Hansen received the ball, yet he didn’t get a direct chance to shoot.
Just as it had been shown since the beginning of the ga, the Celtics, in "playoff mode," were fully focused and Jas’s feigned pick and roll didn’t really distract the defense.
Seeing Garnett coming up for the double team, Hansen didn’t make any superfluous movents. He exploded forward with a quick step, catching his opponent off-guard.
Although Garnett, a top-tier interior cleaner, hadn’t kept up with his steps, he still posed a threat to Hansen in motion with his height and long arms.
Perkins had also retreated from the high post back to the inside, raising both hands to guard the restricted area.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, Hansen was sandwiched on both sides.
And the only player he could pass to, Jamison, was cut off by Garnett.
It was a dead end.
Seeing this, Hansen suddenly decelerated, bumping his hip into Garnett to create a fender bender.
After forcing Garnett to slam on the brakes, he took one more step forward, rose high against Perkins, and while maintaining balance in the air, pushed the ball to its highest point before flicking his fingers for a jump shot.
"Swish!"
The basketball sailed over Perkins’s head to drop cleanly through the net.
A dead end? To erge alive from desperation!
Although Hansen still hadn’t reached the "Giant Slayer" threshold due to a sudden injury, he was already sufficient against interior players of Perkins’s height.
The arena erupted with thunderous cheers.
Hansen had broken the Cavaliers’ scoring drought!
At this mont, it was like they had been holding their breath underwater for so long and had finally surfaced, able to breathe in fresh air deeply.
And that got their emotions soaring.
"Defense! Defense!"
The Quicken Loans Arena resounded with the fans’ coordinated chants.
Though still behind on the scoreboard, the ho court montum reerged after Hansen’s basket.
At this point, Hansen switched to guard Williams on defense.
This move further exhilarated the ho fans.
They were accustod to Jas avoiding the opponent’s core offensive player on defense, but now Hansen’s proactive defense was a stark contrast, highlighting what felt like the pain one could feel from a comparison.
Rondo saw Hansen switch onto him and imdiately signaled Garnett for a pick and roll.
It was the Celtics way, never backing down.
Since the al had been willingly delivered, no matter how tough the dish, they had to figure out a way to bite it down.
Using Garnett’s screen, Rondo drove towards the inside with the ball.
But Hansen had already anticipated and entrenched himself in Rondo’s path.
In Hansen’s mory, the most impressive thing about Rondo wasn’t from his ti with the Boston Big Three, but rather the Bulls’ "Triple No-Shoot" era.
Back then, Jimmy Butler, Wade, and Rondo, three players, would stand outside and refuse to shoot, sending the Bulls back to nineties basketball.
Rondo couldn’t get past Hansen’s defense, but he passed the ball without looking to Pierce, who was cutting weak side.
Unlike Jas, who would look at his players before pretending not to see them to make a pass, Rondo truly didn’t look before passing.
Pierce received the ball and glided for a layup.
"Bang!"
He was t with a chase-down block by Jas.
Jas used his left hand for the block and even managed to snatch the ball in mid-air, showcasing his explosive athleticism.
By the ti Jas landed and looked up, he saw Hansen already bursting past the three-point line.
Not your buddy? Weren’t you just defending Rondo’s drive a second ago?
It seed he was reminded of the preseason feeling while sitting on the bench, Hansen’s fast-break awareness catching him completely off guard.
He threw a football quarterback-style long pass with his left hand.
Now troubled by a right elbow injury, it wasn’t easy for him to score, so he had to pump up his stats through passing.
Moreover, Hansen’s "Jordan Experience Card" had not yet expired.
Hansen received the ball, charged through to the front court, leaped high, and perford a double-handed slam dunk with knee hang on the rim.
This overtly showy dunk imdiately ignited the arena.
to 6!
The Cavaliers’ montum was visibly changing.
Amidst another round of fan cheers, Garnett’s free throw line jumper also missed the rim.
Varejao secured the defensive rebound, and the Cavaliers advanced to the front court.
"Let’s go, Cavs!"
The ho fans’ chants echoed non-stop.
Yet, the Celtics’ defense remained unshaken, their starting five experienced in battle; this bit of pressure couldn’t rattle them.
Ray Allen also adopted a half-fronting thod to limit Hansen’s reception of the ball, and Garnett kept moving to disrupt other Cavaliers players from passing to Hansen.
Hansen not only didn’t give up moving off the ball but instead increased his activity.
His movent drew much of the Celtics’ defensive attention, allowing Jas to take the opportunity to drive to the basket, drawing a blocking foul from Perkins.
However, his right elbow affected his free throws, and both attempts missed the basket.
But Varejao made a key play when he fell to the ground while jockeying for position with Perkins, and the referee blew the whistle for a pushing foul on Perkins.
Hansen was stunned to see it; Perkins was called for two fouls in one sequence, and he had to leave the floor...
However, the call was fair, as the two got tangled up while positioning, and Varejao waited for Perkins to exert force before falling.
The saying still goes, there are no wrong nicknas, only wrong nas called.
With the whistle on the sideline, Rashid Wallace ca on to replace Perkins, and Garnett shifted to the center position.
The ball remained with the Cavaliers.
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