"Unbelievable!"
At the commentary table, Jeff Van Gundy kept shaking his head, stunned. "In the final few dozen seconds, he strips Kobe, then on the break, instead of taking the open 2-point layup, he confidently chooses the three.
And he hits it.
He forces his team back in front by 1.
For all of that to happen through a rookie, through a rookie center, it just doesn't make sense. It's absurd!
Blake Su... this 'Monster Rookie' is too much."
"Hahaha!"
Mike Breen was so shocked that he burst out laughing too. "I take back what I just said. Blake used an even stronger clutch ability to flip the game again.
Blake, this 'man born for game-winners,' is every bit as clutch as Kobe in the biggest moments.
In fact, he might even be a little stronger.
With that incredible steal and transition three, the Suns have taken back a 1-point lead with 21.5 seconds left.
The Lakers have the final possession.
With the pressure doubled, can the Lakers turn that pressure into fuel, hit the final shot, and, just like the last game, pull off another comeback kill?
Let's find out!"
"Boom!"
After being stunned for a brief moment, the crowd erupted into another feverish roar.
Blake's three had gone in. The Suns were up by 1. That was already reality. So now, all the Lakers fans could do was pour every bit of noise they had into the arena.
They were hoping the Lakers could hit the game-winner on this next possession.
"Beep, beep!"
Soon, the timeout ended.
The final possession was about to begin.
"I have to make this. I have to finish this possession."
Kobe murmured to himself, his face cold as he slowly walked back onto the court. His icy eyes looked like those of a bloodthirsty Black Mamba.
They were enough to make people shudder.
But that was exactly the kind of Kobe, exactly the kind of "Black Mamba," Lakers fans wanted to see. One look from him was enough to make opponents feel fear.
"Go, Kobe!"
"Smack!"
At the top of the arc, Kobe held the ball against Blake's defense. His eyes were full of confidence, confidence that he could finish this possession.
The ball was in his right hand.
His center of gravity dropped.
Kobe was about to drive, but... the instant he accelerated, the ball he dribbled down unexpectedly hit his right foot as he started his move.
The ball rolled straight forward, right to the front-right side, right into Nash's hands.
Kobe turned it over!
"Oh, no!"
The moment they saw it, every Lakers fan grabbed his head. In that instant, all anyone could see in their eyes was despair.
Buzz.
Kobe's mind went blank for a second too.
This was an accident he never could have expected. But... he did not give up. Giving up had never even crossed his mind.
Buzz.
The instant he predicted Nash was about to pass, he turned and sprinted back.
Sure enough.
"Whip!"
After catching the ball, Nash pushed a high, long pass ahead, trying to hit Curry, who had immediately taken off toward the frontcourt on the other side.
But Kobe had already read it.
"Whoosh!"
He poured every bit of strength he had into the sprint, racing back down the floor. Just as the ball was dropping and about to fall into Curry's hands, he jumped first with everything he had.
Twisting his body sideways in midair.
"Smack!"
Before Curry could get it, Kobe cut the ball off in the air.
Kobe redeemed himself. With one steal, he made up for his own turnover, and at that moment, there were still 13.3 seconds left.
"Whoosh!"
There was no time to think.
After grabbing the ball, Kobe rushed into the frontcourt. Curry chased hard from behind, and George stepped up to pressure him, but Kobe did not slow down.
With one spin, he got past him.
"Whoosh!"
Back at the top of the arc, he met Blake again. Still at full speed, Kobe drove left with the ball in his left hand, then suddenly pulled it back with a crossover in front.
Crossover.
Blake... bit on it.
Blake's center of gravity shifted left. Kobe caught that tiny opening, took the ball with his right hand, and accelerated again, driving straight into the paint.
He ran straight into Nash, but Kobe ignored it and forced his way through, knocking Nash aside as he gathered for the layup.
There was almost no time left.
Because of that, Kobe's intent was obvious on this layup. And since he had rushed in so hard after shaking off Nash, he could not get a full jump.
Frye had already read it. As Kobe came charging in, Frye jumped straight up from where he stood, ready to meet him with a huge block.
But Kobe's hang time was incredible. He avoided Frye's block in the air, drifted sideways, and as his body began to fall, he released an extreme double-clutch layup.
The shot was ridiculously difficult.
Most players could not even attempt it, and even if they did, there would be no telling where the ball would end up.
But this was Kobe taking the shot.
With his terrifying core strength, he forced that extreme double-clutch to look almost routine.
"It's good!"
The instant Kobe released it, he was filled with confidence. He was sure this layup would go in.
The spinning ball rose through the air, about to kiss the backboard, change direction, and drop into the basket.
Good.
Game-winner.
But... just as the ball was about to touch the glass, a huge hand suddenly pressed down on it and pinned it hard against the backboard.
"What?!"
Kobe was shocked. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Blake's figure right behind him.
That's right.
The player who had chased him down and pinned the shot from behind was none other than the rookie Kobe had just beaten cleanly... Blake.
"Blake? Didn't I get past him completely? How did he catch up?!"
Kobe was deeply shaken.
Yes.
Blake had indeed been beaten. But... [Gary Payton]'s defensive awareness meant that from the very beginning, he had never fully believed Kobe would commit to the left-side drive.
So even though he bit on the fake, his center of gravity was not thrown too far off.
And Nash's delay, along with Frye's help defense in the paint, gave Blake enough time to recover. In the end, he used those long arms of his to block the shot.
"Bang!"
The ball hit the rim and bounced away, and George secured it. Pau Gasol chased after him, trying to foul, but George fired a pass ahead to Curry in the frontcourt.
"Smack!"
Curry caught it.
"Beep, beep!"
The red light came on, and the final buzzer sounded with it.
Game over!
In the end, Blake sealed the game with an absolutely crucial block, allowing the Suns to survive the Lakers by 1 point.
They survived Kobe in "Mamba Mode."
The Suns also pushed the series score to 3-1, taking match point exactly as they had hoped!