On the wooden floor of the SBC Center, a huge O'Brien Trophy is painted next to the team's logo.

This is the unique floor pattern of the NBA Finals, reminding fans all the time what the ten people on the court are fighting for.

Although the alliance later canceled this design for unknown reasons, most people still miss it very much.

The Spurs' long-haired guard No. 20 stepped over the O'Brien Trophy on the floor with the ball.

Tonight, he is a nightmare for the Eastern Conference champions.

"Manu Ginobili is like a miracle, the Argentine seemed to be able to score with just one shot today!

The Pacers restricted Tony Parker in this game, but the Argentine stood up!

Now, Manu keeps holding the ball and we'll see how he plays!"

Mike Breen was sitting behind the commentary desk and could feel the Argentinian's overflowing confidence.

At this time, there were only the last 40 seconds left in the game, and the Spurs led by 6 points.

Warriors Jackson nervously stood in front of Ginobili. The Argentinian had already scored 24 points.

Although Ginobili is not as tall as Jackson, he still handles the ball calmly.

He controlled time from outside the three-point line and wanted to use up all 24 seconds without leaving the Pacers a chance to counterattack.

Wayne fought wildly with Duncan inside. Although Duncan's efficiency today was not as high as Ginobili's, under the double-teaming of Ou and Wayne, No. 21's shooting percentage today was only 45.5%.

But he still scored 24 points, 14 rebounds and 2 blocks.

Therefore, Wu Sheng did not dare to let the Argentinian go, and Wayne did not dare to let Duncan go at all.

Just like that, when there were only the last 6 seconds left in the attack time, Manu waved his hand gracefully and called for cover!

Thinking of the last time the Spurs played the SuperSonics in the Western Conference semifinals, when Ginobili tried to dump Duncan in the last 0.5 seconds, Wayne stayed close to him, preparing to follow him out.

At that time, whether you switch defense or continue to defend Duncan, you must not make any mistakes.

You think he is going to play alone, but in fact he is very likely to pass the ball suddenly.

This guy Ginobili, you never know what he's going to do next.

Well, maybe not even Popovich knows.

In a Spurs team that plays steadily, Manu is usually the one who breaks the mold.

But just when Wayne was about to give it a try, the Spurs' arrangement exceeded everyone's expectations.

The person who went out to pick and roll Ginobili was not Duncan, who was a mid-range threat, but Nazr Mohammed, who was traded from New York to the Spurs late in the regular season this year.

With his tougher style of play, faster movement and aggressive offensive rebounding, Mohammed replaced the white center Rasu Nestenovich "Ouchi" and has been in the playoffs.

Started for the Spurs.

Facts have proved that he has indeed improved the Spurs' defensive strength and second-chance offensive opportunities in the playoffs. So far in the playoffs, he has averaged 3.3 offensive rebounds per game.

However, Mohammed is just a blue-collar coolie. He has no mid-range shooting or even any offensive skills.

If you let him cover, O'Neal can switch to Manu unscrupulously.

So, why did the Spurs do this? Is it a tactical mistake?

Not really.

Popovich clenched his fists off the court. This was all arranged by him.

Indeed, Mohammed has no way to provide a mid-range threat like Duncan. Therefore, the purpose of the Spurs' pick-and-roll this time is actually to allow Manu to misplace O'Brien.

What Popovich wants is for Ou to switch defenses!

The pick-and-roll was formed, and Ou was indeed in front of Manu immediately.

But Manu did not break through immediately. After bypassing the screen, he suddenly paused, which forced Xiao Ao to follow.

Taking advantage of Xiao Ao's opportunity to move forward, Manu suddenly changed direction and accelerated.

One goes forward and one goes backward.

This is what Xiao Fang Da fears most.

Manu easily broke through O'Brien and took off to shoot next to him.

The moment the Argentinian took action, a red light appeared on the backboard.

The basketball hit the net, and this time, he didn't pass the blame.

"Go in again, Manu Ginobili, his mid-range jump shot almost killed the game! Spurs fans can cheer, Ginobili's shot allowed the Spurs to keep their first victory in San Antonio

!”

The whole audience cheered, and Manu, with his long hair flowing, scored his 26th personal point.

He made 10 of 16 shots from the field and his 62.5% shooting rate was comparable to the inside.

He left the Pacers with 16 seconds, but the point difference was widened to 8 points.

Even if Wayne has the purple "Big Heart Killer", it won't help.

There's no time.

Even McGrady's miracle moment took 35 seconds to complete.

What's more, the Spurs will never allow the same thing to happen twice.

Carlisle used up the last timeout and set up a quick three-pointer tactic for Wayne.

But all this has been guessed by the cunning "Penguin" on the other side.

After the game restarted, Duncan and Bowen sandwiched Wayne, with Bowen almost lying in Wayne's arms.

Wayne was unable to catch the ball, and in the critical moment, Xiao Ao could only hand it over to Wu Sheng.

But unfortunately, Wu Sheng's quick three-pointer failed to hit, which also meant that the Pacers completely lost hope.

At the end of 48 minutes, the Spurs won the first game of the Finals 96-87.

Manu raised his arms and ran on the court. Behind him, Duncan stretched out his claws, as if chasing his prey.

Otherwise, why do you think Manu runs so fast?

"Be good, come here and let me touch your head!"

Popovich stood up and glanced at Wayne intentionally or unintentionally.

When the two looked at each other, the old man raised his head slightly and smiled proudly.

1-0, with Reggie Miller's last wish and endless enthusiasm, the Cornfield Team came to San Antonio and suffered a heavy defeat.

"If I remember correctly, this is the first time the Pacers have lost their first playoff game this season. I don't know what they're going to do, this is adversity they've never faced before. Mike here.

Breen and Kevin Harlan, see you in the next game."

After Mike Brin finished speaking, he turned off the microphone and let out a big breath.

He opened his hands and found that his palms were all sweaty.

This finals game is indeed different from before.

Before, both the Pacers and the Spurs actually gave people a feeling of being at ease.

Although the Heat once forced the game to the King's Mountain, as Wayne said, they rely on explosion to win.

But this time the Pacers met the Spurs, it really gave people a feeling that everyone was evenly matched.

"It's all my fault, it's all my fault..." The moment the game ended, Xiao Ao shut himself up.

He believed that the failure was due to his failure to guard Manu in the end.

But the truth is more cruel than O'Brien thought - even if Manu doesn't score a goal, the Pacers will most likely not win today.

In today's game, it was not a collapse at a certain moment or someone's fault that led to the failure.

The Spurs can win because of their strong strength, tight defense and rigorous strategy.

Today, the Pacers' offensive efficiency was not very high. Under Duncan's defense, Wayne didn't have many chances to take shots and only scored 18 points in the game.

It's not just Wayne, it's more accurate to say that most people don't get very good shooting opportunities.

The defensive intensity and level of this game made the Pacers feel like they were back in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Pacers' defense against the Spurs was also very targeted, but Ginobili played very well today. Another thing is that although Duncan's shooting percentage is not high, it is not very low either, and he still scored a lot of points.

Duncan is Duncan, and he is at his peak when he is not yet 29 years old. This is the golden age for an insider.

"We still have a chance, Jermaine. Stand tall, we are not losers yet." Miller walked up and patted Xiao O's back.

After that, he talked to other teammates one by one.

Miller really doesn't want to see the team be broken up after just one game. This loss is indeed a blow to morale, but it is not fatal.

Being behind 0 to 1 just means that the start is a little slower than others.

Finally, Miller walked over to Wayne.

Although Wayne is a rookie, he faced this defeat calmly than most older players.
To be continued...