pdf-ebookys Chapter 313 Ultimate Internal and External Frenzy! The Mad Bloodthirsty Shark VS The Unstoppable
Chapter 313 Ultimate Internal and External Frenzy! The Mad Bloodthirsty Shark VS The Unstoppable
Chapter 313 Ultimate Internal and External Frenzy! The Mad Bloodthirsty Shark VS The Omnipotent Lin!
No matter how bad Jackson's mood was after seeing Rivers, O'Neal had a way to cheer him up tonight!
Yes, of course, we bring him joy on the court; off the court, Jackson's happiness depends on his sister Janet.
At the start of the third quarter, O'Neal easily got the ball and quickly turned towards the baseline. Then, with a flick of his elbow, Ben Wallace was forced back a step. O'Neal easily jumped up and slammed the ball into the basket with both hands!
After landing, O'Neal grinned and snarled at Ben Wallace, arrogantly celebrating his successful dunk!
However, his arrogant celebration seemed somewhat superfluous when facing the Pacers.
Since the Pacers have decided not to double-team O'Neal and to let him play freely, their fast breaks will definitely accelerate rapidly!
Before O'Neal could even finish making a face, Webber had already grabbed the basketball and tossed it to Lin Tian, who was making a fast break down the court.
Lin Tian received the ball and quickly advanced to the frontcourt. Then, facing Hubble's defense, he suddenly made two consecutive crossover dribbles to create distance. After getting space outside the three-point line, he pulled up and shot!
An absolutely unreasonable chase-down three-pointer!
"Whoosh!"
With a crisp sound, Lin Tian helped his team open the scoring in the second half, narrowing the gap to within 10 points!
After Lin Tian hit the three-pointer, he quickly turned around and went back to defend. When he walked to his own three-point line, he just brushed past O'Neal, who was about to run into the paint.
Upon seeing Lin Tian, O'Neal immediately hurled a trash talk at him: "Can you keep making shots like this? I don't believe it!"
The current Shaquille O'Neal is no longer the naiveté he had during his Magic days, nor is he the silly shark who could be easily fooled by Lin Tian's few words.
He has now spent three years in Los Angeles, enjoying the bright lights and having a wonderful time. He has seen so many things that he never dared to imagine in Orlando.
The current Shaq is incredibly dirty!
"Give it a try." Lin Tian looked at O'Neal. Ever since O'Neal ignored Lin Tian's "well-intentioned advice" and chose to join Los Angeles, Lin Tian knew that the two of them would definitely have one, or even many, matchups in the Finals!
Now that they've met, Lin Tian won't back down!
Even Lin Tian was very much looking forward to it.
Lin Tian is especially looking forward to the Lakers next year, the 00-01 season, who are considered strong contenders for the greatest team in NBA history!
Let's see what you're really capable of!
But before that, tonight, Lin Tian must win!
O'Neal has once again secured his position in the paint.
Completely different from their time in Orlando, the Magic now have a much stronger preference for "Penny" from management to fans. They all believe that Hardaway is the leader, and they want O'Neal to give up space so that Hardaway can drive to the basket. They even want O'Neal to just catch the ball and dunk.
But with the Lakers, O'Neal was the absolute core. Whenever he asked for the ball, the entire Lakers team would do everything they could to pass it to him!
He got the basketball again, and this time instead of turning towards the baseline, he turned halfway towards the top line and took a step to gather the ball, then pulled up for a side hook shot!
"Whoosh!"
Ben Wallace, who is about 2 meters tall, simply couldn't stop Shaquille O'Neal after he got into position and received the ball!
He could only watch as O'Neal scored 2 points once again!
To limit O'Neal, Ben Wallace either restricted his positioning, preventing him from getting the ball in a comfortable position, fouled him, or prayed that he would miss the shot.
Besides these three methods, Ben really has no other options.
Fortunately, although the Pacers couldn't contain O'Neal, their offense was fast and ruthless enough!
