As Howard was dominated by Yao Ming, head coach Gene Davis tried to bring in backup center Mario Kasu to counter Yao Ming, but the result was the same, he continued to be dominated!
The Magic also tried to consider a double-team on Yao Ming!
But head coach Gene Davis, after seeing the ominous looks from He Xi Meng and Carter on the Celtics' perimeter, decided against it. They would just get dominated inside...
And so, Yao Ming scored a game-high 38 points, 14 rebounds, and 5 blocks in this game! Among them, 2 blocks were against Howard, 2 blocks were against Mario Kasu, and one block was against Francis!
In this timeline, Francis and Yao Ming had no intersection.
Francis did not look out for Yao Ming, and Yao Ming had no need to respect Francis.
They were just two star players in the league, nodding acquaintances when they met, nothing more.
Francis had been in the league for 5 seasons, growing from a rookie into a near All-Star caliber player for the Rockets.
However, due to the Rockets' management, they had struggled to assemble an effective roster. In the competitive Western Conference, they were constantly being beaten down.
Francis had always harbored resentment towards He Xi Meng.
But resentment was useless. The Spurs were too strong, unbeatable by anyone in the league. As a Western Conference underdog, the Rockets had even less hope.
Now, with He Xi Meng leaving the Spurs and coming to the East, Francis thought he might have a chance!
Thus, Francis played with great effort in this game. Facing He Xi Meng, he fought hard and scored 31 points! The tragic part was that He Xi Meng hadn't even exerted himself before Yao Ming had already collapsed the Magic!
Francis's passion was thus poured into the water.
Carter, in his matchup against Mobley, easily scored 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists, securing his second consecutive win since joining the Celtics.
After defeating the Magic, the Celtics returned to their home court to continue facing Eastern Conference opponents.
The first challenger to arrive was Carter's old team, the Raptors!
After Carter's departure, the Raptors had essentially entered a period of de facto rebuilding.
Jalen Rose was aging, and Bosh was still young. The Raptors lacked anyone capable of carrying the team's banner.
Although Carter had a very unpleasant falling out with the Raptors' management before he left, he still had a decent relationship with his former teammates, his "little brothers."
As the team's leader, Carter was a responsible person.
Therefore, before the game officially began, the Raptors players spontaneously approached the Celtics' side to catch up with Carter.
Seeing their former leader seemingly happy with the Celtics, these "little brothers" were also happy for Carter.
In the subsequent game, He Xi Meng funneled a large amount of the ball to Carter, leading to Carter scoring 25 points in less than three quarters!
If the game continued at this pace, Carter scoring 40 points that day should not have been an issue.
However, after scoring 25 points, Carter refused to score further and voluntarily gave up all opportunities to shoot to his teammates.
Defeating the Raptors was enough; he didn't want to personally destroy them!
It was the Raptors' management, not the Raptors' players, with whom Carter had had issues.
After the Raptors, the Nets came to challenge!
This was the first time Pierce had returned to Boston since leaving.
The Boston crowd gave Pierce a warm applause when he appeared on the court, but this could not extinguish the fire of revenge in Pierce's heart!
Before He Xi Meng descended upon Boston, Pierce had been steadily serving as the Celtics' leader.
After He Xi Meng's arrival in Boston, Pierce had initially wanted to contend for the true leadership of the Celtics, but unexpectedly, He Xi Meng played dirty and pulled the rug out from under him, even replacing the Celtics' general manager and head coach...
Pierce, in a state of confusion, flew to report to the Nets!
In New Jersey, he met Kidd, who also harbored resentment towards He Xi Meng!
Thus, the Nets formed the "Anti-Xi Meng Combo" and, filled with anger, set their sights on Boston!
The Nets' starting lineup consisted of center Jason Collins, power forward Nenad Krstic, small forward Paul Pierce, shooting guard Rodnei Buford, and point guard Jason Kidd.
This lineup, apart from Kidd and Pierce, was rather lacking in the other three positions.
As the game began, Yao Ming won the tip-off. He Xi Meng advanced the ball past half-court and lobbed it to the basket. Yao Ming caught the ball and powered through Jason Collins for a short hook shot under the basket!
Turning around, Kidd brought the ball up past half-court. Pierce called for the ball at the high post and isolated against Al Harrington. With a shoulder shimmy and a fake, he drove past Harrington and into the Celtics' paint. Facing Yao Ming, who was rotating over, Pierce gritted his teeth and didn't slow down, driving straight through and completing a one-handed slam over a defender!
The Boston crowd erupted in a gasp.
This was because Pierce did not often employ such scoring methods.
After the slam, Pierce excitedly pounded his chest and pointed directly at He Xi Meng!
This was a blatant provocation! Provoking He Xi Meng, suggesting he couldn't dunk?
"How about I respond to him?"
Carter stepped forward, offering his services.
Carter had heard about He Xi Meng's former nickname, "Carter of the Holy City."
Moreover, when it came to dunking, Carter was not only more skilled than He Xi Meng but also far more skilled than Pierce.
If He Xi Meng wished, Carter could certainly perform no worse than Pierce.
However, He Xi Meng politely declined Carter's offer.
"No rush! Let me try first! After all, Paul is provoking me! If I fail, then it's your turn!"
"Alright! I'll listen to you! But try not to push yourself too hard..."
He Xi Meng turned and went one-on-one against Kidd.
Trying to get past Kidd head-on and drive into the Nets' paint for a dunk would be too difficult.
Therefore, He Xi Meng called for a high pick-and-roll from Josh Smith, having Josh Smith screen Kidd. He then switched onto Krstic and drove into the paint. Facing Jason Collins, who rotated over to defend, He Xi Meng chose to exploit the timing. He executed the same move as Pierce had just done, leaping up and completing a one-handed slam over a defender!
The Boston crowd instantly went wild!
"Wow! Is this He Xi Meng's first over-the-head dunk this time?"
"Never mind the over-the-head dunk, when was the last time you saw He Xi Meng dunk in the North Shore Garden Arena? Which game?"
"Uh... let me think..."
"Think about what! Since He Xi Meng joined the Celtics, he hasn't dunked at home, has he?"
"As if he dunks often on the road!"
"Xi Meng is a shooter, not a dunker! It's normal for him not to dunk!"
...