Chapter 431: The First Finals Victory

After entering the game...

LeBron James, facing Wade Dong's defense, took a powerful step and dunked the ball.

"Roar!!!"

After landing, James roared at the camera on the sidelines.

95:79!!!

James had been holding back all night. Wade Dong's defense was airtight, and he hadn't left the court, meaning that whether James had the ball or not, he couldn't escape Wade Dong's defense. Up to this point, James had only made 6 out of 17 shots, scoring 17 points. This was the result of Wade Dong's targeted defense.

Wade Dong's scoring wasn't high either.

He made 9 out of 15 shots, scoring 21 points. James' defense was also solid... At least Wade Dong had missed six shots, with a pitiful 60% field goal percentage.

He was even dunked on by James.

When the Suns had the ball, Wade Dong actively asked for it. Facing James' defense, he did two dribbles between his legs and took two back steps to the three-point line, then decisively shot a three-pointer.

James was just two inches away from touching the ball.

"Swoosh!!!"

The crisp sound of the net reverberated, and James still couldn't stop Wade Dong's three-pointer.

98:79!!!

With this step-back three-pointer, the point difference continued to widen...

...

In the fourth quarter...

Erik Spoelstra didn't dare to put in his substitutes anymore. This was the Heat's last chance in the game. If they couldn't reduce the point difference to within 15 points in five minutes, they could give up on the game.

On the Suns' side...

Wade Dong, Kevin Durant, Hassan Whiteside, Draymond Green, and Tracy McGrady stayed on the court.

Wade Dong dribbled to the frontcourt and signaled for Whiteside to come up for a pick-and-roll... Spoelstra saw this and spat, "Pfft! Superstars don't need teammates to help with pick-and-rolls..."

Spread out, I'll go one-on-one!

This is what a superstar should do. Wade Dong is so young and talented, and he wants to play a leisurely game?

Wade Dong didn't know what was going through Spoelstra's mind. He asked Whiteside for the pick-and-roll simply because of Whiteside's position; it was the best option. As long as Whiteside set the pick, Wade Dong could easily get past James, and Carmelo Anthony would definitely come up to help defend.

At this moment, McGrady could take the opportunity to cut to the basket!

Sure enough...

"Slap!"

Wade Dong made a bounce pass, and the ball went through Anthony's legs into McGrady's hands.

"Bang!!!"

McGrady received Wade Dong's pass and slammed it down with a one-armed dunk, smashing the ball into the basket!

"Damn, McGrady dunked it!"

The fans went wild. First, Carter broke through and dunked over Haslem, and now McGrady with the one-armed slam!

The once-great four shooting guards, McGrady and Carter, had rested for a season and finally exploded in the Finals. Although their playing time wasn't much, they showed the formidable strength of the four shooting guards.

103:82!!!

The point difference exceeded 20 points for the first time.

Spoelstra's face turned grim. He looked back at his substitute lineup and realized there wasn't a single capable player. Why hadn't the Heat thought of recruiting McGrady and Carter, these two veteran shooting guards, to their team?

If they had McGrady and Carter, this year's Heat would definitely be stronger than the Suns!

...

After the dunk, McGrady immediately hit two consecutive pull-up three-pointers, widening the point gap.

With five minutes left in the fourth quarter, the point difference was about to reach 30 points, and the Heat had no hope of winning. Spoelstra could only substitute his main lineup, giving up on the game.

"Beep!!!"

The game ended with the referee's whistle.

127:103!!!

The Suns had a 24-point home victory over the Heat.

Game statistics:

Wade Dong: 35 points, 15 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks.

Kevin Durant: 23 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 1 block.

Stephen Curry: 21 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 0 blocks.

Klay Thompson: 15 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks.

Draymond Green: 2 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 0 blocks.

Yi Nan: 6 points, 1 rebound, 0 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks.

Hassan Whiteside: 2 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 2 blocks.

Vince Carter: 11 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 0 steals, 0 blocks.

Tracy McGrady: 12 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 0 steals, 1 block.

P.J. Tucker: 0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks.

LeBron James: 23 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block.

Dwyane Wade: 19 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block.

Chris Paul: 27 points, 3 rebounds, 11 assists, 2 steals, 0 blocks.

Carmelo Anthony: 17 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks.

Chris Bosh: 17 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 0 steals, 3 blocks.

Udonis Haslem: 0 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 0 steals, 1 block.

Michael Beasley: 0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks.

James Jones: 0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 steals, 0 blocks.

(Someone actually said the author isn't padding the word count...)

...

After the game, Yu Jia finally got the chance to interview Wade Dong.

"MVP!"

"MVP!"

"MVP!"

The fans weren't ready to leave yet, so Yu Jia brought the cameraman onto the court to interview Wade Dong.

"Wade Dong, Wade Dong!"

Yu Jia called out to Wade Dong, "Congratulations to the Suns for winning the first game of the Finals."

"Heh..."

Wade Dong raised the corners of his mouth, about to chat with Yu Jia, when he suddenly felt a ball flying towards him. He raised his hand and caught the ball from behind his head, then turned to see Stephen Curry with a mischievous smile.

"Damn... this little guy!"

Wade Dong threw the ball back at Curry, then turned to Yu Jia and said, "Long time no see, Teacher Yu Jia."

Yu Jia laughed, "Haha... the atmosphere in the Suns is great."

Wade Dong shook his head, "I don't think it's that great. I actually feel like punching some people, like Curry, who just threw the ball at me."

"Lololol~~~"

Wade Dong was still talking when Curry bounced into the frame, making faces. Klay Thompson and Draymond Green also came to disrupt the interview, so it couldn't continue.

After a brief chat, the interview ended.

...

Back in the locker room...

Alvin Gentry was proud, "Winning the first game by a large margin, it seems the Heat is no longer our match. Tomorrow, you guys don't need to come to the arena to practice. Just rest up and prepare for the game the day after tomorrow."

"I haven't even felt proud yet, and you're already feeling proud."

Wade Dong snorted and didn't bother to pay attention to Gentry.

The key to winning this game was Wade Dong's defense on James, which limited James' performance.

The only Heat player who played well was actually just Chris Paul... If the Heat wanted to beat the Suns, they couldn't rely solely on Paul, apart from James.

Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony needed to keep scoring, and Chris Bosh had to disrupt the Suns' inside game. This was their only chance of beating the Suns.