章節 39: Near triple-double

The Suns' bench.

Coach Gentry called everyone together, looking at young players like Carlos, Curry, and George. He spoke in a deep voice:

"Calm down, don't panic. There's still 1 minute and 2 seconds left, and our chances of winning are high. Everyone must stay focused and keep playing solidly. Carlos is playing exceptionally well, Curry's debut tonight is perfect. What you guys need to do now is to maintain this good form. Endure for one more minute. Also, everyone needs to keep up this positivity and fighting spirit; victory is waving to us."

"Let's go..."

Everyone answered in unison. Carlos and Curry exchanged a silent glance and nodded slightly. All the players nodded heavily, their faces showing a serious expression, taking the final minute of the game very seriously.

Although in the first game of the season, the Suns, with a record of 2 wins and 8 losses, were the bottom team in the league, losing that game wouldn't matter. They had no psychological burden.

But the current Suns were completely different. Carlos's brilliance, the Suns' gorgeous 6-game winning streak, had already attracted a lot of attention to Carlos and the team. Tonight, winning would make them the center of the league, and failure might lead to a downfall. Without a doubt, the Suns wanted the former.

This was the Suns' home court, and at this moment, defending their territory was every man's responsibility! The Thunder felt the same way. In the last game, they just reversed the Eastern powerhouse Magic in a stunning manner, and if they could overcome the Suns, who had a hot streak of 6 consecutive victories tonight, their popularity would skyrocket, making them the biggest dark horse of the season. They were burning with desire for victory, and with the same score and only 1 minute and 2 seconds of game time left, both teams were filled with a strong desire to win, finally sounding the horn of the last battle.

"Beep—beep!"

Returning from the timeout...

The Suns have possession...

Nash inbounded from the mid-court sideline, Carlos ran out to receive the ball. As soon as he caught the ball, Durant stepped up to defend, absolutely not giving Carlos any easy opportunity to break through and shoot.

"Bang bang!"

But like a lively trout, Carlos dribbled quickly, feigned a move, disrupted Durant's defensive rhythm, and then suddenly accelerated, moving at an extremely fast speed, trying to shake off Durant.

"Step!"

Westbrook also ran over to help defend, stopping Carlos's advance. Durant also caught up, and the two of them double-teamed Carlos. At the same time, Jeff Green also joined the defense.

Triple-teaming...

Trying to contain Carlos...

Facing the triple-team, even Carlos with "Iverson's talent" had no way out. Glancing around, he passed the ball to Curry on the other side.

"Swoosh!"

Curry then shifted the ball to Carter on the left baseline, but Westbrook, with astonishing speed, actually rushed over from the outside and locked onto Carter.

"Swoosh!"

Carter passed back to Curry again, facing Harden's tight defense.

"The Thunder's defense is really tight. The Suns have no offensive opportunities at all. The shot clock is down to 5.4 seconds. What to do? How to choose the offense?! Wow! Curry passes again, top right arc, and Carlos takes this ball."

"No time left, Carlos shoots a three!"

"Uh!"

Three points!

This is the most crucial three-pointer of the game!

At this critical moment, all players, coaches, commentators, and fans held their breath!

Did it go in?!

Oh no, it didn't. The basketball hit the rim and bounced out, and under the basket, Ibaka and Frye fought for the rebound together. Durant suddenly rushed over, jumped up with all his strength, and grabbed the rebound.

The Thunder has possession!

Inside the Mexican National Sports TV broadcast studio.

Mario, holding his head in anguish, continued his rapid commentary. Seeing Carlos miss the three-pointer, Mario grabbed his hair in regret.

"This is not good," Jose said, his eyes filled with some uneasiness.

On the court...

With 41.7 seconds left, the Thunder had possession, dealing a significant blow to the Suns. Every home fan's face tensed up, fists clenched tightly!

At this moment...

Durant advanced with the ball at a measured pace. For the Thunder, time was entirely on their side, and they used the full 24 seconds to complete an offensive play. All they needed was to secure the victory.

"Bang bang bang!"

At the top of the arc, Durant passed to Westbrook on the left wing, who, with a strong drive, faced Carlos's defense and accelerated towards the basket.

However...

As Westbrook attacked the restricted area and was about to lay up, he made a sudden cross-court pass to Harden in the left corner.

"Swoosh!"

Harden transferred the ball to Jeff Green at the high post, who caught it and prepared for a three-pointer.

"No!"

A feint shot, another ball movement. The ball kept circulating among the Thunder players, ultimately landing back in Durant's hands. It seemed he was going to finish the game.

Facing Carter's tight defense, Durant used probing steps to break through.

"Swoosh!"

Jumping quickly, he launched a three-pointer.

Carter jumped with all his might, although he couldn't block Durant's three-pointer, he did provide significant interference. However, Durant's shot was too stable, too accurate.

"Swoosh!"

Hollow net!

"Hiss!"

Mario couldn't help but hiss. Jose shook his head repeatedly, exclaiming, "Durant, at the most critical moment, always manages to score! This guy is an unfeeling scoring machine."

"Tsk tsk..."

Mario smacked his lips, sounding impressed, "Durant is like the Grim Reaper, using a super three-pointer with defenders closing in, as if trying to kill the game!"

On the court...

Durant's ruthless and unreasonable super three-pointer prompted Thunder fans to erupt in deafening cheers, while Suns fans revealed a look of despair.

Only 19.4 seconds remained.

"The Suns, trailing by 3 points, are in a huge crisis. With only one offensive opportunity, they either need to make a three-point shot or quickly score 2 points and then use the foul strategy!

Nash took the inbound pass and quickly pushed the ball forward, giving it to Carlos in the frontcourt. Carlos isn't strong in three-point shooting, so it seems he wants to quickly grab 2 points and then use the foul strategy.

Carlos receives the ball, accelerates to break through, Durant rushes up. Suddenly, Carlos stops at the top of the arc, is he going for a three-pointer?!

No, Carlos wants to draw a three-point foul from Durant. Durant jumps up, and Carlos moves closer to him. However... Durant is very vigilant, cleverly avoiding it. No whistle... There is no whistle!

Carlos takes the three-pointer. The shooting posture wasn't very good. Did it go in? It missed; the basketball hit the rim and bounced out! Wow... Carlos grabbed the rebound from his own shot. Three-pointer!

To whom?

Curry. Curry receives the ball, shoots a three-pointer. Did it go in? The basketball hits the rim and bounces up. Nothing? No! A dramatic turn of events! As the basketball descends again, it perfectly passes through the net.

Good shot...

In a crucial moment, Carlos grabbed the rebound from his own shot, assisted Curry in making another three-pointer, redeeming himself. The Suns tied the score once again."

Mario, at an astonishing speed, provided commentary, his excitement evident. At the moment when Carlos grabbed the rebound from his own shot, assisted Curry in hitting the three-pointer, Mario vigorously waved his fists, cheering loudly for Carlos.

"Wow!"

Jose also widened his mouth, excitedly exclaiming, "Curry reverses the score, fantastic! This three-pointer is too wonderful! And Carlos assists Curry, taking this offensive round, already achieving 51 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, and 5 blocks."

"50+ near triple-double, Carlos is incredible."

"Hehe!"

Mario laughed, "Yes, but... it seems like it's not time to be happy yet. There are still 8.7 seconds left, and the Thunder still have one offensive opportunity. The outcome is uncertain, and the suspense remains!"