The Sixers had just inbounded the ball when, suddenly, the referee's whistle echoed through the arena. The players looked around, puzzled.
Tang Lei had locked his arms around Ben Simmons, who had only just received the ball. Seeing this, the crowd erupted in laughter. Tang's move was unmistakable—they were employing the "Hack-a-Simmons" strategy.
Simmons looked confused, having expected to simply receive the ball for a routine transition. Coach Brown, on the other hand, looked like he was about to explode. In such a crucial moment, how could they risk inbounding to Simmons? The man's poor free-throw shooting was no secret.
Tobias Harris, the one who had inbounded to Simmons, shrugged helplessly. The other players were already downcourt, and Simmons had been his only nearby option. He hadn't anticipated that Tang would swoop in so aggressively.
With Simmons sent to the line, the home crowd unleashed a wave of jeers. The first free throw, as expected, clanged off the rim. Simmons regrouped, trying to steady himself, but the Warriors, already positioning for a rebound, weren't worried. Sure enough, the second shot missed, and the Warriors, out-rebounding Embiid, regained possession.
Tang pushed up the court, facing a closely guarding Butler. Without hesitation, he launched a three-pointer from two steps behind the arc, and once again, the ball found the net.
124–129. The lead had shrunk to just five points, with Tang hitting a blistering four of four from deep since returning—singlehandedly igniting a 12–2 run.
"Timeout!" Coach Brown called his final timeout, sensing the momentum slipping. If they didn't adjust now, the Sixers' once-dominant lead could vanish.
On the Sixers' bench, Brown made the call to sub Simmons out. With Tang firing on all cylinders, the Sixers couldn't afford to keep a non-shooter on the floor. Frustrated, Embiid kicked over a chair as he sat down. To be outplayed by a rookie, with Tang dropping an astonishing 48 points, felt humiliating.
Before the game, Embiid had dismissed Tang as inconsequential. Now, not only was Tang leading a furious comeback, but he was also doing it on Embiid's home turf, nearly single-handedly dismantling the Sixers.
Back in the Tencent Livestream
The chat was ablaze:
"GOAT Tang! Absolutely clutch!"
"Four threes in a row! Is this real life? He's bringing us a miracle!"
"Embiid's fuming, haha! Kicked over a chair like a sore loser."
"Five-point difference, but with only 1:50 left. Can they pull this off?"
"Of course! Believe in the Thunder King!"
"Exactly! At this pace, Tang could probably score 24 more in a minute!"
The game resumed, with Butler taking the ball up for the Sixers. Brown had substituted Simmons with Saric, whose shooting had been red-hot earlier.
With Butler controlling the pace, the Sixers ran the clock down, chewing up precious seconds. At the final five-second mark, Butler drove, dishing to Saric, who then passed it back to Butler for an open three. Butler shot with confidence, sending the ball arcing toward the rim. The crowd held its breath as the ball sailed through the air, then sank cleanly into the net.
124–132. The Sixers were back up by eight with only 1:31 left.
Iguodala inbounded to Green, who pushed up the court, looking for Tang. Butler clung to Tang, but through quick cuts, Tang eventually freed himself for a pass. However, the Sixers instantly doubled him. Tang quickly kicked the ball out to Green, left open. Hesitating, Green considered passing but found Curry tightly guarded by Harris. Out of options, he took the shot himself.
Another miss. Embiid grabbed the rebound, and the Sixers regained control.
Butler ran down the clock once again before pulling up for a three-pointer, looking to seal the game with one final shot. If he hit it, the game would be all but over. But the shot rattled out.
Tang snatched the rebound, glancing at the clock. With less than a minute remaining, he darted upcourt. Butler met him at midcourt, but Tang faked left with a smooth crossover, slipping past Butler and pulling up from three-point range in one fluid motion.
Fans leaped from their seats, breath held, as Tang once again took aim.
What's uppp Guys! It has been a week, I want to thank yall for supporting my new book, Thank you guys so much for putting your time into it!!!
I would appreciate any reviews or comments! Again, huge thanks to yall!