Chapter 101 Finals: Mavericks vs. Pistons
"The team that won the first ticket to the 04-05 Finals has appeared, and that is the Dallas Mavericks!
This is the first time in the history of the Dallas Mavericks that they have made it to the finals. Before this, they had never made it to the finals once. These players created new history.

In the seventh game, all the players of the Mavericks performed excellently. All eight players of the team played and scored points. At the same time, four of them scored in double digits. Among them, Zheng Yang, who scored 8 points in Game 6, scored 50 points, 28 rebounds and 8 assists in this game, and finally won the Western Conference Finals MVP!

It is hard to imagine that a 19-year-old young player can do this, but if it is Zheng, it seems quite reasonable. After all, this guy has been creating surprises for us.

We can no longer predict what heights he will reach in the future. Maybe he can be as famous as Michael Jordan, or maybe he can surpass Michael Jordan and become the basketball god of the 21st century.

Don't set a limit for him, because he will break the limit you set again and again!
Let us continue to pay attention to the Dallas Mavericks' games and see if they can continue to make history and win the first championship trophy in team history.

By the way, the best lineup of the 04-05 season was announced not long ago, and Zheng Yang was successfully selected into the best first team. Also selected with him were Tim Duncan, Steve Nash, Allen Iverson, and Shaquille O'Neal. Among them, Zheng is the youngest and there is a big age gap between him and the other players.

In addition, Zheng was selected to the best defensive second team. Fans have always paid attention to Zheng's offense, but in fact he is also a player with strong defensive ability. His outstanding physical talent and defensive awareness make him the team's outside defensive gate.

Can he be selected to both the All-NBA First Team and the All-Defensive First Team in the future?

I think this is entirely possible, but he still needs some time to gain experience.

Zheng, don't improve too fast. If you keep improving so fast, there will be no players in the league who can keep up with you. I mean, by then you will have to play in outer space, haha!"

This is a part of the column that Sports Illustrated wrote for Zheng Yang after the seventh game. The editor's love for Zheng Yang can be seen between the lines.

Yes, a young player who has explosive playing style, is gentle and modest off the court, and always has a smile on his face. Apart from his opponents, how many people would dislike him?

While the outside world was praising Zheng Yang, the seventh game in the Eastern Conference was also in full swing.

As can be seen from the final score of 88:82, this game was also a very intense hand-to-hand fight, and the suspense of the game was not revealed until the last moment.

In the end, the defending champion Pistons were better and beat their opponent, the Heat. In this game, O'Neal scored 63 points and 27 rebounds with a hit rate of 9%, strongly proving that his selection into the All-NBA First Team was not in vain.

The team's core Wade scored 20 points, 1 rebound and 4 assists, with a shooting percentage of only 35%.

If Wade is held to the standard of a team's second or third-in-command, then his performance is remarkable except for his low shooting percentage.

But Wade is the leader of this Heat team. As the star player, it is somewhat disappointing that he cannot score more points with a higher hit rate when the team is facing a life-and-death battle.

However, considering that he is only a sophomore, this performance is acceptable.

Only with Wade as a comparison, everyone can better appreciate Zheng Yang's greatness. After all, as a rookie in the same class, Zheng Yang scored a full 6 points in the team's life-and-death battle, especially in Game 50, and his hit rate remained above average.

This kind of strength is simply shocking.

After losing the game, Wade called Zheng Yang late at night. The latter happened to be awake too, and the two chatted about a lot of things.

Wade on the other end of the phone was a little choked up. After all, he lost such a hard-earned opportunity to compete for the championship, and also lost the chance to meet Zheng Yang in the finals.

Zheng Yang could only continue to comfort him and tell him to work harder next year.

The one who felt the most uncomfortable after losing the game might not be Wade, but "The Big Shark" O'Neal.

After all, one is a sophomore rookie and the other is a 33-year-old veteran of the team!
This guy cried for a long time in the locker room after losing the seventh game. Maybe he knew that at the age of 33, he didn't have many chances to win the championship, or maybe he was helpless because he lost to the Pistons for two consecutive years...

This is how competition works. Where there are winners, there will be losers. No one wants to be a loser, but there will always be someone who becomes the loser.

……

At this point, the two teams for this year's finals have been determined. On the Eastern Conference side, it is last year's defending champion Detroit Pistons, and on the Western Conference side, it is the Dallas Mavericks.

The meeting of these two teams in the finals was both unexpected and reasonable.

As for who will win this series, public opinion is mainly on the Pistons side.

Although everyone likes Zheng and the Mavericks, strength still matters on the court. Judging from the strength on paper, last year's champion Pistons are obviously stronger.

Moreover, the Pistons' iron-clad defense will definitely cause huge trouble for the Mavericks' offense. Even last year's Lakers couldn't break through their defense. Can the Mavericks?

No one has the confidence to say such a thing!

Conversely, when the Mavericks' offense doesn't work, can they use their defense to stop the Pistons, who are all-in on defense?
It doesn't seem likely.

The Mavericks' spear can't penetrate the Pistons' shield, and their shield can't stop the opponent's spear. So how can the Mavericks win this series?
Is it going to take a miracle?

Perhaps only if a miracle happens will they have a chance to win this year's championship trophy.

Dallas fans are quite calm about the current public opinion situation. It’s just that they are not favored. Alas, they have always been the underdog in this year’s playoffs.

In the end, they still made it to the finals.

Besides, winning would be the best, but they won’t lose even if they lose. Anyway, making it to the NBA Finals this year is already a pleasant surprise and makes history.

Zheng Yang and Nowitzki are still young, and they will win the championship sooner or later.

