Tomorrow We Will Win!

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When Liam was interviewed after the game, a journalist asked him about the Warriors' collapse in the second half. Liam's response was brief:

"We're not in good shape, it's that simple. There are many young players on our team, and they lack playoff experience. This is not their fault; they will mature after playing more playoffs."

It seems the journalists didn't accept this explanation because "it's not a good one."

The next day, Liam arrived at the Oracle Arena, walked into the office, and grabbed a stack of newspapers from Jonathan. The previous day's playoffs were extensively reported, and most of the articles related to the Warriors and Suns stated that the Warriors no longer had any skills left. The Suns were poised to win and eliminate the Warriors. The loss in the first game was just an accident. Games 2 and 3 were the true reflection of the power gap between the two teams.

Obviously, Jonathan had already read these reports and said with great indignation:

"Boss, all these media are just following the trend. I still remember that after we won the first game, they were almost speechless! Now, after just losing two games, they act like we are nothing... these unscrupulous newspapers always know only one argument!"

Liam casually flipped through the pages, tossed the newspaper onto the table beside him, and smiled casually:

"Jonathan, you know what the face of the media looks like? It's always like this, not just the media but also the fans. Humans. Memory is very limited; they only remember what happened in front of them, they don't have time to look at the past, and they don't think about the future."

What does this mean? When social media grows in the future, arguments will arise based on a single goal, a single quarter, or even a single point.

"But..." Liam sighed softly. "This time, they were right. Game 1 doesn't explain anything. Our playoff run is probably coming to an end."

…

On April 24th, the next day, Game 4 between the Warriors and Suns began.

For the Warriors' fans who came to the Oracle Center to watch the game, this was definitely not good.

Although the Warriors were never more than 10 points behind the Suns, from the first minute of the game, the Warriors never had a lead. By the end of the game, they were dominated by the Suns and lost.

As the series progressed, the players on both teams began to feel tired. Both teams were in decent condition, but the Suns constantly controlled the situation. Liam changed tactics many times and tried a 5-out lineup with Anthony Tolliver as the center. He also deployed defensive lineups with only two reliable shooters, but these didn't yield great results.

The Suns' offensive lineup was too modern, while the Warriors' lineup wasn't balanced enough and could only focus on one side. Even that side wasn't perfect compared to the overall state of the team. But the Suns were also doing just fine.

In the end, the Warriors lost to the Suns by 8 points (104-112), making the series 1-3.

At the end of the game, Liam looked at the court with a hint of indifference. The Suns' defense had a big problem, and Liam knew exactly how to break it. But the Warriors' second main attacker was Azubuike, rendering all his smart tactics useless...

However, failure wasn't all bad. What pleased Liam was that Curry continued his excellent performance from the first three games, scoring 28 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds that night.

The fast pace of the game made Curry feel at home, and the Suns' weak defense gave him a lot of space to shoot. In many cases, he could take a shot with just one screen, and this type of three-pointer was extremely difficult for others. Distributing the ball was as easy as training for him. He hit 5 out of 9 three-pointers with great efficiency.

It was predictable that Curry's performance in this series wouldn't be bad. He was the most stable and lethal weapon in the Warriors' offense.

Additionally, Butler, under Liam's guidance, consciously increased his offensive ball-handling. After more than half a season of training, he made significant progress with his ball fakes and could often draw fouls near the penalty area. In this game, he scored 16 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, and 3 assists. He was the second-highest scorer on the team after Curry.

But aside from his drives, Butler had no other stable offensive methods with the ball. His dribbling and mid-range jump shots were still very immature and required more training before he could master them.

It can't be said that the performances of the other Warriors players were bad. Azubuike scored 15 points, Chandler had a double-double with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Anthony Tolliver also scored in double digits with 12 points, hitting 4 three-pointers.

But their performances could only be described as "not bad." They could be the finishing touch, but they couldn't help when needed. They had done their job, but only up to a certain point.

Jeff Van Gundy, the commentator for this game, expressed it well:

"The Warriors did the best they could in this game, but unfortunately, there was a power gap between them and the Suns. In the end, they lost the game and fell into a desperate situation, trailing 1-3. Their chances of a comeback were very slim. It's basically safe to declare their playoff run over in advance... But the Warriors' lineup still has a lot of potential that can be tapped. They have two big contracts expiring and will have huge salary cap space this summer. Coach Liam has shown that he's shrewd with transactions. I'm looking forward to seeing what the Warriors do. The playoffs aren't the end for this young team; they have a brighter future!"

These words seemed to sum up the Warriors' playoffs and prematurely announced their demise, but the Warriors' fans who watched the game had no objections.

Kerr was right; the power gap prevented the Warriors from matching up to the Suns.

But as he said, the Suns are an aging team, while the Warriors are a team on the rise. They believe that under Liam's leadership, the Warriors will have a bright future.

…

On April 25th, the day after Game 4, the Suns returned to Phoenix, and the Warriors flew back that day.

They only had a day and a half to rest and would start Game 5 on the night of April 26th. To many, this would also be the last matchup of the series, with the Suns defeating them cleanly. At home, the Suns would sweep the Warriors and move on to the Western Conference Semifinals.

Nearly 20,000 Suns fans flooded the American Airlines Center, and the stadium became an orange sea. They wanted to witness the Suns' victory live, clearing away the fog of the last two years, and proclaiming to the league that the powerful team from the Western Conference was back.

Before the game, the Warriors didn't feel much hostility while warming up. Many Suns fans cheered them on, and some even applauded Curry for his elegant warm-up.

