A few days later, the Western Conference Finals came to an end.

Although Harden is stronger than his historical counterparts, after six games, the Mavericks still defeated the Thunder 4-2 and advanced to the finals.

It is worth mentioning that Nowitzki averaged 32.5 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in the series, with a shooting percentage of 55.7%, playing a phenomenal performance.

The Bulls and the Mavericks, for the first time in NBA history, two Bulls battled to the top of the NBA.

The moment the matchup was confirmed, ESPN immediately began pre-game warm-up and conducted a prediction survey on the outcome of the finals.

The results of the survey showed that more than 90% of fans felt that the Bulls would defeat the Mavericks to win the first championship since the Jordan era.

Even more than 70% of fans think that the Bulls will continue their strong performance in the previous rounds and directly sweep the Mavericks to win the championship.

Yes, the Bulls are extremely favored.

After all, when a team emerges from the division with a three-round sweep record of 12 wins and 0 losses, and also sweeps the peak Heat Big Three, you have no reason not to have sufficient confidence in it.

In particular, their opponent is the Mavericks, whose main shooting guard was out for the season, whose strength on paper seems obviously weaker, and who have always been known for being "soft" and were believed to have made it to the finals by luck.

This scene seems familiar.

That’s right, the last team to enjoy this treatment was the Lakers in the 2000-2001 season.

In the eyes of fans, the dominance of this Bulls team is comparable to that of the Lakers team back then. Even the Mavericks are a single-core team like the Digital Man back then.

It's hard not to connect them together.

What? James fans hate the Bulls so much right now, so they should support the Mavericks?

You are totally wrong to think so.

In fact, it's just the opposite. James fans are the group that most wants the Bulls to sweep the Mavericks.

After all, only in this way can it be proved that the Heat played like this not because they were bad, but because the Bulls were too strong.

As for Kobe fans, their main enemies are James fans. The Bulls' sweep of the Heat helped them vent their anger. In addition, due to Xu Yong's connection with Kobe, they also hope that the Bulls will win the championship.

So this grand occasion was finally created.

It feels like we're just waiting for the Bulls to go through the process.

There are still two days until the NBA Finals begins.

The Bulls are doing their final training to prepare for the finals.

The players seemed relaxed, even too relaxed, a little lax.

This is normal. The top three giants were all swept by you. Who else can be your opponent?

Although Thibodeau made some reminders after training, some players didn't seem to care that much.

After the training ended that day, Xu Yong continued to practice in the training hall.

He was practicing very attentively, and when he finished, he found that Thibodeau was already sitting on the sidelines for some reason.

When he saw him, he greeted him, wiped his sweat, and then sat next to Thibodeau.

"The Mavericks are not easy to play against." With such frequent exchanges, the relationship between the two has become closer. They are no longer like coach and player, but more like friends.

After all, for someone like Thibodeau who only focuses on basketball and can be described as a "basketball fanatic", it is not easy to have someone to communicate with like this.

"Yes, they will be the strongest opponents we have ever encountered." Xu Yong replied in an affirmative tone.

With the help of the third eye, the Mavericks won the 2011 NBA championship, the most epic championship in NBA history and a championship that changed Nowitzki's career reputation.

Moreover, their sweep of the defending champion Lakers, their easy win over the Thunder, and their final defeat of the Big Three Heat were all considered to be the weak defeating the strong.

But the fact that they can do it one after another actually shows that they are really strong.

Even as he said in his previous conversation with O'Neal, the Mavericks not only have excellent starting lineups, but also have bench bandits like Barea and Terry, plus a top coach like Carlisle.

Even though Caron Butler, who was talked about the most, was out for the season after playing for only two months, the Mavericks still finished third in the Western Conference, just one win less than the Lakers.

Apart from being a little old, they are not weak at all.

Thibodeau glanced at Xu Yong, seeming a little surprised by his attitude.

However, he went on to explain his reasons, and what he said was something Xu Yong did not realize.

"Compared to the team's strength, I care more about their self-confidence."

Thibodeau's description left Xu Yong a little confused.

When it comes to self-confidence, the Bulls are undefeated, so they should be the more confident side.

"I watched every game of their playoffs this year. They are different from the teams I know. Maybe at the beginning of the playoffs they themselves didn't think they could do it, but after playing round after round of series, they are now more convinced than anyone else that they can win the championship."

Thibodeau went on to give his analysis.

He did not come to this conclusion off the cuff, but rather through analysis of video clips.

He talked about several key games.

