The longest river

Chapter 147 Indiana's Victory Moment!

After the timeout, the Pacers regained possession of the ball.

The shouts and cheers from the crowd were deafening, and the Bulls' defense was impenetrable.

At this stage of the game, the Pacers are also exhausted and it will be difficult for them to create the same excellent shooting opportunities as at the beginning of the game.

Finally, Miller hit a mid-range shot almost with Jordan's defense on his side.

There are no wrong nicknames, only wrong names; "Mr. Big Heart" truly lives up to his name.

Moreover, during the defensive transition, Miller proactively ran to Yang Shuai's side and shouted, "You take care of Michael, I'll take care of the offense!"

The Pacers are not fighting alone.

Once back on defense, before Jordan could even make a move, Yang Shuai had already started engaging in off-ball contact.

His speed was at a disadvantage against Jordan in "zone" mode, so all he could do was provide enough physical contact to make Jordan expend twice the energy on every offensive play.

However, Jordan quickly realized Yang's intention and directly signaled to Pippen on the perimeter to set a screen.

With Rodman's screen, Jordan took a shot after receiving a pass from Pippen.

Yang Shuai was fully focused and almost instantly bypassed Rodman's screen with puppy-dog footwork. Rodman then made a pulling motion to try and stop Yang Shuai, and Yang Shuai took the opportunity to make a large fouling motion.

The referee blew his whistle, indicating that Rodman had committed a screen foul.

Jordan had already received the ball and made the shot, but the basket was disallowed.

Rodman wanted to complain to the referee, but Jordan pulled him back immediately.

Rodman pointed at Yang Shuai, then laughed in exasperation. He felt he shouldn't have used that trick on Yang Shuai back then; now Yang Shuai had mastered it.

However, on the defensive end, he also drew a screen foul from Schmitz with his exaggerated acting skills.

At this stage, both sides have used all their trump cards.

This time, Jordan didn't call for an off-ball screen; instead, he backed down Yang Shuai at the high post and asked for the ball.

This is a classic triangle offense, and Yang Shuai also provides plenty of physical contact.

Ultimately, Jordan opted for a pull-up jump shot with a turnaround to the baseline.

Yang Shuai followed up and pounced on Jordan, forcing him to raise the arc of his shot.

There was a similar play in the first quarter, and Yang Shuai judged from that play that Jordan's shooting touch wasn't good.

However, Jordan is still in the "zone," and his rhythm and control of his shots are clearly better now.

The basketball flew past Yang Shuai's fingertips and into the net.

The United Center erupted in cheers as the score was tied at 80 with three minutes remaining!
Bird then got up and went to the sidelines to applaud and encourage Yang.

Jordan's ability to make that shot was a testament to his skill, and Yang Shuai's defense was absolutely superb.

At a crucial moment, Miller came back into the game, receiving a pass from Jackson and hitting a buzzer-beating three-pointer just before the shot clock expired!

Miller waved his arms excitedly after scoring, and the United Center erupted in cheers.

Miller's criticism of Jordan during his rookie season seems foolish in hindsight, but it also reflects his confidence.

As Bird said, the first thing you need to do when facing Jordan is to be confident.

This confidence was also embodied at this moment, as Miller scored 5 points in a row at the most crucial moment.

Phil Jackson then called Cole up from the bench again.

Jordan suddenly changed his offensive approach in the frontcourt, using Rodman's screen to receive the ball off the court again.

This time Rodman didn't dare to use any underhanded tactics, and Yang Shuai pounced on him with all his might to catch up.

But Jordan showed off his enormous hands, forcefully pulling the ball back the instant it left his grasp, and then shooting after shaking off Yang Shuai.

This is a direct manifestation of the "zone" state; the defender's movements appear to him as if they are in slow motion.

Of course, only Jordan could have done that. Anyone else would have lost possession of the ball.

However, just as Jordan took his second shot, a gasp of amazement rang out from the crowd.

Because Yang Shuai jumped up quickly after landing and managed to touch the ball that Jordan had just released from the side!
Powerful explosiveness, reaction speed, and exceptional focus.

Even with the ball touched, Jordan still managed to throw it out with a layup before it came down.

The ball hit the backboard after a daring dodge, but bounced and went into the net!

The Joint Center has gone completely insane.

Yang Shuai's defense on those two plays was absolutely superb, especially that last defensive play, which no one else in the league could pull off.

But Jordan still made the shot.

This is Michael Jordan, the basketball god in NBA history who is "unprecedented and unparalleled"!

The enormous roar seemed to shake the entire stadium.

The camera focused directly on Yang Shuai, trying to see the panic on his face.

No human being could remain completely unmoved after going through something like that.

Not to mention that Yang Shuai is just a high school student.

However, Yang Shuai's face did not show much emotion at this moment.

It's not that his mental fortitude has reached an abnormal level, but rather that his defensive strategy simply wasn't to stop Jordan every possession.

In his "zone" state, peak Jordan was invincible in one-on-one situations. He knew this from the beginning, so his strategy was to exhaust his opponent.

Jordan entered the "zone" twice in a row, and with a quarter of intense defense in the third quarter, he didn't believe that the 34-year-old Jordan could hold on to the end after exhausting himself.

In fact, when Jordan landed after shooting, he had already seen Jordan panting uncontrollably and sweating profusely on his forehead.

