Now, everything has returned to the starting point, and that true Celestial King Mountain battle is coming.

In the fourth game, Mike Montgomery and the Warriors coaching staff, who had already made tactical adjustments to respond to the Spurs' changes in the third game, could only be thankful at this moment. The tenacious Los Angeles People successfully dragged the Spurs in the first round of the playoffs for them.

Before the fifth game, David Stern clearly told the world with the referee group list led by Bennett Salvatore:

The NBA will not interfere in this heavyweight Celestial King Mountain battle.

The Spurs and the Warriors will have a fair and just duel to determine who can change the course of this Western Conference Semifinals series.

Warriors fans, who just days ago began to imagine the picture of the Warriors advancing to the Western Conference finals, and Spurs fans, who were once worried that the team would be eliminated in the Western Conference Semifinals, will welcome this annual drama to be staged at the ATT Center with the same mood.

"After the Spurs dramatically tied the semifinals at 2-2, they will have home-court advantage in the upcoming fifth game.

But while paying attention to the focus battle between the Warriors and the Spurs, we should also care about the Seattle SuperSonics, who received the top pick they longed for at this year's draft lottery ceremony amid worldwide sympathy." ——ESPN News Update

In these days of fierce battles between the Spurs and the Warriors, the SuperSonics getting the top pick didn't even manage to steal the heat from the Spurs and the Warriors.

Because, just as in Qin Yue's memory, 2006 was a year universally recognized in advance as a weak draft year.

However, this universally recognized weak draft year underwent an unexpected twist within days after the Supersonics drew the top pick.

Under Jeff Schwartz's maneuvering, Andrea Bargnani's outstanding workout performance successfully impressed several NBA teams.

Especially in Charlotte, he received high praise from the God of Basketball, Michael Jordan.

"He's a kid who dared to say to my face, 'I will definitely blow past you.' He has the same great character as Qin. I highly appreciate his workout performance, and his shooting left a particularly deep impression on me."

If down the road, being praised by Jordan...

It could lead Bargnani to be questioned, or even lose his top pick spot because of this review.

But unfortunately...

At the current time, Jordan had already deemed Qin Yue would become the new ruler of the league even before Qin Yue entered the league.

And even Kwame Brown, with his increasingly outstanding performance with the Warriors... Now in more and more people's eyes, it was not Jordan's poor judgment at all back then. It was just that the Wizards and Jordan were too rough in their training approach with him.

Thus, due to a series of coincidences...

This handsome young man born in Rome, Bargnani, was successfully marketed by Jeff Schwartz to a level even he couldn't imagine.

Since Jordan says his character is like Qin Yue's, and scouts say he's a less athletic version of Qin Yue...

Then, does it matter if he has many shortcomings?

"Great, the Rockets have agreed in principle to trade with us at the draft."

That day, when Supersonic owner Howard Schultz learned that the Rockets were willing to carry out a trade involving Seattle's top pick for Yao Ming, he couldn't help feeling euphoric, delighted, and nearly so giddy that he almost fell and broke a tooth.

"Besides the top pick, what else do the Rockets want?"

"They also want Rashard Lewis."

"Too much, Rashard is an All-Star forward averaging over 20 points per game. We can't just give away an All-Star forward after also giving the top pick."

"Then the Rockets might make more outrageous demands."

"Give them, give them everything! Except for Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis, whoever they name, we'll give them that player."

Even Stern, a partner, only knew the first half of Schultz's grand plan, so Schultz did not explicitly tell the Supersonics management that day why he must keep Lewis.

"Andrea Bargnani's agent really helped us a lot!"

Indeed, it helped a lot.

Because with the Rockets' increasing interest in Bargnani, in this top-pick-for-top-pick trade, Lewis was even just a bargaining chip for them to negotiate with Supersonics.

At this moment, the Supersonics lineup still included good players such as Reidno, Radmanovic, Mickey Moore, and Reggie Evans.

As a team that was a powerhouse in the West just the previous year (referring to the Supersonics here), the Rockets could not be indifferent to those players in the Supersonics who had already proven themselves.

And in this trade, the Rockets also wanted more draft picks.

After all, sending away Yao Ming meant they had to temporarily set their sights further in the long run until Bargnani matured.

As for why Schultz must keep Lewis?

Of course, it was because, in an era when inflation hadn't gone wild yet, to exchange for that superstar power forward from Minnesota, the Supersonics had to "sacrifice" an All-Star forward.

Compared to Al Jefferson, whose career still needed growth and refining before Qin Yue's previous life trade, the aging Theo Ratliff, and the rookie Jerald Green, who averaged 5.2 points per game, apart from his jumping ability, proven nothing, and Ryan Gomes and Sebastian Terry, who also needed to prove themselves.

Without the perspective of time travel, with the Wolf King's decision to leave, Rashard Lewis was destined to be more attractive and demonstrate more sincerity than those players mentioned above.

Because Lewis was only 27 at this time.

He was an All-Star forward in his prime, proven in the playoffs.

Schultz was waiting for the completion of the trade with the Rockets at the draft, and then he would immediately have the Supersonics management send out a trade offer centered around Lewis, except for Ray Allen; the Timberwolves could choose from the rest.

And this was the second part of his great plan.

The part unknown even to Stern.

"Let you take it first now, but the future will certainly belong to Seattle."

The storm of history had already swept into every corner of the NBA with the appearance of Qin Yue.

And would intensify with his performance, blowing stronger and stronger until the end of the world.

On the night of the 20th.

The Warriors, led by Qin Yue, returned to the ATT Center.

After the baptism of the third and fourth games, the Warriors didn't lose confidence against this Spurs team despite losing two consecutive games.

The Spurs found the answers they wanted after the first two games losses.

The Warriors also found the truths they had been chasing through these two losses.

At the center of the court, Salvatore went to the center circle holding the ball.

Tonight, the Warriors changed their starters, so it was Qin Yue and Duncan jumping for balls.

Troy Murphy, the other member of the Golden State "waste duo," would replace Kwame Brown in the starting lineup.

Comparing tactical reserves, Mike Montgomery and the Warriors coaching staff knew they were not a match for the Spurs.

So they simply and brutally boosted the Warriors' offensive firepower in the starting lineup.

Five Warriors players with three-point range would join forces to play.

Chris Mullin described the Warriors' starting lineup before the game: "This is a starting lineup that only Lao Tang dares to field."

And to this, Montgomery quipped: "If Operation Overlord decades ago could win through firepower suppression, then now, our 'Operation Overlord' can only pin its hopes on firepower suppression."

Mullin laughed and said: "Tonight is our 'Normandy Landings' that will decide our fate!"

ATT Center, after the jump ball, Murphy fired the first shot of the Warriors' landing in San Antonio.

This spacey big man with a horse face, upon receiving a pass from Qin Yue, immediately pressed the trigger button with his left hand.

Swish—!

Murphy's three-pointer hit its mark, making the first strike for the Warriors.

This three-pointer was a signal.

It signaled that the Warriors would not sit and wait for death.

On the Spurs' bench, Popovich immediately gritted his teeth and said: "How do they have so many shooters?"

Beside him, Budenholzer smiled wryly: "In fact, in their usual lineup, only Kwame Brown and that Latvian center don't have three-point range."

This great invention of the three-point line would once again showcase its charm to the world tonight.

Because three points...

It really is one more point than two.

...

PS: A single day update of 12,000 words delivered, begging for subscriptions, monthly tickets! (Need to slow down for today, suddenly started burning up and talking nonsense)

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