Helplessness

Boston Celtics bench:

"You two were incredibly in sync on that steal just now." Paul Pierce couldn't help praising Tony Allen and Goodwin for their coordinated steal.

"Hahaha, it's all because the boss taught us well," Tony Allen said, flattering him.

Smiling, Goodwin rubbed Tony Allen's head, then looked at the rest of his teammates. "Keep it up. We need to build the foundation for victory in one go, understand?"

"Understood!" the Boston Celtics players replied in unison.

The brief timeout ended. Goodwin was slightly surprised—the Oklahoma City Thunder made a substitution, taking out Thabo Sefolosha and putting in James Harden.

This early?

Goodwin looked puzzledly toward the Oklahoma City Thunder bench.

Goodwin guessed that the Oklahoma City Thunder were determined to win the first game of the series, and that was indeed the case. As the first Oklahoma City Thunder team in franchise history to reach the Finals, facing a Boston Celtics team that had made the Finals multiple times in recent seasons, the first game was extremely crucial.

The Oklahoma City Thunder definitely wanted to open with a win.

Unfortunately, the opening win belongs to us, the Boston Celtics.

The game continued! The Oklahoma City Thunder inbounded in the backcourt, getting the ball to Russell Westbrook. He dribbled quickly across half court.

The moment he crossed half court, Westbrook immediately passed to the newly checked-in James Harden, who promptly called for a screen.

Kendrick Perkins quickly ran out from the paint to set a screen for James Harden.

After completing the pick-and-roll, Kendrick Perkins immediately cut toward the basket, while James Harden seized the opportunity to thread a pass through the gap between two defenders to the cutting Kendrick Perkins.

The instant Kendrick Perkins caught the ball, Marc Gasol quickly rotated over to help.

However, Kendrick Perkins didn't