Whether He Xi Meng could dunk, the entire league had basically reached a consensus: yes, but not expertly!
If he were expert, he wouldn't have missed an open dunk on the All-Star stage back then, nor would he have treated dunks like the plague in regular season games, always opting for a layup if possible. Because of this, every rare dunk He Xi Meng managed, especially a beautiful, acrobatic reverse dunk in live action, became exceptionally notable.
All the fans were curious why He Xi Meng was acting so uncharacteristically, showing off his less-than-stellar dunking skills on the Western Conference Finals stage. In fact, He Xi Meng had his own unspoken difficulties. This particular shot wouldn't have been a dunk if not for Shaq breathing down his neck behind him. He Xi Meng wouldn't have chosen to score with a dunk.
This was because He Xi Meng understood Shaq's dominance in the paint too well. If He Xi Meng had gone for a straightforward layup, he would have been blocked by the pursuing Shaq. Even a layup with an acrobatic fadeaway might have been interfered with by Shaq's long arms. Therefore, the most secure method was to prevent Shaq from blocking by directly slamming the ball into the basket…
In a flash of lightning, this was what He Xi Meng thought. All his attention was focused on avoiding Shaq's block, and he hadn't considered his own notorious dunking ability…
It wasn't until he heard the roar of the crowd that He Xi Meng realized, "Did that reverse dunk just expose my true dunking prowess?"
While He Xi Meng was in a daze, Duncan sneaked up from behind, ruffled his hair, and gave him a thumbs-up, saying, "Beautiful dunk! Keep dunking like this from now on, be more confident…"
"Confident my foot… is this even about confidence…" Looking at Duncan's retreating back, He Xi Meng was so angry he wanted to flip him off.
He Xi Meng's dunk to open the scoring in this pivotal Game 5 was a surprise to all the fans paying attention to him.
Equally surprised was Kobe, opposite He Xi Meng!
He Xi Meng's dunk wasn't directed at anyone, but Kobe felt that He Xi Meng's action was somehow a response to his own previous hesitation to dunk on Duncan.
Well, Kobe was simply overthinking it! To put it bluntly, Kobe just wanted an excuse to add more motivation to his solo attacks on the Spurs' basket.
So, during the Lakers' next offensive possession, Kobe essentially mimicked the pick-and-roll cooperation He Xi Meng had just executed with David Robinson. He and Shaq executed a high-low passing and cutting play.
Kobe cut into the paint, and before Duncan and David Robinson could close in, he dunked the ball with one hand into the Spurs' basket.
"Wow! Kobe is retaliating! This is amazing, the two little gods are about to go at it…" The fans were naturally very happy to see such a back-and-forth exchange and immediately gave Kobe enthusiastic applause to encourage him.
After making the dunk, Kobe arrogantly lifted his chin as he landed, casting a dismissive glance at He Xi Meng, as if to say, "If you've got the guts, hit one back?"
"Hit one back? Hit what back!" He Xi Meng returned Kobe's gaze with a look that said, "Go cool off somewhere."
"Should a three-point king like myself compete with a dunking king like you in dunking? That's just asking for trouble! If you've got the guts, come challenge me in three-pointers?"
Thinking of the three-point shot, He Xi Meng held the ball about a step inside the logo, his eyes unconsciously drifting towards the basket. His defender, Harper, immediately felt a sense of tension.
Harper was familiar with that look! Back when He Xi Meng was a rookie in a Lakers jersey and competing against the championship Bulls, it was with that same look that he hit more than one or two ultra-long three-pointers, making even Michael Jordan wonder who this yellow-skinned kid in the number 4 jersey was.
Of course, in the end, led by Jordan, the Bulls taught the still very young Lakers a lesson, making the rookie He Xi Meng and Kobe feel the harshness of the league.
But it had to be admitted that He Xi Meng's unreasonable long-range three-pointers caught the Bulls off guard. At that time, very few players dared to take consecutive shots from that range! Especially on the NBA Finals stage, it was unheard of.
At the time, Jordan had predicted after the game, "This kid is destined for great things! Just you wait and see…"
As expected, in the first season after Jordan's retirement, He Xi Meng helped the Lakers win the championship trophy.
Now, He Xi Meng had jumped ship to the Spurs, representing them in their challenge against the Lakers for the championship. To be honest, Harper was scouted by the Lakers and recruited from the Bulls because of He Xi Meng. If He Xi Meng had re-signed with the Lakers last season, Harper's move to the Lakers would likely not have happened.
Unless Harper was willing to be He Xi Meng's backup? And the Lakers already had Fisher and Tyronn Lue as reserve point guards. Would Harper be willing to compete for playing time with these two young players?
Therefore, when Harper saw He Xi Meng's signature look, he instinctively closed in half a step, reducing the space and distance between them, ensuring that if He Xi Meng decided to take a sudden shot from that position, he would at least have a chance to jump and contest it.
He Xi Meng sensed Harper's change and was quite surprised. He hadn't expected Harper to anticipate his thoughts!
He Xi Meng had merely entertained the thought of attempting a shot from that extreme range, and in the next second, Harper was already adjusting his defense. It was uncanny! This veteran had a truly sharp defensive instinct. He Xi Meng couldn't help but give Harper a big thumbs-up in his mind.
With his potential intention seen through by the veteran, He Xi Meng immediately abandoned the idea and instead passed the ball to Elliott for handling.
Before his kidney transplant, Elliott was a tough player on the Spurs' wing, capable of both offense and defense. However, after the transplant, Popovich deliberately reduced Elliott's offensive responsibilities, making him primarily responsible for wing defense.
So, on this play, if it were last season, Elliott would have driven with the ball.
But this season, Elliott calmly passed to Duncan, who had run out to receive the ball.
Duncan had moved near the free-throw line again to cause trouble, and Horry, who was trailing him, had a huge headache.