Upon hearing this, Popovich looked at Qin Yue, who had declined his gesture of goodwill, sneered coldly, and then immediately turned and left.

Seeing this, Duncan said, "You shouldn't have talked back to Pop earlier. He was actually praising you before the game."

Qin Yue replied, "I have my own way of playing. I don't agree with what he just said. Trust me, within five years at most, he'll be proclaiming three-pointers as amazing."

Duncan patted Jack, who happened to be passing by, on the head and asked, "What does 'amazing' mean?"

Qin Yue explained, "It means he'll retract what he just said."

Duncan shook his head and said, "Pop has always been a very stubborn person."

Qin Yue shrugged and said, "But that's the reality. Do you see him blaming Manu Ginobili for those reckless shots on the court?"

Duncan held his chest and said, "But I do disdain them, you know, us inside players can't stand those kinds of shots."

Indeed.

No inside player could possibly like Ginobili and Kobe.

Because when they take shots at will on the court, they never consider if their team's inside players are in a favorable position to contest for the offensive rebound.

The pre-game reminiscing came to an end.

During the introduction ceremony, the already eerie ATT Center instantly turned into a gigantic "coffin."

Only when the magnesium lights came back on did this "coffin" have a bit of vitality.

In the center of the court, the renowned "Emperor's Referee" Dan Crawford walked towards the center circle with the ball.

In Qin Yue's previous life, Crawford was famous for being present at games where LeBron James would inevitably win.

However, this "Emperor's Referee" had not only helped LeBron ascend to his throne.

In 1998, Michael Jordan's "Last Shot" was also officiated by him.

Additionally, in this life, in the 4 games officiated by Crawford, Qin Yue averaged 14 free throws per game.

Clearly, the league expressed their desire not to see the Spurs in the finals two years in a row through their actions.

Though Crawford couldn't show bias throughout the game.

But being able to enjoy home court treatment on the road was enough for Qin Yue.

On the court, under Crawford's reminder, both teams' starters quickly lined up.

Spurs starters: Duncan, Horry, Bowen, Ginobili, Parker.

Warriors starters: Brown, Qin Yue, Ah Tai, Richardson, Davis.

In the jump ball segment, Old Champion Scholar Duncan beat Champion Scholar Brown, winning possession for the Spurs.

At the opening attack, as Parker dribbled up the court, he suddenly accelerated using Duncan's screen.

Davis failed to force around the screen and didn't gain enough time to delay for Qin Yue.

Then, Parker made a jump shot from near the free-throw line.

0 to 2.

This was a typical "DP" pick-and-roll.

Duncan, having anticipated his teammate's movement, at the perfect moment, using a standard, solid screen, taught Davis, who usually used Qin Yue's pick-and-roll to bully opponents, a harsh lesson.

Seeing this, Qin Yue proactively patted Davis on the shoulder, "Next time they run a pick-and-roll, let's switch directly."

Davis, looking surprised, asked, "Not going with the delay tactic?"

Qin Yue shook his head and replied, "Tony Parker's speed off the start is too fast. We'll switch first, then look for a chance to switch back."

Davis understood that Qin Yue was going full throttle on defense tonight and thus hesitated no more.

In the Spurs' half, facing the Warriors' Flex offense, Bowen and Horry each threw an elbow at Ah Tai, responsible for the low post block, successfully thwarting the Warriors' play initiation.

At that moment, Ah Tai, the tough guy, showed his "bully the weak, fear the strong" side.

In fact, in the NBA, many so-called tough guys also opt for a retreat when necessary.

But Qin Yue seized the opportunity when Ah Tai took a hit and successfully maneuvered to the top of the arc, executing a hand-off with Davis.

Horry couldn't accurately gauge the intention behind the Warriors' play, so he took a step back.

It was this step that gave Qin Yue the immediate opportunity to attempt a three-pointer after turning around.

At the top of the arc, Qin Yue decisively shot a three.

Bang——!

On the sideline, seeing this scene, Popovich said disdainfully, "Inside players shouldn't shoot too often from outside, especially not a core inside player like him."

In Popovich's eyes, Qin Yue was indeed a tempting gem, but in the Warriors' clumsy hands, this gem had become a flawed piece of jewelry.

"He's taking too many inefficient shots on the court. We're not the Mavericks; this series is sure to be his Waterloo."

With the assistance of the Spurs' staff, Popovich believed that with their solid but dynamic defense, the Spurs would teach Qin Yue, this audacious young man, what the correct way to play was.

In return, Parker's penetration and pass found Horry, guarded by Brown.

Unfortunately, Horry continued the slump from his previous playoff rounds, with the three-pointer rimming out.

Qin Yue protected the defensive rebound for the Warriors under the basket.

Then, at the moment when Qin Yue dribbled grandly across half-court, Popovich, who always reorganized his understanding of the basketball era with the help of the Spurs' staff, said, "He shouldn't be wasting energy on things like this."

Yet, just as the words left Popovich's mouth on the sideline.

Seeing all the Spurs' transition defense players retreat into the paint, Qin Yue simply pulled up for a three-pointer from the outside.

Inside players indeed shouldn't take too many threes.

Because in a basketball game, if all your inside players are outside, who will chase offensive rebounds?

But...

Who told Popovich that only Qin Yue could chase offensive rebounds for the Warriors?

In the Spurs' paint, as Qin Yue completed the shot, Brown and Ah Tai both sprinted back into position.

Swish——!

And after successfully hitting his first three-pointer of the night, Qin Yue, feeling good about his shot in the pre-game warm-up, immediately turned and shouted at the Spurs' bench: "That's the first one."

After a pause, Qin Yue added, "There are many more to come. Just let me keep shooting threes if you dare."

...

PS: Over 8000 chapters! Continuing to plead for subscriptions and monthly votes! Additionally, thank you to "Dong Jie Lao Mao" for the generous reward, Ah Qiao will return your grandmaster's 10,000-word chapter shortly.

Note①: The symbol for the Spurs' home court couldn't be typed out in many books, so from now on, we'll call it the ATT Center.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.