Champion Creed
Chapter 668 - 668 233 You are very strong but I want to go downstairs for some water Please vote with your monthly ticket!_2

668: 233: You are very strong, but I want to go downstairs for some water (Please vote with your monthly ticket!)_2 668: 233: You are very strong, but I want to go downstairs for some water (Please vote with your monthly ticket!)_2 During this period, Popovich rejected fast-paced basketball because fast pacing could lead to turnovers, which would increase the unpredictability of the game.

A coach’s responsibility is to make the game controllable, so he firmly slowed down the pace, sticking only to solid half-court offense and defense.

Looking at Popovich’s coaching style now, it’s hard to imagine that the Spurs would later become a team that relied on a fast-paced counterattack and three-point shooting.

The most valuable quality about Duncan was that he could adapt to any style of play.

He could defeat James in the tedious slowdown and physical struggle, and also overcome him in the era of fast pacing.

Duncan positioned himself under the basket; this time, he blocked Big Ben early and steadily received the ball.

But the moment he got the ball, Marion double-teamed him.

With Big Ben and Marion’s four long arms waving in front of ‘The Stone Buddha’, Duncan had no room to shoot.

He could only pass the ball to David Robinson at mid-range.

Yet, just as the basketball left his hands, Duncan saw Pierce rush out to intercept the ball!

“Paul Pierce is now a dangerous defender!” Steve Jones, who had been following Pierce’s games since the preseason, commented.

He could claim that Paul Pierce’s defense had transformed.

After the steal, Pierce immediately threw the ball to Roger.

Roger executed a slam dunk on the counterattack, scoring amidst the boos of the Spurs fans.

Pierce suddenly felt a sense of accomplishment.

He had successfully filled in and made the steal on defense, holding the fort for his team!

I’m no longer a kid who needs others to have my back!

I’m a man myself!

4 to 0, the Hawks were toying with the defending champions.

In fact, even a layman knew that the best way for the Spurs to play against the Hawks was to give the ball to their inside players.

The Spurs had a size advantage, and the size advantage was more significant the deeper it went.

The problem was, under the extreme mobility of the Hawks, the Spurs found it difficult to feed the ball to Duncan in the low post.

As soon as Duncan crossed half court, Big Ben, who was always enthusiastic on defense, would use body contact to limit Duncan’s ability to receive the ball.

Many couples swear to always be together, but few can put it into practice like Big Ben did.

From the start of the game to now, he truly always stuck with Duncan.

Nevertheless, Duncan got to the low post and secured his position, ready to make a demand.

But just as Avery Johnson tossed the ball in, Marion quickly moved away from David Robinson’s side and into the paint to contest with Duncan.

Duncan jumped and tipped the ball with his fingertips, preventing Marion from making an outright steal.

Yet the basketball was directly knocked out of the baseline; Duncan did not handle the ball well, and the Hawks regained possession!

“Tim, Tim, the future doesn’t belong to you.

You’re just a kid who stole a couple of cookies while I was asleep,” Duncan heard the taunts directed at him just as he made the turnover.

“That’s true, but no one guarantees you’ll wake up this season,” Duncan replied.

The game continued, and the Spurs had to resort to double-teaming on defense.

Terry Porter came up to double-team Roger, but Roger was quick to pass the ball to Pierce.

Terry Porter immediately went back to guard, but Pierce chose to drive straight into the paint, making it difficult for Porter, who had committed to a full-out closeout, to adjust and chase.

Pierce successfully broke into the paint and, facing the block from David Robinson, he bore the contact in the air and steadily finished the basket!

Each of his slashes was expressing protest with a tearing pain, including the two cuts on his obliques.

But his expression was unchanged.

In his view, compared to nearly losing his life to the 13 stabs, the physical tussles on the court and the pain during bathroom breaks were nothing at all.

The stabbing incident was a career-defining moment for Pierce.

It was this event that changed Pierce’s entire demeanor in games.

A tougher and more mature Paul Pierce was born a year early in this history.

6 to 0, the defending champion’s start was incredibly ugly.

In the following offensive play, Terry Porter received the ball on the left side outside the three-point line and immediately raised it over his head, attempting to try for a three-pointer.

But Porter actually just made a fake shot motion.

Knowing that Pierce liked to take risks on defense, he planned to deceive Pierce and then seize the opportunity to drive past him.

However, Pierce just stretched out his arms steadily in front of Porter, unmoved.

Terry Porter was left in an awkward position, as he didn’t have much ability to play one-on-one.

If Pierce didn’t fall for it, he really didn’t have much of a way to handle the ball.

As Terry Porter was considering his next move, Pierce pressed closer, initiating physical contact and not forgetting to verbally insult his opponent.

“Old man, you can’t even hold onto the ball!”

Though Pierce applied fierce pressure, he never tried to go for the steal from start to finish.

He was not greedy for defensive stats; he simply wanted to make the opponent uncomfortable.

Pierce might never become a top defender with both aggression and stability like Pippen, but at least now he would not make simple mistakes on defense.

Under the pressure, Terry Porter hurriedly passed the ball to the Little General, and then Pippen provided the first steal of the season!

“God, when facing this Atlanta Hawks team, you’d better be careful with every pass; their ability to disrupt the opponent’s passing is too strong!”

No sooner had Steve Jones finished speaking than Pippen scored with a fast-break dunk.