In the previous possession, Diop was entangled with Haslem, vying for the rebound. Seeing Wade flying in, Diop chose to stand still, as if it had nothing to do with him.
When Wade, who had broken through, lifted the ball to go for a layup, Diop took two quick steps and leaped lightly, soaring high. He flew from Wade's blind spot from behind and pinned Wade's sure-fire layup against the backboard…
"Shit! Rebound!"
Although Wade didn't understand why he was blocked, he immediately shouted a warning, calling for his teammates to fight for the rebound.
Haslem was in the best position. If nothing unexpected happened, he would snatch this offensive rebound.
But Diop, having just blocked Wade, didn't give up. He twisted and jumped again, lightly tipping the ball that Haslem was about to get, flicking it out beyond the three-point line.
Antoine Walker rushed over, wanting to grab the rebound.
He Xi Meng was not slow either. He sprinted over from the other side and, before Antoine Walker could catch the ball, slammed it onto the floor… and went past him!
He Xi Meng, seizing the moment, drove past Antoine Walker and initiated a fast break!
Antoine Walker was no match for He Xi Meng's break and could only trail behind him, eating dust.
He Xi Meng raced across the entire court alone. He glanced back, confirmed that even Wade, the only one who could possibly overtake him, wasn't behind him, and then calmly braked, leaped high, and scored two points with a simple, elegant two-handed dunk.
This dunk was neither spectacular nor mediocre.
It continued He Xi Meng's consistent "health-preserving style," carrying the principle of "as easy as possible" to the extreme.
After the stalemate in the first quarter, the Celtics began to slowly widen the point difference from the second quarter onwards.
Before the end of the half, He Xi Meng, from the half-court logo circle, hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer, helping the home team, the Celtics, expand their lead to 9 points, nearing double digits.
When masters clash, every move is deadly.
This 9-point difference was a danger signal for the Heat.
Riley had no choice but to enter the decisive phase early in the third quarter, increasing the pace of the Heat's offense and defense.
The Heat players seemed energized, especially Wade and the rookie Haslem. They constantly moved, provided help defense, and intercepted passes, causing considerable trouble for the Celtics in a short period.
The veteran He Xi Meng and Carter were each stripped by Wade once, and Yao Ming was stolen from by Haslem.
With this wave of steals, the Heat continuously executed fast break after fast break, successfully narrowing the deficit from 9 points at halftime to just 1 point!
Coach Rivers was forced to call a timeout to disrupt the Heat's momentum.
This situation left the Boston fans in the stands bewildered: could a sure thing slip away?
On the sidelines, He Xi Meng remained calm. He first took responsibility for the team's disarray during this period.
"My fault. I was a bit too dismissive of the Heat's double-teams and help defense during this stretch. From now on, I might reduce ball circulation to avoid giving them more chances to steal, and I will increase my personal offensive attempts… I hope everyone can help me secure the rebounds!"
Carter's shooting touch was off today, with a low field goal percentage.
He Xi Meng had originally planned to exploit the strong interior presence of Yao Ming to crush the Heat.
However, judging from the Heat's current counterattack, they still had energy reserves. It seemed unlikely that Yao Ming alone could overcome the Heat.
There was no choice. Since one Yao Ming wasn't enough, and Carter showed no signs of a resurgence, he himself, as the point guard, would have to carry the offensive load!
After the timeout, He Xi Meng first used consecutive changes of direction outside the three-point line, appearing to prepare for a direct assault on Williams. In reality, he suddenly executed a step-back, and at a step beyond the three-point line, he forced a shot over Williams!
The ball precisely hit the rim, without any hesitation!
"Here it comes!" the Boston fans in the arena instantly perked up.
"I knew Simon should take over! Come on, let's all bet on how many three-pointers He Xi Meng will hit in this run?"
Some bet on four, some on five. The most confident fans bet on six! In any case, no one predicted fewer than three.
The Boston fans understood He Xi Meng. They knew he could be relied upon in crucial moments, which is why they tolerated his loafing during regular play.
As expected, the first step-back three-pointer was just the beginning of He Xi Meng's outburst.
The Heat responded with a two-point score. He Xi Meng dribbled the ball upcourt, facing a double-team from Williams and Antoine Walker. He Xi Meng used Ariza for a mid-range hand-off.
Ariza understood He Xi Meng's intention. He turned and handed the ball back to He Xi Meng, who was cutting back, while also setting a screen to momentarily impede Williams, who was closely pursuing He Xi Meng!
He Xi Meng, near the wing sideline, caught the ball, turned, and shot an extended three-pointer. It was another make.
The Heat began to get nervous!
The Celtics' offensive rhythm had clearly shifted. Before this, He Xi Meng's primary role was playmaking, steadily attacking in half-court sets, focusing on interior play.
But after that timeout, He Xi Meng was suddenly raining down threes. The interval between these two made shots was less than thirty seconds. This showed the high efficiency of He Xi Meng's scoring!
Riley had not yet called a timeout; he wanted to observe a bit longer. However, Wade on the court was becoming impatient. He actively sought a screen from Williams to switch matchups and go against He Xi Meng.
Wade wanted to make He Xi Meng expend more energy on defense, thereby reducing his offensive efficiency.
Therefore, Wade played this possession with extreme patience, repeatedly probing, feigning drives and then pulling back, constantly trying to provoke He Xi Meng. Instead, He Xi Meng remained unfazed, not falling for Wade's pump fakes, nor getting drawn into Wade's rhythm. He defended based on his own anticipation, playing back and forth, not attempting to steal from Wade, but merely delaying Wade's driving speed to give Yao Ming and Diop, who were providing help defense behind him, some time.
In this manner, Wade's hard-fought effort did not yield the desired result. Instead, he overexerted himself, not only depleting a large amount of energy but also having his final step-back layup bounce off the rim…
Frustrated, Wade refused to accept defeat. He turned and fought with He Xi Meng for the rebound.
He Xi Meng did not confront Wade head-on. With a light touch, he tipped the ball over Wade's head towards Yao Ming, then turned and sprinted towards the Heat's half.
Wade cursed "Shit" under his breath and, disregarding the rebound battle with Yao Ming, turned to chase He Xi Meng's off-ball run at full speed.
As expected, after securing the rebound, Yao Ming did not cradle the ball but immediately lobbed a long pass across halfcourt…