The American Airlines Arena was electric that night.

Even though it was just a regular-season game, the excitement among Heat fans mirrored that of Knicks fans years ago—when there's a chance to watch the home team finally defeat the man who has tormented them for years, it's an opportunity no one wants to miss.

Sitting courtside was Heat presidentPat Riley, the man most eager for this game.

Back when he was a coach, he had no answer for Jordan. And as an executive, he'd been unable to overcome Han Sen. If Han hadn't been traded by the Grizzlies, Riley would've retired last summer.

But this year? This year, there was no excuse for the Heat to lose to this Cavaliers team.

If they did, Riley might as well retire on the spot and hangHan Sen's No. 77 jerseyin the rafters alongside Jordan's, as he once did for MJ.

Because it was a marquee matchup, theTNT triowas there to broadcast it live.

During pregame predictions, bothShaquille O'NealandKenny Smithfavored the Heat. EvenCharles Barkley, who usually backed Han Sen, tempered his tone:

"Han has burned a lot of energy over the past week. For the Cavs to win tonight, they'll need to playabove themselves."

As Barkley spoke, the cameras cut to Han Sen warming up.

He was cracking his knuckles, but unlike what many expected, his expression wasn't tense. He lookedrelaxed and eager.

No one knew where his confidence came from, but seeing his demeanor, some Heat fans in the arena suddenly felt that this game might not be as secure as they thought.

...

The starting lineups were announced after the pregame ceremony.

Cavaliers:Kyrie Irving, Han Sen, PJ Tucker, Tristan Thompson, Spencer Hawes

Heat:Dwyane Wade, Thabo Sefolosha, Kevin Durant, Luol Deng, Pau Gasol

The Heat had undergone a significant adjustment period at the start of the season. Now, this lineup was their most successful.

With the crowd's cheers ringing out, Gasol tipped the ball to the Heat's side, andWade brought it up to start the game.

Gasol received the ball at the right elbow, posting up to initiate the offense.

The Heat's decision to sign Pau Gasol after letting Chris Bosh go had proven to be a brilliant move.

Gasol was averaging18.5 points per game—his highest since the 2010-11 season—along with11.8 reboundsand5.3 assists,both career highs. He even averagedtwo blocks per game.

CoachErik Spoelstrahad given him a leading role, and Gasol was thriving in hissecond prime.

The Cavaliers didn't double-team him at the start. Gasol, in his signature post-up style, scanned the floor before spinning toward the basket and powering through for a layup.

Hawes couldn't handle Gasol's physicalityand could only watch as the ball went in.

In today's NBA, where dominant centers are rare, Gasol had the strength advantage.

The Heat struck first.

Back on the other end,Kyrie took the ball.He danced past Wade with a series of crossovers but was met by Deng's help defense. Forced into an early floater, Kyrie missed under pressure.

This Heat lineup resembled the LeBron-era Heat, with Deng playing a similarhelp-and-cleanup rolethat LeBron once had.

But this team had something different—the presence of Gasol as a secondary playmaker allowed them to replace Mario Chalmers withThabo Sefolosha,bolstering their defense.

Gasol continued to orchestrate. This time, he handed the ball off to Durant, whopulled up for a jumper and nailed it.

Durant had been hyped since his pregame trash talk with Han Sen.

More importantly, compared to the LeBron-era Heat, this lineup wasmuch more potent offensively.

Four minutes in, the score was already12-3.

Kyrie struggled to handle the pressure, and his decision-making wasn't as sharp as it had been during the Christmas game against the Lakers.

But the Cavaliers' bigger issue was on defense. The Heat hadtoo many scoring threatsandexcellent ball movement.It was nearly impossible to guard everyone at once.

Spoelstra's game plan was evident—avoid Han Sen at all costs.Most of their plays initiated on the opposite side of the court to prevent Han from providing help defense.

As the first quarter unfolded, Heat fans finally relaxed.

If Han Sen were still with the Grizzlies, they might have worried. But this Cavaliers roster? Not a chance.

