In Philadelphia in May, the air no longer carries the gentle warmth of spring; instead, it is filled with a suffocating, do-or-die determination.
With a score of 0-2, Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals moved to the First Union Center Philadelphia.
More than 20,000 fans wearing black T-shirts filled the stands early, but before the jump ball, the entire stadium was filled with a solemn and tragic atmosphere.
Returning to their home court, the Philadelphia 76ers found themselves in a precarious situation with nowhere to retreat.
Before the game, almost all American media outlets predicted that Boston would take the match point.
In the first two games at the New Garden, the Philadelphia 76ers seemed to rely solely on the injured Allen Iverson, who repeatedly charged into Boston's paint like a bomb, barely managing to stay afloat with his incredibly difficult and brutal one-on-one plays.
But many people, or rather the entire league, underestimated this lone hero. They underestimated his unfathomable physical reserves in adversity, and even more so, they underestimated the beating, unyielding heart beneath his jersey.
The third game began. Unlike the first two games, Iverson no longer rushed to challenge Boston's interior defense like a moth to a flame. He increased his off-ball movement. He patiently roamed along the baseline, using screens from Snow and Hill to patiently find opportunities to shoot in extremely tight mid-range spaces.
More importantly, he changed the way he passed the ball to O'Neal Jr..
In the third minute of the first quarter, Iverson drove to the free-throw line after a screen, and Ben Wallace moved up as usual to delay Iverson's shot.
Just as Big Ben Wallace shifted his weight slightly forward, preparing to jump and block the shot, Iverson's arms, which were about to be raised, suddenly dipped, and his wrists exerted force at an extremely low position. A perfectly concealed bounce pass grazed the edge of Big Ben's shoe and "whooshed" into the heart of the paint.
O'Neal Jr. made a quiet cut along the baseline and received the ball in the perfect position.
Taking advantage of the gap in Boston's interior rotation and help defense, he leaped up and slammed the ball into the empty basket!
"Clang!"
The basket shook violently, and the Philadelphia fans erupted in a deafening roar.
This goal set the tone for the match.
Iverson used his driving threat to draw most of Boston's defensive attention, while O'Neal Jr. abandoned his low-post battles and began frequently cutting to the baseline on the weak side and rolling to the basket on pick-and-rolls. Through this smarter style of play, O'Neal Jr. avoided direct physical battles with Ben Wallace, scoring 12 points and grabbing 7 rebounds in the first half, taking on the scoring responsibility as the second option.
But the fundamental reason Philadelphia was able to win this game was still Allen Iverson's incredible shooting touch.
Despite Gary Payton's close marking and Bowen's rotations that wore him down, Iverson made one difficult shot after another.
Facing Gary Payton's face-to-face defense, he pulled up for a three-pointer and sank it.
Despite being hampered by Garnett's long arms at the free-throw line, he still managed to make his pull-up jump shot.
Even when he loses his balance and is about to fall while breaking through the penalty area, he can still casually toss the ball into the basket and draw a foul.
Boston's defensive rotations were flawless; Rick Carlisle and Van Gundy Gundy's defensive strategies were executed correctly, and players were in position. But when a star player makes all those tough shots over the defense, any tactic becomes ineffective.
With 50 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Philadelphia led 101-99 by 2 points.
Boston made a crucial substitution, bringing on the energetic and physically imposing Ron Artest in an attempt to completely shut down Iverson in the final moments with his superior strength, size, and stamina.
The right corner is completely clear. Iverson has the ball and faces Artest, who is a full size and a half bigger than him.
All 20,000 fans in the stadium stood up simultaneously; no one dared to sit and watch this round.
In an instant, the First Union Center became eerily quiet, as if the air itself had frozen.
All that could be heard was the "thump, thump" of the basketball hitting the wooden floor.
Artest lowered his center of gravity, spread his arms, and stared at Iverson's shoulder, trying to anticipate his driving route. Relying on his strong physique, he kept pressing forward, trying to force Iverson to stop the ball.
Iverson glanced at the timer. There were 6 seconds left on the shot clock.
He suddenly started moving, taking a sharp step to the left with his left foot, his shoulder sinking in an extremely realistic manner—an incredibly fast feint in front of his body.
Artest reacted quickly, relying on his excellent lateral movement ability, he immediately slid to the right to block.
But just as Artest's center of gravity completely shifted, Iverson seemed to defy the laws of physics, forcefully pulling the ball back to the right and executing a wide-ranging crossover dribble!
This transition from extreme motion to extreme stillness exceeded the limits of human reaction. Artest tried to forcefully shift his center of gravity, and his sneakers screeched on the floor.
Then, under the watchful eyes of fans worldwide, this wing player, known for his fierce defense, suddenly collapsed to the floor, his legs giving way!
Iverson made no unnecessary movements; he didn't even glance down at Artest lying at his feet. He calmly rose and, from the right corner, unleashed a deadly fadeaway jumper.
The basketball traced a high arc in the air.
"Whoosh..."
Hollow-core netting!
103 to 99!
The game-winning shot!
After landing, Iverson's gaze was as cold as ice as he glanced at Artest was still sitting on the floor.
He slightly raised his right leg and stepped over Artest.
"Boom--!!!!!"
In the broadcast booth, legendary commentator Marv Albert, who had seen it all, didn't even bother adjusting his microphone. His voice, already hoarse, he screamed wildly on the national broadcast, "He beat him!! My God, Allen Iverson beat Boston's defense! He beat Ron Artest!! This is a true miracle! This is why he's the Answer to the regular season MVP!!"
The final whistle blew, the score was 105-100.
The Philadelphia 76ers pulled one back at home.
The score was 1-2.
Allen Iverson played 47 minutes, scoring a terrifying 48 points, along with 9 assists and 5 steals.