Tang Tian smiled when he heard Kobe's shout, not paying it much mind.

However, Stevens, hearing it, signaled Tang Tian to take off his training suit and prepare to enter the game.

This was Stevens' respect for Kobe.

Tang Tian took off his training suit and listened carefully to Stevens' tactical arrangements.

Since he was really going to play, he would definitely go all out.

After the timeout, it was the Pelicans' last attack.

All the fans in the arena stood up.

Kobe had already scored 60 points, and as long as he defended the Pelicans' attack, his final retirement battle would be perfect.

The Pelicans inbounded the ball from the sideline in the frontcourt, and deafening shouts rang out in the arena.

"Defense! Defense!"

The Pelicans had a no-ball tactical play. The ball was passed to Dinwiddie, and Ariza and Jokic gave Tang Tian consecutive no-ball screens.

Tang Tian received the ball with 6 seconds left on the clock.

But Kobe shook off the screen and still stuck with Tang Tian.

In the final 6 seconds, everyone else spread out.

On the huge stage, only Tang Tian and Kobe were left in a one-on-one.

This was the final showdown between two great scoring guards.

The fans had forgotten to cheer.

Tang Tian took a triple-threat stance, feinted a shot, and then drove to the right.

Kobe put all his effort into the final defense, staying in front of him the whole time.

Second after second ticked away, leaving Tang Tian with less and less time.

Tang Tian broke through to the free throw line and had no choice but to shoot.

Kobe's defense was still in place.

Tang Tian chose a sudden stop, turnaround fadeaway jumper, and Kobe desperately lunged out.

The ball left his hand, passing over Kobe's fingertips, and the red light on the sideline lit up.

Everyone in the arena held their breath, silently hoping the shot wouldn't go in.

The ball spun in the air, drawing an arc.

"Swish!"

A crisp sound.

Their hopes were not realized. At the critical moment, Tang Tian showed his clutch ability as always, directly hitting a game-winning shot against the Lakers.

When Tang Tian enters the game, he goes all out!

Kobe shook his head with a wry smile after seeing the ball go in.

He had done enough with this defense, and it could even be said that no one could have done better than him.

But Tang Tian being able to make the shot really came down to individual ability.

The final whistle had already sounded, and the game was over.

The Lakers were ultimately defeated by Tang Tian's buzzer-beater, losing by one point.

In his final game, Kobe had 22-of-50 shooting, 6-of-21 from three-point range, 60 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists.

The 60 points included 22 points in the fourth quarter, as well as the 5 points that put them ahead at the end.

But perhaps the ending was already determined when he said "Go on" to Tang Tian.

Although there was some imperfection, this performance was already excellent enough.

At the end of the game, Kobe and Tang Tian shared a deep hug.

Thirteen years ago, he used a three-point foul to prevent Jordan's last All-Star Game from being perfect.

Thirteen years later, Tang Tian used a buzzer-beater to prevent his farewell game from being perfect.

Perhaps this was a kind of reincarnation.

"Kobe! Kobe!"

The fans in the arena began to shout Kobe's name, the sound deafening.

This was the loudest they had ever shouted, and it was also the last time.

Kobe reached out to the fans and sent flying kisses.

His performance on this stage had come to an end.

The photographers on the scene entered the court and began to photograph Kobe's final moments.

Just then, Tang Tian suddenly walked to Kobe's side and whispered something in his ear.

Kobe smiled and nodded after hearing it.

Then, under the watchful eyes of all the fans and reporters, the two began to take off their jerseys.

They took off their respective jerseys and handed them to each other.

Kobe held Tang Tian's number 31, Tang Tian held Kobe's number 24, and the two smiled at the camera.

Cheers erupted from the crowd.

Kobe was the best scoring guard of the previous era, and Tang Tian was undoubtedly the best of the next era.

Now they exchanged jerseys with each other, which was the relay of the scoring guard torch!

Originally, Tang Tian's buzzer-beater had prevented Kobe's last dance from being perfect, but this jersey exchange had made up for that.

This was already a perfect farewell!

After the game, fans discussed it on social media.

"From now on, there will be no more Kobe in the league! From now on, there will be no more number 24 in the league!"

"But youth will not end. Tang is our next generation idol, and number 31 will become a new league legend!"

"That scene of exchanging jerseys was the coolest scene I've ever seen. This is a moment that will be remembered forever, and that photo will become the most classic scene in history!"

"Tang's clutch ability is really not just talk. Although Stevens didn't want to go for the regular season record, after winning this game, their record has reached 73 wins, officially breaking the Bulls' 72-win record. Congratulations to them!"

"This Pelicans team has been playing unbelievably since the start of the season. Before the season, many people thought they would play worse than last season, but in the end they got 73 wins. This is a real slap in the face. Sure enough, espn knows the ball, after all, they are professionals."

"There's still a chance for 74 wins... But the Warriors are so miserable. The Pelicans won this game, and because of the win-loss record, even if the Pelicans lose their last game, even if they win their last three games, they still can't surpass the Pelicans..."

"The Pelicans have locked in the first place in the league! The Warriors are fighting like this, even if they really get 73 wins in the end, it's unimaginable in the playoffs."

"If they lose to the Pelicans, wouldn't that be..."

"73 wins, overall...bronze medal?"

"Never mind, just watch it. Two teams with 70+ wins, we are witnessing an incredible season!"

"Looking forward to it, extremely looking forward to this year's playoffs, looking forward to the clash between the two 70-win teams, it will be an epic showdown!"

……

Kobe's last dance had ended, but the Pelicans' regular season had not yet ended.

They still had their last game against the Spurs.

Now the records of the fifth to eighth seeds in the West were very close, and even if there was only one game left, there was still room for change.

But the top four had been determined: the Pelicans, Warriors, Spurs, and Rockets.

The outcome of the last game was not that important to the Pelicans and Spurs.

Stevens didn't want to go for the regular season record in the first place, and now that the record had been broken, he didn't care anymore.

Popovich on the other side was even more zen. He revealed before the game that all the starters would be rested in the last game.

This game was just going through the motions.

However, before the game started, Tang Tian made a phone call to Duncan.

The two chatted a lot. At the end, Tang Tian made a request that he was going to exchange jerseys with Duncan.

Everyone knew that this was Kobe's last season, and the whole world was paying attention.

But only Tang Tian and Duncan knew about Duncan's retirement.

Tang Tian knew that if he didn't exchange now, he might not have the chance.

Duncan agreed. Although this might reveal something, that didn't really matter to him.

Being able to exchange jerseys with his best little brother and friend in his last regular season game was a very meaningful thing for him.