James continued:
"One more thing: look at the Raptors players' helpless expressions as they head off the court. They look like they've been tricked. They'd finally steeled themselves to hold on for those last five or six seconds, and then suddenly there's a timeout."
"There's an old Chinese saying: 'The first drumbeat inspires courage; the second weakens it.' They'd worked themselves up with courage and fighting spirit before going back onto the court. The next time they return, they won't have quite as much as they did before."
"That's a tactic drawn from ancient Chinese wisdom."
"So I'm sure Wang Yi called those two consecutive timeouts just now."
James was right. Wang Yi had indeed called those two consecutive timeouts.
In fact, he'd already decided during the first timeout that he would call two in a row.
First, it gave him a moment to catch his breath. Second, it let the Spurs ride their initial momentum until it faded.
At the sideline, Popovich looked toward the Raptors' bench with a helpless expression.
Wang Yi was looking right back at him, wearing a mischievous grin.
Popovich gave a slight shake of his head.
How did this guy come up with so many tricks?
Old coaches usually had plenty of tricks, but they'd picked them up gradually over decades of ups and downs, after countless battles of wits with opposing coaches.
But Wang Yi was still so young. How did he already have so many tricks up his sleeve?
The Chinese fans noticed Popo's helpless expression, then saw the mischievous grin on Wang Yi's face. They immediately understood.
"Haha, Zhuge Popovich, Brother Yi just played you! Hahaha!"
"The first drumbeat inspires courage, the second weakens it. This is no joke—it's thousands of years of Chinese wisdom! Popovich may be a wily old