Bishop of the Abyss

Chapter 82 82. When do you need a reason to beat a dog!
Returning to the game, the Spurs without Robert Horry suffered a lot on both offense and defense.

In any case, Horry is the most important player of the Spurs besides the troika. Even "Uncle Bao", who averages more playing time than Horry, only contributes on the defensive end.

But Robert Horry was able to perform well on both ends of the offense and defense. His injury and retirement are definitely a big loss for the Spurs in this round of the series.

Even if Robert Horry killed himself, in the eyes of Spurs fans, the Timberwolves must bear the blame.

In the absence of Robert Horry, an important rotation player throughout the second quarter, Popovich could only mindlessly increase the playing time of the main players, allowing Duncan, Ginobili and others to return to the court early.

Otherwise, the Spurs will be passive in the situation and are likely to be taken away by the Timberwolves.

At the end of halftime, the Timberwolves extended their lead to 10 points with better lineup depth.

On the way back to the locker room during the intermission, Spurs coach Popovich looked gloomy, looking a little sinister with his head down and silent.

In the eyes of fans, Robert Horry's departure from injury is just an episode, but in Popovich's view, it is a harbinger of the Spurs' loss of the championship this season.

Even though Popovich used more insidious means to make the Spurs win the championship ring, when this kind of thing happened to him, Popovich still felt furious, and in his heart, Luke's ancestors were [-] years old. Senior scolded over and over again.

That's right, for this shot, Popovich firmly believes that Luke secretly instructed the Spurs to lose Horry, thereby increasing the Timberwolves' chances of advancing in this round of the series.

That is to say, Luke didn't know the dark thoughts in Popovich's heart, otherwise Luke would definitely feel ridiculous.

People with dark hearts even have vicious thoughts. Of course, Luke didn't bother to explain to Popovich. After all, humans and dogs cannot communicate.

In the locker room, Luke told the players to protect themselves in the second half, especially in the face of Bruce Bowen's defense.

Luke, the "old dog" Popovich, is quite familiar with. As a disciple of the famous bastard Larry Brown, Luke has been observing the Spurs after Robert Horry was injured and retired.

Based on Luke's understanding of Popovich, this guy will definitely not let it go, even though he is very scared of this Timberwolves in his heart, but in front of the championship, all fears are just clouds.

According to Luke's calculations, there is a high probability that Popovich will not make any mistakes in this game, because Popovich also hopes to beat him up after the game by selling miserably, and accuse the Timberwolves of the bad habits in front of the league and the media.

Then use some dirty tricks in the next game to try to abolish the Timberwolves' main force, thus increasing the possibility of the Spurs' advancement in this round of the series.

Popovich has done this kind of thing many times in his previous life. If Popovich can really accept this result honestly and steadily in this life, then Luke can take a high look at Popovich and let this guy go.

Even if this chance seems almost zero to Luke!
Especially when the Spurs also have Bruce Bowen, the "famous black foot"!
…………

After returning from the second half of the game, Popovich sat on the sidelines with a gloomy face all the time, and even his temper became a lot more irritable, yelling loudly at the players at every turn.

The Spurs were very passive throughout the third quarter. Luke's alternative lineup made it impossible for Tony Parker to stay on the court for a long time. On the defensive end, the Spurs have always been a defensive defect.

Now the Spurs still lack the point of Robert Horry for rotation, which makes it harder for the Spurs to start playing.

Only when Tim Duncan and Ginobili are on the court at the same time can the Spurs compete with the Timberwolves in the situation and close the score bit by bit.

But as long as one of the two players is off the field, the Spurs will have difficulty chasing points, and the Timberwolves will continue to expand the score.

With "Madman" Sprell catching Tony Parker in the third quarter and scoring 11 points in a single quarter, the Timberwolves extended their lead to 15 points at the end of the three quarters, and there is only one quarter left before winning the first Western Conference finals .

Popovich would naturally not give up in the last quarter. Even though the Spurs were 15 points behind the Timberwolves, Duncan, Ginobili and others were still placed on the court by Popovich, trying to chase the score and create a miracle.

However, the Timberwolves have extinguished too many miracles this season. The Rockets in the first round and the Sonics in the second round now don't mind adding another Spurs in the Western Conference Finals.

In the fourth quarter, the Timberwolves' performance was still stable. Under the leadership of "Wolf King" Garnett, the Spurs did not have a climax on both offense and defense.

At present, the Timberwolves hold a double-digit lead. As long as the Spurs do not let the Spurs play an effective frenzy of chasing points, the Timberwolves will definitely win this game.

Garnett's performance against the wind may be struggling, but Garnett who plays the ball with the wind is definitely the top in the league.

Facing Tim Duncan, when Garnett saw the team leading by a big score, Garnett became more confident on the offensive end, and Tim Duncan, who made consecutive "iron-blooded big mid-range shots" shots, was a little helpless.

As the two best power forward players in the league today, Garnett and Duncan mainly score from mid-range shots, which also makes the two defend each other like looking in a mirror. It is difficult for both sides to play explosive shots. Performance.

But Garnett, who played with the wind, finally found a chance to humiliate Duncan, and made consecutive shots on Duncan's head, helping the team further expand the point difference.

"dudu~"

As the whistle sounded for the end of the game, the Timberwolves finally beat the Spurs by 19 points at home, almost winning the first Western Conference finals in a way that fans did not expect.

