Chapter 179: You Are All the Best Players in the League

Thompson's shooting was indecisive, and Curry couldn't find his rhythm.

Nash was eager to help Curry find his shooting rhythm, which affected his organization, as Curry also needed the ball.

Perhaps none of them were selfish players, but the exposed problems were too severe.

Coach Kidd's ability to adapt on the court was also greatly challenged, but this time Wade Dong didn't help Coach Kidd because he couldn't think of a better solution.

They could only slowly integrate the team.

...

The first quarter ended.

31:15!!!

The Lakers led the Suns by 16 points, the worst start of the season for the Suns.

Knowing the lineup was unreasonable, Coach Kidd still didn't make any changes. Wade Dong, Curry, Nash, Thompson, and Gortat were on the court together for over nine minutes.

Wade Dong sat on the bench listening to Coach Kidd's tactical arrangements.

Thompson's shooting was indecisive, Curry couldn't find his rhythm, and the interior defense was lacking.

There were too many exposed problems, and the whole team seemed to be sleepwalking.

But Wade Dong didn't get angry about it. The new lineup definitely needed integration, and attacking teammates or questioning the coach at this time would be the most foolish thing to do.

The second quarter began.

The Suns switched to a semi-bench lineup.

Wade Dong, Curry, McGrady, Tucker, and Frye took the court.

Similarly, the Lakers also brought in their bench players.

But the Lakers' bench was far inferior to the Suns'. After Nash rested, Curry returned to the point guard position, which helped him find some offensive rhythm.

Tucker and Frye took the court, and although the interior height was reduced, the defensive intensity increased.

Curry dribbled the ball and easily shook off Clarkson with a crossover, then made a confident layup.

"Swish!!!"

The ball went straight in.

31:17!!!

The lead was cut to 14 points.

Clarkson, who was beaten by Curry, was a bit unhappy. When the Lakers were on offense, Clarkson wanted to return the favor in the same way, but Wade Dong saw through his intentions and stole the ball from Clarkson, then dribbled straight to the frontcourt.

McGrady also followed up.

This was a fast break, and the Lakers players saw they couldn't catch up and gave up.

Wade Dong dribbled to the free-throw line, noticed McGrady following up, and threw the ball towards the rim, then ran around.

The ball hit the rim and bounced back.

"Slam!!!"

McGrady followed up, leaped high, grabbed the ball, and dunked it in!

...

"Beautiful!!!"

"Great shot!!!"

"Damn!!!"

The fans in front of the TV instantly went wild. How long had it been since they saw McGrady dunk?

At that moment, they felt like their youth had returned.

Unfortunately, the Suns were still down by 12 points, which made the fans excited but also a bit anxious.

...

This alley-oop dunk also boosted the Suns' morale.

After the Lakers missed another shot.

Curry brought the ball to the frontcourt, passed it to Wade Dong, who immediately hit a three-pointer!

"Swish!!!"

Then, Curry also hit two consecutive three-pointers.

31:30!!!

At the start of the second quarter, the Suns went on a 13:0 run and were now only down by one point.

The Lakers immediately brought back their starters.

But the Suns fans' anxiety hadn't been relieved, as Coach Kidd made a decision that no one understood!

He brought back the Suns' starters when the Lakers brought back their starters.

Tucker and Frye, who were performing well on defense, and McGrady, who was also contributing on offense, were replaced by Nash, Thompson, and Gortat.

Once the starters were back on the court, the Suns continued their first-quarter performance.

The defense was full of holes!

The offense was stuck in the mud!

Nash and Curry were trying to connect the team, Thompson lacked confidence in his shooting, which affected Wade Dong's rhythm.

There were three consecutive missed shots.

The fans were so frustrated they wanted to smash their TVs. If the fans had Coach Kidd's number, his phone would have been blown up by now.

When Wade Dong, Curry, and McGrady were on the court, they were playing so well, so why did Coach Kidd change the lineup? Did the Lakers bringing back their starters mean the Suns had to do the same?

After both teams brought back their starters, the lead was pulled back again.

Kobe focused on feeding Gasol and Howard, and the Lakers' twin towers dominated the Suns.

Wade Dong tried to play the power forward position, but when he did, there were defensive holes on the perimeter.

In the latter half of the second quarter, Wade Dong was running around plugging holes, which greatly reduced his defensive threat and also affected his offensive rhythm.

The first half ended.

57:44!!!

The Lakers still led by 13 points.

...

In the Suns' locker room.

Wade Dong had a calm expression, showing no emotion.

Coach Kidd was laying out tactics and encouraging the players. Wade Dong didn't interrupt and just sat in the corner listening.

"East Brother, do you have anything to say?"

After Coach Kidd finished, he looked at Wade Dong.

Wade Dong shook his head and only said to his teammates, "Listen to Coach Kidd."

"Our integration does have problems."

Coach Kidd added, "But I believe that you are all the best players in the league. As long as everyone works together, we will definitely find a solution."

...

Chinese live broadcast room.

Yu Jia, "At the start of the second quarter, the Suns went on a small offensive run. Zhang Coach, do you think the Suns will continue to use the lineup from the start of the second quarter?"

Zhang Coach, "The Lakers' bench depth is not enough. That lineup can work against the Lakers' bench, but it also has many problems when facing the starters."

Yu Jia, "Was the trade between the Suns and the Warriors good or bad?"

Zhang Coach, "We won't comment on whether it was good or bad, but the addition of Curry and Thompson has indeed increased the Suns' offensive options. It depends on how Coach Kidd uses these two players."

Yu Jia, "If the integration is not good, the Suns could lose this game."

"And even the championship."

Zhang Coach emphasized again.

...

The second half began.

The Suns on the court were still Wade Dong, Nash, Curry, Thompson, and Gortat.

It seemed that Coach Kidd was determined to stick with this lineup.

The fans were really unhappy. They thought Coach Kidd was useless. This lineup had so many problems, so why hadn't Coach Kidd made any adjustments?

The second quarter started so well.

However, in the second half, Thompson's shooting became much more decisive. After receiving a pass from Nash, he immediately shot a three-pointer!

"Clank!!!"

The ball hit the rim and didn't go in. The shot was decisive, but unfortunately, it didn't go in.

Wade Dong anticipated the rebound, grabbed it, then used a dream shake to fake out Howard and scored with a layup.