Upon returning to San Antonio, He Xi Meng, after a day of rest, participated in Game 6 at the Spurs' home court, fully recharged.
Popovich had clearly put considerable effort into this game.
The day before the match, Popovich specifically held a small press conference, earnestly requesting fans who had purchased tickets for Game 6 to wear Spurs home jerseys as much as possible to cheer for the home team.
"Let's end this Western Conference Finals series in the vast ocean of the Silver and Black…"
The Lakers directly provided jerseys, but the Spurs, lacking the Lakers' deep pockets, could only appeal and rally!
As a result, Popovich's clever move not only saved the club money but also boosted jersey sales. On that night, who would dare to greet their seatmate without wearing a Spurs jersey to cheer for the team?
The Spurs' best-selling jerseys were previously David Robinson's number 50 and Duncan's number 21. However, this season, as He Xi Meng's performance gained more and more recognition from San Antonio fans, the sales of his number 4 jersey also began to rise. Particularly among young people, the sales of He Xi Meng's number 4 jersey had completely surpassed those of David Robinson's number 50. One couldn't help but lament the passing of generations, with new talents replacing old. Each generation of fans had their own choices.
Surprisingly, Ginobili's number 20 jersey also seemed to be selling quite well. It even surpassed the sales of Brad Miller's number 40 jersey. This season, Brad Miller's playing time, on-court performance, and individual statistics were all superior to Ginobili's. If one had to point out a deficiency, it was perhaps that Brad Miller's appearance was not as handsome as Ginobili's. The current Ginobili, with his beautiful long hair, possessed an Italian-esque melancholic charm tinged with a hint of the wild and untamed spirit of the Pampas. San Antonio, located in Texas, was a place with the strongest American cowboy vibe, and the local girls were quite fond of the wild aura Ginobili occasionally exuded...
Of course, the main objective of creating a sea of silver and black in the home arena was to foster a home-court atmosphere! Especially to make the referees aware of whose home turf this was.
Although the Lakers had lost the crucial Game 5, they had not given up hope of a comeback, nor were they about to surrender meekly.
O'Neal and Kobe were both highly motivated, ready to put all their effort on the line, even risking injury.
In this game, O'Neal took a staggering 32 shots, making 19, and scored a game-high 41 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, and 4 blocks! The ball in O'Neal's hands rarely went anywhere but towards the basket.
Kobe's shot selection was also resolute; he took 27 shots, scoring 26 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks. 138 Read Network.
Glen Rice took 10 shots, scoring 16 points and grabbing 5 rebounds.
The Lakers took a total of 90 shots, with the OK duo and Glen Rice accounting for 69 of them, monopolizing three-quarters of the team's attempts. Simultaneously, the OK duo played almost the entire game, logging over 47 minutes. Glen Rice played slightly less, at 40 minutes.
Yet, even with this effort, the Lakers still couldn't achieve a comeback.
Although O'Neal scored a game-high 41 points, his free-throw shooting was abysmal today, making only 3 out of 12, missing too many scoring opportunities.
Kobe, despite taking 27 shots, only made 8, with a shooting percentage of just 29.6%, making his scoring efficiency quite low.
Glen Rice was perhaps the most efficient, shooting 5 of 10 from the field, 3 of 6 from three-point range, and 3 of 6 from the free-throw line, ultimately scoring 16 points...
Conversely, on the Spurs' side, He Xi Meng used 19 attempts to make 11 shots, hitting 6 out of 12 three-pointers and a perfect 7 out of 7 from the free-throw line, leading the Spurs with 35 points, 12 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals.
Duncan shot 10 of 18 from the field and 9 of 11 from the free-throw line, scoring the Spurs' second-highest 29 points, along with 14 rebounds and a block.
David Robinson shot 8 of 15 from the field and 4 of 6 from the free-throw line, recording 20 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks.
The Lakers' three core players accounted for three-quarters of the team's shot attempts, 69 shots, yielding 83 points.
The Spurs' three core players accounted for two-thirds of the team's shot attempts, 52 shots, yielding 84 points.
If one only looked at the total points scored by the core players of both teams, it seemed they were neck and neck. However, upon examining the shooting percentages and scoring efficiency, the Lakers were clearly a step behind.
The Spurs, by improving the scoring efficiency of their core players, redistributed the excess shot opportunities to non-core players, allowing more individuals to participate in the offense and score more points, ultimately defeating the Lakers, who relied solely on their three stars...
While the OK duo was undoubtedly invincible and unstoppable, the Spurs, with their multiple scoring threats and role players who could also contribute, were clearly more balanced and unpredictable.
Ultimately, the Spurs narrowly defeated the Lakers 116:111 in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals, sweeping the series 4-2, eliminating their strongest opponent of the season and the reigning champions, the Purple and Gold Lakers, thus advancing to the finals.
After the end of the previous game, Kobe had returned to the locker room without looking back, not even acknowledging He Xi Meng. Kobe felt that game should not have been lost, and losing it was a disgrace.
However, in this game, although both Kobe and O'Neal desperately did not want to lose, they were somewhat mentally prepared. After all, the game they most couldn't afford to lose had already been lost, and the scales of victory had already tilted towards the Spurs. Their eventual defeat was not entirely unacceptable...
Therefore, after Game 6 concluded, Kobe graciously offered He Xi Meng his congratulations.
"Congratulations, my brother! You are truly a boy favored by Lady Luck, reaching the finals wherever you go…"
"Thank you for your kind words! If luck is with me, then I agree with you, I have indeed been favored… If luck is not on my side, then I would say that reaching the finals is not due to Lady Luck, but the result of my own hard work…"
"Excellent! You won, so whatever you say is right!"
"Hmm… I see you're still unconvinced?"
"Asking the obvious! Next season, we will reclaim the victory we lost…"
To outsiders, Kobe and He Xi Meng appeared to be embracing with smiles, full of amity. Little did they know that behind closed doors, their verbal sparring continued, and they were still exchanging veiled threats.
As they parted, Kobe didn't forget to give He Xi Meng a parting piece of advice: "Now that you're on the finals stage, don't let the championship trophy slip through your hands… After all, that was supposed to be our championship trophy…"