Chapter 1131: Chapter 360: Return
Although they were behind, the Warriors fans in the stands were still cheering vigorously.
John Cage was exceptionally energetic, firmly believing that the outcome of this legendary night would not change, absolutely not!
In the third quarter, when both starting lineups returned to the court, the situation was once again under the Warriors’ control.
Hamilton was again entangled by Tayshaun Prince, and Artest, who had put too much effort into offense, almost had no shooting percentage to speak of.
Chauncey Billups relied on mid-range shots to keep the game afloat, but by the fourth minute of the third quarter, the Warriors had regained the lead.
Another lead change, another shift in game dominance.
This is estimated to be the most evenly matched Finals matchup in recent years.
But the Pistons were not left too far behind; after all, when the Warriors didn’t play a big four small spacing lineup, their offense wasn’t as freewheeling.
At the end of the third quarter, the Pistons were trailing by 6 points. The Warriors were leading, but the game remained tense.
In the stands, the Russian Mikhail Prokhorov was so excited that he was drenched in sweat.
He had once led CSKA Moscow to dominate the European schedule and monopolize the Russian league. But he knew that was not the highest hall of honor in the basketball world.
Last year, his dream came true when he owned an NBA team. And now, his team was only 12 minutes away from the championship.
That’s right, he regarded the Warriors as part of his business. But even as a businessman, he was a businessman who loved basketball. So, facing the fact that his NBA team was about to win the championship, even Prokhorov, who had experienced grand occasions like this, felt excited.
He was so hot that he directly tore off his tie: "That’s why I don’t like coming to these old arenas, the air conditioning system is a damn disaster!"
Bob Bass, next to him, replied with a smile: "It’s not the air conditioning, Boki, you’re just too excited. Don’t take off the tie, you’ll have to go on stage to collect the award later."
"So what? Do you really think anyone cares about the team owner? The cameras and the fans’ eyes will only have Roger; even if I go on stage naked to collect the award, no one will care."
Tom Brady always felt that time was passing too quickly; it seemed like he had just sat down for a moment, and the game had already reached the third quarter. Intense games always have the magical power to speed up time.
John Cage, like other fans, was filled with both excitement and fear.
The Detroit Pistons had not completely been defeated, and you never knew when these guys would take the lead again.
But seeing Roger, the fans in Oakland always felt that the Pistons were just making a last-ditch struggle.
As for the players, their eyes were already red with determination.
"In the final quarter, no one is allowed to make mistakes on defense, no matter what lineup the Warriors field, our main focus should be defending Roger! There should be no less than three players double-teaming him, absolutely not!" Rick Carlisle, like a brutal commanding officer, raised a gun, ordering the Pistons players not to retreat a single step.
"Twelve more minutes, twelve more minutes and everything we’ve done this year will become eternal! Continue to defend seriously, don’t relax for even a second!" Erik Spoelstra’s expression turned ferocious.
In the face of the championship, everyone turned into beasts.
Thus, the bloody fourth quarter began.
The game, like last year’s Finals, turned into a dull match filled with turnovers, missed shots, and long ball circulation.
By the fourth quarter, the sixth game, the players on both sides were almost exhausted. Even Billups and Roger didn’t have a very high shooting percentage in the fourth quarter.
But unlike last year, the viewership didn’t seem to be significantly affected. Compared to last year, this year’s viewership directly created a new high since the 21st century.
Before this, the 21st-century Finals had always been Lakers VS Hawks, leaving fans somewhat aesthetically fatigued.
Last season, fortunately, it wasn’t Lakers VS Hawks, but the Finals lacked star quality—as we know, Tim Duncan is probably the least popular superstar among neutral fans.
This year, with new opponents and a top superstar, the ratings became something David Stern liked.
The facts proved that what determines game ratings isn’t really related to the game style, it’s more about the people involved.
Otherwise, it’s hard to explain why the ratings for the 2007 Finals remained so low even after the implementation of the No Handcheck rule; it can’t all be Duncan’s fault, right? It must be because someone still played ugly offense under the No Handcheck rule that caused this result.
In the tightest defense in history, the game reached its final moments.
In the last 2 minutes and 13 seconds, the Pistons were trailing by 2 points. Stephen Jackson replaced Marcus Camby, which indicated that the Warriors were entering their decisive mode.
The Pistons Five Tigers were standing with their hands on their hips on their half-court, waiting for the Warriors to inbound.
The armored Knights, stained with blood, were about to launch their final charge.
The Warriors’ first charge was successfully withstood by the Pistons, and as usual, Roger passed the ball to Stephen Jackson after encountering a double team, but his crucial three-pointer did not hit the mark.
Stephen Jackson had shot 4 for 6 from three-point line today, and after missing this shot, he was 4 for 7; his shooting percentage was still frighteningly high, you can’t expect him to make every shot.
The Pistons got the chance to tie the game, but Chauncey Billups found that the person defending him was Roger!
Spoelstra believed that Ron Artest had already been worn out by Roger and had no shooting touch left, so it didn’t matter if Allan Houston defended him.