First up is Game 4 of the first round against the Trail Blazers.

The Mavericks were the third team against the sixth team in the first round and were the stronger team. The game proceeded in the same way, with the Mavericks winning both home games and leading 2-0.

Although the Trail Blazers won Game 3 thanks to Roy's performance, in Game 4, the Mavericks adjusted their form and led the Trail Blazers by 20 points after three quarters.

Then, in that game, the Trail Blazers completed an epic comeback, with Roy scoring the winning goal in the final moments.

Yes, this is something that most people don’t pay attention to.

Normally when a team encounters this kind of game, their mentality will definitely collapse, just like after the Heat were reversed by the Bulls, they played G4 without any fighting spirit.

But the Mavericks quickly adjusted their mentality. In the crucial decisive game, no one performed exceptionally well. Instead, they followed the routine on offense and spared no effort on defense. They eventually limited the Trail Blazers' score to less than 80 points and won the game.

This is partly because the veterans are used to the ups and downs of life and their mentality will not fluctuate easily, but more importantly it is the team's tactical system, where everyone has their own job and does their best.

It was after they beat the Trail Blazers that they realized that they were no longer so "soft" this season.

The second is Game 1 of the series against the Lakers.

Kobe was in hot form in G1. Under his leadership, the Lakers led the Mavericks by as many as 16 points in the third quarter.

This time, after experiencing a reversal themselves and knowing that a 20-point advantage cannot completely determine the outcome of the game, they completely threw away their "softness".

Then, the Mavericks reversed roles with the first round, completing a 16-point comeback and defeating the Lakers by the final 2 points.

It was after this game that the Mavericks' confidence was completely established.

Although the Lakers took the lead again entering the fourth quarter in G3, they were able to handle it calmly and eventually won the game.

The next one was Game 6 against the Thunder.

At the Thunder's home court, the Mavericks once again completed an epic comeback. This time they launched a 17-2 counterattack in the final quarter, tied the Thunder by 15 points and entered overtime, where they eliminated the Thunder.

According to Thibodeau's description, he could even feel the Mavericks players' confidence from their body language in the video.

They were only 15 points behind, but they had turned the tables by 16 points.

And then, they actually did it again.

So three rounds of series, three games, are like a repeated reinforcement of the Mavericks players' self-confidence.

And it was exactly as Thibodeau described, the Mavericks players firmly believed they could do it.

And this kind of self-confidence is very positive.

"It's all Miami's fault." Xu Yong said at this time.

Thibodeau was stunned by these words.

"If they were more durable, this wouldn't have happened." Xu Yong said with a smile.

Thibodeau was amused by the success.

"Tom, believe us. What you said may cause us some difficulties, but we are stronger and we will definitely win in the end." Xu Yong then put away his smile and said in a firm tone.

Thibodeau looked at Xu Yong for a while.

Of all the Bulls players, he is the only one with championship experience.

This is also the reason why he analyzed the Mavericks so deeply.

On the road to the championship, you must know every one of your opponents thoroughly.

It is also because of this understanding that he has a new respect for the Mavericks, which is definitely not comparable to the original 76ers.

Naturally, he would have some concerns, especially when he saw the team was a little slack today.

However, Xu Yong's words gave him reassurance.

On paper, the Bulls are definitely the stronger team.

As for the status, what Xu Yong said just now was not entirely a joke. The Bulls definitely did not use their full strength when playing against the Heat.

Even if the Mavericks can force the Bulls out, the Bulls will still be the stronger ones.

Thibodeau smiled and patted Xu Yong on the shoulder.

Xu Yongzhen is really different from all the players he has ever seen. This second-year player looks like he has been playing for twenty years.

And this extreme self-confidence can really infect those around you.

…

Two days later, at the United Center, the curtain of the finals slowly opened.

The United Center was packed, and fans saw the man again on the scene.

Returning to the United Center was like going off the rails, only zero and countless times.

Since Jordan returned once, all his previous worries are no longer important to him.

After all, as AJ's top player and the inheritor of his unique skills, it is normal for Xu Yong to come and watch Xu Yong play.

Swift also came to the scene tonight, wearing Xu Yong's jersey to support her boyfriend.

It has been nearly six months since they started dating, and almost four months since they confirmed their relationship, both of which are the highest among Swift's previous boyfriends.

Although Xu Yong doesn't have much time to spend with Swift, he still holds Swift's heart firmly with his skills on and off the court.

In addition to the audience seats, the pre-game cameras also kept focusing on Nowitzki on the Mavericks.

