The No.1 Anti-Fans in Basketball
Chapter 320 - 177: The Floor is a Bit Slippery

Chapter 320: Chapter 177: The Floor is a Bit Slippery

During the pre-game warmup, the cameras switched between Hansen and Kobe, also providing their playoff statistics for the year.

Kobe averaged 31.5 points, 4.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, with a field goal percentage of 48% and a three-point percentage of 34%.

Hansen averaged 29.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.1 assists, with a field goal percentage of 47.7% and a three-point percentage of 39.4%.

At the turn of the century, the league witnessed an era dominated by shooting guards, but as time progressed, similar to centers, shooting guards also began to decline.

This was partly because there were more and more scoring point guards, who took over the roles originally belonging to shooting guards; on the other hand, the scoring efficiency of shooting guards wasn’t as high as small forwards, so NBA coaches preferred 3D players at this position.

Hansen was the only one among the younger generation of players who seemed likely to take over the shooting guard legacy.

Such high-level showdowns between top positions had become rare in this era.

In the commentary booth, The Big Three were already in place.

"Shaq, we can go to Star Avenue at dawn," Barkley had already started popping champagne early.

O’Neal’s ex-wife, Shanee, had once snarked that O’Neal was a "small shark," true or not, so he was quite looking forward to it.

"Are you worried about losing face if you go there during the day?" O’Neal shot back without backing down.

"Actually, if you concede now, I might agree to let you go to Los Angeles beach." Surrendering meant losing half, Barkley was also giving O’Neal a way out.

He was only interested in the little shark and didn’t want O’Neal to lose face over the bet.

"Hope you can still say that by the end of this game," O’Neal was ready to go all out.

Setting aside the bet, he personally didn’t want the Lakers to win.

He had barely achieved 5=5 last season, and he did not wish to see it become 6>5 after just one season.

After the warmup, the arena moved on to the opening ceremony, and the starting lineups for both sides were announced.

Lakers: Paul, Kobe, Ci Shiping, Big Gasol, Okafor

Grizzlies: Conley, Hansen, Guy, Randolph, Little Gasol

Both team’s lineups remained unchanged from Game 2. Okafor won the jump ball, and the Lakers took the first offensive possession.

However, unlike previous games, Kobe didn’t let his teammates attack first but began looking for opportunities by running pindown plays right away.

Paul delivered an anticipatory pass to him, and he scored a fadeaway jumper over Little Gasol.

As mentioned before, his form had come through as the series progressed.

On the other end, Little Gasol received the ball high, Randolph requested it low—Grizzlies seemed to want to play high-low in the post.

But then, Hansen suddenly cut and shook off Ci Shiping.

After James bulked up, he looked like an old man; Ci Shiping was just downright slow.

Little Gasol passed the ball, and Hansen stopped for a mid-range shot.

"Swish!"

Same swift execution.

Kobe continued his movement; this time Guy opted to go behind, and Kobe, without hesitation, made another mid-range shot.

"Kobe’s on fire!" Barkley excitedly looked toward O’Neal. With Kobe like this, what could the Grizzlies use to win?

But no sooner had Barkley spoken, Hansen after picking and rolling, slipped past Okafor, driving into the Lakers’ paint to score with an agile layup.

"I knew it!" O’Neal was visibly excited.

He had been teammates with Hansen and knew that Hansen wouldn’t concede that easily.

Kobe got the ball again, this time Guy managed to keep up, but Kobe used his speed to get past him and then drove inside, drawing a foul from Little Gasol.

Kobe stepped to the free-throw line, and the camera focused on him.

His eyes were filled with a bloodthirsty glare.

The "Bloodthirst" O’Neal had attributed to him did not vanish with the end of Game 3.

Kobe calmly made both free throws, scoring a quick 6 points at the start of the game.

The crowd began to stir; not just Barkley, they all could fully sense Kobe’s determination to win this game.

The Grizzlies played high-low; Randolph attempted a hook shot from the low post but missed, yet Little Gasol dashed into the paint and tapped the ball to Hansen.

Big Gasol moved to help defend, but Hansen shifted direction, leaving him behind.

His speed in beating his man was so quick that Okafor didn’t have time to help on defense, and Hansen stormed inside for a two-handed slam-dunk.

The arena instantly filled with the cheers of the fans.

The selective shots aired before the game had whetted their appetites, and now, to their delight, Kobe and Hansen actually started to duel right from the outset!

What was more important was the familiar aura emanating from Hansen.

The Grizzlies, pushed to the edge of the cliff, needed exactly this kind of fearless display.

You score one, I immediately return one.

How strong are you? You can’t even maintain a lead!

"We cannot forget that Han scored 51 points in this year’s playoffs, something even Kobe has never done," O’Neal said with a grin that his mouth couldn’t close.

Whether his little shark would make it, now depended entirely on Hansen!

And while dissing Kobe, he also shared an interesting bit of trivia.

That’s right, though Kobe had scored 81 points in a regular-season game and had a streak of four consecutive 50+ games, his highest in the playoffs was only 50 points, which he achieved in 2006 against The Suns.

This wasn’t to say Kobe’s scoring ability was any less than Hansen’s now because scoring high was related to one’s shooting rhythm and the opponent’s defensive strategy.

Hansen’s shooting touch in Game 1 against the Mavericks, and Carlisle’s Hollins-like "hack-a-Han" tactics, were unreplicable.

Yet the reality stood that Hansen’s current playoff scoring record was one point higher than Kobe’s.