Bab 215: Chapter 215: Basketball Isn't About Social Etiquette
"Great job!"
Gentry held the tactical board and said with satisfaction, "Keep up this momentum! Let's go!"
This game garnered a lot of attention.
Even Iverson and Hill were on the sidelines to cheer for the Suns. If the Suns won tonight, they would secure their 72nd victory of the season, tying the Bulls' record.
End of timeout.
Weyns replaced Odom, and Paul organized the offense, passing the ball to Weyns before breaking free from Green's defense and driving to the baseline.
Jordan set a screen for Paul, blocking the path of the incoming Wade Dong.
Paul reached the basket and passed the ball to Weyns, who took a jump shot.
Swish!!!
The Clippers scored their first field goal of the game.
Score: 12-2!!!
The play was executed successfully.
The Suns regained possession, and Curry dribbled to the frontcourt, passing the ball to Wade Dong, who returned it to Curry for a three-pointer.
Swish!!!
Score: 15-2!!!
Four minutes into the first quarter, the Suns were still shooting with a perfect percentage.
This shooting percentage couldn't last, and as Curry and Wade Dong started missing shots, the Suns' accuracy began to drop.
However, the point differential didn't shrink; it gradually widened.
With five minutes left in the first quarter, the Suns substituted their starters with Nash, Middleton, Thompson, Gortat, and Frye.
The Suns often employed this five-on-five substitution strategy.
"Tang Tang..."
Before Thompson took the court, Wade Dong whispered in his ear, "Our 69-point differential record has been broken!"
"Dong Ge, what are you thinking??"
Thompson widened his eyes in disbelief.
Before the game, Wade Dong had been muttering about this. In the players' minds, the Grizzlies' 73-point differential record was unbreakable. Their 69-point victory over the Warriors was already a miracle!
The main reason they achieved it was that the trades involving Curry and Thompson had left them with a chip on their shoulder. Additionally, Gentry knew Dragic, Bynum, and Dudley well, making the Suns a nightmare matchup for the Warriors. But this game was against the Clippers!
Wade Dong smiled and said, "You guessed right; that's what I'm thinking."
"You must be crazy!"
Thompson shook his head and walked onto the court.
The Clippers also substituted Paul for Billups.
With this lineup, the Clippers had no chance against the Suns' bench.
However, as soon as the game resumed, Billups assisted Butler for a mid-range jumper.
"Middleton, you useless! Can't you defend?!"
Wade Dong jumped up from the bench and shouted in frustration after seeing this play.
Middleton: ╮(╯﹏╰)╭
With a large lead, the Suns' bench players might have relaxed a bit, and Middleton's defensive positioning on that play was indeed questionable. However, it wasn't entirely his fault.
Wade Dong's scolding wasn't directed at Middleton alone but at the entire team, so everyone had to focus.
Gortat set a screen for Nash, who drove past Middleton and passed the ball to Thompson in the corner. Thompson received the pass and took a three-pointer.
Swish!!!
Score: 33-15!!!
The Suns were now leading the Clippers by 18 points.
But it didn't end there. The Clippers' offense was stifled, and Nash dribbled to the frontcourt and made a pull-up three-pointer.
Swish!!!
Score: 36-15!!!
"Damn it!"
Paul, sitting on the bench, was so frustrated that he threw his towel on the ground.
Despite the large lead, the Suns' bench players didn't relax, as they didn't want to be scolded by Wade Dong.
Frye and Thompson's three-pointers from beyond the arc also gave the Clippers trouble.
End of the first quarter.
Score: 49-19!!!
The Suns scored 49 points in a single quarter, the highest in Wade Dong's time with the team and the second-highest in team history.
The Suns led the Clippers by 30 points after the first quarter.
The game had lost its suspense, and if it were a Clippers home game, the fans would have started leaving. But this was a Suns home game, and the fans weren't going anywhere.
This would be a record-breaking night for the Suns, and everyone wanted to witness this moment.
...
During the timeout, Wade Dong counted on his fingers and smiled, "Leading by 30 points after the first quarter, we might lead by 120 points if we maintain this pace for the entire game."
"Basketball isn't just addition and subtraction."
Nash looked conflicted, "Dong Ge, are you really thinking of breaking that 73-point differential record?"
"Why not?"
"We're all in the same league; we should leave some face for others."
"Did the Grizzlies leave any face for the Thunder when they won by 73 points?"
Wade Dong folded his arms, paused, and said, "Did they leave any face for the Suns?"
Nash, "..."
Curry, "..."
"Ahem!"
McGrady, who was drinking water, interrupted, "What does the Grizzlies' 73-point win over the Thunder have to do with the Suns?"
Wade Dong glared, "How is it unrelated? They broke our record!"
Nash said, "In that game, the Thunder's Big Three were all resting. But in this game, Paul is still on the court. Last year in the playoffs, we beat the Clippers by 58 points, and I felt a bit embarrassed about that."
"Your thinking is a bit off, old monk."
Wade Dong shook his finger, "Basketball is about competition, not social etiquette. Should we only show respect to superstar players and not to ordinary players?"
Gentry also walked over and said, "The Clippers will definitely fight back in the second quarter. Don't think about that; just focus on playing well!"
"Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!"
The Suns players encouraged each other, and the bench players prepared to take the court.
Gentry, fearing that the players might relax, offered a word of caution, "A 30-point lead isn't secure, and there are still three quarters left. I've experienced games where we led by over 30 points in the final quarter but still lost."
"Ahem!"
Wade Dong coughed twice when he heard Gentry's words.
It seemed that Gentry was still a bit petty, as he was still thinking about last year's Olympics, which had happened almost a year ago.
Start of the second quarter.
As Gentry predicted, the Clippers started to fight back.
Paul returned to the court after the timeout and led the Clippers on a 9-2 run.
The point differential was reduced to 23 points.
Middleton glanced nervously at the bench a few times, worried that Wade Dong would scold him again.
However, this time, Wade Dong sat with his arms folded, watching the game intently without saying a word.
The Clippers weren't a weak team.
If the Suns wanted to beat the Clippers by 73 points, they would need not only skill but also some luck. It was normal for Paul to lead the Clippers' comeback, and Wade Dong didn't need to scold his teammates for this.
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