"LeBron, leave the rest of the third quarter to Tang Long. You guys can rest. As long as we don't fall too far behind, we'll have a chance in the fourth quarter."
Mike Brown didn't dare to directly say let Tang Long lead the team to catch up, but rather expressed his tactical philosophy euphemistically.
"How about they rest, and Tang and I stay on the court?"
"You need to conserve your energy. The fourth quarter is the crucial part!"
James cast a suspicious glance at Mike Brown, then turned to Tang Long, "Tang, how's your stamina?"
"I have no problems at all."
As he spoke, Tang Long had already opened the store and redeemed a potion to replenish his stamina.
Frankly, he was quite frustrated with this game. The stamina consumed far exceeded previous games, not just because of the Celtics' defensive intensity, but also because of the stifling offense.
"It's all up to you, brother!"
James patted Tang Long on the shoulder.
He truly envied this guy's stamina, and then James thought of the female celebrities around Tang Long.
Damn it!
Good stamina really had its benefits. He was too shallow!
"LeBron, damn it, don't look at me like that."
James slung an arm around Tang Long's shoulders, "Tang, are we brothers?"
"What are you trying to say?"
"Introduce me to your trainer."
Tang Long slightly distanced himself from James, squinting at the guy and saying, "Do you think this is the right time to talk about this?"
"It does seem a bit inappropriate. Let's discuss it after we win this game."
"What are you two talking about? Be serious."
Mike Brown glared at the two of them impatiently. Tang Long and James chuckled and quickly ended the topic of stamina.
This did serve as a reminder to Tang Long.
Everyone's training was similar. Why could he play so many more minutes than others and still maintain sufficient stamina? It was hard not to suspect him of using performance-enhancing drugs!
It seemed he should hire a private trainer.
As Tang Long was contemplating, the referee's whistle blew, and the third quarter began.
"Tang, finish them."
"No problem, watch me."
James got up and high-fived Tang Long, which also relieved Mike Brown.
He had been overthinking just now. At the same time, he felt fortunate that James wasn't the type to hold grudges.
With LeBron James off the court, Tang Long was immediately double-teamed by the Celtics as the third quarter tipped off.
As Mike Brown had anticipated, the Celtics made some personnel adjustments after the timeout.
Garnett and Pierce were resting, and James Posey and Sam Cassell were subbed in.
Initially, Doc Rivers thought Tang Long would also come off the court to rest, as his constant back-and-forth running consumed the most energy. However, he didn't expect Tang Long to remain on the court.
This guy was truly fighting hard, embodying the never-give-up spirit of the Dragon Country people!
In addition, Mike Brown had deployed a smaller lineup, which directly restricted Sam Cassell's speed advantage.
The Celtics now had to double-team Tang Long, creating opportunities for the substituted West and Joe Smith.
With Tang Long drawing the attention of Perkins and James Posey, West and Joe Smith executed a pick-and-roll to get to the basket. Joe Smith shot from the paint!
Swish!
His accuracy was terrifyingly good.
"It's Joe Smith again! This is Joe Smith's fourth shot, right? 4-for-4 from the field. Joe Smith's performance in this game has been phenomenal!"
"West is 4-for-5 from the field, plus two free throws, giving him 10 points. After they came on, they completely revitalized the Cavaliers' offense."
Yang Yi waved his arms excitedly.
They had expected the Cavaliers to struggle more with their bench players, but who knew the Cavaliers' second unit would go into a full-blown run-and-gun?
The suddenly accelerated pace made it difficult for the Celtics to utilize their defensive advantage.
The Celtics, lacking Garnett and Pierce, struggled to get their offense going, allowing the Cavaliers to quickly close the gap!
"Coach Yang, have you noticed that Tang Long's position seems to have changed?"
"I've noticed it too," Yang Yi nodded. "Compared to before, Tang Long is positioning himself a bit further out, which also leaves more space for other players to attack the basket. Just like that last play, Tang Long drew the Celtics' attention on the left, and Joe Smith broke through on the right to the basket."
"If they keep playing like this, the Cavaliers might not only catch up in the third quarter but might even score more points than the Celtics."
It wasn't just the commentators getting carried away. The Cavaliers' bench players had been playing exceptionally well during this stretch.
The increased tempo made the Celtics uncomfortable, leading to frequent turnovers. And under Tang Long's leadership, these Cavaliers bench players were capitalizing on those mistakes.
With less than thirty seconds left in the third quarter, both teams were tied at 26-26. After trailing by ten points, Tang Long, leading the bench players, managed to claw their way back.
"The Celtics seem to be running down the shot clock. Cassell is dribbling without initiating an offense, just moving back and forth along the three-point line!"
"West is right on Cassell's heels. He's doing a great job defending Cassell's post-up game. Cassell hasn't had many good opportunities in this game, only drawing one foul on Varejão."
"He drives! Cassell fakes and gets past West. Joe Smith comes to help defense. Cassell shoots."
"Oh, that shot missed the rim! Perkins got the rebound. He's going for a dunk."
"Tang Long, it's Tang Long again!"
"A spectacular block! Tang Long swatted Perkins' dunk attempt. Joe Smith grabbed the ball and quickly drove towards the Celtics' basket."
"Too late, though. James Posey and Ray Allen have already gotten back on defense. Shoot it quickly, there are only two seconds left... I..."
In the broadcast booth, Yang Yi saw that with only two seconds remaining, Joe Smith passed the ball back to Tang Long, who had just run over.
"How could he pass that ball?"
The three Celtics defenders who had returned to the court immediately surrounded Tang Long.
With six hands from three players, they all swatted at the ball. One jumped to block Tang Long's passing lanes, and Perkins directly blocked Tang Long himself.
"What a shame. If this shot had gone in, the third quarter would have been one of the greatest playoff quarters in NBA history."
Yang Yi sighed as he spoke. At this moment, the camera was already waiting to switch to commercials after the two seconds expired.
Just as everyone thought it was impossible for him to get a shot off, the ball, with an elegant trajectory, flew towards the basket from the crowd like a dancing fairy!
BEEP!
At the same time, the referee's whistle blew, and the basket light also illuminated.
The shot went in!
Unfortunately, Tang Long stepped on the three-point line, so the shot was only worth two points.
Despite this, the fans in the Quicken Loans Arena stood up and applauded Tang Long, chanting his name.
"That shot was truly magical. To be able to shoot while being double-teamed by three players, and to make it!"
"Putting everything else aside, Tang Long is awesome!"
"Cleveland's eternal god!"