Western Conference Semifinals, Game 4.
The showdown kicked off at the Lakers' home court right on schedule.
Despite the daunting 0-3 series deficit, the fans hadn't given up. The Staples Center was packed to the rafters. Supporters held up signs that read "FIGHT TILL THE END" and "NOT TODAY." There was a gritty, almost heroic tension in the air.
As the Lakers ran out of the tunnel, the crowd erupted in a thunderous standing ovation. This season, the Lakers' roster was thin on paper; making it to the second round had already exceeded almost everyone's expectations.
"LET'S GO LAKERS!!!"
The fans were cheering with everything they had, pouring their hearts and souls into backing their team. When Kobe and Link finally emerged, the roar reached a fever pitch, nearly blowing the roof off the arena.
Kobe's expression was ice-cold. He didn't look at the crowd; he just stared straight at the opposite end of the floor. There, the Dallas Mavericks were warming up in their deep blue away jerseys, looking relaxed and confident—the picture of front-runners.
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Before the tip-off, the starters lined up around the center circle. Bynum ignored a friendly nod from the Mavs' center, his eyes locked onto the ball.
Whistle!
The game was on. Bynum tipped the ball to Kobe. Without a second of hesitation, Kobe pushed the pace. Facing Devin Harris at the first line of defense, Kobe hit a massive crossover and drove hard down the right lane.
As Erick Dampier rotated over to help, Kobe adjusted in mid-air with an incredible double-clutch, dodged the block, and kissed the ball off the glass.
2-0.
Kobe turned back on defense without a word or a smile.
"Kobe Bryant! Aggressive right out of the gate! He's sending a clear message about the Lakers' mindset today!" the announcer shouted.
On the Mavs' end, Dirk Nowitzki caught the ball at the high post with Odom draped all over him. After a quick jab, the "German Stallion" went for his signature one-legged fadeaway.
Clank!
It rattled out. Link showed great hustle to snag the long rebound and immediately outletted it to Kobe. The Lakers had a 3-on-1 break. Kobe fed Link on the wing, who looked off the defender before hitting a cutting Odom for an easy layup.
4-0.
"Beautiful transition! The Lakers are off to a hot start!" the commentator praised.
Over the next few possessions, Kobe took over. He wasn't settling for jumpers; he was attacking the rim every single time. Within minutes, Dampier picked up his second foul and was forced to the bench.
The Mavericks clearly weren't expecting the Lakers to play this desperately. Dirk eventually settled things down by drawing a foul and hitting two free throws, but the Lakers' defensive intensity had shifted into another gear.
Odom was working overtime to deny Dirk the ball, while Link and Kobe hounded the Mavs' guards on the perimeter, nearly forcing several turnovers.
With 6:24 left in the first, the score was 15-8, Lakers.
After a Mavs pass went astray, Kobe came up with the steal and took it coast-to-coast. Despite being flanked by defenders, he kicked it out to Link, who was trailing on the left wing.
Link didn't hesitate. He pulled up for a transition three—his first shot of the night.
Swish.
18-8. The lead was in double digits.
"Link! He nails his first three of the game! The Prophet's still got the hot hand!" the announcer yelled.
The Lakers were rolling. Mavs coach Avery Johnson called a timeout.
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Coming out of the break, the Mavs brought in Jason Terry to boost their scoring. Terry hit a pull-up three immediately, but the Lakers answered right back. Kobe drew a double-team and kicked it to Luke Walton in the corner. Walton used a pump-fake to send his defender flying, took one dribble into the mid-range, and drained the jumper.
At the end of the first quarter, the Lakers led 32-24. Kobe had 10 points, while Link had 5 points and 2 assists. More importantly, the team only had one turnover and held the Mavs to 24 points.
The start of the second quarter is usually when the Lakers' bench struggles, but tonight, the second unit stepped up. Sasha Vujacic shook off his slump, hitting mid-range jumpers off screens. Cook cut to the basket for easy points, and Aaron McKie even drew a foul on Josh Howard.
