At the US Airways Center (or West Arena).
Bell, who finally endured past his physical limit, hit a much-needed three-pointer for the Suns, stopping their bleeding a bit.
But then, it was Zack and Brown’s show again.
Zack missed a jumper, but Brown grabbed the offensive rebound, and Zack followed up, banking it in.
"The league really shouldn’t have given him that Defensive Player of the Year consolation prize. They should’ve created a ’Best Mismatch Award’ just for him."
In Los Angeles, Jerry West, watching this year’s Western Conference Finals with Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak, offered this sharp comntary.
Hearing that, and seeing West’s face fluctuate between admiration, surprise, and even disgust tonight, Kupchak asked, "Do you think the Warriors will win the championship this year, Jerry?"
"I don’t know."
After a pause, West added, "But the Suns probably aren’t their match."
Kupchak, who agreed with West, said, "Jerry, what do you think of Zack as a player?"
"Your pronunciation is pretty good, even more professional than the Warriors’ ho DJ."
Kupchak replied, "See? I knew that even though you’ve always disliked Asians, your curiosity would definitely drive you to watch the Warriors’ gas."
West gave Kupchak a gentle smile, "My dislike for Asians is personal, but for basketball reasons, I’ll always remain curious about him."
Of course, Jerry West would pay attention to Zack.
After all, ever since he retired, this curiosity has been one of the driving forces keeping him alive for a few more years.
Every day, he’d analyze these young players with a mix of skepticism and curiosity, hoping for a talent that could change history to erge – that’s been Jerry West’s biggest hobby since retiring.
"His jump shot isn’t stable enough, even though his incredible coordination always lets him find different shooting angles on the court."
"His build and athleticism give him impressive capital, but at the sa ti, every ti he attacks on the court, the burden is far greater than that of periter stars like Michael (Jordan) and Kobe (Bryant)."
"In short, he still has many weaknesses. Do you want to hear more?"
At that mont, looking into West’s deep eyes, Kupchak wanted to say he already knew all of Zack’s weaknesses, but before he could speak, West waved him off.
Because on TV, it was the Warriors’ offensive possession again.
On the court, Zack, after a hand-off with Davis, first tried to speed past Marion but was blocked. He then turned to a backdown, pressing Marion’s defense towards the paint, and then, with an incredibly imaginative behind-the-head pass, found Brown.
The Suns’ restricted area instantly beca a stage for Zack and Brown, letting these two brothers wreak havoc.
"What a brilliant play."
West comnted the next second, barely suppressing the churning in his stomach.
Then, taking a deep breath, West imdiately turned to Kupchak and said, "I’ve already told you his strengths: the league should create a ’Best Mismatch Award’ just for him."
The Best Mismatch Award.
In fact, after watching the Warriors’ first two playoff series, in West’s eyes, the damage Zack inflicted on the opposing defense through mismatches far outweighed his defensive contributions to the Warriors.
Even though Zack was a collaborative defender averaging over 3 blocks per ga in both the regular season and playoffs, and even though he’d been fully committed on both ends since the playoffs began...
But as West said, because Zack’s build ant his physical exertion for strong, forced offense far exceeded that of periter stars, Zack inevitably had to make a choice.
That is, whether to put more energy into offense or more focus into defense.
Artest joining the team only alleviated this problem but couldn’t solve it at its root.
Because Zack couldn’t score thirty or forty points every night and also be an unbreakable defensive barrier for his team like Duncan or Garnett.
If he truly could, then the NBA should just hand the championship trophy directly to Oakland.
In West’s view, Zack’s so-called explosive creativity ca precisely from the crushing destruction his mismatch advantage caused to the opposing defense.
In the first round of the playoffs, Mavericks players felt like the ga was over before they even gave their all.
And in the Western Conference Semifinals, the Spurs’ "one-on-one, four-zone" defensive strategy further proved this point.
Because Duncan’s inherent star treatnt ant he was the only player on the Spurs who could consistently bring intensity against Zack, the Spurs could only have Duncan execute and complete the "one-on-one" part of their "one-on-one, four-zone" defense.
West admired the Spurs’ and Duncan’s courage, but the result was Zack scoring 38 and 40 points for the Warriors in Gas 3 and 4, respectively.
In West’s eyes, the reason for this outco was that Duncan couldn’t truly match up against Zack.
