Chapter 333: January 27th
Coach Kerr, "..."
...
After the late-night snack, Coach Zhang was escorted to a hotel for rest.
Wade and Li Jiajia quietly returned home.
At this hour, everyone in the house was asleep...
Moreover, with so many people visiting, all the rooms were occupied, so it made sense for Wade and Li Jiajia to share a room.
"I'll take a shower first. If you're tired, go ahead and sleep."
After Li Jiajia spoke, she took her pajamas and headed to the bathroom.
"Ah..."
Wade yawned, "I'm really tired. I'll go to sleep first, so don't disturb me later."
"Hmm..."
Li Jiajia softly acknowledged.
After she finished showering, she tiptoed to the bed, lifted the covers, and lay down beside Wade, hugging one of his arms as she prepared to sleep.
"Ah..."
Wade suddenly flipped onto Li Jiajia, "The Pelicans were too weak. I didn't even need to exert much effort, and they were already defeated..."
"Can't you be gentler?"
"No."
"Be careful..."
...
This year's Chinese New Year's Eve and Spring Festival were spent in Phoenix, but compared to last year, the house was much livelier. However, it seemed that not everyone was there just to celebrate the holiday with Wade.
On the second day of the Chinese New Year, the entire family took the opportunity of the Suns' away game in Los Angeles to charter a flight to Los Angeles for a vacation.
...
On January 27, 2014, six years later, on January 27, 2020, the Suns were set to face the Lakers in an away game.
Kobe Bryant had been plagued by injuries in the past two seasons, causing him to drop from third to seventh in the scoring rankings at the beginning of the season. Midway through the season, Kobe had to rest for three weeks due to an injury, causing him to miss several games.
However, for this game, both the Lakers and the Suns had their full squads.
Before the game, Kobe walked over and greeted Wade with a bow, "Happy New Year!"
"Happy New Year!"
Wade returned the greeting with a smile.
The starting lineups for this game were:
Suns: Wade, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green.
Lakers: Kobe Bryant, James Harden, Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard, and Steve Blake.
"Beep!!!"
With the sound of the referee's whistle, the game began.
The Lakers got the ball first, and Blake, before even reaching the frontcourt, passed the ball to Harden.
Harden dribbled with consecutive crossovers, getting past Thompson, and Green stepped up to provide help defense.
At this moment, Howard found an open position under the basket, and Harden immediately lobbed the ball towards the rim.
"Clang!!!"
Howard jumped and caught Harden's pass, finishing with a one-handed dunk.
The Suns' offense.
Wade signaled Green to set a pick, and after getting past Kobe, Wade flicked the ball to Curry.
"Swish!!!"
Curry lifted his hand and sank a three-pointer.
Score: 3-2!!!
Both teams started the game with excellent performance.
At the beginning of the season, the Lakers' Big Four had significant chemistry issues, losing seven of their first twenty games, and their record dropped to sixth in the Western Conference.
However, under Mike D'Antoni's coaching, the Lakers' Big Four gradually developed chemistry, and before this game, the Lakers had won seventeen consecutive games.
The first quarter continued until the seventh minute.
Score: 19-25!!!
The Suns were trailing by 6 points.
Alvin Gentry made a substitution, replacing Wade and Thompson with Whiteside and Carter.
...
This was a common tactic used by Gentry. When the Suns were trailing in the first quarter, he would substitute Wade, allowing him to rest for a few minutes. Then, in the second and third quarters, Wade would take over the game.
The Lakers also substituted Howard and Kobe.
The game continued...
Curry dribbled to the frontcourt and passed the ball to Durant, letting him play one-on-one.
The Suns players created space for Durant to operate.
Facing Gasol's defense, Durant made a large-scale front crossover, creating space for a jump shot.
"Swish!!!"
The ball went in smoothly.
Score: 21-25!!!
The Suns were still trailing by 4 points.
Subsequently, Harden missed a step-back three-pointer.
Whiteside grabbed the defensive rebound and passed the ball to Curry, who dribbled to the frontcourt, evaded Blake's defense, and, instead of taking the open shot, passed the ball to Durant.
Durant went one-on-one against Gasol again.
He continuously dribbled between his legs, causing Gasol's defensive center of gravity to become unstable. Seizing this opportunity, Durant quickly got past Gasol and drove to the basket for a dunk.
Score: 23-25!!!
Mike D'Antoni stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed over his chest, silent.
The Lakers' offense.
Harden dribbled to the frontcourt and organized the attack. Seeing Gasol moving towards the basket, Harden faked a drive and passed the ball to Gasol, who caught the pass and scored with a high-arcing shot!
Score: 23-27!!!
This season, under Mike D'Antoni's system, Harden took on more of a point guard role.
This season, Harden averaged 25.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 8.9 assists per game, leading the Lakers in both scoring and assists. It's safe to say that Mike D'Antoni unlocked Harden's potential.
The Lakers had a record of 38-8, ranking second in the Western Conference, just 1.5 games behind the 39-6 Suns.
...
With one minute left in the first quarter, Gentry substituted McGrady for Curry.
"McGrady!"
Just before McGrady entered the game, Wade suddenly called out to him, "I saw a comment online saying that your ability to break through defenses is not as good as Harden's."
"Huh?"
McGrady furrowed his brows and walked towards the court.
Gentry asked Wade, "Did someone really say that about McGrady? How come I didn't know about it..."
"You know I don't usually go online."
Wade shrugged, "I was just making a casual remark."
"Damn~"
Several teammates on the bench almost fell to the ground upon hearing Wade's explanation.
Apparently, the fan who commented that McGrady's ability to break through defenses was not as good as Harden's was none other than Wade himself.
"That's a good trick. It's like a toxic chicken soup."
Gentry secretly noted this in his mind, as he had discovered a new way to motivate his players.
After McGrady entered the game, his drowsy eyes seemed to open wide.
He called for the ball in the mid-range, and Durant passed it to him. McGrady caught the ball and executed a behind-the-back dribble, followed by a step back.
After creating space for a shot, McGrady didn't choose to shoot.
Instead, he accelerated and drove past Marshall, who was defending him. He then broke through the defense of the Lakers' two big men and drove to the basket for a layup.
"Oh yeah~"
Wade vigorously waved his towel, "McGrady, you're awesome!"
In this play, McGrady dribbled past Harden, broke through Marshall's defense, and scored a layup despite being defended by the Lakers' two big men.
It was a one-on-four play!
Even though McGrady was past his prime, he still displayed his dominance on the court.
Score: 29-33!!!
The Suns trailed the Lakers by 4 points.