The spotlights on the dome of the New Garden swept across the row of sacred retired jerseys.
Finally, the halo swept past the edge of number "33" and then plummeted straight towards the away team's bench.
The owner of that jersey is sitting here tonight.
Wearing a dark, custom-tailored suit, arms crossed, chin slightly tucked in, he remained silent, watching the Indiana Pacers players warm up like a statue.
Boston fans were caught in an eerie atmosphere of extreme division. In the front row, a young fan angrily raised his middle finger toward the away team's bench, but his wrist was immediately grabbed by an older fan with graying temples next to him and forcefully pressed down.
"That's Larry Bird Larry Bird." The old man lowered his voice, his tone revealing complex emotions, but more so the inherent bottom line of Boston fans.
The young man paused for a moment, following the old man's gaze to the back of the man in the dark suit. The hostility in his eyes faded slightly, replaced by a complex sense of awe. He opened his mouth, swallowed back all the trash talk he was about to unleash, and then exchanged a glance with the old man. The two reached a tacit understanding that needed no further explanation, and each leaned back in their seats.
The gods of Boston fluttered above the dome, while the visiting team's bench held Boston's enemies for the night.
Larry Bird Larry Bird remained unmoved by the undercurrents in the stands. His face, as rugged as Indiana ranch, was devoid of any superfluous expression. He wasn't in Boston tonight to visit old friends. He was there as the head coach of the opposing team to steal the Eastern Conference Finals victory.
In the panoramic box above the stadium, Lin Qi stood with one hand in his pocket, quietly looking down at the turbulent arena through the glass, his gaze finally settling on the substitutes' bench opposite him.
In this league, the toughest opponent is often not the team with the most talent.
Against a team with an absolute star player, you can limit them through double-teaming and targeted tactics. As long as you shut down that strong point, the team's offense will stagnate. But against the Indiana Pacers, this conventional tactic simply won't work. They don't have a superstar who can single-handedly break through the defense, but similarly, from the starters to the bench, you can't find a single defensive weakness that can be easily targeted.
Head coach Larry Bird Larry Bird sat courtside during games and rarely called out tactics, because the veterans on the court knew exactly how to play.
Their starting lineup played a very methodical game: Mark Jackson used his weight to back down his opponents in the low post, Reggie Miller sprinted around screens to catch and shoot, Chris Mullin provided consistent scoring on the wings, Dale Davis did the dirty work and grabbed rebounds, and the 2.24-meter Rick Smits anchored the paint. Years later, when the Eastern giant Yao Ming entered the league, the best player comparison listed in scouting reports was none other than a young Yao Ming. This starting lineup was older and slower, but their tactical execution was extremely high, and they excelled at grinding the ball down the court with solid half-court offense.
Just when you think that you can wear down these veterans by simply increasing the pace, Larry Bird will wave his hand and bring in another set of players from the bench.
Travis Best's fast break speed is extremely fast, Jalen Rose can provide the ball-handling isolation plays that the bench needs most, Sam Perkins can pull the opposing interior players to the three-point line, plus defensive stalwart Derrick McGee's relentless defense, and the muscular Antonio Davis anchoring the paint. He and starter Dale Davis are known as the " Davis Brothers," and their toughness is enough to tear apart any opponent in the physical battles of the playoffs.
The starters wear you down in half-court sets, while the bench comes in and speeds up the game to overwhelm you. Playing against the Pacers is like playing against two completely different teams in one night.
This team's rotation is incredibly deep. From the starters down to the tenth or eleventh man, you can't find any obvious defensive weaknesses. Even at the very end of the bench, there's a talented young player like Al Harrington, ready to be called upon at any moment.
With Jordan having just retired, the league is currently in a power vacuum. This Pacers team, with its terrifying depth and rich experience, has entered its best window of opportunity to break out of the Eastern Conference. Their only disadvantage is their age.