Zack’s periter offensive skills made it impossible for traditional power forwards to guard him, but his build and interior scoring ability made it very difficult for typical small forwards to limit him in the low post.
Simply put... since the playoffs began, every night, Zack has been using his strengths to attack the opponent’s weaknesses, and he’s truly brought the Warriors victory after victory.
The Spurs winning Gas 3 and 4 in a shootout wasn’t because their "one-on-one, four-zone" defense stopped Zack; they just won the gas by limiting the Warriors’ outside shooting and hitting more of their own shots.
Parker’s breakout and the Spurs’ shooters hitting their threes were key to the Spurs’ wins.
In fact, if you really wanted West to find reasons for the Warriors’ losses, he’d tell you that Artest and Davis, those two inconsistent sidekicks, were the root cause of the Warriors’ three total losses in this year’s playoffs.
In Zack’s previous life, even including Parker’s developnt period, Davis only shot 35.6% overall when matched up against Parker.
And Parker?
The answer is 53.5%.
While team factors also played a role, Davis, throughout his career, was always a point guard with questionable shot selection and was far from efficient.
In this life, Davis, who has gradually changed his playing style alongside Zack, has indeed beco the perfect secondary playmaker for this Warriors team.
But his 100 kg weight also ans his production and output on the court are inherently incomparable to Parker, who only needs to focus on isolation scoring in gas.
As for Artest?
His bulldozer-like drives were certainly his signature move, but when has Artest’s offense ever been consistent throughout his career?
Yet even so...
They still made it to the Western Conference Finals.
US Airways Center, Warriors’ offensive possession.
Watching Zack first set a screen for Davis at the high post, helping him bully Nash, and then imdiately pop out to the three-point line to hit a three for the Warriors, West suddenly sighed, "What a sha."
Beside him, Kupchak asked curiously, "Sha about what?"
West pondered, "It’s a sha that Dallas Mavericks coach Avery Johnson is an idiot, it’s a sha the San Antonio Spurs couldn’t deploy their tough defense, it’s a sha the Phoenix Suns’ interior anchor Amare Stoudemire couldn’t play at full strength due to injury... it’s a sha that in this year’s playoffs, we still can’t see how much more potential he (Zack) has to unleash."
The next second, Kupchak chuckled, "Can I take that as a complint to him?"
West waved his hand, "Interpret it however you like."
In the latter half of the second quarter, Zack, scoring 14 points on his own for the Warriors, locked the halfti score at 67-55.
And at the US Airways Center, as Zack continuously dominated, the notoriously raucous Suns’ ho crowd gradually went silent.
Just then, taking advantage of halfti, West asked, "You didn’t just co to see this Western Conference Finals with , did you?"
Hearing that, Kupchak got straight to the point, "I heard mphis fans are quite unhappy with Pau (Gasol) lately."
West shrugged, "No team’s fans are going to like a star player who consistently leads their team to brutal losses in the first round of the playoffs year after year."
Kupchak chuckled, "I feel like you’re implying sothing here."
West said without hesitation, "If Shaq was really that popular in Orlando back then, how would we have ever gotten him?"
Seeing this, Kupchak took a deep breath and said, "Jerry... the Lakers need Pau Gasol."
West waved him off, "Mitch, you’re the Lakers’ GM, and I’m the Grizzlies’ GM, so... if you want to negotiate, at least tell your sincerity first."
Kupchak stated, "Besides Kobe and Lamar... you can pick anything else."
West rolled his eyes at Kupchak, "Mitch, please tell , what do the Lakers have besides Kobe and Lamar? You’re not negotiating; you’re trying to rob , and openly at that."
Kupchak sighed, "The Warriors have risen, Kobe is in his pri, Jerry, I’m desperate, I had no choice but to co to you."
West shook his head, "I’ve long left the Lakers. What does your missing Kobe’s pri have to do with ?"
"Two draft picks, plus the players you need."
"Not enough."
"Four draft picks, two first-rounders, two second-rounders..."
"Still not enough."
"Jerry... I can put Lamar (Odom) on the trade block."
"Still not enough."
At this mont, watching West fall into deep thought, Kupchak was on the verge of tears, "Jerry, I really don’t have any more assets."
But the next second, after finishing his contemplation, West’s answer was completely unexpected by Kupchak.
