And Roger never makes a mistake when choosing between "taking the shot himself" and "passing to a teammate".
You basically never see him passing when he should attack, or attacking when he should pass.
Al Michaels comnted: "There are many players in this league with good careers, but they don’t know how to choose their shots, don’t know what’s happening on the court, don’t know what’s needed. Roger is that special player, with a very keen sense. He knows everything on the court and the key to victory. He has the ability to win the ga in various ways. Defense, rebounds, a shot, or a pass, God, he’s perfect!"
Actually, experienced players are like this, just as LeBron Jas at 40 can effortlessly pass the ball away and let his teammate catch it right as the ti runs out without wasting a second, never giving them a chance to pass it back.
This is the power of experience.
At halfti, Popovich faced a difficult choice.
He could either remove the twin towers and play a small lineup with the Warriors for better defensive flexibility.
Or continue to focus on the inside, to see whether Roger kills the ga or the Spurs kill it in the low post.
Popovich chose the latter.
Because the Spurs now don’t have a good option at the four position. Robert Horry? His help defense is not as swift as it was ten years ago.
Pushing Bruce Bowen to the four, having Ginobili start? That would turn the team’s periter defense into a disaster.
Bruce Bowen at the three can at least sowhat limit Brandon Roy. If you push him to the four, Roy would definitely punish the Spurs. Popovich really admires Roy, he likes mature, steady, technically skilled players, so he could never underestimate that second-year guard.
So in the third quarter, the situation remained unchanged.
Paul Gasol and Duncan showed dominance in the low post, while Roger and the shooters scored aggressively.
Both teams embodied the spirit of "you play your ga, I’ll play mine".
However, the rules of this era are no longer the version where low post dominators control the ga.
In the fourth quarter, with Spoelstra tightening up the defense, it beca increasingly difficult for Paul Gasol to receive the ball down low.
The sa was true when Duncan tried to go low post.
Finally, Popovich found that the Spurs’ offense still needed Gasol or Duncan to screen for Parker or Ginobili.
This ant they surrendered their most advantageous offensive thod.
In a desperate mont, Ginobili nearly saved the team with 8 consecutive points in the last five minutes of the fourth quarter, narrowing the point difference to just six at one ti.
But Roger used a mid-range turnaround jump shot and a drifting bank shot to expand the lead back to double digits, scoring his 45th point of the ga—Paul Gasol only realized how crazy Roger’s stats were by looking up at the big screen.
Because Roger’s performance didn’t seem "amazing". It felt just about the sa as usual, maybe a 40-point ga is indeed just a routine performance for him.
After all, this guy continued to win scoring titles, from 1996 all the way to 2008.
Ginobili’s bursts often rely on the Spurs’ outstanding defense; he can score so difficult baskets, then the Spurs could choke the opponents through defense and execute a coback.
But facing the Warriors, Roger is even better at scoring difficult baskets. When Roger successfully responded to Ginobili, the Spurs’ counter-attack montum was temporarily subdued.
The Warriors regained a 10-point lead, and for the Spurs, the next play would be the most crucial of the night.
If they could cut the deficit to single digits, their montum might continue. But the Warriors executed an extre defense in this round, their dense marking left no chance for anyone.
Seeing the ball couldn’t be passed out and facing a violation, Tim Duncan had to drift to the high post for a mid-range shot.
The mont this shot appeared, the Spurs were already defeated.
They were playing with their least strong thod.
Duncan is not completely incapable of making such baskets; originally in the tiline, right before Derek Fisher’s 0.4-second ga winner, Duncan pulled off an outrageous mid-range drifting basket to lead the team with the last 0.4 seconds.
But obviously, he couldn’t consistently have that touch and luck.
The ball bounced off the rim, Roger personally grabbed the rebound, and Paul Gasol had no choice but to foul Roger tactically to save ti.
After being hugged by Gasol, Roger looked at him disdainfully: "Seriously? Foul ? Do you really think this will work? Brandon, tell this Spanish dude my free throw percentage this season."
At that mont, Roger’s aura in Gasol’s mind was completely shattered.
Just as if he knew Jordan draped the flag only to cover the Reebok logo, he would surely break his idol’s aura about Jordan.
Prior to this, Paul Gasol had also faced Roger in the playoffs. But since he wasn’t a true obstacle on Roger’s championship path, Roger hadn’t shown much hostility towards the Spaniard.
But today, the Spaniard t the real Roger.
He also deeply understands why Roger is able to dominate this league.
Gasol watched Roger step up to the free-throw line, calmly hitting both free throws, extending the lead to 12 points, completely centing the victory.
After scoring, Roger spread his hands to Gasol: "I know you’ve already given your all."
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