Turning around, Iverson advanced past half court. He Xi Meng was on high alert, expecting Iverson to drive for a solo shot. But to his surprise, Iverson gave a slight smile and directly passed the ball to Eddie Jones, who had run out to receive it. Eddie Jones moved sideways with the ball and then passed it to Carter, who was also running out for the ball!
Carter faced Garnett, putting on a show of preparing to break through, forcing Garnett to unconsciously take half a step back. As a result, Carter, near the three-point line, pulled up for a jump shot, intending to showcase his mid-range jumper. However, Garnett's long arms were still quite threatening, and Carter's pull-up jumper bounced off the rim...
Mourning tried to go for the offensive rebound, but was impeded by Duncan. O'Neal smoothly secured the defensive rebound, and the East team retreated to defend.
O'Neal passed the ball to He Xi Meng on the right wing. He Xi Meng advanced past half court and passed it to Kobe outside the arc. Kobe, without holding the ball, made a bounce pass to Garnett in the low post on the left. Garnett took a step, jostled against Carter, and seemed unable to budge him. But it didn't matter, Garnett immediately turned and attempted a fadeaway jumper... 138 Reading Network.
The move was fluid, but unfortunately, the basketball also bounced off the rim. In the initial period of the game, aside from He Xi Meng's three-pointer when he was unguarded, the other big stars seemed to have cold hands!
Garnett's fadeaway jumper missed. The West team, with their advantage in the paint, once again saw O'Neal grab the offensive rebound!
After grabbing the rebound, O'Neal went up for a second jump, attempting to catch Mourning off guard. As expected, O'Neal's big head was quite sharp, and his choice of shot was impeccable. The only thing beyond his control was that his signature straight-arm scoop shot from under the basket also bounced off the rim...
Mourning, under the basket, breathed a sigh of relief. He turned and set his position, thinking that this rebound should at least be his to secure.
But to Mourning's further frustration, Duncan emerged from nowhere and, before Mourning could grab the ball, lightly tipped it towards the basket...
After a couple of bounces on the rim, the ball, despite Mourning's grimacing plea, slowly rolled into the basket.
Well, the West All-Stars scored another two points, taking a 5-0 lead in the opening.
Unbearable! Seeing the state of the West All-Stars, Iverson's desire to score couldn't be suppressed.
He received the ball and advanced, Iverson wanting to exploit the weakness of the West's slow big men by speeding up and catching them off guard.
But He Xi Meng had already anticipated Iverson's strong counter-attack. Whether it was the previous possession or this one, it was impossible to make Iverson play passively!
Therefore, on this play, facing Iverson's sudden acceleration, the well-prepared He Xi Meng didn't bite on the fake. He retreated while interfering, severely disrupting Iverson's pace. Seeing that Duncan was already back in position, Iverson knew his chance to drive to the basket was gone. He was about to stop for a jump shot and take on He Xi Meng one-on-one, when he suddenly caught sight of Carter moving across the baseline...
Iverson immediately understood. He threw a high lob pass in motion, over Duncan, who hadn't reacted yet, directly to Carter behind him!
Carter leaped high, completed the alley-oop, and then finished with a reverse one-handed dunk! The entire action was graceful and effortless, as natural as drinking water or eating a meal... Immediately, the crowd erupted in applause!
After the dunk, Carter didn't forget to gesture towards Iverson, thanking him for the exquisite assist!
Iverson smiled and reciprocated the gesture, a harmonious scene.
Carter's powerful dunk immediately ignited Kobe's competitive spirit. Turning around, Kobe took the ball from He Xi Meng and aggressively drove at Eddie Jones, wanting to respond with a one-handed dunk for the East team! However, Carter, who had retreated to defend, showed no mercy to Kobe and swatted away Kobe's attempted dunk!
Grant Hill received the ball and advanced past half court. Seeing Carter following in the middle, Hill immediately made a bounce pass, intending to create an alley-oop opportunity for Carter!
As a result, Kobe, who had been chasing Carter all the way, retaliated. As Carter stretched his arms, preparing to complete an alley-oop dunk, Kobe flew in from behind Carter, swatted the ball away preemptively, successfully leaving Carter with a missed alley-oop!
He Xi Meng picked up the stolen ball by Kobe and launched a fast break. With Kobe to his left and himself to his right, they formed a two-on-one situation against Mourning!
Inspired by Hill's pass in the previous possession, He Xi Meng also wanted to send a bounce pass to Kobe on the right. However, He Xi Meng underestimated Mourning's jumping ability!
Mourning, not yet diagnosed with kidney disease, was in his prime physical condition. He had won the league's Defensive Player of the Year award last season, and this season, barring any surprises, that honor would likely be his again...
On this play, as He Xi Meng attempted the bounce pass, he had avoided Mourning as much as possible. But Mourning, with his exceptional defensive ability: precise anticipation + outstanding jumping, intercepted Kobe's alley-oop dunk halfway!
Just as Kobe had blocked Carter moments ago, Mourning now blocked Kobe! It was truly an eye for an eye, a cycle of retaliation...
The Orlando crowd at the scene also did not anticipate this turn of events.
Generally, in the All-Star Game, everyone plays nice, with relaxed defense and strong offense... like this, where one player blocks another, and then the other blocks back, is very rare.
However, for the fans, seeing these league superstars blocking each other was a refreshing spectacle. Exclamations of surprise echoed through the arena.
What was even more critical was that this possession was not over yet.
After stealing from Kobe, Mourning immediately passed the ball to Eddie Jones in the midfield. Facing Garnett's retreat, Eddie Jones also wanted to assist Carter with an alley-oop! However, Carter didn't quite grasp Eddie Jones's intention. This was not entirely Carter's fault, as Eddie Jones drove a bit too deep, and Carter thought Eddie Jones was going to challenge Garnett himself... In the last moment, Eddie Jones made a split pass, catching Carter off guard. Carter managed to retrieve the ball from the edge of the out-of-bounds line.
Iverson, who had chased into the paint, grabbed Carter's return pass. Facing Garnett, Iverson wanted to complete a fadeaway jumper. However, Garnett didn't contest the shot. Duncan, who had retreated, perfectly disrupted Iverson's rhythm and swatted away Iverson's fadeaway jumper solidly...
Well, this single possession, with multiple steals and blocks, had turned this All-Star Game into a defensive battle...
He Xi Meng, playing on the perimeter, watched as the superstars gradually heated up. He began to worry about how to complete the task assigned by Keila. Given the defensive intensity, it seemed difficult for He Xi Meng to find an easy dunking opportunity, let alone dunk like Carter...