Chapter 60: Chatterbox Wade Dong

The Grizzlies maintained their lead in the second half.

Finally, they won the away game against the Clippers, forcing a Game 7.

Wade Dong turned off the TV. It seemed the Suns could still rest for a few more days, but the Lakers and Thunder's game was scheduled for the next day.

...

Three days later, the Clippers won the decisive Game 7 against the Grizzlies.

The Eastern Conference first-round playoffs also concluded, with the Celtics beating the Hawks and the Pacers beating the Magic.

The second-round playoff matchups were set.

West: Thunder vs. Lakers, Clippers vs. Suns

East: Bulls vs. Celtics, Heat vs. Pacers

When the Suns flew to Los Angeles, the Lakers and Thunder were tied 1-1. The Lakers had won one away game against the Thunder and were about to return to their home court.

Three days after the Clippers beat the Grizzlies, they hosted the Suns at their home court.

Since Wade Dong was suspended for one game for hitting Pau Gasol, he couldn't play in this game. He had to sit on the bench and cheer for his teammates the entire time.

Before the game started, the Clippers' head coach, Vinny Del Negro, instructed his players, "Wade Dong can't play in this game, so we should be able to win easily, but we must not underestimate them."

"Hmph!"

DeAndre Jordan snorted, "Even if Wade Dong were playing, we wouldn't be afraid."

DeAndre Jordan held a grudge against Wade Dong. He found out after the first round that his dunk over Wade Dong was ranked third in the top 10 plays of the season.

Being a background player in a highlight reel was hard for DeAndre Jordan to accept.

"I know you're upset about being dunked on by Wade Dong," Vinny Del Negro consoled DeAndre Jordan. "Everyone has been a background player at some point. We need to stay calm and not let this negative emotion affect the game."

Speaking of being a background player, Vinny Del Negro also felt uncomfortable. He had been a background player before, with someone jumping over him. The star of that highlight was now on the Suns, so Vinny Del Negro was determined to win this game.

During the warm-up, the Suns players saw Wade Dong sitting on the sidelines eating ice cream and felt uncomfortable.

In the tense playoffs, everyone was united in their desire to win, but Wade Dong, as the team's leader, seemed too relaxed.

"Come on, everyone!"

Wade Dong noticed his teammates glancing at him and awkwardly put away the ice cream, trying to encourage his teammates.

"Wade Dong is just trying to help everyone relax," Nash noticed the team's mood and reminded them, "We need to adapt to playing without Wade Dong. Remember, we beat the Clippers without him during the regular season, and now we have Allen Iverson too."

"Come on! Come on! Come on!"

The teammates encouraged each other as the game was about to start.

Suns starting lineup: Nash, Iverson, Hill, Frye, Gortat

Clippers starting lineup: Paul, Griffin, Jordan, Martin, Redick

"Beep!!!"

The referee blew the whistle, and the game began.

DeAndre Jordan and Gortat jumped for the tip-off.

Paul got the ball and dribbled to the frontcourt, passing it to Griffin. Griffin used his strength to score over Frye.

The Clippers scored first, and the home crowd's atmosphere instantly heated up, with fans chanting in unison, "Defense! Defense! Defense!"

"So noisy..."

Wade Dong muttered.

Of course, if it were at the US Airways Center, the fans' cheers would be the sweetest music to Wade Dong's ears.

It was the Suns' turn to attack. Nash dribbled quickly to the frontcourt and saw Iverson running into the paint. Nash made a long pass to Iverson, who received the ball and made a graceful jump shot, evading Griffin's block attempt.

"MVP! MVP! MVP!"

Wade Dong immediately led the Suns' bench in chanting "MVP," but their enthusiasm was dwarfed by the thousands of Clippers fans in the arena.

"So lame..."

Wade Dong sighed. Although he was watching the game for free from a VVVIP seat, which was the dream of many fans, not being able to play was tough.

Iverson had a poor performance in the third game against the Spurs. Since then, he scored 40+ points in two consecutive games. At this moment, Iverson's eyes were as fearless as when he first entered the league.

The Suns players knew this would be Iverson's last season. This former superstar was ready to give his all for the championship.

The Suns were united and in high spirits, not just because of Wade Dong's encouragement, but also because they were inspired by Iverson's fighting spirit.

The Clippers' offensive pace was also fast. As soon as Iverson scored, the Clippers quickly counterattacked after the inbound pass. However, Redick's layup was disrupted by Frye, and Hill grabbed the rebound, passing the ball to Nash.

Nash quickly pushed the ball up the court and, before the Clippers could set their defense, made a trailing three-pointer.

"Swish!!!"

The ball went straight through the net.

2:5!

The Suns led the Clippers by three points. Just from the opening two plays, it was clear that even without Wade Dong, the Suns' offensive rhythm remained strong.

In fact, during the Suns' recent break, Wade Dong had been playing with the reserve team in practice games. For this, he even redeemed a Blake Griffin offensive package.

Griffin is a rare, all-around power forward. He is skilled in various aspects, including playmaking, ball-handling, attacking the basket, and mid-range shooting. On the defensive end, he has excellent rim protection abilities.

The system's star skill packages are diverse. Some are highly specialized, like Iverson's crossover, Olajuwon's dream shake, and Curry's ultra-long three-pointers. These skills are incredibly powerful. Others are more general, like Nash's passing package and Griffin's offensive package, which are versatile but less impactful.

After redeeming the Griffin offensive package, Wade Dong became an enhanced version of Griffin in the power forward position.

During practice games, Wade Dong gave the starting lineup a hard time. However, this also helped the Suns' starting lineup adapt to playing without Wade Dong and learn how to face Griffin.

"Swish!!!"

"Swish!!!"

"Swish!!!"

With one and a half minutes left in the first quarter, Nash went to the bench to rest.

27:31!

To everyone's surprise, even without Wade Dong, the Suns led the Clippers by four points at the end of the first quarter.

"You worked hard, old man!"

As soon as Nash came off the court, Wade Dong eagerly handed him water and a towel.

Varick muttered from the side, "Brother Dong, you worked hard too."

Today, the Suns' bench saw a different side of Wade Dong. Unable to play, Wade Dong was a chatterbox, commenting on almost every play. According to Wade Dong's descriptions, every Suns player on the court was an All-Star, while the Clippers players couldn't play at all.