Mechanized Descent.
At halftime, the Cavaliers held a commanding 58-43 lead over the Lakers, a 15-point margin.
The Cavaliers had shot an impressive 7-of-14 from three-point range, boasting a 50% accuracy.
Kyrie Irving was the primary contributor to the Cavaliers' strong first-half performance. He made 9 of his 11 field-goal attempts, converted 7 of 8 free throws, and racked up a game-high 27 points.
...
"Do you want this game to end with everyone mocking you for not earning that damned respect? Or do you want to join me and win this damned game?!"
In the players' tunnel, Kobe Bryant cornered LeBron James against the wall.
After enduring a stifling first half, Kobe's emotions finally erupted.
This was the first time Kobe had lost his composure since LeBron joined the Lakers.
LeBron didn't answer but lowered his head.
Only at halftime did he realize something—the entire half, he wasn't comparing himself to Han Sen anymore. Instead, he was locked in a battle with the younger Kyrie Irving—and he lost, badly.
All LeBron wanted now was for the game to end quickly so he could escape to Diddy's party, where the madness would help him forget everything.
"Hey! Look at me! Who are you?"
Kobe's glare was intense.
"You're LeBron! Where is the LeBron who didn't want to be the next Kobe?"
LeBron finally looked up. Kobe's words awakened memories buried deep within him.
Seeing the change in LeBron's eyes, Kobe knew his message had gotten through.
"Listen, I won't demand you guard Han anymore. Just be yourself, but give it everything you've got. We cannot lose like this!"
...
When the second half began, the arena was awash in Christmas spirit.
The commentators were busy recapping the first half and predicting the game's trajectory.
"Kyrie proved tonight he's more than just an exhibition-game star," Charles Barkley praised Irving.
Last season, Irving had surprised many by winning All-Star MVP as the leader of a struggling team. That performance earned him the label of a "showtime player."
"If nothing unexpected happens, the Cavaliers will wrap this up in three quarters, and everyone can head home for Christmas—including Kobe and his Lakers," Shaquille O'Neal jabbed, not missing an opportunity to diss Kobe.
When LeBron and Kobe teamed up in the summer, Shaq was as shocked as anyone.
"Why can't Kobe just relax and play out the next two years before retiring? Why push for 6 > 5 at 36 years old?"
As they spoke, players from both teams returned to the court to warm up, and the second half began shortly after.
...
Both teams stuck with their starting lineups, but the defensive matchups had shifted. The Cavaliers tasked Han Sen with guarding LeBron.
The Cavaliers started with possession, and Kobe matched up defensively against Han.
Kyrie attacked aggressively, and Jeremy Lin, responding to Kobe's halftime rant, upped his defensive pressure. However, Kyrie exploited this with a drive that drew a foul.
"Stop fouling!" Kobe barked at Lin.
Kyrie calmly sank both free throws, pushing the Cavaliers' score to 60 and the lead to 17 points.
Kobe answered immediately, utilizing a pick from Varejão to get open for a mid-range jumper off a LeBron pass.
Defensively, Cavaliers coach Michael Malone quickly signaled for Han to switch back to guarding Kobe.
...
Irving continued to attack and was one basket away from a 30-point game. Despite Lin's improved discipline, Kyrie used his ball-handling skills to beat him to the basket.
But just as the ball kissed the backboard, a figure soared in and pinned the shot against the glass.
The crowd erupted. The player delivering the emphatic chase-down block? LeBron James.
LeBron grabbed the defensive rebound and hurled it downcourt to Kobe, who pushed the pace in transition with Han chasing close behind.
Kobe suddenly dished the ball back. Han turned to see LeBron, who seemed reinvigorated.
Sensing the change in LeBron's energy, Han adjusted to defend him, but LeBron passed the ball back to Kobe, who finished with an acrobatic layup.
The score was now 60-47, with the Cavaliers still holding a 13-point lead, but the Lakers' energy hinted at a comeback.
On the next possession, Han handled the ball against Kobe's intense defense. He managed to beat Kobe off the dribble, but the pressure gave the Lakers time to collapse on him. Han found Tristan Thompson under the basket, but Varejão took the charge, drawing an offensive foul.
The boos from the crowd were palpable.
It was clear the Lakers' halftime locker room had sparked a transformation. Their energy was entirely different.
Malone quickly subbed in Dante Cunningham for Thompson.
On defense, he shouted instructions to his players.
Kobe attacked off a pick-and-roll with Varejão, drawing a double-team before feeding Varejão for a layup. The Lakers kept chipping away.
Han resumed his role as the Cavaliers' playmaker. Despite a well-timed pass to an open Andrea Bargnani on the perimeter, the shot missed.
Han secured the long offensive rebound, drove to the basket, and drew a foul on Kobe. He sank both free throws to stabilize the Cavaliers' lead.
...
Back on defense, Han switched onto Kobe, tracking his every move.
LeBron initiated a pick-and-roll with Channing Frye, dishing to Frye for a clean three-pointer, which he drained.
Han countered with another precise pass, this time to P.J. Tucker in the corner, but Tucker's three-point attempt also missed.
LeBron grabbed the defensive rebound and fired a long pass to Lin, who scored on a fast-break layup.
The score was now 62-54, and the Lakers had cut the deficit to single digits. Malone called a timeout.
The crowd was buzzing.
"The Cavaliers' perimeter shooting has cooled off—a troubling sign," Barkley observed.
"This one-star, four-shooters system crashes when the outside shots stop falling," Shaq added.
Out of the timeout, Malone adjusted the lineup, subbing in Spencer Hawes and J.R. Smith for Bargnani and Tucker.
