Reggie. Miller lay on the floor and let the masseuse "ravage" his body.

Despite the boos all around, Miller Sr. enjoyed the pre-match moment of relaxation.

As is customary, after the massage, Miller practiced his mid-to-long-range shooting with his trainer.

Even at the Auburn Hills Palace Stadium, which was full of opposing fans, Miller's shooting percentage was quite impressive.

He made 50 three-pointers and scored 41. He made 30 free throws and scored 29.

Although he is already an out-and-out veteran, although it is Artest and O'Neal Jr. who are really carrying the Pacers forward, Miller has never relaxed his requirements for himself.

He tries to adjust his condition to the best he can be in order to deal with all kinds of unexpected situations.

Something like the second game of the series...... He didn't want it to happen again.

After the warm-up, there were more and more fans in the stands, and reporters began to pour into the stadium one after another.

Miller was approached by an ESPN reporter, apparently wanting to invite the team's soul-caliber for a pre-game interview.

Miller nodded and reminded reporters, "Hurry up." ”

"Reggie, you shot a lot of three-pointers before the game, does that mean you want to be able to keep your hand good on the last shot?"

The first question is a very ordinary question.

Miller wasn't nervous either, and was at ease.

"What I care about is whether I'm competing to the standard I expect and that's what makes me happy.

Actually, I don't really care if I get the last shot in the game, and I don't want to have a Miller moment all the time.

I've been working in the league for years, and I'm used to looking at the game coldly. So, I tried to warm up before the race, just to have a clear conscience during the race. ”

"Really? If you say that, then why did you kick the ball to the audience in anger after Game 2 of the series? ”

The reporter ruthlessly debunked Miller's lies.

Cold-eyed wins and losses? Say that others are similar, anyway, you Miller is definitely not this kind of personality.

Miller's otherwise unwavering face changed slightly, he frowned, and then looked up at the basket.

Game 2 of the series, why are you so angry?

He began to reminisce about that night.

At the time, the game was finished with 98 seconds left and the Pacers trailing the Pistons by six points.

At the critical moment, the Pacers were ineffective, and in the end, Miller had to go out on his own.

He stepped up and scored four straight points to close the gap to two in the final 46 seconds.

At this time, Miller is feeling hot, and everyone is expecting him to make Miller return to the rivers and lakes at all times, and let the Pacers go to Detroit with a 2-0 overall score.

However, in a key attack that decided the trend of the game, Miller's fast-break layup was blocked by Tyshawn who came out of nowhere. Prince chases.

The miracle came to an end, which made Prince popular in the United States and directly shattered the confidence of the Pacers.

In the end, the Pistons won the dramatic game 72-67 on the road.

After the game, Miller kicked the game ball away, as if to vent his unwillingness.

If he could have been a little faster, two or three years younger, maybe he wouldn't have been covered?

But there are no maybes and ifs on the basketball court, and Miller can only vent by kicking the ball.

As a result, he was also fined $5,000 by the league.

Thinking of everything that happened that day, Miller's expression was even more unsettled.

Yes, what doesn't care about victory, it's all for outsiders......

"Do you want to know why? Because the championship is a dream that I have been pursuing for many years! With that, Miller turned to leave, ending the interview.

His lies are self-defeating.

When a man who is almost 40 years old, utters the word "dream".

You know how obsessed he is with it.

Today is June 1st, Children's Day.

At the same time, it is also the sixth day of the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Indiana Pacers, who were the No. 1 regular season in the previous season, will face their life-and-death battle at Auburn Hills Palace Stadium.

That's right, a battle of life and death.

Because at this point, the series total score became 3-2, and the Pistons got the match point.

This "grassroots division", which was not favored before, only needs to win one more game to reach the finals.

Their grassroots myth is a bit like this year's NCAA championship cowboys.

At the same time, it also means that the Pacers, who are the first in the league, will have to roll up and leave if they lose one more game.

Miller tried to calm himself down before the game, so he deliberately put on a nonchalant look.

But the reporter's question made him a little impatient now.

Championship, Championship...... His dream of winning the championship has become precarious again.

After the start of the match, the two sides were as close to hand-to-hand combat as ever.

The series was played brutally and the score was not high, as both sides focused on defense.

The key to victory for both sides is to try their best to make the other side less efficient than themselves.

This style of play is very different from the style of pursuing high efficiency ten years later.

And such a rough game can easily cause friction between the players on both sides.

Just five minutes into the game, Artest and Big Ben forced Lai Lai.

A minute later, Tianzun and O'Neal Jr. had an out-of-game physical collision under the basket.

The game was very bloody, and both sides were almost on the verge of getting out of control.

The scenes of people flipping on their backs and tough physical confrontations fill the court, which has nothing to do with Stern's fantasy of "beautiful basketball" and "gentleman's basketball".

However, this "ugly" game made all the fans addicted.

There's nothing more real than that.

The game went on like this, and neither side could pull the score apart.

When Wayne and Tony. By the time Allen finished practice and rushed back to his residence to turn on the TV, the score was 63-67 and the Pistons had a four-point lead.

If it were in 2020, Wayne would have felt that the game had just started in the third quarter.

But at this time, the game was already in the final 1 minute 03 seconds.

"I'll go, I'm so anxious. Wayne, who are you betting on will win this series? Whoever loses, who gets up tomorrow morning to make breakfast! "Tony. Aaron began to set the table with his hands on his hands.

