The Suns lack bench depth and have been stretched thin since losing Marion.
actually...
The reason the Suns have been able to continue their winning streak is because Wei Guo has been brought into the bench, unleashing the energy of all the players and making the Suns stronger than ever before.
It's impossible for Wei Guo to play the full 48 minutes in every match.
He has the stamina. Even if a game is too intense and his stamina is severely depleted, Wei Guo still has the 'Stamina Rune' to make up for the stamina loss. But there's no need for that. This is the regular season, not the playoffs.
"This is weird..."
Cummings waved the statistics sheet in his hand, "The Magic shot 61% in the first half, which is 7 percentage points higher than us."
Normally... due to the high intensity of the defense, the shooting percentage of both teams is between 40% and 50% after a game.
The Suns already had a high shooting percentage, averaging just over 50% per game, but the Magic shot 61% in the first half, which is an exceptional performance.
Gentry said, "Howard is a fast and strong player who can run and jump, and he's a great rim protector... Add Francis and Hill, and the Magic are at least playoff level. Their poor record might have other reasons, so we must take this game seriously."
"We have to fight for every rebound; we can't rely on Wei Ge alone."
"Understood, Coach."
Johnson and the others nodded vigorously.
Gentry took out his phone and called the team doctor to inquire about Marion's condition.
They haven't arrived at Toronto People's Hospital yet, but the team doctor is keeping a close eye on Marion's condition. Apart from being a little dazed, he hasn't shown any signs of altered consciousness, headache, or vomiting. However, to be on the safe side, they need to have him checked at the hospital to rule out a concussion.
Marion also spoke a few words to Gentry, basically saying that since he was no longer there, the rest of the games would have to be played by his teammates. Although he wasn't physically present, his heart was with everyone.
......
The players returned to the field, and the second half began.
Wei Guo only scored 19 points in the first half, 21 points short of 40. The scoring battle between Wei Guo and Kobe continued, and he will turn on his scoring mode in the third quarter.
Suns on offense!
The Magic's head coach stood on the sidelines and shouted, "Stop Wei Guo! Don't let Wei Guo receive the ball!"
Nash advanced quickly and drove into the paint.
Wei Guo shook off Hill on the left and also rushed towards the paint. Nash tossed the ball over the basket and then turned and ran back to the backcourt with a very elegant move.
In the air...
Wei Guo received the basketball and executed a powerful, looping layup!
"Bang!!!"
To be able to perform such a move after an alley-oop, with a defender in front and behind, is something that no more than five people in the league can do.
The Suns started to close the gap!
The Magic are on offense. Nelson passes the ball to Howard, who backs down Stoudemire and turns to dunk.
*Smack!!!*
Stoudemire simultaneously pressed down on the basketball, blocking Howard's dunk.
Veteran players love to bully rookies. Apart from Wei Guo, who hasn't been bullied in their rookie season? Stoudemire is currently at the peak of his career. Howard got blocked by Stoudemire, and if he wants to get revenge, he'll have to play for another two years.
"I knew it..."
One fan in the stands said, "Howard should just grab the rebounds. We need to let the four perimeter players shoot to win the game."
Hindsight is 20/20, but it's very insightful!
After the basketball was swatted away, Johnson grabbed it, Nash came around to receive the ball, and Wei Guo and Richardson were already running towards the frontcourt.
Nelson tried to steal the ball from Nash, but Nash dribbled past him behind his back!
"Throw the ball over..."
Wei Guo pointed towards the basket, Nash pushed forward with both hands, and Wei Guo, who had already rushed into the paint, slammed the ball in mid-air and was dunked!
"Bang!!!"
The basketball was slammed into the hoop once again.
At the start of the second half, Wei Guo and Nash completed two beautiful alley-oops... two of today's top ten plays are guaranteed.
50:57!!
The Suns are only down by 7 points.
The audience tensed up. Would the Suns just blow the game away in one go?
The Magic's hopes cannot be pinned on Howard, even if he is the number one draft pick. To beat the Suns, they still need Francis and Hill. Hill once again faced Weiguo with the ball. Turkoglu circled to the top of the arc, and Hill made a stylish behind-the-back pass.
Turkoglu catches the ball and shoots.
"bang~~~"
Hedo Turkoglu missed a three-pointer.
Howard grabbed the offensive rebound and passed the ball to Turkoglu, who then launched another three-pointer.
"Whoosh!!!"
The ball went in, and Turkoglu breathed a sigh of relief.
50:60!!
The difference is still in the double digits.
The farsighted fans were smug, saying, "I knew it... this is how the Magic have to play to win."
Francis and Hill are both excellent passers, and Nelson is also good... plus Turkoglu, the four of them pass the ball back and forth outside the three-point line, whoever has the opportunity takes the shot, and if they miss, Howard goes for the rebound.
The Suns' offensive approach is simpler.
That last shot...
When Turkoglu took his first shot, Johnson and Richardson had already run up the court, which allowed Howard to grab the offensive rebound and pass the ball to Turkoglu smoothly without it hitting the opponent's head. Moreover, Turkoglu had an easier shot.
Stoudemire walked to the baseline to inbound the ball, and before Nash had even dribbled across half-court, he suddenly made a long bounce pass.
Wei Guo received the pass outside the three-second zone, took a step forward, dodged Hill's steal attempt by dribbling behind his back, and drove to the basket, jumping lightly.
"Bang..."
Wei Guo slammed the ball into the basket.
Wei Guo's standing reach is the same as Chamberlain's, a full 2.9 meters. He can lift a basketball while standing still and the basketball can touch the rim, so the replay looks like this... Wei Guo gets past Hill and it looks like he completed a dunk while still standing.
In fact...
Wei Guo jumped about 30 centimeters, but the camera didn't capture it.
While such an effortless dunk may lack visual impact, its chilling quality surpasses even Wei Guo's free-throw line dunk. Many players would give their all for two points, but Wei Guo casually puts the basketball into the basket.
Wei Guo scored easily.
Scoring wasn't difficult for the Magic either. The ball moved quickly around the perimeter, and no one stayed put waiting for their teammates to feed them the ball. Whenever an opportunity arose, they took their shots very decisively.
The Suns employed a man-to-man defensive strategy.
When the Magic's offense simply couldn't get going, Hill or Francis would rely on their individual skills to break through and score.
By the end of the third quarter, the Suns still hadn't been able to catch up... The Magic players were just having such a hot hand, even role players like Turkoglu and Nelson seemed to be hitting every shot they took.
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