"My point is, if we give you Pau Gasol, can you really solve these Warriors?"
Kupchak was surprised, "Jerry, you... you’re agreeing to trade Pau Gasol?"
West pondered, "I originally wanted to give Pau one more year, but you know, Grizzlies fans are truly unhappy with him now, so... I just made a decision. I want to rebuild this Grizzlies team from the ground up."
After a pause, West continued, "But if we’re rebuilding, then Shane Battier... the Grizzlies won’t need him either, naturally."
Kupchak’s eyes widened in shock, and he quickly said, "We don’t have the assets for Shane Battier!"
West chuckled, "Didn’t you say you’d give us four first-round picks and let pick any players besides Kobe and Lamar?
Actually, I’ve always been quite fond of certain players on the Lakers."
Is this really a trade, or just plain robbery?!
At this very mont, looking at West, who just two minutes ago was against this trade, Kupchak experienced for the first ti what it felt like to be on the receiving end of an...
NBA version of a "zero-dollar purchase."
Did this Lakers team have players Jerry West was fond of?
The answer was clearly no.
Because besides Kobe and Odom...
Which general manager would want those other "rotten fish and shrimp" on the Lakers?
It’s true that West planned to rebuild the Grizzlies.
But at that mont, what truly swayed West wasn’t the assets the Lakers could offer.
US Airways Center, after halfti, the ga resud.
Although the Suns were down 12 points to the Warriors at halfti, for this run-and-gun team that could close that gap at any mont, at least in the eyes of the exasperated Suns fans in attendance, they were far from desperate yet.
In the third quarter, Marion and Bell successively hit threes for the Suns, at one point narrowing the lead to within 10 points.
However, tonight, the Suns’ offensive engine, Nash, seed to be burning fuel a little faster than usual.
Brown, who was wreaking havoc in the Suns’ paint, had already grabbed his 10th rebound of the ga before the third quarter even ended.
It’s worth noting that seven of those ten rebounds were offensive boards.
Because the Suns just couldn’t solve Brown’s destruction in their paint, nor could they solve Zack, who always found an angle to deliver a fatal blow.
So, after three quarters, it was 98-81.
The Warriors further extended their lead over the Suns.
And in front of the TV, West, knowing that the Suns’ outside shooting tonight wasn’t enough to beat the Warriors, simultaneously turned off the television.
Even though there was still one quarter left, West had already gotten the answer he wanted.
Final score.
124-107.
Oakland’s golden tide completely overwheld Phoenix tonight.
The Golden State Warriors, led by Zack, who exploded for 41 points, 14 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 blocks, won the first ga of this year’s Western Conference Finals!
Earlier, Dunleavy and Artest, who had strongly advised Zack to "rest up" in the latter half of the regular season and save all his energy for a playoff explosion, took credit in the locker room: "Playing well in the regular season only proves you’re an ordinary star.
Only by scoring thirty or forty points in the playoffs as easily as cutting vegetables can you prove you’re a superstar."
Zack’s explosion in the playoffs this year was indeed related to him taking Artest’s and Dunleavy’s advice during the regular season.
Additionally, after entering the playoffs, the entire Warriors team also rallied tightly around him.
Of course...
Zack didn’t disappoint the expectations and hopes his teammates and the coaching staff placed on him.
Instead, he transford all the resources poured into him by the team into what West called crushing destruction of the opposing defense.
Throughout the playoffs, Zack, who consistently found mismatches and initiated offense, had already delivered a terrifying performance in his first career playoff run.
As of the end of Western Conference Finals Ga 1...
Zack was averaging 37.2 points for the Warriors, a figure that even a pri Michael Jordan would have to concede to (from ’88 to ’98, excluding his mid-career retirent, Jordan’s single-season playoff scoring averages were: 36.3, 34.8, 36.7, 31.1, 34.5, 35.1, 31.5, 30.7, 31.1, 32.4 points).
In the eyes of the world, Zack’s performance this season had even surpassed Hakeem Olajuwon, who led the Rockets to back-to-back championships (in the ’94/’95 season, Olajuwon averaged 33 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 2.8 blocks, and 1.2 steals).
"His mismatch advantage infinitely amplified his offensive strengths. I don’t want to say the league has welcod a new Michael Jordan, but until a player erges who can match him, this will be an undeniable fact."
