The next day.
Early morning.
[Suns vs. Heat]
[Superhero vs. Supervillains]
These two headlines spread wildly through every major news outlet, and online discussion about tonight's game reached its peak.
"It's here! It's finally here! The league is bringing us the Suns versus Heat showdown!"
"LeBron, Wade, and Bosh. The best small forward in the league, the second-best shooting guard in the league, and an All-Star-level power forward.
Putting those three together to form the Heat Big Three is just unfair.
What a bunch of annoying guys."
"Exactly. Last summer, 'King James' LeBron ignored all the criticism, went all the way to Miami, brought in 'CB4' Bosh, and teamed up with 'Flash' Wade to form the 'Heat Big Three.'
Their existence.
It's even more frustrating than when Pierce, Garnett, and Ray Allen, already past their peaks, formed a Big Three back then.
Their existence.
They're like comic-book supervillains, built to target the entire league and forcibly snatch the NBA championship. It's irritating. It makes people angry.
But.
The helpless part is that no matter how angry or annoyed people are, they really are strong. If you can't beat them, all you can do is watch those villains tear through team after team.
Seriously.
I really hope a superhero steps forward and beats those evil supervillains.
But... it doesn't seem possible. Whether it's the Spurs, the defending champion Lakers, or the Magic, none of them seem able to stop them.
For a while, it felt hopeless.
But now it's different. The sudden rise of 'Monster Rookie' Blake Su and the powerful emergence of the 'strongest dark horse,' the Suns, have given us hope.
The Suns have put together two 20-plus-game winning streaks this season.
They absolutely have a chance. They absolutely might become the superheroes who wipe out the 'Heat Big Three,' those evil comic-book supervillains."
"That's right."
"I support the Suns. I believe in them unconditionally. I believe in our superhero... Blake Su!"
"Heh, aren't you getting carried away?"
"You know the 'Heat Big Three' are comic-book supervillains, right? That means they're unbeatable. That means they're an existence no one can defeat.
They were born for the playoffs. They were born for the championship.
The regular season? That's just small stuff. That's just them going through the motions. As long as they get serious, there's no way they lose.
Now.
The Suns versus Heat matchup has already become the talk of the town.
I think the Heat will definitely take tonight seriously. Then the answer is obvious. Victory will belong to the 'Heat Big Three,' not the 'rookie' Blake Su.
Still.
For a rookie, Blake Su being able to create this much hype around a matchup with the 'Heat Big Three' proves one thing: his talent and strength are undeniable.
But.
That belongs to the future. The future of the league might belong to Blake Su, this 'super rookie,' but right now, the league belongs to the 'Heat Big Three.'
So.
There's no suspense in this game. The winner will definitely be the Heat."
"Hmph. On one side, you have a first-year rookie. On the other, you have a superteam with two All-Star starters and another All-Star.
The gap is obvious.
The Suns are strong, sure, but that was before they ran into the Heat."
"..."
Before tonight's game had even arrived, the debate over who was stronger, the Suns or the Heat, had already exploded. It had almost reached the point where everyone was talking about it.
And after days of promotion and hype.
Tonight's Suns versus Heat game, the ultimate showdown between superhero and supervillains, had already become a nationwide live broadcast event, the hottest regular-season matchup of the entire season.
For this game.
Students skipped evening study sessions, or sat in study halls secretly watching the stream on their phones.
Workers gave up double overtime pay, or if they had no choice but to work late, they prepared to keep switching screens at the office.
Bosses, executives, and freelancers were willing to pay two, three, or even more times the usual ticket price just to watch the game live.
Just to see this matchup that was guaranteed to be explosive.
In short.
More than seventy percent of basketball fans, maybe even more, were doing everything they could to watch this game, this ultimate showdown that felt like a preview of the Finals.
"Boom!"
All day long, almost every basketball-related news topic was filled with talk of the Suns versus Heat matchup. Fans could not wait for it.
And.
It was not just the fans. Front offices from teams across the league were also watching this game closely.
As for the Heat, no team had any doubts. LeBron, Wade, and Bosh together formed a lineup whose strength was unquestionable. They were absolutely terrifying.
So.
They wanted to see whether the Suns, who had also been surging lately and looked unstoppable, this team led by the young power of Blake Su and Curry,
could still win when facing the seasoned and powerful "Big Three."
They wanted to see whether "Monster Rookie" Blake Su could keep charging forward without fear, ignore every superstar in the league, and lead his team to victory.
Everyone was watching.
8:00 p.m.
There was still an hour and a half before the game.
But US Airways Center was already almost packed. Nearly every seat was filled, and the arena was roaring with noise.
When the Suns and Heat players came onto the court to warm up,
and the fans saw Blake Su, Curry, Nash, LeBron, Wade, Bosh, and the others, they could not hold back their excitement and burst into loud cheers.
Just looking at those lineups was enough to imagine how incredible tonight's game would be.
At the commentary desk.
"Hehe!"
Jeff Van Gundy laughed excitedly. "Superhero versus supervillains. This battle... this is a huge one. An absolute ultimate showdown!
It's going to be amazing.
It's definitely going to be explosive.
Especially since this is the first meeting of the season between these two teams with their current lineups. There isn't even any real data to analyze which side is stronger.
So.
The suspense is there from the very beginning. We won't know anything until the game actually tips off."
"That's right."
Mike Breen was just as fired up. "A lot of people may not want to admit it, but in my view, this highly anticipated matchup between the Suns and the Heat
really does feel like a preview of the Finals.
This is truly a clash between powerhouses.
So will the villainous Heat continue running wild through the league, or will the Suns become the superheroes, take down the villains, and tell the league that justice will prevail?
Let's wait and see!"
...
...
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