Halftime.
"Boom!"
The atmosphere inside the home arena was absolutely deafening. The roaring cheers seemed loud enough to blow the roof off American Airlines Arena.
"We've got this!"
"Up 18 at halftime. Tonight... the Heat are winning the championship!!!"
"These Suns rookies keep getting worse as the game goes on. That's what a lack of experience looks like.
"They're down 18 at halftime.
"As far as I'm concerned, this series is over. We might as well congratulate the Heat on the championship right now!"
"It hasn't been easy, but in the end, the Heat are still going to have the last laugh. And really, that's only natural. They have three superstars at the very top of the league.
"How could a rookie like Blake possibly beat all three of them?"
"Exactly. Winning a championship with only one superstar leading the team already sounds like a fairy tale, never mind when that superstar is a rookie.
"It's just too difficult.
"I'll admit that the 'Monster Rookie' Blake is incredibly strong. He deserves everyone's respect, but...
"The championship belongs to the Heat!"
"Exactly!"
"Heat champions!"
With an 18-point halftime lead and home-court advantage, the Heat fans were already celebrating as though the championship had been won.
"Down 18 at halftime. That's a pretty big hole."
Iguodala frowned as he looked at the scoreboard.
"Blake only has 15 points in the first half tonight. Isn't that a little low?"
"Not really."
Iverson shook his head.
"With Curry, Nash, and the others struggling, Miami can focus even more of its defense on Blake.
"That means he's facing much tighter coverage.
"And against the Heat Big Three, with 'King James,' 'Flash' Wade, and 'CB4' Bosh all able to pressure him...
"Even Michael Jordan would have a hard time."
"Exactly."
Mount Mutombo nodded in agreement.
"There's nothing seriously wrong with Blake's offense, and defensively, he's still doing everything he can to contain the Heat Big Three.
"Right now, the Suns are down 18 because role players like Curry and George aren't producing."
Iguodala nodded thoughtfully.
"An 18-point deficit... the Suns are in a really difficult spot."
"Are the Suns really cornered now?!"
Across the way, Wall looked deeply worried.
As one of Blake's biggest fans, he naturally wanted Blake to win, not the Heat.
"It's definitely bad."
Kobe sighed.
"The Suns already have one foot over the edge. If this were an ordinary team, they'd have fallen in completely by now."
"Kobe, what do you mean?"
Wall looked confused.
Kobe's expression grew serious.
"The situation is terrible for Phoenix, but they still have Blake.
"He hasn't fallen into a serious slump.
"Quite the opposite. He's still playing aggressively on both ends, and there are two quarters left. At this point, every bit of hope the Suns have rests on Blake.
"Now we'll see whether he can make the right adjustments after halftime, erupt offensively, close the gap, and take over the game."
"He can!"
Wall shouted at the top of his lungs.
He believed in Blake without hesitation.
Higher up in the stands...
"Hahaha!"
"Melo" Anthony laughed loudly.
"Eighteen points at halftime. LeBron is definitely going to hold onto this advantage.
"Tonight, they're going to lift the Larry O'Brien Trophy.
"But really, with LeBron, Wade, and Bosh all joining forces, how could those three not win a championship?"
"Yeah."
Paul nodded with a smile.
"The Heat have pretty much got the championship locked up tonight. Carmelo, I'm looking forward to seeing you and STAT do something big with the Knicks next season too.
"Who knows?
"Maybe next year, you'll be the one playing in the Finals."
"Really?!"
Anthony immediately broke into a grin.
"That would be great. LeBron and Wade are about to get their championship.
"Now it's our turn to chase our own dream."
"Y-yeah."
Paul nodded softly.
A sudden intensity flashed in his eyes.
It was nothing less than a burning desire to win a championship.
...
Inside the Suns' locker room.
"Clap! Clap!"
Coach Gentry clapped his hands hard.
"Guys, there's no backing down tonight. We have to leave everything out there.
"We have to win this game.
"We're behind, but it isn't because they're overwhelmingly better than us. We're behind because our shots haven't been falling.
"So calm down.
"Get yourselves back on track.
"If our shots start falling in the second half and we keep believing in ourselves, we can absolutely come back.
"Besides...
"We still have Blake. We can do this."
Gentry did everything he could to fire them up.
At this point, there was no retreat.
If they gave up now, an entire season of relentless effort would go to waste.
Until the final buzzer sounded, they had to grit their teeth, keep fighting, and meet the challenge head-on.
"Yeah!"
Blake was the first to answer.
Lose?
The thought had never crossed his mind.
"Yeah!"
"We haven't lost yet!"
"Let's go!"
George, Curry, and the rest of the team roared along with him.
Outside, the arena already felt like a championship celebration.
Inside the Suns' locker room, however, there was only determination to come back.
Their fighting spirit was still burning.
Before long, halftime ended.
The second half began.
The teams switched ends, and Miami had the ball.
"Thud!"
On the opening possession, LeBron simply overpowered George, bulldozing his way into the paint and finishing at the rim.
Twenty points!
The lead had reached a full 20.
Possession changed hands.
"Whoosh!"
Blake slowly brought the ball up himself and made his way to the top of the arc.
His dark eyes narrowed slightly as he thought about how to cut into the deficit.
How to make up ground?
The best way was obvious.
Three-pointers!
Threes?
Yes.
Threes.
Standing at the top of the arc, a full step beyond the three-point line, Blake stared at LeBron in front of him with only one thing on his mind.
The three-ball.
Then...
"Whoosh!"
Wade darted over from the wing, preparing to trap Blake with LeBron once again and smother him with their high-pressure defense.
But before the double-team could arrive...
"Whoosh!"
Blake suddenly rose up and launched a three.
He got the shot away before either defender could close the gap.
"Ha!"
LeBron shouted as he lunged forward to contest, but he was still half a step late.
The ball sailed just over his fingertips.
Wade turned his head, watching in surprise as it traced a beautiful arc through the air.
"Swish!"
Nothing but net!
On the very next possession, George set a screen that freed Blake on the right wing.
Blake was still a full step behind the three-point line.
And Bosh had already rotated over to help.
But...
"Whoosh!"
Blake didn't care.
Without the slightest hesitation, he pulled up again right in the face of "CB4" Bosh.
Another deep three!
...
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