Chapter 517: Kevin Durant's Pressure

Carter rubbed his hands together, "Brother Dong, you're making me feel embarrassed."

"Ahahaha..."

Wade Dong pressed his hands down, "Brother, I suddenly feel like being a judge for this dunk contest is a good idea."

Carter was also invited to be a judge for the dunk contest, and he was initially quite happy, but seeing Wade Dong's expression made his heart sink.

In addition to Wade Dong and Carter, this year's dunk contest judges included three big names: Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Julius Erving.

This was basically the strongest judging lineup in the history of the dunk contest, and even Kobe Bryant, placed in this lineup, would be the one who couldn't dunk.

...

Before the All-Star Game, the Suns had played 49 games, and Wade Dong was the only player on the team who had played in every game. The other players had missed at least one game.

In these 49 games, the Suns had a record of 48 wins and 1 loss, including a 41-game winning streak after the season opener, which broke the Suns' record.

Wade Dong's average stats were: 30.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 10.9 assists, 3.7 steals, and 4.1 blocks.

This was due to the absence of Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson due to injuries, which allowed Wade Dong to increase his scoring stats. Otherwise, Wade Dong's average points would have been 27.1.

In this case, Wade Dong still led in four of the five statistical categories: points, assists, steals, and blocks.

However, compared to last season, Wade Dong's stats showed a significant decline, which had little to do with the system. It was mainly because Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson had improved too quickly, and many times, Wade Dong didn't need to play in the fourth quarter.

...

Before the All-Star Game, there were several less exciting events, and even the fans' attention was not high, such as the Rookie Challenge, Celebrity Game, and Shooting Stars.

Apart from the All-Star Game itself, the fans were more interested in the Skills Challenge, Three-Point Contest, and Dunk Contest.

These events were held the day before the All-Star Game, on February 15th.

Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant all participated in this year's Three-Point Contest.

In addition to them, there were five other players: Kyrie Irving, Kyle Korver, J.J. Redick, James Harden, and Marco Belinelli.

Curry and Irving had participated in the Three-Point Contest for three consecutive years, and unfortunately, they had faced Wade Dong in the previous two years. This year, with the confirmation that Wade Dong would not participate, even Kevin Durant joined in the fun.

Wade Dong also came to the event, as he had no choice; he was a judge for the dunk contest after the three-point contest.

Before the three-point contest began, Wade Dong smiled and said, "Whoever gets first place tonight has to treat everyone to drinks."

"It looks like I'm going to have to spend tonight."

Klay Thompson waved his hand and said, "Brother Dong, if you're not participating, winning this three-point contest will be as easy as taking a condom out of my pocket."

"Who gave you the courage?"

Thompson's words made both Curry and Durant want to punch him.

"Swish!"

"Swish!"

"Swish!"

The crisp sound of the net continued to echo as the players started warming up.

This year's three-point contest featured eight participants, all of them three-point specialists. To determine the winner, they would have to go through a fierce competition.

The rules of the three-point contest were the same as the previous year, with only one shot attempt in the first round, and the top three scorers advancing to the finals. There were five colored balls at one spot, and the players could choose where to place this spot.

Wade Dong reminded Curry, "Put the colored balls at the first corner, and show this idiot and all the fans around the world your three-point skills."

"Okay!"

Curry nodded and prepared to shoot.

...

In the Huaxia live broadcast room,

Yu Jia said, "Curry placed all five colored balls at the first corner; he's very confident in himself."

Coach Zhang said, "The corner and the 45-degree angle are Curry's most accurate spots, but I think he should place them at the fourth shooting spot; it would be safer."

Yu Jia agreed, "Yes."

...

The host was also excited, "Curry chose to shoot all five colored balls at the first spot; that's impressive! I hope he doesn't miss all five."

After Curry was ready, he signaled the technical table.

The referee's whistle blew, and Curry grabbed the first colored ball.

"Swish!"

The shooting posture and the arc of the ball in the air were both perfect.

"Swish!"

"Swish!"

"G~~~"

"Swish!"

At the first spot, Curry made four out of five shots, scoring 8 points.

With a good start, his confidence in shooting increased.

...

"Swish!"

With the last corner three-pointer made, Curry missed only 6 shots in the first round, scoring 27 points.

This score basically secured him a spot in the finals.

The pressure was on for the players who followed.

Kyle Korver: 21 points

Marco Belinelli: 13 points

J.J. Redick: 19 points

James Harden: 17 points

Klay Thompson: 23 points

Kyrie Irving: 22 points

Kevin Durant was the last player to take the court, and with four players already eliminated, Curry and Thompson had secured their spots in the finals.

If Durant scored more than 22 points, he would eliminate Irving and advance to the Three-Point Contest finals with Curry and Thompson.

This would be quite dramatic.

"Little Handsome, don't embarrass the Suns."

Before Durant took the court, several of Wade Dong's teammates sat on the sidelines and cheered him on.

"Huff~ Huff~ Huff~"

Before shooting, Durant took several deep breaths.

Participating in the shooting contest was just for fun, but now he felt the pressure.

The referee's whistle blew, and Durant started shooting.

"G~~~"

"G~~~"

The first two shots didn't feel good, and they both hit the rim.

Durant adjusted and took the third shot.

"Swish!"

With this shot made, Durant quickly found his rhythm, and the next two shots also went in.

After the first spot, Durant quickly ran to the 45-degree angle.

"Swish!"

"Swish!"

"G~~~"

"G~~~"

"Swish!"

At the 45-degree angle, he made three out of five shots, and fortunately, all the colored balls at the two spots went in, giving Durant 8 points.

Many players struggled with the top of the arc, and Durant was no exception.