Chapter 302: He's Going to Pass

"If only we had five of Big Brother Dong," Coach Gentry thought to himself as the score tightened. "Point guard Dong, shooting guard Dong... center Dong, with a lineup like that, the NBA would be over."

Coach Gentry wasn't worried about the narrowing score; instead, he was delighted, thinking, "Point guard Dong, shooting guard Dong... center Dong, with a lineup like that, the NBA would be over."

Wade Dong was unbeatable at every position, but he couldn't be in multiple places at once.

Before the start of this season, Coach Gentry had discussed with Wade Dong, who reluctantly agreed to switch from shooting guard to point guard.

This adjustment maximized the strength of the 'Death Lineup', allowing Curry to play shooting guard and focus solely on scoring, leaving the playmaking duties to Wade Dong.

The Suns now led by only 5 points, 64:59.

"Protect the offensive rebounds, I'll take care of the defensive rebounds!" Wade Dong instructed his teammates as he retreated on defense.

Wade Dong and Durant guarded Gasol and Howard, while also protecting the defensive rebounds. Green was pulled out to defend Kobe, but Thompson continued to guard Harden.

During halftime, Harden promised his teammates that he would regain his form soon.

However, basketball wasn't just about talking; in the second half, Harden remained in a daze, missing three shots. If not for Howard's effort to grab the offensive rebound and score on the putback, the Lakers wouldn't have been able to close the gap.

Green defended Kobe, and he had a tendency to use some sneaky moves on defense.

But these moves didn't affect Kobe, who faked a drive, spun, and then took a fadeaway jumper.

Swish!

The ball went straight through the net.

The score was now 64:61, and the Lakers trailed by only 3 points. The Suns fans started to feel anxious, thinking Coach Gentry should call a timeout.

However, when the camera panned to Coach Gentry, the fans saw him unscrewing his thermos, blowing away the tea leaves, and taking a sip, looking quite content.

After scoring, Kobe pointed at Green's nose and taunted, "Your defense is trash; get me Dong!"

"Hehe..."

Wade Dong saw this scene and smiled.

Kobe's sudden taunt was probably because Green had used some dirty tricks while defending him.

Many players in the league had dirty defensive habits, and the superstar players were the ones who felt it the most. When a defender couldn't stop them, they would resort to other tactics. Wade Dong had even been intentionally tripped in the previous season's Finals.

Carter from the Suns was another example; if he hadn't been tripped, his decline might not have been so rapid.

Wade Dong despised these dirty tactics but didn't mind others using them. Almost every game, someone would try to use dirty tricks when defending him, and the best way to respond was to dominate them, which was what Kobe was doing to Green.

The Suns had the ball.

Wade Dong dribbled to the frontcourt, and Howard came out to defend him, only to be easily crossed over.

Swish!

Wade Dong flicked his wrist, and the ball landed in Thompson's hands beyond the three-point line.

Swish!

Curry caught the pass and drained the three-pointer.

The Suns led 67:61.

On the Lakers' next possession, Gasol missed a shot, but Wade Dong grabbed the offensive rebound and passed it to Durant.

Durant caught the ball and, with his long strides, drove for an easy fastbreak dunk.

The Suns extended their lead to 69:61.

The Lakers attacked again, but Harden's shot was contested by Thompson and bounced off the rim.

Gasol and Howard jumped for the offensive rebound, but Wade Dong's quick release allowed him to beat Howard to the ball, leaping with a graceful 'Nine-Sky-and-Moon' pose.

Wade Dong secured the rebound, holding the ball close to his chest.

"Defense! Defense! Defense!"

The home crowd went wild, and the excitement of grabbing the rebound between the Lakers' two big men was even more thrilling than a dunk.

"Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.!"

The cheers in the Western Arena were enough to shake the roof.

After grabbing the rebound, Blake tried to steal the ball from behind Wade Dong, but Wade Dong deftly spun away.

Wade Dong quickly dribbled to the frontcourt and passed to Durant, who scored an easy three-step layup.

The Suns led 71:61, and Coach D'Antoni called a timeout.

The fans, who had been anxious about the Suns earlier, now praised Coach Gentry's wisdom. If he had called a timeout when the lead was down to 3 points, it might have disrupted the team's rhythm.

Timeout

Coach Gentry patted Gortat on the shoulder, "You'll be subbing in soon. Let Thompson rest for a bit."

"There are still seven minutes left in this quarter. After the timeout, the Lakers might start double-teaming Dong, so you and Curry need to step up and take some pressure off him."

"Okay, Coach!" Curry replied.

"Got it, Coach!" Durant said.

"Hehe, but double-teaming won't stop Dong either." Coach Gentry unscrewed his thermos. "This Da Hong Pao tea has a rich flavor."

By this point in the third quarter, four Suns players had scored in double digits: Durant with 17 points, Wade Dong with 10, Curry with 13, and Thompson with 14. Besides them, Carter had 9 points, and his plus-minus was the highest on the team.

On the Lakers' side, Coach D'Antoni instructed, "We need to push the pace in transition, and when we have a shot, take it decisively.

On defense, keep your eyes on Dong. Watch out for his passes; his passing ability is just as deadly as his scoring."

Since Durant's arrival, every player in the Suns' starting lineup had exceptional scoring ability. To stop this scoring machine, you had to start with its engine, and that engine was Wade Dong.

After the Timeout

As expected, the Lakers began double-teaming Wade Dong.

Farmar and Harden started the double-team defense on Wade Dong from the backcourt.

Wade Dong dribbled with some flashy moves, shaking off Harden and Farmar, but by the time he reached the three-point line, only 7 seconds were left on the shot clock.

Wade Dong planted his feet behind the three-point line and pulled up for a three-pointer.

Harden and Farmar rushed to defend, while Howard and Gasol prepared to fight for the rebound. All the Lakers' players focused on Wade Dong.

Coach D'Antoni noticed something odd about Wade Dong's shooting posture and shouted, "He's going to pass! Watch Durant!"

"What?!"

Kobe, hearing Coach D'Antoni's shout, turned to look, only to find that Durant, whom he was supposed to be guarding, was gone.

Wade Dong jumped, but instead of shooting, he flicked his wrist and threw a precise pass to Durant, who caught the ball and easily scored a reverse layup.