This time, O'Neal didn't make any provocative moves. After scoring, the big man immediately turned around and started running, wanting to participate in the team's defensive retreat!
This time, Webber continued to make a quick pass, giving the ball to Lin Tian outside the three-point line. Lin Tian then chased after Hubble and advanced the ball. Suddenly, outside the three-point line, Lin Tian made a half-turn and used his back to block Hubble.
Then, Lin Tian made a subtle feint to the left with his upper body to deceive Hubble. He then quickly turned to the right, shook off Hubble in one step, and rushed towards the basket from the wing!
The Lakers' paint was wide open, and Lin Tian drove straight in with the ball, taking off with one hand just outside the three-second zone!
But just as he jumped up, he felt a huge dark shadow chasing after him from behind!
Shaquille O'Neal!
This monster actually caught up! Lin Tian only wasted a little bit of time on Hubble, and O'Neal was already back on defense!
If Lin Tian had made that move, the basketball would have been slapped into the stands by O'Neal, giving the fans a great gift!
Fortunately, although Lin Tian was surprised, his reaction and ability to stay airborne were really strong!
At the last second, Lin Tian pulled the ball back to his waist to avoid O'Neal's block, and then glided towards the other side of the basket.
However, before Lin Tian even reached the other side of the basket, he collided with O'Neal!
"puff!"
With a muffled thud, Lin Tian felt as if he had been hit by a tank! He finally understood what those guys he had knocked away felt like!
In an instant, he almost completely lost control of his body balance and all other control!
After colliding with the out-of-control O'Neal in mid-air, Lin Tian almost spun 90 degrees. If Lin Tian's core strength and hand strength hadn't been sufficient, he would have been sent flying to the baseline!
But Lin Tian barely managed to keep himself from being completely thrown away!
He gritted his teeth, used the last bit of control he had left, aimed at the backboard, and then slammed the ball against it with one hand.
"Snap! Swish!"
The basketball obediently bounced off the backboard first, and then fell straight into the basket!
Then, Lin Tian completely lost his balance and fell awkwardly to the floor, rolling several times towards the group of photographers at the baseline before finally stopping!
After stopping, Lin Tian quickly rolled over and lay face down on the ground. He then did three push-ups to show that he was completely fine. He then jumped up and gave a high five to his excited teammates who rushed over to help him up!
After a gasp of surprise, the fans at the scene confirmed that Lin Tian was alright, and then immediately erupted in a frenzy of cheers and shouts!
That shot, that 2+1, was so exciting and thrilling!
O'Neal's defensive transition was quick and reckless, and Lin Tian's mid-air layup was thrilling and extreme!
The intense offensive and defensive battles between the two players captivated the fans in the stadium!
Fortunately, the referees didn't dwell too much on this round, and their whistles were very timely.
It was an obvious defensive foul! The referee quickly awarded Lin Tian a 2+1 opportunity!
"I can keep playing like this!" Lin Tian said, standing at the free-throw line and looking at O'Neal under the basket. "What about you? How many possessions can you sustain this kind of fast-paced transition offense and defense? Three or five?"
O'Neal remained silent in response to Lin Tian's provocation.
Just now, he risked his life to chase and run, his idea being to use a spiked volleyball block to demoralize the Pacers and try to crush them in the third quarter.
But now, instead of getting blocked, he got beaten up. The Lakers' morale didn't pick up, while the Pacers were completely excited because of Lin Tian's 2+1 layup!
More importantly, O'Neal knew that Lin Tian was right!
At the very least, he himself couldn't possibly keep following Lin Tian around like this.
If he ran a few more rounds like that, either his knees would protest loudly, or his lungs would burst.
"Shaq, come here!" Before Lin Tian took the free throw, Jackson suddenly waved his hand, signaling O'Neal to come over. He put his hand on O'Neal's waist, with a sage-like expression that said, "Come closer, I have three brilliant plans to share with you."
After O'Neal passed by, the old fox whispered, "Shaq, what I'm about to say is not to be shared with anyone else!"
