A One-Minute Scoring Frenzy

Los Angeles Lakers bench:

Phil Jackson frowned; this was a dangerous sign.

However, looking at the little time remaining, Phil Jackson decided against making adjustments and would finish the third quarter with the current lineup.

Phil Jackson turned his gaze back to the court.

In a rush to secure an offensive possession, Kobe Bryant received the ball and shot without hesitation.

"Clang." It missed.

Mark Blount grabbed the rebound, and the moment his feet touched the ground, he heard Goodwin's voice: "Mark, ball!"

Goodwin had already crossed into the frontcourt, with Gary Payton following closely behind.

Mark Blount whipped the ball forward, sending it straight toward Goodwin.

Not a chance!

Watching the ball fly over, Gary Payton jumped early.

What?

But the moment he jumped, his legs went soft, and he failed to get off the ground.

The ball arrived smoothly in front of Goodwin, who caught it right at the three-point line.

Stop, jump, hang in the air, three-point shot.

The motion was fluid and seamless, quick and decisive.

"Why?" Doc Rivers was very dissatisfied with Goodwin's choice; he could have easily taken a safe two points, but instead, he insisted on a three-pointer—what if he missed?

The ball traced a beautiful arc through the air.

"Swish." The ball dropped precisely into the embrace of the rim.

Doc Rivers: (⊙o⊙)...

It went in?

"Great shot!" Doc Rivers immediately shouted aloud.

Whether it's a black cat or a white cat, a cat that catches mice is a good cat.

As long as the ball goes in, no one will question your shot selection.

After the basket, Goodwin didn't celebrate at all, instead looking up at the big screen in the Staples Center, muttering to himself: "Ten more points."

The voice reached the ears of Gary Payton behind him, and his eyes suddenly widened, his pupils contracting violently.

He actually hadn't given up on this game yet.

Normally, if you were down by 17 points after three quarters against the Los Angeles Lakers with the OK Duo, you would have surrendered long ago.

Gary Payton punched his own leg hard, shouting internally: Hold it together.

The Los Angeles Lakers inbounded the ball from the backcourt to Gary Payton, who dribbled to the top of the arc, eyeing the clock as he moved.

He wanted to drain the remaining time; even if he missed the shot, he wouldn't leave any time for the Boston Celtics.

Time flew by: 10, 9, 8...

On one side, Kobe Bryant used a screen to run out and receive the ball.

Paul Pierce navigated around the screen in time, but his target wasn't Kobe Bryant; it was Gary Payton.

At the same time, Mike James, who was responsible for guarding Gary Payton, stepped up to defend.

Facing the sudden double-team, Gary Payton was very experienced; he took a step back, jumped, and passed the ball toward Kobe Bryant in mid-air.

But the next second, Gary Payton froze—how was he there?

With a slap, Goodwin intercepted Gary Payton's pass.

After the steal, Goodwin immediately pushed the ball up the court.

Paul Pierce and Mike James joined the fast break.

Helpless, Gary Payton had no choice but to retreat to his own paint.

Kobe Bryant chased Goodwin frantically and caught up quickly.

Goodwin suddenly stopped.

He was going to pass; who would he pass to?

Kobe Bryant turned his head to look at Paul Pierce and Mike James in the middle.

One of Kobe Bryant's hands was already blocking Goodwin's passing lane.

In his view, this was definitely a pass, because they were a full meter away from the three-point line; it couldn't possibly be a shot.

But the next second, Goodwin's action slapped Kobe Bryant right in the face.

Kobe Bryant: (ÒωÓױ)!

Kobe Bryant stared at Goodwin in front of him in disbelief.

Under the gaze of everyone, Goodwin jumped, hung in the air, and released an ultra-long-range three-pointer.

The ball traced a beautiful arc through the air.

With a "swish," it pierced through the hoop, and also pierced the hearts of the fans on-site and the Los Angeles Lakers players.

It went in? It went in!

Eyes involuntarily turned to the big screen; the point gap was now only 7 points.

A minute ago it was still a 17-point gap, and now it was 7!

He had chased down 10 points in less than a minute.

OMG!

Even Shaquille O'Neal on the bench looked bewildered, wondering what had happened; he had only been off the court for two minutes, and they had been chased to a single-digit deficit.

Phil Jackson couldn't help but pat his own forehead; he regretted not making adjustments just moments ago.

"Beep." With 0.8 seconds left for the Los Angeles Lakers, the ball had barely touched the backcourt when time hit zero, and the referee blew the whistle to end the third quarter.

The Boston Celtics players on and off the court rushed toward Goodwin one after another.

"My god, Goodwin, you are truly incredible."

"Goodwin the sharpshooter."

"OMG, Goodwin!"

The teammates praised Goodwin one after another.

Facing so much praise, Goodwin didn't show much emotion, just nodding silently.

As the teammates' emotions slowly calmed down, Goodwin spoke up: "The game isn't over yet; we still have hope of winning."

As soon as the words fell, Goodwin, like a torch, ignited the flames that were about to be extinguished in his teammates.

"That's right, the game isn't over yet!"

"We are going to leave Staples with a victory."

"We can win!"

In an instant, the Boston Celtics were fueled with the hope of victory.

Not far away, Doc Rivers saw this scene and couldn't help but give a thumbs up to Goodwin; well done, Goodwin.

He had pulled a game that was about to fall off a cliff back from the brink.

This was simply a miracle.

Chasing down 10 points in a minute.

If one looked at Goodwin's stats, it would be even more terrifying: 5 shots taken, all made, racking up 16 points.

Doc Rivers was thinking frantically in his mind; of course, they had to give the ball to Goodwin for the rest of the game, but there was one point that concerned Doc Rivers greatly: would the Los Angeles Lakers let Kobe Bryant defend Goodwin?

One had to know that Kobe Bryant's defense was a level higher than that of the nearly 36-year-old Gary Payton.

If it were Kobe Bryant defending, then Goodwin would be frozen out again.

At this moment, Doc Rivers couldn't help but look at Paul Pierce.

"Gather up!"

Doc Rivers shouted hurriedly.

The players gathered around one after another.

Doc Rivers immediately said: "First of all, thank you very much to Goodwin for his performance, helping us walk back from the edge of the cliff. The fourth quarter is the key; if we want to win this game, the focus is on you, Paul Pierce."

Paul Pierce was full of question marks; me?

The rest of the teammates were also full of question marks.

"That's right, it's you, Paul Pierce. I hope you can continue to maintain your aggressiveness and keep the Los Angeles Lakers sending Kobe Bryant to defend you."

As soon as Doc Rivers finished speaking, Paul Pierce quickly understood.

Oh, oh, so that's it.

"Don't worry, Coach, leave it to me."

Doc Rivers looked at the other players and said: "Your most important job is to support Paul Pierce and Goodwin, as well as on the defensive end." After speaking, Doc Rivers took out his tactical board and explained the defensive priorities for the fourth quarter to the players.

The short break ended, and the players from both sides returned to the court.