"We can't shoot anymore. "
James knew that at this point, although they could still run, their shooting accuracy was off, and the most reliable way to score was to go for layups.
James received the pass from Paul and tried to break through Tucker's defense.
Unfortunately, Tucker had only played for less than 10 minutes in this game and had plenty of energy, while James had played almost the entire game, and his energy was significantly depleted.
James attempted a layup against Tucker but missed!
Gortat grabbed the defensive rebound again and passed it to Wade.
The four-on-one offense in the frontcourt continued...
Wade stopped suddenly and made a jump shot amidst the four defenders.
115:111!!!
One minute had passed in overtime, and the Heat had yet to score a point.
Moreover, neither team had any timeouts left, so Spoelstra couldn't even give his players a rest.
Anthony's mid-range shot missed!
Durant grabbed the rebound and passed it to Wade.
Wade quickly dribbled to the three-point line, shook off Anthony's defense, and attempted a three-pointer.
"Swish!!!"
The ball went straight through the net.
118:111!!!
At this point, the game was no longer in doubt.
...
"Beep!!!"
As the referee blew the whistle, overtime ended.
127:115!!!
The Suns narrowly defeated the Heat by 12 points at home, and in overtime, they outscored the Heat 16:4!
This game once again showcased Wade's strength to the fans.
From the last 56 seconds of the fourth quarter until the end of overtime, the Suns scored a total of 25 points, including the 9 points in the final moments of the fourth quarter and the 16 points in overtime, all of which were scored by Wade alone.
Game Stats:
Wade: 65 points, 13 rebounds, 15 assists, 5 steals, 3 blocks.
Durant: 21 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 block.
James: 27 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, 1 block.
Wade: 21 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 0 blocks.
Anthony: 30 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks.
Bosh: 22 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 steals, 2 blocks.
Paul: 15 points, 3 rebounds, 12 assists, 3 steals, 0 blocks.
The Heat's bench players didn't score a single point... Of course, they had very limited playing time.
...
"This time, we lost to you alone."
After the game, James hugged Wade and said, "No one in the league can beat you now."
Wade joked, "Do you want to come to the Suns? We can fight side by side."
"That's a good suggestion, but I'd rather beat you!"
James waved his hand and chatted with Wade for a while before heading to the locker room.
In this game, the Heat had a chance to win, and they had dominated the Suns for most of the game. Unfortunately, in the last minute, Wade made three three-pointers and a block to force the game into overtime.
After entering overtime, the Big Five's energy became an issue, and Wade ultimately sealed the game.
Wade had scored 40+ points in four consecutive games, including two 60+ point performances, making fans realize that Wade was aiming for the scoring title.
...
This epic Christmas Day showdown between the Suns and the Heat finally came to an end, with the Suns emerging as the winners of the Christmas Day game.
Post-Game Interview:
It was the usual session of praising Wade, and after listening to the reporters' compliments, Wade left the arena.
He had originally planned to invite James and the others for dinner that evening.
However, they were all eager to go home for Christmas, and the Heat flew back to Miami right after the game.
Wade drove home alone.
The festive atmosphere of Christmas made Wade miss the Spring Festival, which was the holiday he truly wanted to celebrate.
...
Li Jiajia was also about to arrive in Phoenix soon.
Thinking of Li Jiajia, Wade suddenly felt a bit homesick.
There was no game the day after Christmas.
The next game against the Rockets was a home game for the Suns.
Wade calculated the time and realized he could still make it back to Yanjing for dinner, so he turned his car around and headed to the airport.
"Hello, please help me get the fastest ticket to Yanjing."
"Okay..."
The busty ground staff replied absentmindedly, but when she looked up, she was surprised and covered her mouth, "Oh my god, are you Wade?"
"Yes, it's me."
Wade smiled and nodded, "Please help me get the fastest ticket to Yanjing."
The busty ground staff showed her fangirl expression, "Is your game tonight over? Did you beat the Heat?"
She seemed to be a fan, knowing that the Suns were playing the Heat tonight.
"A narrow victory, I guess..."
"You're too humble!"
The busty ground staff said, "You must have dominated James..."
"No."
Wade waved his hand, not wanting to chat with the busty ground staff, and urged again, "Please help me get the fastest ticket to Yanjing."
"Idol, can you give me an autograph?"
The busty ground staff didn't even listen to Wade and came out from behind the counter, calling her colleagues, "Brother Dong is here, everyone come and take a photo with him!"
Wade: (▼ヘ▼#)
As soon as she said that, a crowd of people rushed out, all wanting to take a photo with Wade, while complimenting him, "Brother Dong, you're the hero of our city."
Usually, when players travel for away games, they take chartered flights and don't go through the process of buying tickets.
Wade was a bit annoyed, but he humored them and urged, "Please help me get the ticket first, okay?"
"Of course, no problem!"
The busty ground staff felt satisfied and finally started working, "If you want to get to Yanjing as fast as possible, you'll need to transfer in Los Angeles. I can help you book both flights!"
Wade nodded, "Sure, thanks."
After booking the tickets, the busty ground staff pulled Wade through the special passageway to board the plane, saying, "The plane is about to take off. Follow me, Brother Dong, don't miss the boarding time!"
"Hehe~"
Wade smiled.
M Country always boasts about democracy, but they're pretty good at cutting in line and taking shortcuts. Still, it saved Wade a lot of time.
...
After boarding the first-class cabin, Wade reclined his seat, took a fashion magazine, and covered his face to sleep.
The total journey time, including the transfer in Los Angeles, was nearly sixteen hours. By the time Wade landed in Yanjing, it was already evening.
"It's a bit cold..."
Wade wore only a thin jacket as he left the airport, hugging his jacket tightly and muttering, "But without the jingling music, it feels so comfortable."
Many people were pointing at Wade.
A little girl even gathered her courage and asked, "Are you Wade?"
"We do look very similar."
Wade smiled and shook his head, "But I'm not Wade. Wade is still playing in M Country."
"That's true..."
The little girl even stretched out her hand to compare heights with Wade, "But you two are so alike, the same height, the same handsomeness... Can I take a photo with you?"
"Of course!"
Wade agreed, as he was waiting for a taxi anyway, and it was too much trouble to refuse.
The little girl, having received Wade's consent, asked her companion to help take the photo. She even held Wade's arm and leaned on his arm, looking sweet.
Wade, "???