On the afternoon of April 17, the Clippers, who had been training in San Antonio for a day, arrived at the At&t Center, the venue where they were to play in the evening, for an acclimatization.

The Clippers players don't look particularly in good spirits, and although they don't languish, they don't look full of energy and high morale.

When everyone arrives at the court, they warm up with a simple shot and get used to the hoops on the court.

Usually everyone talks a lot when they train, chattering endlessly, laughing and laughing, leaving the huge pressure of playing professional games behind.

But at this time, everyone's faces were gloomy, there was no communication with each other, they didn't talk much, and there was no scene of unity and friendship on weekdays.

The reason for this is not because of the conflict between the players, but because the young people are a little dissatisfied with the strategic arrangement of the coaching staff.

To put it bluntly, the Clippers' players don't really want to play the Spurs in the first round, but want to rush to the seventh place to continue playing the Lakers.

On the sidelines, Steve Kerr looked at the players and said to Dunleavy: "Mike, the players seem to be a little unhappy with the last loss and falling to eighth." ”

Dunleavy said: "yes, people don't think about San Antonio, how good it is to stay in Los Angeles." You can avenge last season's loss. Last season we were able to play two games against the defending champions, and this season we are stronger and maybe we can overturn the Lakers. ”

Cole said: "But it can't be helped, this is Mr. Smart's decision, he is so angry, no one dares to disobey him." ”

Dunleavy smiled: "I think you dare, you have the guts." ”

Cole shook his head and said, "I thought I would, but... I don't know, I can't fathom him. ”

"Nobody can touch him, not David Stern, only God knows what he's thinking."

Min Congda is aware of the players' dissatisfaction.

But for the sake of his bad plan, he can only do this.

Otherwise, by the seventh dozen Lakers, a series of consequences Min Congda has thought of.

First up is the Los Angeles derby, originally two teams, one is a giant, the other is an insignificant follower.

Once there are too many derbys, there is a story, there are grievances, and there is a plot of the Los Angeles duo, won't this storytelling come up?

As soon as the story came up, the box office and ratings came, and the market value went up, which is absolutely impossible.

Secondly, in terms of the Lakers' state this year, they may not be able to beat the Clippers.

The two teams met twice at the end of the season, and the Clippers killed the Lakers.

Min Congda didn't dare to let the Clippers and Lakers take risks.

Conversely, the Spurs have an advantage against the Clippers with a 3-1 record.

Coupled with Spurs' excellent tradition of abusing vegetables, this opponent, Min Congda can be trusted.

In the past two days, Curry privately expressed his opinion to Min Congda on behalf of the players.

Min Congda couldn't explain it clearly, so he had to say: "You guys play hard, and when the game starts, you will know." ”

He can only prevaricate with his conscience like this, and wait until the end of the losing series season and the start of the new season will be a good man again!

Enthusiastic San Antonio fans have been in since around four p.m., and it's still dawn and the sun hasn't set yet.

By seven o'clock, when the game was about to begin, the arena was already full of fans.

For Spurs fans, they've been happy since they got Tim Duncan in 1997.

There are playoffs every year, and most of the years are strong contenders for championships.

It's been a happy, sweet decade.

And judging by Spurs' performance this season, this happiness will continue for some time.

After the opening ceremony, the starting players of both sides stood on the pitch.

The Clippers wore blue jerseys tonight, with Gasol Jr., Randolph, Ricky Davis, Curry and Baron Davis.

The Spurs, playing at home, started Duncan, McDyes, Jefferson, Parker and George Hill.

Min Congda sat on the sidelines, looking at the Spurs, the starter, and muttered in his heart.

"Popovich is so confident that he will still start with McDyce and Duncan in the playoffs, so why not use Split? With these two veterans, the risk is a bit big. ”

Min Congda once again became a Spurs fan and expressed his concerns.

It's true that McDyce is more consistent as a veteran.

But McDyce is a power forward, and Duncan has to go to the center position.

The Spurs' interior line is more flexible and lighter, but the thickness and height of the defense are weakened.

"And they actually use two point guards in the backcourt? Isn't that what we're trying to do with the clippers...... Why is this guy Ginobili still absent? A little injury, can't you get over it? ”

In terms of backcourt selection, the Spurs have the same dual point guards as the Clippers.

The Clippers used two point guards, and they were a bit of a disadvantage defensively.

Fortunately, Barang Davis has a strong physique, and the average point guard can't really beat him.

If the Spurs have Ginobili, with Baron Davis' current traverse speed, they may not be able to get the magic knife.

But Ginobili was absent due to injury in this game, but it was not a major injury, just a minor problem.

The Spurs let him not play out of a kind of protection, or confidence in the team.

After all, I'm the first to beat the eighth, and the tricycle has one less wheel, but I still outrun you.

And with two point guards, fighting speed, fighting small lineups, and fighting offense with the Clippers, the Spurs are confident.

Popovich has also read the famous "The Triumph of Space and Ball Possession", and his understanding is that the era of the NBA offense is coming.

How to make the most of the attacking space? In addition to shooting more three-pointers, the more important point is speed.

When you have the speed, when you run, the space on the pitch can become bigger.

As early as 2005, when the Spurs were still pursuing traditional basketball, they had easily eliminated the league's No. 1 Suns team 4:1 in the Western Conference finals.

That year, the handcheck rule was banned, Ginobili exploded, and Popovich smelled the wind of the league's shift from defense to offense.

Six years have passed, and he believes that the time is almost up.

After three years of failure and transformation in 08, 09 and 10, the Spurs finally returned to the first place in the West in the regular season this year, winning 60 wins for a long time.

Although many experts were not optimistic about the Spurs before the game, Popovich and the Spurs players were still very confident.

The only thing that worries Popovich is Duncan's knee injury, which he wears with a very thick knee pad.

Duncan lost weight last summer to adapt to Popovich's tactical overhaul, moving from a low-post behemoth to a semi-blue-collar defensive, playful interior lineman.

It can be said that a superstar like Duncan, so selfless, so team-oriented, is really rare in NBA history.

The match between the two sides began with a jump ball from Duncan and Gasol Jr.

The Spurs took the lead in attack, and McDyce grabbed the ball and handed it to George Hill.

Min Congda sat behind the Clippers' bench and cheered himself up: "This is the first in the West, this is Popovich, this is the Spurs!" Come on, don't pity me because I'm a delicate flower, and attack us! ”

(End of chapter)