Garnett truly talked trash, but he played with real passion on the court as well.
The Lakers threw in from the sideline, and James chose to post up Tucker. After turning around, he broke toward the basket but gave up the scoring opportunity close at hand when he saw Garnett coming to help defend, tossing the ball to Kobe on the outside.
When Kobe caught the ball, there were only 3 seconds left. Facing Hansen, he couldn't make the shot when he tried to defuse the bomb.
The crowd stirred.
It was somewhat incredible that 39-year-old Garnett could still consistently defend against James.
However, clearly, the problem lay with James himself.
He might have been reminded of the old Celtics when he saw Garnett, or maybe he was unsettled by years of playing against Hansen, but he clearly lacked confidence.
Had he been more decisive, given tonight's refereeing standards, the outcome would have been completely different.
