Chapter 798: Chapter 798

"You’re okay not mentioning it, but once you do, I realize KD is truly tragic, even worse than LeBron. Everywhere he goes becomes a super team, yet he always loses to Hansen. It’s so painful!"

"Hansen’s retirement ceremony can’t even start if KD isn’t present!"

to 2, after winning the King Mountain Battle, the Cavaliers are just one game away from advancing to the finals.

As for the Celtics, they find themselves in exactly the same situation as last season.

If they can’t win at home, their season journey will end here.

Moreover, this season the Celtics have a stronger lineup, and failing to even reach game seven would be as demoralizing as it was for the 76ers.

To put it bluntly, in their understanding, as long as Hansen is there and Jokic keeps improving, it’s like a cloud hanging over their heads that won’t dissipate.

Just like the Bulls back in the day that overshadowed other teams in the East.

But Hansen won’t retire like Jordan did, though they have no idea Hansen will leave the Cavaliers this summer.

For Boston fans, game 6 of the series begins with a near-tragic hue.

And it’s under this hue that the Celtics played a game completely contradictory to their cultural identity.

In ancient times, the Celtics were able to win eight consecutive championships because of the defense system built around Bill Russell.

Even the Boston Big Three won their only championship trophy this century through defense.

But that night, the Celtics didn’t invest much in defense.

Or rather, after the last game, Stevens had completely figured something out: the Celtics’ defensive resources couldn’t possibly stop Hansen.

Not to mention Jokic is now troubling them with his low-post offense.

So why not simply reduce defensive investments and pour everything into offense?

After all, among the Celtics’ core players, other than Horford, the rest, Irving, Durant, Towns, are more offense-focused than defense.

This nearly insane strategic adjustment had unexpected results in game 6.

The biggest difference between the Cavaliers and the Grizzlies is their defense.

Back when Hansen was on the Grizzlies, the easiest defensive target was Randolph, but he played the four position, and the rest of the positions had strong defense.

The Cavaliers couldn’t achieve the comprehensive coverage that the Grizzlies did, plus the desperation-driven desire for victory that the Celtics showed, led them to exceed their offensive capabilities.

By the end of the game, they scored 135 points!

Remember, this is the stage of the Conference Finals, and it’s still during the era of the 24-second shot clock without modifications, achieving this in the playoffs is remarkable.

The Celtics took game 6, pushing the Eastern Conference Finals into a game seven battle.

This result also shows their difference from last season.

Little Thomas had an offensive ceiling, but Irving does not, especially after being developed by the Cavaliers, making him more versatile than in "history."

Coincidentally, in the Western Conference Finals, the Pelicans and Rockets also reached a game seven battle.

However, their process was entirely different from the Eastern Finals.

The battle between the Rockets and Pelicans was essentially a clash of spear and shield.

The Rockets had the top offensive efficiency in the league this season, while the Pelicans had the highest defensive efficiency.

In the first four games, the Rockets had two games where they scored over 120 points, winning both.

For the other two, they lost to the Pelicans, and in one game, the Pelicans held them to just 85 points.

The reason "defense wins championships" has more supporters than "scoring wins games" is essentially because defense is much more stable than offense.

Then on the West’s King Mountain Battle, the performance of both absolute cores, James and Harden, was mediocre, but Gordon, who was signed last summer by the Rockets, became the key player.

Gordon scored 24 points on 8-of-15 shooting, leading the Rockets to a 98-93 victory over the Pelicans and taking King Mountain.

With a 3 to 2 lead in series points, the Rockets seem more likely to advance.

However, in reality, in the final moments of the King Mountain Battle, Paul predictably dropped the ball, pulling a hamstring which led to him being out for the season after angrily pounding the bench.

Then came a devastating defeat in New Orleans for game 6, with the Rockets losing by nearly 30 points.

Paul dropping the ball affected not only the team’s strength but also their morale.

Though both sides entered game seven, unless a miracle occurs, the Pelicans making their first appearance in the finals in team history seems inevitable.

Earlier, Conningham even asked Hansen whether he preferred facing the Rockets or Pelicans in the finals.

But now it looks like the Pelicans will meet either the Cavaliers or Celtics in the finals.

The Eastern Conference game seven starts off.

The viewership rating for this game also reaches a season high.

Whether the Cavaliers’ dynasty can succeed depends on this decisive night.

Then as that night’s game begins, the Cavaliers show their transformation.

They exhibit the highest defensive intensity throughout the series or even throughout the playoffs.

Hansen’s display of this is the most evident.

He initially matched up against Irving, providing 360° coverage without any blind spots.

But as Durant continued scoring, he quickly switched to defending Durant.

This was the nostalgic Gray version of Hansen’s obstructive defense being relogged in.

Of course, the foundation for Hansen to do so relies on Jokic’s growth.

Just like in the King Mountain Battle, though just a third-year player, the accelerated evolution has allowed him to support the team’s offense.

Hansen’s relentless obstructive defense started to reveal its immense effect as the game progressed.

Like the Rockets in the Western Conference, offense is prone to high instability, and such instability isn’t only about one’s performance but also related to the opponent’s defensive strategies.

Hansen moved back and forth, freezing Irving and Durant’s offense, preventing them from achieving consistent scoring, naturally amplifying that instability.

Stevens’ strategic adjustments last game caught the Cavaliers off guard, but once Malone recovered, it wasn’t unmanageable.

By halftime, the Cavaliers led the Celtics by 46 to 36, marking the lowest half-time scores since the Eastern Finals. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⚑𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖⚑𝕟𝕖𝕥

Going into the third quarter, the Cavaliers suddenly switched modes, with Hansen shifting away from defense to holding the ball for frequent isolations.

The Celtics couldn’t contain Hansen’s scoring, and their offense couldn’t catch up either.

After being disrupted by Hansen for half a game, Irving and Durant couldn’t regain their touch.

With Hansen scoring repeatedly, the lead gradually widened, and Cleveland fans’ emotions steadily rose.

Familiar scenes from a few days ago played out again, just differently.

Malone even arranged for Hansen to play the entire quarter.

On the last play of the quarter, Hansen turned past Bradley’s defense, jumping up high before weak-side help could come, raising the ball with his right hand.

He appeared to fly at that instant, with his entire arm raised straight, like an attacking cobra, swift and deadly.

Towns tried to leap out for interference, but Jokic’s exceptional positioning only allowed him a partial jump.

By the time he sought leverage again, Hansen was already above the basket.

A thunderous single-handed slam ignited the emotions of fans at Quicken Loans Arena, sinking the Celtics’ mentality to the depths.

Hansen scored another 24 points in the quarter, and the Cavaliers expanded their lead to nearly 20 points!

Following defensively Durant at this moment, gazing at Hansen still above the hoop, his eyes were filled with despair.

He has lost to Hansen’s teams 8 times!

Does he really need to join Hansen’s team to win?