Chapter 1 Opening

After the opening ceremony, the starting lineups of both teams were announced one after another.

After the first two games, Kerr finally learned his lesson. He replaced Bogut with Iguodala and directly used the small ball lineup as the starting five.

The Pelicans still used their regular lineup, and what they needed was to focus on the details.

Davis won the tip-off against Green, officially opening the curtain on Game 5 of the series.

The Pelicans' tactics were the same as in the first two games. Jokic held the ball at the arc, passing it to Davis in the low post.

Davis posted up Green and turned to shoot near the baseline.

Green defended this ball very well and used some small, referee-unseen tricks.

Davis was disturbed and failed to make the shot.

Green turned and secured the defensive rebound.

The Warriors' fast break failed, and they settled into a positional offense. Curry ran off-ball and came out to receive Green's pass, hitting a three-pointer.

Thompson shone in the last game, and it looked like Curry was going to dominate this one.

Holiday dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, and the Warriors' defensive formation remained unchanged.

Jokic glanced at Barnes in front of him and directly drove towards the basket.

Just as he broke into the restricted area, the Warriors made a small defensive change.

Green came over to help defend and directly double-teamed.

Jokic passed the ball to Davis, and Green defended back.

This defensive adjustment fully utilized Green's speed and mobility.

Davis passed the ball back to Jokic inside, and Green double-teamed again.

Jokic hadn't finished bulking up, and his physical resistance was still lacking. His turnaround layup failed.

Barnes grabbed the defensive rebound.

The Pelicans failed to score on their first two offensive possessions.

The Warriors seized the opportunity of Jokic entering the paint and launched a fast break.

Curry received Thompson's pass in the frontcourt and scored with a reverse layup, drawing a foul on Holiday in the process.

When he made the free throw, the Warriors led 6-0.

A burst of cheers erupted from the crowd.

The Warriors had a very smooth start!

"Kerr finally realized that his small ball lineup is the trump card. By putting aside his inner stubbornness, the Warriors can win easily."

Barkley was in high spirits at the commentary booth.

He seemed to be able to already see the wonderful scene of O'Neal kissing Smith's butt.

Williams also stood up from the bench at this time. He wasn't a tactical coach, so at this moment, he could only pray and hope that the Pelicans could score on their next offensive possession.

Jokic continued to hold the ball at the arc, this time passing the ball to Tang Tian.

Barnes shrunk inside, and Tang Tian turned directly towards the baseline.

Thompson anticipated this and pounced towards the ball side.

However, Tang Tian faked it, and with a turnaround, he shot towards the basket.

Barnes came in to help defend at this time, and Tang Tian took the opportunity to fadeaway.

This shot was very difficult.

"Swish!"

However, Tang Tian steadily sent the ball into the basket.

Williams clenched his fist on the sidelines.

At critical moments, they still had to rely on Tang Tian.

The Warriors' positional attack in the frontcourt failed. After Jokic held the ball at the arc, he passed the ball to Tang Tian again. Tang Tian was double-teamed as soon as he received the ball.

He directly pulled up for a contested shot in front of the basket.

The choice of this ball was very unexpected. Thompson didn't stop in time and hit Tang Tian's arm, resulting in a foul.

The ball that Tang Tian shot bounced around on the rim a few times before rolling into the basket.

This was an and-one play.

The Pelicans' bench erupted in cheers.

They were down 6-0 at the start, but Tang Tian scored on two consecutive offensive possessions, single-handedly bringing the score back.

"Tang not being selected as MVP is the most unjust thing this season. He can change the game with his own strength!"

This time, it was O'Neal's turn to laugh.

Barkley not actually kissing Smith's butt last time was his regret, and also the regret of all the fans.

Now, there was finally a chance to make up for that regret!

Curry continued to show his excellent touch, shooting a signature long-range three-pointer from a step beyond the three-point line.

However, in the next possession, Tang Tian passed the ball to Jokic from the double-team, and the latter also made a three-pointer at the arc.

Davis's touch was average tonight, but Jokic's touch was good, coupled with Tang Tian's hot streak.

At the end of the first half, the Pelicans were closely behind the Warriors with a score of 53-55.

O'Neal and Barkley fought throughout the entire half at the commentary booth.

The worst was Smith. After his protests were ineffective, watching Barkley and O'Neal fight for his butt, the feeling was really indescribable.

However, a tie at halftime was the norm for the Pelicans after adjusting their tactics. Who would win or lose in the end depended on the third quarter.

In this series, the Warriors' wins against the Pelicans were basically sealed in the third quarter.

Back from the halftime break, the Warriors attacked first.

Curry shot a three-pointer as soon as he came up, but unfortunately, he didn't make it.

Davis secured the defensive rebound.

In the frontcourt, Tang Tian was double-teamed before he could even receive the ball.

Tang Tian scored 25 points in the first half alone and was in very good form. The Warriors made targeted defensive arrangements for him at halftime.

Jokic didn't force his way to the basket. In the first half, his attacks to the basket were directly turned into fast break points by the Warriors.

He passed the ball to Davis, who received the ball and turned around for a fadeaway near the baseline.

Green's defense was still very good, and he had some hidden tricks.

"Swish!"

However, with a crisp sound, the basketball went into the net cleanly.

Curry cut to the basket, and after receiving the ball, he passed it to Thompson for a layup.

He knew his touch wasn't good after one shot, so he changed his approach to help the team.

The Pelicans attacked to the frontcourt, and Jokic continued to pass the ball to Davis.

This time, Davis faked a shot in front of the basket and then turned around for a reverse layup, scoring over Green.

Consecutive one-on-one scores!

Davis's touch seemed to be back!

The Pelicans retreated on defense, and Tang Tian and Ariza had a conversation.

Curry held the ball in the frontcourt and looked up to see that his defender had become Tang Tian.

If the Warriors were a car, Thompson was the gas tank, Green was the engine, then Curry was the driver.

The Pelicans had lost in the third quarter in the past few games. Tang Tian couldn't care about energy distribution at this moment and directly came to stifle the driver.

Curry passed the ball to Green and then ran off screens continuously.

At this time, Tang Tian seemed to have returned to his Spurs days, turning back into the super defender that opponents couldn't shake off.

Curry had no chance to receive the ball, and Barnes's final breakthrough layup was also defended by Davis.

Just like Barkley said at the commentary booth before, the Warriors were already strong enough, but they were still one stronger forward than Barnes away from perfection.

The Pelicans pressed to the frontcourt and continued to play. The ball was given to Davis again, and Davis turned around and attacked again.

Green's foul this time was a bit big, but Davis still managed to send the ball into the basket after the contact!

After he fell to the ground, Tang Tian pulled him up, and he roared excitedly after getting up.

Tang Tian carried the team single-handedly in the first half, and it was time for him to stand up in the second half!

Tang Tian limited Curry on the defensive end, and Davis found his touch and scored continuously.

In their home court, the Warriors' signature third quarter failed for the first time. On the contrary, the Pelicans were slowly grinding away.

When half of this quarter was over, they were leading the Warriors by double digits with a score of 71-61!

The third quarter curse was broken!