The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball
Chapter 244 - 146: Meet Strength with Strength_2

Chapter 244: Chapter 146: Meet Strength with Strength_2

Conley saw the right moment and passed the ball.

Facing the Spurs in the series, Randolph had missed almost two games, which was a huge loss for the Grizzlies, but it also forced them to develop new tactics.

When Hansen received the ball, he charged towards the basket, Chandler had already collapsed defensively.

Randolph also followed into the paint, where the space was too tight for Hansen to pass. Instead, he went straight up against Chandler.

Chandler jumped, attempting to block.

Yet, Hansen, fearless, slid through the air with a layup maneuver to dodge, waiting until Chandler had flown past him, then he shot from mid-range.

The shot was incredibly difficult, but with astonishing core strength, Hansen made it.

The ball swished through after passing Chandler!

Of course, the price was heavy, as Hansen, overly focused on the shot in midair, lost his balance upon landing and slid backward to the ground.

The cheers at the scene abruptly stopped.

First trying to dunk over Chandler and then making such a tough shot, in the face of Nowitzki’s god-like performance, Hansen didn’t back down but instead became even more proactive, earning awe even from his opponents.

Conley and Randolph were the first to rush over and help Hansen up.

Only those at the scene could really understand because they had seen this kind of resilience from Hansen in the Game 7 battle against the Thunders.

The strength of the opponent didn’t make Hansen retreat; on the contrary, it ignited even greater courage and more intense fighting spirit in him.

And that spirit, just like at the beginning, would inspire his teammates.

Nowitzki attempted another cut to the basket, but this time his shot was fiercely disrupted by Randolph and went off-target.

Nowitzki finally missed his first shot of the night.

Randolph grabbed the defensive rebound and, as the Grizzlies pushed to mid-court, rather than continue calling for a low position, he signaled for Conley to pass to Hansen, and then with a big shake of his hips, set a pick for Hansen.

After the pick and roll, Hansen mismatched against Chandler and after a frame-checking fake, he changed direction and accelerated past him.

Chandler was fast, but that was relative, more so in help defense than in one-on-one perimeter defense.

Back to the point, Hansen wasn’t James; his current ability to combine drives and shots made it difficult for big men to defend against him in a mismatch.

But just as Hansen passed Chandler, Marion had already swiftly moved to help defend near the basket.

The defensive capabilities of this Mavericks team were underestimated—Jidek, Marion, and Chandler formed a trinity defense system.

Seeing this, Hansen immediately leaped, then performed an in-air layup to evade Marion’s defense, glided to the other side of the basket, and made a reverse layup.

This shot was even more difficult than the last.

But the difficulty was too high, and the ball didn’t climb in, tapping the rim and bouncing out.

Marion, upon seeing this, prepared to grab the rebound.

But before him, Hansen, using his quick jump, had already leaped to make a put-back; he adjusted his gesture in air to tap the ball away.

Marian was older, though, and didn’t jump as high, last hitting Hansen’s hand.

The referee’s whistle blew, but Hansen didn’t stop, the strikes to his wrist caused his fingers to touch the ball, and a shooting instinct let him finally tap the ball out.

The basketball, as if enchanted, securely fell into the net.

Hansen made his own rebound and completed a 2+1!

After completing the additional free throw, Hansen had scored 7 consecutive points.

By now, the score was 13-14.

The arena stirred.

Hansen’s performance was electrifying, essentially pulling the Grizzlies back from the brink of collapse!

The camera focused on Hansen, retreating, his gaze incredibly resolute.

So what if they couldn’t stop Nowitzki?

As long as they kept scoring on the offensive end, it was fine!

Hansen’s offense completely boosted the Grizzlies’ morale, holding their own during the first quarter starting stretch against a supercharged Nowitzki, forcing a close game with the Mavericks.

minutes into the first quarter as both teams started to rotate players, the Mavericks were only leading the Grizzlies by 2 points, 22-20.

However, for the Grizzlies, their real challenge was just beginning.

This was displayed in the first play after the substitution.

O’Neal, in the low post, directly bumped Haddadi out of the baseline, then dunked with both hands.

Playing against the substitutes was a major advantage for O’Neal, allowing him to avoid peak times.

