Chapter 1222: Hammer, Are You Really Done?

Just as Zhang Lihe analyzed, in the following time, not only did Stoudemire lose his defense, but Chandler, the defensive stalwart that the Mavericks relied on, also lost his defense. Facing Li Ba's attack on the basket, he could only defend with his eyes, and even directly gave up the position under the basket.

This made it impossible for the Mavericks to play. With a gap of more than ten points, the situation quickly deteriorated.

In the 10th minute of the final quarter, the Mavericks fell behind by 20 points, and then replaced the main force.

At the end of the game, 97:116, the Suns won by 19 points.

Li Ba exerted himself in the fourth quarter and finally scored 32 points, 22 rebounds, 6 assists, 8 steals and 8 blocks.

The data was average, only 5*5, and the performance was average.

During the on-site interview, Li Ba was surrounded by the media.

"Iron Hammer, your performance was not good in this game. Is your physical reserve not good enough?" a reporter asked.

"Yes, I will probably rest in the next game. The Mavericks have a chance to win." Li Ba laughed.

The reporter was stunned. I just wanted to confront you. You said that so that I can't confront you again!

"Iron Hammer, you didn't play well in the first three quarters, why?" another reporter asked.

"We are not in good physical condition, everyone is not in good condition, and I am the same." Li Ba said with a smile.

During the entire on-site interview, Li Ba kept saying that the team had physical problems, which made reporters a little uncomfortable.

At the subsequent press conference, Li Ba continued to emphasize the physical problem.

As a result, the media's reports on the Suns the next day were all about physical problems, saying that the Suns were about to collapse.

"Iron Hammer, are you really not in good condition?" Dayao called in the morning.

"What are you talking about? Who is not in good condition?" Li Ba said unhappily.

Dayao laughed and said, "Are you really not in good condition?"

"Can a man say no? I just fooled those media and played with them. My physical fitness is better than anyone else. I can beat ten bull sharks without any problem." Li Ba said.

He was not bragging. Before the system disappeared, his physical fitness reached 99 points. In addition to the usual maintenance with lubricating oil, there are still one billion reproducible nanoworms in his body. He is absolutely a physical monster, and it is not a problem at all.

"Damn it, I thought I had a chance." Yao Ming said disappointedly.

"You're just dreaming. We have to be cautious when playing against the Mavericks, otherwise what will happen in the finals? As for you guys, you may not even be able to pass the Heat." Li Ba laughed.

The Heat and Celtics will play G2 of the Eastern Conference Finals tomorrow. The Celtics will win the first game, but as the series unfolds, Li Ba is actually not optimistic about the Celtics, because like the Suns, the lineup is too old.

"Then let you see how we beat the Heat." Yao Ming shouted unconvinced, and then hung up the phone.

That night, the Heat played against the Celtics, and the two teams were deadlocked and entered overtime.

In overtime, the Celtics' veterans failed to hold on and were tied by the Heat at 1:1.

Yao Ming made 7 of 17 shots and 7 of 9 free throws. He was not as efficient as in the previous game, scoring 21 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks, 2 turnovers and 4 fouls.

He was still pulled out to play in this game, but was double-teamed by Gasol and Bosh, which formed a good defensive effect on him.

After the game, he returned to the locker room and called Li Ba, asking: "Iron Hammer, how did you break the double-team of Bosh and Gasol?"

"Two rookies, just catch them and beat them up." Li Ba's answer was simple.

"Speak human language." Dayao said unhappily.

"How else can I beat them? The Heat did use the two of them to double-team me, but I got rid of Gasol first, and then played against Bosh after receiving the ball. With Bosh's small body, can he withstand my strong attack? If I don't beat him up, what can I do?" Li Ba said.

Dayao sighed: "Rashed Wallace is not good. He can't make a few shots when he is pulled out. He was left open on the offensive end of the court. Otherwise, the Heat would not be able to double-team me. Iron Hammer, let Alian come to our Celtics next year?"

"You say it yourself, I don't care." Li Ba said indifferently.

"Then I'll talk to Yuanyuan?" Yao said excitedly.

"How big a contract can the Celtics give to Yi Jianlian?" Li Ba asked.

This year is Yi Jianlian's rookie contract year. After the playoffs, he will be a restricted free agent. He can indeed choose to leave the Suns. Li Ba has no intention of forcing him to stay. He will let him go wherever he is more suitable for Yi Jianlian.

However, the Celtics' lineup is too old. Although there is indeed a chance to replace Rasheed Wallace, the Celtics' lineup will not last long and may not be a good place to go.

In Li Ba's view, if Yi Jianlian wants to leave the Suns and go to the Celtics, it is better to go to the Lakers.

The combination of Duncan and Gasol in the Lakers' interior is too slow. If they replace Duncan and Yi Jianlian, their athletic ability will be better and their defense will be better.

"How do I know this? I just said that. Isn't this a discussion with you?" Yao said.

"You can mention it to Yuanyuan. I have no objection." Li Ba said.

The two chatted for a few words and then hung up.

On May 19, the Western Conference Finals Game 2 began.

In this game, the media still favored the Mavericks. It was generally believed that the Suns were no longer physically fit. They relied on Li Ba's final burst to win the last game. In this game, the Mavericks were well prepared and would definitely come back.

Even Barkley said in his pre-match analysis: "The Hammer's physical fitness should not be too good, otherwise he would not have waited until the last quarter to explode in Game 1. So in this Game 2, the Mavericks should seize this opportunity to win back a game, and then return to the home court, which will be more advantageous. In short, the development of the series is very unfavorable to the Suns, but relatively better for the Mavericks."

Kenny Smith said: "The Suns should also use the strategy of Game 1 tonight, stalemate in the first three quarters, and explode in the last quarter, so as to save more physical energy."

The Mavericks were also influenced by the media, and coach Carlisle formulated a strategy for Game 2 based on these situations.

His central idea is to break the Suns' defense in the first three quarters, strive to establish a score advantage in the first three quarters, and then withstand the Suns' counterattack in the last quarter.

If a score advantage is established, he believes that Li Ba will accumulate physical energy in the first three quarters like the previous game, and will not attack too much, so he did not arrange a double-team tactic against Li Ba.

Both teams maintained the starting lineup of the previous game. The game started, Li Ba won the jump ball, and the Suns attacked.

Li Ba ran to the basket, Chandler defended him alone.

"Oh, the Mavericks are really brave!" Zhang Heli said in surprise.

At this moment, Li Ba turned around and blocked, stretched his arms to the left and right, blocked Chandler behind him, and then Nash's ball came in.

Li Ba immediately arched back after receiving the ball, arched Chandler into the Heli collision zone, and then jumped up and dunked.

"Beep!"

Amid the cheers of the whole audience, the referee blew the whistle, pointed at Chandler, and made a blocking foul gesture.

Li Ba made the free throw, and the Mavericks attacked.

"It should just be a start." Carlisle gritted his teeth and decided to wait a little longer.

The Mavericks attacked.