Champion Creed-Chapter 946 - 310: Admit it, you are living in my era! (Requesting monthly votes!)

In the first game of the NBA Finals, both sides engaged in a truly intense battle.

Shaquille O’Neal and Grant Hill successfully dominated the game in the first three quarters.

Without Ben Wallace, the Hawks’ interior defense had no one who could effectively limit Shaq from receiving the ball.

Kurt Thomas showed strong defensive enthusiasm, but his abilities were ultimately limited.

The aged Dream appeared even more powerless in front of Shaq.

Although the zone defense allowed the Hawks to limit Shaq by shrinking early, this would open up spacious shooting opportunities for the Lakers on the perimeter.

So in the first three quarters, when Grant Hill drove into the lane and casually passed, his teammates on the perimeter gained wide-open chances, making the Los Angeles Lakers’ offense extremely efficient.

With Big Ben absent, Shaq was able to get the ball more easily and ravage the rim.

But the Hawks’ offense was equally impressive. Their seven-second offense system was completely suppressed by the historically great defense when they faced the Pistons. But against a Lakers defense not as extreme, this thrilling fast-paced offense once again shone brightly.

The Finals commentator Marv Albert marveled: "The shining showtime has reappeared in the Finals, only this time, even the Lakers players can only watch in amazement from the sidelines!"

Because both teams’ offenses were so outstanding, the score remained very close throughout, with the Lakers leading by only 2 points after three quarters.

However, Kobe had not really taken control of the offense in the first three quarters, with the ball mostly in the hands of Grant Hill and Shaq.

So in the fourth quarter, the starving Mamba finally struck, wrapping tightly around the Hawks’ airways, until its prey suffocated.

In the last 1 minute and 22 seconds of the fourth quarter, Kobe Bryant went 3-for-3, scoring the Lakers’ final 7 points.

When there were still 22 seconds left, neither team had actually settled the outcome, with the Hawks leading by only 1 point.

The last pass from Grant Hill to Kobe was disrupted by Roger and went out of bounds; although the ball still belonged to the Lakers, they only had 2 seconds left on the shot clock.

In those final 2 seconds, Olajuwon practically hugged O’Neal under the basket, preventing him from having any chance of receiving the ball.

Roger marked Grant Hill, who could cut in at any moment, while Paul Pierce was tasked with guarding Kobe.

Initially, Kobe set a screen for Hill but then suddenly cut out from the paint. In his panic, Pierce grabbed Kobe’s jersey, and Kobe forcefully broke free, heading near the inbound area at the baseline.

Shawn Marion raised his pair of extraordinarily long arms to interfere with Robert Horry’s inbound pass. Under heavy interference, Horry opted for an unexpected bounce pass.

The basketball was successfully caught by Kobe, who had no time to shake off Pierce’s defense. He could only jump directly upon receiving the ball, spinning in mid-air for a fadeaway jumper, and the ball swished into the net!

Kobe Bryant’s elegant shot sealed the victory for the Lakers, and although it wasn’t a buzzer-beater, it left the Hawks with only 1.8 seconds on the clock.

In the final moment, the Lakers focused their defense on Roger. The Hawks’ sideline inbounds couldn’t reach Roger, who was double-teamed, leaving Michael Reed the one to unexpectedly receive the ball for the decisive shot.

Though he still remembered his mother’s words, "Fear is the worst thing," as a second-year player shooting a game-winning shot in the Finals for the first time, Michael Reed couldn’t avoid feeling nervous at all.

Reed’s shot eventually bounced off the rim and out, as the Los Angeles Lakers narrowly took the first game with a score of 104 to 103!

Michael Reed landed and despondently held his head with both hands, under a glaring scoreboard, staring at the Lakers players wildly celebrating.

Moments like these can give you a deep understanding of what the phrase "the victor is king" truly means.

Roger didn’t scream hysterically, merely walked up to pat Reed on the head, then, with hands on hips, threaded his way through the celebrating Lakers players and walked off the court.

Shaq had 33 points and 12 rebounds for the game, Kobe added 24 points, Grant Hill contributed 17 points and 8 assists; another typical big three lineup’s data, another typical big three lineup’s victory.

On the Hawks’ side, Roger had 37 points, Pierce added 25 points, Michael Reed got 13 points, and Marion added 13 points.

Kobe and Shaq were both ecstatic, embracing everyone on the court except each other.

At the postgame press conference, Grant Hill confidently emphasized: "The biggest challenge comes from within. Now that we’ve solved that major issue, we can solve everything else. We’re not going to live in Roger’s shadow. He wants to dominate an era? Face our fiery resistance!"

Grant Hill was truly filled with passion, believing that the Lakers were creating something great.

But Andrew Sharp, a writer for Sports Illustrated, mocked him the next day in an online column.

"Solve everything? Grant has only won a game and already thinks he can solve everything. He knows nothing about winning the Finals. Yes, absolutely nothing, because he hasn’t even won a round of the Finals, nor has he won a single series against Roger. If a god was so easy to solve, how could he become a god?"

Finals Game 2 followed shortly, and this game fully proved how correct Andrew Sharp’s point of view was.

Winning just one game is still far from resolving all problems.

Today, the Hawks not only played fast, but in half-court offense, they continued to use more pick and rolls, primarily to counter Shaq.