After the first ga of the Western Conference Finals, Jerry West once again warned the world through the Los Angeles Tis.
While the Warriors’ "Tian Ji’s Horse Racing" strategy in the regular season and the compensation from the league were objective reasons for Zack’s ascendancy in his rookie season...
West knew very well that as long as Zack’s crushing destruction of the opposing defense couldn’t be solved, and his explosive creativity couldn’t be prevented from being exerted on the entire Warriors team...
Then he was, without a doubt, the true standard-bearer of the NBA in this era.
On the night he reached the "zero-dollar purchase agreent" with Kupchak, many reasons ultimately led West to agree to the deal.
However, West admitted one thing: he genuinely didn’t want to see the NBA dominated by an Asian player.
He watched every single ga Zack played since entering the league, with that mix of curiosity and skepticism.
And he expected Zack, this ssiah, to bring a world-ending tsunami to the stagnant NBA.
But at the sa ti...
He also didn’t want the NBA to be dominated by Zack in the future, nor did he want the Lakers to miss out on Kobe’s precious pri because of it.
Humans are indeed such complex and conflicted beings.
Since West wasn’t a god, he naturally couldn’t be immune to such feelings.
Two days later, Ga 2 of the Western Conference Finals between the Warriors and Suns continued at the US Airways Center.
Mike D’Antoni benched Stoudemire, who only managed 11 points and 5 rebounds in Ga 1, and started a desperate "small-ball" lineup with Thomas at center, Marion at power forward, and Diaw, Bell, and Nash in the backcourt.
After Ga 1, even if D’Antoni notoriously didn’t understand defense, he knew the Suns definitely couldn’t stop the Warriors’ offense.
So, in the first quarter, adhering to the "can’t defend, so why bother, just go all-in" ntality, the Suns, led by Nash, constantly attacked the Warriors’ defense with transition offense.
This crazy decision gave the Suns a glimr of hope tonight.
As West said, when Zack repeatedly inflicted crushing destruction on the opposing defense and unleashed his explosive creativity for the Warriors on the court, his physical energy expenditure was bound to be rapid and irreversible.
Because he was an interior player, 211 cm tall and weighing 121 kg, not a guard around 190 cm tall who could tirelessly sprint across the court.
If the Suns sped up, Zack had to quickly get back on defense with his teammates.
If the Suns initiated breakthroughs and pick-and-rolls on the periter, Zack also had to step up to help defend and delay.
Even though the entire Warriors team and Zack jointly made the team decision for him to put more energy into offense since the playoffs began, on the playoff stage, how could Zack just "eye-test" every defensive possession and ignore his teammates?
That kind of defensive attitude didn’t fit Zack’s personality.
And it certainly didn’t fit Zack’s leadership as the leader of this Warriors team.
Final score: 104-108.
If you just looked at the score, this was definitely a high-scoring shootout in the context of the current era.
But in reality... with the fast-paced offensive rhythm of both teams and the increasing number of possessions, it was an undeniable "brick-fest."
The Suns shot 38 three-pointers in the ga, making only 13 of them.
And the Warriors?
In the locker room after the ga, Artest, the team’s best shooter, who was 2-of-4 from three, wanted to review the ga and find the culprit for their loss.
But when he noticed Little Dunleavy’s 1-of-6 three-point shooting, Artest fell silent.
Then, when he saw Richardson’s 0-for-5 from beyond the arc, Artest finally mustered the courage to ask what on earth happened.
However, Zack didn’t give Artest a chance to review.
"Shut up, Ron! No reviewing after a loss, that’s the rule we all set!"
If anyone had a right to be angry tonight, it wasn’t Artest.
During the ga, when Zack created opportunities for his teammates through pick-and-rolls, drive-and-kicks, or set plays, only God knew how many assists his teammates wasted.
Zack, who finished the ga with 30 points, 17 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 blocks, and 1 steal for the Warriors, grabbed Artest and delivered an important speech in the locker room: "We’ve supported each other and trusted each other every step of the way.
Maybe the results won’t always satisfy us, but we absolutely cannot bla our teammates because of it.
In this ga, every single one of us did our best. Next ga, if we just capitalize on one or two more opportunities, the scales of victory will tip in our favor.
