"This isn’t me."

During halftime, Chen Yu held a jar of Vaseline, helping Hardaway apply it to the cuts on his shoulder.

Someone hadn’t cut their nails and had left three scratch marks.

But it was also a testament to how intense the defense on Hardaway had been.

"What?" Chen Yu paused and looked up to ask.

Hardaway was sitting down, seeming a bit absent-minded, lost in thought.

Hearing Chen Yu’s question, Hardaway snapped out of it and quickly shook his head. "It’s nothing."

Chen Yu frowned. He felt that Hardaway was a little different today, as if something was weighing heavily on his mind.

"Go on, and be careful out there." Chen Yu patted Hardaway’s shoulder, then turned to tend to Olajuwon.

The old-timer had only rested for three minutes in the first half. On top of that, starting in the second quarter, he had been constantly helping on defense against Nowitzki. He was really giving it his all.

But he didn’t complain. With Ewing unexpectedly suspended, he knew he had to shoulder more responsibility.

He quietly activated a Silver Level rehabilitation effect. After a thorough massage, Olajuwon moved around a bit and gave Chen Yu a thumbs-up.

Chen Yu just smiled nonchalantly. Turning his head, he noticed Ewing.

Dressed in a suit, he looked a little out of place. He wasn’t talking to his teammates, just sitting silently in his spot with his chin in his hand, lost in thought.

Chen Yu wasn’t in a hurry. It wouldn’t be too late to talk to him after the game.

"Get the ball to Anfernee!"

With that one quick command, Skiles set the tone for the Phoenix Suns’ strategy in the second half.

Hardaway was in such great form; who else would they give the ball to?

But upon hearing this, Hardaway, standing in the middle of the group, frowned slightly.

In the first half, he had played with extreme decisiveness, channeling the unstoppable aura of Jordan, an attitude that said, ’No one can stop me from scoring’.

And he had delivered, efficiently dropping 27 points in the half.

But Hardaway felt it wasn’t enough. He felt this wasn’t the complete version of himself.

’Yes, I can score, and I can score a lot.’

But Hardaway preferred to pass, or rather, to create opportunities for his teammates and lead the team to victory.

More than personal scoring, Hardaway craved victory.

He would do anything for a win.

When a teammate had a hot hand, he was willing to pass, play defense, fight for rebounds, and do the dirty work.

When his teammates were cold and struggling, he was willing to step up and score, and no one could stop him.

Hardaway felt that this was the real him, and it was what he did best.

Before he could think about it any further, Skiles was already calling for everyone to head out onto the court.

The ball was in Hardaway’s hands right away.

The moment he secured it, Nahula was already lunging at him eagerly.

During halftime, Old Nelson had rambled on and on, but the core message was simple: they couldn’t let Hardaway score anymore.

He scanned everyone with his peripheral vision. His teammates had all spread out, holding their positions, waiting for him to make a play.

But Hardaway felt something was off. ’This should be a great opportunity for a cut.’

Hardaway shot a quick glance at Marion and started to move, faking a drive by pulling the ball to his left. He used Finley to screen the lunging Nahula.

Nahula cursed under his breath, pushing past Finley to lunge forward.

’Huh? Where’s the ball?’

Nahula froze. The ball was gone from the hands of Hardaway, who had just spun to put his back to him.

A loud CLANG echoed from behind him.

He whipped his head around to see Marion hanging from the rim with one arm, having completed a cut for a thunderous dunk.

’What just happened?’

Nahula was a little dazed.

A collective gasp went through the stands.

On the sidelines, Chen Yu grinned. ’That play was a real showstopper.’

Hardaway faked the drive, used Finley to block Nahula, then spun back around. But while his body came back, the ball didn’t. It was unclear how he had flung the ball behind him, but the pass was perfect, landing right in the hands of the cutting Marion.

But in Chen Yu’s memory, Hardaway was exactly the kind of player who could always deliver such imaginative, out-of-this-world passes.

On the next possession, Hardaway was at it again.

Knowing it would be hard to get open, he used a screen from Olajuwon to receive the pass and immediately drove to the basket.

Lafrentz immediately left Olajuwon and converged on Hardaway.

Even Nowitzki did the same, rushing over to help on defense at the first opportunity.

The two of them swarmed Hardaway, covering him like a blanket.

At that moment, without looking, Hardaway flicked the ball behind his head.

Olajuwon, who had cut to the basket, arrived just in time, tipping the ball into the hoop mid-air.

On the sideline, Old Nelson, who had just sat down, couldn’t help but stand up again and walk to the edge of the court, his brow furrowed into deep lines.

He realized the Mavericks were caught in a dilemma.

If they double-teamed Hardaway too aggressively, he would start passing. His ball-handling was excellent, and with his array of subtle moves, he could always get the ball into an open space.

But if they loosened the double-team even slightly, Hardaway would start scoring again.

What was even more deadly was that Hardaway wasn’t just passing and scoring. He was also playing defense, looking for steals, and constantly crashing the paint for rebounds.

He was simply everywhere.

Old Nelson was astonished to find that Hardaway, all by himself, had brought the Phoenix Suns’ offense and defense to life.

Even more damning, Old Nelson realized he had no way to contain Hardaway.

In the third quarter, Hardaway only scored 6 points, but he also grabbed 5 rebounds, dished out 6 assists, and completed two steals, filling up his stat sheet.

"We’re done for."

Old Nelson glanced up at the score, and a chill ran down his spine.

