Yes.
Game 7 of the Finals had everything.
The Heat Big Three. "The Emperor" Blake's incredible performances. The league-wide promotion surrounding the matchup.
And above all, this was the final game that would decide the NBA championship.
The last game of the season.
The attention surrounding it was enormous.
Countless ordinary fans wanted to watch, and so did celebrities from every walk of life, turning Game 7 into an event with an All-Star crowd.
In short, everyone was waiting for this game.
Everyone wanted to see it.
...
Waiting could be agonizing, but eventually, the moment everyone had been waiting for would arrive.
Two days later, Game 7 of the 2011 NBA Finals between the Suns and Heat was finally here.
7:00 p.m.
Two hours before tip-off.
US Airways Center, the Suns' home arena, was already filling with fans.
Yes.
There were still two full hours before the game.
Neither team had even taken the court to warm up yet.
But fans desperate to witness the showdown had arrived early anyway, afraid of missing even a single moment.
Meanwhile, inside one of the arena lounges, NBA Commissioner David Stern and the "Lord of the Rings" Bill Russell had already arrived.
Several staff members were there with them.
The Larry O'Brien Trophy, the Finals MVP trophy, microphones, and everything else required for the postgame ceremony had already been prepared.
Tonight was the final game of the Finals.
The final game of the season.
Everything would finally be settled.
But who would leave with the Larry O'Brien Trophy?
That could only be decided on the court.
"Boom!"
There were still two hours until tip-off, yet the cheers from the Suns' home crowd were already echoing throughout US Airways Center.
And outside the arena, across Phoenix, throughout the United States, and even around the world, people were already going crazy.
At an office building in Phoenix, the entire staff had suddenly been told to work overtime.
It was unexpected, but hardly unusual.
For the employees who had already planned to go home and watch Game 7, however, it was devastating.
Inside the boss's office...
"Mr. Sand, can I skip overtime tonight?"
"Lite, I'm afraid not. Business has been hectic lately. If we don't stay late, we won't be able to keep up with everything.
"We'll end up getting complaints from clients, and it'll also leave a bad impression on our investors."
"But boss, I really have an emergency. My wife had a miscarriage. I have to go home and take care of her."
"What?! Then... then hurry home."
"Thank you, boss! Thank you! I won't interrupt your work any longer. I'm leaving right now."
With that, Lite immediately left the office and hurried out of the building.
The moment he stepped outside, he excitedly called his wife.
"Hahaha! Honey, I told my boss you had a miscarriage, and he let me go home!
"Now I can watch Game 7 of the Finals!
"This is awesome!
"Hahaha!"
His wife froze for a moment.
Then she exploded.
"You bastard! You told people your wife had a miscarriage just so you could watch a basketball game?!
"F**k you!
"Go watch your damn game. And don't even think about getting any action for the next month!"
Meanwhile, back inside the boss's office, Mr. Sand looked troubled.
"I was planning to have Lite handle that business dinner for me. Now he's gone home because his wife had a miscarriage, and everyone else already has something to do.
"Am I supposed to go myself?
"No way. I absolutely have to watch Game 7 tonight.
"'The Emperor' Blake against the Heat Big Three. I've been looking forward to this forever.
"But...
"That investor is important too. I can't afford to lose him.
"What am I supposed to do?"
Mr. Sand was still agonizing over the problem when an idea suddenly came to him.
He immediately made a call.
"Hello, Mr. James. I'm terribly sorry, but my mother was just in a car accident and she's in the ICU.
"I have to get to the hospital right away.
"Could we reschedule our meeting?"
"Oh, of course, Mr. Sand. I hope your mother will be all right."
"Thank you. I'm sorry about this."
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The call ended.
A smile crept across Mr. Sand's face.
"Problem solved."
...
At another internet company, employees were also working overtime that night, and no one was allowed to take time off.
Mr. White desperately wanted to watch Game 7, so he simply decided to watch it from his desk.
Of course, if he wanted to avoid being caught by his boss, he would have to master the art of frantically switching windows.
That was the only way to work overtime and watch the game at the same time.
One young employee who had only recently started working there had an even bigger problem.
He couldn't ask for time off, and he hadn't mastered the art of switching windows quickly enough to hide the game.
If he stayed, he wouldn't be able to watch Game 7.
So he simply left.
Forget the job.
He was not missing this game!
And situations like these were happening all across Phoenix and throughout the country.
For countless fans, getting to watch the game wasn't easy.
But even if it meant skipping work, cutting class, arguing with a girlfriend, lying, or sneaking away...
It didn't matter.
No matter how difficult it was or what they had to do, they were going to watch Game 7.
Nothing could stop them.
And the frenzy wasn't limited to the United States.
Fans overseas were just as desperate to watch the decisive game.
Because of the time difference, Game 7 would begin at around ten in the morning in parts of Asia, and it wasn't even a weekend.
Students would be in class.
Employees would be at work.
But even that couldn't extinguish their desire to watch the game.
At some high schools, students could only secretly follow live text updates on their phones during class.
Others simply skipped school and headed to internet cafés to watch the live broadcast.
Some schools, however, had closed campuses and wouldn't allow students to leave the grounds at all.
Did that mean they had to miss Game 7?!
Absolutely not.
How could fans this obsessed with the Finals possibly accept that?!
So some students formed small groups, skipped class, ran to the school walls, climbed to the top, and then jumped down the other side.
The walls were high.
And because the ground outside was lower, the total drop was nearly the height of a second story.
Jumping down was extremely dangerous.
But these students were so desperate to watch the game that they no longer cared.
They jumped anyway.
Fortunately, no one was seriously hurt.
Then they rushed straight to an internet café, crowded several people around a single computer, and eagerly waited for Game 7 to begin.
...
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