In this Western Conference Finals, I think we’ve fully proven in the first two gas that we are indeed the better team than the Suns."
At that mont, Artest, completely awed by Zack, quickly slapped himself twice.
Beside him, Baron Davis, who was a complete "brick-layer" tonight, shooting only 5-of-14, took the bla himself: "I got a bit too excited in this ga and took a lot of completely unnecessary shots."
Seeing that, Brown chuckled, "That’s normal, Baron. Matching up against Steve Nash on the court is like suddenly finding a naked blonde on the beach. What man wouldn’t get excited about that?"
’What a strange... yet very fitting analogy,’ Davis thought to himself at that mont.
---
A day later, Ga 3 of the Western Conference Finals between the Warriors and Suns moved to Oracle Arena.
The Suns’ decision to speed up the pace certainly made Zack expend energy faster.
However, the reason for the Warriors’ loss in the previous ga was simply their poor shooting.
Moreover, an overly hyped-up Davis also abandoned his biggest advantage when matched up against Nash.
In the NBA, every player is a living, breathing person, not just stats and models in a video ga.
And there’s no such thing as "unlimited offense" in basketball.
When Davis lost his composure in front of Nash, his career field goal percentages against Nash—38.5%, 36.8%, 34.8%, and 31.8% in individual gas—told you that in the NBA, the imagined scenario of one player completely dominating another and pushing them to the limit never exists and never will.
Because basketball is a five-person sport, especially for NBA players. When ten people are squeezed onto one half of the court, the court space is much smaller than people imagine.
This ga, Davis, maintaining his composure, magnified Nash’s defensive weaknesses with his physical advantages.
These advantages wouldn’t necessarily translate into Davis’s final scoring.
Nor would they necessarily translate into Davis’s assists.
Just like Zack’s explosive creativity exerted on the Warriors didn’t always translate into statistics.
But when the Suns’ desperate small-ball lineup frequently had to rotate and cover for Nash, the already cramped court space imdiately allowed the Warriors to find their offensive rhythm.
Although a smaller lineup allowed the Suns players on the court to switch defenses faster and promptly plug the holes created by Nash.
However, Zack, whose offensive burden was greatly reduced, once again beca the towering peak the Suns players could only look up to tonight.
On the court, Warriors’ offensive possession.
Davis, who drove into the paint and was double-tead, passed the ball to a better-positioned Artest. Imdiately, Artest "smashed" the ball towards the free-throw line.
Yes, it was a "smash," not a pass.
Because only by smashing could Artest create the best scoring opportunity for that man in an instant.
Near the free-throw line, Zack calmly controlled the ball, squeezed past Marion, and drove to the basket, laying it in with his left hand.
At the sa ti, the score between the Suns and Warriors in the first quarter reached 20-28.
At Oracle Arena, the cheers from the crowd grew louder and louder.
Although Phoenix fans had previously vehently defended the credibility of Nash’s consecutive NBA regular season MVP awards, and even resorted to insulting and mocking Zack when the Warriors played at the US Airways Center...
Zack’s shocking performance in this year’s playoffs, however, beca compelling evidence in the eyes of Warriors fans and many neutral fans that Nash had "stolen" Zack’s MVP trophy.
Now, it was the Warriors fans’ turn to retaliate.
"Steve Nash, you’re just a stat-padder who only performs in the regular season!"
"You’ve never proven yourself in the playoffs, how do you deserve to be MVP?"
"Steve Nash, you shaful ’trophy thief’! Rember, forever, you will never touch the Finals floor!"
After the first quarter, the score was 24-35.
Back on the bench, as boos, taunts, and even curses ca from all directions, even Nash, a superstar known for his good temper, couldn’t help but feel a surge of anger.
But on this night, when the Suns’ offense couldn’t match the Warriors’ firepower...
Nash, no matter how angry, could only choose to swallow his frustration.
This was the cruelest, most ruthless side of the NBA.
It would never allow you to reach the top just because you had a good personality.
On the court, after the break, Barbosa’s three-pointer bounced off the rim, and Oakland’s golden tide began to roll as Biedrins grabbed the defensive rebound for the team.
And a few seconds later, as the live broadcast cara zood in on Zack, who was then clapping for his teammates, all Warriors fans instantly unleashed their imagination...
It seems like, maybe...
We’re really going to the Finals!
---
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