"Beep, beep!"
Alvin Gentry called a timeout to slow the Magic's momentum.
A 0-7 start.
For the Suns, it was a fairly rough opening. But precisely because they were the Suns, the fans were not too worried.
In the stands.
The "Heat Big Three," Allen Iverson, Kobe, Pau Gasol, and the others all remained quite calm, without much reaction.
At the commentary table.
Van Gundy smiled and said, "A 0-7 start. Are the Suns doing this on purpose, making the game tense and exciting right from the beginning?!"
"Heh!"
Mark Jackson chuckled as well. "I wouldn't go that far. The Suns got good looks on those last few possessions. They just had some bad luck.
They haven't gotten going yet.
No need to rush. It's only seven points, and the game has just started."
"True."
On the court.
After the timeout.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
Blake Su held the ball at the top of the arc. Bass, a tough defender who played hard and fought for everything, stepped up to guard him. Carter came over to set a screen, but Blake Su went around it and got the mismatch against guard Nelson.
"Whoosh!"
With one burst of speed, he blew right past him.
He accelerated into the paint and went up for a layup. "Superman" Howard suddenly pounced out, his huge hand coming over like it could blot out the sky.
But Blake Su was tall too.
Once he got downhill, his explosiveness was no worse. He tossed up a high-arcing shot, and the ball flew over Howard's fingertips. There was some interference.
But it was still a clean look.
However.
"Clang!"
The shot still missed.
The rebound?!
Howard jumped a second time and snatched it down.
On the next possession, Steve Nash slipped a brilliant between-the-legs pass back to Blake Su at the top of the arc. It was practically a wide-open look.
"Swish!"
Blake Su raised his hand and fired a three.
Bass rushed out at him, but it was all pressure and no real threat. Yet... the spinning basketball once again hit the rim and bounced out.
"Pop!"
Howard ruled the paint, leaping high to grab another rebound before handing it to Nelson to push forward.
As Blake Su ran back on defense, he flexed his fingers and shook his head slightly. "My touch seems a little off tonight. I need to find my rhythm quickly."
The possession changed hands.
Howard called for the ball under the basket against Frye. One bump, one half-turn, and Frye was gone. Their strength was not even on the same level.
"Boom!"
Howard jumped straight up from under the rim and threw down a one-handed slam, making the basket groan nonstop.
"Whoosh!"
Steve Nash pushed the pace. In the frontcourt, he found Curry, who settled on the left side above the arc. Curry faked a shot, then passed to Blake Su cutting through the free-throw line. Blake Su caught it, took three long steps, and went up for the layup.
"Thud!"
Howard flew up for another block.
But Blake Su hung in the air, gliding past the contest, then flipped the ball up in reverse off the glass. The ball spun once around the rim before dropping through the net.
"Swish!"
Good.
"Wow, Blake Su finally gets one to fall."
Jon Barry said, and Mark Jackson picked it up. "Four shots, only one make. Blake Su still hasn't found his rhythm."
"Right."
Jon Barry nodded and added, "Could that have something to do with the pressure from 'Superman' Howard's powerful defense?"
"It probably does."
As the two were speaking.
Nelson brought the ball up and looked toward Turkoglu, who was waiting to receive it in the left corner. But instead, he threw a high lob toward the basket.
The next instant.
"Boom!"
"Superman" Howard flew in from the other side, caught it in midair, and hammered down a tomahawk alley-oop. With his head already level with the rim, the dunk looked absolutely spectacular.
Then, on the following possession.
Howard grabbed two offensive rebounds in a row, giving his teammates three chances from beyond the arc. At last, they knocked down the three.
"Tsk, tsk..."
In the stands.
Wade could not help clicking his tongue in admiration. "That's 'Superman' Howard's dominance. Teammates can't hit threes? Doesn't matter. I'll keep grabbing offensive rebounds for you and give you endless chances to fire away."
"Exactly."
Bosh nodded. "As long as you have offensive rebounds, you can keep creating second chances. That means more opportunities to score."
"A good center really can give a team a huge boost, and 'Superman' is one of the best centers in this league."
LeBron also sincerely praised Howard's dominance.
"That talent... he really doesn't need too many skills to score, and he can still create more offensive chances for his teammates."
Even Kobe could not help sighing in admiration.
Beside him.
Pau Gasol agreed. "Yeah. 'Superman' Howard's dominance really is powerful. The closer he gets to the basket, the stronger he is on both offense and defense!"
Allen Iverson, who had come to watch the game alone, also shook his head slightly and smiled. "If I had a center like that as my partner, I think... I could have built a dynasty for the 76ers.
Of course.
If it were Blake Su, he could definitely do it too.
But tonight, he still doesn't seem to have found his rhythm. Blake Su, Howard has never accepted you. Tonight, you have to make him accept it. I'm rooting for you."
On the court.
"Superman" Howard continued to wreak havoc inside, and the Magic controlled the flow of the game.
As for Blake Su, his touch really was terrible tonight. In the game against the Nuggets, his shooting could be blamed on going home and the long back-and-forth travel wearing him down.
But tonight.
His touch was simply bad.
Even though Blake Su still shot with confidence whenever he had an opportunity, it felt as if he was missing just that little bit of luck. The shots simply would not fall.
Fortunately, Curry was in decent form and was playing at his usual level. But against the Magic, who were riding an 11-game winning streak and had "Superman" Howard,
Curry alone was far from enough.
After the first quarter.
Suns (20): (33) Magic.
The Suns scored only 20 points in the quarter, while the Magic led by as many as 13.
At the commentary table.
Jon Barry glanced at the stats and said, "Mark, after the first quarter, Blake Su is 2-for-7 from the field and 1-for-2 from the free-throw line, with only 5 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Meanwhile, Howard is 7-for-9 from the field and 2-for-4 from the line, putting up 16 points, along with 7 rebounds and 2 blocks.
What do you think of that?!"
"Uh..."
Mark Jackson thought for a moment and said, "Blake Su isn't in good form tonight. His touch still hasn't come around. Howard, on the other hand, is still in rhythm and has carried over his hot form from the last game."
"Yes."
Jon Barry nodded in agreement, then said, "Both of them are centers, but the contrast between Blake Su and Howard in the first quarter is obvious.
It reminds me of a saying: the closer you are to the basket, the easier it is to score!"
...
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