Midway through the first quarter, the adrenaline-pumping momentum of the opening gradually faded. As both starting lineups began to adapt to each other's defensive intensity, the game should have smoothly slowed down and fallen into a tactical exploration of half-court set plays.
But young people's instinct is always to speed up.
Garnett grabbed the defensive rebound in the paint. The moment his feet touched the ground, he immediately lowered his shoulders and launched a long pass down the court. This was the same tactic Boston had used all regular season: Gary Payton moved to the left in perfect unison, while Pierce sprinted down the right sideline. In just three seconds, the entire Celtics team was on the offensive.
Reggie Miller was the quickest to retreat on defense; he was already near the free-throw line, feet planted, ready to draw an offensive foul. But Pierce suddenly stopped a step beyond the three-point line, jumped, and launched a pull-up three-pointer over the still-unpositioned defense.
The basketball arced high and swished cleanly into the net.
That three-pointer midway through the first quarter ignited the New Garden. After landing, Pierce excitedly pumped his fist at the frenzied stands, receiving a deafening roar in response.
But before he could turn back to defend, Reggie Miller ran past him. The veteran glanced at Pierce's celebrating fist, then leaned close to his ear and whispered a sarcastic remark.
"Getting this excited? You've never seen anything like it." Miller didn't even stop walking, casually tossing out a remark, "I've taken countless shots like this. You can't keep making them, but I'll keep making them until you despair."
Pierce's excitement froze instantly, then his brows furrowed sharply as he stared at Miller's retreating figure, a fire igniting in his eyes.
Larry Bird Larry Bird stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed and a blank expression.
Seeing that Pierce's emotions were starting to fluctuate after Miller's words, Gary Payton immediately stepped in and responded.
"Give me that damn ball!" Gary Payton yelled at his teammate serving from the baseline.
He grabbed the basketball, taking control of the team's rhythm. He lowered his stance, the ball slamming against the wooden floor repeatedly with a heavy thud. He was like a steady metronome, forcefully cooling down the hot-headed young players on the court.
Seeing this, Garnett instinctively moved up to the top of the key to set a screen for him. Gary Payton, however, didn't even turn his head, but impatiently raised his left hand and waved it forcefully.
"Get out of the way, Kevin!" Gary Payton yelled at the top of his lungs as he slammed the ball down. "I can handle this fat guy all by myself!"
Garnett shrugged and wisely moved to the weak side. Gary Payton's eyes were fixed on Mark Jackson again, and at the same time, his ever-busy mouth began a rapid-fire barrage of words.
"Come on, Mark. Let me see how much fat you've gained in Indiana." Gary Payton rambled on as he turned his back to the basket from the top of the arc.
Everyone in the league knows that Mark Jackson loves to ram his way in with his big ass sticking out. But when it comes to the delicate and deadly low-post skills of a point guard, Gary Payton is the real master. He rammed his back into Jackson, Jackson broad frame was indeed solid, holding him back like a low wall, without taking a single step back.
But Gary Payton had no intention of defeating him by sheer brute force.
While Gary Payton's absolute speed and first-step explosiveness aren't among the league's best, he excels at dismantling defenses thanks to his toughness, solid footwork, and excellent sense of rhythm. This style of play has a natural advantage against guards like Mark Jackson, who have a solid build but slower lateral movement.
Just as Jackson was about to bounce back, Gary Payton whispered something in his ear.
"You're too slow, you fatso."
Before he could finish speaking, Gary Payton suddenly released his strength and spun forward to face the basket. Jackson bumped into nothingness, his heavy body lurching forward due to inertia.
Without any unnecessary movements, Gary Payton cut half a body length away, abruptly stopped before the help defense arrived, and pulled up for a shot.
Swish.
Hollow core into the net.
In the third quarter, the Pacers played with great patience.
Mark Jackson slowly dribbled the ball across half-court, using his broad back to slowly push Gary Payton in. Gary Payton lowered his stance and held on tightly, not retreating an inch.
