NBA M3 - Chapter 544: An Allen Iverson-Style Game-Winner (Patreon)

"Good! Good! Good!"

"Kobe hits the game-tying three! Tonight, Kobe is the 'Bloodthirsty Mamba,' and his clutch ability is absolutely terrifying!"

"The score is tied again."

"What a game!"

In the commentary booth, Van Gundy was practically roaring. He had called countless games in his career, but even he was shaken by a back-and-forth scoring battle this thrilling.

"That's right."

Mike Breen was just as excited.

"Kobe has continued scoring in the clutch, and he's already put up 61 points tonight."

"In the very first game of the new season, Kobe has dropped 60-plus and reminded the entire league that he's still the league's top shooting guard, one of the best scorers in basketball."

"And now..."

"Only 9.8 seconds remain. The score is tied, and the Suns have possession."

"If they score here, they win at the buzzer."

"If they don't, we're going to overtime."

"Phoenix opened with a dream start. The Lakers fought all the way back and led by 13 at halftime. Now, in the final seconds, this game might still be headed to overtime."

"The momentum has swung back and forth all night."

"What an unbelievable way to open the new season. And it's a reminder to the whole league that this year could be even more exciting!"

The two commentators could barely contain themselves.

On the court, Gentry called timeout.

"Beep, beep!"

His brow was furrowed.

He had not expected Kobe to make such an incredibly difficult three. That kind of clutch shot-making was enough to make anyone's heart race.

A moment earlier, victory had almost been in Phoenix's hands.

Kobe's three had suddenly changed everything.

Still, with the score tied and 9.8 seconds remaining, the Suns were at least in a position where they could not lose in regulation.

Either they hit the game-winner.

Or, at worst, they went to overtime.

Kobe's game-tying three was frustrating, but the Suns were still relatively relaxed and composed.

"The last possession goes to Blake," Gentry said.

"The score is tied, so the Lakers aren't going to foul. They're going to defend this possession straight up."

"So our best option is simple."

"Let Blake, our best scorer, take the final shot."

"Got it."

"We'll screen for Blake."

"Of course the boss should take the last shot. He's the Man Born for Game-Winners. He'll finish this!"

No one objected.

More than that, everyone trusted Blake completely.

They trusted The Emperor, who had already exploded for 80 points tonight.

George and Curry were especially loud in their support.

They believed in Blake's ability, of course.

But there was another reason too.

Both of them desperately wanted Blake to score again and surpass Kobe's 81-point record.

Yao Ming wanted to see the record fall too.

And as the rest of the Suns gradually realized what was at stake, every player on the bench started hoping Blake would make this final shot.

The same thing was happening in the stands.

During the timeout, countless fans were shouting at the top of their lungs.

They wanted to see Blake hit the game-winner and pass Kobe's 81 points at the same time.

At that moment, every eye in the arena was fixed on Blake.

Everyone was waiting to witness history.

Soon, the timeout ended.

The final 9.8 seconds began.

Ten seconds that might be remembered forever.

"Wow, I'm so nervous!"

"Me too!"

"Come on, Emperor!"

The fans were too excited to remain seated.

One after another, they rose to their feet, staring at the court and waiting for the Suns' final possession.

Curry stood on the sideline to inbound.

"Smack!"

Blake caught the ball easily near center court, right around the logo.

The Lakers had no intention of fouling.

They wanted to defend the possession properly.

"Thump, thump, thump!"

Blake dribbled slowly in front of his body, bleeding a few seconds off the clock.

"Step!"

Kobe moved up to guard him.

Artest and Paul hovered on the wings, ready to help or trap at any moment.

But Phoenix was not going to make that easy for them.

Curry and Klay, the Suns' two sharpshooters, spread all the way to the corners, pulling Artest and Paul away.

That left Blake and Kobe alone.

The league's top center against the league's top shooting guard.

Two players who might represent the changing of an era, facing each other one-on-one in the most important moment of the game.

9.8 seconds.

8.4.

7.3.

6.5.

"Whoosh!"

Blake began moving with the ball in his left hand, lowering his center of gravity as he reached the top of the key.

Facing Kobe, he leaned to his left.

Then he exploded left.

"Whoosh!"

A drive to the left.

The move was so convincing that Kobe immediately shifted with him and cut off the lane.

But at that instant...

"Whoosh!"

Blake snapped the ball across his body with a huge crossover, pulling it into his right hand and shifting Kobe's balance.

Then, in the very next beat, he brought the ball back between his legs.

Back to his left hand.

And immediately after that, he hit Kobe with another wide crossover in front of his body.

Another perfectly convincing change of direction.

Kobe's balance shifted again.

"Whoosh!"

"Step!"

The instant Blake gathered the ball in his right hand, he took one huge step to the right, stopped sharply on the right side of the free-throw line, and rose.

"Whoosh!"

Mid-range jumper.

"Step!"

Kobe forced his weight back the other way and lunged across to contest, but he was too late.

The ball left Blake's hand far above Kobe's reach.

Under the wide-eyed stare of countless fans, it flew toward the basket like it had been guided there.

"Swish!"

Nothing but net.

Good.

A perfect swish.

And at the exact moment the clock expired, Blake buried the mid-range jumper.

A buzzer-beating game-winner.

Over Kobe.

Over the Los Angeles Lakers.

Buzz!

The arena went silent for a split second.

Then...

"BOOM!"

The roar that followed felt like an earthquake.

It exploded through US Airways Center and spilled far beyond the arena, as if the entire city of Phoenix were echoing with the noise.

"Hahahaha!"

Van Gundy burst out laughing.

"That's Allen Iverson's signature double crossover. The kind of move that can leave a defender completely lost!"

"And Blake just used it to hit a game-winning mid-range jumper over the 'Man Close to God.'"

"What a shot!"

"Hehehe!"

Mike Breen laughed just as excitedly.

"Exactly. That game-winning pull-up was unbelievably smooth."

"When The Emperor goes into this kind of rampage..."

"Not even the 'Bloodthirsty Mamba,' not even the 'Man Close to God,' can beat him!"

On the court, Curry was practically bouncing in place.

"Blake did it! Blake hit another game-winner! He's incredible!"

"Boss, you're insane!"

George and Klay were the first to rush over.

They wrapped Blake up and shouted in celebration.

Yao Ming pumped his fist too, flashing a huge smile that had been missing from his face for a long time.

If he had been a little faster, he would have sprinted over and joined the celebration himself.