After a pause, Jackson pretended to look around to make sure no one was crowding in, especially that annoying round-headed guy who, although listening intently, couldn't possibly sneak into the arena to eavesdrop, before continuing, "From now on, you don't have to go back on defense!"
"At least until I ask you to get back on defense, you don't have to run around like crazy during these fast counter-attacks and transitions between offense and defense. Shaq, you know what I mean."
"Understood." O'Neal nodded quickly, and then, very astutely, said what Jackson was about to say: "I'll crush them on offense!"
The young man is teachable, and the fat man is also teachable!
Jackson patted O'Neal on the backside, signaling him to go for the rebound.
After devising this secret strategy that allowed O'Neal to slack off on the defensive end, Jackson crossed his arms and sat back on the bench.
"Mr. Phil, what secrets did you pass on to O'Neal? You two both seem very confident, like you're absolutely certain you can win this game," Rivers asked, arriving late.
Jackson rolled his eyes, resisting the urge to launch into a sarcastic remark about Rivers' mother, and instead said, "I told him to focus all his attention on defense, to maintain our lead, and to contain the Pacers' offense!"
"Genius! Genius tactics! Going against the grain!" Rivers immediately showered him with praise before returning to his seat. The smug Jackson didn't notice the disdainful and mocking expression Rivers was giving him behind him.
"That old fox really thinks I'm an idiot! Once I've assembled my team, I'll beat you bunch of self-important old bastards to a pulp!"
On the court, Lin Tian took a deep breath, expelling the pain from his collision with O'Neal, and then calmly made the free throw!
A 8-point difference!
In the following possession, the Lakers' perimeter defense became increasingly aggressive, and they were unable to find an opportunity to lob the ball to O'Neal several times. Finally, Kobe managed to find some space to shoot and then made a mid-range jumper over Christie's defense!
"Bang!"
After a muffled thud, Ben Wallace had just turned around to check where the backboard had landed, but before he could even stand up straight, he felt an immense force pressing down on him from behind. His legs went weak, and although he didn't fall to his knees, jumping up to grab the rebound was definitely out of the question!
"boom!"
After a loud bang, O'Neal, over Ben Wallace's head, slammed the ball, which had bounced off the rim, back into the basket with one hand!
"This is power! This is the power of the best in the league! You stupid afro kid, have you ever seen such terrifying power?!" After scoring, O'Neal clenched his fists arrogantly and roared at Ben Wallace.
At the same time, the cunning fat man didn't forget to "take advantage of the situation" and kick the basketball, causing it to roll to the other side, preventing Webber from getting the ball and inbounding it immediately.
"FUXX!" Webber, who had just bent down to pick up the ball, could only utter a curse before turning around to retrieve it. As a result, the Pacers' transition offense was clearly disrupted.
O'Neal turned around smugly, intending to return to his defensive position.
"Kobe, that fatso keeps insulting you, calling you an idiot with an afro all the time. Don't you think he's indirectly criticizing you?"
"He must be upset that you didn't pass him the ball directly, so he's deliberately insulting you!" Lin Tian nudged Kobe's waist with his elbow, continuing his very low-level attempt to sow discord.
"I'm getting a new hairstyle next season."
Kobe looked at Lin Tian and said, "Lin, don't you think your attempt to sow discord is pretty low-level?"
"Low-class, but it's true." Lin Tian shrugged, then suddenly pushed Kobe with a forceful movement, causing him to stumble. He then sprinted towards the frontcourt. Kobe immediately pushed off with both feet, trying to catch up with Lin Tian. He thought the Pacers were going to force a fast inbound pass again!
But just as he started moving, Lin Tian suddenly stopped again.
"Just kidding, don't be too nervous."
Lin Tian shook his head and gestured towards Kobe with his mouth, then slowly walked towards the frontcourt.
As for dribbling the ball across half-court, Lin Tian left that to Carter.
