During the timeout.
In the stands.
"A 10-0 start. A dream start. The Lakers are down 1-3 in a match point game, and on the Suns' home court, they get hit with an opening like this.
It couldn't be much worse."
"The Dream" Hakeem Olajuwon shook his head again and again.
"Yeah."
"Magic" Johnson also shook his head and said, "Kobe needs to step up right away and lead the team on a quick counterattack.
The longer this drags on, the worse it gets for the Lakers."
"The Baby-Faced Assassin" Isiah Thomas rubbed his chin and said, "Why do I feel like the Lakers are already done tonight?"
On the other side.
"The Answer" Allen Iverson looked at Blake and smiled. "Press the advantage. That poster dunk was dominant, and it came at exactly the right time.
No wonder he's the youngest and first unanimous MVP. This kid's ability to lead a team is something else.
But... he still has to be careful of that man wearing No. 24. His ability to deal with a crisis definitely isn't weak either."
"He's really incredible!"
John Wall no longer knew how to describe Blake. From disliking him at first to now recognizing and admiring him, Wall was going further and further down the path of becoming a Blake fanboy.
"What an amazing rookie!"
Even Michael Jordan could not help praising him.
"Batman" Pippen patted Jordan's thigh and laughed. "Honestly, I think Blake's rookie season is better than yours was."
"Heh."
Jordan smiled and said, "In the past, I definitely would've argued with you over that. But now, I think so too."
"Hahaha!"
Across the stands.
"Beautiful!"
Yi Jianlian clenched his fist and roared. Seeing the Suns' dream start and their lead, he was extremely happy right now.
Because the Suns had the advantage.
Yao Ming also looked delighted and laughed. "That's right, that's right. That's the rhythm. That's how they need to play. Blake, don't drag this out anymore.
Tonight is the night.
Beat the Lakers, advance to the Western Conference Finals, and lead a team farther in the playoffs than I ever did."
In the seats diagonally below.
Klay Thompson said to the friend beside him, "Stephen Curry's three is so accurate. I think... one day, I'll be just as accurate as him."
"Please."
His friend curled his lip and said, "Being better than Curry would only be half of it. If you can shoot threes better than Blake, then that would really be impressive."
"Is that so?"
Klay answered, and his gaze immediately fixed on Blake.
And right below Klay Thompson, Kyrie Irving frowned. "Kobe has to bring it tonight. He has to win.
His opponent is just a rookie.
I absolutely believe he can beat him. This year, he has to win the championship again and build a 'Purple and Gold Dynasty' that belongs to him alone."
At the same time.
In the fifth row.
"Yeah!"
"They're up 10 right at the start. The Suns have a great chance of winning and advancing tonight. Blake already has 4 points, and he even had that dunk.
He's playing really well.
Everything is moving in a good direction for the Suns."
Yoona smiled brightly.
At this moment, with that happy smile, she was simply acting like a fan. But in Jessica's eyes, Yoona looked no different from a girl completely lovestruck.
"It doesn't really matter whether the Suns are doing well. As long as your Blake is playing well, that's what matters most."
"Right, my Blake..."
Yoona was smiling as she said it, then suddenly reacted. She glared at Jessica and scolded, "Jessica, you're teasing me!"
"Haha, I'm not. You just exposed your own feelings."
The Suns' dream start put Yoona and Jessica in a good mood, and during the break, they laughed and bickered with each other.
In fact, the atmosphere at home really was great. Just as Yoona had said, with the situation as it was now, everything good seemed to be tilting toward the Suns.
Everything.
It all seemed to suggest that the Suns would win tonight and advance.
However.
Above Yoona and Jessica, in the tenth row, Mia Quinn did not have a smile on her face right now. Instead, she looked a little uncomfortable.
Actually, before coming over, she had caught a cold. She should have been resting, but she really wanted to come to the arena and cheer for Blake in person.
That was why she was here now.
On the court.
Soon.
The timeout ended.
"Swish!"
With a screen from Pau Gasol, Kobe knocked down a three.
The timeout worked immediately, stopping the bleeding for the Lakers.
But... the entire Suns team was in good form tonight. Frye's rim protection, Curry's three-point shooting, George's defense.
Everyone was doing his job well.
For a while, the Suns' role players were matching the Lakers on both ends of the floor.
On top of that, the most important point was Blake.
Against Artest's defense, Blake scored on drives, scored with dunks, and scored in the post.
If Artest had only struggled to contain Blake in the previous games, then tonight, Blake was simply destroying him.
Back and forth.
The Suns had already opened with a dream 10-0 start, and by the end of the first quarter, they were leading by a full 13 points.
"Boom!"
The home arena erupted with thunderous cheers and shouts.
That surging momentum gave the Suns complete control of the court. It also seemed to suggest that if things continued like this, the lead would only keep growing.
Fortunately.
During the bench battle in the second quarter, "Left-Handed Magic Johnson" Odom stepped up. In the brief three minutes that Kobe rested, he led the Lakers to cut the deficit by 4 points.
"Beep, beep!"
Alvin Gentry called a timeout.
The Suns' starters returned early, and the Lakers' starters came back as well. Odom stayed on the floor in Fisher's place.
But in less than half a quarter, the Suns, still playing well across the board, pushed the lead back to 13 points again. Even worse, the Lakers fell into a scoring drought.
The situation instantly became tense for the Lakers.
"Whoosh!"
Blake accelerated with the ball, looking at Artest as he drove into the lane and attacked the rim.
"Thump!"
Artest bent his knees and leaped high, swatting the ball away with one hand.
A clean block?
"Beep, beep!"
But the referee blew the whistle and signaled a foul for contact on the arm.
"What?!"
Artest, who was convinced it had been a clean block, instantly got angry. He charged toward the referee to argue, but the referee ignored him.
"Tch."
Artest snorted coldly and swallowed his anger.
"Swish!"
Blake made the first free throw.
The second?
"Clang!"
It missed.
The rebound?
Bynum saw his chance, jumped high, and secured the board. But...
"Beep, beep!"
The referee blew the whistle again, calling Bynum for pushing Frye early under the basket. The rebound he had already grabbed was handed right back.
"I didn't! I didn't, ref!"
Bynum spread his hands, looking innocent as he argued with the referee, but the referee ignored him.
The Lakers had been hit with two straight foul calls. Without those calls, a swing in the other direction might have allowed them to cut the deficit to 8 points, or even more.
For the Lakers, who were trailing big, that was crucial.
But now... all of it was gone. For the Lakers, this was terrible.
"Tch!"
"Hmph!"
Artest and Bynum were both extremely unhappy inside. And it was not just the two of them. The entire Lakers team, down by a wide margin, was frustrated, and the anger in their hearts was burning.
Even though nothing had really happened yet.
The tension on the court was getting thicker and thicker.