The Finals against the Mavericks – Are Consecutive Championships in the Super Four Around the Corner?

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As college teammates, Wang Chong and Wade have always maintained a strong relationship, even after all these years in the league. Of course, this bond is also linked to Wade's character as a dependable, older brother figure.

Wang Chong understands Wade's loyal and good-natured personality very well, so he has never had any hostility toward him. At his peak, Wade was strong, but still somewhat behind the current Wang Chong. He could not pose any threat to Wang Chong's current status, nor did he intend to compete with him.

Of course, the goal of forming the Big Three was to win championships. But even though Wade felt a little frustrated after falling short in the Eastern Conference Finals, he managed to maintain his grace.

It mainly comes down to different circumstances.

Wade has already won a championship with the Heat and has the FMVP trophy to his name. The honor he's received ranks just behind Wang Chong among players from the 2003 draft class. On the other hand, James has yet to win anything—no championships, no MVP, and certainly no FMVP. The Heat still belongs to Wade's team. James and Bosh joined later. This sense of urgency makes it impossible for James to stay as calm as Wade.

That said, after the devastating defeat in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Heat will likely adjust their tactics, just as they had initially planned, by placing James in the primary central role.

Pat Riley, the true architect behind the Heat, will surely implement this strategy, and Wade will likely accept it. After all, he cares more about winning than personal glory.

But the result is that Wade's condition will continue to decline over the next few years. Combined with aging and accumulated injuries, he will gradually fall out of the ranks of the top stars.

For the Bulls and Wang Chong, who eliminated the Heat, it doesn't matter what happens to the Heat from here on out—at least not until the end of this season. As for the changes the Heat will make next season, they will continue to negotiate and strengthen their team. That is something to be dealt with later.

However, no matter how the Heat adjust, the Achilles' heel in their interior play remains inevitable.

In this Eastern Conference Finals, the reason the Bulls were able to easily defeat the Heat with a 4-1 scoreline is partly due to James struggling with a sore back, but more importantly, it was the Bulls' absolute advantage in the interior.

Gasol played fiercely across 5 games, averaging 18 points and 8 rebounds per game, making it difficult for the Heat to resist in the paint.

Over the next few seasons, Gasol will only grow stronger. Each time these two teams meet, the Heat will have a headache on how to handle Gasol, who has become a pillar of strength in the paint.

Based solely on this, the Bulls will always have a significant advantage over the Heat in any matchup.

—— The Bulls, who have successfully advanced to the finals, now have one goal: to defeat their opponents and win the championship, creating a miracle of four consecutive championships!

So far, only one team in NBA history has won four consecutive championships—the Celtics of the past. Led by Bill Russell and other famous members of the Green Army, the Celtics achieved eight consecutive championships.

Since then, the longest winning streak in the league has only been three consecutive titles. Michael Jordan's Bulls achieved this feat twice. However, due to Jordan's decision to retire after his father was tragically murdered, the Bulls' streak of consecutive championships was interrupted, allowing Olajuwon to lead the Rockets to two consecutive championships.

In recent years, the team with the best chance of achieving four consecutive championships was the Los Angeles Lakers, led by the "Big Three" of Shaq and Kobe.

After winning three consecutive championships from 2000 to 2002, the Lakers were knocked out by the Spurs in the second round of the 2002-03 playoffs, ending their hopes of a fourth consecutive title. Although they went on to win another championship in 2004, that wasn't quite four consecutive championships.

Now, the Bulls, led by Wang Chong, have won three consecutive championships and created a dynasty. If they reach the finals and win the title, there is no doubt they will surpass all previous teams and become the strongest dynasty in NBA history.

While the Celtics won eight consecutive championships, it is well known that the league at that time was still in its early stages and many systems were immature. The highly professional Boston Celtics were completely monopolistic at that time, and their dominance over other teams was like an NBA team playing against a CBA team.

The NBA truly became competitive after the merger of the two major basketball leagues.

This is also why Michael Jordan only has six championships, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar also has six, but their historical status is considered superior to Bill Russell's, who has 11 championships.

