 'The series won't be coming back to Orlando?'" After the game, despite a poor performance, a confident Iverson said, "If you ask me, he's right. This series is the last one to be played in Orlando this year!"
"I definitely won't be going back to Orlando for the next series!"
"And my brothers held everything together tonight! Their performance made me proud, especially considering how awful I was! Next game, I won't be this bad; I'll play to my full potential!"
"We'll make it to the Eastern Conference Finals!"
Iverson said it, and he did it!
Two days later, in the decisive Game 7, this guy indeed swept away the gloom of Game 6 and once again unleashed terrifying fighting power.
Iverson took a crazy 39 shots that night, making 21!
3分球5投3中，罚球9罚9中，全场比赛爆砍54分5篮板4助攻！
Although only Snow scored 10 points besides Iverson, and no other player scored in double figures, the 76ers only scored a total of 97 points, but that was enough!
While the rest of the 76ers players were completely out of form on offense, with the team's field goal percentage only at 36% except for Iverson, they gave their all on defense!
Mutombo's eye was struck by Malone's elbow, causing blood to spurt out on the spot, which resulted in a malicious foul by Malone.
Troy Hill repeatedly dove to the ground to fight for loose balls, and Snow and McGee, despite being nearly 20 centimeters shorter than McGrady, relentlessly defended this newest top swingman in the league, keeping him out of sorts throughout the game!
More importantly, although the 76ers' offense was incredibly poor, their performance at the free-throw line was impeccable. The team went to the free-throw line 26 times and made 25 of them, for a free-throw percentage of 96%!
On the other hand, the Magic also went to the free-throw line 26 times, but only made 14 of them!
In this one area alone, they scored 11 fewer points than the 76ers!
同时，麦迪今晚大失水準，24投只有10中，3分线外5投0中、罚球线上6罚3中，拿下23分的同时送出了5次失误！
Malone also seemed out of sorts due to a malicious foul, and his signature mid-range jump shot almost always missed, resulting in only 16 points and 9 rebounds.
三巨头中唯一表现正常的就是邓肯了，他19投11中，罚球10罚7中，拿下29分14篮板4盖帽。
Aside from the Big Three, no one on the Magic, whether it was Rookie of the Year Miller or the rest of the team, scored in double figures!
The players outside the Big Three failed to provide any help, and the Big Three's firepower couldn't match the crazy Iverson!
That night, the Magic only scored 92 points!
97: 92!
The 76ers relied on their defense, their relentless play, and Allen Iverson's fearlessness to win this decisive Game 7 on the road!
They successfully rallied from a 1-3 deficit to win three straight games, completing a comeback and advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals!
The Orlando Magic, a team that had united as one and started the season with resounding slogans, and assembled a formidable quartet, could only swallow the bitter pill of defeat on this night.
They became a joke, destined to be constantly ridiculed and mentioned until the next joke is born.
The two sentences, "Consider your next opponent in advance" and "The series won't return to Orlando," are destined to become famous sayings, warning everyone not to make wild claims!
When the match ended, the contrast between the two teams' performances was striking.
Allen Iverson, who scored 54 points, was lifted high on the shoulders of all his teammates, and then let out a series of completely unrestrained roars at the previously unruly Orlando players.
As for the Magic? Duncan still looked like he was in a state of complete confusion, McGrady was biting his lip and looked bewildered, while Malone left the court early without hugging or greeting anyone or offering any blessings.
He left the stadium immediately.
No one, including himself, knows where his next step will be.
But what everyone knows is that his mercenary career was absolutely terrible!
The more confident and high-profile someone is before the season starts, the more disappointed and helpless they will feel when the season ends.
If you were to ask Lin Tian about this situation?
Lin Tian will tell the Orlando people: It's okay, you'll get used to it!
Did you think that McGrady finally breaking through the first round meant he had broken the curse?
McGrady's first-round curse is nothing!
You guys also have Rivers's curse of being reversed!
With Rivers around, there will be plenty of opportunities for us to be reversed in the future!
