Time ticked by, and the score on the scoreboard remained very close.
The score went from 10-10 to 17-17.
Apart from heavy breathing, the sound of shoes rubbing against the floor, and the dull thuds of bodies colliding, there was not a single other sound in the gym. Everyone's training vests were soaked with sweat.
With fifty seconds left on the clock, Pierce, using Big Ben's screen at the top of the arc, sank a difficult mid-range jump shot over Prince's block attempt.
21-20! The starting lineup in green vests has taken a one-point lead.
"Stop that play! Protect the rebound!" Garnett yelled, clapping his hands as he retreated on defense. He absolutely couldn't accept carrying the second team's shoe bags at the airport later!
The white team's substitutes are on offense with 35 seconds remaining.
Artest dribbled the ball across half-court and passed it to Rasheed Wallace at the top of the key. Garnett immediately closed in, spreading his long arms to block the passing lane. On the other side, Ben Wallace also closely guarded Okur on the right side of the three-point line, not giving Okur a chance to receive the ball and shoot a three-pointer.
At this moment, Gerald did not run to the outside; instead, he lurked near the left baseline, about two meters from the basket, in the short corner, where he was guarding Pierce.
With eight seconds left on the shot clock, Artest drove hard past Raja Bell on the left, stepped inside the free-throw line, and, facing Garnett who was coming over to help defend from the top of the key, jumped up and launched a floater.
"Bang!"
The basketball went wide due to Garnett's interference, bounced off the back of the rim, and landed just above the right side of the rim.
In that instant, the positioning on the court determined who got the rebound.
The Celtics' starting two big men were in two positions: Ben Wallace was still being held back near the right three-point line by Okur, Garnett had just jumped from the free-throw line to block Artest's floater and hadn't even fully landed yet. The only players responsible for positioning and rebounding under the basket were Wade and small forward Pierce!
Gerald, who was originally lurking in the left corner, had already started his attack the same second that Artest made his shot.
Pierce turned around, trying to block Gerald with his back, but Gerald had already taken two steps and pushed off heavily with both feet at the edge of the paint, leaping off Pierce's side!
He caught the basketball in mid-air with his right hand as it bounced off the rim, and using the momentum of the fall, he slammed the ball back into the basket with one hand!
22-21! The white team's substitutes have taken the lead by one point, with only 14.2 seconds left on the clock!
"Great shot!" Tyson Chandler Chandler and Tyronn Lue jumped up from their chairs, waving towels.
Because there was no timeout rule, Garnett grabbed the ball the instant it crossed the Nets, stepped out of bounds with one foot, and passed it to Wade.
With twelve seconds left, the Green Team makes their final attack.
Wade received the ball and sprinted across the midcourt line. As soon as he stepped into the frontcourt, Prince and Artest of the White Team simultaneously moved forward and double-teamed Wade from two steps outside the three-point line!
Unable to break through the double team, Wade could only jump and pass the ball to Chris Paul Pierce on the right wing before he was surrounded.
The timer has five seconds left.
Pierce received the ball at a 45-degree angle on the right side, Gerald, who had just landed after a putback dunk, had already retreated to defend in front of him.
Gerald lowered his center of gravity and spread his arms. This time he remembered the lesson and, despite Pierce's two consecutive fake shots, his feet remained firmly on the floor, and he did not jump easily.
With two and a half seconds left, Pierce couldn't create any space, so he had to force a step to the right, gather the ball 18 feet from the basket, and jump backward to shoot!
The instant Pierce's feet left the ground, Gerald, who had been keeping his balance low, leaped up with all his might, his right hand blocking Pierce's path. At the same time, Prince, who had just finished double-teaming Wade, also spun in from the side.
With the two interfering, Pierce was forced to increase the arc of his shot.
"Bang!"
The basketball bounced off the front edge of the rim and landed outside the right sideline.
With one and a half seconds left on the clock, Wade was rushing towards the sideline, preparing to retrieve the ball for his final shot.
Gerald, having just landed, aimed at the direction the basketball bounced out, and with a burst of power from his legs, he lunged towards the sideline. In mid-air, as his body slammed out of bounds, he slapped the ball towards midcourt with his right hand.
Bang! Crash!
Gerald slammed onto the wooden floor outside the sideline, sliding with the momentum into the substitutes' bench area, knocking over three metal folding chairs.
"Bee!"
The final buzzer sounded, and the red light came on.
22 to 21!
The substitutes, wearing white vests, won by one point against the starting lineup in this ten-minute scrimmage without referees!
We won!
Artest was the first to rush to the sidelines, grabbing Gerald from the pile of metal chairs and patting him hard on the shoulder.
Rasheed Wallace stood with his hands on his hips at center court, laughing loudly at Garnett and Pierce: "Two sets of seventeen shuttle runs! A turkey dinner worth over twenty thousand dollars! Kevin, Chris Paul, when you go to the airport later, remember to hold onto my black sneaker bag carefully; it contains my two most expensive pairs of sneakers. If you damage them, you'll have to pay for them!"
Tyronn Lue, Okur, and Prince huddled together for a high-five, and the entire bench erupted in laughter.
Pierce stood on the right flank, hands on his knees, catching his breath.
He looked up and glanced at Gerald Wallace, who was surrounded by his teammates on the sidelines, his elbow still bearing scrapes and bloodstains. That last putback dunk, his defense that didn't fall for fakes, and his diving save into the pile of chairs were truly impeccable.
Pierce walked over.
The white team players stopped laughing and joking and looked at Pierce.
Pierce walked up to Gerald, pulled the towel off his neck and threw it into Gerald's arms, saying sternly, "Take care of your scrapes. If you don't have this kind of drive when defending Richard Hamilton tomorrow night, you'll be in trouble when we get back to Boston."
Gerald took the towel, paused for a moment, then grinned. "Don't worry, Chris Paul."
On the other side, Garnett stared at the scoreboard on the wall for two seconds, then turned around, walked silently to the sideline, bent down, and stepped onto the white line to get into his starting position.
Ben Wallace, Wade, Raja Bell, and Pierce exchanged glances, shook their heads, and smiled wryly as they lined up next to Garnett.
"A bet's a bet," Garnett glanced at Rasheed, who was still gloating beside him, and took a deep breath. "Two teams of seventeen runs. I'll carry these guys again tomorrow!"
The five starting players simultaneously took off, sprinting sideways in unison across the empty field.
On the sidelines, Rick Carlisle looked down and wrote Gerald Wallace's name into the rotation roster for tomorrow's game against the Pistons on the tactical board.