By the time the starters returned, the bench had actually maintained the lead. The cheers in Staples Center were coming in waves.
In the final possession of the half, the Lakers led by 11 with the ball. Only 6 seconds remained. Kobe was surrounded, so instead of forcing a shot, he fired a bullet pass to Link near the mid-court logo.
3... 2... 1...
Link caught it. [Quick Shooter Lv2] Activated. With a defender flying at him, Link launched a deep, contested three-pointer. The red light on the backboard flashed while the ball was still in flight.
"SWISH!!!"
"OH MY GOD! PROPHET LINK! AT THE BUZZER FROM DOWNTOWN! UNBELIEVABLE! THE LAKERS LEAD BY 14!" The commentary booth went wild.
Link landed and let out a roar toward the stands, pumping his fist. "This series isn't over yet!"
"PROPHET LINK! PROPHET LINK!"
The entire Staples Center was a sea of celebration. At halftime, Kobe had 20 points, and Link had 12 points and 3 assists. The Lakers were shooting over 50% as a team.
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In the locker room, the vibe was night and day compared to the previous game. The team was buzzing with confidence. Kobe and Link shared a heavy high-five.
Phil Jackson kept it simple: "Keep the intensity up, control the boards, and weather the storm in the second half."
Sure enough, the Mavs came out aggressive, feeding Dirk repeatedly. The big man hit two tough buckets to cut the lead to 10.
In the clutch, it wasn't Kobe who stepped up first—it was Lamar Odom. He caught the ball at the high post, faked a pass, and blew past Dirk for an "and-one" layup. On the very next play, he rotated for a massive block on Devin Harris, grabbed the board, and threw a full-court touchdown pass to a sprinting Link.
Link hit a high-difficulty hook shot over a defender... and drew the foul!
And-one!
"WOW! Link scores again! That hook shot has become a real weapon in this series!" the announcer shouted.
The Lakers had scored 5 quick points. "Lamar Odom! He's having his best quarter of the series! He's everywhere on both ends!"
Odom's explosion took the pressure off Kobe and left the Mavs' defense scrambling. Late in the third, Kobe put the finishing touches on the quarter, hitting two impossible fadeaways from the wing. Pure superstar stuff.
After three quarters: Lakers 85, Mavericks 68. A 17-point lead. The scales had never tipped so far in the Lakers' favor.
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In the fourth, the Mavs made one last push with Terry and Jerry Stackhouse, trying to use their outside shooting to claw back. But every time they got within 10 points, someone on the Lakers answered. Link knocked down a dagger three that silenced the Mavs' bench for good.
With 4:11 left and the Lakers up by 18, the Mavs pulled their starters. When the final buzzer sounded, the score was 112-89.
The Lakers had secured a 23-point blowout to avoid the sweep.
The stats were staggering:
Kobe Bryant: 36 pts, 7 rebs, 5 asts
Link: 24 pts, 4 asts, 2 stls
Lamar Odom: 16 pts, 11 rebs, 4 asts, 2 blks
Six Lakers scored in double digits. They dominated the assist battle 28 to 16 and out-rebounded Dallas by 9.
As the game ended, Staples Center was a wall of sound. Kobe high-fived every teammate coming off the floor. The fans wouldn't stop cheering. Even though the team was still down in the series and the odds of a comeback were slim, the Lakers had fought with everything they had to defend their home court. It wasn't a celebration of a title, but a salute to a group of warriors.
In the post-game presser, Kobe was mobbed by reporters. He looked exhausted, but for the first time in days, he looked at peace.
"I'm proud of my guys. Everyone stepped up and played Laker basketball tonight. The series isn't over. We're going to fight for it one game at a time."
When Link was asked about the win, he just smiled. "This was a team effort. Phil's leadership, everyone chipping in, and the fans... we just wanted to prove that the Lakers don't go down without a fight."
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