997: God-level performance? Then kill the gods!
Four minutes earlier, the Cavaliers had a five-point lead. They dominated and seemed to be able to finish the game in one fell swoop in the fourth quarter.
Four minutes later, the Cavaliers led by nine points. The advantage has become greater, but the game is no longer so clear.
Originally, the score difference should have been widened. Only by completely widening the point difference can the Cavaliers be considered to have won the game.
Because everyone knows that in front of Link, 9 points is not safe at all.
Especially a Link who got a four-minute break.
"Focus, there's 8 minutes left, just hold on for another 8 minutes and we'll take away this damn victory! We're still in the lead, we're still in the driver's seat! Keep up with our defensive strategy and we will be able to emerge victorious! ”
David. Blatter has become extremely nervous, and this may be the first time he has been so scared when he has a nine-point advantage.
In the first three quarters of the game, Link had refreshed Blatter's perception of the word "powerful".
His fairy goals one after another, Blatter is still impressed. You can't believe it's a guy playing with an injury.
Although Link's shooting percentage dropped in the third quarter due to fitness issues after the injury, he has now rested for four minutes.
You can't imagine how this guy is going to be.
James gritted his teeth and gasped. The confrontation with Iguodala just now cost him a lot of energy. Now, he's starting to feel a little tired.
If Link does play and doesn't plan to go until the end of the game, James will have to survive the entire quarter!
8 minutes, holding a 9-point advantage...... It has to be said that this is a difficult task.
Of course, for Link, it's not easy. The electronic beep sounded, and James stared at Link as he stepped onto the pitch.
The on-site camera happened to give James a close-up of his face, and his hideous expression was also recorded on the big screen on the scene.
At this time, countless Cavaliers fans cheered and jumped in front of the TV. Because James' eyes now resemble the famous "Pupil of Death" in the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals.
In the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals, the Heat faced the powerful Celtics, and after five fierce battles, the Heat fell behind 2:3. If we lose the sixth game, it will be all over.
Under all kinds of pressure, amid the insults and boos of countless away fans, James turned on the killing mode.
James had 45 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists in the game, and the Heat beat the Green Shirts.
After conceding the first goal in this game, James hit 12 goals in the first half and 19 of 26 shots in the game.
Turn and lean back, pull up frontally, convert the attack 2+1, and face three points...... James' goal was unstoppable.
The Celtics replaced Petrus, Pierce, Garnett, Rondo and other giants to defend James, but they couldn't prevent them. This battle has also become a classic battle for James in the playoffs.
It was when there were 2:06 seconds left in the third quarter of this game that the camera showed the omnipotent James, his eyes burst out with amazing fighting spirit, and he could see that people's hearts were furious, and there was a momentum of wanting to eat people.
Later, that look was called the "Pupil of Death".
After a lapse of three years, James once again showed that beastly ferocious look. Recalling what happened to the Celtics in '12, Grizzlies fans couldn't help but sweat.
Link stepped onto the pitch and he wasn't bluffed by James' eyes.
Now he is fearless, and all he has in his mind is the image of his teammates falling down again and again, trying to defend again and again.
He won't let their efforts go to waste!
The Grizzlies took the lead and James waited with open arms for Link to come up. Before the Grizzlies players crossed halftime, James also slapped the floor with both hands.
In the first game of the finals, Link and James both took out each other's posture of wanting to play with each other.
Instead of rushing to catch the ball, Link roamed the pitch for a while by running off the ball.
Link cut inside from the three-point line and then prepared to cut inside to outside the three-point line.
James has been following Link closely during this period, and the two are closer than the couple in love.
But when Link reached the middle distance, he suddenly turned around and ran back, killing a horse pistol.
Link was so fast that he got rid of James' defense almost instantly!
By the time James turned around, Conley's empty pass had arrived!
Seeing this, Mozgov immediately raised his arms and stood under the basket, but Link lightly clicked the basketball in the air into the basket with a slight touch from the 2.16-meter-tall Russian center.
The air relay does not necessarily have to be finished in such a violent way, but also in a technical way.
"Beautiful goal, Link scored a difficult goal as soon as he came up! Mozgov blocked the basket like a high wall. However, that didn't stop Link from scoring! ”
Mike. Brin yelled happily, and sure enough, Link was there, no problem!