After the game, Popovich urged the players to turn around and leave the field immediately, refusing to let the players hug the Timberwolves players.

Popovich's behavior caused dissatisfaction among Timberwolves fans. When the Spurs left the field through the player channel, fans on both sides booed a lot, especially Popovich was the first to bear the brunt.

Even though Timberwolves fans don't bother to be friends with the Spurs led by Popovich, Popovich's behavior still makes Timberwolves fans feel uncomfortable.

Some fans even hope that the Timberwolves can beat Bobo violently in this round of the series, and let him and his master Larry Brown go to the hospital as companions to reflect on what he has done these years!
The Timberwolves were able to beat the Spurs by 19 points in the entire game. Except for the Spurs' disorganized Robert Horry coma and injury, the performances of Garnett, "Madman" Sprewell, and Nehbar were all crucial.

其中加内特在与传奇大前锋蒂姆邓肯的对位中暂时占据上风，本场比赛加内特面对邓肯砍下26分18篮板5助攻3抢断以及2次封盖，在攻防两端继续保持高效。

Although Tim Duncan, who was facing him, also scored 23 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks, but under the key targets of the Timberwolves, Duncan's shooting percentage was only 41.6%, which was far lower than the playoff average. level.

As for "Madman" Sprewell scored 31 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals under the excellent defense of the Spurs, becoming the first player to score 30+ in a single game on the Spurs this year in the playoffs!
The madman's excellent performance spread to his teammates like a stimulant, which made the Timberwolves play steadily and efficiently in the second half, which prevented the Spurs from coming back.

Even if the "Madman" has many offensive opportunities in this game, it is a misplaced single to hit Tony Parker, but the "Madman"'s offensive methods have become more and more proficient. This season ushered in the second spring of his career, even more difficult than the peak season.

In addition, Nehbar also scored 15 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists in this game. The first playoff trip in his career was so stable. Luke can't remember how many times Nehbar's performance has been praised by the media. Performance.

As for the Spurs, the most outstanding performance is naturally Ginobili. If it weren't for Ginobili's outstanding performance of 28 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals, the Spurs would have been accepted by the Timberwolves long ago.

There is not much that Luke can do about Ginobili's outstanding performance. Although the overall defense of the Timberwolves is good, the Timberwolves do not have too good a top blocker in the league on the outside.

Even Salmons, who has the strongest defensive ability on the outside line, is just a rookie. This season is the first time in his career that Salmons has been entrusted with important tasks in the playoffs. Nobili, Salmons obviously lack of defensive experience.

Luke was not surprised at this point, nor did he blame Salmons. On the contrary, if Salmons could guard Ginobili in this round of the series, Luke would show a hellish expression.

As long as Salmons can interfere with Ginobili's offensive efficiency, Luke is content.

…………

"The Timberwolves are a group of moths in competitive sports. They are not playing on the field, they are fighting!"

"Just got the news from the team doctor that Robert's brain has been severely damaged and he is currently in a coma. It's hard to say whether there will be sequelae after waking up."

"But what is certain is that Robert will definitely miss all games in this round. This kind of result is exactly what the Timberwolves hope to see!"

"In order to win the championship, in order to be able to advance, the Timberwolves did such unsportsmanlike things. I am ashamed to be with this kind of team!"

"The Timberwolves have clashed with other teams more than once this season. The Timberwolves are simply trampling on the moral bottom line of competitive sports!"

"Especially Timberwolves head coach Luke, he is not only a lunatic, but also a ruthless lunatic!"

"I need an explanation! I hope the league can conduct a thorough investigation of the Timberwolves and make a severe punishment for this conflict!"

"Eddie is not wronged even if he is banned for life!"

"Robert, as a veteran of the league for 13 years, has been diligent on the court and rarely conflicts with others. I hope the league can give Robert justice and give the Spurs an explanation!"

"If competitive sports don't need morality, then I would rather give up this round of the series!" At the press conference after the game, Popovich slammed the table sanctimoniously, showing a very angry look.

Popovich's behavior was to put pressure on the media and the league, put himself and the Spurs in the position of victims, and instead kept silent about Robert Horry's malicious elbow.

If it is not a fan who knows a little about the Spurs, I am afraid that the Timberwolves are an extremely dirty team.

None of the reporters present was a rookie who had just entered the industry. Everyone knew the real purpose of Popovich's words.

It's just that when Popovich said that Robert Horry is a good player who is diligent and never conflicts with others, everyone looked at each other, and it was the first time that Popovich was so shameless !

If even Robert Horry can be regarded as a diligent and good player, wouldn't Bowen's every foot step be interpreted as a foot massage for the opposing player? !

In order to incite fans to put pressure on the league and the Timberwolves through the media, Popovich didn't even want his old face this time!

…………

"Huh?" At the Timberwolves press conference after the game, Luke couldn't help showing a sneer on his calm face when he heard Popovich's original words conveyed to him by the interviewer.

Obviously, Popovich's shamelessness has exceeded Luke's imagination. Luke expected that Popovich would put pressure on the league by complaining after the game, but Luke did not expect Popovich to be so sanctimonious.

"Need an explanation?" Luke put away the smile on his face, and looked directly at the camera with cold eyes, "When do you need a reason to beat a dog!"

(End of this chapter)