Chapter 805: Chapter 274: Su Wan’s Luck—Always Blessed with Powerful Teammates
In the last moments of the "life-or-death battle" between the two teams, the representative of the Knicks, the "Madman," grabbed a crucial rebound, similar to what JR Smith did later. Almost the same time, almost the same situation, the same rebound was captured.
However, before Spree could stabilize the ball, he lost his balance and was about to fall out of bounds when the referee blew the whistle, thinking the "Madman" called a timeout.
Thus, the leading Knicks protected their possession, leaving the Heat Team without time and ultimately losing the game.
After the game, the "Madman" struck a nerve by saying, "How could I have the mind to call a timeout? The referee misheard."
Of course, the referee stubbornly insisted, "We heard it."
Now it’s Miami fans’ turn to feel frustrated!
Unfortunately, after this series, both teams entered a rebuilding phase.
The Knicks’ rebuilding was particularly long, with not much happening for them throughout the 2000s.
It wasn’t until ’10 that they acquired Su Wan, and they finally rose.
Now, their meeting in the semifinals was the first encounter between these two teams since 2000, and 12 years completes a cycle.
Coincidentally...
The grievances between the players of the two teams are considerable.
LeBron and Su Wan’s story doesn’t need to be elaborated.
All of LeBron’s suffering up till now is connected to this man.
As for the old feud between Su Wan, the Heat Team, and Wade, in the Eastern Conference Finals of ’05 and ’06, the Heat Team’s first championship window since the "Mo Ning Era" was shattered by Su Wan.
This time, with Su Wan declaring to break up the "Heat’s Big Three," both sides have the intention of settling both new and old grudges.
Hence, the air was thick with gunpowder.
Soon, the match day officially arrived.
The first game of this series was launched at Madison Square Garden.
In previous years, New Yorkers were already quite rude to the invading enemies in the playoffs, and this time was even more so...
The unified supporter uniforms turned the entire audience into a "red ocean."
At the same time, countless New York fans in attendance held various insulting posters.
Not a single Heat Team player could escape from them.
Especially LeBron...
Various "kneeling pictures" and "crying face pictures" were dug up and printed as posters.
The quantity made it seem like every New Yorker had a copy!
Before the game, D’Antoni pulled Su Wan aside again, earnestly advising, "Buddy, no matter how they provoke, even if they use non-basketball moves, don’t fall for it. Remember, they’re doing it deliberately to anger you!"
Su Wan nodded, reassuring, "Don’t worry!"
D’Antoni wanted to feel at ease, but thinking about some of Su Wan’s past events, it was really hard for him to relax.
This is "Little Mustache" overthinking.
In fact, New York Knicks players held an internal meeting in the locker room that only the players knew about.
The tactics of the Heat Team in last season’s match with the Pacers were still fresh in their minds, and to prevent becoming like last year’s Pacers, they had already planned who would be the "explosive tank."
As soon as the opponent wanted to play tricks, they would immediately rush up to tussle with the opposing core.
Artest was naturally the "leader" of this group.
Only then did Su Wan realize that the current lineup of New York Knicks was too shy; there weren’t enough "tough guys!"
He needed to seriously consider bringing in some "enforcers" to the team this summer.
So that when faced with "shameless scoundrels" like Miami, they wouldn’t lack bargaining power for mutual destruction!
The live screen then showed the starting lineups for both sides.
There were no changes from the regular season.
Both sides’ best starting lineups were already "open cards."
Afterward, the referee’s whistle blew, marking the official start of the game.
Each Heat Team member wore expressions that made it seem like they were going to war.
Alright, given the current atmosphere, it was no different from going to war.
Moreover, from the moment they entered the arena, they heard many foul words, enough to make their whole bodies enveloped in a layer of anger.
Turn anger into motivation!
In the jump ball segment, the first attack belonged to the New York Knicks.
Curry passed the ball to Dior, who charged from the side.
At the top of the arc with possession, the "French Magician" was already very accustomed to this position.
Su Wan ran into an open position, and the ball immediately came into his hands.
Wade lunged fiercely, clearly aiming to prevent Su Wan from shooting immediately upon receiving the ball.
Barkley’s first reaction upon seeing Wade’s lunge was disappointment.
Not disappointment in Wade, but in... that "Death’s Eye" who showed a determined look in the first round of the series.
He wanted to ask LeBron a question:
You’ve been so resolute, why don’t you dare to defend Su Wan!
In his view, if LeBron truly adopted a decisive attitude to play this series, he should start on the defensive end.
After all, this is an area that most reflects a player’s psychology.
It could be said Barkley didn’t quite understand LeBron. If at this moment he shared his thoughts with Shaquille O’Neal, O’Neal would simply say, "Didn’t I already say? In LeBron’s mind, wanting to win has no connection to being aggressive on defense!"
To him, defense is not part of his job!
He would at most grit his teeth and chase down defenders for certain plays. But to keep defending throughout, focusing all energy on defense, he had only five words: