Chapter 355: Turning Anger into Strength

With this, Curry's mindset became more relaxed.

Swish!!!

Swish!!!

Swish!!!

The first three shots all swished through the net, and Curry had scored 25 points.

Lillard let out a bitter laugh. He was eliminated, and with two balls left and 5 seconds remaining, Curry picked up the fourth ball but didn't shoot. Instead, he paused for a second and looked at Lillard.

This had a hint of provocation.

To some extent, all the Suns players were influenced by Dong's aggressive style, and they welcomed such provocations, only to slam dunk on their challengers.

However, while Curry had the skills to do so, Green did not.

Swish!!!

G~~~

Curry made the fourth shot but missed the fifth.

With this, Curry's score was locked at 27 points, and the scores of all six contestants were finalized.

Johnson: 17 points

Irving: 24 points

Love: 21 points

Lillard: 23 points

Green: 2 points

Curry: 27 points

The two highest scorers, Curry and Irving, would advance to the finals to compete for the Three-Point Contest championship.

...

Lillard was eliminated, but the Three-Point Contest was primarily for entertainment, so losing wasn't a big deal. With Dong and Curry's personalities, they wouldn't deliberately mock Lillard. Green wanted to say something to Lillard, but with his score of 2 points, he didn't feel he had the right to do so.

If not for Lillard's bold statement before the contest, he wouldn't feel embarrassed now, and he might even have congratulated Irving and Curry on advancing to the finals.

As a rookie, Lillard had some skills but was a bit arrogant. Before entering the league, he had publicly stated that veterans like Nash and Kidd were no longer his rivals.

The order of appearance in the finals was determined by the scores in the preliminary round, so Irving was the first to take the court.

Irving and Curry had participated in the Three-Point Contest last year, but with Dong's presence, they both missed out on the championship.

Before Irving took the court, Dong whispered something to Green, who then walked up to Irving and quietly said, "Actually, the Earth is round."

"What?!"

Irving turned to look at Green, puzzled.

Then, Irving prepared to shoot.

Beep!!!

As the whistle sounded, Irving began shooting.

G~~~

G~~~

Irving's shots were a bit off, and the first two balls hit the rim.

"Huff..."

Irving took a deep breath, adjusted his state, and started shooting again.

Swish!!!

He made the third shot!

Swish!!!

The fourth shot also went in!

Irving was finding his rhythm and getting better...

At the next three spots, Irving missed only four shots. With this, Irving had scored 17 points at the first four spots, a very good score.

Irving placed all five money balls at the last spot.

"Huff... Huff..."

At the last spot, Irving took another deep breath before starting to shoot.

Swish!!!

Swish!!!

...

Swish!!!

He made all five shots at the last spot, scoring 27 points.

"Oh yeah!"

The audience erupted in cheers. A score of 27 points was very high, and the pressure on Curry was suddenly immense.

Green pouted. "Brother Dong, your idea doesn't seem to be working."

"Hehehe..."

Dong laughed. "Irving's worldview was challenged, and he turned his anger into strength, leading to an exceptional performance."

Irving was very satisfied with his score of 27 points and returned to the audience with a smile, even pointing at Green and teasing him. "Brother Dong, this foolish man actually told me the Earth is round."

Dong: "Huh?"

Green: "Huh?"

Dong had initially thought that Irving's worldview was challenged, and his anger fueled his exceptional performance. But it turned out that in Irving's eyes, Green was just a foolish man, and Irving's confidence came from believing that he and Dong were on the same side.

"Ahem..."

Dong coughed twice and said, "Well, Mr. Irving, I also think the Earth is round."

"What?!"

Upon hearing Dong's words, Irving was stunned, as if struck by lightning. This was the state Green had wanted to put him in when he whispered, 'The Earth is round' in Irving's ear.

Without waiting for Irving to respond, Curry was already preparing to shoot.

With a score of 27 points, the pressure on Curry was immense. He had to make all the money balls to have a chance at surpassing Irving. If he missed two money balls, it would be difficult to catch up.

Beep!!!

As the whistle sounded, Curry began shooting.

Swish!!!

G~~~

...

Swish!!!

At the first spot, Curry made four out of five shots, including the money ball.

Dong furrowed his brows. Curry was in trouble, as he had only scored 12 points, and there were only 16 points left on the court. This meant Curry could afford to miss only one shot, and it couldn't be a money ball. If he missed a money ball, he could score a maximum of 26 points.

"Yeah..."

Irving had already stood up from the audience, ready to celebrate.

Curry placed all five money balls at the 45-degree angle and ran over to grab the first ball to shoot.

Swish!!!

It was Curry's familiar rhythm.

Swish!!!

Swish!!!

Swish!!!

Swish!!!

He made all five money balls! Curry had scored 22 points.

Curry moved to the baseline, and Dong also stood up, with Durant and Green on either side of him. They were all feeling tense.

...

Hua Xia Live Stream.

Yu Jia: "It's the last shooting spot! Wow, Curry's first shot is a money ball?"

Zhang Zhidao: "He made it! !!"

Yu Jia: "That's amazing! He made six money balls in a row!"

...

No one expected Curry to start with a money ball at the last shooting spot and make it.

Adding the five money balls at the 45-degree angle, Curry had made six money balls in a row, bringing his score to 24 points. He only needed to make the last four balls, worth one point each, to tie with Irving.

If he made all four, Curry would win the Three-Point Contest championship.

Curry's shooting touch was hot, and he didn't make any adjustments for the last four balls. He just picked them up and shot.

Swish!!!

"Wow!"

Swish!!!

"Wow!"

