Chapter 191: Showdown.
What transpired on the court left many of the spectators, especially the celebrities sitting courtside, absolutely stunned.
Take Chris Paul, for example. His first reaction was relief—thankful that the Grizzlies hadn't pulled this stunt during their games against the Lakers; otherwise, he'd surely be taking a few hits himself.
Of course, plenty of others were actually thrilled by it.
Like Carmelo Anthony, who could barely sit still. To him, throwing punches on the Finals stage, securing a place in history, was more exhilarating than winning a championship.
Even Jackie Chan was there, bouncing his leg restlessly, eyeing the empty chairs nearby like he was tempted to perform one of his signature moves.
The arena was roaring with mixed reactions—boos, jeers, and fists pumping in the air. After all, it had been a while since fans had witnessed a real courtside scuffle, especially in the Finals. The stakes were sky-high.
Given that this was a crucial Finals game, the arena wasn't just packed with fans and athletes, but also with league officials.
Pat Riley of the Heat and Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace were both present, as well as league commissioner David Stern and deputy commissioner Adam Silver.
Stern had clearly shown up to keep an eye on things, to prevent any 'unforeseen events.' But now, something unforeseen had definitely happened—way beyond what he had anticipated.
For years, Stern had come down hard on violent incidents, taming the players to a point where he could confidently control the league.
Back in the day, with players' tempers, the refs wouldn't have made it through halftime before a full-blown fight broke out.
Moreover, questionable officiating typically only stirs up trouble when it's fresh in people's minds.
Over time, history tends to smooth things over, and newer fans won't know the specifics. Stern and LeBron were, in this regard, aligned in approach.
But what unfolded on the court tonight was something Stern had never anticipated. And with the Finals on live TV, this was an absolute nightmare. His face was as black as a thundercloud.
Fuming, he mentally cursed the Grizzlies' management and coaching staff for their inability to control their players. He muttered a few directives to Silver, who immediately left his seat.
Finally, the courtside security and staff managed to break up the scuffle, with the players being herded back to their benches.
On his way to the bench, Han Sen patted Bibby and Faried on the shoulders.
Their plan in the locker room hadn't been complicated: flip the table if they had to, but never abandon the game. To balance things, they'd decided to throw the Heat off by using bench players, just like Popovich might.
The original plan was to send in Bibby and Haddadi, players outside the main rotation, whose ejections would cost the team the least. But Faried had volunteered, not wanting to miss a chance to go after LeBron.
Bibby was more than willing too.
After all, he wasn't the only one whose career had been sidelined by LeBron's tactics. Back when he joined LeBron as a veteran, he'd ended up being benched despite his role as a starter, much like Jason Williams.
He had burned his last energy for the Heat, with his career-high three-point percentage, hoping to end on a high note before retiring. But LeBron's tactics had soured the whole experience.
Of course, he wanted a chance to get back.
Then there was Johnson—his move wasn't planned. Pure instinct.
The game entered a technical timeout.
Wallace and Silver approached the Grizzlies' bench, pulling Joerger aside.
Joerger played innocent. "I have no idea why things escalated this way." And, to be fair, he truly didn't know Han's exact plans.
The rotation changes—subbing in Faried and bringing veteran Bibby for experience—were within reason.
The Grizzlies' tactics mirrored the notorious style of Joey Crawford's whistle-blowing: everyone knew something was off, but no one could prove it.
If this conflict had come from the Grizzlies' coaching staff, pressuring Joerger would have sufficed.
But now, it looked like player-driven rebellion—far harder to control. There's a saying, after all: "You can't punish everyone at once."
Finally, Bibby, Faried, and Johnson were called over.
"I just want a fair game," Bibby said firmly, explaining his motives.
"I feel the same," Faried agreed, his massive frame radiating defiance when Silver turned to him. Johnson merely nodded.
"If the officiating had been consistent, none of this would've happened," Bibby added pointedly.
Veterans like Bibby may not contribute much on the court anymore, but they are the only ones who can handle situations like this off the court.
After all, they're at the tail end of their careers, with little to threaten them.
"I agree," Faried echoed, utterly fearless.
Johnson nodded again.
Silver frowned, feeling the full weight of the threat, a very real one. The Grizzlies weren't just flipping the table—they were ready to push it over.
Even Silver had to admit the Grizzlies' defiance was brilliant. They still had a full bench to use, despite key players being sidelined [1].
Reluctantly, Silver agreed to Bibby's conditions after a quiet exchange with Stern.
Stern clenched his fists; the Grizzlies were testing him, but he nodded, putting tonight's game first.
Silver walked to the scorer's table for a quick discussion with the ref, Foster.
After a drawn-out timeout, the final ruling came in.
LeBron and Chalmers each received a technical foul. Wade, Haslem, Johnson, and Bibby received flagrant 2 fouls and were ejected.
Surprisingly, Faried only got a technical foul for rushing the court—since LeBron had shoved him before he could retaliate.
With the ruling, the Grizzlies had swapped out two role players in exchange for two of Miami's key players, including Wade.
Fun fact: Flagrant fouls and technical fouls accumulate separately [2], so Faried could stay in the game despite one of each.
