Chapter 112 Davis Returns

It seemed that Davis had recovered from his injury and would play in the second game of the Finals.

After training, Tang Tian was interviewed by reporters on the sidelines, and during the interview, they indirectly confirmed this.

"Will losing the opening game affect the team's next games? Or will it cause the team to make any adjustments?"

"No, it won't. I know people outside are saying what will happen if the Cavaliers win the opening game, but they all ignored that AD didn't play."

Tang Tian replied with a relaxed expression.

Davis' absence had a clear impact on the Pelicans.

Tang Tian hadn't exchanged for a legend yet. With his current stamina, his role on the defensive end would weaken after a full-force attack, and others would need to support the defensive system.

Holiday and Ariza on the outside weren't a problem, but the absence of Davis on the inside was a big problem.

This was also the reason they were 30 points behind in the fourth game against the Warriors and lost the opening game of the Finals.

Almost all eyes were focused on Tang Tian, but they naturally ignored that the Pelicans were missing their second-in-command.

If it were a regular game, other role players could step up to make up for it, but this was the Finals, a game between the strongest teams in the East and West.

"Are you saying Davis will return in the next game?"

The reporter pressed.

"Yes, he has fully recovered."

Tang Tian gave the reporter a clear answer. He didn't need to put out a smokescreen. As long as Davis played, the Pelicans would have an advantage against anyone.

This interview was reported and gave Pelicans fans a boost.

Although not experts, they could see the team's disadvantage in the paint without Davis.

Davis had a lower body injury, and as long as he recovered, it wouldn't affect his performance.

A healthy Davis' impact on the paint was obvious. The Cavaliers certainly couldn't dominate the Pelicans' paint like they did in the first game.

At that time, it would be natural for the Pelicans to win the game.

For a time, Pelicans fans, who had been demoralized by the loss of the opening game, became active again on social media.

Even the media and experts began to re-analyze the situation for the second game of the Finals.

Words like "a complete Pelicans team has a better chance," "Davis is a big help to the Pelicans," and "the Pelicans will win their second home game" began to reappear.

The Pelicans were being looked at favorably again.

Even the gambling websites adjusted their odds, with the Pelicans' odds being lower than the Cavaliers'.

"We don't care. Three days ago, everyone thought we were going to lose, but we won. Now they think we're going to lose again. They don't care if what they write is correct, and I don't care what they say."

James' attitude was clear to the reporters.

They had already won a game they weren't expected to win, so they wouldn't be affected by outside opinions.

There was no trash talk like there was in the Western Conference Finals, but James' remarks made the second game of the Finals even more anticipated.

He was right, and if the Cavaliers won the second game, their chances of winning the championship would skyrocket after winning two road games in a row.

On June 5th, US time, the second game of the NBA Finals continued at the New Orleans Arena.

The attention on this game was even higher than the opening game.

According to the data previously released by the league, the opening game set a new five-year high for global viewership.

And this data was broken before the game even started.

It was obvious that with China, a large viewership area, the viewership for this game would only be higher.

Because domestic fans were looking forward to the Pelicans winning back a game tonight.

The fans' cheers during the opening ceremony were even louder than in the first game.

Especially when Davis, who was the first to appear, and Tang Tian, who was the last to appear, the decibels on the scene were like a tsunami.

They were also eager to watch the Pelicans win the game.

The game was about to begin, and the players from both sides entered the court one after another.

On the Cavaliers' side, James grabbed a handful of magnesium powder and threw it into the air before entering, as usual.

Tang Tian suddenly had an idea when he saw this scene.

James was reluctant to use traffic, but he didn't feel bad about throwing magnesium powder, was it because it wasn't his own?

James felt someone looking at him, turned around and saw that it was Tang Tian, and a hint of fighting spirit flashed in his eyes.

Tang Tian had taken two championships from him before, and at that time Tang Tian was just a role player.

Now Tang Tian had become a superstar, and was even touted by the media as the next Jordan!

He was going to shatter the media's fantasy now, there was only one spokesperson for this league, and that was him, James!

The starting lineups for both teams were about the same as in the previous game, the only change being Davis' return.

Davis won the jump ball against Mozgov, opening the curtain for the second game of the Finals.

Tang Tian and Davis ran a pick-and-roll in the frontcourt. Davis looked to be in good shape, completely blocking Smith.

Tang Tian met Love's change of direction and made a steady pull-up jumper.

The Warriors' defensive weakness was Curry, and the Cavaliers' was Love.

Lue didn't mind, just signaled the team to attack quickly. He knew the Cavaliers' advantage, and he wanted the team to exploit that advantage.

Love and Smith stood in the two corners.

Irving signaled Mozgov to pull up to the right high post for a pick-and-roll. After the screen, he broke through Jokic and attacked the basket.

He was very fast, completely shaking off Jokic after jumping.

But just as he was about to shoot, a hand came out from the side and blocked his shooting angle.

Davis!

Davis' defensive ability and coverage were far better than Aminu's.

Irving did a reverse lay-up in the air, but Davis' other hand followed, directly swatting his shot out of bounds!

The cheers at the scene were thunderous.

Davis' impact on the Pelicans was obvious!

The Cavaliers inbounded the ball, James held the ball and called for Mozgov's pick-and-roll, continuing to break through Jokic and attack the basket.

Seeing Davis helping again, he passed the ball to Love in the corner.

The Cavaliers' tactics were the same as in the previous game, still attacking the Pelicans' paint.

Because Love had a three-pointer, they could stretch the space on the offensive end.

In other words, even if Davis' defensive coverage was large, he couldn't shrink back, and Love would get opportunities.

Love received James' pass, but he didn't shoot, because Tang Tian had switched to defend him.

Without Davis, the Pelicans couldn't protect the basket well, but with Davis, they weren't afraid after forcing the ball from the paint back to the outside.

Because the Pelicans had already established an excellent defensive rotation system this season.

Love didn't have much time after receiving the ball, he could only shoot.

As a result, under Tang Tian's interference, he shot an air ball!

The whistles at the scene continued.

The Pelicans were completely different from the last game!

"This is the Pelicans' true strength."

O'Neal said with a big laugh in the commentary booth.

Without Davis, the Pelicans' paint could only be dominated by the Cavaliers, but with the paint protected, the Pelicans no longer had a weakness!