Clang!
The basketball hit the backboard and bounced out forcefully.
Tang Long grabbed the offensive rebound, and just as he was about to pass, Mano Jovic's hand reached out.
"Kid, trying to sneak attack me? You're too green!"
Mano Jovic shrugged his shoulders at Tang Long and quickly ran towards his own basket.
Tang Long finally let out a long sigh of relief.
He almost made a mistake at a crucial moment. If this ball had been stolen by Mano Jovic, it would have been a huge blow to the team's morale.
Tang Long didn't dare to be careless this time. After confirming that the Lakers players had all retreated, he passed the ball to Larry Hughes and ran to the top of the arc to receive it.
Tang Long didn't go to the basket this time, which confused Gasol a bit.
Was this guy planning to shoot a three-pointer?
According to Phil Jackson's pre-game analysis of Tang Long, this guy rarely shot from beyond the three-point line, but when he did, he made them.
"Lamar."
Gasol couldn't leave the paint, so he had to let Odom guard Tang Long.
As Odom stepped up, Drew Gooden and Pavlovic immediately ran to the sides, ready to receive the pass and shoot. The Lakers players had to expand their inside defense.
At this moment, Larry Hughes drove into the paint, and Gasol quickly stepped up.
Larry Hughes jumped, followed by a crossover dribble, and passed the ball directly to Tang Long behind him.
Tang Long caught the ball with both hands in mid-air and executed a powerful dunk!
"Beautiful."
"Tang, you're the best."
The Cavaliers fans stood up and cheered. This dunk ignited the fans' enthusiasm and dispelled the gloom of being passive in the second quarter.
"Tang, well done."
James came over and high-fived Tang Long. Larry Hughes and Drew Gooden also came over to celebrate with Tang Long.
Offensive and defensive transition, Fisher inbounded the ball.
Fisher, the old guard, accurately seized the offensive opportunity. While the Cavaliers were still celebrating that dunk, Fisher launched a fast break.
Four players were still on the other side of the court when the basketball flew past them.
At the front was Odom.
This guy's running speed was incredibly fast. By the time he received Fisher's pass, he was already at half court.
On the Cavaliers' side, only Pavlovic was still in the backcourt.
He was at a disadvantage defending Odom one-on-one.
As soon as he reached the free-throw line, Odom leaped into the air, holding the ball high, like a giant, charging towards the Cavaliers' basket!
Pavlovic was conflicted. He was afraid of committing a blocking foul.
But if he didn't stop Odom, and Odom made this dunk, the Lakers' momentum would be completely unleashed.
"Beau… tiful…"
The commentator stood up, waving his fist excitedly. As his elongated voice was still in the air, Odom's thick arm slammed towards the basket.
However, at this very moment, another figure followed closely behind and directly pressed the ball against the backboard.
"Tang!"
"It's Tang again."
"This block is so fierce!"
"This is a clean, textbook block, no foul. I'll say it again, no foul!"
"Tang got the ball, a high lob pass to James, James drove to the basket and passed it to Drew Gooden."
"Drew Gooden shot it, two points made. The Cavaliers have taken the lead."
"With just about a minute left in the third quarter, the Cavaliers have taken the lead!"
"We can see that the Cavaliers fans are extremely excited right now, and the whole stadium is chanting Drew Gooden's name."
With the Cavaliers taking the lead, the players' fighting spirit was completely ignited.
James successfully drove to the basket repeatedly, completing two offenses in less than twenty seconds. On defense, although Kobe still caused Tang Long to commit a foul, Tang Long intercepted another ball.
Turning back, Tang Long made another mid-range shot near the basket, further increasing the Cavaliers' lead!
The Zen Master stood up from his chair, walked to the sideline anxiously, thought for a moment, and then retreated.
He originally wanted to call a timeout, but with less than thirty seconds left in the third quarter, the timeout would not be very useful.
However, the Zen Master did not expect that the Lakers, who intended to let the clock run out, leaving a few seconds for the Cavaliers to attack and then implementing a full-court press, would have basically defended the game!
Unexpectedly, the Cavaliers players were too excited. As Fisher crossed half court and was about to hand the ball to Kobe, James broke through, and his big, dark hand directly stole the ball!
Sprint!
James charged towards the Lakers' basket like a hurricane, leaving all the players behind him. The Lakers' basket was empty.
All eyes in the stadium were on James.
Boom!
A tomahawk dunk! Everyone in the Quicken Loans Arena roared. The guys on the bench excitedly stood up and waved their towels.
This dunk was not only beautiful but also incredibly inspiring!
Phil Jackson's face became even darker.
He was now regretting it a little. Perhaps if he had called that timeout earlier, the players would not have played so frantically.
With twenty seconds left on the clock, the Lakers team dared not be careless. Their movements became more cautious. It wasn't until there was one or two seconds left that Kobe chose to shoot.
As the ball went in, the referee blew the whistle for the end of the third quarter.
The Cavaliers scored eight points by targeting Vujacic in the third quarter, thanks to their excellent play.
This also resulted in the Cavaliers outscoring the Lakers 32-22 in the third quarter, giving them a nine-point lead.
After three quarters, the Cavaliers led the Lakers 77-73 by four points.
...
"The Cavaliers played really well in the third quarter, whether it was targeting Vujacic, the subsequent Tang-James connection, or even James's perfect finish at the end. The Cavaliers played very rationally in the third quarter!"
"On the other hand, the Lakers were a bit too impatient. They were all hoping for Kobe to draw fouls from Tang Long, and their offensive movement was not active enough."
"Tang Long needs to be careful from now on."
Yang Yi, unlike Director Zhang, was not as relaxed, and said with concern, "Tang Long already has three fouls. There's still a whole quarter left in the fourth. Tang Long needs to be careful of the Lakers, careful of Kobe. If Tang Long fouls out early, Mike Brown will definitely have to make changes in his lineup."
"The Cavaliers have proven more than once that without Tang Long, when facing a center like Gasol, their scoring ability is truly not commendable. Tang Long himself needs to be careful and reduce his fouls."
...
Tang Long also knew that the Lakers really wanted to draw fouls from him. After all, the Lakers were only trailing by four points at this time. If he was out, the Lakers still had a chance.
"Here, for you."
As he was thinking, James handed him a bottle of water.
This reminded Tang Long, and he quickly went to the mall to redeem two bottles of energy-replenishing potions.
James sprayed a couple of mouthfuls from the bottle into his mouth, and then spat them out.
Tang Long was immediately bewildered. This guy was such a waste of resources.
"LeBron, you..."
As soon as he spoke, Mike Brown picked up the tactical board.