Reggie Miller lay on the floor and let the masseur "trample" his body.
Although he was surrounded by boos, Miller Sr. still enjoyed this moment of relaxation before the game.
As usual, after receiving the massage, Miller practiced his mid-range and long-range shooting with the help of a trainer.
Even in a stadium full of opposing fans at the Palace of Auburn Hills, Miller's hit rate was quite impressive.
He took 50 three-pointers and made 41 of them. He took 30 free throws and made 29 of them.
Although he is already an out-and-out veteran, and although it is Artest and O'Neal who are truly carrying the Pacers forward, Miller has never relaxed his demands on himself.
He tried his best to adjust himself to the best condition to deal with various emergencies.
Things like what happened in Game 2 of the series... he never wanted it to happen again.
After the warm-up, more and more fans gathered in the stands, and reporters also began to pour into the stadium one after another.
An ESPN reporter found Miller, obviously hoping to invite this team soul-level figure for a pre-game interview.
Miller nodded and reminded the reporter: "Hurry up."
"Reggie, you took a lot of three-pointers before the game. Does that mean you hope you can keep a good touch when you execute the last shot?"
The first question is very common.
Miller was not nervous and looked relaxed.
“What I care about is whether the competitions I participate in meet the standards I expect, which is the key to whether I am satisfied.
I don’t really care whether I can get the last shot in the game, and I don’t always want to have the Miller moment.
I have been in the league for many years, and I am used to looking at the outcome of the game with a cold eye. So, I warmed up hard before the game, just to have a clear conscience during the game. "
"Really? If that's the case, then why did you get so angry that you kicked the ball into the stands after the second game of the series?"
Reporters ruthlessly exposed Miller's lies.
Take winning and losing lightly? You say others are about the same, but you, Miller, are definitely not that kind of person.
Miller's originally calm face showed a slight change. He frowned and then looked up at the basket.
Second game of the series, why so angry?
He began to recall the events of that night.
At that time, there were 98 seconds left in the game and the Pacers were trailing the Pistons by 6 points.
At the critical moment, no one on the Pacers could help, and Miller had to take action himself.
He stepped up and scored 4 points in a row, narrowing the gap to 2 points in the last 46 seconds.
Miller is in hot form at this time, and everyone is hoping that he can make Miller's presence felt again and allow the Pacers to go to Detroit with a total score of 2-0.
However, in a crucial attack that determined the course of the game, Miller's fast break layup was blocked by Tayshaun Prince who appeared out of nowhere.
The miracle ended here. This incident made Prince popular all over the United States and directly shattered the Pacers' confidence.
In the end, the Pistons won this dramatic game 72-67 on the road.
After the game, Miller kicked the game ball away, seemingly venting his frustration.
If he could be a little faster and two or three years younger, maybe he wouldn't be blocked?
But there are no maybes and ifs on the basketball court, so Miller can only vent his emotions by playing football.
As a result, he was also fined $5,000 by the league.
Thinking of what happened that day, Miller's expression became even more uneasy.
Yes, what about not caring about victory? This is just for outsiders to hear...
"Do you want to know why? Because the championship is the dream I have been pursuing for many years!" Miller said, turned and left, ending the interview.
His lies fell apart on their own.
When a man in his 40s says the word "dream".
You can see how persistent he is about this.
Today is June 1st, Children's Day.
At the same time, it is also the day .
The Indiana Pacers, who previously ranked first in the regular season, will face their life-and-death battle at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
That's right, a battle of life and death.
Because at this time, the total score of the series became 3 to 2, and the Pistons got the match point.
This "grassroots team" that was not optimistic about the team before only needs to win one more game to advance to the finals.
Their grassroots myth is really somewhat similar to this year's NCAA champion Cowboys.
At the same time, this also means that if the league's top Pacers lose one more game, they will have to pack up and leave.
Miller tried to calm himself before the game, so he deliberately acted as if he didn't care.
But the reporter's questions made him a little impatient now.
Championship, championship...his championship dream was in jeopardy again.
After the game started, both sides engaged in hand-to-hand combat as usual.
This series was played very roughly and brutally, and the score was not high because both sides focused on defense.
The key to victory for both sides is to try every possible way to make the other side less efficient than themselves.
This style of play is very different from the style that pursued high efficiency ten years later.
Such a rough game can easily cause friction between players on both sides.
The game had only been going on for five minutes when Artest started arguing with Big Ben.
A minute later, Tianzun and O'Neal Jr. had a physical collision under the basket that was beyond the scope of the game.
The game was extremely bloody and both sides were almost on the verge of losing control.
The court was filled with scenes of people falling and tough physical confrontations, which had nothing to do with Stern's fantasy of "beautiful basketball" and "gentleman's basketball".
However, this "ugly" game made all the fans excited.
This is the real battle.
The game went on like this, and neither side was able to widen the score.
When Wayne and Tony Allen finished training and rushed back to their residence to turn on the TV, the score was 63 to 67, with the Pistons leading by 4 points.
If it was 2020, Wayne would definitely think the game had just started the third quarter when he saw this score.
But at this time, the game had already reached the last 1 minute and 3 seconds.
"Oh my god, this is so tense. Wayne, who do you bet on will win this series? Whoever loses will have to get up and make breakfast tomorrow morning!" Tony Allen rubbed his hands and started setting up the gambling table.