Miami fans were gutted. But you couldn't accuse the refs of favoritism; after all, the Grizzlies' players were penalized, too.
Meanwhile, Han and Rudy Gay had stayed entirely on the sidelines, watching the commotion from afar.
But the real kicker? After the brawl, Miami's whistle advantage vanished. And with Gasol sitting out due to foul trouble, Faried was free to wreak havoc.
As the third quarter ended, the Grizzlies not only overcame their deficit but surged ahead, closing with an 83-70 lead—a staggering 33-16 quarter in Memphis's favor, all without Gasol on the floor.
Miami opened the fourth with a desperate rally, narrowing the lead to seven.
But once Joerger put the main rotation back in, the Grizzlies' momentum, particularly from a rested Gasol, crushed any hope of a Miami comeback.
The Heat fans could feel the despair, their eyes anxiously darting between the court and the scoreboard.
Then, out of nowhere, Han isolated LeBron again, cutting through Miami's defense like he was withdrawing cash from an ATM.
Miami's head coach, Erik Spoelstra, looked conflicted. He ought to bench LeBron, spare him the humiliation. But doing so would only make Spoelstra the scapegoat.
The Grizzlies swiftly pulled ahead, and in a last face-off, LeBron collapsed, clutching his leg in pain. It looked like cramps, and he was escorted off, not returning to the game.
With LeBron out, Miami's spirit was shattered.
In the end, the Grizzlies walked away with a 106-91 victory, taking a commanding 3-0 lead in the Finals.
As the buzzer sounded, the Grizzlies surrounded Han, chanting in celebration. A 3-0 lead was unthinkable to come back from—it was essentially over.
All this, thanks to Han.
Without him, Memphis might have been robbed by the refs or lost their cool, leading to ejections and suspensions.
Either way, it would've left the door open for Miami to steal the series. But now? Han had shut it.
In their excitement, the Grizzlies hoisted Han onto their shoulders, tossing him up in celebration, a scene usually reserved for international championships.
The photographers rushed to capture the iconic moment, a scene that would go down in NBA history, akin to Han Sen's leap onto the scorer's table.
"Miami has no chance," Shaquille O'Neal muttered, watching the Grizzlies' celebration.
"You might be right. The Heat couldn't break the Grizzlies' morale, and now their own spirits are in tatters. They're being outsmarted, outplayed. If I were Spoelstra, I'd be completely lost too," Barkley agreed.
...
After the Grizzlies' unique post-game celebration ended, both teams went through the customary handshakes.
This time, James wasn't heading down the players' tunnel as a defeated player. Instead, he seemed to embody the spirit of France in surrender, having left the court early.
When it was Bosh's turn to shake hands, Han Sen couldn't resist commenting as he noticed the unmistakable look of frustration on Bosh's face.
"Is he really worth sacrificing for?"
Bosh, visibly dejected, couldn't answer. The defeat had forced both him and Wade to reconsider their futures.
At the post-game press conference, Han and Conley attended together.
The reporters' main focus was naturally on the altercation during the second half.
After all, this scale of commotion during the Finals was unprecedented in NBA history.
Even if we include the entire playoffs, the last time something comparable happened was likely in the 1997 Knicks vs. Heat series, when Jeff Van Gundy famously held on tightly to Alonzo Mourning's leg in a brawl.
"We're no 'bad-boy' team," Joerger defended his players.
Thanks to Han Sen's maneuvering, Joerger wasn't directly implicated in the conflict and thus was well-positioned to speak on the matter.
"The inconsistent officiating tonight left our players frustrated. Players are human, and sometimes they lose control, but that shouldn't lead to violence on the court," Joerger said artfully.
"Han, after the game against the Lakers, you mentioned, 'If they keep up the biased calls, we can't guarantee that we'll play well.' Did you follow through on that tonight?" asked an ESPN reporter, digging a big hole for Han Sen.
"Did I say that?" Han Sen showed off his selective amnesia with shameless flair.
After the reporter confirmed he had, Han Sen shook his head and said, "I recall my exact words were 'if the next game.' Clearly, that game is over. And you know, I've always been a very clean player. If you don't believe me, just check my technical foul record."
Han Sen's playful rebuttal left the reporters stumped.
Though Han Sen had a history of sidelining Ginobili and landing a controversial kick on LeBron, those were ruled unintentional.
The key point was that no Grizzlies starters were involved in tonight's altercation, Han Sen included.
"Now that the team has a 3-0 lead, just one step from the championship, what's your next goal? Are you aiming for a sweep?" a TNT reporter asked.
"Of course. One of my biggest inspirations was the 2007 Finals, where Tim Duncan cemented himself as the league's greatest. I'd like to achieve the same."
And with that, Han Sen and the Grizzlies took one step closer to history.
-End of Chapter-
[1] The NBA originally allowed only 12 active players on the roster. However, to manage potential injuries during the shortened post-lockout season, the active roster was expanded to 13 players.
[2] Flagrant fouls are categorized into two levels: a Flagrant 1 and a Flagrant 2. Accumulating two Flagrant 1 fouls or one Flagrant 2 foul results in ejection from the game. Similarly, accumulating two technical fouls also leads to ejection.
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