Winners are always generous toward losers. The crowd was no longer like Game 2, where the Warriors were booed by the Suns fans before an opponent about to be eliminated. Now, they were willing to show grace. The atmosphere inside the American Airlines Center was unusually harmonious, as if this wasn't a playoff game, but rather a preseason match with nothing at stake.

But not everyone thought this way. At least Liam didn't appreciate it and didn't want to be treated this way on the opponent's court.

After the Warriors players returned to the locker room, Liam stood in front of everyone, looked them all over, and said slowly:

"Did you see that? The Suns' fans don't even take us seriously! They treat us like fish on the cutting board. I don't know if you can stand it, but I can't stand it no matter what!"

When the Warriors players focused their attention on him, Liam continued:

"I said before that the playoffs are a life-or-death battle, but the Suns' fans treat this like a preseason game that they need to win. Son, this is the extreme. They despise me and you! Of course, who put us behind 1-3? It seems like we deserve to be looked down upon..."

Everyone lowered their heads, showing expressions of shame.

"But are you willing to lose the series on foreign soil and watch your opponent celebrate in front of you under the flying banners?! Even if we lose, we'll bring the game back to Oakland, then to Oracle, and play in front of our own fans! Play with everything you've got and then lose. I will never let my opponent celebrate in front of me and the crowd, right?"

"No!"

"That's right! I have only one request, and that is to win this game. No matter what the final result of this series is, as long as we beat the Suns today, we will not be losers!"

…

"Curry quickly advanced into the attack zone, stopped, and was about to shoot—wait! It's a very smart arc! Curry shook off Richardson's defense and went all the way to the penalty area! When Tadmire came over to help defend, Curry passed the ball to Butler, who cut from the left. Butler made a layup and the referee blew the whistle. It was a foul on Hill, and Butler made the layup with an additional free throw. Gentry called for a timeout, and it was a necessary one. After Curry scored, the Warriors took the lead over the Suns." In the American Airlines Center, Mike Breen used his magnetic voice to call the game faithfully.

Liam stood aside with a smile on his face, seemingly enjoying the boos coming from all directions.

Although he couldn't hear the commentator's voice, the score of 106-86 on the big screen obviously made him very satisfied.

Game 5 between the Warriors and Suns had reached the last five minutes of the final quarter. The Warriors had such a large lead that they had already secured half of the victory in this game.

Liam high-fived the players who came off the court one by one, took the tactical board from Silas' hands, drew two defensive tactics, and emphasized that every possession must consume as much time as possible, even if no points are scored. The timeout was over.

In fact, all of this was just a well-rehearsed routine. It was something they had practiced thousands of times in training. Liam was simply helping the players calm down in the fierce competition and implement the established tactics. At the same time, he gave them motivational speeches to keep their focus on the game and not get distracted.

After the timeout, when Butler made the extra free throw, the Warriors' lead grew to 21 points, adding another layer of security to their victory.

Liam clapped for Butler, then returned to his seat and comfortably leaned back in his chair.

"Liam, this game is almost won," Silas smiled at him from his left.

"Yeah, I didn't expect them to be in such good shape. It feels so good to be young..." Liam sighed.

In this game, the entire Warriors team went crazy. After nearly four quarters, the Warriors shot 52.4% from the field and an incredible 45.6% from three-point range. Except for Chandler and Varejao, everyone who played hit at least one three-pointer, completely destroying the Suns' defense. If it weren't for too many mistakes, the lead would have been even larger.

In the first quarter, the Suns were dazzled by the Warriors' precise shooting. Azubuike hit three consecutive irrational three-pointers, helping the team get off to a perfect 16-3 start, forcing Gentry to call a timeout after just 3 minutes of play.

But it was useless. The basket was as wide as the sea for the Warriors. All kinds of powerful three-pointers hit without fail, causing the once loud and joyful American Airlines Center to fall silent before the game. Suns fans didn't have time to show their grace; they were confused by the situation in front of them.

Aren't we about to enter the second round? How could we be beaten by the Warriors?

Not just Suns fans, but even Liam didn't expect the game to unfold this way.

His original intention was simply to motivate the players and get them into the game in the best condition. In fact, he had already prepared for a loss.

The age of second-rate thinking had passed long ago. Could it really be that because "he never allowed it," the Suns wouldn't win?

But who would have thought that it actually inspired the players to go wild and violently beat the Suns?

At that moment, Liam had a clear idea.

The following minutes passed quickly as the Warriors dominated. In the end, the Warriors defeated the Suns 116-98 and tied the series 2-3.

After the game, Liam reached the stage, smiled, and shook hands with Gentry:

"Oakland welcomes you."

Gentry's expression froze. He looked at Liam deeply, didn't say a word, and turned to leave.

Liam continued smiling as he watched Gentry walk away.

Even if I can't beat you, I'll still exhaust you to death!

…

Two days later, the Suns and the Warriors faced off in Game 6 at Oracle Center. The Suns defeated the Warriors by 17 points, closing out the series with a 4-2 score, while the Warriors' playoff run ended at home.

After the game, the Warriors' fans looked coldly at the victorious Suns. The Suns players didn't celebrate their win on enemy ground. After these 6 games, they were very tired.

Although both teams experienced a huge victory or a disastrous defeat, and there didn't seem to be particularly tense moments, both teams believed in running, shooting, and counter-attacking. The game had many rounds and a full pace, which made it impossible to relax. With the offensive power of both sides, 20 points was nothing for the Suns.

After the Suns left the court, Liam led all the players to center court, held a microphone, and slowly said amid the applause of the fans:

"Today we lost, but tomorrow we will win!"

End of this chapter

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