"55 points! How did you do it? I mean, you just scored 40+ in two consecutive games!"
The reporter asking questions after the game was very excited since Hansen’s 55 points in this playoff game ranked ninth in history, not to mention the premise implied in his question.
If employing the classic, exclusive style, Hansen achieved a unique historic feat.
Moreover, in the NBA history, only three other individuals had ever scored 40+ points in three consecutive playoff games: Jerry West, Jordan, and Bernard King.
"You’ll get used to it."
Subtle bragging is always the most deadly.
This also represented Hansen’s stance; if Thibodeau continued this defensive strategy, he didn’t mind keeping up the high scoring.
As for stamina, that wasn’t an issue for him.
After all, he was just a 25-year-old young man.
Two days later, the two teams continued the series at the United Center for Game 4.
Interestingly, signs targeting Hansen were almost non-existent in the arena.
After all, for the fans, compared to what you say, they’re more concerned with what you do.
When you see a player score 55 points at your home court, you definitely wouldn’t want to provoke him further.
Thibodeau’s defense adjusted again in this game, switching back to the mode from Game 1, applying the Jordan Rules on Hansen.
For the Cavaliers’ Deathly Five Small, Thibodeau also found a counter-strategy: swapping in Dunleavy for Gibson, responding with a "one big, four small" lineup.
This was somewhat reminiscent of how the Grizzlies played against the Heat.
Thibodeau proved to be a master in defense, his adjustments thoroughly targeted the right issues.
What Thibodeau didn’t expect, however, was Irving, who had underperformed in the first three games, suddenly woke up in this one.
With Hansen drawing a lot of the Bulls’ defense, Irving shot 23 times in total, making 10 of them, and with his drives, managed to get to the free-throw line five times, making 9 of the throws, scoring a playoff career-high of 30 points.
After witnessing Hansen’s stunning performance in the previous three games, Irving finally got a wake-up call.
Though Hansen scored only 28 points in this game, the Cavaliers handily beat the Bulls 106 to 91.
This was the largest margin of the series to date.
At the post-game press conference, Hansen was more cheerful than in the past three games.
"If possible, I hope to experience nights every time."
Scoring records and the like were trivial to Hansen; winning was what he truly desired.
With the victory in Game 4, the series score was now 3-1, putting the Cavaliers at match point.
When the Cavaliers lost Game 2, there were overwhelming doubts from the outside world, but their performance in these two away games firmly silenced the critics.
It’s no wonder Hansen was so exhilarated because this time Irving truly shined.
The narrative quickly changed as, if Irving could maintain his performance, the Cavaliers’ championship was not out of reach.
However, Irving quickly contradicted himself, performing the worst of the series in Game 5, shooting 3 out of 14 and only scoring 11 points.
Thibodeau, in defense, specifically targets individual players, especially those like Irving with technical weaknesses.
The resilience shown by the Bulls in dire situations also commanded respect.
Ross, who had been mediocre, had a breakout game, shooting 10 out of 26 to earn 30 points, 7 boards, and 7 assists.
However, the game wasn’t one-sided.
As the Bulls shifted their defense toward Irving, Hansen started to become uncontrollable.
The two teams battled fiercely until the final moments.
Hansen, facing Noah, hit a game-tying three-pointer with 5 seconds left, marking his fourth 40-point game of the series.
In the final 5 seconds, Ross, using a screen from Noah, shot a bank three-pointer that went in, completing a counter-buzzer-beater.
2-3, the Bulls took the series back to Chicago.
"This is Ross’s night, he deserves this victory,"
Hansen praised Ross at the post-game press conference.
Although Ross wasn’t known for three-pointers, this is the capability of a superstar; they always manage to do the seemingly impossible when it matters most.
Just like Jordan hitting 6 three-pointers in one half of the finals, this was their night.
"But, we won’t be going back to Cleveland again."
Hansen added later. The most update n0vels are published on 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝·𝘧𝙞𝙧𝙚·𝔫𝔢𝔱
Two days later, the Cavaliers dominated the Bulls 94 to 74 in an away game, advancing to the next round 4-2.
In this game, Malone set up the Deathly Five Small from the start, and Hansen used his previous tactic from his time with the Grizzlies, defensively leading against Ross.
Under his guard, Ross only scored 9 points.
Since the Cavaliers’ offense heavily relied on Hansen, he was essentially taking a gamble.
As it turned out, he made the right bet; led by him, the Cavaliers brought out their best defense of the season, using the Bulls’ preferred style of defensive counterattack to completely overrun the Bulls.
The Bulls also exposed a weakness; their lineup with "one big, four smalls" wasn’t sufficient in the offense around Noah to punish TT inside, allowing the Cavaliers to use their small lineup as their main lineup.
However, there was bad news for the Cavaliers in this game; Irving injured his knee after colliding with Butler early in the game and had to leave after playing just 12 minutes.