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Chapter 223 - 121. Victory!

Chapter 223: 121. Victory!

The Bobcats began to aggressively double-team Wade, using team defense to create fast break opportunities and slowly increasing their lead.

When the players lost their cool, all Riley could do was watch, even that coach with nine championships would be in the same predicament.

He recognized Wade’s intention without sensing anything amiss; it was a good way to start the game. Payton loved to do the same in his youth, as did that all-knowing lifelong love of his.

But Riley did not expect that rookie to score four consecutive baskets under the alternating defense from Payton and Wade!

At that point, Wade’s immaturity showed up, his eyes saw nothing else but the basket, craving to score to save face.

To Riley, no matter how well Wade performed individually after that, it was hard to really save face in this regard. Facing a 17-year-old rookie, he had already lost decisively, just like the ’high schooler showdown’ between Zhang Yang and Kobe in the All-Star Game. No matter how poorly Zhang Yang played in the subsequent three rounds, the first three were enough to be relished by the fans.

However, he did not stop it, knowing that Wade needed to vent right now and any forced intervention would backfire.

It was still an issue of the bigger environment. Compared to his peers, Wade was already quite mature, but compared to those players from the ’80s and ’90s who became the core of an NBA team upon entry, he still fell short.

These days, there were no conditions forcing young stars to mature quickly. Not just Wade—even that guy from Los Angeles, after so many years, was still the same, only he was even more ferocious, scoring more than the entire opposing team on a whim.

On the other hand, the rookie surprised Riley!

After being provoked with a ’throat-slash,’ Zhang Yang scored and responded decisively, ending the one-on-one and letting Felton, who was in a more advantageous position, take the lead. He also actively used the mid-range shots he drew out to help his teammates score... No wonder Wade lost his temper, but Bickerstaff had no intention of subbing the rookie out early.

Riley thought of James Worthy, whom they had drafted with the first overall pick...

At the end of the first quarter, the score was 32 to 24, with the Bobcats leading by 8 points!

Though O’Neal’s appearance didn’t stop Wade from continuing to force his way, it wasn’t without effect. The rim protection deterrence increased, and when Wade drove in, O’Neal would close in on the paint, attracting defensive attention and creating more space for Wade. If not for this, the deficit could’ve been even larger.

During the halftime break, Wade, seeing an 8-point deficit, finally calmed down. Having spent three years in college before entering the NBA, he was much more mature than a certain guard in the West, who, when down by 14 points at halftime, knew only to bullheadedly continue his efforts, scoring over 80 points and setting a bad example for the kids.

An apology was out of the question, but Wade took the initiative to discuss with his teammates how to play in the second quarter, essentially having ’I’m wrong’ written all over his face.

O’Neal, seeing Wade calm down, felt heartened but also a bit melancholic...

After the break, the second quarter began with the Bobcats on offense. Okafor received the ball, turned, and made his way to the baseline, avoiding Mourning’s block and making a close-range jump shot, extending their lead to 10 points.

When the Heat had the ball, Wade still looked set on overpowering the opposition. He got past Bernard Robinson and into the paint, encountering Gerald Wallace’s help defense... He passed!

Gerald Wallace immediately knew he’d been faked out. During the break, little brother Jack had told him that Wade might not force his play in the second quarter. He trusted the judgment of Jack who had gotten into North Carolina purely through grades, but for the first possession, he had to hedge—just in case, right?

However, Wade, having faked his opponent and passed the ball in the blink of an eye, grimaced upon seeing the receiver’s action.

Anthony Walker didn’t shoot immediately after catching the ball but instead dribbled forward, stepped back beyond the three-point line, jumped, and shot... and it went in!

The assist was gone like that, but at least the basket was made. Wade thought to himself, forget it, the guy took a pay cut to come here; why demand so much?

to 34, the gap narrowed to 7 points, with Wade leading the Miami Heat’s counterattack!

The first half of the quarter’s offense wasn’t particularly fierce; with O’Neal resting off-court, the Heat just kept the gap tight between 5 to 10 points. In the latter half, when O’Neal came on, they put on a performance that had the fans chanting "OWOWOWO" and rapidly closed the gap!

Zhang Yang, Felton, and Perkins came on in the latter part of the quarter too, but along with Gerald Wallace and Okafor, they couldn’t stop the opposing team’s rapid scoring.

Even at 34, the full-on attacking power of the ’Shaq’ was formidable!

Fortunately, they were resilient enough. No matter how hard they were hammered, even if their lead was surpassed, they still took every possession seriously, playing both offense and defense properly.

Finally, as the first half was drawing to a close, the Bobcats’ opportunity arrived!

First, Felton made a step-back two-pointer over Wade, then O’Neal missed a layup and Zhang Yang grabbed the rebound, pushing the fast break. On the way, he passed to Gerald Wallace, who then passed, and the trailing Okafor made the layup.

At halftime, with a 4 to 0 run in the closing moments, the Bobcats regained a 54 to 52 lead to enter the break.

The Miami Heat made a strong showing in the second quarter, at one point outscoring with a 28 to 18 margin. Even though they were overtaken in the end, they still managed to bring the game back to a level playing field.

But Riley felt no joy at all.

On O’Neal’s last play, even a layup attempt after pushing off Perkins bounced out; the opponent seized the chance for a counterattack. It was clear his stamina was failing.