Miller drove to the basket and drew a foul from Longley, earning two free throws.

Miller went to the free-throw line and made both shots despite the boos from the crowd.

He has scored 7 points in a row, and his presence on the offensive end has been phenomenal.

The Pacers maintained their 3-point lead at 85-82.

At this point, only two minutes remained in the game.

Jordan didn't participate in the offense this time. Pippen executed a play, drove to the basket, and his layup went wide. Rodman grabbed the offensive rebound and passed it to Pippen.

Kerr then made a quick run on the weak side, received a pass from Pippen, and hit a three-pointer!
He was substituted in when Miller was shooting free throws, and he immediately hit a crucial three-pointer.

But that's his ability. He's a huge liability on defense, and if he didn't have that ability, he wouldn't have been able to stay with the Bulls.

The fans in the stadium had all stood up by this point, and as Ernie Johnson said, the intensity of this game was beyond imagination.

Regardless of who wins in the end, this will be a classic match.

Mark Jackson then started backing down Kerr, drawing a double team before passing the ball to Yang Shuai. Yang Shuai drove to the basket, forcing Jordan to help defend before passing the ball to Miller, who then made a running shot off the backboard!

Miller scored 9 points in a row!
This segment of Miller's play brought back memories of his 26 points in the final quarter and the brilliance of the "Miller Time."

With one minute remaining in the game, the Pacers took the lead again, 85-87.

The Bulls called a timeout.

Miller found Yang Shuai and gave him a high five to celebrate.

In that last possession, he thought Yang Shuai's pass would be intercepted by Jordan.

Yang Shuai felt that Jordan had already broken out of the "zone" state; otherwise, with Jordan's ability, even if he couldn't steal the ball, he would at least have cleared it out of bounds.

After the timeout, Rodman continued to set off-ball screens for Jordan.

Jordan made a reverse run and successfully received the ball, but Yang Shuai got in front of him before he could shoot.

Rodman reacted quickly, turning around and setting a second screen. Jordan took a step after the screen and pulled up for a mid-range jumper over Davis's help defense.

"when!"

The ball didn't go in.

Although Davis provided some interference on that play, the level of interference was nowhere near as high-intensity as Yang Shuai's previous play.

Yang Shuai's judgment was correct; Jordan has broken out of the "zone"!
Schmitz secured the defensive rebound.

With 40 seconds left in the game, the Pacers called a timeout.

They only need one more goal to win the game.

The fans at the stadium were already feeling their palms sweating.

Since Jordan's return, the Bulls have never lost the first game of a series.

After the timeout, the Pacers executed a bold play, using Miller's presence to create a shooting opportunity for Schmitz at the high post.

Phil Jackson was completely taken aback. Theoretically, this crucial shot should have been given to Young even if it wasn't Miller. Bird fully demonstrated his tactical flexibility.

The moment Schmitz made his shot, the crowd seemed to hold their breath for a second.

"when!"

Schmitz's shot bounced off the rim!

The fans at the stadium breathed a sigh of relief.

This kind of surprise tactic is also a gamble, since it's very difficult for a player who hasn't shot in a long time to make a basket.

Pippen grabbed the rebound.

There are 20 seconds left in the game.

The Bulls have no timeouts left.

Phil Jackson was also signaling from the sidelines to slow down the pace.

The Bulls need to score a two-pointer to force overtime.

While Jordan expended a great deal of energy, the others did so even more.

In terms of pure physical strength, a team like the Bulls, known for its athleticism, clearly has the advantage.

Jordan got to the frontcourt, leaned against Yang Shuai, and immediately asked for the ball.

Everyone else also spread out, giving Jordan plenty of one-on-one opportunities.

Yang Shuai was also holding his breath and focused intently.

Last season, before his game-winning shot, he couldn't stop Jordan's final attack.

The fans in the arena began chanting in unison to cheer for Jordan, believing that he could help the Bulls win as he had done in the past.

After receiving the ball, Jordan opted for a face-up isolation play.

He drove straight to the basket after a triple threat jump shot fake.

However, he was unable to get past Yang Shuai, who was like a leech stuck to him.

Jordan ultimately opted for a pull-up floater without getting past Yang Shuai.

Yang Shuai also jumped up at the same time.

What Yang Shuai didn't expect was that Jordan's release point was relatively low, and his blocking hand actually touched the ball!
He blocked Jordan's game-tying shot!

There was an uproar at the scene.

They clearly didn't expect Jordan's last shot to be blocked.

Moreover, it wasn't a complete block; the ball still flew towards the basket, but its trajectory changed, making it noticeably shorter and ultimately hitting the edge of the rim before bouncing out.

Yang Shuai turned around and grabbed the defensive rebound.

Jordan had no choice but to foul Yang Shuai on the spot and send him to the free throw line.

Yang Shuai vented his anger by punching and roaring after being fouled.

He wasn't a robot. Despite his best efforts at defense, Jordan still managed to score on him one shot after another. His mentality must have fluctuated.

But in the end, his defensive strategy worked!
Yang Shuai goes to the free throw line.

Despite the noise and interference from the fans in the arena, he calmly made both free throws.

This also brought the competition to a close.

Kerr's three-pointer at the last moment missed, and the red light on the sidelines came on.

After a rollercoaster ride, the Pacers finally won Game 1 89-85!
(End of this chapter)