The Cavaliers' core lineup seemed unchanged, but this year's LeBron James was far superior to last year's.
If Kerr judged the current James and the Cavaliers behind him by last year's standards, he would undoubtedly suffer a great loss.
Therefore, He Xi Meng politely declined Kerr's kind offer to continue resting.
To achieve a "black eight" upset, the Celtics without He Xi Meng were somewhat precarious.
"Don't worry! You know my playing style, don't you?" He Xi Meng replied to Kerr with a smile.
"I have strictly followed a six-month rehabilitation plan, followed by a one-month progressive recovery exercise plan. The doctor said my recovery is excellent and I can participate in normal games, including the playoffs!"
Since He Xi Meng said so, Kerr no longer insisted.
Kerr was eager for He Xi Meng to return to action as soon as possible.
With He Xi Meng playing, the Celtics' starting lineup would need to be adjusted again.
Yao Ming's position remained unchanged, Carter moved to small forward, Tony Allen would play shooting guard, and then Tony Allen would switch defensively with He Xi Meng to guard James.
For power forward, Kerr had initially wanted Perkins, but He Xi Meng suggested Gasol.
Perkins's defensive ability was not weak, but his athleticism was inferior to the current Gasol.
Since James had moved to the point guard position, he would undoubtedly target He Xi Meng.
Even if Kerr arranged for Tony Allen to switch and guard James, the Cavaliers would surely find ways to use pick-and-rolls to help James re-match He Xi Meng.
Without a doubt, He Xi Meng, who had just recovered from injury, would become the primary offensive target for the Cavaliers.
Before his major injury, He Xi Meng couldn't stop James in one-on-one matchups, let alone now, just recovered from an injury.
Therefore, behind He Xi Meng, there needed to be someone who could help him defend James at any time.
He Xi Meng believed Gasol was the best choice.
As the game was about to start, James directly ran to the point guard position, matching up with He Xi Meng.
"You'd better take it easy! I don't want to see you fall in pain for the second time..."
During the previous World Championships, James had witnessed He Xi Meng's severe injury, hence the reminder.
But James bringing this up at this juncture, no matter how you looked at it, this "kindness" carried a hint of threat.
"Thank you for the reminder, LeBron! And thank you for the flowers you sent during my recovery. You are a junior I highly regard, the future ruler of the league... but now, it's not yet time for me to be unable to play. So, you'd better not underestimate me. This is the playoffs, neither of us has a choice..."
As he was speaking, the referee blew the whistle, and the game officially began.
Zydrunas won the tip-off against Yao Ming. James drove the ball, initiating the Cavaliers' first offensive possession.
On the Celtics' side, Tony Allen actively stepped up to switch with He Xi Meng and guard James, while He Xi Meng moved to the other side to guard Larry Hughes.
But as James crossed halfcourt, he immediately called for Larry Hughes's pick-and-roll, intending to switch back to He Xi Meng.
However, Tony Allen switched behind him, choosing not to switch, and also leaving James open from three-point range.
James, not expecting the Celtics to give him space to shoot from three-point range, hesitated for a moment.
And it was this moment of hesitation and indecision that caused him to miss the opportunity for a direct shot. After switching behind, Tony Allen saw that James did not drive in immediately and slid his feet to stick close to him again.
James was a little annoyed but didn't hold the ball for too long. Instead, he passed it to Larry Hughes, allowing Hughes to test He Xi Meng's recovery condition first.
After receiving the ball, Larry Hughes went one-on-one against He Xi Meng, using a jab step, a fake, and a change of direction!
He Xi Meng's defense was decent, without any positional errors, but his lateral quickness and explosive power seemed to have decreased.
Larry Hughes tried to overpower He Xi Meng with speed but failed. He could only partially lean into the paint, attempting a tough shot.
But Gasol's help defense from behind He Xi Meng was timely, immediately plugging the gap for He Xi Meng and forcing Larry Hughes to either take on two players or pass.
Under pressure, Larry Hughes ultimately chose to pass to Pavlović, who was positioned at the left corner for support.
Pavlović caught the ball and shot while Carter was recovering on defense.
However, the basketball missed, and Yao Ming secured the defensive rebound, handing the ball to He Xi Meng to advance.
James defended him full court, constantly pressuring He Xi Meng.
He Xi Meng remained calm and, after crossing halfcourt, passed the ball to Carter and then ran to the far wing to lurk.
James didn't dare to relax his attention on He Xi Meng and had to follow him to the far wing.
Carter, with the ball, called for Yao Ming's high post pick-and-roll, drawing Zydrunas out of the paint. Then, using the Cavaliers' switch, he drove to the basket for a short-range pull-up jumper and scored!
During He Xi Meng's absence, the chemistry between Carter and Yao Ming had reached an unprecedented level.
In this play, the Cavaliers focused their defense on Yao Ming, who was cutting down the middle, allowing Carter to drive and score so smoothly.
However, if the Cavaliers had focused their defense on Carter's drive, Carter would have passed the ball to Yao Ming, who would have scored by cutting down the middle.
This was a classic high-low post combination.
Carter and Yao Ming were both top players in their respective high-low post positions in the league. Even if the Cavaliers knew the Celtics were running this play, it would still be very difficult to defend effectively.
He Xi Meng on the far wing watched the entire play unfold, not touching the ball, nor even making a move to extend his hands.
Yet, He Xi Meng was effectively tying up James.
James's defensive intensity was still quite high at this moment. Within the overall defensive system of this Cavaliers team, James could guard from the point guard to the power forward position, performing with good efficiency in both man-to-man and help defense.
But with He Xi Meng not participating in the offense at all and staying far away, James could only glare helplessly as his teammates attacked the Celtics in the paint...
James vaguely felt that Coach Mike Brown's opening defensive strategy had some issues.
But with the game just starting, Mike Brown would certainly not immediately change his pre-game plan. James could only defend and observe.
The Cavaliers' top priority now should be to open up their offense first.
As James brought the ball up, he still attempted to switch and attack He Xi Meng.
Attacking He Xi Meng was not just about scoring, but more importantly, about wearing him down. If possible, incapacitating He Xi Meng was the Cavaliers' ideal outcome...