Inside the VIP box, Lin Qi watched the Pacers players warming up on the court. Some of the players on this team were more or less connected to him.
Larry Bird Larry Bird went to great lengths to assemble this roster. He used Sherman Douglas, whom Lin Qi had previously traded for, as a bargaining chip, and ultimately succeeded in acquiring positional warfare master Mark Jackson. As for Mullin, who was warming up in the corner, Larry Bird personally asked Lin Qi to let him go.
There was also a dramatic twist to this story: in the Mullin trade, Lin Qi took over McGee's contract, and then traded him away to clear cap space, resulting in McGee being waived. Who would have thought that after all this, McGee, now a free agent, would sign a veteran's minimum contract and return to the Pacers ' bench.
Now, these veterans, who have countless connections with Lin Qi, are all standing ready on the opposite side.
If Lin Qi didn't know Larry Bird, he would have really suspected that Big Bird was also a time traveler.
Looking at the Pacers, who were armed to the teeth, on the other side of the court, Lin Qi felt a strange sense of resonance. He and Larry Bird Larry Bird had almost identical underlying ideas about building a team... They were both extreme pragmatists, neither of them believed in individual stars, and both were keen on building a super team with no weaknesses, a deep rotation, and each player fulfilling their role.
The only difference between the two was that Lin Qi possessed an "information advantage" that was ahead of its time.
The two were like building a car from the same blueprint. Larry Bird used the most solid and reliable old parts to assemble a heavy armored vehicle, while Lin Qi used the most cutting-edge new materials to build a supercar. Both felt that their approach was correct.
Now, these two different yet ultimately similar team-building philosophies have clashed directly on the Eastern Conference Finals stage.
The Eastern Conference Finals were a best-of-seven series.
The lights dimmed, and the referee walked towards the center circle with the basketball in his arms.
The first match has officially begun.
The first round.
The Pacers didn't even run a complicated play; they just set a simple off-ball screen at the top of the key. Boston's young defense failed to execute it properly, leaving a wide-open opening.
The figure wearing the blue number 17 jersey used a screen to circle to the three-point line.
Boston fans felt a lump in their throats watching this movement. Not only was Larry Bird Larry Bird, a familiar face, sitting on the visiting team's bench tonight, but the player with the ball on the court was also a complete and utterly familiar face.
Two years ago, Chris Mullin was wearing a Celtics jersey and shooting three-pointers from the same spot.
Catching the ball, jumping, shooting. No unnecessary movements.
"Swish." The basketball swished through the net.
A suppressed murmur of complaints rose from the stands, and many veteran fans sighed and glanced up at the VIP boxes on the second floor of the stadium.
In the TNT broadcast booth, the commentator burst into laughter, his voice carrying across the nation. " Chris Mullin! He's scored the first point of the Eastern Conference Finals!"
"We all know Larry Bird Larry Bird is an old friend of Boston, but let's not forget Mullin. The Pacers really have to thank Mr. Lin Qi for his generosity in putting together this starting lineup." The commentator, never one to shy away from a good show, added, "By the way, Mr. Lin Qi is watching from his box right now; his expression must be priceless."
In a private room on the second floor.
Lin Qi noticed the resentful looks he was receiving from the fans in the stands.
Faced with this undeniable burden of blame, Lin Qi couldn't help but curse inwardly.
Generous my foot! It was clearly head coach Rick Pitino who stubbornly refused to let these veterans go and insisted on getting rid of them. If fans want to hold someone accountable, they should dig up dirt on former owners Gaston and Pitino. It was all the work of those two brilliant strategists; he was just a cleanup crew, going along with the flow and letting them go. Now, he's being blamed for all this mess. What does it have to do with him?
But that's all in the past. Let's just say a few words; we've already taken the blame, so be it.
Lin Qi showed no sign of frustration; he remained calm, arms crossed, watching number 17 turn and retreat on the court.
His eye twitched almost imperceptibly.