"Even if Michael joined this Cavaliers team, they wouldn't beat the Heat," Kenny Smith offered a rational analysis.

"But Han's aiming to surpass Michael," Barkley reminded them.

Just then, Han Sen took the ball and ran apick-and-roll with Thompson.

After TT rolled to the rim, Han Senpulled up for a mid-range jumper.

His shot wasso decisivethat Deng barely had time to react.

With Sefolosha tracking Thompson, Han had a brief window to shoot.

Swish!

Han Sen's mid-range jumper hit cleanly. For him, an uncontested mid-range shot was practicallya guaranteed bucket.

Contrary to popular belief, Han's recent scoring spree wasn't solely about proving a point to American fans.

His58-point performance against Boston? Sure, that was for the headlines.

But after the Thunder game, Han'sunderstanding of the four-out, one-in offense evolved.

Previously, he prioritized creating shots for his teammates, letting them find their rhythm first. After all, the success of this system depended onspacing and perimeter shooting.

Now, Han approached it differently—he attacked first.

By establishing himself as a scoring threat, he forced defenses tocollapse earlierandmore aggressively,creatingbetter looksfor his teammates.

Because when it came to shooters, the difference betweeneliteandgreatwas their ability to hit shots under pressure.

Guys likeKlay Thompson, Ray Allen, and Stephen Currythrived on contested shots.

But players likePJ Tucker or Spencer Hawes?They neededclean looks.

Han had started adjusting his passes accordingly, prioritizingopen shotsfor teammates like Tucker and Kyrie, who had shownhigher catch-and-shoot accuracy.

Still, defense remained a challenge.

The Heat's offense was relentless.Deng's off-ball cutdrew a foul from Hawes.

Malone made a surprising adjustment,subbing in JR Smith for Hawes.

The message was clear:improve defensive rotations.

But this came at a cost—the Cavaliers were nowundersized,leaving TT to handle the brunt of the interior defense.

It was the first time Malone had deployed this lineup all season, a sign of how desperate he was to contain Miami's offense.

Deng hit both free throws.

Back on offense, Han Sen switched things up—posting up Sefolosha.

With the smaller lineup, the Cavaliers had morespacing.

Sefolosha held his ground, but Han used aturnaround fake,followed by aquick spin move to draw contact.

Even though Sefolosha stayed grounded,Han's relentless drive drew a foul.

Heat's defense was feeling the pressure.

Unless they sent help earlier,there was no stopping this aggressive version of Han Sen.

"Scoring is like momentum—once a player gets rolling, it's hard to stop. Han's had a heavy workload this past week, but his hunger for points hasn't faded," Barkley said, his confidence steadily growing as he watched the game unfold.

Erik Spoelstrarose from the bench, stepping toward the sideline. He could sense Han Sen'sunrelenting scoring intenttonight.

Han calmly sank both free throws. On the ensuing possession, the Cavaliers forced a stop and quickly launched a fast break. Han orchestrated a no-look bounce pass—"East looks, West delivers" style—to a cuttingKyrie Irving, who finished the layup.

The Cavaliers' current lineup bore a striking resemblance to theWarriors' "Death Lineup"—faster defensive rotations and lethal transition opportunities whenever they secured a stop.

9-14.

The gap had narrowed to just five points.

Spoelstra immediately called for a timeout.

"If the Heat make it to the Finals, this game might be a preview of what they'll face against the Warriors,"Kenny Smithanalyzed.

"If the Heat do make the Finals, they'll win the title. You can't win a championship with jump shots,"Barkleyretorted without missing a beat.

"Charles is right. Jump shooting doesn't win championships,"Shaqsurprisingly agreed.

Coming out of the timeout, the Heat adjusted their offense, running throughPau Gasolin the low post.

Tristan Thompson played tough defense, and althoughTTdidn't give up much ground physically,Gasolshowcased his finesse, banking in ahook shotover him.

It was clear thatTT wasn't as effective as someone like Draymond Green—who combined physicality and a disruptive wingspan to truly challenge opponents in the post.