On the other hand, the Detroit fans were very aggressive. Perhaps it was because two consecutive championships were just around the corner that made them so excited that they couldn't control themselves.

So they began to constantly provoke the Mavericks.

For example, in the pre-Game 1 poster made by Detroit fans, Zheng Yang was surrounded by the Pistons' starting five with a panicked look on his face, and there was a crown lying on the ground. The meaning was naturally self-evident.

Or write on the banner "Give these rookies in the finals a sweeping experience"...

The desire to sweep their opponents in the finals is enough to show the arrogance of these Pistons fans.

Of course, there is a reason why they are so crazy. Last year, they defeated the so-called Lakers "F4" 1-4 and won the championship.

This year, the Heat, ranked first in the Eastern Conference, were sent home to go fishing again. With such an overwhelming momentum, how could a small Mavericks team resist it?

The situation of the alliance being strong in the west and weak in the east has been going on for a long time, and now is the time for a change! …

The first game of the finals was held in Dallas. When the plane carrying the Pistons players landed, a large group of media who had been waiting there for a long time rushed over with guns and cannons.

"How do you think Zheng will perform against your defense?"

A reporter asked hurriedly.

Hearing this question, Richard Hamilton smiled and then leaned forward with interest.

"He won't score more than 20 points in a game, I promise! Don't listen to those guys in suits and ties sitting in the office praising that young man, they don't understand basketball at all.

That young man is not difficult to defend at all, and I will show him what real defense is when the time comes."

After he left, Billups came over and added another sentence.

"We'll play two games in Dallas and then two games in Detroit, so our fans can be at home and see us lift that championship trophy again.

Hope to see you next time, we are already discussing who will be the Finals MVP."

The arrogant words immediately attracted the attention of all the reporters. Everyone pointed their cameras at him, but he smiled at the camera, made a "yeah" gesture, and then left.

The entire Pistons team exuded a sense of relaxation from beginning to end!

Whether they did this to confuse the Mavericks or they really meant it, it can be seen that this Pistons team is determined to win the championship this year.

Zheng Yang over there was somewhat puzzled after seeing the report in the newspaper.

No dude, the game hasn't even started yet? Already talking about FMVP?
Please respect us a little!

But I'm not really angry. It's normal to provoke someone before a game. There's nothing to be angry about.

If he wanted to, he could brag about himself in front of the media and belittle the other party at the same time, but there was no need for that.

Having said so much, we still have to look at the hard power on the court.

……

Two days before the game, Nelson talked to everyone about the strategy for the upcoming game during training. This is also a regular feature of the Mavericks. There will be this session at the start of each new series.

"Guys, the good news is that we have made it to the finals and helped the team fill this gap, but the bad news is that the enemy we met may be the strongest one in our playoff journey.

The Detroit Pistons, last year's championship team, swept the Lakers and won the championship last year.

This year, judging from the current situation, their strength has not declined significantly. On the contrary, after winning the championship, their playing style has become more stable.

This is a team that is more defensive than offensive. There are no bad defensive loopholes in their starting five. They like to play zone defense with a lot of people crowded in the paint area. If you dare to go in, you will be slapped away.

In order to break their zone defense, we need to increase the proportion of outside shots to force them to give up the zone defense, but don't be fooled into the shooting trap by them.

We still have to keep trying to attack the basket to make our offense three-dimensional. If we only rely on shooting, it will be difficult for us to maintain our shooting touch in a game with such high intensity and great physical exertion.

As for their offense, although this is their weak link, we still need to remain vigilant.

Rasheed Wallace's shooting is very accurate. He is like a sharp sword, always able to give his opponent a fatal blow at the critical moment.

Chauncey Billups is like the brain of the team. He always makes the right decisions and leads the team forward steadily.

Richard Hamilton's quick breakthroughs and accurate mid-range shots are also a major threat to the Pistons.

In general, although this team does not have players with explosive scoring abilities, their offense is also very threatening thanks to their tacit cooperation.

However, as long as we are more careful on the field, we can still limit their offense to a great extent.

In other words, if we want to win this series, it mainly depends on our offense.

Come on guys, the finals is a brand new attempt for us. Although the outside world is not optimistic about us and the Pistons also believe that they will be able to successfully defend their title, don't forget what Zheng often says - everything is possible.

I am looking forward to having a championship banner that belongs to us raised above this arena. At that time, we will be the heroes of this city."

Old Nelson's words were powerful and his expression was very high. As he said, reaching the finals was also a brand new experience for him.

But now that they have made it to the finals, there is no way they will just give up the championship. They have to at least compete with the Pistons.

Besides, the Mavericks may not necessarily lose to the Pistons!
After old Nelson finished speaking, Zheng Yang also came out and said a few words.

"Brothers, get excited, we are about to play in the finals, and many fans will be sitting in front of the TV to watch our game.

Also, don't act like the championship has already been decided. We are now on the same starting line as the Pistons and we also have the opportunity to win the championship.

I don’t care what an impregnable fortress the Pistons have inside. I want to win the championship, so even if there’s an abyss inside, I’m going to jump in and take a look.

Everybody just relax and focus on the game. Believe me, we will definitely win this championship.

I promise everyone!"

Zheng Yang's speech was not as passionate as that of old Nelson, but now Zheng Yang is the spiritual leader of the team. One of his words may be more useful than ten or a hundred words from others.

No matter what kind of jackals, tigers, leopards, or beasts the Pistons are, since Zheng Yang said he wanted to beat them, they would definitely go all out.

The Pistons will have to wait and see in the game the day after tomorrow. It’s not that easy to snatch the victory in their home court!
(End of this chapter)