That two-pointer was crucial.

Turning around, Tang Tian successfully disrupted Gasol's strong attack with a defensive switch.

With one offense and one defense, he was not only verbally encouraging his teammates but also leading by example.

The Pelicans' offense still relied on the same tactical positioning.

This time, Tang Tian didn't choose to directly go past Green.

To beat the Spurs, relying solely on his scoring wasn't enough; the biggest problem was stamina.

In their first encounter last season, he had exhausted himself, relying on a miraculous four consecutive three-pointers at the end to win the game.

Like McGrady's 35 seconds and 13 points, that kind of miracle could only happen once.

So, to truly beat the Spurs, he had to mobilize his teammates as much as possible.

Last season, his teammates weren't up to par, so he had to do it himself, but this season was different.

He signaled Davis to come up for a high pick-and-roll.

The moment the pick-and-roll formed, Gasol chose to double-team him.

Tang Tian lobbed the ball to Davis.

Davis caught the ball and attacked the basket.

Duncan didn't come out of the three-second area, so Davis chose a high-arcing bank shot.

"Clang!"

The shot was unlucky, bouncing off the front of the rim.

Duncan secured the defensive rebound.

Davis shook his hand in frustration, knowing he should have made that shot.

Especially when the team was just starting to gain momentum.

"It's okay, it's okay!"

Tang Tian saw Davis's reaction and shouted loudly as he retreated on defense.

Davis nodded after hearing him, and the frustration dissipated, replaced by focus on defense.

The Spurs ran their hammer play in the frontcourt, with Gasol receiving the ball and attacking the basket again.

"Don't jump! Box him out!"

Tang Tian turned and shouted at Whiteside.

Whiteside had battled Adams for an entire game when playing the Thunder, so he had gained some experience in that area.

Hearing Tang Tian's shout, he stood his ground under the basket.

Gasol's strength wasn't in physical contests; his strength was in technique. Failing to shake Whiteside, he opted for a hook shot after backing down.

Whiteside then lunged forward to block.

Gasol's hook shot had a high release point, but Whiteside's wingspan was also long. More importantly, he had established defensive position, providing a frontal contest.

"Clang!"

Gasol's hook shot was defended!

But Leonard flew in for the offensive rebound and drew a foul on Whiteside on the putback attempt.

"It's okay, it's okay!"

Tang Tian shouted at Whiteside in the same tone.

Whiteside's defense was already better than before; it was more that Ariza hadn't boxed out properly.

Ariza then raised his hand to Whiteside to indicate it was his responsibility.

Leonard took a breath and made both free throws.

The Spurs led 9-2.

The Pelicans moved to the frontcourt, and with the same positioning, Tang Tian continued to signal Davis to come up for a high pick-and-roll.

This time, Davis went out, and Tang Tian went in.

The Spurs chose to trap Tang Tian.

After several games, Popovich was well aware that Tang Tian's finishing ability had improved significantly compared to last season.

Giving Tang Tian a chance was worse than giving the other Pelicans a chance.

Seeing the double team, Tang Tian swung the ball back to Davis.

Gasol quickly retreated, and Davis shot first.

The ball drew an arc in the air.

"Swish!"

This time, Davis seized the opportunity, shooting cleanly.

Popovich stroked his chin.

Davis had improved a lot in the past year, already having a relatively stable mid-range shot.

This made it harder for the Spurs to defend the Pelicans than before.

Davis smiled and pointed at Tang Tian as he retreated on defense.

Besides skill, the biggest influence on shooting was mentality.

Tang Tian's words seemed insignificant, but they were like a reassuring pill for the young Davis.

On the Spurs' offense, Leonard isolated against Holiday, turning and driving to the basket.

Holiday was a good defender, but after all, he was a guard, and there was a gap in strength.

Leonard drove to the basket and shot a fadeaway after contact.

At this moment, Whiteside suddenly pounced out from the inside, extending his long arm.

Leonard was caught off guard and was too late to adjust his shooting angle.

"Bang!"

Whiteside blocked Leonard's shot!

This was payback for being fouled on the previous possession.

Competing for the loose ball on the three-point line, Ariza dove to save it. He won the battle against Parker and flicked the ball to Tang Tian.

The Pelicans defended this possession.

After getting up, Parker looked at Ariza, his mind full of Tang Tian's figure when he was with the Spurs.

Now Tang Tian was the team's core, and his "Tang Tian" was also on the team.

The Pelicans moved to the frontcourt, still with the same positioning.

Tang Tian was at the three-point line, with everyone else down on the baseline.

Tang Tian waved to Davis again.

High pick-and-roll, this time Tang Tian had a drive to the right, forcing Gasol and Green to double-team him.

He bounced a pass to Davis.

Davis got the ball and drove to the basket, this time choosing to dunk.

Duncan rushed out, and the two collided in the air.

The referee blew his whistle, signaling a foul on Duncan.

Davis's dunk was stopped, but he still threw the ball out after the contact.

The ball hit the backboard and then bounced into the basket.

An And-1!

Duncan shook his head expressionlessly.

Although his competitive state was much better this season than last, he was already somewhat overwhelmed by newcomers of Davis's level.

Everyone had to admit they were getting old.

Davis shouted excitedly after seeing the goal, then turned to Tang Tian for a high-five.

He made a beautiful shot, but Tang Tian's pass was also beautiful.

Popovich was thoughtful at this moment.

Drinking with Tang Tian yesterday, he said Tang Tian could win MVP, meaning a lot.

There was expectation for his former disciple, and also the usual praise from an opponent.

But looking at this performance over the past period, he felt that Tang Tian really had the strength in this area.

MVP, Most Valuable Player, the so-called most valuable is not for the individual, but for the team.

The direct performance is good personal data and a high team record.

But specifically to the details, it is to be able to make teammates and the team better.

Tang Tian performed very well last season, but Popovich didn't actually feel much.

Because Tang Tian was basically just working hard to score points, which was the least efficient way to help the team.

But now, Tang Tian's personal offensive desire has obviously declined.

He was looking for teammates at the start, and only stood up to score after the teammates couldn't open up the situation.

And even when he saw the teammates performing badly afterwards, he didn't blame them but encouraged them until the teammates' state was mobilized.

This is what Popovich understood as what a most valuable player should do.

Davis was about to take the free throw, and Tang Tian was standing on one side of the free throw line.

He noticed someone watching him behind him, and when he turned around, he saw Popovich.

The two smiled at each other.

If he knew what Popovich was thinking at this moment, he didn't know what he would think.