With each shot Curry made, the audience erupted in cheers.

For the last two balls, Curry maintained the same rhythm, picking them up and shooting.

Swish!!!

He had scored 27 points, tying Irving.

For the final shot, Curry still had 5 seconds left, which was plenty of time... But Curry still didn't make any adjustments. He grabbed the ball and shot.

The ball traced a beautiful arc in the air.

Swish!!!

The ball swished through the net.

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

After another three seconds, the time finally ran out.

Curry had made all ten shots at the last two spots, scoring 16 points and bringing his total to 28 points. He broke the Three-Point Contest record and defeated Irving to win the championship.

"Amazing!"

Dong and the other two rushed to hug Curry, celebrating with him.

Curry raised his right hand, and at this moment, he was the king of three-pointers.

"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

"Clap! Clap! Clap!"

James and the others also stood up and applauded Curry.

...

Hua Xia Live Stream.

Yu Jia: "Curry made ten shots in a row to eliminate Irving!"

Zhang Zhidao: "This year's Three-Point Contest was fantastic."

Yu Jia: "The Dunk Contest is coming up next."

Zhang Zhidao: "Dong vs. James, the most anticipated event of this year's All-Star Weekend."

Yu Jia: "James is a very versatile player, but in terms of dunking, I think he's not as good as Dong."

Zhang Zhidao: "Isn't Dong versatile?"

"Oh?"

Yu Jia was suddenly enlightened. "Ahahaha or..."

...

After the Three-Point Contest, there was also the award ceremony for Curry, which lasted for a while.

About twenty minutes later, the camera cut to the players warming up for the Dunk Contest.

This year's Dunk Contest had six participants: George, Wall, Lillard, Terrence, James, and Dong.

The most anticipated player was undoubtedly James. Before Dong entered the league, James was the undisputed best player in the league, and his physical attributes were off the charts. He frequently showcased powerful dunks during games, and fans were eagerly anticipating his performance in the Dunk Contest.

Having Dong in the competition would also bring out the best in James.

Bang!!!

Bang!!!

These players were warming up by dunking on the court, with moves like between-the-legs, 360-degree spins, and one-handed windmills... all classic dunking styles.

The most low-key players were Dong and James, whose warm-up dunks were the simplest. After warming up, James even walked to the bench and took a sip of water from a large thermos.

After the players finished warming up, the arena lights dimmed, and the host began introducing the contestants.

"From the Trail Blazers, Lillard..."

"From the Raptors, Terrence..."

"..."

The host introduced each player, who would then run to the center of the court in a unique entrance. For example, when introducing Terrence, he came out wearing a boxing robe and had his teammates carry a championship trophy for him.

"Ahahaha..."

"Terrence is preparing his own trophy?"

"Look closely, it seems to be last year's trophy."

"Did he steal Brother Dong's trophy? Brother Dong, you should go home and check if there's a thief..."

...

After Wall and George were introduced, the host paused for a moment before shouting, "From the Miami Heat, LeBron James!"

"James!"

"James!"

"James!"

The audience began chanting James' name, showing his immense popularity. None of the previous contestants had received such a response.

James walked to the center of the court, and the audience fell silent. Then, James roared, "e on!"

"Hahaha..."

This roar immediately made Bosh and Wade, who were sitting on the sidelines, burst into laughter. James was imitating Bosh's roar.

"e on!"

The audience responded to James with their own roars.

"Hahaha..."

The atmosphere in the arena reached its peak, and after the host laughed, he shouted in his loudest voice, "Let's welcome the defending champion of the Dunk Contest, from the Phoenix Suns, Dong!"

"Brother Dong!"

"Brother Dong!"

"Brother Dong!"

This time, the audience's cheers lasted for a long time...

...

Hua Xia Live Stream.

Yu Jia: "Brother Dong's popularity in M Country is off the charts!"

Zhang Zhidao: "Yes, Dong is the only Chinese basketball player to achieve this level of popularity."

...

After the introductions, the Dunk Contest was about to begin.

This year's Dunk Contest had five judges: Jordan, Johnson, Wilkins, Dr. J, and Carter.

The rules for this year's Dunk Contest were relatively simple. The competition was divided into two rounds. In the first round, each player had three dunk attempts, which were scored by the judges. The two players with the highest combined scores from their two best dunks would advance to the finals.

Even before Dong took the court, Jordan held up a zero-point sign and shouted, "Dong, this is your score for tonight!"

"Heh..."

Dong shrugged and held up two fingers. "I only need two dunks."

"Amazing! You're the man, Brother Dong!"

Carter gave Dong a thumbs up, and this showmanship deserved full marks.

The order of appearance in the first round was: Lillard, Wall, Terrence, George, James, and Dong.

Lillard was the first to take the court, and Dong was the last.

...

Yu Jia and Zhang Zhidao were also providing commentary for the Dunk Contest.

Yu Jia: "Lillard is the first to take the court. I hope his performance in the Three-Point Contest doesn't affect his state."

Zhang Zhidao: "Lillard isn't good at dunking. He hasn't had more than ten dunks this entire season."

Yu Jia: "It's really difficult to beat Brother Dong in dunking."

Zhang Zhidao: "Lillard is at a disadvantage when it comes to dunking against Brother Dong. In terms of height, wingspan, and vertical leap, he can't compare to Brother Dong."

Yu Jia: "Lillard is preparing for his first dunk. Oh, this one is quite creative."

...

Lillard's first attempt.

He stood at the sideline and tossed the ball towards the basket before rushing in to catch it and perform a mid-air half-spin.

G~~~

His first attempt failed, as the ball hit the rim and bounced out.