Small forward...
Su Wan did have a good idea, now the question was whether Rick Carlisle would agree.
"Academic School coaches" often stick to strict discipline, and Su Wan wasn’t sure whether Carlisle would go for it.
But who knew...
"Let’s give this strategy a try!"
Carlisle agreed readily.
To the point that Su Wan really wanted to say, "Do you want to think it over?"
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He had prepared many reasons to persuade Carlisle.
But now, not one was needed—it was quite frustrating!
Having too high a status in the eyes of the head coach sotis wasn’t a good thing; it was really easy to feel a lack of accomplishnt.
After a day of training, the second ga of the Finals continued at Conseco Arena.
The Pacers fans who arrived early at the venue, just like last ti, greeted the Mavericks with a torrent of boos. It seed they were not affected by the previous loss at all.
Of course, that was only on the surface.
In fact, many Pacers fans had spent the whole previous day at ho, pouring over analysts’ discussions online, fraught with worry.
But once those fans arrived at the square outside the arena and saw Su Wan on the advertising wall, their nerves eased.
Even though many dia outlets were saying that this was the first ti this season that the Pacers had lost the opening ga of a playoff series—a bad on—seeing Su Wan made them believe that no matter how tough the situation, they could get through it.
Before the ga, the latest interview with Su Wan was released; fiercely, in front of ESPN’s cara, he declared, "We are not going to Dallas with a 0-2 record."
The Indiana natives were even more convinced.
They would definitely not lose this ga!
However, the Mavericks, having won the first ga, were clearly much more confident facing the skyful of boos, with faces filled with composure and calm.
No wonder...
Having secured the first victory of the Finals, even if they lost the second ga, they would still have three ho gas coming up, with every opportunity to eliminate the Pacers in Dallas.
If they managed to win tonight’s ga as well,
they could even have David Stern wait in Dallas to present them with the trophy in advance.
This was also why, after the first ga, so many dia outlets were favoring the Mavericks.
Not to ntion that the Mavericks had a perfect record against the Pacers this season, the schedule was in their favor too, making the Pacers appear even more vulnerable.
The big screen at the venue displayed the starting lineups for both teams.
The Mavericks had no changes.
But when they, along with the Pacers fans, saw the starting lineup for the Pacers tonight, they were stunned.
The Pacers were going straight for a "Small Lineup" as their starting.
The Indiana natives had seen such adjustnts before.
But...
Was the big screen broken?
Why was Dior playing small forward and Artest at power forward?
The Mavericks were also puzzled, thinking the big screen had made a mistake.
When the referee blew the whistle and the players took the court, both the Mavericks and the audience confird that the big screen was not broken, and the Pacers were indeed matching up Artest with Nowitzki for the night.
Could this really work?
At that mont, the big screen turned to a calm and collected Carlisle on the sidelines with his arms folded; however, his constant tapping on his elbow didn’t escape Kenny Smith’s eyes: "Looks like Rick doesn’t know what effect this lineup change will have either!"
The chatter in the stands went silent as the referee’s whistle blew.
Little O’Neal won the jump ball against Dan Piel.
The Pacers had the first possession.
Amidst the cheers, Calderon brought the ball up the court, facing Jason Terry. His intention to call for a pick and roll with little O’Neal was read imdiately, and before "Jet" could completely block him, he passed the ball to Su Wan.
Su Wan faced Stackhouse, a "North Carolinian" who once bragged to the dia "I’m not afraid of Jordan" — this was a tweak by Johnson to increase periter height, specifically aid at Su Wan.
But at 32 years old and 198 centiters tall, Stackhouse’s height was adequate, yet with his diminished explosive power, he barely caused any trouble for Su Wan.
In the last ga, Su Wan had broken through him like a sieve; perhaps it was because the Mavericks had the last laugh that "Little General" thought this wasn’t a fatal flaw, and they continued to insist on this defensive tactic.
Su Wan didn’t hesitate; with an "in&out" dribble, he shook Stackhouse’s center of gravity, and when he moved his feet, Su Wan drove hard and forced a breakthrough.
Stackhouse hurriedly shifted sideways, leaning forward at the sa ti, wanting to establish contact with Su Wan.
In the swingman category, his strength was definitely above average. If he could force a confrontation, Su Wan’s drive would stutter, even if just for a second, it was enough ti for the interior defense to react.
But most of the ti, Su Wan would leave Stackhouse behind before any physical contact could occur.
"Swish!"
The opening attack was a secure hit.
The cheers filled the entire arena instantly.
But whether it was Su Wan or Rick Carlisle, their gazes didn’t relax at that mont.
They were well aware, the success or failure of tonight’s ga still depended on Artest’s defense against Nowitzki.
Last ga, the Mavericks started with Nowitzki to open the ga, so tonight’s first offensive move for the Mavericks also went to Nowitzki.
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