Chapter 527: Wade Dong and LeBron James Share All-Star Game MVP

Inside the arena, it felt as if the sound of helicopters was echoing.

LeBron jumped from two steps away from the basket, catching Wade Dong's pass while still ascending, his forehead already above the rim.

"Bang!!!"

LeBron slammed the basketball down into the hoop.

"Beep!!!"

The referee's whistle blew.

The timing was perfect; if LeBron had received the ball even a moment later, the game clock would have run out, and he wouldn't have been able to complete the game-winning shot.

Wade Dong certainly could have scored himself, but in an All-Star game, it's all about excitement and thrills... This alley-oop game-winner was undoubtedly more spectacular than Wade Dong making a three-pointer.

150:148!!!

Thanks to LeBron's dunk, the Western All-Stars defeated the Eastern All-Stars.

"Wow!!!"

The crowd erupted!

In the end, Wade Dong still hadn't taken a single shot, but his final alley-oop assist to LeBron would become one of the most classic moments in All-Star history.

"Brother Dong!!!"

After completing the game-winner, LeBron excitedly rushed over to Wade Dong.

Wade Dong couldn't dodge in time and was lifted off the ground by LeBron, who spun him around twice. Wade Dong stood at 1.98 meters (about 6'6") with a well-proportioned build but weighed nearly 200 pounds. Yet LeBron lifted him effortlessly.

"Oh my~~~"

Wade Dong wanted to kick away from LeBron; two grown men playing around like this looked quite bizarre and filled with camaraderie.

"Hahaha..."

Both the audience and players on the court laughed heartily.

Game Stats:

- Wade Dong: 0 points, 7 rebounds, 31 assists, 3 steals, 1 block

- LeBron James: 46 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks

- Stephen Curry: 32 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists

- Dwyane Wade: 42 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists

- Kyrie Irving: 30 points, 1 rebound, 9 assists

....

After the All-Star Game concluded, some players were curious and asked: "Was that a tactic you guys discussed?"

"No."

Wade Dong shook his head with a smile, "I just missed my shot and accidentally got an assist."

Although Wade Dong denied it, everyone knew this was no coincidence.

The big screen replayed LeBron's alley-oop game-winner; everyone noticed that Wade Dong's last action was a pass. But how did he know that LeBron would rush to the basket?

When Wade Dong took his shot, LeBron was still outside the three-point line.

As the basketball flew past Wade Dong's fingertips, LeBron began running toward the basket and accurately anticipated where the ball would land. Achieving this is incredibly difficult; it seemed as if they had practiced it many times before.

In fact, if one looked closely, they would see that when Wade Dong released his shot, both Griffin and Curry were also running toward the basket; however, LeBron had judged the ball's landing spot best.

The All-Star Game had ended; regardless of victory or defeat, all players were happy since it was just an entertainment event where everyone gathered to enjoy themselves.

Some players were holding their children while others chatted together. Only Wade Dong walked over to where media representatives were gathered.

"I think you should vote for LeBron."

As media representatives were still voting for this year's All-Star Game MVP, they heard this unexpected comment from behind them.

"Hello, Brother Dong..."

The reporters looked up and greeted Wade Dong.

....

The MVP winner for this year's All-Star Game had yet to be announced as everyone awaited the results.

Fans watching on TV also stayed tuned in.

LeBron scored a total of 46 points with 11 rebounds; in the final moments he scored seven consecutive points including an alley-oop game-winner. By tradition, the MVP of the All-Star Game should be awarded to LeBron.

However, Wade Dong had racked up an astonishing 31 assists.

How incredible is it to have 31 assists? In this game, only four players scored over 30 points: LeBron, Curry, Wade and Irving. Wade Dong's assist count exceeded those players' scoring totals. Plus this set a new record for assists in an All-Star Game!

It could be said that at least 75 points scored by the Western All-Stars were directly related to Wade Dong's contributions.

LeBron had already stopped thinking about winning MVP; given Wade's remarkable assist total of 31—he too would likely share MVP honors with him.

The announcement for this year's All-Star MVP took longer than usual.

About twenty minutes later, Adam Silver stepped onto the court to announce that tonight's All-Star Game MVP would be jointly awarded to both Wade Dong and LeBron James.

"Huh???"

Wade Dong had expected this result; however, LeBron found it somewhat surprising.

But having both players share MVP honors wasn't unprecedented. A few years back there was a similar instance with Kobe and Shaquille O'Neal when they shared MVP honors after "burying their hatchet."

For fans, this was undoubtedly the most satisfying outcome.

In this game, both LeBron and Wade Dong connected on numerous spectacular plays together. Moreover, half of LeBron's scoring came from Wade's assists.

Fans were most looking forward to highlights of Wade's assists—his elusive passes leading to an impressive total of thirty-one assists without a single turnover!

Passes to Griffin...

Passes to Aldridge...

Passes to LeBron...

Passes to Curry...

Fans admired Wade Dong's imaginative playmaking skills while being astonished at his remarkable achievement of thirty-one assists with zero turnovers.

"MVP!"

"MVP!"

"MVP!"

Amidst cheers from the crowd, Wade Dong and LeBron raised their All-Star Game MVP trophies together.

....

After the All-Star Game concluded, schedules became tighter and more intense.

Team trades became more frequent; some teams decided to tank while others fought for playoff spots. The stronger teams aimed for home-court advantage in playoffs.

The Suns were far ahead in first place but faced immense pressure as they aimed for an ultimate record of eighty wins in regular season play—a pressure that surpassed all other teams in the league—constantly taxing players' physical and mental endurance.

This led to increasing injuries within the Suns team. Fortunately their medical staff was highly capable; ensuring all players remained healthy for playoffs meant any small injuries required observation before returning to play again.

Except for Wade Dong and Warick...

It became common for other Suns players to sit out due to injuries.

With such high-intensity games even Wade Dong couldn't hold up... Although he claimed to be a basketball god he wasn't truly invincible after all.

In what would be their second-to-last regular season game,

the fully healthy Suns lost to a Trail Blazers team led by Lillard and Aldridge.

79 wins and 2 losses!!!

The Suns had already broken their own record of seventy-four wins in regular season play.

However after losing that game...

The Suns felt a sense of relief as if a heavy weight had been lifted off their shoulders; surprisingly after losing their performance improved—a rare occurrence indeed!

With only one last regular season game remaining ahead of them—the Suns flew off to Minnesota where they would face off against the struggling Timberwolves at their home court.

This would be not only their final regular season battle but also Kevin Garnett's retirement match!