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...
"Whoa!"
"Blake Su, Curry, and Ray Allen—three of the league's deadliest three-point shooters. The three of them each open with a triple. This game just exploded!
US Airways Center might be in for a torrential downpour tonight."
Jon Barry shouted.
"Huh?"
Mark Jackson paused, then laughed. "Jon, calling Curry and Ray Allen shooters is fair enough. But Blake Su is a 215-centimeter center. Labeling him a shooter?
Isn't that a bit much?!"
"Why not?"
Jon Barry blinked.
"He's a center, obviously," Mark Jackson said firmly.
"Heh."
Jon Barry shook his head. "Have you ever seen a center shoot threes this accurately? I haven't. The guys who shoot like that are usually guards.
So in my book, Blake Su is basically a guard."
"…That's some impressive logic."
"Heh, then let's call him… a taller guard?!"
On the court.
With Curry drilling that three, the opening stretch of three straight triples instantly set the arena ablaze.
Suns (6): (3) Celtics.
Even against a Celtics team that had dismantled the Heat's "Big Three," the Suns showed no fear, matching them punch for punch.
Transition.
Celtics ball.
Rondo brought it across half court, surveyed from the top of the arc, then swung it to the wing, once again finding Ray Allen curling out, hoping he'd stay hot from deep.
Clang!
Missed.
But Garnett snatched the offensive rebound. Facing Frye, he gave a convincing shot fake, spun halfway, slipped past him, and lofted a soft floater in the paint. Easy bucket.
Next possession.
Rondo went back to Ray Allen, but this time the shot still wouldn't fall. The ball bounced off the rim again. Shaq used his massive frame to nudge Frye aside.
Smack!
He secured the board and kicked it back out to Rondo. Without holding it, Rondo drove forward and fired a bounce pass to Pierce cutting down the right side. Pierce caught it on the move and attacked the rim.
Bang!
He collided with Carter in midair, leaned back, and lofted a high-arcing bank shot off the glass. It dropped.
"Nice shot!"
On the Celtics bench, Doc Rivers clapped and said to his assistant, "Our strength isn't just Ray Allen, or Garnett, or Pierce.
It's the whole unit.
If Ray doesn't have it, Garnett scores. If Garnett's not rolling, Pierce can take over. Those three, combined with Rondo—the 'Celtics' brain'—
that's what makes us powerful. That's our foundation for reaching the Eastern Conference Finals, even winning the championship this year."
"Exactly."
The assistant nodded repeatedly, eyes fixed on the court.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Curry pushed the ball up against Ray Allen. He attacked with a series of rhythm changes, but Allen stayed disciplined, not biting once.
Screech!
Curry stopped on a dime and stepped back for a long two, but under heavy contest, it missed.
Garnett grabbed the rebound and handed it to Pierce to initiate the break. Pierce met Carter in the frontcourt, used a screen to force a switch onto Nash, and attacked without hesitation.
Bang!
He powered through Nash, drove into the lane, and finished again.
Blake Su brought the ball up himself, facing Garnett one-on-one. From the right wing, he took one hard step, stopped abruptly, and rose up. Garnett reacted a half-beat late, turning sideways to contest.
Splash!
Before Garnett could even leave the ground, Blake Su had already released it.
Swish!
A smooth mid-range jumper.
Celtics ball.
Garnett posted on the left block against Blake Su. He looked to attack, but instead kicked it out. Pierce cut to the free-throw line area, accelerated toward the rim, drawing a double-team from Carter and Frye.
Whoosh!
Pierce slid the ball to the left corner. Ray Allen caught it and immediately rose for three.
Swish!
Right through the heart.
As Pierce, Ray Allen, and Garnett scored in succession, even Rondo—who rarely shot from outside, or whose outside percentage was notoriously poor—
Swish!
knocked down a mid-range jumper from the left elbow.
With even Rondo hitting, the Celtics' confidence surged. O'Neal bullied Frye under the rim, and even with Carter rotating over in time—
Swish!
he still laid it in.
A 13–2 run slammed into the Suns. Not only did the Celtics erase their early three-point deficit, they surged ahead by eight.
Beep—beep!
Alvin Gentry called timeout.
Everyone knew this wasn't a routine timeout. The Suns had been forced into it by Boston's run.
"Wow…"
"The Suns getting stopped like this? That's pretty rare since Blake Su arrived."
Mark Jackson sounded surprised.
"Yeah."
Jon Barry nodded. "The Celtics are playing extremely well tonight. They already had multiple scoring threats, and now they're getting production from everywhere. The Suns are having trouble handling it."
"That's right. The Suns have run into a real challenge tonight. Let's see what adjustments they make coming out of the timeout."
Suns bench.
"The Celtics have so many guys who can score—Ray Allen, Pierce, Garnett…"
Goran Dragić said with a grimace. George stayed quiet, but he clearly felt the same. That stretch from Boston had him feeling the pressure.
"Mhm."
Gentry acknowledged it, but his expression remained calm, showing no sign of panic.
"Coach, you've got something in mind?"
Nash caught the subtle confidence and asked.
"Yeah."
Gentry pulled out the whiteboard.
"The Celtics can attack from multiple spots, and they've got 'the brain' in Rondo. They can run all kinds of sets. That's their offensive identity.
But we have ours too.
Curry and Blake Su can shoot from deep. Nash can organize. Carter can hit threes. Frye can space the floor.
Right now, we can fully bring back our 'run-and-gun.'
And with Blake Su—who creates mismatches against anyone and can knock down shots—I believe it'll be even more effective than when we had Stoudemire."
Gentry spoke with certainty.
A sharp gleam flashed through Nash's eyes.
He and Stoudemire had taken the Suns' "run-and-gun" to its peak over the past few seasons, once making the entire league uneasy.
He knew exactly how deadly it could be.
Now that the coach wanted to revive it—and with Blake Su in the lineup—he felt genuine anticipation.
"Run-and-gun…"
George murmured from the side.
"That's right. Run-and-gun."
Gentry's voice grew firm.
"Push the pace. Run. Attack. Play our Suns-style run-and-gun."
"Let's go!"
Back from timeout.
Suns ball.
Snap!
The moment Nash caught it at the top of the arc, Curry and Blake Su immediately sprinted to opposite corners. Nash drove, and Blake Su curled back out.
Right wing, beyond the arc.
Ball and man arrived together.
Whoosh!
Blake Su caught it on the move, turned, and flicked his wrist.
Swish!
Nothing but net.
...
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