Before Game 3, Popovich suddenly fell silent as he reviewed the Game 1 and 2 footage with his Spurs staff. Spurs assistant coach Budenholzer used a specific phrase to describe Zack's performance: explosive creativity.
In the first two games, looking solely at the box score, Zack had only accumulated 16 assists. In some nights of this era, that was even Steve Nash's stat line for a single game.
"He's impacting our defense every possession, whether it's passing, screening, or handing off to teammates. These on-court performances, which can't be captured in statistics, ultimately became the key for the Warriors to break down our zone defense. If we can't consistently use tougher defense to stifle his performance, then in this series, we'll just have to find a way to increase our three-point production to match the Warriors' perimeter firepower."
While meticulously observing Zack's on-court details through the video, there was a moment when Popovich even believed Zack completely dominated the first two games. Yes, truly dominated. Although objective factors like the referees not allowing the Spurs to play overly physical contributed to this dominance, Zack's offensive impact on the Warriors on the court still deeply shook Popovich and his staff. A player like this shouldn't exist in this era, it was almost like he was a cheat code.
In the NBA, there were certainly big men who were good at facilitating and breaking down zone defenses, but none of them could compare to Zack. Zack's shooting range extended beyond the three-point line, which meant that when the Warriors used him as the core to break down the zone, the Spurs' defense had to collectively shift forward. But because he only needed three big steps to attack the basket from the three-point line, once the Spurs' defense collectively shifted forward, they would inevitably face another contradictory problem: Who would guard the basket that would directly face Zack's onslaught?
"His court vision is simply too amazing, which allows him to easily create scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates in the game," Budenholzer concluded after several hours of review. "Under the current defensive intensity, no NBA team can limit him, and what's terrifying is that every one of his teammates benefits from his excellent performance."
This was a desperate review. Because this review meant that the Spurs, who could limit opponents' average three-point attempts to under 11 in the regular season, were currently unable to limit the Warriors' perimeter shooting through their defense.
Fortunately, Popovich's stubbornness successfully alleviated the despair that had begun to permeate the entire meeting room. "Let's first look at some footage of the Warriors' losses. After all, in those winning games, which superstar isn't Michael Jordan?"
The Spurs' staff felt that Popovich made a lot of sense. So, next, after spending several more hours reviewing the Warriors' regular season losses, the weaknesses that the Spurs' think tank had not discovered before the Western Conference Semifinals began, now appeared clearly and distinctly before everyone.
Was Zack a perfect player? Of course not. Were the Warriors a team without weaknesses? How could that be? After studying, the Spurs' staff found that Zack indeed possessed explosive creativity, but he couldn't exert his explosive creativity on the team every night.
"Our strategy was wrong from the start," Popovich said, like a seasoned coach finally identifying the real problem.
Budenholzer nodded. "It's not too late to find out now. This series has just begun."
Finally, Popovich couldn't help but complain, "It's all David Stern's fault. If he hadn't been so meticulously targeting us, how would we be down 0-2?"
The Spurs had found the answers they wanted. Now, it was the defending champions' turn to fight back.
Two days later, Oracle Arena. Amidst the breathtaking golden tide, the Spurs won Game 3 with a score of 114 to 105. To match the Warriors' perimeter firepower, the Spurs attempted a total of 25 three-pointers in this game, making 14 of them. Duncan, who scored 31 points, 20 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks for the Spurs in Game 2, only had 17 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks in this game. Parker scored 28 points, 7 assists, and 3 rebounds for the Spurs, becoming the hero of the Spurs' victory on this night.
A day later, still at Oracle Arena. The Spurs once again extinguished the golden tide, winning Game 4 with a score of 110 to 102. In this game, the Spurs attempted a total of 27 three-pointers, and although they only made 10 of them, the increased three-point attempts indeed created more open offensive space for Ginobili and Parker. Duncan still had a mediocre performance this game, totaling only 16 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block.
After Game 4, in an interview, a completely relieved Popovich said, "This is the charm of basketball. I thought we were almost out, but now, we're back on the same starting line as the Warriors."
