Because during the time Wade was off the court resting, theoretically speaking, O'Neal was the biggest core on the court.
But the problem was that O'Neal's several offensive attempts were disrupted by the Celtics.
David Lee fouled intentionally twice, and Perkins fouled intentionally once.
The Heat's offense was shattered, and even more troublesome was that O'Neal, with 6 fouls, only made 2 shots, much to the delight of the Boston fans present.
Head coach Riley couldn't bear to watch any longer and substituted Wade in early, pulling O'Neal out to let him rest for a while. If this continued, the Heat would lose because of O'Neal's free throws...
With O'Neal off the court, Mourning came in to replace him.
Before being plagued by kidney disease, Mourning was a two-time Defensive Player of the Year in the league.
But after undergoing a kidney transplant, Mourning's condition plummeted.
Although Mourning was unwilling to give up, retiring twice and then announcing his comeback twice, he was ultimately no longer at his peak. Coupled with his 36 years of age, how could Mourning contend with a peak Yao Ming?
Although He Xi Meng respected Mourning's character, he would not be soft-hearted because of it.
This was because it was the Eastern Conference Finals, not an All-Star game.
If it were an All-Star game, He Xi Meng wouldn't mind showing Mourning full respect.
But this was the Eastern Conference Finals, a matter of life and death.
Since Mourning was the Heat's weakness, He Xi Meng had to resolutely target that weakness.
On Mourning's first possession, He Xi Meng called for Yao Ming to come to the free-throw line area for a high pick-and-roll. He drove past Mourning for a layup.
On the second possession, He Xi Meng still called for Yao Ming's screen, but after breaking through, he passed to the cutting Yao Ming. Mourning anticipated He Xi Meng's pass, but as he turned to interfere with Yao Ming, Yao Ming cleanly executed a short-range pull-up jumper...
Mourning's height of 2.08 meters offered no advantage.
On the third possession, He Xi Meng finally stopped calling for Yao Ming's screen, but after a series of movements, he still managed to get the ball to Yao Ming in the low post.
Yao Ming backed down Mourning, using his strength to execute a turnaround hook shot... This was a common offensive move for big men in the paint, with a variable success rate.
But Yao Ming made this shot!
With He Xi Meng orchestrating the offense, even though Riley had Haslem help Mourning, Haslem couldn't find an opportunity to assist.
Because He Xi Meng, from the start of the play, avoided Haslem's interference, allowing Yao Ming to consistently get one-on-one matchups against Mourning.
Haslem was helpless, Mourning was helpless, and Riley on the sidelines was even more helpless.
Mourning was brought in because O'Neal was being heavily pressured by the Celtics' shameless "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy. Riley hoped Mourning could alleviate this passive situation.
Unexpectedly, the Celtics abandoned the "Hack-a-Shaq" and resorted to direct offensive attacks. They were relentlessly pounding Mourning...
Riley had no choice but to let O'Neal back on the court, instructing him, "Reduce your offense!"
This was also unavoidable.
If the Celtics kept alternating "Hack-a-Shaq," the Heat wouldn't be able to handle it either. The best solution was to not attack. If you don't attack, you can't be hacked, right?
But if O'Neal didn't attack, Riley couldn't put all the scoring responsibility on Wade, could he?
Of the Heat's starting lineup, the rookie Haslem was strong on defense but weak on offense. It was unrealistic to expect him to handle O'Neal's possessions.
Jason Williams did have offensive ability, but facing He Xi Meng's defense, Riley felt "White Chocolate" had little chance.
The final choice was Antoine Walker.
When Antoine Walker was with the Celtics, he primarily played power forward.
In the power forward position, Walker's low-post skills were not outstanding. However, at the small forward position, Walker's low-post skills were quite respectable.
Especially since the Celtics' primary defender on Walker, Ariza, was a size smaller than Walker. So, Riley wanted to find a breakthrough point through Walker.
Walker did receive the ball in the low post, but the back-to-the-basket offense was not as easy as Riley had imagined.
Walker's first low-post attempt was met with a strong pushback from Ariza.
Ariza's defense was much tougher than Riley had anticipated.
Although in the end, Walker used his weight advantage to force his way to the basket and turn for a shot, he was nearly blocked by Ariza.
Fortunately, the referee's whistle sounded in time, saving Walker from complete humiliation.
Walker made the first free throw, but the second bounced out.
Ariza grabbed the defensive rebound and passed it to He Xi Meng to advance the ball.
O'Neal quickly retreated to defend, preparing to face Yao Ming's assault.
However, on this play, He Xi Meng didn't look for Yao Ming after breaking through. Instead, he chose to pass to Ariza on the weak side.
Ariza's role on the Celtics was now clearly defined: a lockdown perimeter defender and a three-point shooter!
Seeing that the Heat were starting to utilize Antoine Walker, He Xi Meng, as an equal counterattack, seized the opportunity to create a shooting chance for Ariza!
Ariza's current average of 6-8 attempts per game were almost all three-pointers. Every shot was precious, and he had to seize every opportunity. When he had a good touch, he could hit 5-6 threes in a game, scoring 15-18 points. When his touch was off, he might go 0-for-5 and score 0 points. On average, Ariza made 2.2 three-pointers per game, contributing 6.6 points. Not a lot, but not insignificant.
Especially in crucial moments, Ariza's three-pointers could often be the deciding factor.
Of course, this wasn't a crucial moment. It was simply that He Xi Meng saw the Heat developing a third scoring option, and he took the chance to give Ariza an opportunity for a fast break.
Ariza lived up to expectations on this shot, hitting it as soon as he released, drawing a roar of applause.
Turning around, Wade drove and passed to Antoine Walker, who missed his low-post attempt but then sank a contested three-pointer, seemingly retaliating for Ariza's corner three.
He Xi Meng continued to set up Ariza, but this time Ariza didn't shoot. Instead, he passed to the cutting Carter, who received the ball, drove to the basket, and used his leaping ability to force up a high floater over O'Neal, which went in!
O'Neal pouted in frustration. If he were five years younger, he would have definitely sent Carter's shot packing with a thunderous block. But now, if he couldn't reach it, he couldn't reach it. He just had to try his best...
On the Heat's side, Wade had made several drives, and his stamina was getting depleted, so he passed the ball to Jason Williams to handle.
Williams also drove and passed to Antoine Walker, again from beyond the arc, but this time Antoine Walker missed.
The ball bounced relatively far. Wade chased down the rebound, cut into the lane, and attempted a layup amidst the chaos.
Wade noticed Carter trailing him and Yao Ming shifting over in front of him, but he completely overlooked the presence of Diou, whom he had just driven past...