Without Marion, the Suns have lost a key player.

Marion plays a significant role on the court, leading the team in rebounds per game.

As Wei Guo's playing time increases, Marion's rebounding numbers may decrease, but he can devote more energy to defense and offense, making him even more important to the team than Stoudemire.

This is also an opportunity for the Magic...

Hill was previously matched up against Marion, but now he's been matched up against Richardson. Richardson's defensive ability is not as good as Marion's, so Hill will definitely have to increase his shot attempts.

......

The Suns' team doctor took Marion to Toronto People's Hospital, but the game had to continue.

"Brother Wei, how should we defend against Hill?"

Richardson asked in a low voice.

Wei Guo said, "Hill's ball-handling skills are better than yours. After his major injury, his speed and explosiveness are not what they used to be, and he is not someone you can defend. More importantly, Hill's penetration and passing skills are excellent. He can always find teammates with scoring opportunities and then get the ball to them. Moreover... after being my teammate for a year, his shooting ability has also improved and is more accurate than yours!"

Richardson: (＃￣～￣＃)

After saying all that, wasn't Wei Guo basically telling him that Hill was someone he couldn't stop?

"so..."

Wei Guo paused.

Richardson's eyes lit up. Could it be that Wei Guo had some secret to defending against Hill?

Having piqued Richardson's interest, Wei Guo slowly said, "You go defend Nelson, I'll take care of Hill."

Richardson: (??へ??╬)

Asking is pointless, and saying something is worse than saying nothing.

The head coach's strategy was to increase Hill's shot attempts. Hill didn't object to the head coach, but he guessed that he would be guarded by Wei Guo instead of Richardson. Neither Gentry nor Wei Guo were rigid people. Their nonchalant attitude was directed at the opponent, not at the outcome of the game.

Winning...

That is what Weiguo should be doing.

Francis passed the ball to Hill, who received it with his back to the basket. He turned around and looked up to see a familiar face.

A warm and innocent smile...

"really..."

Hill said helplessly, "If you guard me, it will be difficult for me to play."

That being said, this is a basketball game, and Hill cannot show weakness and will never admit defeat. He adopts a triple threat stance, stepping forward with his right foot and turning to face Wei Guo.

The basketball hits the ground!

Hill dribbled behind his back repeatedly, broke to the right, stopped abruptly, pulled the ball back with a reverse hand under his crotch, and then suddenly made a shooting motion!

But... Hill's pivot foot did not leave the ground.

This is a shooting fake...

Wei Guo lunged forward, almost getting knocked off his feet by Hill, but he held back and blocked all of Hill's attack routes.

"wrong..."

Wei Guo was not pleased with this.

Hill's combo was incredibly smooth, but Hill must have known very well that he couldn't fool himself with those moves.

Then he...

What are we going to do?

Francis charged to the basket like a gust of wind. Howard blocked Stoudemire, and Hill suddenly passed the ball from Wei Guo's waist. Francis caught the ball and jumped.

"Bang!!!"

Francis hung halfway up the rim and completed a powerful dunk!

37:43!!

The Suns are down by 6 points.

Francis and Hill have both been teammates with Wei Guo, so they know him very well. Wei Guo doesn't fall for fakes... When playing one-on-one against Wei Guo, you must be decisive, either drive or shoot, but don't make too many moves, because the more moves you make, the greater the chance of being blocked.

unless...

It has the footwork of Hakeem Olajuwon or the skyhook technique of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Hakeem Olajuwon and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were about the same height as Wei Guo. If they had faced Wei Guo in their prime, they would likely have had a 40/60 split in the paint. Olajuwon and Abdul-Jabbar would have been 40/60, while Wei Guo would have been 60/60.

For perimeter players like Hill and Kobe, when going one-on-one against Wei Guo, their moves must be simple. They should take a step back and shoot decisively, just making sure the shot arc is a little higher so that Wei Guo doesn't block it.

The Magic were clearly prepared.

Hill and Francis's combination was fantastic; it's definitely one of today's top ten plays.

Suns on offense!

Nash made tactical hand gestures, and Wei Guo moved towards the basket. Nash then suddenly launched a three-pointer.

"Whoosh!!!"

The basketball went into the net.

40:43!!

Being down by 6 points isn't much; two three-pointers were enough to close the gap.

Francis broke through and passed the ball to Nelson, who received the ball and forced a layup under Richardson's defense.

"bang~~~"

The ball hit the rim and bounced away.

Howard quickly followed up, jumped up and dunked the ball into the basket.

"Well done!"

Francis excitedly shoved Howard, "Just like that!"

Howard is the Magic's inside anchor, and he unintentionally did something great tonight by sending Marion to Toronto's People's Hospital with one basket. Of course... Howard definitely didn't do it on purpose, but if he can play his part tonight, the Magic have a chance to win.

......

With a little over three minutes left in the second quarter.

Howard blocked Stoudemire and Johnson's layups in succession, and the Suns missed several shots from the outside.

The Magic seized this opportunity...

Francis, Hill, Nelson, and Turkoglu all found their rhythm from beyond the arc, sinking consecutive three-pointers and widening the score gap.

46:57!!

At the end of the first half, the Magic were leading by 11 points.

......

The beautiful cheerleaders take the stage and dance energetically!

"You played so well in the first half, you must keep it up in the second half."

"The most important thing is the third quarter... Wei Guo's average score in the third quarter is 12.7 points, which ranks first in the league."

"I suggest that Howard and Hill double-team Wei Guo."

"No... You haven't watched enough of Wei Guo's games. You can't stop Wei Guo from scoring just by double-teaming him. When Wei Guo wants to score, even God can't stop him."

"Brother, what do you think we should do to win?"

"If we score more points than the Suns, we'll win. Have Howard in the paint, and Hill and the other three spread out to the perimeter as shooters. Take the shot when you have the chance, and if you miss, let Howard grab the rebound!"

"If Howard can hold his position well, he can go toe-to-toe with Wei Guo."

“Yes! Wei Guo also has to defend Hill, which gives Howard the opportunity to grab rebounds... Moreover, Wei Guo has to both attack and defend, while Howard can use all his energy to grab rebounds.”

The audience enthusiastically offered suggestions to the Magic team.

Look...

Boys who love basketball are so innocent; they ignore the sexy and charming cheerleaders' energetic performance and only think about the second half of the game.