Regardless of whether they were convinced or not, the Spurs missed an excellent season to contend for the championship. Meanwhile, under He Xi Meng's operations, the Lakers once again ascended to the finals stage.
After the game, the entire league was covered with reports about He Xi Meng's game-winning shot.
"An incredible buzzer-beater!"
"Comparable to Jordan's game-winner in last year's finals..."
In last year's finals, His Airness hit a buzzer-beater against this very Lakers team! And the backdrop to that game-winner was He Xi Meng himself.
Many unscrupulous media outlets deliberately linked the two events, instantly attracting more fan attention.
Being eliminated by His Airness had become a persistent "shadow" in He Xi Meng's career. However, thankfully, He Xi Meng now possessed his own heavyweight game-winner! And the backdrop, it seemed, was "The Admiral" Johnson, and the stunned rookie in the paint, number 21, Duncan...
Undoubtedly, He Xi Meng's game-winner was miraculous, destined to be etched in NBA history.
However, the Lakers' path to the championship still appeared to be arduous.
According to the detailed examination after Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals, O'Neal had suffered a hip flexor strain, requiring at least two weeks of recovery. Even if he managed to return after two weeks, his form was uncertain, and it was unclear if he could exert himself freely...
There was a week's rest between the Western Conference Finals and the NBA Finals. A week later, the Finals would commence as scheduled. This meant O'Neal would miss at least the first two games of the Finals.
And the Lakers' opponent in the Finals was not the perimeter-oriented Pacers, but the interior-oriented Knicks!
In the Eastern Conference Finals, after six grueling games, the Knicks, with veterans Ewing and Larry Johnson, along with the advantage in the paint provided by Marcus Camby, the second pick of the '96 draft, defeated the Pacers, featuring Miller, Mark Jackson, and Jalen Rose, 4-2.
Miller, in the post-Jordan era, once again tasted defeat in the Eastern Conference Finals, failing to reach the NBA Finals.
Meanwhile, the veteran Ewing, caught the last train to the Finals, making a comeback from the "Black 8 Miracle" and reaching the Finals stage with the Knicks.
Even more fortunate, their Finals opponent, the Lakers' strongest scorer O'Neal, would miss at least the first two games of the Finals due to a hip flexor strain!
O'Neal's absence from the Finals! Even missing just two games was akin to a godsend!
Ewing even began to wonder if, after years of being bullied by Jordan and Olajuwon, God was now preparing to send him a championship ring before his abilities completely waned to the point of obscurity...
Last season, Ewing averaged 21 points and 10 rebounds in the regular season. This season, it had regressed to 17 points and 10 rebounds. And in this year's playoffs, it further dropped to 13 points and 8.7 rebounds...
Ewing was no longer the team's leading scorer. In the six games of the recently concluded Eastern Conference Finals, Allan Houston, Sprewell, Larry Johnson... and even the young backup Marcus Camby, had averaged more points than him. He still held the title of "King of New York" and was still earning the team's highest salary of $18.5 million, but his throne was no longer stable. In fact, even his starting center position was being coveted by the young Marcus Camby...
Furthermore, during last year's labor dispute, Ewing, as the player representative and union president, had been locked in negotiations with the owners for half a year, causing significant losses to the owners of various teams. Among them, of course, was the Knicks' owner Dolan! 138 Reading Network
Therefore, Ewing could feel that his time in the Big Apple was limited. This year's Finals was the best opportunity for him to fulfill his dream, and he didn't want to miss it...
For the Lakers, without the "bolt from the blue" of O'Neal's sudden injury, the championship trophy for this season was practically in their hands. As long as they defeated the Knicks, who had miraculously fought their way through, the trophy would naturally belong to the Lakers.
Despite all calculations, they had not anticipated O'Neal's sudden injury... Oh, wait, in fact, there was one player on the Lakers who had been worried about O'Neal's injury from the very beginning.
When Blount and Campbell left, He Xi Meng had raised this concern. Unfortunately, aside from head coach Harris, no one took He Xi Meng's plea seriously. The "Logo Man" now wielded too much influence within the Lakers' management, which was not a good sign. It was not good for the Lakers, and it was not particularly good for Jerry West himself. To put it in the words of a certain nation in the East, the "Logo Man" was in a state of "merit overshadowing the sovereign" with the Lakers.
Now, the unexpected injury had caught the Lakers off guard. Fortunately, O'Neal's injury occurred in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals. If it had happened in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, He Xi Meng would have been 100% certain that the Lakers would not have survived the Western Conference Finals!
Even if the Lakers' twin stars had played exceptionally well, they probably wouldn't have been able to overcome the Spurs' twin towers. Because this was the playoffs, defense was paramount!
Now that the mountain of the Spurs had been conquered, only the Knicks remained, a mountain that was not quite as tall... Although not as tall, they were still the highest mountain in the Eastern Conference this season. With O'Neal unable to play, how would the Lakers' twin stars conquer the Eastern Conference champions?
Before the Finals began, the two teams had a week of rest. According to the league's schedule, there were only about 3 days of rest between the end of Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals and the start of Game 1 of the NBA Finals. However, neither the Eastern nor Western Conference Finals went to seven games this year. Therefore, both teams were fortunate to have seven days of respite.
Harris, along with his coaching staff, held meetings for seven consecutive days, strategizing on how to deal with the Knicks. But even the best cooks cannot prepare a meal without ingredients. Without O'Neal, the Lakers lacked any reliable interior players who could contend with the Knicks' frontcourt.
Horry, Knight, Smits, Lux... this was the entire interior lineup of the current Lakers. Against the Knicks, they could only barely maintain defensive integrity in the paint. The Lakers' only option was to rely on their perimeter game!
Through outside shooting, they would play offense as defense! They would see if they could defend their home court... At least, they had to secure one! Then the Lakers could await O'Neal's return. Otherwise, if they lost both home games, it would be harder than climbing to heaven for the Lakers to make a comeback in the subsequent two away games...
On June 16, 1999, Game 1 of the NBA Finals took place as scheduled at the Forum, the Lakers' home court.