According to the 2-2-1-1-1 format of the Western Conference Semifinals, the Warriors, who had lost two straight home games to the Spurs, would now return to San Antonio with the series tied 2-2.
From the joy of leading 2-0 to the shock of the Spurs tying it at 2-2, Bay Area fans continued to silently support this team. Their performance in these two games was not bad; even the Spurs players admitted that the madness of Oracle Arena far exceeded their imagination. But it was an undeniable fact that the Warriors lost two straight games after returning home. After adjusting in the first two games, the Spurs really seemed to have found a way to defeat the Warriors.
In Game 3, the Spurs maintained their starting lineup of Duncan, Horry, Bowen, Finley, and Parker. In the opening stages, through plays designed for Bowen, Horry, and Finley, the Spurs first opened up the game with three-pointers. Parker, who was gradually entering his prime at this time, smoothly took over the rest of the first quarter. Davis had a size advantage over Parker, but facing Parker's unpredictable drives, he could only stop him with tactical fouls. In the first quarter, the Spurs no longer sought the "DP" pick-and-roll between Duncan and Parker but instead used the offensive space provided by teammates to create a large number of isolation opportunities for Parker. This was the Spurs' first change in Game 3.
Zack and Brown couldn't rotate over on every possession. And what's more, Parker's isolations also included a large number of mid-range jump shots.
Then, on the defensive end, the Spurs also changed their strategy from the first two games, no longer having Duncan avoid the matchup with Zack but instead directly sending Duncan to guard Zack one-on-one. This was the main reason for Duncan's significant decline in statistics in Game 3 and 4. Because he dedicated almost all of his energy to Zack.
"The fundamental reason why the Warriors were able to tear apart our defense in the first two games was that we failed to effectively cut off the connection between their other players and the Messiah." The Spurs adjusted their defensive strategy, which had always focused on testing other players in the first two games, and sent Duncan to play man-to-man defense on Zack. Unless necessary, the rest of the Spurs players would not provide any help to Duncan.
In the NBA, this is a very scary thing. Because it means that the Spurs would objectively create the fact that Zack "dominated" the legendary power forward Duncan in their matchup. This has nothing to do with Zack's offensive ability and Duncan's defensive ability. Simply put, although statistically, the box scores would show that Zack "dominated" Duncan, in the actual game, Duncan would not only be pulled high by Zack and relentlessly attacked with an offensive style that was difficult for traditional big men to defend, but Duncan would also have to face Zack's offense, launched in conjunction with his teammates, almost entirely by himself most of the time. This is terrifying. If you switched the tactics of both sides, Duncan could still "dominate" Zack, who would be left unprotected on the court.
In fact, when explaining this game plan to Duncan before the game, Popovich and Budenholzer were a little apprehensive. Because if the Spurs couldn't be the ultimate winner of this series, that would mean the official end of the Tim Duncan era! After the game, reporters and fans wouldn't care how much Duncan sacrificed for the Spurs in the game; they would only care that Zack had "conquered" the long river of Tim Duncan's career, and that Zack, while "dominating" Duncan in their matchup, had also led the Warriors to win this series!
"No problem, leave him to me. I've wanted to play against him for a long time." As a seasoned veteran, as the person who understood Zack best in the league today, how could Duncan not know what it would be like to face the opponent's superstar power forward alone in a five-on-five basketball game without the protection of his own teammates? But Duncan accepted the Spurs coaching staff's arrangement almost without hesitation. Because he was Tim Duncan.
In Game 3 and Game 4, Zack scored 38 and 40 points respectively. At Oracle Arena, witnessed by Bay Area fans, even Charles Barkley said during the commentary, "The crown has changed hands! The Warriors' Messiah has proven with his back-to-back performances that he is the premier power forward in the league today!"
Had the crown really changed hands, Charles Barkley, who had never touched a championship? At least, Zack didn't think so.
On the court, looking at Duncan's resolute eyes, Zack felt fear for the first time in his life. Yes, fear. Although he could always find ways to put that damn ball in the basket, the next possession, Duncan would appear in front of him with full concentration. He didn't care about a single statistic. His eyes were only on Zack. He wanted to tie Zack down as much as possible. He wanted Zack to lose that explosive creativity that the Spurs feared, due to excessive physical exertion in this one-on-one battle.