As the first player in NBA history to be reverse-swept, Rivers has been reverse-swept countless times.
史上3：1领先被逆转次数最多的人，2：0领先被逆转次数最多的人，还有数次3：2领先被逆转的经历。
The only player in NBA history to be reversed in the playoffs!
Whenever Rivers' team gains an advantage, his opponents seem to unleash 150% of their potential. This includes things like a headband helping with three-pointers, three 3-2 leads being overturned in four years, and Paul allegedly sabotaging his opponent to the point of fracturing his wrist and ending his season.
All sorts of bizarre comeback experiences occurred in every round of the playoffs, and Lin Tian felt that he was almost becoming a causal weapon!
Well, let's have a moment of silence for the Magic!
Lin Tian is also looking forward to seeing who will be lucky enough to encounter magic and stage another comeback next year.
With the Magic's shocking elimination, the two teams that will compete in the Eastern Conference Finals have been officially confirmed.
Pacers vs. 76ers!
The two teams will face off again in the playoffs, marking another head-to-head confrontation between Lin Tian and Iverson!
The previous rounds of the series all ended with Lin Tian's complete victory and his team's overwhelming win.
What about this time?
Fans are incredibly excited for this matchup between the two most aggressive, popular, and entertaining point guards in the league today! Even though almost everyone expects the Pacers to win, everyone also believes that after such a dramatic comeback in this series, the 76ers will definitely put on some amazing performances!
Their competitive spirit is definitely completely different from before!
The two matches in the East have concluded, and the two semifinals in the West have also concluded.
The Spurs, aging and in poor form, barely made it through the first round by relying on the fact that their opponents were even worse than themselves. In the second round, they faced the Lakers, who were at their peak and had their eyes bloodshot. The Spurs were powerless to resist and were cleanly and decisively eliminated by the Lakers, like autumn leaves swept away by the wind.
In all four games, the point difference between the two sides exceeded 15, and only in the third game was the point difference less than 20!
The Spurs lost by nearly 90 points in 4 games!
Meanwhile, O'Neal put on an almost ferocious performance against David Robinson!
4场比赛场均31分14个篮板4次盖帽，命中率超过55%！
He proved once again that I am the best center in the league today!
David Robinson, on the other hand, was left to carry the team alone in the paint. He averaged only 16 points and 8 rebounds per game in the series, with a field goal percentage of only 41%. The MVP-caliber "Admiral," who was known for his small forward skills and agility, was completely outmatched!
His era has officially come to an end!
If it were just their interior defense that was exposed, the Spurs wouldn't have lost by 90 points in 4 games. The real reason they lost so badly was that the Lakers dominated their interior, perimeter, and almost every position. Kobe, who had grown into a top-ten player in the league, played a crushing game against two All-Star caliber forwards, Richmond and Rose. He averaged 28 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists per game in the series, with a field goal percentage of 48%!
At the same time, both Rose and Richmond were in very poor form on the court, showing no signs of being All-Star caliber players.
Rose averaged 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists per game, with a field goal percentage of only 41%. Richmond's performance was even worse, averaging just 9 points and 2 rebounds per game, with a field goal percentage of less than 33% and a three-point percentage of only 27%. These two are far from being comparable to Kobe and going head-to-head with him. Even Glen Rice, the Lakers' third option, who averaged 13 points per game and had a three-point percentage of 41%, outperformed them by a large margin!
In addition, the Lakers also have Jermaine O'Neal, who averaged 12 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks per game in this series. This O'Neal duo has already demonstrated their dominance throughout this long season!
Many people even believe that if Jermaine O'Neal hadn't had so few opportunities with the Lakers and had gone to another team that was willing to give him a chance, he could have become an All-Star caliber center in no time!
Such a one-sided, overwhelming victory and complete dominance at every position essentially signaled the end of the Spurs' era before it even began! After losing Duncan, they completely bid farewell to the level of a top team in the league.
The Spurs are just an ordinary playoff team now! (End of Chapter)