"BOOM!"
The instant Blake emerged from the players' tunnel, the arena erupted in thunderous cheers and nonstop applause.
"Yes!"
"He's back!"
"'The Emperor' Blake is back! Our 'superhero' is back! We still have a chance to pull this off tonight!"
"MVP! MVP!"
"Blake! MVP!"
The home crowd exploded with excitement at Blake's return, roaring "MVP" in support.
The fans who had looked completely defeated moments earlier suddenly seemed to have found a lifeline. They could see hope again.
Maybe the Suns really could come back.
"Blake's back!!!"
Mia Quinn and Yoona were just as ecstatic. Their eyes stayed fixed on Blake as they silently cheered him on.
On the Suns' bench, the effect was even more obvious.
George, Curry, and the other young players who had been visibly deflated suddenly came alive.
Seeing Blake was like seeing victory itself.
A ray of light had broken through the darkness in front of them, restoring their hope in the game.
But many people, including Yao Ming and Kobe, understood the reality all too well.
This was Game 7 of the Finals.
There were only 1 minute and 25 seconds left.
The Suns were down nine.
A comeback from that position was almost impossible.
Even with "The Emperor" returning, the advantage the Suns had once held was completely gone.
They were already standing at the edge of the abyss, and defeat seemed inevitable.
At the commentary table, Van Gundy shook his head.
"He's back, and he's brought the home crowd back to life. The entire arena is fired up again.
"But...
"It may simply be too late."
"Exactly."
Mike Breen tapped his fingers against the desk and spoke slowly.
"Nash and Carter gave absolutely everything they had. They did everything they possibly could.
"But once the Suns lost Blake, their undisputed centerpiece, there was simply no way this roster could match the Heat Big Three.
"Honestly, only being down nine is already impressive.
"The problem is time.
"With just 1:25 remaining, asking the Suns to erase nine points is almost impossible."
And he was right.
One minute and twenty-five seconds.
A nine-point deficit.
Nash and Carter had both fouled out.
And waiting across from them were the Heat Big Three.
Coming back under those circumstances was about as difficult as it gets.
Of course, everyone saw Blake's return differently.
On the court, Blake walked straight toward the Suns' bench through a storm of applause and "MVP" chants.
The first thing he did was embrace Nash and Carter.
"You guys were incredible."
Blake gave both veterans, who had fouled out fighting to keep the Suns alive, a firm hug.
While waiting in the locker room for his examination results and for the [Injury Reduction Candy] to take effect, Blake had watched Nash and Carter give everything they had.
The Suns were down nine now.
But without the desperate effort of 37-year-old Nash and 34-year-old Carter, the deficit could have been much worse.
"What about your hand?"
Nash waved off Blake's praise and instead looked at his right pinky, which was wrapped in white bandaging.
"It still hurts a little, but I can play."
That was Blake's answer.
In truth, nothing was broken. It was only a compression injury.
The pain normally wouldn't have disappeared in just fifteen minutes, but with the [Injury Reduction Candy] taking effect, Blake could already play normally again.
He simply couldn't tell Nash that.
"Then the rest is up to you."
Nash looked at him seriously.
"Leave it to me."
Blake nodded, his expression firm.
Then he turned toward the rest of the team.
"Phew..."
Blake slowly exhaled.
"Guys, there's a little over a minute left. Don't give up. No matter what, don't give up.
"We came back from 0-3 in the first round.
"We were down 1-3 in this series, and now we're one win away from completing another comeback.
"So we don't quit.
"Not until that clock hits zero."
Blake's voice wasn't especially loud or forceful.
But when those words reached a Suns team whose fighting spirit had nearly disappeared, something changed immediately.
The fire came back.
And at that moment, everyone finally understood something clearly.
Steve Nash was usually the one who stepped forward to speak, encourage the team, and steady everyone.
But the player who truly made them refuse to give up, who filled them with confidence and held the entire Suns roster together...
Was Blake.
Their leader.
"Yeah!"
"We're not giving up!"
The Suns players shouted together.
Against all logic, they suddenly believed again that they could pull off a comeback that seemed almost impossible.
"Beep! Beep!"
The timeout ended.
The final 1 minute and 25 seconds had arrived.
With Nash and Carter both fouled out and Blake returning to the court, the other player entering the lineup was Dragić.
Curry inbounded from near midcourt.
Blake broke free and received the ball on the right side, about a meter beyond the three-point line.
Only Wade stood in front of him.
"Whoosh!"
LeBron was already sprinting over to help.
Blake didn't have time to hesitate.
Before "King James" could arrive, he rose over "Flash" Wade and launched a deep three.
"Blake's first three since returning! Is it good?!"
Van Gundy's eyes widened.
Every fan in the arena held their breath.
"Clang!"
No.
The shot missed.
The rebound?!
"CB4" Bosh secured it and immediately gave the ball to Wade, who pushed up the floor.
George rushed at him, determined to look for the steal first and foul only if he had no other option.
"Whoosh!"
George threw himself into the play.
At this point, he had no choice but to gamble.
But Wade reacted quickly and fired a cross-court pass toward LeBron on the right wing.
Dragić was the only defender in front of him.
Another mismatch.
LeBron immediately pulled up for three.
Dragić stayed rooted to the floor.
Not because he couldn't jump.
Because he didn't dare.
At a moment like this, if he bit on a fake and gave LeBron three free throws, it could become the kind of mistake that haunted him for the rest of his career.
Fortunately, his restraint paid off.
"Clang!"
LeBron missed too.
The rebound?!
Blake flew in and grabbed it.
There was no time to waste dribbling up the floor, so he immediately fired the ball ahead to Curry and sprinted after the play himself.
"Whoosh!"
Curry reached the right wing, but LeBron rotated over to stop him.
Curry didn't force the shot.
He immediately passed it back to the trailing Blake.
"Smack!"
Blake caught the ball more than a meter beyond the top of the arc.
There was no time to set himself.
He fired immediately.
"This one?!"
"Blake!!!"
"Clang!"
Another miss.
"Blake has missed two straight threes at the most critical moment! That's disastrous! Those misses could have just ended the game!"
"Oh my God, how can this happen now? Of all times, this is when his shot disappears?!"
"Blake is back, but he clearly doesn't have his rhythm!"
The fans in the stands shook their heads and sighed.
It was exactly what they feared.
Blake had gone a long stretch without touching the ball, and his injured finger still wasn't completely recovered.
His three-point touch was gone.
Now there was only one minute left.
The Suns were still down nine.
And their one remaining hope, "The Emperor" Blake, couldn't find his shot.
The Suns were truly backed against the wall.
...
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