KG, the Villain.
After warmups ended, the starting lineups were announced amid the dazzling lights and cheers from the arena.
Cavaliers: Kyrie Irving, Han Sen, P.J. Tucker, Tristan Thompson (TT), Spencer Hawes
Lakers: Jordan Clarkson, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Channing Frye, Timofey Mozgov
One of the biggest pregame storylines was whether Kevin Garnett would start for the Cavs. After all, despite his age, Garnett had been a starter throughout his entire career, with his last bench appearance dating all the way back to his rookie season.
But Coach Malone decided to break that streak.
Garnett's legacy was already legendary. He didn't need to cling to meaningless streaks like "consecutive starts" to validate his greatness — much like Jordan never needed to brag about his 1225-game double-digit scoring streak.①
Records like those were about longevity, not true greatness.
On the Lakers' side, an interesting adjustment had been made.
Jeremy Lin was benched, replaced by Jordan Clarkson, a second-round rookie from the latest draft.
The change was likely due to Lin's poor defense on Irving in the Christmas game.
The tip-off went to the Lakers, and the game began.
The two teams knew each other well after their last encounter, so there were no surprises in how things started.
Han Sen was matched up against Kobe Bryant, while LeBron initiated the Lakers' offense.
LeBron ran a pick-and-roll with Mozgov.
The Cavs chose to double-team LeBron, but it didn't work.
Mozgov cut hard to the basket after setting a screen, and caught a bullet pass from LeBron, posterizing TT with a vicious dunk.
The entire arena erupted in cheers.
Mozgov's strengths were on full display with that play.
His lateral movement might be slow, but his straight-line speed and explosiveness were impressive for someone his size. When he jumped, it was like a bomber plane taking off.
But what stood out most was his attention to detail in the pick-and-roll.
Most players, after setting a screen, face the ball-handler to ensure they're ready to catch the pass.
Mozgov did the opposite.
He immediately turned toward the basket after setting the screen, focusing on his cut. This made him faster to the rim and better positioned to receive the pass from a playmaker like LeBron.
The Lakers scored first, drawing loud cheers from the crowd.
After all, with Chris Bosh out for the season, the Rockets' championship hopes had dimmed, making the Lakers the strongest Nike-backed team in the West.
But the cheers hadn't even died down before Irving responded in kind.
He ran a pick-and-roll with Hawes, split the defense, and hit a floater over Mozgov.
Mozgov's slow lateral movement was once again exposed. He couldn't even react in time to contest Irving's shot.
Four minutes into the game, the Cavs led 9-8.
Mozgov's offensive threat was underestimated, and the Lakers were getting favorable whistles, with four of their eight points coming from free throws.
But Irving was on fire, shooting 4-for-5 to start the game, scoring six points early on.
LeBron attacked Hawes again, drawing his second foul, sending Hawes to the bench.
As Hawes checked out, a sharp whistle blew from the Cavs' bench.
Kevin Garnett stood up to sub in.
The arena erupted into a wave of boos.
But those boos weren't out of hatred — they were a form of respect.
Decades of rivalry with LeBron and Lakers fans had earned Garnett that reaction.
LeBron hit one of two free throws, tying the game.
On the next possession, Kobe switched onto Irving.
The Lakers' decision to start Clarkson was to contain Irving, but Irving always seemed to turn up against the Lakers.
Han Sen brought the ball up the court.
Garnett came up to set a screen.
Even though Garnett didn't have Hawes' size, his screens were on another level.
He lowered his center of gravity, set a solid pick on Mozgov, and then popped out to the free-throw line.
With Han Sen's scoring threat, the Lakers had no choice but to send two defenders after him.
But this wasn't just a double-team — the Lakers had tried to engulf Han completely, taking away both his scoring and passing lanes.
It didn't matter.
Han lowered his shoulder, pulled off a sudden deceleration move, and created space.
Then, with a flick of his wrist, he fired a no-look, behind-the-back pass to Garnett.
The crowd gasped in astonishment.
Garnett caught the ball, glanced around, and seeing no one rushing at him, calmly rose up for his signature free-throw-line jumper.
Swish!
His first points in a Cavs jersey.
It came faster than expected, but that's because his fundamentals hadn't vanished with age.
As they ran back on defense, Garnett and Han shared a high-five.
Garnett's jump shot was still money, provided he got good looks. His athleticism might have waned, but his technique was evergreen.