His abilities had continuously declined due to injuries, but facing Haddadi was still easy for him.

Conversely, for this Grizzlies team, the toughest time was during the transition with substitutes.

Fortunately, Blacking turned it around as Crawford received a pass from Williams, shook off Terry, and drove past O’Neal with a layup for a score in response.

The Mavericks’ bench firepower was truly not to be underestimated.

As O’Neal continued to play a low post game, drawing double teams, he passed the ball to Terry on the perimeter. Terry released a three-pointer with a fluid motion, then celebrated with a jet-plane gliding gesture using both hands.

The Mavericks were able to sweep the Lakers, and apart from Nowitzki, Terry was the best performer.

As the sixth man, Terry managed to average 19.8 points per game, sinking 3.3 three-pointers per game with a fearsome shooting percentage of 68.4%.

The arena was filled with roaring cheers.

Although Caron Butler, like Guy, was out for the season, the Mavericks’ depth of squad was clearly much better than the Grizzlies’.

However, before the cheers died down, Crawford, on the perimeter, received a pass from Haddadi, shook off Terry, and took a three-point shot.

"Swish!"

Just as quickly!

This basket sent the Grizzlies’ bench into a frenzy; even Hansen excitedly jumped up from his seat.

Having played through two rounds of the playoffs, Crawford had finally come alive!

Just as Hansen had told O’Neal, after the series against the Thunders, the Grizzlies had found that essential something.

Crawford’s breakout was a highly improbable event since, as a rookie, he didn’t have the capability to perform on this stage.

But that’s the charm of a Super Six player; he always manages to surprise you when you least expect it.

Thanks to Crawford’s unexpected performance, the Grizzlies didn’t fall too far behind during this bench stretch.

By the time the starters returned, the Grizzlies were only trailing the Mavericks by 30 to 33.

Following the break, the Mavericks’ offensive sequence had Nowitzki receiving the ball again on the right side.

This time, Little Gasol was smarter, raising his right hand early to disrupt Nowitzki’s shooting vision while guarding against Nowitzki’s potential drive with his left hand.

Seeing this, Nowitzki made a move as if to drive, then took a probing step to create shooting space and suddenly pulled up for a fadeaway shot.

Little Gasol desperately lunged to disrupt, but the ball still sailed over his head...

"Swish!"

It went in!

The American Airlines Center instantly erupted.

The brief rest had not cooled Nowitzki’s hot hand.

This was definitely bad news for the Grizzlies.

Shouts from the fans filled the arena.

Emboldened by the momentum, Randolph’s low post play was effectively defended.

Also, once Jide got the ball, he suddenly sped up.

After pushing fast, and taking advantage of the incomplete set-up of defenses, he slipped the ball to a trailing Nowitzki. Nowitzki, shaking it off in three steps toward the basket, saw Little Gasol’s attempt to block and, angling his body, he glided past for a layup off the glass.

The baseline referee whistled; it was an and-one!

As the whistle blew, Nowitzki pumped his fist and then turned to high-five Jide who passed the ball.

This was the charm of a true playmaker; he didn’t need to hold on to the ball much, but every touch ensured the ball reached a teammate in the best position to score.

Nowitzki completed the three-point play, and following this, he scored another quick 5 points, still shooting with flawless accuracy.

The German tank was unstoppable tonight.

to 38.

The Grizzlies had suddenly fallen behind the Mavericks by eight points.

"Defense! Defense!"

The cries of the Dallas fans rose up again, urging their team to completely overpower the Grizzlies!

At this moment, Hansen signaled to Little Gasol, and the two executed a Conningham pick and roll.

However, Little Gasol was thoroughly flustered by Nowitzki, not fully blocking West.

As Hansen was about to shoot, West had already lunged at him.

West knew about Hansen’s strong shooting ability, so he committed fully to the block.

But Hansen used this to his advantage, performing an extremely convincing fake move to shake off West, then stepping to the left to create space from West, he faced Nowitzki’s approaching block and released a three-pointer.

"Swish!"

Again, with swift accuracy!

Hansen’s basket momentarily silenced the roaring crowd!

The Grizzlies’ bench erupted into a riot of towel waving.

You have your German tank, and I have my Mayor of Sacred City—bring it on!