Duncan belatedly nodded in agreement.

Tang Tian had already "ruined" his jersey retirement ceremony, and now he was going to ruin Ginobili's too.

Tang Tian really didn't show any mercy to his old friends!

When play resumed after the timeout, the Spurs slowed down the pace, and the rhythm of the game noticeably decreased.

But this kind of play was okay for a stalemate; it was difficult to regain a deficit.

Especially when the two teams were evenly matched.

The stalemate continued until the end of the quarter.

During the bench rotation, Kuzma, who had performed well this season, scored consecutive mid- and long-range shots, helping the Pelicans extend their lead to double digits.

At this time, the common weakness of the Lakers and Spurs was revealed.

Although they both formed near "Big Three" lineups, the large amount of salary space they occupied weakened their role players.

Last season, when Leonard was injured, the Spurs were still able to make the playoffs, which was inseparable from the performance of players like Green, Gasol, and Mills.

Now that they had all left, the Spurs could only rely more on Deco, Belinelli, and players like Cunningham and Poeltl, who they had brought back.

At the end of the first half, the score was 52 to 42, with the Pelicans maintaining a double-digit lead going into the second half.

The performances of the two teams in the first half were comparable, but Tang Tian's super long shot and Kuzma's performance were the main reasons for the change in the situation.

If they continued to play at this pace, the Pelicans would have a great chance of winning the game tonight.

But Popovich was obviously not one to sit idly by.

In the second half, he adjusted the team's starting lineup, removing Forbes and putting Cunningham in the starting lineup.

After this adjustment, George and Leonard switched from the three and four positions at the start to the two and three positions.

Cunningham was a scarce 3-and-D (three-point shooting and defense) player in the league. Although his skills were a bit lacking in all aspects, he did a decent job in both the 3 and D aspects.

Especially as a mobile big man, his ability in help defense and recovery defense could meet the Spurs' defensive requirements.

Of course, the most important thing was that after this lineup adjustment, the Spurs' pressure on the perimeter became significantly stronger.

It was difficult for Tang Tian to get the same easy super-long three-point opportunities as in the first quarter.

In the end, this technique was not developed by Tang Tian, nor was it popularized by him.

The Spurs defended Curry when they played the Warriors, and now they could use the same method to defend Tang Tian.

Tang Tian tried two more super long three-pointers from the outside in this quarter, but none of them hit.

Four attempts, only one make.

Although he had practiced hard for a month, Rome wasn't built in a day, and he still needed to slowly adapt through actual combat.

The Spurs were like grinding tofu in this quarter, slowly grinding the point difference back bit by bit.

By the end of the third quarter, they had tied the score at 76.

Give Popovich a GDP (Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker), and he could bring back 5 NBA championships for San Antonio.

Give him George and Leonard, and he could immediately make the team a contender again.

Like the 101 rock strikes theory in the Spurs' locker room, with Popovich around, the team's resilience was truly beyond imagination.

In the opening stage of the final quarter, Forbes became the Spurs' surprise weapon.

This former Pelican showed a hot outside touch, hitting consecutive three-pointers and going head-to-head with Siakam.

79 all.

83 all.

87 all.

…

The two teams' scores rose alternately, continuing until the final minute.

At the critical moment, Leonard showed his superstar strength, changing direction to break through Green and scoring a key two points against Harrell's defense.

With 40 seconds left, the Spurs led 103-101.

These two points were worth a fortune!

Stevens called a timeout, which was also the Pelicans' last timeout.

"We'll run play number one, Tang, you need to score a two-pointer as quickly as possible, then we'll retreat quickly; we need to fight for the last possession."

Stevens' tactical thinking during the timeout was very clear.

With 40 seconds left, if the Pelicans played conservatively, both sides would still have one offensive opportunity each.

But if the Pelicans rushed this possession, they would have a chance to get two offensive opportunities.

That would be the most advantageous situation for them.

Failing that, even if Tang Tian didn't score, as long as they defended the Spurs' last possession, they would still have a chance for a final game-winning shot.

When play resumed after the timeout, the Pelicans made a substitution, with Siakam replacing Harrell, just like in the opening game, to create scoring opportunities for Tang Tian.

Brogdon dribbled the ball quickly to the front court, and after passing the ball to Tang Tian, he went directly to screen George.

The Pelicans each took a man, giving Tang Tian a complete offensive opportunity.

When Tang Tian finally drove inside with the ball, he formed a one-on-one opportunity with Leonard.

This scene was interesting.

Leonard had a fast break on Tang Tian in the first quarter, and then Tang Tian immediately returned the favor with the same fast break 2+1 (a successful shot while being fouled).

Now entering positional warfare, Tang Tian had a chance to make this return gift a little heavier.

Of course, it was very difficult.

Leonard's one-on-one defensive ability was a level above Tang Tian.

When Tang Tian broke through, his death wrap nearly succeeded in stealing the ball.

But Tang Tian had many weapons in his arsenal. After a butterfly step, he followed with a turnaround fadeaway jumper. Although Leonard kept up, the interference he provided was limited.

The posture was as beautiful as a picture.

"Swish!"

Tang Tian showed the strength of the league's number one player, and the ball went into the net cleanly after it was released.

103 all!

Tang Tian used Kobe's way to defeat Leonard, helping the Pelicans tie the score again!

The two sides were once again at the same starting line.

This attack took only 9 seconds, and Tang Tian perfectly completed Stevens' tactical design.

The breaths of the fans at the scene suddenly quickened.

The two sides were playing this kind of heart-stopping game when they were down to the wire.

ccx also stood up from the VIP box.

Compared to the outcome, the process of such a game was even more wonderful.

"Go! Spurs!"

The fans at the scene shouted in unison to cheer for the home team under the lead of the DJ.

Leonard held the ball until about 8 seconds left, and used Aldridge's screen to cut straight into the paint, a beautiful spin move to shake off Siakam, and a high-difficulty reverse layup.

He used his personal skills to the extreme in this play, delivering an absolute MVP-level performance.

But Tang Tian knew him too well. He had already helped in defense before he shot, and jumped up at the same time to give him a chase-down block!

Amidst the uproar of the fans at the scene, Tang Tian even grabbed the defensive rebound in the process.

With one offense and one defense, Tang Tian showed the strength of a historic number one player, forcibly taking the initiative from the Spurs' hands.

With 10 seconds left in the game, and no timeouts, Tang Tian dribbled the ball quickly across the half-court line.

All the fans at the scene stood up from their seats, and a strong smell of gunpowder instantly filled the air.

It was at this moment that something happened that no one had expected.

Tang Tian had just dribbled the ball past the half-court line, with a little more than 6 seconds left in the game, and as the Spurs were retreating back on defense at full speed, he directly launched a logo three-pointer at the court logo!

The Spurs players didn't expect it at all. George, who was closest to Tang Tian, was at least two meters away.

Including Stevens, his tactical arrangement was not like this!

But what everyone didn't expect even more was that after flying over most of the court, the ball was like a missile equipped with a positioning aiming device.

"Swish!"

It went straight through the heart of the net!

A celestial being from outside the sky, a one-hit kill!