Actually, Rick Carlisle very much wanted to change the starting lineup, but his idea was vetoed by Gan Guoyang. Young coaches are always like this, pinning their hopes on changes in lineup and tactics.
Experienced players like Gan Guoyang know that in the finals, the decisive factor of lineup and tactics is not that strong. How players fight and play is key.
Of course, in certain games, a surprise player is needed, although they are not easy to come by. In the last game, Barkley couldn't become the surprise player. This time it's up to the Trail Blazers' bench to see if anyone can step up.
The game started promptly at 7:30 PM Eastern Time. The second game of the finals will have a decisive impact on the trend of the series.
If the Trail Blazers win, they regain home-court advantage; if they lose, the situation will become extremely difficult.
NBC gave a set of statistics during the broadcast, showing that in the Trail Blazers' 10 finals journeys, they have never been 0-2 behind.
In their previous nine finals appearances, the Trail Blazers only lost the first game of the 1992 finals, when their opponent was the peak Chicago Bulls.
The Bulls' championship determination was exceptionally high that season, and their strength was unmatched in the League. Despite such circumstances, Gan Guoyang was still able to rely on individual ability to reverse the trend of the series and, with some luck, win the championship.
Now, Gan Guoyang is 36 years old, in his last season. Can he still do it?
Everyone is eagerly watching. As the game progresses, the Celtics maintain their style from the first game.
They build strong defenses and play conservatively, waiting for the Trail Blazers to make moves and adjustments before responding.
Beelman is nervously watching the game from the sidelines, hoping to see changes in the Trail Blazers' play so that he can make timely adjustments.
Surprisingly, five minutes into the first quarter, the Trail Blazers' style and strategy were no different from the last game.
The Celtics build strong defenses, while the Trail Blazers continue to attack from the perimeter, making strong offenses, shooting long-range shots, wave after wave.
The Trail Blazers' shooting percentage improved slightly compared to the last game, but not by much. After Gan Guoyang hit a three-pointer, Kobe and Brellock's three-point attempts all failed.
When the outside attacks didn't work, they went to the low post, with Gan Guoyang using physical play and Sabonis orchestrating at the top of the arc, using the same few routines repeatedly.
Beelman couldn't believe it. Is this the adjustment the Trail Blazers made after two days of rest? Was Rick Carlisle so lacking in ideas?
To defeat the Trail Blazers, Beelman still had nine variations up his sleeve, just waiting to counteract the Trail Blazers' moves. How could the Trail Blazers seem like they're giving up?
Beelman was very confused, wondering if the Trail Blazers and Ah Gan really were too old. No other team had as many veterans as they did.
Among the young players, Kobe could take charge on his own, Little O'Neal could play a role, and Ben Wallace could make an impact in specific lineups and games.
In high-quality confrontations, Ben Wallace's weaknesses on offense were magnified. In the West Finals, his playing time was greatly reduced, with Sabonis mainly carrying the minutes.
On the Celtics' side, core players are all under 25. Under Beelman's guidance, they've accumulated a lot of regular-season experience and learned hard lessons in the playoffs, all becoming exceptional young talents.
Indeed, under the shade of the Tree, the growth of young trees is always somewhat hampered.
After the official timeout in the first quarter, Beelman continued his lineup adjustments according to the plan from the last game.
The Celtics used an eight-man rotation, and their substitutes were Cliff-Robinson, Bruce Bowen, and Dee Brown.
The three are respectively inside, forward, and guard positions, showing Beelman's lineup arrangement is quite orderly.
Robinson, tall and strong, can play center, power forward, and even shoot and play small forward on the outside.
Bruce Bowen is a defensive player whom Beelman focused on developing. His task is to assist Duncan and help Nash in defense, similar to Rick Fox's role.
Dee Brown is currently the Celtics' most senior player. This No.7 was selected by the Celtics in 1990 and has served for 10 years. The team management has never moved him.
Such veterans can effectively control the situation and stabilize the team as point guards. When Nash is out of form, Dee Brown can step up and complete organizational tasks well.
It's fair to say that the team Beelman constructed looks quite perfect on paper, and the current operation of the game is also quite perfect.
Though their characteristics may not be outstanding, opponents can't find any flaws and can only be steadily taken apart by the Celtics.
Their details are as exceptional as in the last game, with few mistakes, timely retreats, rarely mismatching in defense, immediately switching to offense after losing balls, and going back for defense right after scoring.
It's hard to imagine such a young team. They seem like a disciplined army, with no emotion, just relentlessly pursuing victory.
However, unlike the last game, the Trail Blazers played more tightly and fiercely. The first quarter ended with a score of 22:23, with the Celtics leading by one point.
Gan Guoyang had a standard performance in the first quarter with 8 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 block—playing a normal game, while Duncan contributed more defensively with 5 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 blocks.