Jim Bass Ambition

Chapter 262 Glory Belongs to Zijin
Karl Malone has basically never worn any protective gear, and his muscles cast in copper and iron are the best armor.

"We don't need elbow pads or knee pads or anything. Soldiers who go to war need those. Their job is much more dangerous than ours. We just play ball. There are no knives in the arena, and no enemies will come out to you. One shot, play like a man, and if anyone gets hurt, go to the doctor and get back on the court and play."

Except for a pair of more decorative wristbands, Malone did not wear any protective gear.

Usually, Malone's wristbands follow the team's color scheme, but today, his wristbands were replaced with special black ones, embroidered with his mother's name - Shelley Jackson Malone.

As the youngest child in the family, Ma Long watched his mother work seven or eight odd jobs day after day to earn money to supplement the family and raise their nine children.

"We only have two or three hours of concentration on the court, but my mother, to maintain this concentration for a whole day, a whole month, for many years, I have no excuse not to play hard, it is the only thing I can do. thing."

Finally, from the snow-capped mountains of Salt Lake City to the warm and sunny California, Malone is ready for a new home, ready for his mother to come to Los Angeles to enjoy the happiness, but unfortunately something happened. A few days ago, she died of a sudden heart attack, and she failed to see her youngest son launch a final challenge for the championship.

Before the game, Malone booked an auditorium, and his wife and daughters, as well as his old partner John Stockton, came to watch the game.

Garnett also came to the stadium on crutches and wearing protective boots on his feet. Due to David Stern's regulations, players on the injured list must wear formal clothes to attend, and Garnett's dress was a little funny.

Jim provided T-shirts and inflatable sticks of uniform color for all home spectators, and the Lakers' home court became a golden ocean.

Dr. Buss watched all this from the top box. If the Lakers can win today, it will be the 10th championship of the Buss family. After the expansion of the NBA, no team has accomplished such a feat. Five consecutive championships, genuine super dynasty.

Jerry West did not return to this familiar place. The time in Tennessee was earlier than in Los Angeles, but Jerry West, who was used to going to bed early, was still sitting in front of the TV, drinking red wine.

Larry Bird followed the team to the scene. Apart from Boston and Indiana, I am afraid that Los Angeles is the third city he is familiar with. Although it is not the Great Western Forum back then, the familiar purple and gold color scheme still shows him boundless love. hostility.

Magic and Bird exchanged a few words. When they played, they had the highest goal of beating each other, and it is still the same now.

The referee is Dick Bavita, the oldest player in the league today. This is the 14th consecutive year he has whistled for the finals.

David Stern has his hair scrupulously done, the O'Brien Gold Cup in front of him.

Reggie Miller remembered that 4 years ago, he was also on this field with the same score. His first trip to the finals fell into the sand, and the Lakers' road to consecutive championships officially started. Facing this opponent three times, he doesn't want to completely become the background board of history like Karl Malone on the opposite side.

O'Neal jumped to the ball, and Miller pulled himself together, moved, caught the ball, and shot, all in one go, and hit a 3-pointer.

Billups holds the ball in a high position, Malone makes an off-ball screen for Kobe, and Panther cuts to the basket from the elbow.

O'Neal moved laterally to make up for the first time. Billups did not pass the ball rashly, but distributed the ball to Artest who was brought up from the other side.

Kobe, who cut down in the air, came out again, borrowed Malone's solid screen again, and came to the free throw line.

The Pacers' defense was all concentrated on Kobe, and Malone was missed.

Kobe sent a through ball through the soul, Malone received the ball, and there was no one around.

The postman raised his right hand high, touched the back of his head with his left hand, and dunked with one hand to score.

O'Neill and Miller are still the two Optimus Primes of the Pacers, one inside and one outside to continue the life of the Pacers, Al Harrington is in a daze, Gary Payton is like a walking dead, and the key Mr. Robert Hawley has become Became Mr. Unreliable.

In the case of O'Neal and Miller scored 19 points together, the Pacers barely bit the score in the first quarter.

The Lakers' offense is like a regular and efficient death map. The most sophisticated tactics are executed by the best players, and they will have the most terrifying lethality.

In the second quarter, the Lakers routinely replaced the bench trio led by Wade, and continued to attack the old Pacers' defense with youthful vigor and enthusiasm.

Without Bruce Bowen, the Pacers' defense was leaking on all sides, and Carlisle did everything a coach could do to prevent the game from slipping to the other end of the scale.

The point difference gradually became uncontrollable, Miller's three-pointers began to hit the iron, and O'Neal sweated profusely at the basket, scoring two points one by one, but the Lakers were in full swing, using higher efficiency and simpler methods to continuously put the ball into the basket basket.

The atmosphere in the Staples Arena is getting hotter and hotter, but the mood of the Pacers players is getting colder and colder.

39:57.

For the Lakers, it was a perfect first half. For the Pacers, it meant despair.

In last year's tie-break, the Pacers were bloodbathed here, and Miller didn't want the same story to happen again.

But things often don't go their way.

After the third quarter, Reggie Miller felt that he had no need to stay on the court.

89 to 54, the dispirited Pacers have completely collapsed. Miller and O'Neal scored 46 points, but it didn't help.

With 13 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists, Karl Malone was replaced by Nene and left the field. Before leaving the field, he raised his arms high to welcome the applause of the audience.

"Congratulations, Carl," Jim murmured as Malone passed the front row, high-fiving his teammates and the coaching staff in turn.

The camera is shown to Stockton in the auditorium. He is not wearing the Lakers color matching clothes, which is very conspicuous in the crowd.

Looking at his old partner smiling and applauding on the big screen, Ma Long took a towel and buried his face in it.

At this time, he felt the sharp pain from his ankle, but everything was not important anymore.

In the final 12-minute countdown, the Lakers sent a combination of Wade, Raja Bell, Korver, Haslem and Nene.

The main players are all sitting off the court - technically standing - cheering on the young people.

The Pacers players have long been unwilling to fight. They just hope that all this will end quickly. These 12 minutes have been played very smoothly, with no fouls or timeouts.

The triumphant song sounded in the arena, and the time was coming to an end every minute and every second.

112 to 78, the Lakers won the sixth game with a big victory, defeated the Pacers with a total score of 4 to 2, and won the NBA championship in the 2003-04 season.

The colored ribbons that had been prepared long ago fell from the sky, drowning everyone in the stadium.

(End of this chapter)