In that single quarter, the Phoenix Suns’ offense exploded from all cylinders, racking up a high of 33 points. Their defense was also outstanding, holding the Mavericks to just 24 points.

The lead had already widened to 16 points.

With only one quarter left, and the Phoenix Suns playing like this, how could the Mavericks possibly catch up?

If they lost this game, they’d be down 0-2. Even with the next game at the Mavericks’ home court, with Hardaway in this form and Ewing returning, how could the Mavericks possibly win?

In the blink of an eye, Hardaway caught the ball and shot it right over Finley.

The basketball pierced the net like an arrow through the heart. A three-pointer!

The lead stretched to 20 points.

With only half a quarter left to play, a deficit like this was simply despair-inducing.

Old Nelson slumped back into his seat. He just couldn’t figure it out. Without Ewing, it seemed like they should have had a real chance to win this game.

But not only did they not win, they lost even more badly than in the last game.

to 99.

The final buzzer sounded, freezing the score. The entire US Airways Center erupted into a sea of celebration.

"I have a feeling we’re going to advance to the second round," Nelson said, getting up and clapping along with the crowd.

Chen Yu clapped as well, nodding in agreement.

With a 2-0 lead and the way the Phoenix Suns were playing now, they couldn’t possibly lose both away games, right?

"Anfernee was in incredible form today," Chen Yu said, looking over at Hardaway, who was being interviewed by reporters.

He played 44 minutes, and although his scoring decreased in the second half, he still put up a massive 41 points, just one point shy of his personal record.

But at the same time, Hardaway also put up an incredibly well-rounded stat line of 7 rebounds, 11 assists, and 4 steals.

Nelson nodded in agreement. Hardaway was without a doubt the biggest reason the Phoenix Suns won today.

"Oh, right." Nelson remembered something. "Are you traveling with the team for the next away game?"

Chen Yu usually didn’t travel with the team for away games.

But that was during the regular season. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Now that it was the playoffs, surely he would travel with them?

Chen Yu wanted to go, but he couldn’t get away from the clinic.

Xiaobei, Gerrard, and Pires were all waiting for his treatment.

Especially Xiaobei. He had promised Eriksson he would have him back by May 20th. The two away games meant being gone for several days, which would cause significant delays.

And it wasn’t just the clinic; Chen Yu had other things to attend to.

The National Team had an exhibition game, and Chen Yu didn’t even know if he would have time to go.

Also, with the regular season over, the draft was starting.

Chen Yu had already received news that at the end of the month, Stern was preparing to hold a private workout for Yao Ming. Chen Yu would most likely have to be there to assess Yao Ming’s physical condition.

So he was worried he wouldn’t be able to get away.

"We’ll see. I’m not sure yet," Chen Yu said, shaking his head.

In truth, the biggest help he could be by traveling with the team was relaxing Olajuwon and the others’ bodies during halftime.

Beyond that, his help was limited.

Nelson said, "Oh," his gaze landing on Ewing, who had already headed back to the locker room. He quickly added, "Patrick is back in the locker room. Do you want to go talk to him?"

Chen Yu turned his head and realized Ewing had already left.

Everyone else was still on the court.

"I’ll go check on him."

Chen Yu immediately squeezed through the crowd.

Back in the locker room, Ewing was silently packing his bag.

Chen Yu walked over, about to speak. He had planned to say something like, ’See? You can trust your teammates. They can win without you.’ But Ewing spoke first.

"Chen, don’t say anything."

Ewing cut Chen Yu off with a bitter smile. "I know I was too impulsive last game. I should have trusted them. Look how well Hardaway played today; he’s the one who helped us win. I shouldn’t have yelled at him like that last game. Don’t worry, I’ll find a chance to apologize to him."

Chen Yu was taken aback. ’Well, there goes the speech I had prepared. A complete waste.’

Ewing continued, "Chen, you must be really disappointed in me. You probably think I’m a real asshole, right? That’s why you don’t want to talk to me. I’m sorry. I was just too anxious. I don’t want to lose. Don’t worry, I know what I have to do now. Next game, I’ll give it my all."

He picked up his bag and came over to give Chen Yu a hug.

"Chen, thank you. You’ve given me another chance to chase a championship."

Ewing let go of Chen Yu, quietly clenching his fist.

’This time, I’ll die trying to seize this opportunity.’

With a grin, Ewing walked briskly out of the locker room.

Chen Yu stood there motionless for a moment. ’Looks like there’s nothing left to say.’

Just as he was thinking this, Nelson pushed the door open and came in.

He poked his head in, didn’t see Ewing, and asked, "Chen, where’s Patrick?"

Just as Chen Yu was about to answer, his phone vibrated.

He pulled it out and saw it was a call from Beckham.

"What’s up, David?" Chen Yu answered the call.

’Why is he calling me so late at night?’

On the phone, Beckham said urgently, "Sorry to bother you, Chen. I saw your game just finished on TV, so I called. It’s about my teammate, Gary Neville. He got injured during the Champions League match a few hours ago."

Chen Yu didn’t recognize the name, but since he was Beckham’s teammate, the urgency was understandable. "I’m sorry to hear that. That’s terrible news. Where is he injured?"

’He must be calling to ask for my help with treatment again.’

Beckham’s tone turned strange. "It’s so bizarre. I feel like we’re cursed. He injured the exact same place I did—a metatarsal fracture in his left foot."

"Huh?"

Chen Yu was stunned too. ’What a coincidence. A metatarsal fracture, too?’