But Pierce on the wing saw Jackson's prolonged ball-handling as an opportunity for a double-team. He decisively left his man behind and rushed to double-team him. This was a common tactic for Boston in the regular season: aggressive pressing on the perimeter, and even if a man was left open, Garnett would be there to cover and help defend.
But this was exactly what Jackson was waiting for. Before Pierce's double-team could fully close in, Jackson flicked his wrist, and the ball went directly between the two players, finding Reggie Miller, who was completely left open by Pierce.
Boston's defensive rotation started quickly. As soon as Miller received the ball, Garnett immediately dropped down to the basket, using his amazing mobility to stride to the three-point line, his long arms covering him directly.
For most shooters, facing Garnett's speed and quickness in help defense would definitely disrupt their shooting rhythm. But Miller caught the ball, jumped, and released it without the slightest hesitation. Just as Garnett's fingertips were about to block his shot, he met the defense and launched the ball with his signature quick push.
Swish. Three-pointer made.
With extreme patience and skillful ball movement, the Pacers capitalized on Pierce's aggressiveness on the defensive end and exploited gaps in Boston's defensive rotations.
Miller didn't immediately return to defense after landing; instead, he faced the Boston fans who had been shouting the loudest earlier.
He raised his right hand, virtually pinched an invisible knob in mid-air, and twisted it sharply to the left.
With his "mute" gesture, the area that had just been filled with deafening curses actually fell into an eerie silence for a moment.
As he retreated, Reggie Miller chewed gum and leisurely ran past Pierce, whose face was ashen.
The veteran turned his head, gave him a mocking glance, and casually tossed out, "Rookie, I wasn't lying, was I? I told you, I'll keep scoring these kinds of shots."
Miller didn't even stop running, continuing forward without looking back, "If you don't believe me, try missing me again next round."
In the next round, before anyone else could take their place...
Pierce turned and called for the ball from Gary Payton. Gary Payton saw through his intention, flicked his wrist, and delivered the ball precisely.
After receiving the ball, Pierce immediately cut diagonally into the penalty area. Miller tried to move sideways to block him, but Pierce didn't give him a chance. During his breakthrough, he turned sideways and pressed Miller firmly with his shoulder, using it to block the opponent's defensive position, and then forcefully pushed him outwards. Miller was knocked off balance by this brute force, instantly giving up his breakthrough route.
Pierce didn't slow down at all, taking off into the air. In mid-air, he forcefully pushed past Dale Davis, who was trying to help defend. But this collision completely threw him off balance. He leaned sideways to the basket, contorting himself into an extremely awkward position in the air, looking like he was about to crash to the ground. But he ignored his center of gravity, raised the ball high with one hand, and using the momentum of his falling body, slammed it into the basket.
"Bang!"
Pierce stumbled upon landing, nearly falling. After regaining his balance, he didn't look anywhere else, but turned around and stared straight at Reggie Miller, whom he had just bumped into.
In front of Miller, Pierce grasped at the knob in the air with both hands and twisted it sharply to the right.
This action was like a switch. With his gesture, the sound waves in the entire New Garden were instantly pushed to their limit, and a deafening roar erupted.
On the sidelines, Larry Bird, who had maintained a blank expression, raised an eyebrow and casually remarked, "This kid's got some interesting traits."
Reggie Miller paused for a moment, looked at Pierce, then raised an eyebrow and gave him a meaningful look.
Miller walked past the sidelines, deliberately slowing his pace and whispering a few words to Larry Bird Larry Bird. Larry Bird listened expressionlessly, his eyes narrowing slightly before he waved his hand, and the referee blew the whistle...
The Pacers called a timeout.
The game restarted, and players like Derrick McGee and Jalen Rose were substituted in.
Once on the court, McGee stuck to Pierce like glue. His defensive footwork was always there first, and his hands never reached out unnecessarily. Pierce tried to bait him with a probing step, but McGee didn't budge. Pierce forced a back turn, but McGee was already half a second ahead of him.
