Hansen’s performance picked up, scoring 34 points in three quarters, while Jokic contributed a triple-double with 18 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists over the sa period.
The Celtics committed as many as 28 turnovers in that ga.
At the post-ga press conference, Stevens protested the actions of Cavaliers fans.
"That is sothing that should be banned, it’s against league rules."
Stevens’ face almost scread "We’re here to play, not to be treated like kids."
To be honest, the NBA does have rules about this sort of thing. For example, when the Lakers visited the Bucks, soone brought out a "69" jersey aid at Bronny, and Jas had protested it as an insult to his son since the NBA doesn’t have a #69 jersey.
But Stevens’ appeal is unlikely to get a response because, after all, fans pay to watch gas live, which in so sense makes them the "patrons" of the league.
However, the league did issue a fine of $500 to the Cavaliers’ ho court DJ the next day as a warning.
Of course, the Cavaliers will definitely pay this fine internally. Spending $500 for a win is well worth it for them.
After the King Mountain Battle, the Cavaliers headed to Boston with a 3-2 lead.
At that ti, a piece of news broke that even moved Hansen a bit.
Little Thomas tried to play Ga 6 through a painkilling injection but ultimately failed.
From a star player’s perspective, Little Thomas isn’t particularly strong, given his physical talent.
Iverson leading the 76ers to the finals was already the ceiling for shorter players.
Little Thomas has even less talent compared to Iverson.
However, his competitive spirit is certainly comndable.
But just like Kobe last season, not everyone will have a fairy tale ending.
In Ga 6 at the North Shore Garden Arena, Boston fans were in an unprecedentedly high spirit.
This was the last ho court ga of the series, and no matter what, they had to defend it.
And as the ga began, that emotion turned into a unified chant.
"handso is a bastard!" (Hansen is a bastard)
Since the league couldn’t deal with Cleveland fans, naturally, they couldn’t deal with Boston fans either.
This was straight-out "let’s hurt each other!" in real life.
Moreover, Stevens started targeting Hansen even more thoroughly on the court.
Having found the previous thods didn’t work, he improved them. Besides forcing Hansen to pass the ball, he also restricted his passing opportunities.
This resulted in a 3-on-4 situation for the Cavaliers, but thanks to the ho court’s spirited defense, they managed to gain so advantage at the start.
However, Malone didn’t sit idly by and brought in Wade early to replace JR, letting Wade handle the ball.
Wade ca off the bench because the Cavaliers needed roster depth, which didn’t an he couldn’t handle high-intensity gas like this anymore.
Especially since Hansen was almost tying up the Celtics’ periter defense, Wade relentlessly tore through their defense.
But Stevens was stubborn; he’d rather let Wade score than have Hansen control the ball.
And you know what? His persistence paid off when both teams went into rotation.
Because without Wade, the Cavaliers clearly struggled to execute.
While the Celtics were without Little Thomas, without Wade, their bench wasn’t weaker than the Cavaliers’.
Malone ultimately had no choice but to extend the starters’ playti.
This indirectly forced Stevens into making the sa choice.
This Ga 6 finally turned into a tug-of-war between the starters.
As their energy drained, both sides sought to attack the basket, and the defenses tightened around it.
When the ga entered its final quarter decisive monts, players were diving all over the floor.
The audience felt like they were back to the gas from the early 2000s.
With one minute left, the ga was tied at 96.
Hansen received a pass from Jokic, charged into the paint, and completed a difficult layup with a double clutch amidst a double team.
After landing, Hansen was panting heavily; the intensity of this ga even surpassed last season’s against the Heat.
On the return play, Durant’s contested shot missed, but Horford boxed out Jokic and grabbed the offensive rebound.
With players exhausted, the experience of the veterans started showing.
Horford passed the ball out again, and Durant received it for a catch-and-shoot.
The arena instantly filled with the cheers of fans.
Malone called a tiout.
The last 30 seconds.
After the tiout, Hansen executed an off-ball play, but Jokic made a passing error which Bradley seized to intercept.
The Celtics launched a fast break, and with quick wit, Hansen fouled Smart to stop it.
Because the foul count reached its limit, Smart was sent directly to the free-throw line.
The ga took an unexpected turn, and Stevens quickly called a tiout.
Walking off court, Jokic held his head in his hands, filled with visible self-bla.
Hansen went over to ease his mind.
Jokic played so well that people forgot he was only in his second year.
Making a mistake at a crucial mont is normal for a second-year player; not making one would be unusual.
"In our country, you’d get fined for mistakes like this." Jokic’s dejected words sounded both pitiful and amusing.
Hansen laughed and patted his head, "This is only Ga 6. Even if we lose, we can win it back at ho. Moreover, who says we’re going to lose?"
After the tiout, Smart shot his free throws.
He made the first one steadily.
His second shot hit the front rim but eventually went down.
This almost gave the fans heart attacks.
With 20 seconds left, the Cavaliers had nearly a full possession.
Wade brought the ball past half-court, passed it to Jokic at the top of the arc, and quickly cut into disrupt the defense while Hansen ca around a Covington screen to receive the ball.
In the second half of the ga, both teams used one big center and four periter players on the court.
Jokic didn’t make another mistake and successfully got the ball to Hansen.
However, the Celtics’ defense was focused entirely on Hansen. He didn’t have a good shot after receiving the ball.
Dribbling with a low stance, he drove inside.
As if he were a boat gliding across a lake, he created a ripple effect, pulling the Celtics’ defenders towards him.
Just as he broke past the free-throw line, Hansen suddenly threw a no-look, behind-the-back pass.
The ball whizzed past Celtics players’ heads and landed in Jokic’s hands at the top of the arc.
Hansen nailed it!
Jokic found himself wide open.
Malone’s tactical plan wasn’t to take a three-pointer; Malone wanted to secure a two-pointer and play for overti.
Even Hansen hadn’t ntioned this to him before.
But Hansen did it anyway.
Jokic hesitated for a split second; anyone else would also have hesitated in this mont.
Especially since his three-point shooting this season wasn’t actually that good.
However, his eyes quickly filled with resolve.
Because Hansen had just said, even if they lost this ga, they could win it back at ho, so what was there to worry about?
Durant rushed back to defend, but Jokic released the three-point shot before he could be disrupted.
His shooting speed wasn’t fast, but the rhythm was very consistent.
A popular topic among fans was whether Yao Ming could adapt to the small-ball era and develop a three-point shot.
Jokic is actually the best answer.
For a big player, three-point talent is about soft touch. With soone as stiff as Howard, who looks like he’s throwing a discus, there’s no chance.
But Yao Ming, Jokic, and even Big Lopez are all big n with soft touches.
As the basketball reached its apex and started to descend, murmurs of excitent began to spread through the arena.
Because the ball’s trajectory seed very precise.
"Swish!"
With a crisp sound, the basketball pierced through the net like a cannonball!
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