No.1 in basketball scoring
Chapter 473 - 210. Best lineup!_2

Yang Jing: "Oh, I think you can win. Do you think the Chicago Bulls have any chance of making a comeback?"

Zhang Yang: "The possibility is very low. Winning three games in a row is difficult even with a strength advantage. When we played the Knight team, if I, Raymond, and Emeka didn’t step up to score after the Knight’s team hit their climax, we could have lost too. The Bulls’ strength is a bit weaker than the Pistons’, and Billups and Hamilton are both in their prime, at their most mature and most powerful. Hinrich can wrestle with those two, but Deng and Gordon can’t."

Yang Jing: "That’s a pity. If the Bulls made a comeback, our Eastern Conference Finals would be easier."

Zhang Yang: "Actually, I’d like to face the Pistons to get revenge for last year. But if we could play against the Bulls, that’d be fine too. Their talent-laden lineup may not be able to stay together next season."

Yang Jing: "Are they going to disband? Is it because of salary issues?"

"Ah?" Zhang Yang had casually mentioned something that he remembered would happen, not expecting his mother to pick up on it.

Yang Jing: "Big Ben signed a five-year big contract, and after defeating the defending champion Miami Heat in the first round, Hinrich got a five-year $48 million contract, Nocioni got a three-year $24 million contract. Deng and Gordon are from the ’04 draft, and next season is their contract year. They also have Sweetney, Sefolosha and other potential stocks... Can they afford to keep so many talents? I saw the news that the Bulls want to exchange young players for superstars. Ray Allen, Yao Ming, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett... they are all on the predicted list."

Zhang Yang: "Mom, when did you become so knowledgeable about these things?"

Yang Jing: "This is your job, of course, I have to pay attention. I understand more after watching the news a lot."

Zhang Yang: "Oh..."

The two chatted idly for a while, and then the broadcast of the second game began—the Spurs versus the Suns in Game 4.

The Spurs currently led 2-1. After seizing the home-court advantage in Game 1, the Spurs tried to replicate their Game 1 strategy in Game 2 but got hammered by Gentry.

D’Antoni let Gentry take over coaching, wielding the lineup that they had used in the regular season against the Bobcats—Nash, Raja Bell, Marion, Kurt Thomas, Diaw as starters, and Barbosa and Stoudemire scoring in bursts during the rotation phase.

The Suns’ lineup couldn’t defend Duncan, who shot 20 for 12 and scored 29 points, continuing to dominate the Suns’ frontcourt.

But Ginobili was held to 3 out of 9 shots for only 6 points by Raja Bell, and Parker struggled against Diaw’s defense, with Marion or Kurt Thomas helping out, he shot only 5 out of 14 and scored just 13 points.

Nash had 20 points and 16 assists, Stoudemire scored 27 points, Barbosa 18 points, and the Suns crushed the Spurs 101 to 85 with their defense.

When the Spurs returned home to play the Suns in Game 3, they were still pressed on the defensive.

By the end of the third quarter, the Spurs were trailing the Suns by 7 points, 75 to 82, and Popovich was getting desperate.

However, in the final quarter, Ginobili, who had made only 4 of his 12 shots in the first three quarters, went 7 for 8 and scored 15 points, leading the Spurs to score 33 points in a single quarter.

The Suns couldn’t counter without their defense. Their starting lineup struggled in a set offense, and without Barbosa and the "Little Overlord" to power a fast break, they managed only 19 points in the last quarter. The Spurs turned the tables in the final quarter, holding onto their reclaimed home-court advantage with a 108 to 101 victory.

Zhang Yang remembered that the Suns were indeed at an advantage in strength in this round of the series, but before reading the reports and watching the live broadcast, he hadn’t realized that the Suns had gained their advantage through defense.

Tonight, the Suns didn’t change their game plan after being overturned in Game 3, D’Antoni firmly carried out Gentry’s tactical strategy, seeking an alternative offensive and defensive synergy.

This year’s Suns were really too much for Popovich, he couldn’t find a way to counter them and could only rely on his three main players.

Unfortunately, tonight Ginobili couldn’t continue his high scoring, only making 3 out of 14 shots for a total of 10 points.

With 24 seconds left, the Suns were leading the Spurs by 9 points, 104 to 95, and they still had possession. Just after Ginobili hit his 11th brick of the night, the Suns secured their win.

Just as the commentator was saying that the Suns might "gentlemanly sweep" the Spurs this year, Robert Horry suddenly rushed at Nash, who was receiving and advancing the ball. Nash, thinking it was a steal attempt, protected the ball with his side... and was knocked flying by Horry, who used a football tackle move. Nash slammed down onto the scorer’s table.

Stoudemire, Diaw, Bell, Kurt Thomas, and a group of players rushed up, and even Nash, with his nose bleeding, got up and charged in... but no conflict ensued. Horry hid in the crowd; the Spurs player wearing number 21 got hit but didn’t fight back, even spreading his arms to increase the area he was taking hits in.

After the referees separated the two teams and handed out penalties, Horry, Stoudemire, and Diaw were ejected, while Kurt Thomas, Bell, and Nash received technical fouls.

Zhang Yang let out an "uh-oh" and said, "We were reminded to be careful of the Son of the Wind... but it’s true, there’s talk of a thief every day but not a guard. Bowen’s dirty plays are easier to avoid, but Horry’s actions, which are aimed at fighting, are hard to predict."

Yang Jing: "Why did the Spurs, who started the scuffle, only get one person penalized, whereas the Suns ended up with five people penalized?"

Zhang Yang: "Duncan kept his teammates behind him, taking hits rather than letting them fight back. According to the rules, it’s actually the Suns’ side that should receive more penalties."