On the afternoon of April 17, the Clippers, who had been training for a day in San Antonio, arrived at the At&t Center where they would play in the evening to adapt to the venue.
The Clippers players don't seem to be in particularly good spirits. Although they are not depressed, they are not full of energy or high morale.
After everyone arrived at the venue, they warmed up with simple shooting and got used to the basket on the court.
Usually, everyone talks a lot during training, chatting and laughing, leaving behind the huge pressure of playing professional games.
But right now, everyone's faces were gloomy, they didn't communicate much with each other, they didn't talk much, and there was no usual scene of unity and friendship.
The reason for this is not because of conflicts between the players, but because the young people are somewhat dissatisfied with the strategic arrangements of the coaching staff.
To put it bluntly, the Clippers players don't really want to play the Spurs in the first round, but they want to rush to seventh place and continue to play the Lakers.
On the sidelines, Steve Kerr looked at the players looking a little wilted and said to Dunleavy: "Mike, the players seem a little dissatisfied with losing the last game and falling to eighth place."
Dunleavy said: "Yeah, everyone doesn't really think about coming to San Antonio. It would be great to stay in Los Angeles. It can avenge the loss last season. Last season we were able to win two games against the defending champion, and this season we are better Strong, maybe he can topple the Lakers."
Cole said: "But there is no way. This is Mr. Smart's decision. He is so angry that no one dares to disobey him."
Dunleavy smiled and said: "I think you dare, you have the courage."
Cole shook his head and said: "I thought I dared, but... I don't know, I can't figure him out."
"No one can figure him out, not even David Stern. Only God knows what he is thinking."
Min Congda is aware of the players' dissatisfaction.
But for his evil plan, he could only do this.
Otherwise, by the seventh game against the Lakers, Min Congda would have thought of a series of consequences.
First of all, there is the Los Angeles Derby. It turns out that one of the two teams is a giant and the other is an insignificant follower.
Once there are too many derbies, and there are stories and grievances, wouldn't the storyline of the Los Angeles duo become more interesting?
As soon as the story becomes more interesting, the box office and ratings will increase, and the market value will rise accordingly. This is absolutely unacceptable.
Secondly, given the Lakers' state this year, they might not even be able to beat the Clippers.
The two teams met twice at the end of the season, and the Clippers beat the Lakers to death both times.
Min Congda did not dare to risk the Clippers and Lakers matchup.
On the contrary, the Spurs have a record of 3 wins and 1 loss against the Clippers, giving them an advantage.
Coupled with the Spurs' excellent tradition of bullying, Min Congda can trust this opponent.
In the past two days, Curry privately expressed his opinions to Min Congda on behalf of the players.
Min Congda couldn't explain it clearly, so he had to say: "You guys play hard. When the game starts, you guys will know."
He can only prevaricate without conscience. When the season ends after losing the series, everyone will be a good man again at the beginning of the new season!
Enthusiastic San Antonio fans started arriving at around 4 p.m., while it was still bright and the sun had not yet set.
By seven o'clock, when the game was about to start, the arena was filled with fans.
For Spurs fans, they have been happy since acquiring Tim Duncan in 1997.
There are playoffs every year, and most years they are strong contenders for the championship.
This has been a happy, sweet decade.
And judging from the Spurs' performance this season, this happiness will continue for a while.
After the opening ceremony, the starting players from both sides took to the court.
The Clippers are wearing blue jerseys tonight, with Gasol, Randolph, Ricky Davis, Curry and Baron Davis.
The Spurs, playing at home, started with Duncan, McDyess, Jefferson, Parker and George Hill.
Min Congda was sitting on the sidelines, looking at the Spurs starter, and he was murmuring in his heart.
"Popovich is so confident that in the playoffs he will still use McDyess and Duncan as starters. Why not use Split? Using such two veterans is a bit risky."
Min Congda once again became a Spurs fan and expressed his concerns.
Indeed, McDyess is more stable as a veteran.
But McDyess is the power forward, and Duncan has to move to the center position.
The Spurs' inside line is more flexible and lighter, but the defensive thickness and height have been weakened.
"And they actually use two point guards in the backcourt? Isn't this exactly what our Clippers want... Why is this guy Ginobili still absent? Can't we overcome this minor injury?"
In terms of backcourt selection, the Spurs and Clippers have two point guards.
The Clippers used two point guards, which was a bit of a disadvantage defensively.
Fortunately, Baron Davis is physically strong, and ordinary shooting guards really can't beat him.
If the Spurs had Ginobili, with Baron Davis's current lateral speed, they might not be able to handle the Demon Sword.
But Ginobili was absent from this game due to injury, but it was not a serious injury, just a minor problem.
The Spurs asked him not to play out of a sense of protection or confidence in the team.
After all, I am No. 1 versus No. 8. Even though my tricycle has fewer wheels, I can still outrun you.
And with two point guards, competing with the Clippers for speed, small lineup, and offense, the Spurs are confident.
Popovich has also read the famous article "Victory of Space and Ball Rights". His understanding is that the era of NBA offense is coming.
How to make good use of offensive space? In addition to shooting more three-pointers, the more important point is speed.
When you have speed, when you run, the space on the court can become bigger.
As early as 2005, when the Spurs were still practicing traditional basketball, they had easily defeated the league's number one Suns 4:1 in the Western Conference Finals using a confrontational style of play.
That year the handcheck rule was banned, Ginobili exploded, and Popovich sensed the league's shift from defense to offense.
Six years later, he believes that the time has almost come.
After three years of failure and transformation in 2008, 2009, and 2010, this year's regular-season San Antonio Spurs finally returned to first place in the Western Conference and won a long-lost 60 wins.
Although many experts were not optimistic about the Spurs before the game, Popovich and the Spurs players are still very confident.
The only thing that worries Popovich is Duncan's knee injury. He has a very thick knee brace strapped to his knee.
Duncan lost weight last summer to adapt to Popovich's tactical reforms, transforming from a low-post monster to a semi-blue-collar defensive and supporting inside line.
It can be said that a superstar like Duncan who is so selfless and so team-oriented is really rare in NBA history.
The game between the two sides started with a jump ball from Duncan and Gasol.
The Spurs took the lead in gaining the right to attack. McDyess grabbed the ball and handed it to George Hill.
Min Congda sat behind the Clippers' bench and encouraged himself: "This is No. 1 in the Western Conference, this is Popovich, and these are the Spurs! Come on, don't pity me just because I'm a pretty girl and launch a fierce attack on us. Bar!"
(End of chapter)