Gasol's basket helped the Heat regain their footing. On the next possession, theydouble-teamed Han Sen early.

What came next stunned everyone.

Han Sen pulled offa classic Rondo move, faking a behind-the-back pass before slicing through the defense.

But unlikeRajon Rondo, Han hadexplosive athleticismto back it up—once he broke through the defense, he took flight andthrew down a thunderous one-handed slam.

11-16.

The five-point gap remained, but more importantly, Han had personally scoredsix straight points.

"You know, what do you think being the All-Star vote leader really means to a player?" Shaq asked the panel.

Han's recent scoring spree wasn't directly tied to losing the All-Star vote, but it wastriggered by that event.

"Nothing," Barkley replied bluntly.

"It means he's popular and well-loved," Kenny Smith offered a more measured response.

"But that's all it means," Barkley added with a shrug.

Meanwhile, the Heat's offense continued clicking. Gasol drew help defense in the post and dished out a perfect pass toSefolosha, who drained acorner three.

Maybe Barkley was right. If the Heat reached the Finals, they could securetheir first championship of the post-LeBron era.

Because when a small-ball lineup can't contain its opponents in the half-court, there's no speed advantage to exploit.

On the next possession, the Heatdoubled Han Sen even earlier.

This time, Han didn't fake a pass. Instead, he executed a movestraight out of Jason "White Chocolate" Williams' playbook—a no-lookelbow passtoPJ Tuckerin the corner.

The arena gasped. It waseasily the most spectacular passof the night—possibly of the season.

Tucker, wide open, took a moment to set his feet and nailed thecorner three.

As he retreated on defense, Tucker and Han exchanged a hardhigh-five.

Truth be told, Tucker was probably a little nervous. Missing that kind of shot would have been criminal.

The Cavaliers' defense tightened up once more. Gasol kicked it out toDwyane Wade, who pump-faked from beyond the arc and drove inside.

But to everyone's surprise,JR Smithwasn't fooled. He swiped the ball away as Wade drove past, andKyriequickly scooped it up.

The Cavaliers launched another fast break.

Wade hustled back to contest Kyrie's layup, forcing him to miss.

But just as Wade was about to grab the rebound,a shadow loomed over him.

BANG!

Han Sen followed up with aferocious putback dunk, sending Wade flying out of bounds.

16-19.

For the first time since the opening tip, the Cavaliers had cut the deficit to a single possession.

The Heat fans, who had been so confident moments ago, now felt a familiar sense of dread creeping in.

"Why won't he just let us win for once?!"

Back on defense, the Cavaliers forced another miss. Gasol's hook shot rimmed out, and Tucker—rebounding like atrue small-ball power forward—secured the ball.

The arena buzzed with nervous energy. It was the first time all night that the Heat had gonescoreless on consecutive possessions.

The Cavaliers' confidence and energy, driven by Han Sen, were palpable.

On offense, Han drew another early double-team. This time, he calmly dribbled behind his back, causing every other player on the court tohold their breath.

Because no one knew what he was going to do next.

It turned out to be asimple behind-the-back passtoJR Smith, who remained theonly person on the court who wasn't tense.

BecauseJR's brain simply doesn't process pressure.

Wade scrambled to contest the shot, but it was too late.

Han Sen had delivered the ball to thebest available shooterat the perfect moment.

SWISH!

The net barely moved.

19-19.

The Cavaliers had just put together a16-7 run, tying the game.

The LED scoreboard flashedHan Sen's stat line:

8 points, 3 assists.

And that was all in the span of justfive minutes.

Thefour-out, one-in systemhas its flaws—it's vulnerable when the shooters are cold. But when the system is firing on all cylinders,its ceiling is limitless.

The difference lies entirely inthe core ball handler.

The Cavaliers' roster this season wasn't much better than last year's Knicks, but the results weren't just different—they wereworlds apart.

Because thetrue difference-maker was Han Sen.

-End of Chapter-

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com