The last two minutes of the fourth quarter.
Hardaway drove to the free-throw line and was forced to stop the ball under pressure from Sam Cassell and Mutombo. With no other option, he passed the ball to Dan Majerle in the corner.
Robert Horry pounced on the ball like a madman. Majerle's three-pointer bounced high off the back rim under pressure.
"Mine!" Grant roared in the paint, leaping into the air.
But he underestimated the stubbornness of that 20-year-old. The moment the ball bounced, Garnett flew sideways, smashing Grant aside with his chest in mid-air, and scooped the basketball up with his long arm!
After landing, Grant tried to grab the ball again, but Garnett grabbed it by the stomach and yelled at Grant's face, "Get out!!"
The referee blew the whistle, Grant committed a blocking foul. Garnett stepped to the free-throw line and calmly made both free throws, making it 76-78.
With one minute and twenty seconds remaining, the Celtics trailed by two points.
Sam Cassell slowly dribbled the ball across half-court, glanced at Mutombo, and the African Mountain nodded steadily at him before moving back to the top of the key.
Sam Cassell used a screen to drive hard to the right, Mourning dared not stay in the paint this time... because Garnett had already opened up the defense through the middle. The moment Mourning lunged towards the middle, Sam Cassell made his signature sudden stop on the right side of the free-throw line, arching his back to shift Hardaway's weight, and took a mid-range shot.
Whoosh! 78 to 78!
In the next Heat offensive possession, Mourning attempted a back-to-the-basket move against Mutombo in the low post. Once, twice, and on the third attempt, Mourning angrily turned and rose up, but Mutombo wasn't fooled by his fake. At the highest point of Mourning's hand above his shoulder, his long arm slammed down like a mountain!
Snap!
A block!
Garnett out Grant and grabbed the rebound.
There are 30 seconds left.
Sam Cassell dribbled the ball across half-court, calmly signaling a play, feigning a second screen for Mutombo, causing the Heat's defense to collapse towards the paint. But in a split second, Sam Cassell precisely flicked the ball to Garnett at the high post.
Garnett received the ball, Grant pounced on him like a madman. Garnett faked a shot, and in the fraction of a second that Grant's center of gravity was shaken, Garnett flicked his wrist, sending the ball to the weak side at a 45-degree angle.
Robert Horry received the ball on the open perimeter, calmly jumped, and released it. The basketball flew through the blinding lights of the Miami Arena, tracing a cold parabola in the air.
Swish!
81 to 78!
The Celtics pulled off a crucial comeback in the final moments!
Sitting behind the bench, Lin Qi watched the near-perfect ball movement of the team and finally let out a long puff of smoke. This was exactly what he wanted to see when he assembled this team.
As the Heat's final, desperate three-pointer missed, the buzzer sounded throughout the arena.
The Boston Celtics pulled off a remarkable comeback in Miami's trenches.
There was no wild celebration in the locker room, only sweat, bruises, and heavy breathing.
Sam Cassell, hands on his knees, was panting heavily.
Mutombo walked up to him and patted Sam Cassell's soaking wet shoulder with his huge hand. "Good job, Sam."
Sam Cassell looked up, his face covered in sweat, but he grinned, revealing his signature set of crooked teeth. "Talk more next time, big guy."
Mutombo gave a low chuckle.
That evening, Lin Qi returned to the executive suite at the Miami Marriott Hotel.
The next set of videotapes was already neatly arranged on the table.
The top plate has "Los Angeles Lakers" written on it in black marker.
Lin Qi took off his suit jacket, walked to the VCR, and pushed the tape in. The machine made a low spinning sound, and the television screen lit up with glaring static before switching to a game broadcast from the Great Western Forum.
In the footage, the behemoth wearing the purple and gold number 34 jersey simply leaned back in the low post. The opposing center was knocked back a meter. Receiving the ball, turning around, that 300-pound body displayed terrifying agility, and a slam dunk made the entire backboard and the clock tremble.
Even when the camera panned across the Lakers' bench, 18-year-old high school student Kobe Brian was staring at the court with an almost obsessive and hungry gaze...