Basketball miracles

Chapter 149 [A Single Battle to Become a God]

After the timeout, both sides made substitutions, with the Lakers maintaining their offensive lineup.

In a Lakers half-court set, Xiao Tu was double-teamed on the right low post. He passed the ball out, and Michael Cooper, who had just entered the game, missed an open mid-range shot.

The Celtics are on offense, and substitute Widman has a good touch, hitting a mid-range jumper from the high post. 103-69.

In the next possession, Xiao Tu positioned himself deep on the right flank, forcing McHale to stumble and fall dramatically. Johnson bounced a pass to Xiao Tu, and McHale, unable to withstand the pressure, committed a tackle foul.

If McHale doesn't foul, then it's all about Xiao Tu turning and shooting at close range. Xiao Tu playing against him is like a future peak Shaq playing against a weak center – he's practically shoving him aside.

McHale's nickname was "The Gibbon," but his long arms were just one characteristic; his main feature was that he was incredibly thin, like a giant monkey. Even among monkeys, he was skinny, much thinner than Marion, who was 201cm tall and weighed 103kg.

He's so thin he still can't jump high. If he hadn't grown to 208cm, he probably would only be able to find a factory job.

The Lakers inbounded the ball, again looking for Xiao Tu. This time, Xiao Tu cut to the basket, received a pass from Magic Johnson, and forced a layup, drawing a foul from Maxwell.

Both sides substituted their center forwards, with Xiao Tu and McHale now at center. Maxwell double-teamed and left McAdu open, but they still couldn't stop him.

Xiao Tu made both free throws, making it 105-69.

The home fans applauded as Xiao Tu finally scored again, his 44th point.

McHale started to lose his temper, and KC Jones made a mistake by not substituting him out for a rest.

McHale wanted to respond, receiving the ball with his back to goal on the right low post, and Maxwell passed it to him. He then backed down Xiao Tu, feinted, turned towards the middle, entered the penalty area, and forced a shot.

McHale's strength and jumping ability seemed ridiculous to Xiao Tu, and his movements were slow too. Xiao Tu jumped up like he was playing volleyball, swatting the ball away with his right hand. Cooper caught the ball on the left side, his foot on the three-point line.

If his teammate hadn't received the ball, Xiao Tu's slap could have sent the ball flying into the Celtics' backcourt.

Cooper made a fast break pass to Magic Johnson, who drove hard and drew a foul from Dennis, sending him to the free-throw line.

Johnson was also solid at the free-throw line, making both shots to make it 107-69.

This was only Johnson's 18th point, far fewer than Xiao Tu's.

The Celtics were on offense. Dennis dribbled up the court and pulled up for a jump shot on the left side, but missed. He was no longer cooperating with his teammates. Xiao Tu grabbed another defensive rebound, his 19th of the game.

In a Lakers half-court set, Xiao Tu set a screen on the perimeter, and Johnson dribbled to the left side, a step inside the three-point line, where he had an open mid-range jumper but missed. The Lakers had many easy shot opportunities; if the rest of the team had a higher shooting percentage, the Celtics would be down by 50 points now.

Bird grabbed the rebound in the backcourt, but the Celtics were unable to launch a fast break.

The Celtics set up their half-court offense. Bird received the ball on the left low post and turned towards the middle, but was double-teamed by Johnson and had the ball stolen. Johnson then led a fast break, ignoring Dennis's defense and completing a one-handed dunk! 109-69.

斯托克顿说：“魔术师砍下20分4篮板12助攻2抢断，双方分差拉大到40分了。”

Heinson exclaimed, "The Lakers not only scored more points today, but all five starters had dunks. The Celtics only had one dunk from Parish."

The Celtics had one last chance to attack. After a few passes, Dennis attempted a buzzer-beating three-pointer from the left corner, but it missed.

The Celtics were in an extremely embarrassing situation in this quarter, as the entire team only scored 9 points and their offense completely fell apart.

肖途仅出战31分钟，狂砍44分19篮板9助攻2抢断6盖帽，继续打很可能获得50+20+10的超级三双。

No one has ever put up these numbers in the Finals before; it's unprecedented.

Riley, of course, wanted to keep Xiao Tu on the court; he had to get a triple-double today.

The Celtics only fielded Parish as their starter in the final quarter, while the Lakers only fielded Xiao Tu as their starter, with the other four players being substitutes.

McAdu was matched up against Parish, while Xiao Tu was matched up against Widman, a white forward who is 201cm tall and weighs 98kg.

The Lakers took the first possession. The players spread out, and Xiao Tu cut to the left low post, receiving a pass from Cooper. He turned and drove to the basket. Widman couldn't withstand the pressure and fouled, allowing Xiao Tu to bank the ball in from close range.

Xiao Tu clenched his fists and roared in celebration, causing a wave of people to surge in the audience.