Link looked up at the big screen at the scene, and there were still 7 points! So, he immediately clapped his hands, and then shouted, "Prevent one, guard against one!" It's all steady, the momentum is on our side! ”
James had a chill down his spine, not because Link finally put the ball in, but because of the speed at which Link ran back to get rid of the defense, which made James feel palpitations.
After only four minutes of rest, was he already able to run that pace......
At this critical moment, James didn't dare to hand over the ball to others. He continued to pull away from the singles and continued to go head-to-head with Link!
In 12 years, after James revealed his pupil of death, he immediately caught the ball and hit a three-point shot.
This time, Link deliberately let James go, just to force him to shoot.
James didn't hesitate, since you dare to let go, then I dare to enter!
The Cavalier No. 23 had just jumped up, and before he could make a move, Link flew straight up like a rocket, directly blocking all of James' shooting angles!
James' eyes widened in the air, after so many years of hard work in the league, he has never seen himself take a step further and be able to block his opponent!
At this point, James must have forgotten the picture of Link successfully blocking a shot in the Western Conference Finals, two steps away from Thompson.
James' shot was finally rubbed by Link with his fingertips, and the block was successful!
Gasol shook off Mozgov roughly, grabbed the rebound, and then launched a counterattack with a long pass from the backcourt.
As soon as the block landed, Link jumped forward, and James immediately chased after him. But he was desperate to find that his tired self couldn't catch up with Link at all!
With ease, Link scored with an uninjured right hand slash. It didn't take long for Link to play, and the margin was forced to close to 5 points.
Link's defense now is harder and stronger than Iguodala just now!
Now James regrets very much why he didn't widen the margin as much as he could in those four minutes.
And such an opportunity is often only once! If you miss it, you don't have it anymore.
After an attack, James hit a difficult turnover jumper and stabilized the rhythm a little.
But before the hard-won two points could be heated, they were wiped out by Link's goal.
Link received a pass from Conley as he ran from beyond the three-point line, and then immediately froze, holding the basketball in both hands and looking ready to shoot.
James clearly saw Link holding the ball with both hands and flew up to try to return Link a block.
As everyone knows, Link did not fake the real shot, but paused, and after James flew in front of him, Link made a move unhurriedly.
Taking advantage of this time difference, Link was able to get an open shot.
The basketball went straight into the arms of the basket without any incident.
With 7 points in a row, Link was unstoppable after returning from the bench!
Now there are only 4 points left in the difference, and Link's personal score in this game has skyrocketed to 37 points in an instant! There's no doubt that Link Ken will give us another classic 40-point battle! ”
"No," Mike. As soon as Bryn's voice fell, Kevin. Harlan immediately vetoed, "There will definitely be more!" ”
James scored 2 points, and Link immediately responded with a 3-pointer.
This kind of response ball is very morale-boosting.
On the Cavaliers' side, the determination they had before the start of the fourth quarter was gone.
All they have in their hearts now is worry and uneasiness, and they have gone from wanting to win to being afraid of losing!
Link's firepower didn't end there, and he followed up with a dazzling array of highlight-reel goals.
After shaking off James, he faced Mozgov's complementary glide pull-up layup and hit!
Grabbed the offensive rebound with 5 seconds left in the 24-second offensive time, jumped on the spot and dunked with one hand, and hit!
As soon as he ran to the three-point line and received the ball, he immediately pulled out three points against James, and he still hit!
Link was back to his first-half form, and his goal didn't make sense at all.
The Grizzlies went from falling behind, to overtaking, to pulling away the score, and pushing the Clevelands to the cliff step by step!
At the end of the fourth quarter, James began to have a physical breakdown.
He didn't stop for a second in the fourth quarter, and immediately after fighting Iguodala, he fought Link again. Even the most terrible meat grinder in the alliance could not withstand such a toss.
And what about Link? His score keeps going up, up, going up in all sorts of incredible ways......
Thirty-eight seconds before the end of the game, James hit an iron from outside the three-point line. Mozgov heroically grabbed the offensive rebound and passed it to Love. However, to the despair, the latter's three-point shot also missed!
Link didn't give the Cavaliers a third chance, he went into the box himself, jumped high to pick up the rebound.