"If the Pistons win, I'll bet you three days. If I lose, I'll make breakfast for three days."
"The Pistons? They may be leading in the total score now, but the Pacers are number one in the league! Besides, the Pistons don't look like champions, do they? Do you really think they will become the Eastern Conference champions?"
"Well, I'll bet on the Pistons anyway." Wayne shrugged. This kind of game was no suspense for him.
If possible, Wayne will make another bet with Tony in the finals. I guess Wayne won’t have to make breakfast for himself before the draft starts.
Good brother...of course it's used to cheat!
At this time, O'Neal Jr. received the basketball in the low post and turned around to make a jump shot.
However, this crucial shot missed due to the interference of Roaring Heavenly Master.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that Tianzun feels embarrassed when he mentions Wayne, his hard power is indeed strong enough.
O'Neal Jr.'s shooting percentage today was very bad, just over 40%, and that was all thanks to God.
To be exact, throughout the entire series, the guy ranked third in the MVP rankings performed very poorly.
Some media have begun to call O'Neal Jr. a "regular season superstar and playoff giant baby."
"What are you doing? We have to seize the opportunity! Damn!" Artest yelled at O'Neal, even saying the F-word.
It's no secret that O'Neal Jr. doesn't have a stable scoring method in critical moments.
"Stop yelling at me, retreat quickly!" O'Neal was also angry. His relationship with Artest was not as good as people imagined.
It is difficult for a guy like Artest, who is full of thorns and aggressiveness, and a guy like O'Neal, who is tough, to get along with each other.
If it weren't for Miller's pressure in the locker room, and if it weren't for the Pacers' excellent record this year that covered up many conflicts, these two guys would have exploded long ago.
Fortunately, Prince of the Pistons also missed his mid-range shot, preventing the score from widening further.
The score difference is still 4 points, but the time left for the Pacers is getting less and less.
This time, Artest decided to step up and take the offensive lead for O'Neal Jr. He did not trust O'Neal Jr.'s performance at the critical moment.
But how good is he? He is not a particularly stable scoring point, and he is even worse at critical moments.
"Artest also missed a three-pointer. Oh my god, will the league's No. 1 team be eliminated because of this? They are just one step away from the finals!"
The commentator looked at the time and saw that the Pacers almost missed their best chance.
Miller sighed, this game reminded him of those experiences during the regular season.
The thing he was most worried about happened.
At critical moments, this team did not have a stable scoring point.
No one can confidently pat their chest and say, "Give me the ball, I'll take care of it."
O'Neal can't do it, and Artest can't do it even more.
Miller didn't care much about losing the regular season game.
Even though they lost the second game of the series, he could still tell himself that he still had a chance.
But if I lose again today...
"Damn it!" Miller cursed inwardly. In the end, does he still have to rely on himself when he is nearly 40 years old?
But this time, the Pistons didn't give the Pacers a chance to struggle.
Billups made a magical ground pass to assist Big Ben in scoring a dunk under the basket!
O'Neal's attention was drawn to Billups, so the basket was left empty.
After the dunk, Big Ben did not forget to yell at Artest.
Artest gritted his teeth. If Big Ben wasn't even bigger than him, he would have taught the guy with the afro a lesson.
It’s not that I’m afraid of being fined or banned, the key is... I’m afraid of losing!
"With 11 seconds left, the Pacers trailed by 6 points. Coach Carlisle called a timeout. They were just inches away from hell!"
At the Palace of Auburn Hills, Pistons fans cheered.
Of course, the way they cheer is different from fans in other cities.
At this time, the Pacers players sitting on the bench had to endure the dirty words sprayed by the fans behind them while listening to Carlisle's tactical arrangements.
"Harrington, help Miller block Hamilton. Jermaine, try to contain Ben in the paint so that he can't split his attention. Reggie, you take this shot!"
Miller looked at Carlisle and nodded silently.
A championship-contending team can only rely on a nearly 40-year-old veteran for the key ball...
How sad this is.
But did Carlisle have a choice? He didn't.
His team can defend key shots, but they can't necessarily make them.
In the end, Miller, whose physical strength was almost exhausted, failed to make this life-and-death shot.
He is no longer the Miller who scored 8 points in 9 seconds, pushed away the "God" to complete the buzzer-beater, and strangled Spike Lee's neck with both hands.
He is almost 40 years old, and this burden should be carried by others.
but……
"Fuck!" Bird turned off the TV and threw the remote control.
Beside him, the team's general manager Donnie Walsh remained silent.
The general manager's office was silent for a long time until the Indiana basketball legend stood up.
4-2, the Detroit Pistons defeated the league's top-ranked Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.
All their efforts for a year were wasted.
"Larry..."
"Stop talking. You can see that we are just one step away from winning the championship!" Bird interrupted Walsh forcefully before he could finish.
"how do you want to do it?"
"Reinforce!"
"Who to strengthen?"
"The people we need."
"Even from the damn draft?" Walsh also became serious. He knew what Bird wanted to do.
Walsh also confirmed that Bird knew that he had never been optimistic about Wayne.
Bird didn't answer, but walked out of the office.
Walsh also cursed in annoyance.
From O'Neal to Artest, from Bird to Walsh...
When the Pacers experienced losses, this 60-win team was not as solid as people thought.