The current situation of Wang Chong is no less competitive than the Jordan era. With the improvement of league regulations, such as the Bird Clause and Arenas Clause, NBA team strength has become more balanced, although the teams at the top of the pyramid still fiercely compete with each other. There are rarely teams at the "universe" level... The Warriors in the 2016-17 season are an exception, but that was entirely Durant's doing.

If the Bulls can win four consecutive championships in this environment, they will undoubtedly be considered among the strongest teams in NBA history. You should know that the best regular-season record of 73 wins and 9 losses also belongs to the current Bulls. Their dominance is unmatched.

And this time, the Bulls' opponents in the finals—no one thinks they have a chance of winning.

In the intense Western Conference Finals battle, the Mavericks came out on top, defeating the Spurs 4-2 to successfully advance to the finals.

Nowitzki has been exceptional in these playoffs. By the end of the Western Conference Finals, Nowitzki was averaging 28 points, 8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game, shooting 48.5% from the field and 46% from three-point range. Both his inside game and perimeter shooting were nearly perfect.

The most direct comparison is with Wang Chong, who dominated the Eastern Conference. Wang Chong averaged 28.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game, shooting 52% from the field and 44% from three. His stats are almost identical to Nowitzki's.

Of course, Wang Chong's 28.6-point average was boosted by his first-round matchup against the Pacers, where he averaged just over 20 points per game. Later, in the second round, he swept the Knicks 4-0 and then defeated the Heat 4-1 in the Eastern Conference Finals. While his point average in these games was over 30, the number of games was fewer, so his overall average did not rise significantly.

Still, Nowitzki's individual performance is outstanding. At least in these playoffs, only Durant of the Celtics could rival Wang Chong and Nowitzki in scoring ability. It's just that the Celtics, led by Durant, were defeated by the Heat and stopped in the second round of the Eastern Conference.

However, even with Nowitzki playing so well, the Mavericks have no chance against the Bulls. Even if Nowitzki is strong enough to compete with Wang Chong at 55 years old, there are still other players to consider.

The Mavericks' main players are the shooting guard Jason Terry, forwards Shawn Marion and Caron Butler, and defensive pillar Tyson Chandler at center.

As a worker-class player, Chandler has nothing to say.

During the playoffs, Marion and Butler are usually starters, while Butler comes off the bench to score. Both are capable of scoring in double digits, but their scoring ability is limited.

As for shooting guard Jason Terry, there's no doubt he's the second leading scorer for the Mavericks behind Nowitzki. He's an excellent scorer, averaging 18 points per game in the playoffs with a 47% field goal percentage.

The Mavericks' rise in the Western Conference Finals was undeniably due to the strong performances of these teammates around Nowitzki.

But compared to the Bulls, they pale in comparison.

As for the second scoring option, it's still up for debate whether Terry or Curry is better. After all, Curry hasn't been in his "Kurritian" mode yet, and he's not quite as good as last season due to ankle issues.

Nevertheless, Curry averaged 16+6 per game in the playoffs. Although his scoring was 2 points lower than Terry's, his assists were noticeably higher, and his shooting percentage was on par with Terry's.

At forward, even though Garnett no longer carries the offensive burden of the team, he's still a solid contributor, averaging double digits in points per game as part of routine operation.

At center, Gasol's performance in the playoffs this season has definitely been a career highlight, especially in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Heat. Against a Heat team that was thin in the paint, Gasol averaged 18 points per game over five games. In terms of rebounds, this boosted his playoff averages to 15 points and 7 rebounds per game—making him the third scoring option for the Bulls in these playoffs!

At all five positions on the court, the Bulls and Mavericks are nearly at an advantageous matchup, even on the bench. The Bulls, with players like Danny Green, Marcus Thornton, O'Neal, and others, are stronger than the Mavericks.

Most importantly, when comparing the two teams, the media highlight Wang Chong and Nowitzki as the offensive cores of their respective teams.

But no one truly believes that Nowitzki can outscore Wang Chong.