James recklessly rushed up to steal Link, but Link calmly dodged James' scramble with a behind-the-back hand.
The "little emperor" threw out all the center of gravity and threw it into the air, plus he had no strength and could not rely on a strong core force to support the center of gravity.
So he gave up on his feet and fell to the ground!
This fall not only made James fail to steal, but also lost the last dignity and self-confidence of the Cavaliers!
Even their strongest players are now so embarrassed, can anyone else have any fighting spirit?
Link passed James as he fell, drove all the way into the box, and flicked the ball away.
Mozgov jumped as hard as he could and found himself just a fraction of a second away from basketball!
But this gap is precisely the most desperate.
Chris. Paul once said that his favorite thing is to watch the basketball fly into the net after a throw, grazing the fingertips of a big man. The big man's helpless expression and the small victory filled Paul with a sense of accomplishment.
At this moment, Link also experienced the fun of this.
The basketball crashed into the net with precision, and by the time James got up from the ground, all he could see was Link who was turning and raising his arms at him.
"It's in, it's in! Link kills the match, and he puts an end to the suspense of the match once and for all! With 9 points trailing in the final 8 minutes, Link scored 21 points in the fourth quarter with full firepower and led the Grizzlies to a comeback victory! ”
Mike. Brin couldn't contain his excitement anymore, even though there were still about 20 seconds left before the end of the race. But Link's throw just now has given the Grizzlies an 8-point lead!
In theory, the Cavaliers still have a chance.
But realistically, the Grizzlies are already 1-0 ahead in the Finals!
"It's incredible, it's a great reversal. Link scored 51 points in the game, which was the second time in his career that he scored 50+ points in a single game in the playoffs! If there really is a superhero in this world, it's Link! ”
Two 50+ points in a single game in the playoffs, which is a seemingly ordinary, but very scary record.
First of all, in the entire history of the NBA, even in the ancient times when the degree of professionalism was not high and the statistics were not perfect, there were only 21 people who could squeeze into the list of 50+ points in a single game in the playoffs.
If you narrow it down even further to two or more 50+ points in a single game in the playoffs, you'll only have four people left on that list.
Now, Link is the fifth!
Whether it's 21 points in a single quarter or 51 points in a single game, it's an extremely crazy performance. And no wonder, Mike. Brin, an old fritter who has seen countless big scenes, will also go crazy for Link.
Kelly. Owen looked at Link who raised his arms high, and then looked at James, who had just gotten up from the ground and was still embarrassed, and his heart was greatly shocked!
Having partnered James for a season, Irving knows how terrible James is. He has always believed that with the two sides evenly matched, it is impossible for anyone in this world to beat James!
He thought so until he chatted with James before the big battle.
But today, he witnessed the whole process of James' 1-on-1 loss to Link.
James' performance today was already exaggerated, with 44 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists, playing non-stop for 45 minutes and shooting 47.4% from the field. His performance today was no worse than his performance in Game 6 of the 2012 Eastern Conference Finals.
But it was precisely because James was already doing well that Irving was shocked.
James has played this god-level performance and can't beat Link, where is Link's ceiling?
Young Anthony. Davis didn't touch Link's ceiling, Lillard, who came out of adversity from 1-3 down, didn't force Link's ceiling, and the Warriors' Death Five didn't force Link's ceiling.
And now, even James, the supergod after sacrificing the Pupil of Death, has failed to force Link's upper limit, which is really beyond Owen's most daring imagination.
For the first time, young Irving felt the extraordinaryness of this battlefield, the NBA Finals, it was simply a fairy fight......
After Link's throw, the Cavaliers' morale was completely at the bottom. Sure enough, for the next 20 seconds or so, it was impossible for them to organize any decent counterattack.
James' strong slam to the basket caused a 2+1, but it didn't help at all.
In the end, the score was fixed at 114-110, and the Grizzlies not only survived the hardest four minutes, but also managed to turn the game around in the final eight minutes. As the "lower dog" in the hearts of people in this game, the Grizzly Bear is once again swimming against the current!
Link beat James from the stats to the result of the match, and he scored a near-perfect victory!
James glanced at the dome of the Federal Express arena once more, then lowered his head and walked away.
It's not so easy to hang this beautiful championship flag in Cleveland......