Having played the game this far, Lin Tian now has a clear understanding of the relative strengths of the two sides.
O'Neal is a player the Pacers simply can't contain. To deal with this monster, they would have to put two or even three players on the court to double-team him. But with the Lakers' outside shooting ability and O'Neal's passing ability, which, while not top-tier, is definitely sufficient, double-teaming O'Neal would likely result in an even more disastrous outcome!
Two cups of poison; the Pacers must choose one to drink!
As for what Lin Tian is doing now?
He was trying to figure out a way to smash the two cups on the ground!
I won't drink either of those cups of poison!
Lin Tian believed that the only way to prevent Kobe from drinking the poison was through Kobe!
If this still-developing guy gets carried away and starts playing recklessly without passing the ball to O'Neal, then the Lakers are doomed!
Everything depends on when Kobe will be blinded by anger and start recklessly attacking!
But before that, the Pacers must narrow the gap and keep the game suspenseful!
Otherwise, if Kobe finally gets into a scoring frenzy and plays recklessly, but the gap between the two sides has already reached 20 points, then what's the point?
Therefore, we must be at full power at all times!
After Lin Tian reached the three-point line, he suddenly pushed Kobe again before cutting to the outside to get the ball. Facing Kobe's defense, Lin Tian chose the most flashy but impractical method.
Constant fancy dribbling and spinning tops in place!
Facing Kobe, Lin Tian dribbled for a full 5 seconds before suddenly making a sharp change of direction, passing by Kobe and rushing to the basket. Before O'Neal could help defend, he suddenly stopped and made a floater, scoring another 2 points!
The Pacers continued to close the gap!
"Do you think I'm pretty stupid?" After scoring this time, Lin Tian didn't trash talk to O'Neal. Instead, he turned to Kobe and said with a mocking look, "You think this kind of dribbling doesn't deserve to be on the NBA court? You think my dribbling is ridiculous and trash? Like a clown doing a laughable dance?"
Kobe didn't say anything, but Lin Tian could tell from his eyes that he was absolutely right.
"I did it on purpose! To deal with you, I can easily get past you in one step anyway. I'll just show off a few flashy dribbles to entertain the fans."
"This is my favorite entertainment! I hope you like it too!"
Just mock them! Just the most direct mockery!
Lin Tian's words made Kobe frown noticeably, but Kobe still passed the ball to O'Neal, letting the big man attack the paint.
Not urgent!
Lin Tian knew that Kobe was no longer the 18 or 9-year-old high school student he was a few years ago; his mentality had matured considerably.
It will take some time to get him hooked!
If this guy gets carried away and makes 3-5 careless shots before the game ends tonight, that'll be enough!
In the remainder of the third quarter, the game completely turned into a duel between O'Neal and Lin Tian!
Shaquille O'Neal was capable of everything: hook shots, layups, dunks, and lobs. He was proficient in almost all the skills that a traditional center needs to master!
With a wide variety of offensive skills, top-notch touch, and agility that is completely out of proportion to his size, this Shaq, when he goes all out, is definitely the number one super center in NBA history in terms of offensive ability and destructive power!
Throughout the third quarter, O'Neal scored another 19 points and forced Ben Wallace to his fourth foul, forcing him to go to the bench early to rest.
Faced with the unstoppable Shark, all Lin Tian could do was respond on the offensive end as much as possible. Lin Tian was also unstoppable in this quarter. Whether it was Hubble, Kobe, or Fisher, they were all completely outplayed by Lin Tian. In this quarter, Lin Tian scored 21 points!
Furthermore, with only three quarters of the game over, O'Neal and Lin Tian's stats were already so outrageous that it was almost dizzying.
Shaquille O'Neal scored 42 points, grabbed 17 rebounds, dished out 5 assists, and blocked 6 shots in three quarters!
林天更夸张，他三节比赛就已经轰下50分7篮板8助攻4抢断3盖帽！
The statistics of these two players are more and more exaggerated, and their dominance on the offensive end is more and more frightening!
