The next two days, the Pelicans held closed-door training sessions.

With his family affairs settled, Tang Tian devoted himself wholeheartedly to the training.

The Pelicans' morale was even higher than before the series began.

The loss in the previous game, in a sense, made them even stronger.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, two days had passed. The Pelicans were back at home, ready for the fourth game of the series.

The New Orleans Arena was still packed to capacity.

The loss not only sobered up the players, but also the fans.

But even after sobering up, their support for the Pelicans hadn't diminished.

This team had won three consecutive championships in the past, establishing a dynasty. Their fans were among the most loyal in the league.

As the players entered the court to warm up and felt the enthusiasm of the fans, the confidence on the faces of the Pelicans' players grew even stronger.

But unlike the excessive confidence of the previous game, this was very positive and proactive.

Popovich also felt it. Before the training time even arrived, he called the players together to give them a pep talk.

After the opening ceremony, the starting lineups for both teams were announced.

After the first two games, this starting lineup was highly anticipated.

The Spurs' starting lineup came out first: White and George in the backcourt, Leonard and Aldridge in the frontcourt, and Baynes at center.

Popovich was truly unpredictable.

He actually didn't use the advantageous starting lineup from the previous game.

The old ginger is still spicier. He must have anticipated that Stevens would make adjustments.

Stevens smiled wryly when he saw this, but his expression returned to normal after the smile.

For the Pelicans, it was Brogdon and Tang Tian in the backcourt, Green and Davis in the frontcourt, and Mitchell Robinson at center.

This time it was Popovich's turn to be surprised.

He knew Stevens would adjust, but putting Robinson in the starting lineup was truly bold.

Before the game even started, the battle between the two coaches had reached a fever pitch.

This game had already piqued the fans' appetites before it even began.

Robinson and Baynes at the jump ball.

As soon as the referee blew the whistle, Robinson leaped into the air and directly tipped the ball from over Baynes' head back to the Pelicans' side of the court.

He really could jump.

The cheers from the crowd erupted.

Regardless of whether Robinson could contribute anything else, just the momentum from that jump ball had already overwhelmed the Spurs.

The Pelicans attacked the frontcourt, first playing through Tang Tian. Tang Tian broke through George and then shot with Leonard's interference.

"Clang!"

His first shot was a little off, and the basketball bounced off the rim.

Aldridge stuck out his butt to push Davis out of the restricted area, and Baynes prepared to grab the defensive rebound.

But just as he stretched out his hand, a black shadow flew past him.

Robinson!

This guy really, really could jump!

A rebound right off the top of his head.

And after he got the ball, he didn't even look at the basket. He directly looked for a teammate and passed the ball to Tang Tian.

Tang Tian caught the ball, dribbled once, and then stopped and shot.

"Swish!"

His second shot went in clean.

The Pelicans scored first!

The cheers from the crowd erupted. Robinson's impact as a starter was immediately apparent!

The Spurs attacked the frontcourt, running the hammer play to create a mismatch.

Aldridge received the ball and transitioned, and when he saw that the defender was Robinson, he directly turned around and made a strong attack.

Robinson's weight was less than Aldridge's. He held him off for a few times but couldn't hold him off any longer. He jumped up just as Aldridge was turning towards the free throw line to shoot.

But Aldridge faked a shot and directly turned back to bank the ball in under the basket.

He had played against too many jumping jacks like Robinson in his career.

This technical move was completed quite smoothly, like a textbook example.

But just as the ball he shot was touching the backboard, a hand directly covered the ball.

It wasn't Robinson. He had been faked out and was only just landing at that moment.

It was Davis!

He had predicted that Robinson might be faked out, so he contracted early to help defend and gave Aldridge a chase-down block!

His performance in this series was better than Aldridge's!

After the block, Davis also grabbed the defensive rebound, not giving the Spurs a second chance to attack.

And after passing the ball to Tang Tian beside him, he reminded Robinson not to jump around and to pay attention to positioning and rebounding.

Davis hadn't joined in the shouting in the locker room before, but it could be seen that he was really much more mature now.

The Pelicans attacked the frontcourt with a set play. Tang Tian and Davis ran a pick-and-roll.

The Spurs didn't switch, but instead helped defend and rotated. Leonard directly switched over.

Tang Tian made a three-point shooting motion.

Aldridge directly lunged out.

But Tang Tian collected the ball and faked a shot, and then aimed accurately and passed the ball through the defense with a bounce pass.

Davis had already cut inside, and with quick eyes and hands, he caught the ball and directly flew into the air for a layup, scoring the basket.

A beautiful tactical play by the Pelicans.

Compared to the multiple missed connections in the previous game, the Pelicans' details were obviously better in this game.

The Spurs attacked the frontcourt again with the hammer play. Leonard broke through to the basket, shouldered past Davis, and did a turnaround fadeaway jumper.

Like Aldridge before, Leonard's technical moves were completed very beautifully.

But before his shot reached its highest point, a hand reached out and slapped his ball directly out of bounds!

Robinson!

He hadn't listened to Davis and jumped again.

But this time, his timing for this help defense block was perfect!

He was born with a talent for blocking shots!

The cheers from the crowd erupted.

Davis with one, Robinson with one, the Pelicans gave the Spurs two blocks to start the game, which really boosted morale!

And this kind of block party easily reminded them of the Davis-Whiteside duo back then. New Orleans had re-established its no-fly zone!

With little time left on the shot clock, Leonard's contested strong shot over Green's defense failed to go in, and the rebound was secured by Davis.

The Spurs hadn't scored on two consecutive possessions after the start of the game!

And this time, the Pelicans directly launched a fast break on the defensive rebound.

Tang Tian attracted the defense during the fast break and passed the ball back in the air to Brogdon, who followed up. The latter caught the ball and flew into the air for a layup, scoring another 2 points!

The Pelicans went on a 6-0 run against the Spurs to start the game!

Leonard went to the frontcourt and directly called for the ball at the high post for a one-on-one. After turning around, he made a difficult fadeaway shot, finally breaking the Spurs' scoring drought.

This basket was crucial.

And when things weren't going well, one-on-one was always the most effective way to solve the problem.

The Pelicans used the same method in return.

Tang Tian did a series of dazzling crossover dribbles, and then, with no other choice, squeezed through the defensive double team of George and Leonard.

The Spurs collapsed the defense, and Tang Tian made his signature behind-the-back pass to Green in the corner.

Green caught the ball and shot decisively.

"Swish!"

Under the gaze of the fans in the stadium, Green's three-pointer went in!

9 to 2!

The Pelicans had a perfect start.

The cheers from the crowd were deafening.

The Pelicans were playing completely differently from the last game, with offensive rebounds, chase-down blocks, help-defense blocks, and fast-break follow-ups.

Visible aggressiveness, and a red-hot state.

Although they had only played for less than half a quarter, everyone could already feel a very strong signal.

The Pelicans were going to win tonight!