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"The future is yours," were the words Duncan told James after sweeping him 4-0.James never imagined at that moment that seven years later, on the same Finals stage, this old liar who kept saying "the future is yours" would still be leading the Spurs, sweeping his Heat team 4-1.
Although Duncan was no longer the core of the Spurs at that time, he was still one of the main players. He averaged a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds per game, shattering the Heat's dream of creating a dynasty with three consecutive championships.
Wang Chong had no intention of letting Duncan add such a disadvantage to him, so he took a preventive approach, directly disrupting the opponent's spellcasting.
Are you kidding me? He doesn't want to experience what James will feel seven years from now. He doesn't want to have this experience of losing in the Finals for a second time, and he doesn't want it to become as common for him as it did for James.
No matter what happens, thus ended the 2006-07 NBA season.
Wang Chong averaged 36.7 points per game over the 6 Finals games and shot 55% from the field. His performance was flawless, and no one would blame him for playing poorly because he lost the Finals.
After all, Wang Chong is only 22 years old and still has a long future ahead of him.
As strong as Jordan was, he didn't start his legendary path to six championships until he was 28, after gaining the best assistant in his career, Pippen.
Moreover, it wasn't easy for the Bulls to fight against the Spurs in six games with their tactics completely restricted. In the two games they won, Wang Chong scored 50 points in one game and 46 points in the other. It's hard to imagine how much better you'd need to play to actually win the championship.
After this battle, many sports media in Chicago made impatient calls.
"The Bulls management really should work hard this summer to find some outstanding helpers for Wang Chong. The team's mid-season trade for Chauncey Billups was a great move and a regular-season highlight for the Bulls, contributing significantly to the second-best game record in history with 69 wins, but Billups alone isn't enough."
"Tyson Chandler and Raja Bell are just role players. Luol Deng has good potential as an emerging young player, but his technical characteristics are too unique and make him easy to target. Even if the Bulls have more experience next season and improve, it will still be difficult to beat the Spurs in the Finals if the lineup remains the same."
I must admit that the analysis of these media outlets is very accurate and matches Wang Chong's opinions.
The Bulls lineup was carefully selected and determined by Wang Chong himself.
But this doesn't mean it's Wang Chong's ideal lineup. It simply means that, given the Bulls' conditions, it's actually good to be able to assemble this lineup. In Wang Chong's original plan, he would intercept and dig in the draft every year, cultivating profitable and low-ranked rookie players who are suitable for the Bulls' tactical system. Those who aren't suitable could still be traded as valuable bargaining chips after being appraised.
Monta Ellis is a typical example. From the beginning, Wang Chong didn't intend to reuse Ellis. At his peak, Ellis could average 25+5+5 per game when he had enough ball rights. However, his offensive efficiency was low, his shot selection was poor, his long-distance shooting ability was average, and his defense was not good enough. He definitely wasn't a suitable guard for a championship team.
So, when Ellis had the chance to be traded for Billups, Wang Chong immediately took action without hesitation.
Originally, Wang Chong planned to take things slowly and steadily, without rushing for immediate success.
However, the upgrade task launched by the system disrupted his plan. Wang Chong couldn't wait any longer. He was eager to win the FMVP and complete the system upgrade task.
His plan is to turn the Bulls into a championship-level team within three to five years, with players gradually being cultivated by themselves.
But that speed is too slow, especially for rookie players—no matter how good they are, they need a lot of training and won't immediately become great players.
The Bulls couldn't defeat the Spurs in the 2006-07 season. In the 2007-08 season, they might face the stronger Celtics Big Three and the Lakers, who defeated the Spurs to reach the Finals. Everyone knows the chances of winning are slim.
So, Wang Chong had to come up with a plan.
But before that, there's something more important to do.
Two days after the Finals, while everyone was still immersed in the six-game battle between the Bulls and the Spurs in the Finals and enthusiastically discussing the future situation of the league's East and West teams, the Bulls officially announced a statement that the team had fired head coach Scott Skiles.
As soon as this news came out, it immediately caused a great stir in the league.
Scott had coached the Bulls well over the past two years, leading the team to the Eastern Conference Finals last season and the Finals this season. In the regular season, they recorded the second-best record in history with 69 wins and 13 losses.
The Bulls' excellent record allowed Scott to be selected as the Eastern Conference All-Star head coach and Coach of the Year this season, an unparalleled achievement.
Who would have thought that just two days after the Finals ended, the Bulls would immediately fire such an outstanding coach?
But Popovich, the Spurs coach who faced the Bulls, wasn't surprised.
Only those who have had face-to-face confrontations know the caliber of the Bulls' head coach.
In the 6 Finals games, facing the Spurs' specific tactics, the Bulls couldn't respond effectively. Additionally, he quickly realized that the Bulls' defensive system was essentially copying the Spurs' tactics. The Spurs' offensive wing wasn't like those Eastern Conference teams that were easily blocked by the Bulls, so they could score as usual.
In Popovich's opinion, the poor in-game control of the Bulls coach was partly responsible for the team's loss in the Finals.
What he didn't know was that even the copied Spurs' defensive tactics came from Wang Chong's suggestion. Otherwise, the Bulls' tactics would have been typical conventional academic tactics.
Although Scott was very obedient and usually listened to Wang Chong, there was nothing he could do to win the championship and complete the system tasks as quickly as possible—a capable coach was indispensable.
While firing Scott, Wang Chong had already found a candidate: assistant coach Tom Thibodeau, who had just resigned from the Rockets after the end of the season.
Thibodeau, a future well-known coach in the league, is known for his defense. His most famous achievement is creating a mature defensive system for the Bulls, achieving the best record in the league, and helping Derrick Rose become the youngest regular-season MVP.
But that was in the 2010-11 season, four years later.
After leaving the Rockets, Thibodeau decided to join the Boston Celtics as an assistant coach under Doc Rivers. Thibodeau built the Celtics' defensive system, contributing significantly to their championship win. After three seasons with the Celtics, the Bulls stealthily hired Thibodeau as head coach, and in his first season, he led the team to the league's top record of 62-20.
Leaving offense aside, Thibodeau has a unique vision for building a defensive system. He's definitely a top-tier defensive coach in the league, on par with Popovich.
Of course, Thibodeau has one flaw compared to Popovich—he relies heavily on star players for offense, often keeping main players on the court for extended periods, risking overuse. This habit of his showed during his seasons with the Bulls and later with the Timberwolves.
End of this chapter
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