Tonight, two unparalleled Finals super statistics are destined to be produced!
With these two players going toe-to-toe in the third quarter, the Pacers gained a slight advantage, winning the quarter by 3 points and narrowing the gap to 7 points!
96: 89!
The Lakers maintained the advantage throughout the game!
With the score difference so large at the start of the fourth quarter, neither coach dared to let their most important players rest.
The Lakers have signed O'Neal, Horry, Rice, Kobe, and Fisher!
Clearly, Jackson is going to exploit O'Neal's strengths to the fullest! He must completely dismantle the Pacers' interior defense!
So they put four players who could shoot on the court, and also put the three best scorers on the team on the court!
We're going to give O'Neal space, we're going to deny the Pacers any chance to double-team him!
As for the Pacers, they fielded a lineup of Davis, Lewis, Miller, Carter, and Lin Tian!
Bird is clearly going all out!
Since we can't stop you, O'Neal, let's just put in one pure inside player and have the other four players go all out with their shots!
At the same time, the two lineups used by the two coaches basically indicate that O'Neal, Kobe, Lin Tian, and Carter will most likely play the entire second half!
At this point in the game, the length of the rotation and the depth of the lineup are no longer that important!
It's about comparing talent, potential, star quality, and who has the bigger heart and can withstand more pressure.
This is the most important and core element of the playoffs, especially the Finals!
"Both coaches are daring enough, and both are extreme enough! They both opted for a lineup with four shooters!" Kenny exclaimed after seeing both teams' players back on the court. "Whether it's Jackson or Bird, their 'gambling spirit' is truly astounding!"
"They are all incredibly confident, they all believe their choices are right, and they would rather choose a lineup with higher potential returns but also greater risks than a conventional lineup that seems safe but is unlikely to deliver a decisive blow!"
Barkley continued, "So let's see who can deliver the fatal blow in the next few minutes!"
After Barkley finished speaking, the Pacers, who had the first possession, had Lin Tian dribble the ball up the court, and Kobe stood in front of Lin Tian once again!
Throughout the third quarter, Kobe was matched up against Lin Tian, and he was really tormented by Lin Tian!
From trash talk to dirty tricks, from pulling jerseys and scratching backs to blocking eyes and elbowing chests.
Lin Tian not only offered Kobe a heartfelt greeting and encouragement, but also physically examined the hardness and resilience of Kobe's muscles!
At this moment, Kobe hasn't really gone overboard yet and hasn't completely decided to go all out on his own, but Lin Tian knows that time is not far off. As long as he puts in a little more effort, Kobe could start at any moment!
But right now, the most important thing is to score!
This time, Lin Tian once again chose to drive straight at Kobe, accelerating past him from Kobe's left side. Then, Lin Tian suddenly slowed down inside the three-point line, waiting for the Lakers' role players to come up and help defend.
Then, after glancing at Horry out of the corner of his eye, Lin Tian immediately turned his eyes in the opposite direction to look at Carter. He then swung his hands toward the wing, and Lewis, who was left open, successfully caught the ball and immediately pulled it up and threw it!
"Whoosh!"
After the crisp sound, Lewis hit a three-pointer!
This young man has found his rhythm and confidence tonight!
After scoring, he even started trash-talking, which is quite unusual for him!
"You're ignoring me? Underestimating me? Think I can't hit? Hmm? I'll get accurate and shoot you all with protein all over your faces!"
An excited Lewis felt that tonight was another career-defining night! Yet another shining night of his professional career!
In the Lakers' offense, Kobe, despite Lin Tian's dirty tricks, made his way to the frontcourt and immediately passed the ball to O'Neal.
"Kobe, you don't even have the courage to make a triple threat against me anymore?" Seeing how decisively Kobe passed the ball, Lin Tian mocked him again.
"I'm afraid that when I'm in a triple threat position, I'll just throw the ball right at your face!" Kobe yelled at Lin Tian, annoyed. "You bastard, do you know how much you deserve a beating?"
