The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball-Chapter 492 - 247 "They Should Let God Guard Han"_2

Hansen’s words elicited a wave of laughter from the audience, and the atmosphere at the press conference lightened considerably at that moment.

The day after the end of the NBA Finals Game 1, TNT’s latest show was a hit with high audience engagement.

After finishing his practice, Hansen also sat at home and watched the episode.

O’Neal really did bring a big box into the studio.

Watching this scene, Hansen always felt that this guy was up to some mischief.

After all, compared to the past two years’ performances, making a bet of just one million US dollars seemed a bit lackluster for the show.

Everything seemed normal at first as O’Neal opened the box and took out stack after stack of dollars.

It reminded Hansen of how some NBA players like to show off their money, something he never quite understood.

"Do not flaunt wealth," as the saying goes; showing off your riches only invites envy and ill-will, and does no good.

Barkley happily accepted the US Dollars handed over by O’Neal, but as he picked them up, the show’s effect kicked in.

Barkley seemed to laugh out of exasperation, and began hurling stacks of the money at O’Neal, creating a bit of chaos at the scene.

It wasn’t until the "uninformed" host picked up one of the stacks and the camera zoomed in that viewers saw the reason.

Hansen watched and laughed too.

Normally, US Dollar bills feature Benjamin Franklin, the drafter of the "Declaration of Independence."

But now, they clearly bore the likeness of O’Neal Franklin!

It wasn’t just O’Neal’s face superimposed; it was merged into Franklin’s face, a feat that could rival AI replacement technology.

And since it was O’Neal’s face on the currency, you could even call it "Shark bucks."

TNT’s show was fully entertaining, and it also continued to heighten the fans’ interest in the Finals.

The second game of the Finals continued in Memphis.

After losing Game 1, the media were discussing whether the Heat Team would make lineup adjustments.

Just like in last year’s Finals, the Heat could replace Chalmers with Ray Allen in the starting lineup to increase their offensive capabilities.

However, after the opening ceremony, Coach Spoelstra’s answer was "no," and he stayed with the regular starting lineup.

But once the game actually started, the Heat team showed their defensive strategy adjustments.

Spoelstra was using Durant to guard Hansen directly. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

This seemed a bit humorous, considering even Wade couldn’t stop the current Hansen, so how could Durant be expected to?

However, it turned out that Spoelstra’s move was quite effective.

Or rather, he was quick to learn, adopting Popovich’s defensive strategy from the Western Conference Finals.

It didn’t matter so much who was guarding Hansen, but the help defense was crucial.

Wade’s defensive abilities might have declined, but his help defense was still among the league’s best.

With his bigger size compared to Leonard, Hansen found it was not easy to break Durant’s defense in a short amount of time.

Thanks to such defense, by halftime, the Heat led the Grizzlies 50 to 46.

Hansen only scored 16 points in the first half, a noticeable drop from the previous game.

By the third quarter, the Grizzlies adjusted their offensive strategy, starting to set up more off-ball receiving tactics for Hansen.

It goes without saying that all the hardships one encounters in life are indeed valuable treasures.

The Grizzlies had not only evolved their condition throughout the playoffs but had also been continuously learning and improving.

The Warriors had previously managed to defeat the Grizzlies by increasing tactics for Curry, which the Grizzlies’ coaching staff took note of.

In Hansen’s first off-ball play, he used a backdoor cut to shake off Durant.

While Durant did possess speed uncommon for someone 2.08 meters tall, considering his size, his pace was understandably slower if defined by the standards required for a guard.

When Hansen cut inside, Little Gasol passively sent an alley-oop from the free-throw line.

The pass was a bit high.

Hansen leaped, his head almost level with the rim, and grabbed the ball in midair with his right hand, slamming it through the hoop.

This highly visual moment re-ignited the FedEx Forum.

And this was still only the beginning.

With the help of more tactics, Hansen fully demonstrated his scoring ability without the ball.

Whether it was cutting to the basket, running back, setting screens, or handoffs.

Let’s not forget that when he debuted with the Cavaliers, playing off the ball was his main thing.

Or it could be said that in this quarter, Hansen fully showcased the changes he underwent over the year.

Running faster, shooting more quickly, jumping higher, Hansen’s pace was the fastest on the court. This allowed him to find the best opportunities while moving and to seize those opportunities better.

Many fans, due to their age, had never seen Jordan play, but at this moment, they felt Jordan must have played just like how Hansen was playing right now.

Relying on his off-ball play to score 18 points in a single quarter, Hansen led the Grizzlies to not only overcome the score but also take the lead over the Heat with a score of 81 to 74 by the end of the third quarter.

Hansen’s performance also drew Barkley at the commentary desk to once again express his admiration, "Perhaps Miami people should let God guard Han!"

Can Miami people invite God?

The answer is obvious.

The Heat performed excellently in the final quarter, playing a tied quarter with the Grizzlies at 34 points each.

However, this also meant that they were not able to close the gap, ultimately losing with a score of 108 to 115.

Hansen scored another 42 points, achieving the feat of consecutive 40+ points in the finals.

No one felt that Barkley’s commentary during the game was an exaggeration because only a handful of people had ever achieved this.

Rick Barry from the 1966-1967 season, O’Neal from the 1999-2000 season, Jerry West who did it twice in the 1964-1965 and 1968-1969 seasons, and Jordan who scored 40+ points consecutively in four games during the 1992-1993 season.

Among these players, only West did not win the championship in that season.

In fact, after Han achieved this, what the fans were most concerned about was whether Han would continue to score 40 points in the next game.

Of course, that was what the fans were concerned about; the media had their faces swollen after the end of Game 2.

Because the Heat, whom they had favored, were already down 0-2, with their chances of winning the championship plummeting.

At this point, you might even think they had stolen Barkley’s curse and started wildly jinxing.

Two days later, the finals moved to Miami to continue.

If the Grizzlies could win one of the two away games, they would basically have the championship in the bag.

And if they managed to win both, they could lift the trophy early in Miami.

By Game 3, the Heat had their backs against the wall.

It was in this game that Spoelstra finally made a roster adjustment.

Ray Allen was put into the starting lineup just like he was in last season’s finals, but the difference was, he replaced Perkins, not Chalmers.

With the Grizzlies having their twin towers on the inside, especially with Durant’s performance as a power forward being worse than James’s, Spoelstra’s move was tantamount to suicide.

Yet this move brought an unexpected result.

Or rather, Spoelstra continued to demonstrate his ability to learn; he continued to draw from the experience of the previous Warriors games against the Grizzlies.

On the defensive side, guard the inside if possible, and if not, just let it be easy points.

But on the offensive side, they continuously moved to create three-point opportunities.

Although the Heat couldn’t play the ultimate team basketball like the Spurs did, most of their team had been playing together for four years.

As for Durant, you make him guard Hansen—you’re making it tough for him, but if you let him loose to shoot from the outside, that’s when he’s most comfortable, with the 45° slasher being just a routine play for him.

Ultimately, led by Durant scoring his first 40+ in the finals with 43 points, the Heat defeated the Grizzlies 126-120, bringing the series score to 2-1.

In terms of results, Spoelstra’s adjustment for this game could be considered coach of the year material.

Because he caught the Grizzlies’ biggest weakness: their three-point defense.

And the reason why the Heat, despite being in worse form than the Grizzlies, could still win was that they had better offensive firepower than the Warriors.

It’s just like in Game 2 where they were behind for three quarters, yet they were still able to tie with the Grizzlies in the fourth.

Basketball can also, in a sense, be a philosophical problem.

Defense wins championships, but the team that scores more points wins the game.