This is Wang Chong, the six-time consecutive scoring champion! No matter how good Nowitzki's scoring ability is

or how great his touch is, he may still not be able to compete with Wang Chong in a scoring battle.

Not to mention anything else, once the two teams take the court, there's a high chance Shawn Marion will be tasked with guarding Wang Chong, while Garnett will guard Nowitzki.

Regardless of whether Garnett ever defended Nowitzki in his prime, as long as he can limit Nowitzki's scoring below Wang Chong's, the Mavericks will essentially have no chance of winning.

The final hasn't even started, yet predictions about the series outcomes from outlets like ESPN are already very harsh.

Most outsiders generally believe the final score between the Bulls and Mavericks should be somewhere between 4-1 and 4-2, depending on the Bulls' attitude. If the Bulls give their best in every game, sweeping the Mavericks 4-0 is not out of the question.

Although the outside world's opinions are generally unanimous, Wang Chong doesn't have the slightest bit of contempt. After all, the Mavericks are the team that defeated the Big Three of the Heat 4-2 in the finals. They're no ordinary team.

At this crucial moment, when the team is about to make history with four consecutive championships, Wang Chong will allow no room for error.

——

May 31, 2011, Game 1 of the Finals began.

At the United Center in Chicago, both teams took the court.

Bulls starting lineup: Curry, Billups, Wang Chong, Garnett, Gasol.

Mavericks starting lineup: José Barea, Jason Terry, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki, Tyson Chandler.

Both teams jumped for the ball, and the Bulls won.

Curry dribbled the ball across half-court and passed it to Wang Chong. Without hesitation, Wang Chong accelerated and dashed toward the paint.

Marion, not expecting Wang Chong to be this explosive, found himself outmatched. Known as "The Hacker," Marion was an athlete with exceptional athleticism, but at 32, and after multiple significant injuries, he no longer had the explosive power he once did. Without any prior preparation, Wang Chong breezed past him in a single step!

Wang Chong, now inside the free-throw line, didn't pull up for his usual mid-range jump shot. Instead, he took the ball and drove straight to the basket.

Tyson Chandler, already under the hoop, stepped forward to cover the defense.

As the Mavericks' defensive anchor, Chandler's defense had been impeccable this season. Though his block numbers weren't outstanding—he wasn't a center known for blocking shots—slowing down the opponent's attack and disrupting their shooting rhythm was his specialty.

Chandler knew Wang Chong well, having been his teammate on the Bulls. He understood just how powerful Wang Chong was, so he didn't dare to take him lightly. He raised his arms and prepared to face him head-on, anticipating several possible moves from Wang Chong.

But despite all of Chandler's planning, he didn't expect what Wang Chong was about to do.

Wang Chong, already inside the paint, planted his feet firmly, explosively jumped into the air, and soared toward the basket!

Chandler was stunned.

"What the hell? Is he really going to dunk on me?"

As a six-time scoring champion, Wang Chong was known for his versatile scoring methods. He was a famous offensive kaleidoscope in the league. But this was the first time he executed such a dominant, forceful dunk!

If it were a player like James, who was physically strong and had a great confrontation ability, Chandler might've hesitated. But standing in front of him was Wang Chong, who wasn't that muscular.

In an instant, Chandler made a decision and faced Wang Chong head-on, not dodging or avoiding him.

The two bodies collided mid-air, and in the next moment, Chandler's expression turned to one of surprise.

Because Wang Chong had an overwhelming, arrogant force that Chandler wasn't prepared for. The unexpected strength made Chandler momentarily unable to react. At the same time, Wang Chong bent his arms, pressed Chandler back, and dunked the ball with force!

"Boom—!"

In an instant, the arena erupted in applause. The Bulls' home crowd was stunned by Wang Chong's dominant opening dunk. Fans jumped to their feet, cheering and shouting so loudly that even the referee's whistle was drowned out.

Chandler committed a defensive foul, and Wang Chong's 2 points were counted, with the added bonus of a free throw.

End of this chapter

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