Chapter 537: Driving, James's Script?
After a resounding win, the Suns completely shook off the frustration of their previous loss.
The mood inside the Phoenix locker room was bright. Everyone was smiling. Even Stoudemire looked relaxed. If the Suns had dropped that game, he would have taken the brunt of the blame.
"Chen Yan, what was the key to such a big win tonight?" a reporter asked during the postgame interview.
Chen Yan smiled and answered, "After Amare got ejected, the whole team's fighting spirit was ignited. Every one of us played for him, and we played for the win."
A bad break had somehow become the spark that pushed the team forward. It was a textbook answer, and after the interview aired, fans joked that Chen Yan could probably work as the Suns' public relations manager too.
On the Lakers' side, most of the criticism was directed at Stoudemire.
The Zen Master said Stoudemire's actions went beyond basketball and disrupted the Lakers' entire plan.
Kobe was even more direct.
"No matter how dirty they play, we're going to win this series. See you next game."
Garnett refused to speak to reporters. The Lakers were worried he might lose control and say something that would invite even more punishment from the league.
After Game 2, fans were focused on 2 things. The first was Chen Yan's absurd 50 plus triple double. The second was the punishment that would be handed down to Garnett and Stoudemire.
The league announced the penalties the next day.
Stoudemire, who committed a flagrant foul and threw a punch, was suspended for 2 games and fined $50,000.
Garnett was suspended for 1 game and fined $20,000.
The league had already gone relatively light, clearly trying not to destroy the balance of the series.
For the next 2 games, D'Antoni would have to deal with a team that had no real interior firepower. For Phoenix, the one piece of good news was that no other players were suspended. Back in the 2007 playoffs, when the Suns and Spurs clashed in Game 4, Stoudemire and Diaw impulsively left the bench and stepped onto the court. They eventually paid a painful price for that mistake and lost the series.
Game 3 was scheduled 2 days later at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
The Suns traveled to Los Angeles a day early to get used to the arena.
Taylor Swift also took time out of her busy schedule to accompany Chen Yan. Her career was rising fast, so free time was not easy for her to find.
The 2 of them had dinner first, then went home together.
Chen Yan and Taylor Swift had already made their relationship public, so there was nothing to hide.
"You're incredible," Taylor Swift said after they entered the house. "Everyone around me is talking about your huge triple double in the last game."
"Routine operation," Chen Yan said with a grin as he wrapped an arm around her.
Taylor Swift's tone changed immediately, playful and suggestive.
"Do you want everything to be big?"
Chen Yan smirked. "You know The Answer."
The atmosphere in the room immediately heated up.
Some time later, Chen Yan finally settled down on the couch and turned on the TV.
At that moment, the television was showing the Cavaliers versus Magic game. Just like the Western Conference Finals, the Eastern Conference Finals was also turning into a fierce battle.
Only a short while into the 1st quarter, an ugly scene broke out. Howard directly smacked the back of Mo Williams' head while contesting a shot. Mo Williams might have been small, but he had a temper. He immediately fired the ball back at Howard.
The referees acted as if they saw nothing. They made no call and simply walked between the 2 players.
The relaxed whistle was clearly influenced by the fight in the Western Conference Finals. David Stern had obviously instructed the officials to loosen their standards. Otherwise, if players were getting tossed in both conference finals for confrontations, what would the NBA start looking like, a boxing league?
The Magic did not carry over the momentum from the previous game. They committed frequent turnovers in the 1st quarter and trailed 17 to 30 going into the 2nd.
Things did not improve in the 2nd quarter either. At one point, the Cavaliers pushed the lead to 23.
The turning point came at the 6 minute 11 second mark of the 2nd quarter.
The moment James checked out, Cleveland suddenly looked like a completely different team. It was as if they had forgotten how to play basketball.
James was still chatting and laughing with his teammates on the bench, thinking a 23 point lead was more than enough to buy him some rest. Then he looked back at the floor and saw the lead had already been cut to 10 in just a few minutes.
Turkoglu, Lewis, J.J. Redick, and Alston all started hitting from deep.
James had no choice but to return early and steady the game.
His role on the court was not limited to scoring and assisting. He was more like the team's stabilizer. The Cavaliers relied heavily on him. It seemed as if the entire team could only play with peace of mind when he was out there.
The 3rd quarter turned into a grind. In the closing minutes, Lewis showed exactly why he was paid like a star, knocking down 2 straight 3 point shots to cut the margin to single digits.
Both teams kept fighting.
James was dealing with an injury, and Howard had already picked up 4 fouls and was forced to sit for a stretch.
Then came the 4th quarter, and the game went down to the wire.
James played the entire quarter. In the final 2 minutes, fatigue clearly started to show, and he was called for 2 traveling violations.
Turkoglu took advantage and drilled a huge 3 pointer to tie the game.
It was the first time Orlando had drawn even since the opening moments.
Then, with 2 seconds left, Turkoglu hit a midrange jumper.
95 to 93.
That shot looked as if it had decided not only the game, but possibly the direction of the entire series.
The Magic bench erupted. If they won, they would head back to Cleveland with a 2 to 0 lead, a massive advantage.
The Cavaliers called their final timeout.
After the timeout, the camera locked onto James.
His leg was already wrapped in bandages. He was clearly playing hurt.
Would it be a game winning shot, or a pass?
James gave his answer.
Catch.
Turn.
3 pointer.
The entire Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse exploded.
James buried the game winner through injury and forcefully tied the series at 1 to 1.
After the win, James let out a long breath.
Like Chen Yan, he had also responded with a win after losing Game 1 at home.
For a moment, James felt as if the 2 of them were following the exact same script.
.....
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