The Lakers went back to LeBron-Mozgov pick-and-rolls.
Once again, Mozgov's screen was solid, leaving LeBron with a favorable switch against Garnett.
LeBron drove, lowered his shoulder, and knocked Garnett back.
But he hesitated after the first contact.
That moment of hesitation gave Garnett just enough time to recover.
As LeBron went up for the shot, Garnett swatted it off the backboard.
The ball went out of bounds, but it was still Lakers' possession.
Garnett pounded his chest and let out a primal roar.
He then turned to TT, who was nearby, and chest-bumped him with ferocious intensity.
For a moment, the fans caught a glimpse of the old "Big Ticket."
TT, now hyped, let out a roar of his own.
Garnett wasn't just spewing trash talk — on the court, he was pure passion personified.
The Lakers inbounded the ball, and LeBron chose to post up Tucker. After a quick spin, he powered his way toward the basket. But when he saw Garnett rotating over, he hesitated, passing the ball to Kobe on the perimeter instead of taking the easy layup.
There were only three seconds left on the shot clock when Kobe received the pass. He had no choice but to take a contested jumper over Han Sen, and the ball rimmed out.
The crowd murmured in disbelief.
Garnett, at 39 years old, had just shut down LeBron James twice in a row.
It seemed unbelievable. But the issue clearly wasn't Garnett — it was LeBron.
Maybe seeing Garnett triggered memories of those Celtics teams that used to bully LeBron. Or maybe years of losing to Han Sen had eroded his confidence.
Regardless, LeBron wasn't himself. A more aggressive LeBron, especially with tonight's whistle-happy officiating, would've dominated the game.
But here's what made it interesting — Kobe didn't complain.
Kobe wouldn't hesitate to call out LeBron's defensive lapses, but when it came to last-second bailout passes, he only blamed himself for not converting the opportunity.
In that way, LeBron and Kobe were oddly perfect teammates.
Back on offense, Han Sen ran another pick-and-roll with Garnett.
This time, the Lakers adjusted their defense, refusing to leave Garnett open. Han took full advantage, splitting the defense and driving past Mozgov for a layup while drawing a foul from the big man.
Kobe was pissed.
He grabbed Mozgov during the stoppage, laying into him.
"Either don't foul at all, or foul hard enough to make sure he doesn't get the and-one!"
It was a lesson from the Jordan era.
Why did Michael Jordan face so many brutal fouls in his career?
Because soft fouls only put him at the free-throw line after already scoring. If you fouled MJ, you made sure he felt it.
As Han Sen lined up to take his free throw, LeBron wandered over to chat with Garnett, who was standing on the same side of the lane.
"You shouldn't have come to Cleveland," LeBron said, sounding concerned but clearly aiming to mess with Garnett's mindset. "It's brought you a lot of hate."
LeBron's trash-talking game had leveled up.
But Garnett wasn't fazed. Instead, he bent down to adjust his shorts, acting like LeBron hadn't said a word.
Then, with LeBron looking puzzled, the referee handed the ball to Han Sen for his free throw.
And right at that moment, Garnett dropped the bombshell:
"If you were in Cleveland… I wouldn't have come."
Clang!
Han Sen's free throw clanked off the front of the rim.
Garnett's words caught Han completely off guard.
Damn it, KG!
Han barely suppressed a laugh as he realized the pure villainy of Garnett's trash talk.
He used to think he was the bad guy. Now he knew — Garnett was worse.
Luckily, Garnett boxed out perfectly and secured the offensive rebound.
He tried to go up for a putback, but without his old explosiveness, he couldn't get a clean shot off. Frye rotated over, forcing Garnett to kick the ball back out.
Except Han Sen didn't catch it.
Instead, he spiked it volleyball-style to TT, who was wide open in the paint.
It was an unbelievable display of fingertip control.
The Lakers' defense had collapsed on Garnett, and then scrambled toward Han.
But nobody saw TT.
Boom!
TT slammed it home with both hands, then let out a primal roar, releasing all the pent-up energy Garnett had stirred up earlier.
Suddenly, with Garnett on the floor, the Cavs transformed into a team full of fire and intensity.
And the biggest change?
Their defense.
The Cavs weren't known for defense, but Garnett's presence had them playing with unprecedented urgency.
Back on defense, Mozgov set a screen, leaving Garnett matched up against LeBron again.
This time, LeBron avoided the paint, settling for a pull-up mid-range jumper.