He made the free throw for a 2+1 play, making it 112-69. Stockton said, "Shaw scored 47 points! Widman is a white forward who isn't good at physical contact, and the coach made a mistake by assigning him to guard Shaw. Parish also seemed slow to react, a half-beat late in helping on defense, and didn't jump while standing under the basket."

Heinson sighed, "The Celtics' defense is hopeless today. Shaw single-handedly destroyed their interior defense."

The Celtics are on offense. Parish draws a foul on McAdu in the low post and makes both free throws. 112-71.

Cooper initiated the offense by targeting Xiao Tu first, this time with Parish on primary defense. Xiao Tu drew a double team on the right low post and passed the ball to the middle, where McAdu made a jump shot from the free-throw line. 114-71.

Xiao Tu delivered his 10th assist, and two Lakers players recorded double-digit assists today.

Stockton laughed and said, "The Celtics players don't know how to defend him anymore. If you don't double-team Shaw, he can score; if you double-team him, he can assist his teammates."

Heinson said, "He's already got a triple-double, and Riley hasn't taken him out yet. It seems like he wants him to get another 50+20+10."

The Celtics players were seething with hatred, but they couldn't do anything about Xiao Tu.

The NBA has no rule that says the star player must leave the game when it enters garbage time.

The Celtics' bench offense also faltered, with Maxwell missing a mid-range jumper on the left wing, and Xiao Tu grabbing the defensive rebound for his 20th rebound.

Widman screamed as he was knocked to the ground by Xiao Tu, but the referee ignored him.

The difference in their physical abilities was too great; Widman simply couldn't grab offensive rebounds near Xiao Tu and could only resort to flopping during contact.

The Lakers launched a fast break, McAdu missed a shot, and Xiao Tu failed to grab the offensive rebound, jumping too early and the ball bounced too far.

The Celtics players launched a fast break, with Parish leading the charge. He received the ball on the left and took three steps. He barely jumped, making a layup off the backboard, but Xiao Tu caught up from behind and slapped him against the backboard, causing the ball to bounce off.

Stockton exclaimed, "Shaw's another block! His seventh of the game! He's so fast, Parish never expected him to catch up from behind."

Heinson said, "It was terrifying. Shaw came straight back from the other baseline, and Parish was already beyond the Celtics' three-point line when he turned around. And he still managed to catch up and make the block... No other big man could do that."

Parish was stunned by the block. He thought it would be an easy layup, and when he crossed half-court, he glanced at Xiao Tu, who was quite far away from him at the time.

Xiao Tu played for less than 35 minutes today and didn't even need to eat fruit to relieve fatigue. He has better stamina than others.

The Lakers launched a fast break, and McAdu dribbled to the right baseline for a mid-range shot that missed. The Celtics then launched another fast break.

Backup point guard Ray Williams made a mistake while dribbling up the court, and his pass was intercepted by small forward Spriggs. McAdu retrieved the ball in the middle and made a precise long pass to Cooper in the frontcourt for a fast break. Cooper dribbled to the right low post at a 45-degree angle and made a delicate pass to Xiao Tu, who was following up in the middle.

Xiao Tu leaped up and slammed the ball down with both hands! 116 to 71.

Xiao Tu landed after a powerful kick from the frame, then swung his right fist and roared, celebrating in a way that was more ferocious than anyone else's!
Weidman didn't jump; he stood under the basket like a wooden stake. Xiao Tu wasn't someone a white shooter could defend; his only advantage was his catch-and-shoot jump shot.

Stockton exclaimed, "Shaw slams home his 49th point with a dunk, just one basket away from his second 50+ triple-double in the playoffs!"

Heinson said, "People knew the Lakers had an advantage before the game, but no one expected it to be this big."

"I think the outcome of the Finals is a foregone conclusion, but I don't know if the Celtics can win a single game."

A little over a minute later, Xiao Tu received the ball in the middle after a screen, made a move, dribbled behind his back, stepped back, and hit a three-pointer over Parish, bringing his personal score to 52 points.

In the next round, Riley requested a timeout just to substitute Xiao Tu.

The applause from the entire stadium was like a surging, overwhelming wave! The cheers and screams almost ripped off the roof of the stadium!

Madonna was also applauding Xiao Tu, and the cameraman gave her many close-up shots, making her stand out.

肖途总共出战35分钟，23投18中，三分球7中4，罚球12中12，狂砍52分20篮板10助攻2抢断7盖帽。

People felt this was the most terrifying individual performance in NBA Finals history, surpassing even Elgin Baylor's 61-point game. This was because Xiao Tu took so few shots today, missing only 5 in total, making his scoring efficiency terrifying.

Chamberlain is no match for Xiao Tu; his highest score in the Finals was only 45 points. Chamberlain, who averaged a peak of 50.4 points per game in the regular season, only averaged 22.6 points per game in the playoffs and 18.3 points per game in the Finals.

Xiao Tu surpassed many retired legends today, achieving legendary status in one battle!
(End of this chapter)