"You've missed me three times in a row."

"All you know how to do is shoot?"

"You think you can beat LeBron playing like this in the Finals?"

"Seriously, forget Scarlett, even *I* wouldn't look at you."

……

When it came to motivational speeches, Tang Tian was in a league of his own. And when it came to trash talk, if he wasn't the only one, he was definitely top-tier.

In his previous life, he was a coach day in and day out, listening to this stuff until his ears were calloused.

And as a coach, he had to maintain a certain image, but now…

Talking trash was so damn satisfying!

No wonder everyone loved doing it.

Durant already had one technical foul, and with two he'd be ejected, so he could only listen and endure.

But holding it all in was painful!

The result was a significant fluctuation in his performance.

Westbrook and Harden were both in good form this game, with the former scoring 22 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists, and the latter scoring 26 points.

But under Tang Tian's extremely soul-crushing trash talk offensive, Durant had his most erratic game of the series.

He shot 7-for-21 from the field, scoring only 18 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

The Thunder also suffered a crushing 87-107 defeat to the Spurs at home, and were eliminated 2-4.

After the game, his anger hadn't subsided. He refused to be interviewed by reporters, and even kicked over a trash can in the player tunnel.

The trash can became a real punching bag.

First there was Stoudemire smashing the fire extinguisher cabinet, and now a trash can being kicked over. Public facilities in the NBA playoffs were having a rough year.

The way the series ended was unexpected, and social media exploded after the game.

"First of all, I'm a Thunder fan, and I was sitting in the front row. Tang's playing style is so unsportsmanlike. He spent the whole game trash-talking Durant, and it was really nasty stuff."

"Yeah, I heard it too. It's really lacking in basketball charm!"

"Sour grapes. Is Tang the only one in the league who trash-talks? How come no one else reacts? It's just that Durant's own mental fortitude isn't good enough!"

"Why be honorable when you can win?"

"Couldn't agree more. If things within the rules aren't allowed, then isn't Paul the biggest sinner?"

"Paul: Cannon Fist warning!"

"I still think this method is unsportsmanlike. I prefer head-to-head confrontations, not relying on these so-called skills."

"Bullshit, no head-to-head confrontation? Didn't you see how inefficient Durant was when he singled out Tang?"

"Haha, the keyboard warriors don't even watch the games. They think Tang's trash talk got Durant ejected. In fact, Tang's purpose was to get Durant to single him out, and then defend him."

"Exactly! How can that be called unsportsmanlike?! Is there a tougher way to play?"

……

The comments on social media quickly became one-sided.

Tang's purpose and result of trash-talking was to get Durant to single him out, and he completely shut down Durant like he did in the regular season.

With this consensus, even the Thunder fans were powerless to refute.

The fans' discussion didn't last long.

With the Thunder being eliminated in the Western Conference Finals, Ibaka was facing contract renewal, and Harden only had one year left on his rookie contract.

The Thunder were facing a situation where they would soon have to pay the luxury tax.

But with the Thunder out, the fans' attention quickly shifted away from them.

Now the Spurs had fought their way out of the West.

They were just waiting to see the results from the East.

The Heat were determined to win the championship, and James' speech after winning the regular season MVP also emphasized that the Heat's only goal this season was to win the championship.

But they were beaten by the Celtics to 3-2…

However, in the crucial sixth game, James put on a dominant performance on the road, scoring a super stat line of 45+15+5, helping the team win and drag the game into a Game 7.

The Celtics had a turbulent season, 4-2 in the first round, 4-3 in the second round, every series was a hard fought battle.

No one expected them to go to such a point with the Heat, the biggest favorite to win the championship.

Before Game 7 even started, there were countless opinions on social media about who would win in the end.

"I think the Bostonians will shock everyone in the end, just like the Mavericks last year. Old soldiers never die!"

"I'd rather the Heat win. If the Celtics win, I really don't think they have the strength to fight the Spurs."

"I also hope the Heat win, after all, I predicted at the beginning of the season that Tang would steal the ball from James and help the Spurs win the championship."

"Honestly, I think the Heat have already won this series after winning Game 6."

……

The Heat and Celtics were going to Game 7, and the Spurs were waiting comfortably.

Popovich was still in the film room, arranging for his players to watch the live broadcast of Game 7 together.

Watching potential competitors fight to the death was actually quite satisfying.

"Tang, who do you think will win?" Green sat down next to Tang and started chatting with him.

"Win? The Heat for sure."

Tang gave a very affirmative answer.

"Hmm?" Green was curious.

"Haven't you been paying attention? Bosh didn't play in the first four games. The Heat are 2-1 since Bosh came back, and the one they lost was only by 4 points."

Tang wouldn't do things like shutting down social media like some people did.

When the games were intense, social media was an important way to understand potential opponents' information.

"And, Boston lost badly in the last game. They're at the end of their rope."

Tang continued.

The Celtics' performance this season was respectable, but there could only be one winner.

Green nodded, Tang's analysis was on point.

"Then you need to be mentally prepared." He then said.

If the Heat really won, then the Finals would really be Spurs versus Heat.

The debt he owed during the draft was also the time to seriously settle.

After waiting for a while, Game 7 between the Heat and Celtics officially started.

The Celtics' label was iron blood and toughness, and even though they were playing on the road, they played extremely tenaciously.

They beat the Heat 27-23 in the first quarter.

They won the second quarter 26-23 as well.

They were leading by 7 points at halftime.

The Heat were defended so well that only James, Wade, and Bosh were scoring.

During halftime, Popovich also analyzed the Heat's style of play.

Although the Heat looked very strong this season, the stability of their role players' performance was actually a big problem.

Coming back in the second half, Bosh kind of exploded on Garnett.

The old Wolf King retreated while fighting, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

The Heat scored 27-20 in this quarter, directly erasing the point difference.

Both sides entered the fierce battle of the final quarter.

Originally, everyone thought the game would go down to the wire, but Shane Battier became a surprise weapon.

After he hit four consecutive three-pointers in the fourth quarter, the Heat instantly widened the score and ultimately defeated the Celtics 101-88.

A typical one-wave push.

Popovich was also more certain of one thing after the game, that what determined the outcome was not the Big Three, but the Heat's role players.

The Heat reversed the Celtics and advanced to the Finals.

In this way, the two sides of the Finals were finally determined.

Just like many fans imagined.

Heat, versus Spurs!