FcuK!
Josh Smith watched Su Yi surrounded by his teammates and couldn't help cursing!
He had spent the entire 48 minutes trying to contain Su Yi.
Then, at the very last moment, Su Yi had drained that high-arcing fadeaway three right in front of him to tie the game!
The meat had been snatched right out of his mouth.
It felt awful!
"Josh, we've still got overtime!"
Joe Johnson immediately noticed Josh Smith's state of mind. He hurried over and patted him on the shoulder.
Josh Smith came back to himself and nodded.
Meanwhile, Su Yi returned to the bench surrounded by his teammates.
As soon as he reached the bench, Mike Brown flashed a bright white smile and hugged him, pounding him on the back. "Su, you're a superhero, the savior of our team! That three-pointer was incredible!"
LeBron James heard Mike Brown's words.
He was instantly unhappy and thought, That was a great pass by me! What does Su have to do with it?
"Then you'd better hit a few more threes in overtime! Shoot the Hawks dead!"
As soon as Mike Brown finished speaking, he picked up the tactics board and began drawing up plays for Su Yi.
But LeBron James remained seated on the bench, not even shifting in his chair. He had no interest in the plays. I'm taking over in overtime!
After a short break, both teams returned to the court.
"Beep! Beep!"
Overtime officially began.
The ball went up with a slap.
Big Z got to it first and tipped it back into the backcourt. The Cleveland Cavaliers won possession.
Larry Hughes scooped up the ball and quickly dribbled across half court.
"Larry, the ball!"
As soon as they crossed half court, LeBron James came over with his hand out, calling for the ball.
Larry Hughes passed it to LeBron James.
LeBron James attacked without hesitation, bulldozing past Shelden Williams and into the Atlanta Hawks' defense.
Zaza Pachulia hurried over and slid into his path.
LeBron James stopped abruptly, jumped, hung in the air, and shot from midrange!
Su Yi, cutting off the ball: ???
Damn, I ran for nothing again!
The ball hit the rim with a clang.
The hoop emphatically rejected the shot, which had come off with a bizarre, crablike form.
"Mine!"
Big Z leaped high beneath the basket and lightly tipped the ball as it bounced off the rim.
The ball dropped neatly into the basket.
Big Z scored on the putback, giving his team the first points of overtime.
The score was 96–94!
The Atlanta Hawks inbounded, and the ball went to Claxton, who quickly dribbled over half court.
As soon as he crossed, Zaza Pachulia hustled out from the paint to set a screen for Claxton.
Zaza Pachulia's solid frame blocked Larry Hughes.
Claxton took advantage, accelerating past Larry Hughes and driving into the Cleveland Cavaliers' paint.
Big Z reacted quickly, sliding over to block Claxton's path.
At the same time, Larry Hughes hurried back, trying to trap Claxton with Big Z.
"Ball!"
A voice reached Claxton's ears.
Claxton flicked his wrist and sent a cross-court pass to Zaza Pachulia, who was rolling off the screen.
Zaza Pachulia caught the ball and immediately jumped, releasing a close-range shot.
The ball swished through.
Claxton assisted Zaza Pachulia for the basket.
The score was tied in an instant.
96–96!
"Raaaaah!"
The fans at Philips Arena erupted in enthusiastic cheers.
The Cleveland Cavaliers organized their offense again.
Su Yi still ran the play Mike Brown had drawn up.
He got open, but the ball still didn't come to him.
The ball clanged off the rim.
LeBron James had gone one-on-one again, bulldozing through the defenders closing in around him as he drove to the basket.
But he missed!
Shelden Williams grabbed the rebound and immediately started a fast break, passing the ball to Josh Smith, who was sprinting upcourt.
Josh Smith caught it, drove into the paint, and leaped powerfully for a two-handed dunk.
He put his team ahead by two.
98–96!
Damn!
Su Yi cursed under his breath. He had finally shaken Josh Smith, but the ball hadn't come his way.
Then Josh Smith, the man he'd shaken off, had taken advantage and started a fast break. Su Yi hadn't been able to get back on defense in time.
"Su, what kind of defense was that? How could you let Josh drive straight to the basket?"
Just as Su Yi was collecting himself for the next possession, LeBron James spread his hands and scolded him.
Su Yi: "..."
What a lunatic!
His reason told him not to argue with LeBron on the court.
Otherwise, the media backlash after the game would be overwhelming.
More importantly, that guy could bury him on the bench.
Then he wouldn't get another chance to play.
Su Yi didn't want his plan to fall apart, so he let the rebuke go in one ear and out the other and ignored him.
The Cleveland Cavaliers organized another attack, and the ball once again went to ball hog LeBron James.
This time, he finally called for a screen.
Drew Gooden quickly came over to set one for him.
LeBron used the screen to shake off his defender and drive into the paint.
This time, he was one-on-one with the help defender.
But just as he gathered the ball, a figure darted in like a ghost and snatched it from his hands with lightning speed.
LeBron James was completely stunned.
Who?
He looked again—Josh Smith!
Josh Smith took off at full speed, charging toward the Cleveland Cavaliers' end of the court.
Only Larry Hughes managed to get back in time.
Larry Hughes waited for Josh Smith in the paint.
Josh Smith drove right past the free-throw line as if Larry Hughes weren't there, then gathered the ball.
This is my chance!
Larry Hughes stepped forward and reached out with his left hand, trying to steal the ball from Josh Smith.
Smack!
Instead, he hit Josh Smith on the arm.
Josh Smith gritted his teeth through the pain and leaped high. At the peak of his jump, he flicked the ball with his fingertips toward the basket.
The ball swished through.
Josh Smith made the layup.
"Beep! Beep!"
The referee's whistle sounded, calling Larry Hughes for a shooting foul.
Larry Hughes: "..."
That backfired spectacularly!
"Raaaaah!"
The Philips Arena crowd roared for Josh Smith's three-point play.
On the sidelines, Mike Brown shook his head repeatedly. He really had no idea what LeBron had been doing just now.
He'd had open teammates twice in a row but hadn't passed, insisting on doing it himself.
And what happened?
The opposition had scored on fast breaks twice in a row.
He was fed up!
But what could he do?
The truth was, he was just a puppet coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Everyone in the organization had to listen to GM LeBron.
Josh Smith stepped up to the free-throw line to take his shot.
The ball swished through.
Josh Smith scored three points in the possession.
101–96.
The Atlanta Hawks led by five.
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