Chapter 1 The First Quarter

Seven minutes into the first quarter, the Thunder led the Spurs 19-11, an 8-point advantage.

The main reason was Durant. In just over half a quarter, he made 5 of 7 shots and scored a whopping 12 points.

Tang Tian's defense wasn't the problem; Durant was simply on fire.

And Durant wasn't like ordinary shooters; once his touch was on, he could ignore the defense.

That's why, after developing his shooting, he could kill opponents with this move.

"Jack, look what you've done!" Jack's companion couldn't help but say from the stands.

Durant was in great form and his desire was unprecedentedly strong.

The only explanation was that Jack's pre-game actions had angered Durant.

"I'm not taking the blame for that," Jack said, waving his hand.

He was also puzzled. Tang Tian's defense was so good, how could Durant ignore it every time?

Could it really be because he had provoked him?

Both sides began to rotate players.

Popovich brought in Mills, Ginobili, and Splitter, replacing Parker, Green, and Duncan.

He didn't even replace Tang Tian at this point.

If Tang Tian, with his level of defense, was still allowing Durant to score so much, he couldn't imagine what would happen if he took Tang Tian out.

Durant broke through with a big loop layup.

Tang Tian put even more intensity into his defense on this play.

The baseline referee blew his whistle, judging that Tang Tian had infringed on Durant's cylinder and called a defensive foul on Tang Tian.

The crowd booed.

Tang Tian stood on the side of the free throw line and looked up at the score.

He hadn't touched Durant on that play; it was a borderline call.

But Durant definitely got some star treatment.

It was understandable, but it would make it really difficult for him on the defensive end.

Durant was in good form tonight, and ordinary defense had limited effect. He wanted to increase the intensity of his defense and be more aggressive.

But he was immediately called for a foul.

It seemed he had to think of another way tonight.

Durant made both free throws, bringing his personal score to 14 points.

He was unstoppable tonight.

On the Spurs' offense, Mills signaled for the Hammer play.

Tang Tian didn't stop after running the play at this time and continued to run.

Tang Tian was running the entire 24 seconds.

Durant chased him closely, not giving him a chance to receive the ball.

The Spurs' offense ended up with Diaw, whose strong attack under the basket was directly blocked by Ibaka.

Ibaka was really in excellent form this season. At this time, the Thunder gradually rotated their players, and he was the only one besides Durant who remained on the court.

The Spurs were called for a 24-second violation.

Popovich called Leonard over and had him replace Diaw.

On the Thunder's offense, Durant continued to play off-ball, taking a difficult shot over Tang Tian and making it!

Sixteen points.

Sixteen points in a single quarter!

Durant was really going a little crazy tonight.

Under his leadership, the Thunder had managed to widen the point difference to double digits!

The arena was buzzing.

Besides the Clippers game where the whole team was on fire, this was the first time the Spurs had encountered such a passive situation since entering the playoffs.

Popovich was already standing on the sidelines at this time. He looked at the court, already thinking about how to limit Durant in the later games.

Ginobili organized the Spurs' offense, continuing to run the Ai Hammer play.

At this moment, he noticed that Tang Tian was a little different than before.

Inspired by Tang Tian, Popovich had developed a further evolution of the Hammer play.

After Tang Tian, as the small forward, was in position, he didn't necessarily have to stay in the corner and wait; he could cooperate with the inside players and then run.

This evolution gave the Hammer play more variability.

But Tang Tian, this wasn't variability!

This guy, why was he running all the time!

Durant was having trouble keeping up with him!

If he played like this, stamina would be a big problem!

As Ginobili thought this, Tang Tian ran out of an opening, and he passed the ball with a flick of his wrist.

Tang Tian caught the ball and shot.

"Swish!"

The ball went into the net.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

"That's it! That's it!" Jack shouted from the sidelines at this time.

He was also a fan of the Godfather. If the Spurs lost because he had provoked Durant before the game, he would have to take the blame.

But these days, who wants to be a scapegoat!

So he was extremely excited that Tang Tian made this three-pointer.

Ginobili was also stunned for a moment when he saw this, and then he smiled.

Sure enough, it was good to be young!

Enough stamina.

Running so much didn't affect his shooting touch.

The 10-point difference became 7 points, and this three-pointer was crucial for the Spurs.

Brooks stood on the sidelines, but he didn't say anything.

Durant had already done so much on the offensive end, he couldn't ask him to do so much on the defensive end as well.

People's stamina was limited, especially for his beloved disciple.

Brooks didn't say anything, but when Durant heard the cheers of the fans, especially that Jack who had provoked him before the game, he was very unhappy.

He would definitely shut these guys up.

On the Thunder's offense, Durant ran off-ball to receive the ball and shoot.

Tang Tian still provided enough interference.

"Bang!"

Durant's shot was a little short, and the ball bounced off the front of the rim.

Leonard secured the defensive rebound.

On the Spurs' offense, Ginobili's layup on a breakthrough drew a foul on Ibaka.

At this time, the game reached 10 minutes in the first quarter, and both sides further rotated their players.

All of the Thunder's players were substitutes except for Durant.

On the Spurs' side, Popovich only kept Tang Tian from the starting lineup.

Ginobili made both free throws, and the Spurs launched a 5-0 run, narrowing the point difference to 5 points.

Harden's three-point shot missed.

Turning around, Tang Tian continued to run like crazy. Durant followed him closely, and Tang Tian didn't have a chance to catch the ball.

Ginobili's three-point shot missed. After the Thunder secured the offensive rebound, Durant directly posted up at the free throw line and took a turnaround fadeaway jumper.

"Bang!"

Still missed!

After scoring 16 points in a row, Durant had failed to make these last two shots!

On the Spurs' offense, Tang Tian continued to run, and Durant continued to defend, but at this time he was obviously a little out of breath.

Brooks quickly noticed this from the sidelines.

Any player, even a superstar like Durant, would get tired.

The Thunder's offensive focus in this quarter was all on Durant, and with Tang Tian desperately running off-ball, Durant's stamina consumption on both offense and defense was very high.

Tang Tian's three-point shot missed, but Splitter grabbed the offensive rebound and drew a foul on Collison.

Taking advantage of the dead ball, Brooks hurriedly replaced Durant with Sefolosha.

Ginobili was standing on the outside waiting for Splitter to shoot free throws.

When he saw the Thunder making the substitution, he suddenly smiled.

For a player, especially a superstar, playing a full quarter when they were feeling hot was a normal thing.

But Durant had been run off the court by Tang Tian?

Was this… running out his life?