CHAPTER 1261: CHAPTER 510: TONIGHT IS CHAMPIONSHIP NIGHT! (PART 3)

Zhang Yang scored 15 points in a single quarter, Okafor scored 12 in one quarter as well, and together they led the Bobcats to a 45-33 single-quarter score, producing their most terrifying and dominant quarter of the playoffs this year, securing the victory!

In the final quarter, facing a single quarter net loss of 12 points, a total deficit of 14 points, and the overexertion of the 9-man main rotation... etc., disadvantages, the Lakers didn’t give up, more accurately, Kobe didn’t give up. He gave it his all, throwing 9 times in the first quarter, 7 times in the second quarter, 10 times in the third quarter, and wildly throwing 13 times in the final quarter!

But the efficiency was far less than the previous three quarters where he made 26 shots with 13 made, scoring 35, in the final quarter, he only made 4 of 13 shots, scoring only 11.

On Zhang Yang’s side, he also attacked with full force in the final quarter, shooting when necessary and double-teaming when needed, making 3 out of 7 shots, with no 3-pointers out of 1 attempt, plus 2 free throws out of 2, scoring 8 points. Although he scored a little less than Kobe, his teammates scored 14 points, more than the 8 points scored by Kobe’s teammates!

Kobe’s unyielding struggle in the final quarter was nothing but tragic...

The game ended amidst the cheers and shouts of six to seven thousand away fans in the front court, with more than ten thousand fans either bewildered and helpless, or crying in sorrow, or unwilling and irritable...

Kobe made 17 of 39 shots, including 4 of 11 three-pointers, plus 8 of 10 free throws. Although he scored a game-high 46 points, he also threw 22 bricks, ranking third historically in single-game bricks in the Finals.

First, is that familiar name again, Jordan, with 24 bricks; second place, no surprise, Iverson, with 23 bricks.

Tonight, Kobe and the man he pursued, his lifelong enemy, stood shoulder to shoulder!

Zhang Yang made 14 of 29 shots, including 5 of 11 three-pointers, plus 8 of 9 free throws, earning 41 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals!

With a score of 123 to 106, the Bobcats defeated the Lakers on the road by 17 points, winning the championship with a 4-1 series score!

...

After the final buzzer sounded, Kobe rushed into the player tunnel as if escaping, Garnett covered his head with a towel as he walked into the player tunnel, Kidd stared across for a while, memorizing every face on the opposite side before turning and heading into the player tunnel... The Three Giants ignored the trailing reporters, leaving the court in desolation, the Lakers’ 08-09 season, has come to an end.

The onsite fans also quickly exited, within a few short minutes, about half of the seats were emptied, but not all the Lakers fans left. Some stayed to ’hold the fort at home’, opposing Zhang Yang’s fans.

On the other side, the Bobcats’ 08-09 season reached its climax!

Juwan Howard, who replaced Mike Miller on the activation list tonight and was substituted in the last minute, cried while hugging Hill on the court.

Initially excited and thrilled, but at the moment the whistle blew, the emotions surged uncontrollably.

Both were from the ’94 class, Hill the second pick, Juwan Howard the fifth. Hill was the prodigy, from the prestigious Duke, and was the fan vote leader in his rookie year, joining the Dream Team and winning the Olympic gold in his sophomore year; Juwan Howard was equally one of the brightest young stars of that era in his rookie period, also from a prestigious school and part of the famed Michigan Fab Five, made the All-Star in his second year, and in the summer of ’96 secured the NBA’s first hundred million dollar contract, surpassing his draft mates in salary, the first and second picks, Big Dog and Kidd.

But once the 20th century ended, their era ceased immediately.

Hill got injured for six consecutive years, went to Miami in early ’06 for Thomas Carter’s treatment, adjusted his playing style as recommended, and his injuries improved in the ’06-07 season, but he had fallen to being used as a bargaining chip for a second-round pick during his contract year, and ultimately was still idle in ’07 summer as the free-agent big fish acquisition failed...

Juwan Howard, after Jordan became the Wizards’ executive president in ’01, was bundled out by the God of Basketball, embarking on a nomadic career. In the past 8 seasons, he either got traded or failed to secure a renewal contract, playing for 6 different teams...

Now, he has finally touched the championship ring!

Nearly ten thousand fans stayed on the scene to watch the award ceremony post-game, whether supporting Zhang Yang or the Lakers, they all applauded when they saw the scene of the two hugging and shedding tears.

They were not mere freeloading ornaments.

Hill’s role in the Finals was evident to all, apart from Zhang Yang, he was the best at defending Kobe, even better than Afflalo. Although neither could be completely stopped, at least Kobe’s shooting percentage was limited to 46% over 5 games, significantly lower than the 48.9% during the Western Conference playoffs.

His offensive performance was excellent as well, orchestrating long twos, supplementary control, coordinating, cutting in to attack the basket, with no shortcomings, especially for long twos shooting 44%, outperforming Garnett’s long twos in this Finals.

Despite Juwan Howard only playing during the last phase for over 50 seconds in the entire playoffs, whenever the Bobcats coach or players mentioned his name, they praised his training performance, bringing the team invaluable mid-range positioning experience, significantly aiding the development of Millsap and Ibaka, and contributing during the regular season’s injury wave when he played, not that he was unwilling to contribute more, he had already tried his best.

Brad Miller also wanted to join the ’veteran weep group’, but as a tough guy from the Rust Belt, he was too embarrassed to cry in front of so many people.

Among the three veterans, the Big White Bear actually sacrificed the most; he was stronger but had to cede time to Millsap, who needed playtime for development during the regular season. To maximize the team’s championship hopes, he also had to exhaust his teachings in facilitation, shooting, and positioning to Millsap... He was well aware the team was ’bullying the honest man’, but there was no choice, Millsap was the ’natural heir’, while he was merely a veteran with "utilization value".