Although the strength may be different, Nowitzki's performance in the playoffs so far is extremely similar to that of Iverson back then.

At the opening ceremony before the game, when the Bulls came on the court, the atmosphere was as heated as the lid of a pressure cooker, ready to burst open at any moment.

After 13 years, Jordan returned to the finals stage for the first time since his departure. The fans were really excited as if they were reminiscing about their youth.

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

Mavericks: Kidd, Stevenson, Marion, Nowitzki, Chandler;

Bulls: Rose, Xu Yong, Artest, O'Neal Jr., Yao Ming.

The Mavericks used their regular lineup, and Thibodeau also used his regular lineup to respond.

Amid the cheers of the fans, Chandler passed the ball back to the Mavericks' half, officially opening the curtain of the finals.

Kidd dribbled the ball to the 45-degree three-point line on the left side of the frontcourt, controlling the ball with his back against Rose. The Mavericks used pick-and-rolls on both the strong and weak sides to look for opportunities.

Nowitzki used Chandler's pick-and-roll to bounce out to the three-point line, and Chandler quickly cut to the basket after breaking through.

However, the Bulls switched defense directly and followed both points.

O'Neal Jr. didn't perform well in the last round against the Heat, but in the finals, he will become very important, whether he is facing off against Nowitzki or protecting the rim after switching defense.

The Mavericks' first wave of tactics was blocked, but they did not stop and immediately launched a second wave of tactics.

It was Chandler again, this time he moved directly to the high position to set a screen for Kidd.

Then in the same way, after the breakup, he used his flexibility to cut into the basket and took away Rose, and also sent O'Neal Jr. to Kidd.

Kidd saw that O'Neal was afraid that he would pass the ball to the basket, so he stood a little further back and shot directly from outside the three-point line.

“Swish!”

Vote and you will get it!

The Mavericks came out on top.

The fans at the scene were stunned for a moment.

This is what Thibodeau calls confidence.

Of course, it's not just about confidence.

Kidd was once called "Kidd who can't attack" by fans. Although he was an excellent organizer, his scoring ability and efficiency were very poor.

However, after returning to the Mavericks, he managed to perfect his three-point shooting, maintaining his outside shooting percentage above 40% for three consecutive seasons, and his frequency of shots increased, exceeding 5 times last season.

More importantly, his shooting percentage in the playoffs does not fluctuate much compared to the regular season, which highlights two words: stable.

When he retreated to the defensive end, the person defending Xu Yong was also Kidd.

And at the moment when Xu Yong received the ball with his back to the basket in the high post and was about to turn around to attack, Stevenson came over from the weak side to double-team Xu Yong.

Although it is the same assist defense, the effects are completely different at different timings. The Mavericks' assist defense stands out because of their experience.

Xu Yong didn't have a good shooting angle when he was double-teamed, but fortunately he had excellent vision and passed the ball to Rose.

But at this time, Nowitzki actually came over to assist in defense.

The Mavericks are not only confident, but also highly motivated.

Rose changed direction and broke through Nowitzki, but Chandler showed his rim protection ability and provided timely defense to prevent Rose from getting ahead.

Rose jumped up and wanted to pass the ball to Yao Ming, but was intercepted by Marion who was trapped on the weak side.

The Mavericks' five players on the defensive end gave the impression that they were always moving and assisting in defense.

Then, the Mavericks directly pushed the defense to counterattack.

This team of old men was able to counterattack very quickly and in a very layered manner.

In the first wave, Marion did not get a direct layup opportunity and quickly knocked the ball back to Kidd on the outside.

Kidd directly played a feint to the east and attacked in the west, looking at Nowitzki who was late on one side, and then passed the ball to Stevenson who was already in position in the opposite corner.

Stevenson received the ball and shot it, and it went in!

Confidence, confidence deep in my bones!

6 to 0!

The Mavericks gave the Bulls a warning at the start of the game.

And more importantly, when the Mavericks made this start, Nowitzki hadn't even taken a shot yet.

There was a commotion at the scene.

Texas once had three illusions: the Rockets were strong, the Spurs were old, and the Mavericks were weak.

The Rockets are very strong, but have never made it to the Western Conference Finals;

The Spurs are old, but GDP leads the team to 50+ wins all year round, and the three players' status basically won't decline;

The Mavericks are very weak and seem to be constantly getting beaten and eliminated, but their 50+ wins are second only to the Spurs.

Then tonight, the Mavericks, who finally made it to the finals, proved with facts that it was really just an illusion!