"The Pistons win, I'll bet with you for three days. I lost, I made breakfast for three days. ”

"Pistons? They may be leading the overall score now, but the Pacers are the first in the league! Moreover, the Pistons are very unchampioned, do you really think they will be the champions of the East? ”

"Well, I'm betting on the Pistons anyway." Wayne shrugged, and there was no suspense for him in this kind of game.

If he can, make another bet with Tony in the finals, it is estimated that before the draft begins, Wayne will not have to make his own breakfast.

Good brother...... Of course, it's a pit!

At this time, O'Neal Jr. received the basketball in the low post and rolled over and made a jumper.

However, this key shot was struck by the interference of the Roaring Tianzun.

Don't look at Tianzun's embarrassment at the mention of Wayne, but the hard power is really strong enough.

O'Neal Jr.'s shooting rate today is very bad, and it will exceed 40%, which is due to God's honor.

To be exact, throughout the series, the guy who ranked third on the MVP list performed very strained.

Some media have begun to call O'Neal Jr. "a regular season superstar, a playoff giant baby".

"What are you doing? We've got to seize our chances! ! Artest yelled at O'Neill Jr., even going so far as to say the word that started with F.

It's no secret that O'Neal Jr. doesn't have a consistent scoring tool in crunch time.

"Don't yell at me, get out of the way!" Little O'Neill is also angry, his relationship with Artest is not as good as people think.

Artest's thorny and aggressive guy and O'Neal Jr.'s tough guy are already hard to get along.

If it weren't for Miller pressing in the locker room, and if it weren't for the excellent record of the Pacers this year to cover up many contradictions, these two guys would have exploded a long time ago.

Fortunately, Prince's mid-range shot on the Pistons' side also hit the iron and didn't let the score continue to be pulled away.

The margin is still four points, but the time left for the Pacers is running out.

This time, Artest decided to step up and carry the offensive banner for O'Neal Jr., who did not trust O'Neal Jr.'s performance at critical moments.

But how much better is he himself? He's not a particularly consistent scorer on his own, and he's even more difficult to play when it matters most.

"Artest also missed a three-pointer, oh my God, will the number one in the league be eliminated because of this? They're one step away from the finals! ”

The narrator looked at the time, and the walker almost missed the best chance.

Miller sighed, the game reminded him of those experiences during the regular season.

His worst fears had happened.

At crunch time, this team did not have a consistent scoring point.

No one can confidently pat their chests and say, "Give me the ball, I'll take care of it." ”

O'Neill can't, and Artest can't.

Miller didn't care much about losing the regular season because of this.

Losing the second game of the series, he was able to tell himself that he still had a chance.

But if you lose again today......

"Damn it!" Miller also scolded secretly, in the end, do you still have to rely on yourself who is nearly forty years old?

But this time, the Pistons didn't give the Pacers another chance to struggle.

Billups used a ghostly ground-and-pound pass to assist Big Ben to score a dunk under the basket!

O'Neal Jr.'s attention was drawn to Billups, and the basket was empty.

After the dunk was successful, Big Ben didn't forget to yell at Artest.

Artest gritted his teeth, if it weren't for the fact that Big Ben was scarier than him, he would have to teach the exploding head a lesson.

It's not that I'm afraid of being fined and banned, it's ...... I'm afraid I can't beat it!

With 11 seconds left, the Pacers trailed by six points. Coach Carlisle called a halt to the game, they were just a fraction of a second away from hell! ”

At Auburn Hills Palace Stadium, Pistons fans cheered.

Of course, they cheer differently than fans in other cities.

At this time, the Pacers players sitting on the bench must endure the swear words of the fans behind them while listening to Carlisle's strategy.

"Harrington, you help Miller block Hamilton. Jermaine, you try to contain Big Ben on the inside, so that he can't do anything. Reggie, you come and shoot this ball! ”

Miller looked at Carlisle and nodded silently.

A championship team, but the key ball can only rely on a veteran who is nearly 40 years old......

How sad it is.

But does Carlisle have a choice? He didn't have a choice.

His team can defend key shots, but they don't necessarily make them.

In the end, Miller, who was close to exhaustion, did not shoot the life-or-death shot.

He is no longer the one who scored 8 points in 9 seconds, the one who pushed away the "god" to complete the lore, and the one who grabbed Spike with both hands. Miller of Lee's neck.

He was almost 40 years old, and someone else should have carried such a burden for him.

But......

"Spank a fart!" Bird turned off the TV and smashed the remote.

Next to him, the team's general manager, Donnie Brown. Walsh was silent.

The general manager's office was silent for a long time, until the Indiana basketball legend stood up.

4-2, the Detroit Pistons defeated the league's No. 1 Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Their year's hard work was all in vain.

"Larry ......"

"Don't say it, you can see it, we're close to the championship...... One breath away! Bird didn't wait for Walsh to finish before interrupting forcefully.

"What do you want to do?"

"Reinforcement!"

"Reinforcement whom?"

"The people we need."

"Even if it's from a damn draft?" Walsh grew serious, he knew what Bird was trying to do.

Walsh is also sure that Bird knows that he has always been bullish on Wayne.

Bird didn't answer, but walked straight out of the office.

Walsh didn't swear angrily either.

O'Neill Jr. to Artest, from Bird to Walsh......

When the Pacers experienced a loss, the 60-win team was nowhere near as solid as one might think.