"Of course I know," Lin Tian said matter-of-factly. "That's why I train so hard in combat! I love seeing you all want to beat me, but you can't! As for throwing balls at me, go ahead, if you hit me, I lose! If I blink, I lose too!"
"Fuck!" Kobe cursed, then turned away, no longer looking at Lin Tian.
Under the basket, O'Neal once again pushed Davis aside, and then got up to make another flying dunk!
Perhaps because he had dunked too many times and too smoothly tonight, statistically speaking, he was about to miss, so O'Neal's dunk actually went completely wide!
The basketball flew almost vertically high into the air. Davis, who was next to O'Neal, caught his breath, saw where the basketball was going to land, clenched his fist, and slammed it towards the basketball!
Yes, he smashed it! He never even considered trying to catch the backboard himself!
This guy knew the difference in skill between himself and O'Neal. He knew that if he tried to grab the rebound with the intention of securing it, he would most likely be feeding O'Neal. So he decided to just throw the ball out and leave it to fate.
At the very least, my teammates are very reliable in terms of mobility and reaction time!
For example, this time Carter quickly shook off Fisher, then took three steps and grabbed the basketball, and then launched a counterattack towards the frontcourt!
Speed is the Pacers' lifeline tonight!
Carter dribbled at breakneck speed, attracting the attention of two Lakers defenders. Then, he flicked the ball towards the middle, and it ended up in Lin Tian's hands!
But Lin Tian didn't actually catch the ball. Instead, he caught it with one hand and then used a counterforce to send it flying back towards Carter!
This time, however, the basketball flew towards Carter's side!
The Lakers' defense had already been largely drawn to Lin Tian and Carter, and now Lin Tian suddenly passed the ball behind Carter. No Lakers player expected the ball to be passed like that! They could do nothing but watch!
Lewis caught the ball again!
This guy caught the ball and shot again beyond the three-point line, taking the shot decisively!
"Whoosh!"
After another crisp sound, Lewis scored his second three-pointer of the fourth quarter!
At the same time, the point difference between the two sides was narrowed to just 1 point!
"How's it going, Kobe? Only one point left, aren't you going to attack yourself?" After passing the ball, Lin Tian looked at Kobe and continued to taunt him, "Honestly, I think you were stronger in your rookie year! Back then, Kobe was fearless, even daring to go one-on-one with Magic Johnson!"
"He was once a ruthless player who dared to throw up four airballs in a do-or-die playoff game! But the current Kobe is like a wild beast that's been kept in captivity, a tiger whose teeth have been pulled and claws removed! He's not scary at all!"
"Say whatever you want, Lin." Kobe remained indifferent. "No matter what you say, I won't fall for it! I'll keep passing the ball. I know what my job is! You're trying to provoke me, to anger me, to make me attack the basket, right?"
"I'm telling you: No way! Winning is the only thing I'm thinking about right now!"
Wow, so calm?
Lin Tian looked at Kobe and muttered under his breath, "Even if all the praise goes to that fat guy, even if people say you're just a sucker, even if you're essentially just a role player no different from Horry or Fox?"
"Then what's the difference between you and Buichler?"
"You might not know him, and 95% of fans probably don't either. He was Michael's number one backup during the Bulls' two-peat! As for him now..."
"Okay, I don't know where he is, just like five years from now, nobody will know where you are!"
"Whoosh!"
While Lin Tian was trash-talking, Kobe had already passed the ball to O'Neal in the paint once again, then looked at Lin Tian and said, "Useless Lin! The championship is the most important thing! A championship is a championship! I don't care about you."
"A champion is a champion?" Lin Tian scoffed. "Ask yourself if you believe that nonsense, Kobe."
After saying that, Lin Tian didn't say anything more to Kobe. It wasn't time yet!
No rush, stimulate him for another 5 minutes!
Under the basket, O'Neal showed his fierce side against Davis, shoving Davis away with his shoulder. When Davis reached out to stop him, O'Neal ignored him and was completely unaffected, forcefully pulling up for another two-handed dunk!
