Champion Creed

This greatly increases the chances of Old Cat making a miraculous shot.

The Spurs couldn't close the gap effectively with their sixth man and entered the second quarter with a 14-point deficit. But in the second quarter, when Duncan and the Admiral were back on the court together, a well-rested Mount Mutombo stood in their way again.

Right off the bat, Mutombo wagged his finger at Duncan, like a dissatisfied old woman: "Tim, don't even think about resting for a second today!"

After watching the game unfold, Popovich concluded: the Warriors' lineup is complete.

They have a strong perimeter, a sixth man, a superstar, and have also shored up their inside defense. They have all the conditions needed to win a championship.

In the subsequent game, the Spurs came as close as trailing by only 6 points at one point, but that was the best they could do.

Stoudemire, Camby, and Mutombo's rotational defense left last season's MVP frustrated. Although he could still score, he couldn't lead the team in a comeback.

Roger's integrated offensive, passing, and defensive play laid the foundation for the Warriors' victory.

In the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, after Roger assisted Stoudemire's mid-range shot, the lead had stretched to 26 points, and Roger had already racked up 41 points, 11 assists, and 4 rebounds!

After this shot, the game essentially entered garbage time.

In the end, the Spurs narrowly lost to the Warriors 86 to 109 on the road.

The Golden State Warriors finally broke the Spurs curse hanging over everyone's heads!

After the game, back in the locker room, everyone was celebrating the victory crazily, jumping around Roger, and wildly splashing water.

Marcus Camby sat smiling in front of his locker. He wanted to join the celebration, but considering his relationship with the teammates, especially with Roger, he decided to sit alone.

Halfway through the celebration, Roger noticed Camby sitting in the corner, so he stepped out from the crowd: "Marcus, what's your stat sheet today?"

"Huh?" Camby was a bit taken aback by the question.

"The stat sheet? How'd you do today?"

"I... I'm not sure," Camby was surprised by his own answer. Someone who usually cared so much about stats didn't pay attention to his own stats today.

Roger turned to look at Spoelstra: "Erik, do you have the stat sheet?"

Spoelstra handed the stat sheet to Roger, who found Camby's stats: 5 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 blocks.

Scoring aside, the biggest gap between Camby and a top-tier star is scoring ability.

Because he focused on protecting the rim rather than positioning for advantageous rebounds, most rebounds went to Stoudemire.

Aside from the 2 blocks, his stats were indeed mediocre, not even as striking as Payton's 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists.

Camby glanced at his stats, then shrugged: "It doesn't matter, I don't mind. I trust Dikembe, the rewards will come eventually."

"Do you want the greatest reward?" Roger inquired.

"The greatest reward?"

"Yes, the greatest reward. Keep this up, and you'll get it, I guarantee you, Marcus."

With that, Roger turned to leave. But just one step away, he turned back.

"Oh right, Marcus, one more favor."

"What is it?"

"Please join our celebrations in the future, you're part of the Golden State Warriors, you're one of us. This isn't Boki's team, it's not my team, it's our team, and you're part of 'us'."

Camby was stunned for a few seconds. In New York, where he gave it his all, no one had ever said anything like that to him.

Hubie Brown stood by, smiling, as he packed his tactical materials.

Is interior defense the final piece of the Warriors' puzzle for success?

No, it's not.

This, now, is truly the last piece of the puzzle.