章 237: Chapter 237: Gentry's Desperate Move
Griffin responded by driving past Middleton for a powerful dunk, not wanting to be outdone.
Then...
Paul stole the ball from Middleton and scored on a fast break.
Gentry's expression turned serious, as he had noticed this issue during the series against the Warriors.
While Middleton and Green had performed well in the regular season, their rookie weaknesses were exposed in the playoffs.
Although they had improved rapidly under Wade Dong's guidance, they were still rookies, and if the Suns had traded Iverson and Hill for Middleton and Green last season, even with Wade Dong, they would have struggled to win the championship.
With 57 seconds left in the first quarter, the Clippers took a one-point lead.
Gentry turned to Wade Dong, "Dong Ge, go replace Middleton."
"Okay!"
Wade Dong stood up and headed to the bench.
Foyle was about to inbound the ball, and Wade Dong signaled for Middleton to come off the court. They high-fived, and Wade Dong replaced Middleton.
"Gentry is desperate!"
Tyronn Lue was pleased to see Gentry bring Wade Dong back so early in the game.
He had watched the Suns' series against the Warriors, where Wade Dong sat on the bench for the second half of the first quarter and the first half of the second quarter.
But in this game, Gentry put Wade Dong back in before the end of the first quarter, indicating that his tactics were working and that Gentry felt a sense of urgency.
After Wade Dong returned to the court.
Nash quickly dribbled to the frontcourt, and Wade Dong positioned himself on the opposite side of Nash, creating a mismatch for Nash to exploit against Barnes.
With Wade Dong on the court, the Clippers players dared not double-team Nash.
Nash dribbled twice between his legs, then drove past Barnes and into the paint. Jordan tried to block Nash's shot, but Nash went up for a switch-hand layup, using his left hand to score.
Suns 27, Clippers 26!!!
The Suns regained a one-point lead.
"Wow~~~"
The fans cheered, as Nash hadn't been very prominent this season, and it had been a while since they saw him score so decisively.
Gentry was delighted, as veteran players like Nash were more reliable in the playoffs.
After Nash's score, there were 41 seconds left in the first quarter.
Paul quickly dribbled to the frontcourt, wanting to take another shot and give the Clippers one more possession in the first quarter.
Paul dribbled, and Thompson came out to defend him. Paul passed the ball to Jordan, who received it near the free-throw line without observing the court situation and immediately shot the ball.
But...
Wade Dong jumped from behind Jordan, soaring into the air and swatting the ball away.
The referee hesitated for a moment.
Wade Dong had almost blocked the ball at its highest point, so the referee needed to review the replay to determine if it was a block or a goaltending violation!
However, the fans were already excited!
Many fans in the arena jumped to their feet after Wade Dong's block.
"Wade Dong~~~"
The DJ also chanted Wade Dong's name.
After about forty seconds, the referee signaled that it was a Clippers' out-of-bounds ball, confirming that Wade Dong's play was a clean block.
...
In the Chinese live streaming room.
Yu Jia: "Wade Dong has reserved another spot for himself in the Top 10 Plays of the Playoffs!"
Coach Zhang: "I think this is the best block of the playoffs so far!"
Yu Jia: "No wonder he's the blocks leader!"
...
After the Clippers' out-of-bounds play, time was running out, and they didn't even try to get another shot off.
With 24 seconds left on the shot clock, Barnes missed a shot, and Wade Dong grabbed the rebound.
Both teams ran to the frontcourt.
Wade Dong slowly dribbled the ball, with 17 seconds left on the shot clock, and he wasn't in a hurry.
"MVP! MVP! MVP!"
The fans also chanted 'MVP' to cheer for Wade Dong.
"6!"
"5!"
"4!"
"3!"
With three seconds left in the first quarter, Wade Dong still wasn't rushing.
With only two seconds left...
Wade Dong made a big move to shake off Griffin's defense and took a three-pointer.
"Swish!!!
The ball swished through the net.
This was Wade Dong's ability.
Suns 30, Clippers 26!!!
The Suns took a four-point lead into the second quarter.
...
The Clippers players gathered around Tyronn Lue.
"The Suns aren't that scary. We have a clear advantage in the paint, so we need to pass the ball more to Griffin and let him score."
Tyronn Lue took out his tactical board, planning to keep Griffin on the court for the entire game.
Out of the five positions on the court, only Griffin had a clear advantage over the Suns.
The Clippers had Paul and Billups at the point guard position, but the Suns had Nash and Curry. At the shooting guard position, the Clippers had Butler, but the Suns had McGrady and Thompson.
There was no need to mention the small forward position, as no team had an advantage over the Suns at that position.
...
After the timeout, Griffin remained on the court.
However, when he saw that Wade Dong also stayed on the court, Tyronn Lue sighed.
He didn't understand Gentry's decision. The Suns had other players available, so why was he overworking his starters?
The second quarter began, and Griffin scored again in the paint, drawing a foul on Green.
"Huh?"
Gentry frowned after seeing this play.
After this foul, Green had committed his third foul of the game.
Green was upset about the call and argued with the referee, but Frye pulled him away, and Gentry subbed in Tucker for Green.
Besides Green, Tucker also had two fouls!
Although it was a Suns home game, the referees weren't biased towards the Suns, and the Clippers had been attacking the paint, making it easy for Green and Tucker to pick up fouls.
Griffin prepared to shoot his free throws, and as Tucker walked off the court, Wade Dong shook his head and pointed to Whiteside, who was sitting on the bench.
"Me?"
Whiteside was surprised, wondering if Dong Ge wanted him to come in.
When he saw Wade Dong nod, Whiteside excitedly got up from the bench. He hadn't played in such a close game before.
Moreover, Whiteside didn't even look at Gentry; if Dong Ge wanted him to play, who would dare to object?
"Puppet coach~"
Tyronn Lue also noticed this and snorted.
Didn't Gentry have any self-respect? Wade Dong openly changed his substitution strategy, and Gentry didn't say a word.
If it were him, he would have kicked Wade Dong out of the game!
And he would have kept Wade Dong on the bench for the entire game, not giving him another chance to play in this series!
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