In the fourth quarter, the "Windy City Assassin" finally found his rhythm with five minutes remaining. Even against "Flash" Wade, Rose repeatedly found ways to score.
But at that point, Coach Spoelstra made an adjustment. He assigned "King James" LeBron to guard Rose while Wade and Bosh focused on offense.
Even LeBron could not do much to slow down Rose once he got going.
However, by the time Rose began trying to close the gap, there was no time left.
In the end, the Heat routed the Bulls on the road by 16 points, cruising to victory and tying the series at 1-1.
Through two games of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bulls had won one in a blowout and the Heat had answered with a blowout of their own.
The series remained too close to call.
...
The next morning, the Suns prepared for Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals against the Mavericks.
The game would be played at American Airlines Center, the Mavericks' home court.
Once the entire team was ready, they boarded a chartered flight to Dallas.
Mia Quinn had wanted to attend the game in person, but Blake would not allow it. She would have been there alone, and he would be too busy to look after her.
He simply did not feel comfortable with that.
Although Mia Quinn badly wanted to go, she understood his concern and eventually agreed to remain at the villa. Blake also promised that she could attend in the future as long as someone accompanied her.
He was not trying to control her. He genuinely wanted her to be safe.
...
At 8:00 p.m., the players from both teams were warming up at American Airlines Center with one hour remaining before tip-off.
The sold-out arena was filled with noise and excitement.
For the Mavericks, this was a must-win game.
The home crowd gave them everything they had, cheering at full volume and doing their best to maximize the home-court advantage. They hoped Dallas could answer back tonight.
...
Inside the broadcast studio, Hubie Brown and Dave Pasch were preparing to call the game. In an office behind the studio, Mike Breen sat with Van Gundy.
"Van Gundy, have you received a call from Blake's agent recently?" Mike Breen asked.
"You got one too?" Van Gundy replied, blinking in surprise.
"Yeah."
Mike Breen nodded.
"What kind of partnership do you think Blake has in mind? More importantly, are you interested?"
"Of course."
Van Gundy answered without hesitation.
"As long as it involves basketball and it's something I can help with, I'll support Blake."
Mike Breen shook his head with a smile.
Van Gundy was Blake's biggest supporter. Of course he would be happy to work with him.
"Well..."
Van Gundy gathered his thoughts and continued.
"Of course, I still need to know the details. But judging by the way Blake handled his contracts with the Suns, Adidas, and everything else, he's clearly a smart young man.
"He isn't just talented on the court. He also has a sharp mind for business.
"I don't think we'd lose out by working with him."
"That's true."
Mike Breen nodded.
When Austin had called him earlier, Mike Breen had already expressed interest. After speaking with Van Gundy, he felt even more certain about working with Blake.
...
Back at the arena, warm-ups ended.
The starters took the floor, and the crucial Game 3 matchup finally began.
"Jump ball!"
Once again, Chandler and Blake stood at center court for the opening tip.
"I'm going to beat Blake tonight!"
Chandler growled under his breath, his eyes wide as he summoned every ounce of strength and pushed his vertical leap to its limit.
He was determined to win the tip.
But against overwhelming talent, effort alone could only do so much.
"Smack!"
Blake casually tapped the ball away once again, winning possession for the Suns.
"Hehe."
"Taking a jump ball against Blake? The moment you start taking it seriously, you've already lost."
"Chandler could give it everything he has and still wouldn't beat Blake. Besides, it looked like Blake only used half his vertical."
"That's enough. Keep talking and Chandler might come over here and beat us up."
Several Suns fans near the court covered their mouths and laughed.
As Chandler ran back, he noticed them.
He could not hear what they were saying, but the way they covered their mouths and snickered made him instinctively feel that they were mocking him.
Already annoyed after losing the tip, his mood grew even worse.
"Thump! Thump! Thump!"
Nash brought the ball up the floor while Blake stepped forward to set a high screen.
Blake then popped out to one side. Nash was about to return the ball to him when Marion and Stevenson both closed in.
That left Nash open.
"Whoosh!"
It was a clear opportunity, so Nash confidently fired from three.
"Clang!"
The shot missed.
However, Frye grabbed the rebound and kicked it back out.
Blake received the ball at the left elbow and faced Stevenson one-on-one.
"Thud!"
He backed into Stevenson once, used a half-spin, then suddenly accelerated.
Blake blew past Stevenson in a single step, attacked the basket, planted, and soared into the air.
"BOOM!"
He hammered home a one-handed tomahawk dunk.
His tremendous leap and explosiveness, combined with his height, left Chandler under the basket without even enough time to jump.
Chandler could only serve as the backdrop.
On the next possession, Blake posted up Stevenson again.
After working his way into the low post, Blake used a half-spin and shoulder fake, then pulled the ball back and gathered as though he were rising for a turnaround jumper.
"Thud!"
Stevenson anticipated the move and jumped with everything he had.
But Blake had only raised the ball. He had not actually shot.
Realizing it was a pump fake, Stevenson desperately tried to avoid contact while still in the air.
Blake was not about to let that opportunity slip away.
He turned sideways, jumped, and leaned into him.
"Beep! Beep!"
The whistle sounded.
"Clang!"
Blake missed the shot, but he earned two free throws.
He stepped to the line.
The first free throw...
"Clang!"
Missed.
The second...
"Swish!"
Good.
Stevenson had been outstanding defensively in the previous game, but Blake had already beaten him twice to begin this one.
Then, while setting a screen for Nowitzki...
"Beep! Beep!"
Offensive foul.
Less than two minutes into the game, Stevenson already had two fouls.
At the other end...
"Swish!"
Curry received a bounce pass from Nash, drove into the lane, and dropped in a high floater.
The Suns had opened the game with another 5-0 run.
It left everyone wondering whether the Mavericks truly were no match for Phoenix.
"Beep! Beep!"
Carlisle called a timeout.
He removed Stevenson, who already had two fouls, and brought in the team's second scoring option, "The Jet" Terry, much earlier than planned.
Then, just as everyone began to believe that the Mavericks really could not compete with the Suns...
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
Two possessions, two three-pointers.
The moment "The Jet" Terry entered the game, he buried consecutive threes and scored six straight points.
He followed that by setting up Nowitzki.
"Swish!"
Nowitzki knocked down the mid-range jumper.
In less than two minutes, Terry personally led the Mavericks on an 8-0 run.
Dallas erased the five-point deficit and surged ahead by three.
"Whoa..."
Inside the broadcast studio, Su Qun stared in surprise.
"With 'The Jet' Terry playing like this, could he become another 'X-factor' for the Mavericks tonight?"