This time, Han posted up Kobe in the high post.
Rather than forcing an outside shot, Han leaned on his fundamentals. He caught the ball, reset his pivot foot, and launched a turnaround fadeaway.
Despite Kobe's best effort to contest, Han's height and shooting arc were unassailable.
Swish!
Han's basket reignited the home crowd.
When the outside game falters, they still have Han.
"Defense! Defense!"
The chants roared through the arena as the Cavaliers prepared to fend off the Lakers' comeback.
However, the cheers from the crowd quickly died down as LeBron James backed down J.R., spun toward the basket, and forced a foul on Spencer Hawes under the rim.
Amid the deafening boos from the crowd, LeBron calmly sank both free throws.
In the second half, the Lakers made tactical adjustments. Whichever player Han Sen guarded, they had someone else initiate the offense—exactly mirroring the Cavaliers' strategy against Kobe Bryant in the first half.
In fact, comparing the two teams closely, you'd notice striking similarities in their setups this season: both had relatively weak interiors and relied heavily on a dual-core approach.
Han Sen took the ball on offense again, backing down Kobe Bryant.
This time, LeBron moved in from the strong side to help with a double-team.
However, before LeBron could close in, Han Sen spun toward the free-throw line and pulled up for a fadeaway jumper over Kobe.
Swish!
Han Sen demonstrated his terrifying scoring consistency, sinking yet another mid-range shot.
"Don't forget, the Cavaliers have Han! This is what Han does!" Barkley shouted enthusiastically from the commentary booth.
Cavaliers coach Michael Malone pumped his fist in excitement from the sidelines.
Han Sen's offensive decision-making was nothing short of brilliant.
Instead of forcing his way to the rim, where the Lakers would inevitably collapse on him given the Cavaliers' cold shooting from outside, he capitalized on the value of the mid-range.
As the crowd roared with defensive chants, LeBron charged toward the basket again. This time, Han Sen stepped up to help defend.
LeBron passed the ball to Varejao, but Varejao's contested layup was stuffed by Hawes and swatted directly into Han Sen's hands!
Han quickly launched a pass to Kyrie Irving, who raced down the court in transition, finishing with a smooth gliding layup for his 31st point of the night.
56–68.
Thanks to Han Sen's dominance on both ends, the Cavaliers steadied themselves.
But the Lakers refused to back down. Kobe capitalized on Han's rotation to help, finding an opening and nailing a mid-range jumper off LeBron's pass at the free-throw line.
After the shot, Kobe and LeBron high-fived with intense, determined expressions.
In this moment, the Lakers' key to a second-half comeback became evident.
Kobe had embraced LeBron's arrival, just as he stated during the summer. He wanted to make one final championship push in the twilight of his career.
He wanted 6 > 5. He wanted to win!
Han Sen continued to back down his defender on the next possession, but the Lakers switched to an aggressive double-team early.
The Cavaliers' spacing gave Han the freedom to attack from mid-range, but with the Lakers ignoring Cleveland's cold-shooting perimeter players, they focused all their energy on stopping Han.
Han kicked the ball out, this time to Hawes at the arc.
Hawes launched a three… and missed again!
The Cavaliers' shooting struggles in the second half resembled the infamous Rockets' playoff woes against the Warriors in "history."
The rim seemed sealed.
But!
As the ball bounced high off the rim, Han Sen appeared in the frame alongside it.
After passing out of the double-team, Han had stayed near the basket, battling Kobe for position. Predicting the rebound's trajectory, he shoved Kobe aside and exploded into the air.
Boom!
Grabbing the rebound mid-bounce, Han slammed it back in with a thunderous one-handed dunk!
Kobe could only watch as Han completed the putback right in front of him, hanging on the rim with one hand for emphasis.
For a moment, the arena fell silent. Then, an eruption of cheers followed, quickly transitioning into a unified chant:
"Who's your daddy!"
This was Cleveland's signature chant—an ode to Han Sen.
In the second half, both Kobe and LeBron stepped up their games significantly, fully showcasing their abilities.
But as Han Sen had once said: 23 + 24 is less than 77!
The chant electrified the Cavaliers' energy. On the next Lakers possession, Kobe's jumper was disrupted by Cunningham's help defense.
On offense, Han brought the ball to the three-point line.
Despite the crowd's frenzy, he remained composed, his mind clear. The Lakers' aggressive double-teams and Cleveland's continued cold shooting made post-ups less viable.
Directing Hawes to space out further from the top of the arc, Han faced Kobe with a series of dribbles.
As the Lakers prepared another early double-team, Han suddenly faked a hard step, forcing Kobe to retreat slightly. Capitalizing on the space, Han gathered the ball and pulled up for a three.
Kobe scrambled to contest, but it was too late.
Han's shot rhythm was impeccable.
Though cold shooting could be contagious, Han's prior mid-range makes confirmed his touch was unaffected.
Or rather, Han's scoring consistency was on an entirely different level.
The ball arced through the air with a smooth backspin.
Swish!
The shot crashed through the net like a cannonball.
58–73!
The lead was back to 15 points.
Kobe's expression turned slightly helpless after seeing the shot fall.
Not far away, LeBron removed his mouthguard and shook his head.
The Lakers called a timeout.
On the arena's LED screen, Han Sen's third-quarter stats were displayed:
4-for-4 shooting, 1-for-1 from three, 2-for-2 on free throws—11 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block.
When the Cavaliers' other players were struggling, Han single-handedly halted the Lakers' momentum.
This scene reminded everyone of Game 6 from last season's Finals—the "steam-powered" Han Sen.
Han Sen, the Terminator Descends!