"We've got match point, we're 3-1 ahead and we're just one game away from winning the trophy, so we can start celebrating?"

On the plane back to Houston, Qiao Hai stood at the front and asked a very serious question.

The plane encountered a turbulence and a jolt, but he still stood firmly.

Then, Gary Payton, who was sitting in front of him, struggled to his feet from the bump and raised his hand to reply, "No, boss, it's not time to celebrate the victory!" ”

"Why? We are already 3-1 ahead, and no team in the finals has been able to complete a comeback with 1-3 down. ”

Qiao Hai asked a rhetorical question.

Then, Gary Payton also had a serious expression: "The third game of the finals has shown that if the Pistons play the main game, they have a fight with us, we win the rotation lineup, and we win the physical advantage." ”

"But in the next game, we're going to face the last game, the Pistons, who have already taken off their main force at the end of the third quarter, and their main force can support them to have another full-court high-intensity defensive battle, and if we are not careful, we are likely to lose the next game."

"Then it's going to be back in Detroit, back at home, there's a good chance they're going to get the home whistle, there's something going on, we're going to lose two games in a row, and then it's going to tie-break."

Qiao Hai nodded and said affirmatively: "That's right, in order not to let accidents happen, what we have to do is not to be careless, with 200% of our energy, put into the next game, win the next game, and then win the championship in front of the home fans!" Grab a cup! ”

The O'Brien Cup is just around the corner, and everyone is excited and excited......

……

Although it was already 1:3 behind, the Pistons were still very united, and in the Toyota Center, they shouted in unison: "Win!" ”

Then, the starting five tigers appeared, and everyone was very serious.

The Rockets didn't relax because of the big lead, they showed their composure, and they knew that this game was not so easy.

"The game has begun, and perhaps at this moment, many media have printed the headlines after the game, such as: Rockets won the championship 4:1, Yao Ming FMVP, Dwayne Wade rookie is the champion, Qiao Hai won his fourth championship, is catching up with Cardinal Auerbach and so on."

"But what I would say is that until the game is over, everything is unknown!"

McBrin emphasized this point, arguing that while the Rockets are already leading 3-1, the Finals are far from over.

The game began, and the Pistons were quick to prove it with their performance.

In the first shot of the opening game, Wade broke through the basket after covering, and Big Ben sent a hot pot and directly rejected the Rockets' request to score.

In the next game, the Rockets also wanted to score but couldn't score, and the physical Pistons directly raised the defensive intensity by two notches, and then completely locked the space from the restricted area to the middle distance.

The Rockets float straight to the perimeter to shoot basketballs, or occasionally hit inside to steal chickens.

The game was extremely difficult, and in the first quarter, the Rockets played a 15-16 with the Pistons, and the Rockets trailed by 1 point.

The low score in the first quarter showed that the Pistons were in excellent shape in this game, and Qiao Hai's frowning brow also proved that this game was not very easy to play.

During the break, Larry Brown was interviewed, but he frowned deeply and pondered how to take advantage.

Soon, he had an idea.

In the second quarter, the lineup on the Rockets court was a bulky positional lineup, with Greg Ostertag and Chris Anderson partnering inside, small forward Boris Dior, and Gary Payton and Ron Artest on the guard line.

The Rockets suddenly pressed the rhythm and played defense.

Then on the offensive end, Boris Dior organized the combing, and Ron Artest slammed inside.

At the beginning of the second quarter, the Rockets beat the Pistons 11:2 and instantly took an 8-point lead.

Larry Brown saw that the situation was not good and called a timeout.

But after the timeout, Larry Brown found that he had nothing left to adjust.

The lineup of the Pistons on the court is already the strongest lineup of the Pistons, and the defense that the Pistons rely on on the court is already the best defense that the Pistons can do.

Larry Brown then realized that because there was no superstar, the Pistons could no match the Rockets.

But he still made adjustments, and by blocking the waist position, he stifled the impact of Ron Artest.

Qiao Hai also reacted quickly, and immediately switched back to Yao Ming and Wade.

Yao Ming's rim protection is no worse than Greg Ostertag, and defensively, the Rockets will not slip.

Offensively, Wade and Yao Ming can play a more dynamic perimeter cooperation, and the Pistons' current defensive shrinkage is obviously unable to cope with the Rockets' multi-level offense.

So, in the second half of the quarter, the Rockets further widened the difference.

Throughout the second quarter, the Rockets beat the Pistons 30-13, and the score was 45-29 at halftime, giving the Rockets a 16-point lead.

It was a defensive battle, and the Pistons trailed by 16 points at halftime, and the situation was clearly not good.

"Qiao Hai's strategy was successful, he caught the Pistons' poor offensive corner and slammed it, and then the Pistons only scored 13 points in a single quarter."

"Trailing by 16 points at halftime, with the Pistons' offensive ability, it was already difficult for them to turn the tables in this game."

"Half time has just ended, maybe we can already say: Congratulations to the Rockets!"

……

Toyota Center, the second half of the game begins.

Gary Payton was in possession of the ball, his thoughts drifting everywhere.

In the second half of the game, Qiao Hai's strategy was to continue to focus on defense, and now, the Rockets, who have a 16-point advantage, only need to hold the advantage, and the possibility of the Pistons turning the game is equal to zero.

Gary Payton knows that, too, and he knows that at this moment, he is only two quarters away from the first championship of his 14-year career.

And the opponent, Rasheed Wallace was his opponent in the same district, the two of them have played each other several times, Steve Francis is his predecessor in this position of the Rockets, if it weren't for him, it would still be Steve Francis who is now sitting in the main control position of the Rockets, but if the Rockets can get this far, he doesn't know.

In the end, Ben Wallace and Richard Hamilton didn't cross paths with him much, as did James Posey.

As for Larry Brown, this is a head coach that Gary Payton admires more, because Larry Brown focuses on defense and is a defensive master.

Now, Gary Payton has no excitement in his heart, because he remembers the 1995-1996 season, when he was also a loser, and that year, he lost to Michael Jordan, who was in full swing.

So, how frustrated should the current Pistons players and coaches be?

Gary Payton thought, his hands moving.

The Rockets maintained a strong defense in the second half, and the Pistons who defended it again in the third quarter only scored 21 points, and the Rockets scored 25 points, and the difference was stretched to 20 points in one fell swoop.

In the fourth quarter, the Pistons fought back in a desperate situation, and the Rockets withstood the counterattack.

But in the final five minutes of the game, the Rockets continued to lead the Pistons by 18 points at 85:67.

There was not enough time for the Pistons to complete the turnaround, so Qiao Hai made substitutions at this time, and the main players on the court left the field one after another.

Yao Ming, who scored 25 points, 13 rebounds and 4 blocks in this game, Dwyane Wade, who scored 20 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals in this game, and Ron Artest, who scored 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in this game......

Finally, it was Gary Payton, who had 15 points and 6 assists in this game.

"Boss, we've won the championship!"

Gary Payton's nose was sore, and he was not at the slightest excitement and excitement at the beginning of the second half, and he was already unable to restrain himself at the moment.

"That's right, we won! We've won the championship! Rocket Championship! ”