Before long, warm-ups ended and both starting lineups took the floor.
Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals between the Suns and Mavericks was about to begin.
The Phoenix Suns started 6'3" point guard Steve Nash, 6'3" shooting guard Stephen Curry, 6'9" small forward Paul George, 6'11" power forward Channing Frye, and 7'1" center Blake Su.
The Dallas Mavericks started 6'4" point guard Jason Kidd, 6'6" shooting guard DeShawn Stevenson, 6'7" small forward Shawn Marion, 7'0" power forward Dirk Nowitzki, and 7'1" center Tyson Chandler.
It was also worth noting that Vince Carter, once known as "Half-Man, Half-Amazing," was set to return from injury in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals.
Although he would still miss tonight's game, his impending return was undoubtedly excellent news for the Suns.
"Jump ball!"
Chandler and Blake faced off at center court.
Would there be any suspense?
Not a chance.
"Smack!"
They leaped at the same time, but Blake easily tipped the ball away. The overwhelming difference in their leaping ability left Chandler helpless.
The Suns secured the opening possession.
Nash brought the ball up the court and held it at the top of the key before handing it off to Blake and clearing out to one side.
"Thud!"
Marion stepped forward to pick up Blake.
No double-team?
That was right.
The Mavericks did not send one.
Marion had raised his game considerably during the playoffs. In the first round, he had contained the rapidly rising superstar Kevin Durant. Then, in the second round, he had faced Parker and Ginobili without hesitation, applying pressure to both of the Spurs' star guards.
Marion's tenacious defense had played an important role in the Mavericks' dominant run to the Western Conference Finals.
That was why he had been assigned to Blake.
"Blake? You may be a rookie, and I won't underestimate you, but I'm still going to shut you down."
Marion crowded him with complete confidence.
Blake was just as confident.
Marion was nearly six inches shorter than him, and Blake had no intention of hesitating.
"Whoosh!"
He burst toward the right wing with a single explosive step.
"Screech!"
At the right elbow, Blake stopped abruptly and rose for a mid-range jumper without caring whether Marion had recovered.
Marion had kept up and contested immediately.
But the combined gap in height and leaping ability made his outstretched hand practically meaningless.
"Swish!"
The ball dropped cleanly through the net.
"He gets up so high!"
Marion was startled.
After just one possession, he had already experienced Blake's frightening physical gifts firsthand.
"Coach was right. We can't underestimate this center. He's nothing like the others."
That single possession erased every trace of complacency Marion had felt.
He was now completely wary of Blake.
Suns 2, Mavericks 0.
As usual, Blake opened the scoring for Phoenix.
The Mavericks took possession.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
Jason Kidd brought the ball across half court and reached the top of the key. He bounced a pass to Stevenson near the free-throw line, who then lobbed it into Nowitzki at the right low post.
"Thud!"
Everyone expected Paul George to guard Nowitzki.
Instead, Blake stepped in front of him.
Of course, Nowitzki did not care who the defender was.
After two extraordinary playoff series, his confidence was at its peak.
"Thump, thump, thump!"
With his back to Blake, Nowitzki leaned into him and gradually backed toward the basket.
In terms of raw strength, Nowitzki still held the advantage.
However, after acquiring [Gary Payton Defense], Blake's defensive awareness had improved even further.
In the previous series, he had shut down the "Black Mamba" for stretches. Even when Kobe entered "Mamba Mode," scoring against Blake had never come easily.
As Nowitzki backed him down, Blake gave ground slightly but never lost position. He remained disciplined while searching for an opportunity to steal the ball.
"Smack!"
Blake suddenly struck, swiping down with speed, precision, and force to knock the ball from Nowitzki's hands.
Unfortunately, it did not go out of bounds.
Nowitzki recovered it.
"Thud!"
Once he reached his preferred spot, he bumped Blake again, turned halfway, and gathered as though he were about to shoot.
It was a fake.
But Blake read it perfectly.
"Huh?"
Nowitzki hesitated before leaning back into his signature One-Legged Fadeaway.
Blake bent his knees, sprang upward, and contested the shot.
"Clang!"
Nowitzki missed.
George secured the rebound and passed to Nash.
"Whoosh!"
The Suns were off and running.
Their run-and-gun offense immediately came to life.
Curry and Blake sprinted down opposite sides of the floor. Nash pushed the ball ahead to Curry, forcing Stevenson to rush over and contest.
Curry redirected the ball without holding it, sending it across to Blake on the other side.
Blake rose for a wide-open three.
"Swish!"
Nothing but net.
On the next Mavericks possession, Blake once again disrupted Nowitzki and forced another miss on his supposedly unstoppable One-Legged Fadeaway.
"This..."
Nowitzki was surprised, but not intimidated.
It was not until his third matchup with Blake that he finally converted, backing him down before turning into another One-Legged Fadeaway from mid-range.
On the following possession, Kidd buried a three from the corner.
The Mavericks scored five straight points and mounted a small counterattack.
At the other end, Blake attacked from the right wing and tore through Marion's defense, only to encounter help from Stevenson and Nowitzki.
"Thud!"
Blake fired a bounce pass to his left.
George cut toward the basket, caught it in stride, and gathered for his finish.
"Boom!"
He threw down a thunderous dunk.
"Beep! Beep!"
Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle called a timeout and brought in "The Jet" Jason Terry to add more firepower.
The Suns kept the same lineup on the floor.
"Swish!"
Terry immediately knocked down a mid-range jumper, easing some of the scoring burden on Nowitzki and proving why he was Dallas's offensive spark plug.
The teams continued trading baskets until the first quarter ended.
Aside from Blake guarding Nowitzki one-on-one and making life difficult for him, nothing about the opening quarter seemed especially remarkable.
Yet during the break between quarters, Van Gundy glanced at the scoreboard and suddenly froze.
"What happened? Both teams looked fairly ordinary on offense.
"How are the Mavericks already down nine after one quarter?"
...
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