Tim Duncan had wagered all his honors, all his reputation, and even his historical standing after retirement in this series! He was only for one thing. He wanted to win! He had to win! He must win!
In Game 4, the moment the Spurs captured Oracle Arena, Duncan uncharacteristically roared towards the arena's dome! On the court, he had been passively taking hits for two consecutive nights, feeling stifled and wronged. But so what? The winners of Game 3 and Game 4 were the Spurs! When the Warriors lost Zack's explosive creativity, when the connection between the Warriors' other players and him was cut off, when the Warriors could no longer replicate the smooth shooting they had in the first two games, the San Antonio Spurs, who had arrived in Oakland down 0-2, successfully returned to the Alamo City with the series tied 2-2!
Now, everything was back to square one. The real "King of the Hill" battle was coming.
In Game 4, Mike Montgomery and the Warriors coaching staff, who had already made tactical adjustments to counter the Spurs' Game 3 changes, could only be thankful that the resilient Angelenos had successfully delayed the Spurs in the first round of the playoffs.
Before Game 5, David Stern, with the referee crew led by Bennett Salvatore, clearly told the world: the NBA would not interfere with this heavyweight "King of the Hill" battle. The Spurs and Warriors would determine the winner who could change the momentum of this Western Conference Semifinals through a fair and just duel. Warriors fans, who had just days ago begun to fantasize about the Warriors advancing to the Western Conference Finals, along with Spurs fans, who had once worried about their team being eliminated in the Western Conference Semifinals, would welcome this annual blockbuster about to unfold at the AT&T Center with the same emotions.
"After the Spurs dramatically tied the semifinals at 2-2, they will have home-court advantage in the upcoming Game 5. But while focusing on the Warriors vs. Spurs marquee matchup, we should also care that the Seattle SuperSonics, widely sympathized with, have secured the first overall pick in this year's draft lottery as desired." – ESPN News Flash
In the days of intense battle between the Spurs and Warriors, the SuperSonics winning the lottery pick didn't even manage to steal the spotlight from the Spurs and Warriors. Because, just as Zack remembered, 2006 was a draft class widely considered weak beforehand. However, this widely recognized weak draft class took an unexpected turn in the following days after the SuperSonics won the lottery pick.
Under the operation of Jeff Schwartz, Andrea Bargnani's excellent pre-draft workouts successfully impressed many NBA teams. Especially in Charlotte, he received high praise from the "God of Basketball," Michael Jordan. "This is a kid who dared to tell me to my face, 'I'm definitely going to dominate you.' He possesses a great character just like Zack. I really approve of his workout performance; his shooting is particularly impressive to me."
If this were a few years later, receiving such comments from Jordan... Bargnani might have been questioned and even lost the first overall pick because of it. But unfortunately, at the current point in time, Jordan was the same Jordan who had already identified Zack as the new ruler of the league before Zack even entered the league. And even Kwame Brown, as his performance with the Warriors got better and better, more and more people now believed that it wasn't Jordan's eye for talent that was bad back then, but rather that the Wizards and Jordan's development method for him was too rough.
So, through a series of coincidences, Andrea Bargnani, the handsome young man born in Rome, was successfully marketed by Jeff Schwartz to a height he himself couldn't have imagined. Since Jordan said his personality was like Zack, and scouts also said he was a less athletic version of Zack... then even if he had many shortcomings, did those shortcomings still matter?
"Great! The Rockets have agreed in principle to trade with us on draft night." That day, when SuperSonics owner Howard Schultz learned that the Rockets were willing to trade Yao Ming around the SuperSonics' first overall pick, he was undoubtedly pleased and delighted. He was so secretly thrilled that he almost stumbled and knocked out his front teeth from over-excitement, like a child who just got a new toy.
"What else do the Rockets want besides the first overall pick?"
"They also want Rashard Lewis."
"That's too much. Rashard is an All-Star forward who averages over 20 points per game. We can't give them the first overall pick and just hand them an All-Star forward for free."
"Then the Rockets will likely ask for a lot more in other areas."
