"The Indiana Pacers are a very strong team, they have won two championships in a row, they have only lost eight games in the regular season this season, and they have a winning record in the playoffs, they have the best outside player in the league at the moment, Meng Xu, and one of the strongest power forwards, Jermaine O'Neal, in addition to Mutombo, Reggie Miller, Tyshawn Prince, James Posey and a number of very good players."

Compared with Mark Cuban, who vowed to kill the Pacers to win the first championship in team history for Dallas, the old Nelson who led the team to the Finals for the first time in his career was very humble before the game, as a head coach who has coached in the NBA for nearly 30 seasons and won 1000+ games, the old Nelson is undoubtedly very sad, in his nearly 30-year coaching career, the old Nelson did not even have a championship, and led the Mavericks to the Finals this season, It is also the first division championship won by Nelson Sr. in coaching history, and in this regard, Nelson Sr. is undoubtedly still a "rookie", and none of these players in the Mavericks have never participated in the Finals.

However, the old Nelson did not belittle himself, but after praising the Pacers, he also expressed his expectations for the Finals, after all, no team that entered the Finals was willing to accompany the prince to study.

On June 4, 2004, at 7 o'clock in the evening, the Indianapolis Bankers Life Arena was already crowded at this moment, and there were even many Pacers fans who could not buy tickets gathered in the square outside the court, ready to watch the upcoming Finals through the large screen temporarily installed outside the court, although the Pacers renovated the Bankers Living Arena last offseason and increased the number of seats to 20,000, but from the Pacers' attendance rate this season, 20,000 seats is still not enough, Indiana is a state with a very good basketball atmosphere, and Indianapolis, where the Pacers are located, is a city with a population of more than 800,000, so with the Pacers' record getting better and better, the Pacers' owner Simon Brothers recently had the idea of continuing to expand the banker's living arena.

This season has been the craziest season for Pacers fans, with 74 wins and 8 losses in the regular season, 35 consecutive wins, and a winning streak after entering the playoffs.

"Guys, this is your first trip to the finals, and it's also my first trip to the finals, so I don't want my first finals to be left with regrets that I can never make up."

"No one out there is optimistic about us because we are facing the strongest team in NBA history, but we can't just give up, I believe in you, as long as we show all our strength, we can beat them and win the championship!"

"Okay, don't be nervous, just relax a little bit, just treat this game as an ordinary regular season, correct your mentality, and show your 100% strength."

After arranging the list of players and tactics, Nelson put aside the tactical board, and began to chat with the group of players under his command, to be honest, the old Neil, who led the team to the finals for the first time in his career, was also a little nervous, not to mention the Mavericks' group of "junior brothers", so the old Nelson is also doing his best, wanting to keep them in a good state of mind to meet the upcoming finals.

The first finals of my career, can you not be nervous, can you not be excited! Even though Nelson Sr. has been doing ideological work for them, Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash can clearly feel their heartbeats accelerating at this moment, and even Antoine Jamison, who has never regarded himself as a Maverick, is shaking uncontrollably in front of the upcoming Finals.

"Victory must be ours!" Just as everything was arranged and he was about to leave the locker room, Nelson Sr. raised his arm and yelled at all the players in the locker room.

"Victory must be ours!"

"Victory!" "Victory!" 。。。。。。 Moments later, a uniform slogan rang out in the Mavericks' locker room.

Compared with the Mavericks who are already excited, the Pacers who are already excited about themselves, the Pacers who are already operating in the regular season, everything is going on step by step, and several main players led by Meng Xu are now relatively calm, but head coach Rick Carlisle, like the old Nelson opposite, is excited and nervous.

"In the history of the NBA, there are many teams that have won one or two championships, and even teams that have won more than 10 championships, but the only teams that have completed three consecutive championships in team history are the Boston Celtics and the Chicago Bulls, and only the teams that have completed three consecutive championships will be called a dynasty, and now, we have the opportunity to build our own dynasty, guys, can we let this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity slip away from us?" After much deliberation, Rick Carlisle also used a very lyrical opening statement to cheer up his players.

"I can't." James Posey, who was standing in the locker room in suits, jumped out first after Rick Carlisle's words fell.

"Can't!"

"Can't!" Although the Pacers players in the locker room are all flushed and shouting slogans, the Pacers players at this moment are in different moods, and the members of the first two championships are naturally extremely excited, and those latecomers are somewhat regretful.

。。。。。。

"Hello viewers around the world, this is ABS Network, brought to you by Elvin Johnson and El Michaels, the first game of the 2003-2004 NBA Finals, Indiana Pacers vs. Dallas Mavericks." With the growing influence of the NBA and the success of Jordan's last All-Star Game, some of the NBA's most important games have been broadcast live to the world since then, and the Finals, which is the most important thing, have been broadcast live to an unprecedented level.

"Due to James Posey's suspension, the Pacers' starting lineup today has changed a lot compared to the Eastern Conference Finals, first of all, the position of center, Mutombo started again today, after Mutombo started, Jermaine O'Neal returned to his familiar No. 4 position today, and in the small forward position, the first foul that replaced James Posey was Tyshaun Prince, and in the position of shooting guard, Reggie Miller also started again today, and the playmaking guard is still Meng Xu."

"The Mavericks' starting lineup today hasn't changed much, it's still center Sean Bradley, power forward Dirk Nowitzki, small forward Antoine Walker, scoring guard Michael Finley, and playmaking guard Steve Nash."

Since James Posey is still suspended for one game, Rick Carlisle has adjusted today's starting lineup, as for the tactics that the Pacers will use today, it is also very simple, that is, to play Nash in a single position, Nash's overall situation and control ability is not to be said, but Nash's shortcomings are also very obvious, that is, the defense is too poor, because the old Nelson's team has always paid little attention to defense, so Nash's shortcomings are not a big deal in the eyes of the old Nelson, But Rick Carlisle isn't stupid enough to go against the Mavericks.