Pierce was struggling against the defense. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Garnett cutting to the baseline, having shaken off his defender. Without hesitation, Pierce passed the ball to Garnett caught the ball and leaped into the air. Dale Davis was a half-step slower and hadn't even gotten into position when Garnett swung his long arm in mid-air, slamming the ball into the basket over Davis's jumping block attempt.
The basket rim shook violently, Garnett hung on it, glaring at Davis after landing.
The Pacers immediately countered, with Jalen Rose receiving the ball and driving into the paint. He jumped for a layup, thinking it was a sure thing. But Garnett chased after him from behind, leaping with all his might, and just as Rose released the ball, Garnett slapped it hard across the face.
"Smack!"
The ball was swatted away like a volleyball, crashing into the third-row seats. Rose staggered off the field from the impact, turning to look at Garnett with a look of utter astonishment. The entire stadium erupted in cheers.
It wasn't over yet. In the next possession, Garnett faced Dale Davis with the ball. Instead of lingering on the perimeter, he faked a shot to get Davis off balance, then slammed the ball to the ground and accelerated straight towards the basket. Davis tried to help, but Garnett's momentum was too strong. He jumped against the defense and, in a powerful mid-air confrontation, slammed the ball into the basket with one arm.
After the basket, Garnett turned around, raised his arms high towards the stands, and roared at the top of his lungs. The entire arena was ablaze; Boston's momentum had completely returned.
Larry Bird Larry Bird stood up from the bench, and for the first time tonight, he abandoned his nonchalant expression and called a long timeout.
On the sidelines, Larry Bird slightly raised his head and looked towards the VIP box above the arena. That was Lin Qi's seat. Amidst the deafening roar of the crowd, their eyes met across the distance.
Larry Bird expressionlessly withdrew his gaze, turned around, and strode toward the players who were gathering around him.
"Listen, next we need to..."
With two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Celtics led by three points, 88-85.
Pierce drove hard to the basket and collided with Antonio Davis, who had moved laterally ahead of him.
"Beep!"
The whistle blows; offensive foul.
Boos instantly filled the New Garden. The big screen played a slow-motion replay, but it was unclear whether Davis had made proper footing before the contact. This ambiguous call immediately escalated the tension on the court.
Pierce slammed the ball to the ground and protested to the referee with his hands outstretched. Doc Rivers, who was on the sidelines, also rushed onto the court, pointing at the referee who had blown the whistle, his expression clearly questioning the call.
Possession changes hands; Mark Jackson initiates play with the ball.
Miller used McGee's solid screen to circle out from the baseline. Pierce's defensive positioning was slightly off because of that inexplicable foul earlier. In that half-step, Miller received the ball, jumped, and shot.
"Whoosh."
Three point hit.
88:88.
It's a draw.
With 12 seconds left, the Celtics trailed by one point, 91-90.
The Pacers inbounded the ball from the baseline. The moment Jalen Rose received the ball, Garnett lunged at him and stole it. Pierce picked up the ball and sprinted towards half-court.
Reggie Miller was already waiting for him.
With 6 seconds left, Pierce dribbled to the three-point line.
In the decisive moment, the Pacers' defense was on high alert, and no one dared to switch on defense rashly. Miller stuck to Pierce tightly.
Pierce first feinted to the right, and Miller immediately moved to block his path. In that instant, Pierce protected the ball with his left hand and used his right hand to brace himself against Miller's chest. The movement was extremely fast, seemingly a normal physical confrontation, but in reality, it instantly used the momentum to create half a body length difference.
The space has been created.
Before Miller could pounce, Pierce jumped and shot without hesitation.
The ball arced high and fell straight into the center of the Nets.
"Whoosh."
The crisp sound of swishing the net.
91:92.
The final whistle blew.
The Celtics won.
Pierce landed and stood still, staring at Miller without saying a word.
Miller rubbed his chest where he had been bumped, gave the young man a helpless wry smile, and shook his head.
With this victory, Boston takes a commanding 1-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals.