After the Spurs returned to the locker room, Popovich addressed the players:
"The Kings have been playing tough today, especially their dog and Wang. They're hard to deal with. But as strong as they've been, they're not as overwhelming as they were in the first and second games, when we couldn't see any hope at all. So now we need to bring out everything we've got and fight them. Let's take the King of the Mountain Battle."
"In the second half, we have to play more as a team. Remember, we're an elite team built around teamwork."
"Yes!"
The players shouted in unison.
Old Master Bo continued, "It's time to bring out our ultimate weapon in the second half. Ali, take the free-throw line as the hub. Everyone else, keep moving around Ali, cutting and getting open. Let's play the ultimate team basketball."
The players' blood began to surge, and their eyes flashed!
At last, it was time to bring out their ultimate weapon.
Meanwhile, on the Kings' side.
After returning to the locker room, the players didn't do anything else. First, they looked over the floor and saw that the two snakes had been cleared away.
Then they cautiously searched through their lockers.
They didn't find any more snakes, bugs, or anything of the sort.
Only then did everyone relax.
The appearance of those two snakes had really put them on edge.
They'd been afraid that something else might turn up when they opened their lockers.
At that moment, the dog who'd been trash-talking the players all along spoke up of his own accord—a rare occurrence. "All that training you've done these past few days has been a complete fucking waste."
Everyone turned to look at the dog, unable to figure out why he'd suddenly said that.
Doug loosened