This time, O'Neal's luck wasn't so bad. He slammed the ball into the basket, and at the same time, the referee blew his whistle again!
Another 2+1 opportunity!
As O'Neal stepped to the free-throw line, he took a breath. His free-throw shooting touch was terrible tonight, even worse than his average. But as he looked at the basket, his eyes were full of confidence!
This fat guy once said: "I'm not good at free throws, but when the team really needs me to make them, I won't miss in the crucial moments of the game! I'm completely different from some point guards from across the ocean!"
"Whoosh!"
After wiping away sweat, O'Neal didn't disappoint the Lakers fans, calmly making his first free throw of the fourth quarter!
"Come on! Shaq will show you what a perfect free throw looks like!"
After making the free throw, O'Neal's confidence soared, and he unleashed a torrent of trash talk at the Pacers players!
After his successful 2+1 play, the gap between the two sides widened again!
And after making this free throw, O'Neal once again sprinted back on defense with all his might!
Despite not keeping up with the Pacers' pace much throughout the third quarter, O'Neal still had plenty of energy and a strong defensive drive! He sprinted all the way to the basket, then timed his jump perfectly to coincide with Carter's intended attack!
"Snapped!"
With a crisp crack, O'Neal completed an incredibly fierce chase-down block!
While he was in the air, his huge hand exerted force and firmly grasped the basketball. After landing, O'Neal held the ball high with one hand. With his massive physique, he truly looked like an invincible figure who could hold off ten thousand men!
After giving Carter a fierce look as he lay on the floor, O'Neal quickly passed the ball to Kobe. Kobe dribbled the ball and advanced rapidly, driving all the way to midcourt before suddenly tapping the ball towards the center.
Then, Lin Tian, who was defending Kobe, felt a cold wind blow past him, and a big black rat, or rather, a big black bull, flashed past him.
Shaquille O'Neal!
After completing a quick chase and block, this guy actually joined the offense again. He grabbed the basketball near the three-point line, dribbled it twice on the floor, and was already at the free-throw line. Then, he slammed the basketball down on the floor, took a big step and drove straight into the three-second zone, and pulled up for another two-handed dunk!
It's not that the Pacers players didn't play defense, but when a monster like O'Neal goes all out, a normal person would absolutely not stand in his way.
That's suicide!
There is a very high probability that he will be sent directly to the hospital.
Therefore, the Pacers players really didn't dare to stand in O'Neal's way; they all stepped back to make way for him.
After O'Neal's outstanding performance on two offensive and one defensive plays, the Lakers regained the lead and extended it to 6 points!
Fortunately, Lin Tian finally took another shot, and after a pick-and-roll with Davis, he took advantage of O'Neal's inability to defend him and made a mid-range shot, scoring two crucial points!
The Pacers have finally stabilized the situation! They've started to close the gap again!
Then, not only Lin Tian and Lewis, but Carter and Miller also finally started to perform. They started making shots, from beyond the three-point line, from mid-range, and when they drove to the basket, constantly creating threats and scoring points.
However, although the Pacers started to score consistently, they were ultimately powerless against the Lakers and against O'Neal!
With seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Davis picked up his sixth foul and was ejected from the court. Ben Wallace, who was also in foul trouble, replaced him and returned to the court.
If it were just O'Neal constantly causing damage and scoring in the paint, that would be one thing, but what's even more troublesome for the Pacers is that O'Neal has started making free throws!
Shaquille O'Neal, whose free throw percentage was less than 50% in the first three quarters, made all five of his free throws in the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, instantly boosting his free throw percentage for the night!
When O'Neal can consistently make free throws, no matter who his opponent is, it will be like experiencing a nightmare!
A flawless inside behemoth, let alone a developing Ben Wallace, even a prime Ben Wallace couldn't withstand this berserk Shaq!
Fortunately, the Pacers' offense held up, so they never fell behind!
