On the other side of the arena, the Thunder trio were watching from the stands.
"Man..."
Westbrook clicked his tongue. "Miami's defense is terrifying, especially the Heat Big Three. Aside from Blake, they can basically shut down any Suns player one-on-one.
"And once they send a double-team, they're almost guaranteed to force a turnover."
"Exactly."
Harden nodded. "Defense turning into fast breaks. That's Miami's most dangerous weapon.
"It makes Phoenix struggle to score while also forcing them into mistake after mistake.
"That's one of the reasons Blake can be playing this well and the Suns can still be down 8.
"And there's another factor.
"LeBron was way off in Game 1, while Curry and George both played above their usual level.
"Tonight, LeBron is back to normal, while Curry and George are playing more or less as expected.
"That's another reason the gap has opened up."
"Right."
Westbrook nodded. "Phoenix is still a one-star team, and they're facing the villainous Heat Big Three.
"If your own guys don't suddenly explode and the other team doesn't make mistakes, winning is going to be really difficult.
"Right, Kevin?"
Westbrook turned to get Durant's opinion.
But Kevin Durant didn't answer.
Or rather, he didn't have time to answer.
His eyes were fixed on a beautiful woman sitting not far away.
Who else could it be?
Scarlett.
"She's gorgeous."
Durant stared openly as he said it, making absolutely no attempt to hide how attracted he was to her.
Anyone watching could tell exactly why KD was really there.
Westbrook glanced at him, shook his head, and sighed.
"So he didn't come here to watch basketball at all."
"Heh."
Harden chuckled and raised an eyebrow.
"Who says he didn't? Kevin absolutely came here to watch some ball."
"Huh?"
Westbrook froze for a second.
Then he got the joke and burst out laughing.
"Good one. Good one!"
The Spurs' Big Three, the Thunder trio, and the other neutral stars in attendance were relaxed, chatting and joking as they watched.
The Suns fans, however, were starting to feel uneasy.
The same was true on the Phoenix bench.
Blake, Nash, and the rest of the Suns knew they weren't playing badly tonight.
But they were still behind.
That was worrying.
Gentry clapped his hands.
"You guys are doing fine, but we're facing the Heat Big Three. The evil villains.
"If we want to win, we have to play even better."
"Yeah!"
Everyone nodded.
They knew it too.
Before long, the break ended and the second quarter began.
The bench units came out first.
Miami kept "Flash" Wade on the floor to lead the second unit, while Phoenix countered by bringing in Curry.
Wade against Curry?
One was a former scoring champion and Finals MVP, the unquestioned leader of a championship-caliber team.
The other was only in his second season and had been the second option both with Golden State and now Phoenix.
There was simply no comparison.
Even with Carter on the floor, Phoenix couldn't keep up.
In just 3 minutes and 11 seconds, "Flash" Wade's relentless offense pushed Miami's lead from 8 to 12.
"Whether Miami rests LeBron or Wade, or even both at the same time, they still have someone capable of carrying the second unit.
"Phoenix is completely different.
"The moment Blake goes to the bench, the Suns instantly become ordinary."
"That's the advantage of having multiple superstars.
"When your number one option rests, you still have someone else on the floor who can lead the team.
"And that's also the difficulty of building around a single star.
"I think Phoenix has to call timeout, bring Blake back early, and let him stabilize the offense."
Sure enough...
"Beep!"
Gentry immediately called timeout and brought his starters back earlier than planned.
Miami responded by sending in Bosh and Chalmers, while LeBron remained on the bench.
That left Blake facing "Flash" Wade.
Offensively, Wade couldn't stop Blake.
Defensively, Blake had only been able to slow Wade somewhat during the regular season.
But after acquiring [Gary Payton Defense], he could now more or less contain Wade one-on-one.
The problem was that Miami still had Bosh.
As one of the top five, perhaps even top three, power forwards in the Eastern Conference, "CB4" was simply too much for Frye.
George, still only a rookie, struggled with him too.
So the two teams remained locked in a tight battle.
But after several minutes, LeBron returned.
Once Miami's full starting lineup was back on the floor, the balance broke again.
[Defense into transition offense].
The Heat continued using their overwhelming athleticism to pressure Phoenix.
LeBron against Blake.
Wade against Curry.
Bosh against George.
Blake could switch onto any member of the Heat Big Three and hold his own.
But no matter which matchup he took, the other two Suns were still at a major disadvantage.
This season was originally supposed to be the Mavericks' championship year.
And Dallas had three major reasons they were able to beat Miami.
First, "The German Wunderkind" Nowitzki had unstoppable individual offense.
Second, the Mavericks had a complete roster that could contribute at both ends.
Third, role players like "The Jet" Terry and Barea stepped up with huge performances.
It took all three of those things together for Dallas to beat Miami.
And even then, it wasn't a one-sided series.
Phoenix was also a one-star team.
They had Blake, essentially an upgraded version of Nowitzki.
But they didn't have the other two factors.
That meant winning would be extremely difficult unless Curry and George exploded the way they had in Game 1 while "King James" LeBron struggled from start to finish.
This was the NBA Finals.
More precisely, it was a stage where superstars could impose themselves at any moment.
For young players like Curry and George, simply staying composed and playing at their normal level under Finals pressure was already impressive.
Expecting them to erupt and carry the team to victory was almost impossible.
So right now, Phoenix had only one player it could truly depend on.
Blake.
Miami had three.
Blake scored another 11 points in the second quarter.
By halftime, he had 26 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks.
And yet Phoenix still trailed by 14.
...
At halftime, inside the Suns' locker room, Curry sat there with his baby face flushed, catching his breath as he shook his head.
"So this is the league's second-best shooting guard.
"He's brutal on both ends.
"I can't guard him."
George frowned as well.
"Bosh is so steady. High-post mid-range jumpers, hook shots, floaters after attacking laterally from the low post. Everything's working for him.
"And then there's LeBron.
"That guy's physical tools are ridiculous.
"I just can't hold him."
Tonight, George had taken turns guarding LeBron and Bosh.
Neither matchup had gone well.
Blake had also switched onto both of them and done a solid job.
But whenever he shut down one, the other would get loose.
It amounted to the same thing.
Offensively, Blake had poured in 26 points in one half on the Finals stage.
But Miami had three stars.
Their combined firepower was simply greater.
Blake couldn't carry the Suns by himself.
...
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