Garnett lunged at him, even though it was clear he wouldn't reach the ball.
Still, LeBron's shot fell short — way short.
Airball.
TT boxed out Mozgov while Han Sen grabbed the rebound.
And before the Lakers could react, Han launched a fast break.
Kobe picked him up, shadowing Han from baseline to baseline.
Just as Han approached the free-throw line, he extended the ball toward Kobe, as if offering it to him on a silver platter.
When Kobe's attention locked onto the ball, Han pulled it back and dished a no-look pass to the trailing Kyrie Irving.
Layup. Bucket.
17-9.
Since Garnett entered the game, the Cavs had gone on an 8-0 run.
The Lakers called timeout.
The crowd buzzed with excitement and confusion.
Not just because of the Cavs' scoring burst, but also because of the replay flashing on the Jumbotron.
Han's no-look pass looked eerily familiar.
It was the kind of control and creativity they'd only seen from one other player in Lakers history.
"Magic" Johnson.
Han already possessed elite scoring. Now he was throwing Magic-level passes?
How the hell were you supposed to defend that?
What next? Try to "emotionally connect" with Han like Byron Scott's strategy against MJ?
"Nice shot, Han."
"Good pass, Han."
...
As the timeout ended, LeBron's face darkened.
He wasn't mad about the game — he was fuming over what just happened during the timeout.
You see, during the break, Kobe had his own "pep talk" for LeBron on the bench.
When the game resumed, LeBron came out aggressive, immediately driving into Garnett and drawing a foul.
Kobe pounded his chest, giving LeBron a nod of encouragement. And it worked — LeBron seemed more confident.
At the free-throw line, Garnett didn't let up.
"Hey Kobe, you guys planning to beat us with ten times the free throws?" he smirked.
Han couldn't hold back. He burst out laughing.
It was a double-edged barb.
Kobe hated relying on free throws. Even during the infamous Lakers-Grizzlies playoff series, when refs blatantly helped LA, Kobe never chased fouls.
But LeBron thrived on whistles. Without them, his efficiency took a hit.
So Garnett's jab hit both of them.
LeBron's first free throw clanged off the rim.
And then Han Sen joined in.
"Kevin, ten times? Nah… fourth-quarter makeup calls are coming. You know the drill. Not everyone watches the whole game."
This time, Garnett laughed so hard he nearly doubled over.
Clang!
LeBron's second free throw missed as well.
Two missed free throws.
It was effectively a turnover.
Watching it all unfold, Kobe suddenly realized something.
Garnett hadn't just brought defensive energy to the Cavs.
He'd created a monster duo of trash-talk titans.
This wasn't just basketball anymore.
This was psychological warfare.
...
Garnett grabbed the defensive rebound and immediately pushed the ball in transition.
Han led the fast break and delivered another perfect pass, but Kyrie missed the shot.
Still, Han followed up and tipped the ball in.
The lead ballooned to double digits.
Kobe had enough.
He started to aggressively call for screens, using pick-and-rolls to get separation.
He finally managed to draw a foul on Garnett after slashing into the lane.
Just then, the LED scoreboard displayed the foul count for both teams.
Including Kobe's two upcoming free throws, the Lakers had already attempted 10 free throws in the first quarter.
Meanwhile, the Cavaliers had taken only one — the and-one Han had missed earlier.
10 to 1.
The number on the screen was so blatant that even Shaquille O'Neal — a Lakers legend — couldn't stay quiet in the commentary booth.
"This is ridiculous!" Shaq growled. "You can't call the game like that! You're making the Lakers players look like… well… b*tches!"
Shaq understood why the refs might favor the Lakers tonight. Nike's hopes in the West all rested on the Lakers now.
But this was way too obvious.
"They might as well put the refs in Lakers jerseys and just declare them the winners right now," Shaq added sarcastically.
"They wish."
Barkley jumped in, grinning.
"Trust me, they wish they could do that. But the real problem is that tonight's Lakers just can't get it done."
As Barkley spoke, he pointed to the scoreboard.
The Lakers were still down by 10 points, even with a 10-to-1 free throw advantage.
"Ten times the free throws, but still down by 10?"
Tonight's Lakers were making history — just not the kind they wanted.
-End of Chapter-
①: Kevin Garnett holds the record for 1381 consecutive starts, placing him third in NBA history, behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1560) and Karl Malone (1443).