Beep! Beep!
With the whistle, the second half officially began.
The Seattle Supersonics inbounded from the backcourt, getting the ball to Luke Ridnour, who quickly dribbled across half court.
The moment Luke Ridnour crossed half court, Nick Collison came out from the paint to receive the ball at the top of the arc.
Luke Ridnour swiftly passed to Nick Collison, then immediately cut into the lane.
Eric Snow hurried after him, guarding against a direct pass as he chased.
But Luke Ridnour was only a decoy.
After cutting inside, Luke Ridnour ran along the baseline toward the right corner.
The Seattle Supersonics' real killing move was at the left corner: Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis ran a crossing pattern.
After crossing paths, Ray Allen ran outward while Rashard Lewis immediately cut into the paint.
Under normal circumstances, that should have meant a defensive switch.
But LeBron was anything but normal—he kept chasing his own assignment, Rashard Lewis.
Larry Hughes, meanwhile, followed normal logic and switched immediately, sticking tight to Rashard Lewis and denying him the ball.
Just like that, Ray Allen was left wide open.
Naturally, Ray Allen would not let such a perfect opportunity slip away.
Gentleman Ray drew his blade.
After receiving the pass, Ray Allen rose quickly, hung in the air, and launched a three-pointer.
The motion was seamless—up came the hand, down fell the blade!
The ball traced a beautiful arc through the air, streaking like a meteor straight toward the basket.
Swish!
The ball dropped cleanly through the net.
Ray Allen buried the three.
The score became 57-48, with the gap stretched to nine points.
"Awooo! Awooo! Awooo!"
In an instant, the entire KeyArena erupted, and fans throughout the arena cheered for Ray Allen's spectacular three-pointer.
"Larry, what are you doing? Come out with him!"