The worst thing for the Pacers was that with less than three minutes left in the fourth quarter, Ben Wallace picked up his sixth foul!
The Pacers' two best defensive big men are both out!
At this point, Bird could only call a timeout to make some adjustments, but in reality, Bird had very few options, or rather, only one: to bring on Webber, who hadn't played at all in the fourth quarter and had a terrible performance tonight.
Webber's performance tonight was absolutely disastrous. After scoring 5 points in the first quarter, he shot an absurd 1 for 7 in the following two quarters, without a single free throw. He only managed 7 points and 7 rebounds in total. If it weren't for his 4 assists and several beautiful fast breaks, he would have been nothing but a side effect on the court tonight!
But now, with both Ben Wallace and Davis fouling out, Bird's only reliable interior player is Webber!
He hopes Webber can get his act together in the final three minutes!
As the game progressed, although the Pacers actually narrowed the gap to 2 points in the fourth quarter, they were still trailing!
120: 115!
They are still down by 5 points!
In the first few minutes of this quarter, O'Neal scored another 15 points, bringing his total to a terrifying 57 points, 21 rebounds, 5 assists, and 7 blocks! The Pacers have managed to hold on this far without collapsing in the face of such monstrous performance, thanks to Lin Tian!
Although Lin Tian only scored 7 points in this quarter, he delivered 4 assists, igniting the team's offense! At least for the remainder of the quarter, the Lakers certainly won't dare to double-team Lin Tian so recklessly! Because Miller, Carter, and Lewis are also on fire in the fourth quarter!
至于林天自己，他今晚已经轰下57分12助攻9篮板5抢断3盖帽了！
Both O'Neal and Lin Tian played like monsters!
"In the history of the NBA Finals, there has never been a game in which two players scored 60 points at the same time!" Kenny said, "especially 60+20 and 60+ triple-doubles, which are terrifying stats that sound like they were played in an NBA live game."
"Your language skills are absolutely terrible. Listen to what you're saying; can you even understand it yourself?" Barkley scoffed. "With just those few sentences, nobody can understand what you're trying to say!"
"Let me translate for you, Mr. Charles!"
"What Kenny has to say is: Lin and O'Neal both delivered unprecedented performances! They put up incredible numbers in the Finals that you couldn't even see in NBA Live!"
"This match, regardless of who wins or loses, will be recorded in history!"
After Barkley finished speaking, he looked at Kenny smugly and said, "You illiterate idiot, tell me, in the last two minutes, who do you think will win?"
"The Lakers!" Kenny said without hesitation. "I think the seven-game Western Conference Finals battle allowed O'Neal and the Lakers to successfully adapt to this level of competition and to the feeling of playing under pressure! They are better prepared, and they have more experience in handling these situations!"
"As for the Pacers, have they ever been at a disadvantage this season? They haven't lost in so long! They've been having such a smooth run! At other times, this is an advantage, it gives them immense confidence! But tonight, this arrogance might be their downfall!"
"Where were they arrogant?" Barkley retorted to Kenny again: "I said, which eye of yours saw the Pacers being arrogant? They tried many different defensive methods against O'Neal, they basically locked down Kobe, they kept rotating to test the effectiveness, and they played a historic game on offense!"
"They just can't stop Shaq, but nobody can stop Shaq unless you borrow a twin towers from the Spurs or a young Hakeem Olajuwon from God. Otherwise, the current Shaq is simply unstoppable!"
"Don't forget, the Pacers' interior defense has always been their biggest problem and weakness! Today they just faced the strongest Shaq, which caused their long-standing weakness to be exploited. To me, this is nothing! This was definitely part of Bird's plan!"
"I think the only thing that surprised the Pacers in this game was O'Neal making all five of his free throws in the fourth quarter! If O'Neal could get back to his normal free throw level, the gap between the two teams would be even smaller now!"
"The Pacers are definitely going to win tonight! I'm telling you!"
(End of this chapter)