"Give it to them, give it all to them! Except for Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, whoever they ask for, we'll send that player to them."
Since even Stern, his partner, only knew the first half of Schultz's grand plan, Schultz didn't explicitly tell the SuperSonics management that day why he absolutely had to keep Lewis.
"Andrea Bargnani's agent really helped us out a lot!"
He really did help a lot. Because as the Rockets' interest in Bargnani continued to grow, in this "first overall pick for first overall pick" trade, Lewis was just a bargaining chip for them to negotiate with the SuperSonics.
At this time, the SuperSonics roster also had good players such as Luke Ridnour, Vladimir Radmanović, Mickael Gelabale, and Reggie Evans. As a team that was a Western Conference contender the year before (referring to the SuperSonics), the Rockets couldn't possibly be indifferent to the SuperSonics' players who had already fully proven themselves. And in this trade, the Rockets also wanted more draft picks. After all, trading Yao Ming meant that before Bargnani grew up, they would have to temporarily look further ahead.
As for why Schultz had to keep Lewis? Of course, it was because in this era of uninflated prices, to acquire that superstar power forward from Minnesota, the SuperSonics had to "sacrifice" an All-Star forward. Compared to Al Jefferson, whose career still needed growth and polishing before his trade in Zack's previous life, the already aging Theo Ratliff, the rookie Gerald Green who averaged only 5.2 points and proved nothing but his vertical leap, and the similarly unproven Ryan Gomes and Sebastian Telfair... Without the benefit of foresight, and with Kevin Garnett determined to leave, Rashard Lewis was undeniably more attractive and demonstrated more sincerity than the aforementioned players. Because Lewis was only 27 years old at this time. He was a Western Conference All-Star forward in his prime who had proven himself in the playoffs.
Schultz was now just waiting to complete the trade with the Rockets on draft night, and then he would immediately have the SuperSonics management send the Timberwolves a trade proposal centered around Lewis, where the Timberwolves could pick anyone from the SuperSonics except Ray Allen. And this was the second half of his grand plan. The second half that even Stern didn't know.
"We'll let you have it for now, but the future will definitely belong to Seattle."
The storm of history had already spread to every corner of the NBA with Zack's emergence. And with his performance, it would only grow stronger, until the end of the world.
On the evening of the 20th. The Warriors, led by Zack, returned to the AT&T Center. After the baptism of Game 3 and 4, the Warriors had not lost confidence in defeating the Spurs despite losing two straight games. The Spurs found the answers they wanted after losing the first two games. The Warriors also found the truth they had been desperately seeking through these two losses.
At center court, Salvatore walked to the middle with the ball. Tonight, the Warriors changed their starting lineup, so Zack and Duncan would jump for the ball. Troy Murphy, the other half of the "Golden State Waste Duo," would start in place of Kwame Brown.
When it came to tactical reserves, Mike Montgomery and the Warriors coaching staff knew they were no match for the Spurs. So they simply and crudely increased the Warriors' offensive firepower in the starting lineup. Five Warriors players, all with three-point range, would play together. Chris Mullin described the Warriors' starting lineup before the game: "This is a starting lineup only Old Don (Nelson) would dare to field."
To this, Montgomery joked, "Since 'Operation Overlord' decades ago could win by suppressing firepower, now, our 'Operation Overlord' can only place its hope on suppressing firepower."
Mullin chuckled, "Tonight is our 'D-Day,' the day that will decide our fate!"
AT&T Center. After the jump ball, Murphy fired the Warriors' first shot in San Antonio. The horse-faced stretch big, the moment he received a pass from Zack's drive-and-kick, immediately pulled the trigger with his left hand.
Swish!
Murphy's three-pointer hit, giving the Warriors the early lead. This three-pointer was a signal. It indicated that the Warriors would not sit idly by.
On the Spurs bench, Popovich gritted his teeth. "How do they have so many shooters?!"
Beside him, Budenholzer gave a wry smile. "In fact, among their regular rotation players, only Kwame Brown and that Latvian center don't have three-point range."
The three-point line, that great invention, would once again show its charm to the world tonight. Because a three... it really is one more point than a two.
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