Volume 5: Unparalleled

The Warriors players had no mood to argue with him. They all rushed over to Antetokounmpo's side and asked about his injury. In the first two rounds, only the Warriors had completed a sweep. Every other title contender had lost at least two games. Looking across the league, it was still the Warriors—the team that had supposedly declined after turning over their roster—who looked the most dominant. But on the Trail Blazers, Lillard could not play off the ball, which rendered much of Green's playmaking useless. With Antetokounmpo and Lopez manning the Warriors' interior, Green had no chance to sneak in for easy baskets. Instead, the Warriors completely ignored him, turning him into a total liability, and the Trail Blazers could only play four-on-five. With both sides speaking up for Green, Trail Blazers fans' hostility toward him eased considerably, and fewer people cursed him out. Lillard said, "All Green can do is use smart help defense to plug a few gaps and try to hold up against Antetokounmpo in the post." "That was just a foul. I had to stop Giannis from scoring, and since I was behind him, I couldn't possibly contest his shot. That was the only way I could stop him from scoring. I had no malicious intent toward Giannis..." This outcome was beyond many people's expectations. Although the Warriors held a considerable advantage over the Trail Blazers on paper, Lillard's godlike performance in Game 7 of the first round, along with Green's all-around triple-double in the first round's pivotal Game 5, had still given people a sliver of hope for Portland. At the very least, they should have been able to trouble the Warriors, right? Seeing that Antetokounmpo was not seriously hurt, the referees grew much firmer and refused to change the call, their attitude resolute.