Chapter 402: Who is the most difficult player to deal with on the Suns?

After the timeout, 

Carter replaced Thompson, and Whiteside replaced Green.

The regular season had been used to control the playing time of Carter and McGrady, but the playoffs were the stage for these veterans.

"Protect the ball!"

In the two-minute timeout, Gentry only said this one sentence related to the game.

In his opinion, the team's super individual ability was enough to blow up the Mavericks, and there was no need to deliberately set up offensive tactics. All they needed to do was to defend well and not let Nowitzki and Middleton score easily.

...

Ellis missed a mid-range shot, and Whiteside grabbed the defensive rebound and passed the ball to Curry.

Curry quickly dribbled the ball to the frontcourt, and Ellis and Middleton rushed to defend him, but Curry only had his eyes on the basket. He reached the three-point line and took a three-point shot.

It was as if he casually threw the ball, and even his shooting posture was not standard.

"Swish!!"

The basketball once again swished through the net.

19:5!!!

The first quarter had already passed five minutes, and the Mavericks had only scored 5 points, but Curry had already scored 9 points with three three-pointers.

Gentry said with a smile, "Curry is on fire today."

Thompson was a bit envious, "Curry's three-point shooting is no weaker than Dong's."

"You're wrong!"

McGrady shook his head, "Curry's three-point shooting still has Dong's shadow, but Dong is so versatile that it's easy to forget his three-point shooting."

"It's like... it's like... it's like..."

McGrady wanted to give an example, but due to his limited cultural level, he couldn't think of one after thinking for a long time, so he looked at Gentry.

Gentry took a sip of water, "Three-pointers are Curry's highlight, but Dong's whole person is 'bling~bling~'."

"That's what I mean."

McGrady nodded and turned his attention back to the court.

...

The Mavericks had already started their counterattack, and Nowitzki had used the 'Golden Rooster Stands Alone' move three times in a row to score against Durant.

31:20!!!

There were still two minutes left in the first quarter, and the Mavericks had narrowed the score to an 11-point deficit.

Both teams' main players were off the court.

Curry returned to the bench, still swaying his shoulders and looking cool.

"Awesome~"

"Cool~"

"Awesome~"

Green and Varejao also came forward to play with Curry. In the first quarter, Curry made five out of five three-pointers, scoring half of the team's points, and even Dong and Durant's brilliance was overshadowed by Curry.

The Suns players on the court were Whiteside, Carter, McGrady, McCollum, and Thompson, while the Mavericks also took Nowitzki, Middleton, and Calderon off the court.

Especially Nowitzki, who was already a veteran.

Gentry dared to let Dong, Durant, and Curry play the entire game, but Carlisle would never dare to do the same with Nowitzki.

As soon as McGrady came on the court, he assisted Carter in a dunk.

Carter also returned the favor, receiving a pass from McCollum in the corner, faking out the defender but not shooting, and instead passing the ball to McGrady. McGrady received Carter's pass, took one step, and scored with a layup.

35:20!!!

This was the most desperate thing for the Mavericks.

Carlisle stood on the sidelines with his arms crossed and a gloomy expression.

Nowitzki hung a towel over his head, "Middleton, what do you think is the most difficult thing about the Suns?"

"The Suns have no weaknesses."

"I didn't ask you to praise your former team..."

Nowitzki smiled and pushed Middleton, "We can't just give up at the start of the playoffs, can we?"

"We can't!"

Middleton shook his head, his eyes determined, "Actually, I want to beat the Suns more than you!"

"Is it because the Suns traded you?"

"No... Before the trade, Coach Gentry asked for my opinion, and the team only made the trade after I agreed."

Regarding the trade between Middleton and Carter, other teams thought it was a rare losing trade for the Suns in the past two years. Although Carter had experienced a second spring after joining the Suns and even started dunking frequently, he was still a veteran, and his condition would only continue to decline.

On the other hand, Middleton had already become the Mavericks' second-in-command, and he was still on a rookie contract.

Ellis was curious, "If it's not because of the trade, then why? We always thought you had deep feelings for your former team, but why is your fighting spirit even stronger than ours?"

"It's because of my deep feelings that I want to beat the Suns!"

Middleton looked at the Suns' bench, "I want to prove to Dong that I didn't let down his cultivation of me."

Perhaps because Li Jiajia was not by his side, and Dong didn't like going to nightclubs or playing games, Dong's life in Phoenix was quite boring.

Unless the higher-ups of the Dong Group came to visit.

At other times, Dong would arrive early at the Western Ball Arena. Did Dong need to train? Of course not... So most of the time, Dong was at the arena to guide his teammates, and this was one of the reasons why players who joined the Suns could improve so quickly.

For this reason, Sarver even gave Dong an additional salary as a player development consultant.

Carlisle also heard Middleton and Nowitzki's conversation and turned to ask, "So, you think the most difficult player to deal with on the Suns is Dong?"

"Huh?"

Middleton raised his head and shook it again, "I didn't say it was Dong."

"Not Dong?!"

Everyone looked at Middleton, as if they were about to uncover the Suns' secret.

A player who averaged 37.2 points, 12.1 rebounds, 13.5 assists, 2.8 blocks, 3.7 steals, and 0.9 turnovers per game, forming a six-sided warrior.

A player with a shooting percentage of 63%, a three-point shooting percentage of 51%, a free throw percentage of 95%, and the creator of the divine 200 club with 60+50+90.

A player with a season efficiency rating of 57.1, a monster.

Yet he was not the most difficult player to deal with on the Suns? Could it be that the Suns had some hidden boss?

Middleton hesitated for a while before saying, "I think the most difficult player to deal with on the Suns is Coach Gentry."

"Gentry??"

This answer almost shocked everyone.

Carlisle had a playful expression on his face, "Middleton, are you joking with me?"

"I don't know how to explain it to you."

Middleton frowned, "But haven't you noticed that the Suns have very strong cohesion, and no player will slack off on the court? I think this is the most difficult thing about the Suns."

Nowitzki said, "Middleton also has a point. No matter how strong Dong is, the game can't be won by one person alone."

During the Mavericks' conversation, the score on the court had become 49:27, and the substitutes had been completely blown out.